| dc.contributor.advisor | Donovan, John | en |
| dc.contributor.author | O'Neill, Shane | en |
| dc.date.accessioned | 2017-03-21T11:10:12Z | |
| dc.date.available | 2017-03-21T11:10:12Z | |
| dc.date.issued | 2005-07 | |
| dc.identifier.citation | O'Neill, S. (2005). Optimisation of a surface mount technology process using a SnAgCu lead-free alloy. MSc, Institute of Technology, Sligo | en |
| dc.identifier.other | MSc | en |
| dc.identifier.uri | https://research.thea.ie/handle/20.500.12065/646 | |
| dc.description | The impending introduction of lead-free solder in the manufacture of electrical and
electronic products has presented the electronics industry with many challenges. European
manufacturers must transfer from a tin-lead process to a lead-free process by July 2006 as a
result of the publication of two directives from the European Parliament. Tin-lead solders
have been used for mechanical and electrical connections on printed circuit boards for over
fifty years and considerable process knowledge has been accumulated.
Extensive literature reviews were conducted on the topic and as a result it was found there
are many implications to be considered with the introduction of lead-free solder. One
particular question that requires answering is; can lead-free solder be used in existing
manufacturing processes?
The purpose of this research is to conduct a comparative study of a tin-lead solder and a
lead-free solder in two key surface mount technology (SMT) processes.
The two SMT processes in question were the stencil printing process and the reflow
soldering process. Unreplicated fractional factorial experimental designs were used to carry
out the studies. The quality of paste deposition in terms of height and volume were the
characteristics of interest in the stencil printing process. The quality of solder joints
produced in the reflow soldering experiment was assessed using x-ray and cross sectional
analysis. This provided qualitative data that was then uniquely scored and weighted using a
method developed during the research. Nested experimental design techniques were then
used to analyse the resulting quantitative data. Predictive models were developed that
allowed for the optimisation of both processes.
Results from both experiments show that solder joints of comparable quality to those
produced using tin-lead solder can be produced using lead-free solder in current SMT
processes. | en |
| dc.format | PDF | en |
| dc.language.iso | en | en |
| dc.subject | Surface mount technology | en |
| dc.subject | Lead-free electronics manufacturing processes | en |
| dc.title | Optimisation of a surface mount technology process using a SnAgCu lead-free alloy | en |
| dc.type | Master thesis (research) | en |
| dc.publisher.institution | Institute of Technology, Sligo | en |
| dc.rights.access | Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs | en |
| dc.subject.department | Quality Assurance ITS | en |
| dc.subject.department | Mechanical and Electronic Engineering ITS | en |
