IPC releases test results on take-action-limits for SAC lead-free solder processes

IPC’s Solder Products Value Council has produced a white paper covering the results of a two-year study on the effect of impurity limits on the performance of lead-free solder. The paper, “Take Action Limits (TAL) for SAC35 Lead-Free Soldering Processes Utilizing Solder/Bath/Pots,” was produced to provide electronics manufacturers with better-defined limits to guide them on a more efficient use of solder and, as a result, improved yields. The paper is free for IPC members and can be purchased for $25 by non-members.

Take action limits, also known as “dump pot specifications,” are important to any electronics manufacturing company using flow soldering techniques either in selective soldering or wave soldering. According to IPC, the report was based on testing of eight common SAC alloys that were subjected to strenuous tests, including wetting and electron microscope examinations.