RoHS-Related Analysis Service
Addressing environmental problems, the European nations are monitoring the small amounts of hazardous substances, such as cadmium and lead contained in electrical and electronic products. If, by regulation, these quantities exceed permitted limits, shipping of products is supposed to be difficult. As a one-stop solution, OKI Engineering offers component and material evaluation services for existing products and those in development, including incoming inspection.
- NOTES:
RoHS: Restriction of the Use of Certain Hazardous Substances in Electrical and Electronic Equipment （2002/95/EC）
WEEE: Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment （2002/95/EC）
ELV: End-of-life Vehicles （2002/95/EC）
Analysis of Harzardous Substances in Materials and Products
Substances under Regulation
As in the table below, the RoHS directive lists six substances, cadmium, lead, hexavalent chromium, mercury, polybrominated diphenyl ether （PBDE） and polybrominated biphenyl （PBB）, to all of which we respond promptly.
| Restricted Substances | Abbreviation | Maximum Concentration | Major Purpose |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cadmium | Cd | 0.01wt% （100ppm） | plastic mold impurity |
| Lead | Pb | 0.1wt% （1000ppm） | solder, alloys |
| Hexavalent chromium | Cr6+ | 0.1wt% （1000ppm） | platings |
| Mercury | Hg | 0.1wt% （1000ppm） | fluorescent lighting |
| Polybrominated diphenyl ether | PBDE | 0.1wt% （1000ppm） | flame retardants |
| Polybrominated biphenyl | PBB | 0.1wt% （1000ppm） | flame retardants |
Examples of Actual Performance
- IC packages
- mold resin materials
- seal inks
- printboards
- glass epoxy boards
- wire rod vinyl coatings
- stainless
- casing and packing materials
- plastic moldings
- chrome plated screws
- resin palettes
- silver pastes
- coating compounds
- inks
- aluminum alloys
Analysis Methodologies
| Analysis Sample | Analysis Methodologies |
|---|---|
| Cadmium, lead, chromes, mercury | 1. Preprocessing by high temperature/pressure analysis with microwave analyzer. 2. Quantative analysis with high-frequency argon plasma emission spectrometer （ICP-AES） and high-frequency argon plasma mass analyzer. |
| Hexavalent chromium | 1. Preprocessing by ultrasonic extraction of samplee immersed in warm water or customer specified preprocessing methodology. 2. Quantative analysis by diphenylcarbazide absorption photometry using a spectrophotometer. |
| Bromine fire retardant | 1. Preprocessing by extraction of organic solvants. 2. Analysis with gas chromatograph mass analyzer. |
| Abbreviated analyses | 1. Simplified analysis with fluorescent X-ray. 2. Analysis of lead, cadmium, chrome, mercury and bromine. 3. Hexavalent chromium is evaluated as chrome and bromine series flame retardants as bromine. |
Introduction to Mapping Analysis for Hazardous Substances in Products
Essential Features
Conventionally, during analysis of numerous assembled products for hazardous substances in accordance with the RoHS directive the initial diagnosis used to be "soldered parts may be treated as homogenous materials", but when it gets problematic checking a printboard uniformly in fragments whilst harmful substances are present in excess, then it is common to check contents of hazardous substances on each and every part.
Transmission X-ray element mapping analysis enables visualization of the distribution of a printboard's constituent elements by capturing image data for inspections. This allows lot management of individually verified products, spot checks, etc. In addition, thresholds can be satisfied by spot analysis of arbitrary locations.
Test Equipment Specification
| Fluorescent X-ray mapping analyzer, Horiba XGT-5000 Type S | |
|---|---|
| Probing range | 200mm x 200mm |
| Analysis area | 10μm or 1.2mm |
| Max. sample size | 500mm x 350mm x 85mm |
Analysis Case Example
It is as well possible to further analyze confirmed products individually. By this means the presence of eutectic solder on lead-free printboards can be determined thanks to our image data analysis.
Comparison mapping analysis example of a completely mounted printboard showing in sequence the overall board image, transmission X-ray image, and images in the spectra of 28 Ni Ka, 29 Cu Ka, 50 Sn La1, 35 BrKr, 82 Pb La1 and R:Sn G:Pb.
