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Pricing
& Availability
Bellman-Melcor
distributes the highest quality fluxes produced by the industry's
elite manufacturers. Given the tremendous variety of available
products, we treat each opportunity as a custom order to insure
quality.
Bellman-Melcor
Incorporated
P.O. Box 188
7575 West 183rd Street
Tinley Park, Illinois 60477
Phone: 1-800-367-6024
Fax: 1-888-(brazeit)
272-9348
E-mail: sales@bellmanmelcor.com
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There
are three different categories of soft soldering fluxes: Inorganic
Acid Fluxes (IA), Rosin Fluxes, Organic Acid Fluxes (OA).
Inorganic
Acid Flux
The Inorganic Acid (IA) fluxes are used primarily for industrial
soft soldering applications. These fluxes typically contain a
combination of zinc chloride, hydrochloric acid, and ammonium
chloride. These fluxes are used for soldering stainless steel,
brass, copper, and other metals commonly joined in industrial
applications. Other inorganic products are hydrobromic acid based
fluxes. These fluxes are used for conventional radiator soldering
applications. Today, many regional sewer districts are monitoring
the emissions of heavy metals into sewer systems. New alternatives
are being sought to eliminate zinc (a heavy metal) from fluxes
and remove the hazardous waste associated with post-solder effluent.
Rosin
Flux
The Rosin Fluxes have been a standard in soldering for more than
a century. These products are based upon abietic acid, found in
tree rosin, and are available in three types:
| 1. |
Type
R (Rosin). A combination of Water White (WW) Gum Rosin blended
with solvent. |
| 2. |
Type
RMA (Rosin Mildly Activated). A blend of WW Gum Rosin, a low
activity activator, and solvent. Meets most military specifications. |
| 3. |
Type
RA (Rosin Fully Activated). A blend of WW Gum Rosin, a high
activity activator, and solvent. For applications needing
highest activity. |
While these
fluxes have been the standard in soldering for many years, the
cleaning requirements for rosin fluxes typically involved Freon°
or Trichloroethane 1:1:1. With the implementation of the Montreal
Protocol, today most manufacturers have shifted from CFCs to HFCs
or aqueous and No-Clean fluxes.
Organic Acid Flux
The Organic Acid (OA) fluxes are available in a variety of formulations,
including water-soluble and No-Clean fluxes; halide and non-halide
fluxes; alcohol and VOC-Free (water-based) products. OA flux was
first introduced in the 1940s. Based upon a formulation conceived
at the Battelle Memorial Institute, this flux contained no rosin,
no inorganic activators, and no solvents. It was a revolutionary
chemistry that was capable of soldering copper, brass, and nickel
alloys, but contained only one-third the solids content of the
conventional rosin fluxes. Cleaning was simplified to an aqueous
wash using an OA flux. The cleanability and activity of this flux,
relative to Rosin and Inorganic fluxes, made it popular for electronics
and electrical soldering applications where more activity was
required than found in rosin fluxes, but did not have the corrosive
and cleaning problems inherent in acid fluxes. Today, manufactures
worldwide are switching to No-Clean fluxes, and VOC-Free, and
water soluble fluxes in an effort to promote a safer workplace
and global environment. These fluxes comprise the majority of
liquid fluxes sold for electronics assembly applications in wave
soldering, component tinning, and wire/cable tinning.
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