Soldering Emissions Stemming from Printed Circuit Board Manufacturing

Improving Indoor Air Quality Via Source Capture

There are over 100 million circuit boards manufactured worldwide each year and that number will continue to rise. Modern printed circuit boards, PCBs, are found in common objects such as lighting fixtures, laptops, and coffee makers. They are also present in everything from office copy machines to military fighter jets.

In order for PCBs to be assembled into goods and products, they, too, must be made. Their construction, like most industrial processes, creates potential occupational risks to the health and well-being of production workers. One of those risks stems from the soldering emissions created during manufacturing.

Occupational Exposure

The printed circuit board manufacturing process is multi-staged, beginning with design and then fabrication, with additional steps between and after. Solder, the filler that joins two or more metals, first appears during the assembly phase. In order for the solder to liquify, spread evenly, and join metal alloys on to a board to create a circuit, flux must be used. Flux is a chemical agent that removes oxidation. Both are necessary for building durable and long-lasting conductive circuitry connections.

The heated solder creates a plume, or smoke, which consists mainly of particulate matter. VOCs (volatile organic compounds) and metal fumes are produced as well, creating a toxic mix of dangerous inhalants that endanger the workers performing the soldering.

Exposure itself doesn’t necessarily cause serious problems. The volume and duration of contaminants, as well as an individual’s characteristics such as age, gender, health, and lifestyle, are all factors that affect the degree to which a person is at risk. For those who are exposed to soldering emissions day in and day out, the threat is far more severe.

Airborne Contaminants from Printed Circuit Board Manufacturing

Toxins emitted during PCB soldering primarily originate from the breakdown of flux agents and the burning of metals.

Rosin (pine sap), a main ingredient found in flux, releases gases such as formaldehyde, acetone, methane, and CO2 when heated. Similarly, fumes are emitted from various toxic metals like lead, beryllium, cadmium, and mercury.

Health Complications

Health problems stemming from short-term exposure may include headache, burning eyes, nasal congestion, coughing, wheezing, and skin rash. Long-term exposure leads to more serious health problems that can include respiratory illness, such as asthma, bronchitis, and reduced lung function, in addition to neurological disorders and kidney disease resulting from lead-based metal fumes.

Prevention

To remove the occupational risk posed by soldering during PCB manufacturing is to prevent emissions at the outset. To accomplish this, OSHA (the Occupational Safety and Health Administration) emphasizes the need for proper ventilation and air cleaning measures, such as source capture.

The best way to maintain a clean and healthy indoor air quality (IAQ) is by removing airborne pollution before it can enter a worker’s breathing space. Fume extraction, an excellent means of source capture, uses high-powered fans to pull dirty air into a filtration system where it is cleaned and then recirculated as purified air.

At AIR Systems, our Extract-All® line of air cleaning products eliminates indoor air pollution at its source. While we carry a full line of ambient and central systems, our bench-top and mobile fume extractors are the products we recommend because they are specifically designed for applications such as soldering. To ensure that your workplace has an IAQ that is healthy for all employees, contact an AIR Systems specialist today for a free indoor air quality assessment.