News and Events
On November 15 1990 President George Bush signed the Clean Air Act into law, legally restricting the output of selected air pollutants by cities and industry. The Act addresses multiple sources and types of air pollution, but for the purposes of this discussion, we will deal with the “VOC” [volatile organic compound] component of “ground level ozone”, resulting from the material choices and methods used in Printed Board fabrication. “Ground-level ozone (O3) is the major component of smog. Ozone is not emitted directly into the air, but is formed through complex chemical reactions between precursor emissions of volatile organic compounds (VOC) and nitrogen oxides (NOx) in the presence of sunlight.”
A simplified schematic of the reaction follows:
As anyone in the newspaper business knows, printing good quality color is tough. Poor ink density, background toning and a washed out appearance are all common problems. However, advertisers and consumers alike continue to demand more and more color, challenging newspapers to improve their quality while still containing costs.
NEWS ANNOUNCEMENT:
10/16/2013–RBP Chemical Technology, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, announced today an agreement with Kapoor Imaging Pvt Ltd to license the blending and distribution of its pressroom chemistries line in India. After a presence in India for more than six years, RBP recognized the need to partner with a locally-respected supplier to support its efforts in growing its business in the region and globally.
As summer warms up so does the pressroom – all too often pressmen experience an increase in growth and keeping the press/equipment clean can become more difficult. Fountain solutions contain biocides to control growth, but at times they are just not enough to keep the press at peak performance. Controlling biological growth and keeping the press mix clean can be accomplished by using UV light sources, ultrasonic methods, oxidizers such as bleach or peroxides, temperature, and biocides.
In Booth #3044 during PRINT13, RBP will introduce Unitrol® 2500 fountain solution, updated to run on newer, high-speed sheetfed presses.
Sheetfed, commercial and packaging printers running newer high-speed presses are demanding updated fountain solutions to replace alcohol or alcohol replacers. RBP Chemical Technology, Inc., Milwaukee, Wis., (www.rbpchemical.com) is responding to this need with the launch of its new Unitrol® 2500, a one-step sheetfed fountain concentrate during PRINT13, September 8 – 12, 2013, McCormick Place, Chicago, IL. RBP, a nearly 60-year-old veteran developer, manufacturer and distributor of high performance chemicals and consumable supplies, has created the one-step fountain concentrate to run on all types of sheetfed presses.
As a supplier of HAL fluxes to the circuit board industry, RBP Chemical Technology® researchers were very aware of the drawbacks of conventional, halide-based products. High corrosivity, frequent equipment maintenance, time-consuming solder skimming, deficiencies in solder coverage, dull solder and environmental issues all led our product development team to find a better, more reliable product for the HAL process.
The shop is swamped and orders are pouring in. There just isn’t any time to clean the equipment or scrub a tank — right? WRONG — a critical mistake made by some PCB manufacturers is to wait until a process is out of control rather than perform regular preventive maintenance (PM) procedures throughout their operations.
More and more board shops are interested in running the tin stripper on a feed and bleed system. This method gives more consistent performance and reduces the downtime for dumping and changing the solution. The system can be controlled either by specific gravity or panel count as illustrated in the charts below.
Imaging fine lines is easy; developing fine spaces is hard.
With the standard circuit resolution quickly moving below 5 mil lines and spaces, pressure mounts on the developing process, challenging manufacturers to find new ways to keep consistent quality and high yields.