The Pros and Cons of Using Lead-Bearing Solder Paste

With electronic engineering booming worldwide, there is continuous R&D efforts being put into the techniques and methods used for highly mechanized mass-production of printed circuit boards. This process can be daunting if the prerequisites are not falling in place. One such process is soldering, where solder paste, solder bars (or solder wire) and other electronic materials are used to manufacture high quality printed circuit boards. There are lead based and lead-free solder pastes used for PCB assembly. Here, in this blog, we will focus on the pros and cons of using lead solder paste for manufacturing of printed circuit board.

Pros -
1.    Lead-bearing solder paste has a low melting point, making it easy to form the joint nicely without damaging the parts of the circuit board.
2.    Because of low melting points, less heat is needed to get the job done, thus consuming less energy and indirectly helping you save on energy bills.
3.    Due to the advantage of the viscosity of lead solder paste, different types and kinds of solder paste can be formed depending on the particle size, shape and flux.

Cons –
1.    Lead is toxic, thus lead based solder pastes used for electrical connections are harmful for humans and for the environment.
2.    Joints attained by lead solder paste are weaker as compared to lead-free solder paste.
3.    Lead solder paste is a poor conductor of heat and hence a large percentage of the joint mass demonstrates electrical resistance.

With this evaluation of the pros and cons of using lead solder paste, it might be easy for you choose the best for your PCB manufacturing requirements.