In a joint test, the companies Emil Otto and Leutz Lötsysteme determined the effect of fluxes and cleaning agents on materials used for workpiece carriers or painting frames. The aim was to determine how their material condition might change after the chemicals had been used and what effects would result.
In the first test, common materials processed by Leutz such as titanium, aluminum, ESD (electrostatically dissipative) compliant plastics and glass fiber reinforced plastics were treated with different alcohol-based, water-based and hybrid fluxes and exposed to temperature ranges that are reached in soldering processes. The alcohol-based fluxes S-250/FR and S-250/FRO, all GSP products and all fluxes of the EO-B series were tested. Furthermore, all water-based fluxes and all hybrid fluxes were tested.
The test simulated the classic use of a workpiece carrier or painting frame. None of the fluxes attacked the different materials or changed the structure or color of the respective surface. This means that all Emil Otto fluxes can be used without restriction in combination with workpiece carriers and frames from Leutz.
The workpiece carriers are used as precisely fitting holders for components and assemblies for use in automated inline production. The individual carriers are designed and manufactured on the basis of customer-specific specifications and requirements. They are used to achieve optimum positioning of the components in the workpiece carrier and thus high repeat accuracy in automation. The same applies to the specifically manufactured soldering and painting fixtures and the product-specific painting carriers for painting one or both sides of assemblies.
Testing of cleaning media
Etimol cleaners from the Emil Otto portfolio were also tested on all Leutz soldering frames, workpiece carriers and painting frames under the conditions of a regular cleaning process in electronics production.
Various water-based cleaning media from the Etimol SEM 10, 11, 12 series, which can be used to clean soldering frames, were subjected to the test. These media can also be used for machine cleaning in reflow, wave, selective and vapor phase soldering systems. The system cleaner Etimol SEM 13 RAA and the water-based solder frame cleaners Etimol PC 50 RAA and Etimol PC 55 CA were also tested. The common cleaners Etimol CR 65 RS and Etimol CR 66 RSA were selected for the test on painting frames.
Here, too, none of the cleaners tested attacked the surfaces of the solder frames, workpiece carriers and painting frames or changed their color or structure.
