FCT NL932HF

Identification & Functionality

Product Type

Conductive Paste & Ink

Technologies

Ready-to-Use Products

Product Families

Ready-to-Use Products — Inks & Pastes

Functional Inks & Pastes

Features & Benefits

Labeling Claims

Lead-free

Ready-to-Use Product Features

Good Printability,

Good Wettability,

Halogenated,

High Consistency,

Long Shelf Life

Attributes

• Room temperature stable solder paste.
• Best in class performance.
• Stencil life longer than 8 hours.
• Excellent printing after pauses of up to 4 hours.
• Prints well through fine pitch and small area ratio apertures.
• Ideal reflow performance with excellent wetting, very low solder balling and graping, and low potential for voiding.
• Halide and halogen free (zero halogen) which may improve long term reliability.

Applications & Uses

Markets

Automotive & Transportation,

Electrical & Electronics

Applications

Automotive & Transportation — Automotive

Electrical & Electronic Systems,

Powertrain & UTH

Electrical & Electronics — Devices & Assemblies

Automotive Electronics,

Displays

Electrical & Electronics — Wire & Cable

Jacketing & Insulation,

Optical Fiber & Telecom

Application Area

Soldering

Cleaning

Raw solder paste can be removed from the stencil, squeegee blades, and circuit boards using a variety of commercial cleaners. Isopropyl alcohol (IPA) can also be used.

After reflow, no-clean solder paste residues are designed to be “safe” and do not need to be removed from the circuit board. If removal of the flux residues is desired, then a commercial cleaning agent should be used. Several common cleaning agents have been tested and found to be effective.

Properties

Physical Form

Paste

Technical Details & Test Data

NL932HF with Solder Alloy

Solder Alloy	Solder Powder Size Availability (IPC J-STD-005)	Melting Range (°C)
SAC305	Type 3 or 4	217 - 220
SN100C (Nihon Superior)	Type 3 or 4	227
Sn/Ag 3.5%	Type 3	221
SN100CV (Sn/Cu/Ni/Bi) (Nihon Superior)	Type 3 or 4	221 - 225
LF-C2 (Nihon Superior)	Type 3 or 4	208 - 213
Anti-tombstoning mixtures	Type 3 or 4	Range depends on the mixture

1. Other sizes of solder powder are available upon request.
2. The size range for the solder powder types are as follows:

• Type 3 (25-45 μm >80%). Mesh -325/+500
• Type 4 (20-38 μm >80%). Mesh -400/+635
• Type 5 (15-25 μm >80%). Mesh -500/+800

Compatible Products

• NC120, NC160, NC165 liquid fluxes.
• NC32 gel flux.

Technical Details

Print Parameter	Preferred	Acceptable
Solder paste bead size	1.5 to 2.0 cm (0.60 to 0.80 in)	1.0 to 2.5 cm (0.40 to 1.0 in)
Squeegee blade	Fine grain stainless steel. 60° from horizontal. 45° from horizontal for pin in paste.	Any type of stainless steel
Stencils	Fine grain (2-5 µm) or ultra-fine grain (1-2 µm) stainless steel	All types of commercially available stencils
Print speed	30 to 100 mm/sec (1.2 to 4.0 in/sec)	20 to 200 mm/sec (0.8 to 8.0 in/sec)
Pressure / blade length (increase with increasing speed)	0.18 to 0.27 kg/cm (1.0 to 1.5 lbs/in)	0.18 to 0.54 kg/cm (1.0 to 3.0 lbs/in)
Separation speed	1.0 to 5.0 mm/sec	0.5 to 10.0 mm/sec
Underside stencil cleaning	Wet / vacuum / vacuum cycle every 1-5 prints	Other cleaning cycles every 1 to 20 prints depending upon technology
Stencil life	8 hours at 18-29°C (65-85°F) and 10-70% RH.	Stencil life may be shorter outside of the preferred conditions.

