ATIS Evaluates Materials for Telecom Equipment, Infrastructure in Response to RoHS
April 6, 2007 // Published as a news service by IHS
In a proactive response to the European Union (EU) Restriction of Hazardous Substances (RoHS) Directive, the Alliance of Telecommunications Industry Solutions (ATIS) Network Interface, Power and Protection Committee (NIPP) is evaluating the impact of certain materials substitutes, such as those for leaded solder and hexavalent chromium, in telecommunications equipment and products.
RoHS restricts the use of lead, mercury, cadmium, hexavalent chromium, polybrominated biphenyls and polybrominated diphenyl ethers in many common electric and electronic devices. It has been in effect since July 1, 2006 in Europe.
Market-driven forces in an increasingly global economy make it necessary for the industry to research alternatives and make recommendations on this subject including the value of lead-free solders. The ATIS committee is evaluating alternatives.
It has conducted an initial literature review of private sector and government databases containing studies on this topic to determine if additional research or the conduct of independent studies is needed. A position is expected to be developed later this year.
"Our goal is to have no preconceived notions, but to let the science guide us to the most viable solutions," said Chris Coyle, chair of the ATIS NIPP Network Physical Protection Subcommittee and senior project engineer at Intertek.
Lead solder is used extensively in telecommunications for its performance reliability at a wide range of temperatures. Also, it can be soldered at lower temperatures than alternative solders such as tin-silver-copper. This means that sensitive components such as integrated circuits are subject to lower heat levels during manufacturing.
The environmental impact of tin-lead-copper solder has not been proven to be substantially better than that of lead, said ATIS. Furthermore, the higher manufacturing heat levels needed for non-lead solder are a concern in terms of increased energy consumption.
In addition to its work on lead-free solder, ATIS is nearing completion of a standard for RoHS-compliant metal finishes. The requirement to eliminate hexavalent chromium has an impact on the telecommunications industry, said ATIS.
This material is used in telecommunications hardware because it simultaneously meets required criteria for both corrosion protection and electrical conductivity. Selecting acceptable substitute finishes will be important to maintaining the reliability of Internet and telephone services.
Companies involved in the RoHS standards work at ATIS include AT&T, Alcatel-Lucent, ADTRAN and Cisco Systems, as well as test laboratories such as Intertek, Underwriters Laboratories Inc. (UL) and Southwest Research Institute.
Source: Alliance of Telecommunications Industry Solutions (ATIS).