Controlling Copper Build Up In Automatic Soldering Equipment

Since "nothing solders like solder", HAL (Hot Air Leveling) will continue to hold a significant place in the surface finishing industry. Furthermore, the wave soldering process will continue to be a viable means of electronics assembly. However, as automatic soldering processes using lead-free alloys have become increasingly prevalent, questions have arisen about copper dissolution into these alloys. The first part of this study was to determine if there is any significant difference between Sn/Ag/Cu alloys when used in automatic soldering equipment in terms of copper build-up in the system. The second part of this experiment was to determine how to effectively control copper build-up in automatic soldering equipment. Yet another issue is that there is not yet an agreed upon industry specification for lead-free pot maintenance. Clearly, this will be needed as a guideline for the users of these alloys. To accomplish this, a specification is proposed based upon these experiments.

[Read More...]