Somerset, NJ – April 12, 2016 – Alpha Assembly Solutions, the world leader in the production of electronic soldering and bonding materials, will be presenting a technical paper “Using Rheology Measurement as a Potentially Predictive Tool for Solder Paste Transfer Efficiency and Print Volume Consistency” at SMTA China East Technical Conference 2017 on April 25 in Shanghai, China.

An estimated 80% of the defects associated with the surface mount technology process involve defects created during the printing process. Viscosity at a single shear rate could predict a fatal flaw in the printability of a solder paste sample. However, false positive single shear rate viscosity readings are not unknown.

This paper is to examine the correlation between rheology and print volume, and print volume repeatability of the pastes by using a cone and plate fixture on a variable speed rheometer. The goal is to determine if a specific set of viscosity vs. shear strain rate curves can predict the defect rate of a solder paste, and possibly create a more accurate prediction of the solder pastes value-in-use to users. The expectation is that this work will lead to a rich sequence of further valuable studies.

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