Soldering

Soldering is a process in which two or more metal items are joined together by melting and flowing a filler metal (solder) into the joint, the filler metal having a lower melting point than the adjoining metal. Soldering differs from welding in that soldering does not involve melting the work pieces. In brazing, the filler metal melts at a higher temperature, but the work piece metal does not melt. In the past, nearly all solders contained lead, but environmental concerns have increasingly dictated use of lead-free alloys for electronics and plumbing purposes.

Applications
Soldering is used in plumbing, electronics, and metalwork from flashing to jewelry. Soldering provides reasonably permanent but reversible connections between copper pipes in plumbing systems as well as joints in sheet metal objects such as food cans, roof flashing, rain gutters and automobile radiators. Electronic soldering connects electrical wiring and electronic components to printed circuit boards (PCBs)

Solders
Main article: Solder

Soldering filler materials are available in many different alloys for differing applications. In electronics assembly, the eutectic alloy of 63% tin and 37% lead (or 60/40, which is almost identical in melting point) has been the alloy of choice. Other alloys are used for plumbing, mechanical assembly, and other applications. Some examples of soft-solder are tin-lead for general purposes, tin-zinc for joining aluminium, lead-silver for strength at higher than room temperature, cadmium-silver for strength at high temperatures, zinc-aluminium for aluminium and corrosion resistance, and tin-silver and tin-bismuth for electronics. Common solder formulations based on tin and lead are listed below. The fraction represent percentage of tin first, then lead, totaling 100%:

63/37: melts at 183 C (361 F) (eutectic: the only mixture that melts at a point, instead of over a range) 60/40: melts between 183190 C (361374 F) 50/50: melts between 185215 C (365419 F)

For environmental reasons (and the introduction of regulations such as the European RoHS (Restriction of Hazardous Substances Directive)), lead-free solders are becoming more widely used. They are also suggested anywhere young children may come into contact with (since young children are likely to place things into their mouths), or for outdoor use where rain and other precipitation may wash the lead into the groundwater. Unfortunately, most lead-free solders are not eutectic formulations, melting at around 250 C (482 F), making it more difficult to create reliable joints with them.

Flux
The purpose of flux is to facilitate the soldering process. One of the obstacles to a successful solder joint is an impurity at the site of the joint, for example, dirt, oil or oxidation. The impurities can be removed by mechanical cleaning or by chemical means, but the elevated temperatures required to melt the filler metal (the solder) encourages the work piece (and the solder) to re-oxidize. This effect is accelerated as the soldering temperatures increase and can completely prevent the solder from joining to the workpiece. One of the earliest forms of flux was charcoal, which acts as a reducing agent and helps prevent oxidation during the soldering process. Some fluxes go beyond the simple prevention of oxidation and also provide some form of chemical cleaning (corrosion). For many years, the most common type of flux used in electronics (soft soldering) was rosinbased, using the rosin from selected pine trees. It was ideal in that it was non-corrosive and non-conductive at normal temperatures but became mildly reactive (corrosive) at the elevated soldering temperatures. Plumbing and automotive applications, among others, typically use an acid-based (muriatic acid) flux which provides cleaning of the joint. These fluxes cannot be used in electronics because they are conductive and because they will eventually dissolve the small diameter wires. Many fluxes also act as a wetting agent in the soldering process,[4] reducing the surface tension of the molten solder and causing it to flow and wet the workpieces more easily.

