LATEST TREND IN SOLDERING

By SURENDER SINGH

INTRODUCTION

1. An ideal flux must bind effectively to make sound solder joints and leave the minimal amount of residue after soldering. The no-clean flux fulfills both these requirements. 2. Soldering, the art of connecting in-dividual objects, is an age-old procedure. However, latest innovations stress more on the use of ecofriendly materials besides the use of the best physical and chemical components, especially that of the fluxes, for better results and greater compatibility. 3. In a quest to find more eco-friendly materials, research organisations worldwide laid emphasis on the elimination of ozonedepleting chemicals and started experimenting with a variety of new combinations with potential materials and alternative processes. In the process, researchers tumbled upon a more reliable form of soldering, better than the established conventional soldering process. The traditional process involved the use of rosin flux. 4. The landmark discovery in the field of soldering was the use of noclean flux for the soldering process. The main advantage being that it does away with the laborious post-solder, which requires the use of CFCs or costly solvents for cleaning. This process has helped in saving time and energy, compared to the age-old practice when soldering was done manually.

EVOLUTION
5. Earlier, acids, chlorides, etc were used in the soldering process. It was only a little later that automatic soldering was introduced. It required to develop a de-oxidising material to clean the individual units, which were to be soldered together. During the cleaning process, the foreign ingredients, left on the circuit board, were removed. This de-oxidising material also worked as a thermal insulation, which protected the base materials. Temperature-sensitive base materials like paper, phenols, etc required rosin in the fluxing system to act as a thermal insulation. Rosin served as an activator also. Before the actual soldering was done, the component parts were to be treated with a flux. The flux refers to a blend of chemicals such as rosin, resins activators, and a solvent system. 6. One of the advantages of applying flux was to activate the soldering joints to react with metal-oxides or non-metallic compounds, thereby cleaning them. Rosin was the commonly used flux as it has the advantage of increasing the chemical reactivity of the components at higher

temperatures, while it remains non-reactive at room temperature. Moreover, rosin was also noted for its binding properties and played a major role in holding the electronic components to the board, before they were soldered. In addition, it has good capillary properties, which make it all the more useful in soldering pin connections to trim capacitors, relays, and connectors. 7. It also helped in pin testing on the solder side, without much of a contact problem. Later, the industry started using another process for cleaning the flux residue from the assembled PCBs. However, due to certain solvent-resistant components and certain mounting with thermal paste and contact greases, which was not solvent-stable, the components could be mounted only after the first cleaning. This gave way to the use of water-soluble flux. Though it reduced the cost of production, it was very difficult to control the process and a complete removal of the flux residue was not possible. 8. Besides this, as the flux was soluble in water, even a slight condensation or humidity on the board was enough to dissolve the flux residue and start electromigration or metal corrosion. Researchers then attempted to minimise the amount of residue left after soldering. This was when they tumbled on No-clean flux, which is economically and practically feasible.

TO CLEAN OR NOT TO CLEAN

9. The main aim behind cleaning process is to remove foreign ingredients, left behind on the circuit board after soldering. The process also aids the cleaning of oxides and external contaminants like dust, grease, oil, etc, from the assembled boards. These foreign ingredients are considered harmful as they may hinder the efficacy of the solder joints and circuits, or interfere with subsequent processes such as testing or coating. 10. To eliminate cleaning process, the flux must bind effectively to make sound solder joints and leave the minimal amount of residue after soldering. The leftover residue should be translucent, aesthetically acceptable, and non-tacky, which will not interfere with the automatic pin-testing or impede subsequent coating. It should stay inert and not be influenced by changes in temperature, humidity, or voltage. Certain tests can be carried out to ensure these featuresthe solder ball test, surfaceinsulation resistance measurement, electromigration test, and visual examination of the residue left on the board. 11. There are three options available for production-floor operation:

(a)

To use a flux that can be adapted to existing soldering equipment and soldering under favourable conditions. To use a combination of no-clean flux and new or retrofitted soldering equipment. Reactive atmosphere is needed for this approach. To expect the soldering flux to have a fugitive composition that leaves no residue after soldering with the existing equipment.

(b)

(c)

12. A variety of designs, equipment, and performance requirements are available in board assemblies. But, there is no standard procedure that could be used universally. To get optimum results, there should be more coordination among the users, equipment manufacturers, and material manufacturers. Interaction between the user group and technical team is also vital in obtaining the optimum results.