• Blade pressure should be set as low as possible to clean off the stencil. Higher blade pressures will increase stencil and blade wear, and can lead to “scooping” and other print defects.
• Underside stencil cleaning is best accomplished with commercial cleaners and high quality wipe materials. Nano-coated stencils can be used to reduce the frequency of underside cleaning.

Reflow Parameter	Preferred	Acceptable
Profile length (25 °C to peak)	3.5 to 4.5 min (210 to 270 sec)	3.0 to 5.0 min (180 to 300 sec)
Heating ramp rate (20 second window)	1.0 to 2.0°C/sec	1.0 to 3.0°C/sec
Preheat / soak time (150 - 200 °C)	60 to 90 sec	30 to 120 sec
Peak temperature	240 to 250°C for SAC alloys 245 to 255°C for SN100C	235 to 255°C for SAC alloys 240 to 260°C for SN100C
Reflow time (time above liquidus)	50 to 70 sec	40 to 80 sec
Cooling ramp rate (20 second window)	3.0 to 6.0°C/sec	1.0 to 6.0°C/sec

• Reflow time should be calculated based on the liquidus point of the alloy used: SN100C = 227°C, SAC305 = 220°C, Sn96.5/Ag3.5 = 221°C, SN100CV = 225°C, LF-C2 = 213°C.

Example reflow profile graphs are shown below. These are a good starting point but they can be modified to fit the product and process. Contact FCT Assembly for assistance with reflow profiling.

Safety & Health

Safety

Wear chemically resistant gloves when handling solder paste. Avoid breathing fumes, especially during reflow of the solder paste.

J-STD-004B Flux Standard	Test Method	Result
J-STD-004B classification	J-STD-004B methods	ROL0
Halide ion content (Br- , Cl- , F- , I- )	IPC 2.3.28.1	0.0 % wt
Halogen content (Br and Cl)	EN 14582, IPC 2.3.28.1	0.0 % wt
Halide by silver chromate	IPC 2.3.33	No halides detected
Fluoride by spot test	IPC 2.3.35.1	None detected
Copper mirror	IPC 2.3.32	Low activity
Copper corrosion	IPC 2.6.15	No corrosion
Surface Insulation Resistance (SIR)	IPC 2.6.3.7	Pass > 1.00E+09 ohms
Electro Chemical Migration (ECM)	IPC 2.6.14.1	Pass, increase of 0.4 Log_{10} ohms
J-STD-005 Solder Paste Standard	Test Method	Result
Viscosity - Brookfield	IPC 2.4.34	Refer to the C of A
Slump - frosted glass	IPC 2.4.35	Pass
Solder balling - frosted glass	IPC 2.4.43	Preferred
Wetting - copper	IPC 2.4.45	Pass

Packaging & Availability

Packaging Type

Jars

Solder Paste Packaging

Solder Paste Packaging	Net Weight (grams)
Jars	250, 500
Cartridges	500 or 600 (6 oz), 700 (8 oz), 1300 (12 oz)
Syringes	30, 100
Enclosed print systems	800

Storage & Handling

Storage and Handling

Best practices for storage and handling of solder paste are listed below.

• Shelf life is 12 months when stored at 0 to 10°C (32 to 50°F).
• Shelf life is 12 months when stored at “room temperature” between 18 and 29°C (65 to 85°F).
• Warm the solder paste to room temperature (18 to 29°C / 65 to 85°F) before use. Do not force warming by heating the solder paste. Keep the solder paste sealed while warming, which typically takes 3 to 4 hours at room temperature. Warming overnight is acceptable.
• Ideally solder paste should be mixed before use to bring it to a normal working consistency. This can be done by hand-stirring in a jar, or using a knead cycle on the printer.
• Best practice is to keep the solder paste at room temperature until completely used. Remaining fresh solder paste should be sealed in the original container along with all inserts, lids, etc.
• If solder paste is removed from the printer and stored, it is recommended to store it in a separate container from the fresh solder paste. The container should be sealed with all inserts, lids, etc.
• Once solder paste is applied to the circuit board, the best practice is to reflow the solder paste as soon as possible. It is acceptable to reflow within approximately 8 hours.