Product category:
Special purpose joining equipment
News Release from: Henkel Loctite Adhesives | Subject: Colophony free solder
Edited by the Manufacturingtalk Editorial
Team on 10 August 2001
Colophony free solder is environmentally
friendly
When Henkel Loctite Adhesives introduced its new Multicore colophony free solders, Matsushita was one of the first companies to evaluate its suitability for the manual soldering operations.
Matsushita Electric (UK) is a company that takes environmental issues seriously Better known for its Panasonic and Technics brands, it has a worldwide 'Green' product policy that encourages the efficient use of energy, 100% recycling of materials and the elimination of harmful substances like halogens, CFCs and lead
This article was originally published on Manufacturingtalk on 26 Jun 2001 at 8.00am (UK)
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Its modern plant at Cardiff is leading this environmental challenge, so when Henkel Loctite Adhesives introduced its new Multicore range of colophony free solders, Matsushita was one of the first companies to evaluate its suitability for the manual soldering operations on its printed circuit board production lines.
Conventional solders contain rosin, a naturally occurring, resinous substance that has excellent physical and chemical properties for the soldering process.
However, rosin is the source of fumes, called colophony, that are produced during the soldering process.
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The new range of Multicore colophony free solder products from Henkel Loctite Adhesives, is fully synthetic and contains no rosin or modified rosin.
The flux activation system is engineered to provide a product with superior performance to conventional rosin based products.
It has a high activity with no dewetting and is suitable for fast and sustained soldering on copper and brass surfaces.
Its formulation is non-corrosive and its low odour distinguishes it from rosin-based products.
Colophony free solder is available in a range of alloys and wire diameters to suit a wide variety of applications.
It performs as a conventional solder product and provides a better working environment.
The Panasonic factory in Cardiff manufactures Colour TVs, Digital Set- top boxes and Microwave Ovens, for use throughout Europe.
Printed circuit boards are loaded with components and wave soldered using an automated process.
However, there are some components that cannot be soldered this way and a series of stations allows operators using conventional soldering irons to solder these devices manually.
Other areas in the plant also use manual soldering, including the product development and rework areas.
As with any new process, there were some concerns about changing to the colophony free product.
The integrity of a soldered joint on the PCB is critical and Quality Control carried out an exhaustive evaluation of the mechanical strength and electrical conductivity of the new joints.
There were no reported problems and no changes were required to the equipment used or the operator techniques.
Mark Williams, Process Engineer at Matsushita, said: "The changeover to colophony free solder was quick and straightforward.
It was completed as part of our environmental policy and was made without increasing costs.
With a colour TV having over 3000 soldered joints, the consistency and reliability of the Multicore product has been proven many times over.
An unexpected benefit is that the filters with the fume extract equipment last 50% longer since the changeover and as these are expensive to replace, moving to the new product has actually reduced our total cost." The UK Health and Safety Executive is encouraging companies to change to colophony free products, to reduce an operator's exposure to solder fumes.
Manufacturers with soldering processes have to reassess their COSHH procedures, to ensure that the limits proposed in 1997 on the maximum exposure to soldering fumes are not exceeded.
Manual soldering and rework are considered to pose the greatest risk of direct inhalation of solder fumes.
This is usually caused by non- existent or poorly designed fume extraction equipment or even correctly installed equipment that has not been switched on.
It is also important that operators are properly trained in both production and safety related matters.
Mark Williams concludes, "We have made the Multicore colophony free solder standard in all our production units.
With a target of 1.6 million TV sets next year its good to know we have a product that provides excellent performance and real environmental benefits, without adding to our costs." Multicore colophony free solder products are available from electronics suppliers and catalogue distributors including RS Components.
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