REPLACING CFCs WITH SAFE CHEMICALS

13. The term flux commonly refers to a blend of chemicalsR-type, RA-type, RMA-type, SA-type, and water-soluble-typewhich are applied to the metal surface to react with metal oxides or non-metallic compounds and clean them away from the metal surface. Common metal surfaces that are soldered include Sn/Pb, Sn, Au, Ag/Pd, Au/Pt, and Ni. Each of these has its own associated fluxing chemistry. Rosin and its derivatives are very effective and reliable fluxes in electronic applications. 14. Rosin has a historically perceived link with chlorofluorocarbon (CFC) solvent. It delivers proper chemical reactivity at high temperatures and remains non-reactive at ambient room temperature. Moreover, rosin holds electronic components to the board prior to forming permanent solder joints. Fluxing can be possible in different ways. 15. The popular ways of fluxing include spraying, dipping, brushing, and foam fluxing. Gas-phase fluxing supplies a proper atmosphere to the soldering area. In the electronic packaging industry today, increasing circuit density, ozone-depleting CFCs, and meeting global competition are the main issues. In both technology and marketing, new developments continue to emerge.

16. In the soldering area, however, the utmost objective of achieving good solderability and reliable joints by means of the most effective operations remains the same. Under constraints imposed by CFC problem, and/or performance requirements demanded for fine-pitch ICs, the means to achieve this goal must be altered or developed. 17. The basic requirement to good solderability lies in a scientifically clear surface which is to be joined. Also, the cleanliness must be maintained during soldering, so that a metallic continuity at the interface can be achieved. This cleaning is known as fluxing and the material used is flux. Solder fluxes must provide good solderability and reliable solder joints. 18. But today, they must also look into the environmental issues concerning CFCs and the technology challenges of fine pitch devices. Fine pitch devices, like the 8-mil and 25-mil pitch chips carried on the assemblies, are difficult to clean. The solution may lie in no-clean fluxes or new fluxing technologies.

WATER WASHABLE FLUXS

19. Although water-soluble fluxes have been used in wave and structural soldering for years, their use in surface mounting and finepitch, hi-tech assembly is still in infancy. Cleanliness and reliability issues are still often raised. One major advantage of water-soluble flux is the easy washability of residues after soldering by water and no use of costly solvents of CFCs. But water-soluble flux also has its own limitations compared to conventional rosin-based flux, primarily due to the inherent nature of its active organic composition. 20. For instance, when the flux residue is not completely removed off from the board, it can be more harmful to long-term reliability than rosinbased flux residue. Water-based flux removal requires de-ionised pure water or the addition of saponifier to the water. Regulation and control of the amount of the additive determines the quality of cleaning results. Basically, leads in all devices are pre-tinned to assure good solderability. But after tinning, most of the components undergo the processes like lead forming, encapsulation, burn-in, etc, which degrade the quality of the leads surface and affect the solderability.

NO CLEAN FLUX

21. There is more stress for fluxes that minimise the use of CNC solvents. Cleaning under larger IC components on the denser solder pad patterns of surface-mount and fine-pitch technology needs to be done effectively. No-clean flux is the best answer to both these issues. From the users point of view, no-clean flux should leave the minimal amount of residue after soldering; ideally none. This residue should not interface with any in-circuit testing or automated pin testing or bed-of-nails testing. 22. Hard and non-tacky residue will not react with circuit of components under exposure to temperature, humidity, and bias. The flux should have the ability to flux effectively without solder ball formation. It should meet the cleanliness parameter requirements without having to clean after soldering. Due to various design and performance requirements in board assemblies, the acceptable amount of residue or the physical/chemical properties of the residue vary from one application to another. 23. Success with no-clean flux requires a close communication and collaboration between the user and the supplier to design the best-suited flux and fluxing system. The rapid developments in the electronic packaging industry has lead to an increasing demand for precision, quality, and service. Therefore the user, the material supplier, and the equipment supplier are closely linked. They must be involved right from the designing stage to develop the best suitable product/process system.

AUTOMATIC SOLDERING TECHNIQUES

24. Solder joints are a vital part of an electronic assembly. These are critical to electronic equipment including computers. The rapid development and growing complexity of electronic equipment has forced the need for high-quality, fast operating, mass-production soldering methods. Soldering methods and equipment have to be carefully selected, taking into consideration all factors involved in assembly. The economical advantage of soldering process can only be realised if it is associated with high reliability. There are various methods of soldering. The choice of a method depends upon several factors including process complexity, equipment cost, and the products.

