Research Trends in Lead-Free Soldering in the U.S.: NCMS Lead-Free Solder Project

Published

February 1, 1999

Author(s)

I Artaki, D Noctor, C Desantis, W Desaulnier, L Felton, M Palmer, J Felty, J Greaves, C A. Handwerker, J D. Mather, S Schroeder, D Napp, TG Y. Pan, J Rosser, P Vianco, G Whitten, Y Zhu

Abstract

In 1997, the National Center for Manufacturing Sciences Lead- Free Solder Project carried out by a consortium of 11 industrial corporations, academic institutions, and national laboratories completed its four year program to identify and evaluate alternatives to eutectic tin-lead solder. This project was initiated in response to potential national and international legislation banning or restricting the use of lead in microelectronics. Given the widespread, almost exclusive use of tin-lead solder in the manufacture and assembly of circuit boards, such legislation is of extreme concern to the electronics industry. Given the competitiveness of the industry and the fact that all equipment and manufacturing requirements have been based on the properties of eutectic tin-lead solder, the costs of conversion to a lead-free solder and its associated affect on reliability must be clearly understood. The goal of the project was to determine whether safe, reliable, non-toxic, and cost-effective substitutes exist for lead-bearing solders in electronics manufacturing. The scope to the project was based on the following premise: the production of durable, reliable, safe, and affordable electronic products with lead-free solders will require the manufacturer to understand material properties, manufacturing processes and equipment, toxicological effects, alloy cost and long-term availability, and reliability. A comprehensive report was issued [1] that summarizes the major results of this multiyear research program conducted by AT&T/Lucent Technologies, the Navy's Electronics Manufacturing Productivity Facility (EMPF), Ford Motor Company, GM/Delco Electronics, GM/Hughes Aircraft, the National Institute for Standards and Technology (NIST), Rensellaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI), Rockwell International, Sandia National Laboratories, Texas Instruments and United Technologies/Hamilton Standard. The total cost of this research project was in excess of $10 million, with approximately $1 million coming from US Department of Defense funds and the balance from in-kind contributions by the participating organizations.

Proceedings Title

Proceedings of the 1st International Symposium on Environmentally Conscious Design and Inverse Manufacturing (ECO Design '99)

Conference Dates

February 1-3, 1999

Conference Location

Tokyo, 1, JA

Conference Title

Symposium on Environmentally Conscious Design and Inverse Manufacturing

Pub Type

Conferences

Keywords

electronic interconnects, lead-free solder, microelectronics, printed wiring board, reliability, solder

Citation

Artaki, I. , Noctor, D. , Desantis, C. , Desaulnier, W. , Felton, L. , Palmer, M. , Felty, J. , Greaves, J. , Handwerker, C. , Mather, J. , Schroeder, S. , Napp, D. , Pan, T. , Rosser, J. , Vianco, P. , Whitten, G. and Zhu, Y. (1999), Research Trends in Lead-Free Soldering in the U.S.: NCMS Lead-Free Solder Project, Proceedings of the 1st International Symposium on Environmentally Conscious Design and Inverse Manufacturing (ECO Design '99), Tokyo, 1, JA (Accessed July 26, 2024)