Product Data Sheet TM Product 400, 500, 502, 505 & 511 July 2003 NO CLEAN, CLEAR RESIDUE CORED SOLDER WIRES Multicore Crystal solid fluxes for cored solder wires have been specially Apply the soldering iron tip to the work surface, ensuring that it formulated to complement No Clean wave and reflow soldering simultaneously contacts the base material and the component processes. They are also applicable to repair operations carried out termination to heat both surfaces adequately. This process should after a cleaning process, eliminating the need for further cleaning. only take a fraction of a second. Halide free version Crystal 400 Fast soldering range of activities to suit all applications Apply Crystal flux cored solder wire to a part of the joint surface away from the soldering iron and allow to flow sufficiently to form a Good spread on copper, brass and nickel sound joint fillet this should be virtually instantaneous. Do not Clear residues apply excessive solder or heat to the joint as this may result in dull, gritty fillets and excessive or darkened flux residues. Heat stable low spitting Mild odour Remove solder wire from the work piece and then remove the iron tip. PRODUCT RANGE The total process will be very rapid, depending upon thermal mass, tip Multicore Crystal 400 is designed for users who require a halide free temperature and configuration and the solderability of the surfaces to be formulation while Crystal 500 contains a low level of halide. The joined. remaining products in the range contain higher halide levels to maximise soldering power. Multicore Crystal flux cored solder wires provide fast soldering on copper and brass surfaces as well as solder coated materials. Activity Multicore Crystal 400, 500, 502, 505 and 511 cored wires are of the halide activated versions on nickel is also good depending on the manufactured with a range of flux contents. Although users will state of oxidation of the nickel finish. The good thermal stability of normally be using products with a nominal flux content of 3%, the Crystal fluxes means they are also well suited to soldering applications superior performance of the Crystal products may allow a lower flux requiring high melting temperature alloys. content to be specified e.g 2.2%. This will further improve residue appearance by reducing the quantity. All are available in alloys The resin and flux systems are designed to leave relatively low residues conforming to national and international standards, including lead free and to minimise residual activity. This is achieved by ensuring some alloys. Some alloys and flux contents may be manufactured to special decomposition and volatilisation takes place during the soldering order. process. In some situations, this may generate visible fuming but in all cases, rosin fumes must be removed from the breathing zone of RECOMMENDED OPERATING CONDITIONS operators. Soldering iron: Good results should be obtained using a range of tip Cleaning: Multicore Crystal flux cored solder wires have been temperatures. However, the optimum tip temperature and heat capacity formulated to leave pale flux residues and to resist spilling and fuming. required for a hand soldering process is a function of both soldering iron In most industrial and consumer electronics applications cleaning will design and the nature of the task and care should be exercised to avoid not be required and the produce may therefore be used to complement unnecessarily high tip temperatures for excessive times. A high tip a No Clean wave soldering or reflow process or to allow repairs to temperature will increase any tendency to flux spitting and it may cleaned boards without the need for a second cleaning process. Should produce some residue darkening. residue quantity be an important consideration, Multicore X39 flux cored wire may be specified if a halide free product is required or X52 if halide The soldering iron tip should be properly tinned and this may be may be tolerated. Crystal 500, 502, 505 and 511 offer good activity and achieved using Multicore Crystal cored wire. Severely contaminated consequently cored wire flux contents and hence residue levels may be soldering iron tips should first be cleaned and pre-tinned using Multicore reduced in comparison with equivalent conventional products. Tip Tinner/Cleaner TTC1, then wiped on a clean, damp sponge before re-tinning with Crystal cored wire. Should cleaning be required, this is best achieved using Multicore Prozone Solvent Cleaner (separate data sheet available). Other Soldering process: Multicore Crystal flux cored wires contain a careful proprietary solvent or