New "Liquid Magnet" Solder Could Be Lead-Free Alternative For Electronics. Photo via oskay via Flickr CC Innovations that help us get the lead out of electronics is a really big deal. The heavy metal is a big source of pollution in soil and ground water tables due to electronics being tossed in landfills, and is a toxic substance in e-waste dumps.
University of Maryland is working on what could be the first commercial replacement for the lead used in transducers, actuators, sensors and other components. Researchers at UC Berkeley have been experimenting with bismuth ferrite as a lead replacement in piezoelectric charging in devices . And now Yale researchers have come up with a new soldering material that could eliminate lead in this area of electronics as well, using magnets, rather than heat, to bond materials. Because lead has a high strength and a low melting point, it's a preferred metal for soldering in electronics because it can be melted onto components without damaging them. You can check out a video of the material being used . Soldering Tutorial. Solder. There are two main classifications for the methods of soldering in use today: mechanical or non-electrical (using primarily acid flux), and electrical (using primarily rosin flux).
This paper will address only the electrical applications of soldering. While advances in transistors, resistors, capacitors, diodes, and especially integrated circuits have revolutionized the world, these devices are of very little value as individual components. For these devices to be of use, they must be electrically connected to each other and to mechanical devices. The majority of these electrical connections are made by soldering. Not only does solder make electrical connections, it is also used to provide a physical connection between the component and its supporting printed circuit board. The practice of soldering has been in existence for some time. When tin-lead solder is used, the tin reacts with the base metal to form an intermetallic alloy. References. OEDK - Rice University - Soldering Station. Www.digikey.com/Web Export/Supplier Content/Cooper_72/PDF/CooperWU_ModuleI_Tips&LeadFree.pdf?redirected=1. Soldering 101. Introduction Soldering is one of the most fundamental skills needed to dabble in the world of electronics.
The two go together like peas and carrots. And, although it is possible to learn about and build electronics without needing to pick up a soldering iron, you’ll soon discover that a whole new world is opened with this one simple skill. We here at SparkFun believe that soldering should be a skill in everyone’s arsenal. In a world of increasing technological surroundings, we believe it is important that people everywhere be able to not only understand the technologies they use everyday but also be able to build, alter, and fix them as well. Soldering is one of many skills that will empower you to do just that. In this tutorial we will go over the basics of through-hole soldering – also known as plated through-hole soldering (PTH), discuss the tools needed, go over techniques for proper soldering, and show you where you can go from there.
Suggested Reading How to Use a Breadboard Recap.