Lead Free Solder and the Useful Life of a Soldering Tip
By Volker Munz and Dr. Werner Kruppa
The switch from lead based solders to lead-free solders gave us many surprises. In addition to having a high melting point, lead-free solders are very agressive towards metallic materials. Adapting the soldering parameters to the process conditions required for lead-free soldering often results in degradation of the tools which come directly in cotact with the solder. In addition to technical problems, economic aspects are a key factor. The destruction of the soldering tip during lead-free solder was tested.