WAVE SOLDERING

25. Automatic soldering can be divided into bath soldering and reflow soldering techniques. Wave soldering is a bath soldering technique. In wave soldering, the PCB is passed horizontally or slightly inclined over a wave of liquid solder, which is pumped up through an appropriately shaped nozzle. This soldering basically involves three steps, namely, fluxing, preheating, and soldering. A wave soldering line usually comprises circuit board assembly loading station, fluxing station, pre-heating station, soldering station, and unloading station

CIRCUIT BOARD LOADING STATION

26. In wave soldering operation, a conveyor system is used to move the assembled board through fluxing, pre-heating, and wave soldering. The conveyor is an important element of the soldering system. The conveyor should be carefully chosen for consistent performance under production conditions. The position and speed of the conveyor in relation to fluxing, pre-heating, and soldering can affect the quality of soldering. The time and temperature relationship between conveyor speed, pre-heating, and soldering is extremely critical for defect-free soldering. Conveyors are often inclined in order to obtain proper peel-back of the solder as it is separated from the board. 27. These are usually of two types, namely, belt-type chain conveyors and finger conveyors. Belt chain conveyors are those in which boards are held in carriers of holders. In finger type, the boards are held by spring fingers. The finger conveyors usually can accept and discharge PCBs automatically while belt type must be loaded and unloaded manually. The conveyor speed and conveyor width permit soldering of PCBs of different sizes simultaneously. The conveyor is the material-handling mechanism for the wave soldering process.

FLUXING STATION
28. The purpose of a fluxing station is to apply flux uniformly to solder side of the board and plated through hole. The fluxing method selected depends on lead length, method and need of cleaning, quality and uniformity of flux required, cleanliness requirements, and economy of production. The flux can be applied by dipping, brushing, spraying, waving, and foaming. 29. The last method is most prevalent, though spray fluxing is also commonly used. A properly formulated flux of right viscosity and welldesigned foam fluxer provide uniform bubble size foam at relatively low

air pressure. All kinds of fluxes are not suitable for foam fluxing. Foam fluxing is simple to operate and has operating costs lower than many other syste ms. The system is sensitive to hot pallets, which collapse the foam head. The most common spray fluxing method consists of rotating a screen drum in liquid flux, with air jets produced inside the drum. 29. Other methods include direct spray jets and nozzles. The spray method requires adequate ventilation and safety systems. The spray fluxing is not sensitive to hot pallets. The wave fluxing system applies more flux than the foam system and the wave soldering unit should be equipped with air knifes to remove the excess flux. In general, the flux activity and specific gravity are to be monitored.

PREHEATING STATION
30. Pre-heating is a critical part of the wave soldering process. It greatly increases the overall efficiency of the system. The purpose of pre-heating is to raise the temperature of the flux on the board to activation temperature, to condition the assembly against thermal shock, and to heat sources. It is effective in heat transfer because heating of the assembly must be done as the boards pass over the pre-heaters at speed adjusted to the requirement of wave soldering. Low pre-heating results in pinholes while high pre-heating produces excessive warpage and nonwetting situations. In general, there are two types of pre-heaters, radiant and forced hot-air pr-heaters. Radiant-type pre-heaters are less expensive than forced air pre-heaters. The optimum pre-heating temperature depends on the design of the assembly, component density, specific heat, latent heat of vapourisation, and production speed. Failure to properly pre-heat the assembly will result in bridges, icicles, and incomplete joints.

SOLDERING STATION
31. The final step in the wave soldering process is the application of solder to the solder joint area. This is achieved by a wave soldering module in the wave soldering system. Most solder waves are either unidirectional or bidirectional. Bidirectional wave is most commonly used and is formed by using a high-capacity centrifugal pump that pumps the solder into the nozzle. The solder is pumped upwards, rising through the nozzle until it overflows the sides of the nozzle. At the centre of the wave, there is a low-velocity area where velocity increases as the solder wave flows upwards the edge of the nozzle.

32. If the PCB is introduced into the wave at the high-velocity point, the solder will wet more efficiently. The point of entry is the more dynamic part of the wave. The motion created causes a washing action that removes flux and coating from the board, and instantaneous solder wetting occurs. In the heat-transfer zone of the solder wave, the solder rises and forms the fillets. The solder rise and fillet formation is dependent upon wetting forces. If the point of exit is at the waves lowest velocity point, uniform fillet formation takes place. If the wave solder module is not maintained for the right point of entry and the right point of exit, defective solder joints will occur. If the solder temperature is too low, pinholes, bridging, webbing, and icicles will form 33. Too high temperature causes excessive board warpage and insufficient solder deposits. There are several modifications of the simple bidirectional solder waves. Solder SMD assemblies are accomplished by dual-wave soldering system. The first turbulent wave ensures good wetting of all areas that would not be reached by normal wave. The two waves can be produced from one common tank or from two separate tanks. Soldering in the second wave follows the same pattern of entry and exit points as simple wave soldering. 34. Now, completely computerised wave soldering systems are available for production, which are equipped with cooling fan module, fire extinguishing system, solder feed and level-control system, flux-density control equipment, and board tracking system.

CONCLUSION
35. Electronic assemblies are steadily growing in size and are becoming more complex. Manufacturers are demanding increased manufacturing productivity and low production costs. Consequently, an economic soldering can only be achieved by automating the mass soldering techniques.