HOW TO SOLDER

TAIYO ELECTRIC IND.CO.,LTD.

What is Soldering?
Solder is an alloy of tin and lead. Soldering is the process of making an electrical
or mechanical joint between 2 metal parts by the alloy reaction which occurs
between the melted solder and the metal part without damaging the metal part to
be soldered.
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The Specific Steps of Soldering
*Flux contains chloride. Rust forms on the joint if the flux is not completely removed by washing the soldered part in water.
*
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What Metals Can Be Soldered?
Easy to solder
Metals that can be soldered
Hard to solder
Tin Silver Copper Brass Zinc plate Nickel plate Iron Stainless Steel
Metals that cannot be soldered
Rusting metal, Aluminium, Chrome plated objects, Cast metal, Die cast parts
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Soldering: 3 Steps
1. Cleaning 2. Heating 3. Soldering
Heat the material that will
be soldered to a higher
temperature than the
solders melting
temperature.
When the material is
hotter than the melting
point of solder, apply the
solder.
Remove the oxide film on
the part to be soldered.
Mechanical method Chemical method
Polish the part to be
soldered with a file or
sand paper.
Use flux.
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The Basics
Soldering isnt difficult.
J ust choose the right tools that meet the task:
Soldering iron
Solder
Flux
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Soldering Irons
For hobby use
(with nichrome heater)
For both hobby use and precision soldering
(with ceramic heater)
CXR-31
KS-30R
For precision soldering
(temperature controlled)
RX-802AS
A soldering iron is a tool used to
heat the base material and the
solder.
There are a wide variety of
soldering irons to choose from.
It is important to choose an iron to
match the soldering work youre
going to do.
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Types of Heater
Nichrome
heater
Ceramic
heater
There are two types of heaters used in
soldering irons.
Nichrome Heater (20-300W)
Nichrome wire
A Nichrome heater consists of a wound nichrome wire
which heats the tip from the outside.
Theyre suitable for low cost manufacturing and hobby use.
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Ceramic Heater (15-50W)
A ceramic heater has excellent electric insulation
because it consists of a tungsten heating element sealed
in a ceramic clay. It also heats up much faster and has
better heat recovery than the nichrome heater.
Excellent heat recovery and fast heat-up make it suitable
for soldering ICs or electronic components.
Tungsten
Ceramic clay
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Temperature Controlled
Soldering Irons 1
With this type of soldering iron it is possible to control the exact temperature of
the tip during operation because the ceramic heater has a built-in sensor.
Heat-up is extremely fast and heat recovery is excellent.
Suitable for soldering PCBs or ICs.
PX-238
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Temperature Controlled Soldering Irons 2
Heater temperature is controlled with the highly
sensitive sensor integrated into the soldering iron tip.
This is a temperature controlled soldering station
designed for lead-free soldering.
RX-802AS
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Tips
Select the tip shape and size
according to the part to be
soldered.Tips are divided into
two types: Copper tips and
Long-life tips.
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Copper Tips
Copper tips must be filed-down as they become eroded by the solder.
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Long-life Tips
Plating the copper with iron slows erosion caused by the solder so that tip
life is extended.
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Maintenance
To remove excessive amounts of oxides from
the tip, use sandpaper (#600) after the tip has
cooled down. After removing the oxides, coat
the tip with solder.
Remove oxides from the tip during work, with the
ST-40 Tip Cleaner.
After use, dont forget to coat the tip with solder
before storing it away. This will protect the tip. Tips
with a solder coating have a wider heat-transfer
area which improves efficiency.
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Traditional Solder (Lead-solder)
Traditional solder is an alloy of tin and lead.
It differs in viscosity and melting point, depending on the composition-ratio.
Select the solder based on the work to be done.
Tin (Sn) % Lead (Pb) % Melting Point Purpose Viscosity
63% 37% 183 Precision PCBs LOW
60% 40% 183 190 PCBs
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50% 50% 183 215 Electric parts
45% 55% 183 227 Sheet Metal
40% 60% 183 238
Sheet Metal
(welding)
HIGH
There are two types of solder wire; one has a flux core and the other does not. For sheet metal,
solder wire that does not contain flux should be used. Flux specifically intended for sheet metal
should be used separately.
Solder for Special Use
For some applications, a small amount of metal
may be contained in addition to tin and lead.

For example: Solder which contains copper

When soldering thin copper wire, the tin
contained in the solder can corrode the copper
and cause the wire to break.
The copper contained in this solder fuses with
the thin copper wire which slows the erosion and
improves the reliability.
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Lead-free Solder
Lead-free solder is simply solder, which does not
contain lead (Pb).
The RoHS directive is now enforced in the EU and
other countries to protect the environment.
It was designed to stop the use of lead in electronic
goods because illegal dumping of household
appliances was found to have caused contamination
in the water supply due to the lead leaching and
entering rivers and groundwater.
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Flux
When the metal surface to be soldered is
contaminated or oxidized, wettability is poor making
it difficult to achieve a reliable solder joint.
Flux is used to remedy this problem.
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There are 3 categories of flux.
Residual material
Flux category Activation level
Moisture
absorption
Corrosion Cleaning
Application
Inorganic Strong Occurs High Required
Sheet metal
Organic Medium
Less than
inorganic
Low
Resin Weak
Required depending
on application
PCB
Flux Categories
BS-3/4/5
BS-15
BS-850
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The Effects of Flux
1.Flux removes grease, foreign particles and oxide film. Flux improves soldering
by removing the oxide film that forms on solder and/or metal.
2.Flux prevents re-oxidation. When metal is heated and exposed to the air,
oxidation occurs at an increased rate. Flux covers and protects the joint from
the air which prevents oxidization.
3.Flux increases wettability. Flux lowers the surface tension of solder and
increases wettability.
Q: What is wettability?
A: The degree to which solder will spread evenly across a surface.
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Checking the Quality [Terminals]
Good Poor (Insufficient solder)
Poor (Excessive solder)
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Checking the Quality [Leads]
Poor (Insufficient solder)
Good
Poor (Excessive solder)
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Checking the Quality
[Discrete component chip contacts]
Good
Poor (Insufficient solder)
Poor (Excessive solder)
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Checking the Quality [Flat leads]
Poor (Insufficient solder)
Good
Poor (Excessive solder)
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