Processes
Brazing and soldering processes classification chart[7]

There are three forms of soldering, each requiring progressively higher temperatures and producing an increasingly stronger joint strength:
1. Soft soldering, which originally used a tin-lead alloy as the filler metal, 2. silver soldering, which uses an alloy containing silver, 3. brazing which uses a brass alloy for the filler. Soldering and brazing

The distinction between soldering and brazing is based on the melting temperature of the filler alloy. A temperature of 450 C is usually used as a practical delineating point between

soldering and brazing . Soft soldering can be done with a heated iron whereas the other methods require a higher temperature torch or furnace to melt the filler metal. Different equipment is usually required since a soldering iron cannot achieve high enough temperatures for hard soldering or brazing. Brazing filler metal is stronger than silver solder, which is stronger than lead-based soft solder. Brazing solders are formulated primarily for strength, silver solder is used by jewelers to protect the precious metal and by machinists and refrigeration technicians for its tensile strength but lower melting temperature than brazing, and the primary benefit of soft solder is the low temperature used (to prevent heat damage to electronic components and insulation). Since the joint is produced using a metal with a lower melting temperature than the workpiece, the joint will weaken as the ambient temperature approaches the melting point of the filler metal. For that reason, the higher temperature processes produce joints which are effective at higher temperatures. Brazed connections can be as strong or nearly as strong as the parts they connect,[9][10] even at elevated temperatures.[11]
Electronic components (PCBs)

Currently, mass-production printed circuit boards (PCBs) are mostly wave soldered or reflow soldered, though hand soldering of production electronics is also still standard practice. Since different components can be best assembled by different techniques, it is common to use two or more processes for a given PCB. For example, surface mounted parts may be reflow soldered first, with a wave soldering process for the through-hole mounted components coming next, and bulkier parts hand-soldered last. For hand soldering, the heat source tool should be selected to provide adequate heat for the size of joint to be completed. A 100 watt soldering iron may provide too much heat for printed circuit boards, while a 25 watt iron will not provide enough heat for large electrical connectors, joining copper roof flashing, or large stained-glass lead came. Using a tool with too high a temperature can damage sensitive components, but protracted heating by a tool that is too cool or under powered can also cause extensive heat damage.

Soldering defects
In the joining of copper tube, failure to properly heat and fill a joint may lead to a 'void' being formed. This is usually a result of improper placement of the flame. If the heat of the flame is not directed at the back of the fitting cup, and the solder wire applied 180 degrees opposite the flame, then solder will quickly fill the opening of the fitting, trapping some flux inside the joint. This bubble of trapped flux is the void; an area inside a soldered joint where solder is

unable to completely fill the fittings' cup, because flux has become sealed inside the joint, preventing solder from occupying that space.
Electronics

Various problems may arise in the soldering process which lead to joints which are nonfunctional either immediately or after a period of use. The most common defect when hand-soldering results from the parts being joined not exceeding the solder's liquidus temperature, resulting in a "cold solder" joint. This is usually the result of the soldering iron being used to heat the solder directly, rather than the parts themselves. Properly done, the iron heats the parts to be connected, which in turn melt the solder, guaranteeing adequate heat in the joined parts for thorough wetting. In electronic hand soldering the flux is embedded in the solder. Therefore heating the solder first may cause the flux to evaporate before it cleans the surfaces being soldered. A cold-soldered joint may not conduct at all, or may conduct only intermittently. Cold-soldered joints also happen in mass production, and are a common cause of equipment which passes testing, but malfunctions after sometimes years of operation. A "dry joint" occurs when the cooling solder is moved, and often occurs because the joint moves when the soldering iron is removed from the joint. An improperly selected or applied flux can cause joint failure. If not properly cleaned, a flux may corrode the joint and cause eventual joint failure. Without flux the joint may not be clean, or may be oxidized, resulting in an unsound joint. Movement of metals being soldered before the solder has cooled will cause a highly unreliable cracked joint. In electronics' soldering terminology this is known as a 'dry' joint. It has a characteristically dull or grainy appearance immediately after the joint is made, rather than being smooth, bright and shiny. This appearance is caused by crystallization of the liquid solder. A dry joint is weak mechanically and a poor conductor electrically. In general a good looking soldered joint is a good joint. As mentioned it should be smooth, bright and shiny. If the joint has lumps or balls of otherwise shiny solder the metal has not 'wetted' properly. Not being bright and shiny suggests a weak 'dry' joint. However, technicians trying to apply this guideline when using lead-free solder formulations may experience frustration, because these types of solders readily cool to a dull surface even if the joint is good. The solder looks shiny while molten, and suddenly hazes over as it solidifies even though it has not been disturbed during cooling.

