Printed wiring board fabrication and lead elimination via single-bath electrodeposition

Meltzer, M P ; Steffani, C P

Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory

关键词: Soldering;    99 General And Miscellaneous//Mathematics, Computing, And Information Science;    Electroplating;    Personnel;    Plating;   

DOI  :  10.2172/15005413
RP-ID  :  UCRL-ID-142542
RP-ID  :  W-7405-ENG-48
RP-ID  :  15005413

美国|英语

来源: UNT Digital Library

【 摘 要 】

Printed wiring board (PWB) fabrication, an operation performed both at LLNL and throughout the electronics industry, generates considerable quantities of hazardous waste, notably lead-bearing materials used for soldering, tinning, and finish coating the circuits of the board. Hot-air solder leveling (HASL), the most common method of finishing is one of the main sources of hazardous lead-bearing wastes in traditional PWB manufacturing. The development of a safer finishing method will lead to employee health and environmental benefits. In addition, there is a production advantage to eliminating HASL, for it provides a fairly uneven surface that is problematic for mounting very small components. In this project, we developed ''single-bath electroplating'' as a potential HASL replacement technology for many applications. Single-bath electroplating involves alternating deposition of one or the other metal component of a bimetal bath, through control of plating potential and mass transport. It employs a nickel layer as both etch resist and finish coat and has the potential for lowering environmental and human-health risks associated with PWB manufacture--while at the same time reconfiguring the process for greater efficiency and profitability.