New Technology for the Environment: Environmentally-Conscious, Economically-Feasible Electronics Manufacturing

该环保新技术项目将评估通过新工艺在现有制造设备上使用无铅焊料的可行性。 使用该工艺可以具有额外的益处，即也可以从焊膏中消除助焊剂（潜在危险的有机材料）。 焊点将通过固态工艺制备，称为烧结，其中粉末在不熔化粉末的情况下结合。 烧结广泛用于制造陶瓷和高温金属。在这里提出的过程中，被认为是铅锡焊料替代品的焊料将被加热到略低于其熔点，并允许烧结。 如果在传统工艺中使用这些替代品，电子材料将暴露在比使用铅-锡高50 ℃的温度下。 通过烧结，温度实际上会降低。 该技术也可用于形成具有机械完整性的冷焊接点。这意味着可以考虑更广泛的材料。在这个项目中，VCU的学生将制备新型低通量焊锡膏，通过烧结形成接头，并测试其机械完整性。 将这些接头的机械完整性与铅锡焊料制备的接头进行比较。

This New Technologies for the Environment project will assess the feasibility of using lead-free solder with existing manufacturing equipment, through novel processing. Using this process may have the added benefit that fluxes, potentially hazardous organic materials, may be eliminated from the solder paste as well. Solder joints will be prepared by a solid state process, known as sintering where by powders are joined without melting the powder. Sintering is widely used to manufacture ceramics and high temperature metals. In the process proposed here, solders considered as alternatives to lead-tin solder will be heated to slightly below their melting point and allowed to sinter. Were these alternatives used in conventional processing, electronic materials would be exposed to temperatures 50C higher than if lead-tin were used. By sintering, the temperature will actually be reduced. This technique can also be used to form cold solder joints with mechanical integrity. This means that a wider range of materials can be considered.In this project students at VCU will prepare novel low flux solder pastes, form joints through sintering, and test their mechanical integrity. The mechanical integrity of these joints will be compared to those prepared by lead-tin solder.