SOLDERING AND
WELDING
“Necessity is the mother of all inventions”
O Since it is not always possible to create a metal device in
one piece, such as by casting, it is necessary assemble it
from separately prepared parts. In dentistry, the fabrication
techniques used are either soldering or welding.
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METAL JOINING OPERATIONS
O Are divided into three categories
• SOLDERING
• BRAZING
• WELDING
SOLDERING is defined as the joining of metals by
the fusion of filler metal between them, at a
temperature below the solidus temperature of the
metals being joined and below 450° C.
COMPONENTS OF SOLDERED
JOINTS
The soldered joint consists of the following
components:
A). Parent metal
B). Fluxes and anti- fluxes
C). Solder or filler metal
PARENT METAL
The parent metal is the metal or alloy to be joined. It is also known as
substrate metal or base metal. Soldering operation is the same for any
substrate metal.
The composition of parent metal determines:
melting range
oxide that forms on the surface during heating
wetablitly of the substrate by the molten solder
FLUX
Why do we use flux ?
1) To remove any oxide coating on the substrate metal surface.
2)To protect the alloy surface from oxidation during soldering and
dissolve metallic oxides as they are formed.
Classification of Flux
According to
Purpose PH
Boric compounds
solvent
Surface protection Acidic Alkaline Neutral
(SiO2) (limestone) (borax)
Reducing agent
Type II Type III
Type I
reducing Floride flux
Protective
BORAX FLUXES
Most popular type of flux in orthodontics appliances
Also called Sodium borate
They are available in different forms such as-
O Liquid form- solution of borax/boric acid in water, indicated for soldering of
orthodontic appliances and bridges in which minimum amount of flux is
required.
O Paste form- formed by mixing borax with petroleum jelly. Required when fluxes
are needed in large quantity.
O Powder form- contains a mixture of borax, silica flour and finely divided charcoal.
Charcoal is reducing agent and silica holds molten flux on surface of hot metal.
This is usually used for casting operations
APPLICATION OF FLUX:
The following points are to be considered -
O Painted on the substrate metal at the junction of pieces to be
joined.
O Fused on the surface of the parent metal strip.
O Whatever is the technique used the most important thing to be
considered is the amount of flux to be used.
O Too little of flux burns off and tends to be ineffective.
O Excess flux remains trapped in the filler metal and weakens the
joint.
O Flux combined with metal oxide forms glass that is difficult to
remove complete
ANTI- FLUX
O Antiflux is used to limit the spreading of solder. It is placed
on a casting before the flux application to limit the flow of
molten solder. When the metal surfaces are clean, any
excess solder introduced into the work gap will tend to flow
into unwanted areas. The antiflux helps prevent this.
Graphite (from a pencil) is often used as an antiflux.
O E.g. Graphite in the form of lead pencil. Disadvantage of
graphite is that it can burn off on prolonged heating at high
temperature.
FILLER METAL/SOLDER
Qualities of an ideal solder:
O Ease of flow at relatively low temperature.
O Sufficient fluidity to freely flow when melted.
O Ability to wet substrate metal.
O compatible Strength with the parent metal to be joined.
O Resistance to tarnish and corrosion.
O Acceptable color to give an inconspicuous joint.
O Resistance to pitting during heating.
O A rule of thumb is that flow temperature of the filler metal
should be 56° C(100° F) lower than the solidus
temperature of the substrate metal
Solder
Soft solders Hard solders
Precious metal solders Non-Precious metal solders
Gold solder Silver
Fusing temp 750-900℃ Fusing temp 600-750℃
Higher resistance to tarnish and corrosion Lower resistance to tarnish and corrosion
HEAT SOURCE
Gas- air or gas oxygen torch
Propane – is the best choice. It has the highest heat & good flame temperature.
Also butane can be used similar properties
.
FLAME
The flame has been divided into four zones. (picture)
O Cold mixing zone ( unburned gas)
O Partial combustion zone (oxidizing)
O Reducing zone
O Oxidizing zone ( burned gas)
The portion of the flame used for heating the soldering assembly should
be neutral or slightly reducing part.
TECHNIQUES OF SOLDERING
Investing structure soldering Free Hand soldering
STEPS IN SOLDERING
O Cleaning and preparing the surface to be joined.
O Assembling the parts to be joined.
O Preparation and fluxing of the gap surfaces between the gaps.
O Maintaining the proper position of the parts during procedure.
O Control of proper temperature.
O Control of time to ensure adequate flow of the solder & complex
filling of the solder joint.
CORRECT MANNER TO HOLD
THE SOLDERING TORCH
SELECTION OF A SOLDER JOINT
Point contact Area contact Wrap around
Soldering in dentistry
O Inlays
O Crowns
O Fixed bridgework
O Removable partial dentures
O Orthodontic appliances
O Wire to wire
O Tube can be soldered to the bridge of the Adam’s clasp.
O Attachment of springs to arch wire, the solder must be gold solder with
a melting point below 800° C.
O Soldering lingual arch or palatal arch.
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SOLDERING FAILURES
Soldering failures are seen due to variety of reasons :-
O Failure to clean the parts to be joined.
O Improper fluxing.
O Poor flow of solder.
O Over heating of the solder can lead to pitted joint of low
strength.
O Besides porosities and brittleness from oxides, gases or
foreign matter resulting from the soldering procedures are
factors for increasing the incidence of failure of soldered
joints.
O Creep, corrosion, crack stress corrosion, fatigue and
corrosion erosion.
COMMERCIAL MATERIALS
➢ Tru- Chrome Solder And Flux,
➢ Formula No. 6 Silver Solder,
➢ Unitek Flux