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Meeting Ucreate Face To Face           MATELEC:  Nov 5-8 2024 / Booth No: Pabellón 4,4B71 / Madrid, Spain         Electronica 2024:  Nov 12-15 2024 / Booth No: 254 / Munich, Germany

What Is PCB Coating?

‌PCB conformal coating is a specially formulated coating used to protect PCBs and related equipment from environmental erosion. ‌This coating has good high and low temperature resistance. After curing, it forms a transparent protective film with excellent insulation, moisture resistance, leakage resistance, shock resistance, dust resistance, corrosion resistance, aging resistance, and corona resistance. Conformal coating is widely used, especially in the electronics manufacturing industry. It can improve and extend the service life of PCBs and ensure the safety and reliability of use. Under realistic conditions, such as chemical environment, vibration, high dust, salt spray, humidity and high temperature, PCBs may suffer from corrosion, softening, deformation, mildew and other problems, leading to circuit failure. Conformal coating forms a flexible protective film with a thickness of about 50-100 microns, which can protect circuits from damage under relatively harsh conditions.

There are many types of conformal coatings, including products with different ingredients such as acrylic acid and polyurethane. There are also many names on the market, such as conformal glue, moisture-proof glue, insulating glue, etc. These coatings can be selected according to specific usage requirements and focus to meet different protection needs. The use of conformal coating can prevent leakage, allow higher power and closer PCB spacing, thus meeting the purpose of component miniaturization.

In addition, the use of conformal coating includes brushing, spraying, dipping, pouring and other methods, with fast curing speed and strong adhesion to various circuit boards. These characteristics make conformal coating an important material for protecting circuit boards and related equipment, especially in applications that require improved reliability and safety.

What is the function of conformal coating?

1. Reduce or eliminate the degradation of electronic operating performance
The application of conformal coating on printed circuit boards and components can effectively reduce or eliminate the degradation of electronic operating performance. When electronic products face adverse environmental factors, the conformal coating can provide them with comprehensive protection and ensure their stable performance. In particular, acrylic conformal coating is widely used in various electronic devices due to its good flexibility, strong adhesion and simple operation. In addition, this paint can not only dry quickly, but also maintain its protective effect under mechanical vibration, thermal shock and high temperature environment, thereby extending the service life of electronic products.

2. Protecting circuit boards
Conformal coating is a special coating used to protect circuit boards from environmental erosion. After curing, it forms a transparent protective film that can protect circuits from corrosion, mold growth, and short circuits under various harsh conditions, such as chemicals, vibration, moisture, salt spray, humidity, and high temperature. In addition, it also has excellent insulation, moisture resistance, leakage resistance, dust resistance, corrosion resistance, aging resistance, mildew resistance, and parts loosening resistance, which greatly increases the safety factor and service life of circuit boards.

3. Modify the appearance of the circuit board
The conformal coating is available in a variety of colors. It can not only beautify the appearance of the PCB and make it more beautiful and generous, but the colored three-conformal coating can also cover the components and design layout, thereby ensuring a higher degree of confidentiality. This dual role not only enhances the visual appeal of the circuit board, but also enhances its security.

4. Avoid oxidation
Specifically, conformal paint can enhance the aging resistance of the circuit board, thereby ensuring that the circuit board maintains stability during long-term use. This is mainly because the conformal paint can effectively isolate oxygen and moisture in the air and prevent the circuit board from being oxidized and corroded. Therefore, the use of conformal paint can significantly extend the service life of the circuit board and ensure its stable performance.

5. Corrosion inhibition
This effect is mainly achieved through certain pigments or their reaction products with film-forming materials and water, which can effectively slow down or prevent the corrosion process of metals. Specifically, these pigments or reaction products can form a protective film on the metal surface, thereby isolating the metal from the external environment, reducing the electrochemical activity of the metal, and thus achieving the effect of corrosion inhibition. This corrosion inhibition effect not only extends the service life of the metal, but also improves its corrosion resistance.

6. Protect circuit boards from the erosion of the natural environment
Various factors in the natural environment, such as humidity, temperature changes and physical shocks, may cause damage to circuit boards. Conformal coating effectively isolates these adverse factors by forming a protective film on the surface of the circuit board. This protective film not only prevents water and moisture from penetrating, but also reduces the impact of temperature changes on the circuit board. In addition, it can also provide a certain degree of physical shock protection, thereby extending the service life of the circuit board. Therefore, the use of conformal coating is a cost-effective measure to improve the stability and reliability of circuit boards in various natural environments.