semi-aqueous processes may be suitable but balance of resins and activators to provide clear residues, maximum saponification is not recommended. activity and high residue reliability, without cleaning in most situations. To achieve the best results from Multicore Crystal solder wires, recommended working practices for hand soldering should be observed as follows: TM Product 400, 500, 502, 505 & 511, July 2003 RELATIVE WETTING PERFORMANCE OF TECHNICAL SPECIFICATION MULTICORE CRYSTAL AND COMPETITOR PRODUCTS* 2 FLUX HALIDE AREA OF SPREAD mm A full description of test methods and detailed test results are available PRODUCT CONTENT CONTENT Oxidised Oxidised on request. (%) (%) copper* brass Crystal 502 2.7 0.2 220 160 Alloys: The alloys used for Crystal cored solder wires conform to the Competitor E 2 0.4 200 150 purity requirements of the common national and international standards. Competitor F 2.4 0.4 190 180 A wide range of wire diameters is available manufactured to close Competitor G 3.5 0.4 150 120 dimensional tolerances. Competitor H 2.7 0.5 230 150 Crystal 505 2.7 0.5 220 240 Flux: Multicore Crystal solid fluxes are based on modified rosins and carefully selected activators. In use they exhibit a mild rosin odour and *-oxidised for 1 hour 205C leave a small quantity of clear residue. RELATIVE WETTING PERFORMANCE OF CRYSTAL FLUX PROPERTIES MULTICORE CRYSTAL AND COMPETITOR PRODUCTS* 2 TEST 400 500 502 505 511 FLUX HALIDE AREA OF SPREAD mm 205-220 156-170 156-172 159-177 164-176 Acid Value, mg KOH/g PRODUCT CONTENT CONTENT Oxidised Oxidised Halide content, % Zero 0.04 0.2 0.5 1.1 (%) (%) copper* brass J-STD-004 Crystal 511 2.7 1.1 270 390 -2 Solder spread mm 210 290 310 315 340 Competitor J 2.2 1.2 260 190 Corrosion Test Pass Pass Pass Pass Pass Competitor K 2.0 1.6 210 230 SIR Test (without cleaning) IPC-SF-818 Class 3 *-oxidised for 1 hour 205C Pass Pass Pass Pass Pass Bellcore TR-NWT-000078 Pass Pass Pass Pass Pass Electromigration Test HEALTH AND SAFETY (without cleaning) Bellcore TR-NWT-000078 Pass Pass Pass Pass Pass WARNING: The following information is for guidance only and users Classification must refer to the Material Safety Data Sheets relevant to specific 1.1.3 1.1.2 1.1.2 1.1.2 1.1.2 EN29454-1 Multicore Crystal flux cored solder wires before use. ROLO ROL1 ROM1 ROM1 ROM1 J-STD-004 LR3CN LR3CN MR3CN MR3CN MR3CN IPC-SF-818 Health Hazards and Precautions: Inhalation of the flux fumes given off during soldering should be avoided. The fumes are irritating to the RELATIVE WETTING PERFORMANCE OF MULTICORE throat and respiratory system. Prolonged or repeated exposure to rosin CRYSTAL AND HALIDE FREE COMPETITOR PRODUCTS* 2 or modified rosin based flux fumes may lead to the development of PRODUCT FLUX AREA OF SPREAD, mm respiratory sensitisation and occupational asthma. CONTENT (%) Oxidised copper* Oxidised brass Crystal 400 2.2 222 209 Multicore Crystal solder wires must always be used with suitable fume Multicore 304 3.0 220 209 extraction equipment to remove fumes from the breathing zone of Competitor A 3.5 191 140 operators and the general work environment. Competitor B 2.5 202 140 *-oxidised for 1 hour 205C Solder alloys containing lead give off negligible fume at normal soldering temperatures up to 500C. RELATIVE WETTING PERFORMANCE OF MULTICORE CRYSTAL AND SIMILAR COMPETITOR PRODUCTS* Normal handling of lead alloy wires will not cause lead to be absorbed 2 PRODUCT FLUX AREA OF SPREAD, mm through the skin. The most likely route of entry is through ingestion but CONTENT (%) Oxidised copper* Oxidised brass this will not be significant if a good standard of personal hygiene is Crystal 500 2.8 300 170 maintained. Eating, drinking and smoking should not be permitted in the Multicore 381 2.9 195 110 working area. Hands should be washed with soap and warm water after Competitor C 2.4 150 85 handling solder wire. Competitor D 3.1 240 120 *-oxidised for 1 hour 150C Waste disposal: Wherever possible, waste solder wire should be recycled for recovery of metal. Otherwise it should be disposed of Cored wire: Multicore Crystal cored solder wires are designed to give according to local or national regulations. fast and sustained wetting on both copper and brass. This can be demonstrated using spreading tests on both substrates under standard conditions for the Multicore products and comparable competitor products. After 5 seconds, area of spread is measured to form a comparative index indicating total flux efficacy. Multicore Crystal flux cored solder wires out-perform competitor products, which require a higher flux content and leave more residues whilst achieving poorer spread.