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ULTRASONIC SOLVENT CLEANER SAVES BAe £7,000 PA
Microsolve co-solvent cleaner removes no-clean flux residue from printed circuit boards
A manufacturer of printed circuit boards (PCBs) fundamental to military communication devices achieved dramatic reductions in solvent costs and process time following the installation of a Kerry Microsolve co-solvent cleaning system.
The two-stage Microsolve 525 is used by BAe Land Platform Communications to remove no-clean flux residue. The Microsolve plant has reduced annual solvent consumption from 2250 litres to 450 litres, saving the company £7,000 a year. Similarly, cycle time is down from 25 minutes to 10 minutes, effectively increasing throughput capacity by 60%. The machine has also allowed BAe to remove the ozone-depleting solvent 141B from its cleaning process.
BAe produces a mixture of flexible and rigid boards, featuring both single- and double-sided circuits. The company’s current production quality standard1 prevents ultrasonics from being used on 80% of its boards, yet defence standards of cleanliness must still be achieved.
Cleaning with or without ultrasonics
The Microsolve unit operates with or without ultrasonics and uses a mixture of the hydrocarbon Topklean EL20A and 3M’s Novec HFE71IPA in the immersion cleaning stage. Where use of ultrasonics is forbidden, these agents are pumped around the tank at a rolling boil, thereby creating sufficient agitation within the fluid to remove contaminants. Boards then undergo two separate rinses, the first an immersion in HFE, the second a vapour rinse. Finally, components dwell in the freeboard area of the cleaning system until dry.
1 ANSI/J-STD-001C
141b replacement and the Solvent Emissions Directive (SED)
Do you need to replace 141b, trichloroethylene (trich, trike, TCE) or another CMR in your manufacturing process?
Go to our News page for our easy to follow leaflet, produced in conjunction with 3M, explaining in simple terms what the key points of the legislation mean in practice, with advice on what you can do about it.
Free component trials
Whether your interest is in blast, wash or ultrasonic cleaning equipment, we offer FREE component trials, with no obligation to buy. To contact Guyson International, call on +44 (0)1756 799911, fax +44 (0)1756 790213, or email info@guyson.co.uk.
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