Desoldering
Solders can be removed using a vacuum plunger (on the right) and a soldering iron.

In electronics, desoldering is the removal of solder and components from a circuit board for troubleshooting, repair, replacement, and salvage. Specialized tools, materials, and techniques have been devised to aid in the desoldering process.

Tools
Desoldering tools and materials include the following:

Solder wick Heat guns, also called hot air guns Desoldering pump Removal alloys Removal fluxes Heated soldering tweezers Various picks and tweezers for tasks such as pulling at, holding, removing, and scraping components. Vacuum and pressure pumps with specialized heater tips and nozzles Rework stations, used to repair printed circuit board assemblies that fail factory test.

Terminology is not totally standardised. Anything with a base unit with provision to maintain a stable temperature, pump air in either direction, etc., is often called a "station" (preceded by rework, soldering, desoldering, hot air); one, or sometimes more, tools may be connected to a station, e.g., a rework station may accommodate a soldering iron and hot air head. A soldering iron with a hollow tip and a spring-, bulb-, or electrically-operated suction pump may be called a desoldering iron.[1] Terms such as "suction pen"[2] may be used; the meaning is usually clear from the context.
Pumps

Electrically operated pumps are used for several purposes in conjunction with a hand-held head connected by a tube. Suction pumps are used to suck away molten solder, leaving previously joined terminals disconnected. They are primarily used to release through-hole connections from a PCB. The desoldering head must be designed so that the extracted solder does not solidify so as to obstruct it, or enter the pump, and can be removed and discarded easily. It is not possible to remove a multi-pin part by melting solder on the pins sequentially, as one joint will solidify as the next is melted; pumps and solder wick are among methods to remove solder from all joints, leaving the part free to be removed. Suction pumps are also used with a suction head appropriate for each part to pick up and remove tiny surface mount devices once solder has melted, and to place parts. Hot air pumps blow air hot enough to melt all the solder around a small surface mounted part, and can be used for soldering parts in place, and for desoldering followed by removal before the solder solidifies by a vacuum pump or with tweezers. Hot air has a tendency to oxidise metals; a non-oxidising gas, usually nitrogen, can be used instead of air, at increased cost of equipment and consumables.
Desoldering pump

A typical spring-loaded solder sucker

A solder sucker partially dismantled showing the spring

A desoldering pump, colloquially known as a solder sucker, is a manually-operated device which is used to remove solder from a printed circuit board. There are two types: the plunger style and bulb style.[1] (An electrically-operated pump for this purpose would usually be called a vacuum pump.) The plunger type has a cylinder with a spring-loaded piston which is pushed down and locks into place. When triggered by pressing a button, the piston springs up, creating suction that sucks the solder off the soldered connection. The bulb type creates suction by squeezing and releasing a rubber bulb. The pump is applied to a heated solder connection, then operated to suck the solder away.
Desoldering braid

A solder wick on a reel

Solder wick, before use

... and soaked with solder and residue

Desoldering braid, also known as desoldering wick or solder wick, is finely braided 18 to 42 AWG copper wire coated with rosin flux, usually supplied on a roll. The end of a length of braid is placed over the soldered connections of a component being removed. The connections are heated with a soldering iron until the solder melts and is wicked into the braid by capillary action. The braid is removed while the solder is still molten, its used section cut off and discarded when cool. Short lengths of cut braid will prevent heat being carried away by the braid instead of heating the joint.

Technique
Desoldering requires application of heat to the solder joint and removing the molten solder so that the joint may be separated. Desoldering may be required to replace a defective component, to alter an existing circuit, or to salvage components for re-use. Use of too high a temperature or heating for too long may damage components or destroy the bond between a printed circuit trace and the board substrate. Techniques are different for through-hole and surface-mounted components.