Soldering is an important step in the electronic circuit manufacturing process. Manufacturers use soldering to securely connect electronic components to the circuit board. In the electronics industry, there are two main forms of soldering as reflow soldering and wave soldering.
Reflow soldering is the most widely used soldering method in the manufacture of electronic circuit boards. The soldering process begins with applying solder and flux to the pads on the printed circuit board (PCB). Electronic components are placed in appropriate locations on the circuit board. Afterwards, the PCB is heated with the help of a special oven to melt the solder. Afterwards, it is left to cool and the solder joint becomes permanent. At the beginning of the process, a preheat is also applied so that the PCB and components do not experience thermal shock. This method is well suited for SMT assembly.
Wave soldering is another soldering method used in electronic circuit manufacturing. The soldering process begins with cleaning the circuit board and components with the help of flux. Flux removes the oxide layer on the surface and cleans the metal. Components are placed in appropriate positions on the board. As with reflow soldering, a preheat is done to prevent thermal shock. The molten solder wave is moved across the PCB, resulting in soldering of components and forming electrical connections. Then the temperature is lowered to ensure that the solder is permanent. This method is well suited for THT assembly.
The key difference between wave soldering and reflow soldering is that reflow soldering uses hot air to melt the solder whereas wave soldering uses directly molten solder.
Reflow soldering is known as the simplest method for soldering PCBs. Wave soldering is more complex because small temperature changes during soldering can cause big problems. Pad size, pad shape, board orientation, and many other factors must be carefully considered in the wave soldering process.
Reflow soldering is the most common soldering method in electronics manufacturing, especially in SMT assembly. Wave soldering is less common but unrivaled when it comes to soldering THT components. The way of soldering directly affects the time and cost of production. Therefore, engineers must decide which soldering method is most beneficial by determining the manufacturing requirements.
If there are both SMD and DIP circuit elements on the circuit, wave soldering and reflow soldering can be used together in the manufacturing process.
