Lead-free solders: Current status and future trends

TWI Industrial Member Report Summary 685/1999

S Lemort

Background

The electronics and electrical industries are again facing increasing legislative pressure to remove lead from products.

A current European Directive, called Waste from Electrical and Electronics Equipment (WEEE) proposes that lead is phased out by January 2004. The Japanese are currently promoting and using lead-free as a marketing tool to improve their sales. A three-year project has been set up at TWI to generate information on lead-free soldering technology. The first part of this work and the subject of this report summarises the result from a literature and industrial survey.

Objectives

• To review the different materials and processes currently available to replace the standard tin/lead soldering process (including lead-free solders and finishes).
• To make recommendations with respect to the most promising materials and processes for future manufacturing.