7. Peel strength
Peel strength is an important performance indicator of conformal coating in application. It refers to the bonding strength between the conformal coating and the substrate after curing. The higher the peel strength, the stronger the bond between the conformal coating and the substrate, and the better it can protect the substrate from the influence of the external environment. In practical applications, conformal coating with high peel strength can ensure that it can still adhere tightly to the substrate when subjected to external impact or vibration, providing a long-lasting protective effect.

8. Improve the adhesion of circuit boards
Conformal coating can enhance the adhesion between circuit boards and components, ensuring that they remain tightly bonded in harsh environments or vibration conditions. In addition, conformal coating can prevent moisture, dust and other contaminants from invading the circuit board, further enhancing its adhesion. Therefore, the use of conformal coating can ensure that the circuit board can operate stably and reliably in various applications.

9. Waterproof
It can effectively prevent water from penetrating, providing an extra layer of protection for electronic devices or other items. The waterproof properties of this paint make it particularly useful in humid or rainy environments, which can extend the service life of products or equipment. In addition, the fast curing speed of the three-conformal paint, and the coating formed after curing is tough and not easy to peel off, further enhancing its waterproof effect. Therefore, the use of three-conformal paint can effectively prevent moisture from damaging electronic devices or other items.

10. Anti-static
Static electricity is a static charge generated by friction or other reasons, which may cause misoperation or damage to electronic equipment. The anti-static properties of the three-conformal paint can effectively reduce or eliminate these static electricity, thereby protecting electronic equipment from damage caused by static electricity. In addition, it can also improve the working stability of electronic equipment and extend its service life.

11. Extend the service life of circuit boards
It is mainly used to protect circuit boards from environmental factors such as moisture, salt spray and mold. Specifically, conformal paint can effectively isolate water and humidity, preventing circuit boards from short circuiting or being damaged due to moisture. In addition, it can resist salt spray erosion and reduce performance degradation caused by corrosion. Finally, conformal paint also has anti-mold properties to prevent damage to circuit boards caused by mold growth. Therefore, the use of conformal paint can significantly extend the service life of circuit boards and improve their stability and reliability.

12. Anti-corrosion
It can effectively isolate electronic components from the external environment, thereby preventing corrosion caused by humidity, salt spray or other chemicals. This isolation effect ensures the long-term stability and reliability of electronic components and reduces failures and repair costs caused by corrosion. Therefore, the use of three-conformal paint is an economical and effective anti-corrosion measure, especially suitable for electronic equipment in high humidity and corrosive environments.

13. Improve the radiation resistance of circuit boards
Radiation damage to circuit boards and electronic components is inevitable, and the application of conformal coating can effectively reduce this damage. It can form a protective film on the surface of the circuit board, which can block the direct contact of radiation to the circuit board, thereby reducing the damage of radiation to the circuit board and electronic components. In addition, conformal coating can also enhance the overall stability of the circuit board, making it more reliable in a radiation environment. Therefore, the use of conformal coating is an effective way to improve the radiation resistance of circuit boards.

14. Shockproof
The special curing agent and curing process make the paint film have excellent toughness and elasticity, which can effectively absorb and disperse the impact force, thereby reducing the damage of mechanical parts when they are subjected to vibration or impact. In addition, the conformal paint can also form a solid protective layer on the surface of mechanical parts, further enhancing its shock resistance. Therefore, the use of conformal paint can not only increase the service life of the product, but also ensure its stable operation in complex environments.

15. Anti-salt spray
Salt spray is a common natural phenomenon, mainly brought by sea breeze and containing a large amount of sodium chloride. When these salt sprays come into contact with metal surfaces, electrochemical corrosion easily occurs, causing rust on the metal surface. Three-proof paint can effectively form a protective film on the metal surface to isolate the metal from contact with salt spray, thereby preventing the occurrence of electrochemical corrosion and rust. Therefore, the use of conformal coatings can significantly improve the corrosion resistance of metal products in salt spray environments.

16. Improve the flexibility of circuit boards
Flexibility is the ability of a circuit board to maintain its original performance and not break easily when it is bent or twisted. The protective layer formed after the curing of the three-conformal coating not only enhances the resistance of the circuit board to the external environment, but also improves its flexibility. This effect of enhancing flexibility helps to reduce damage to the circuit board under complex environments or mechanical stress, thereby extending its service life. Therefore, the use of three-conformal coating is an effective way to improve the flexibility of circuit boards.

17. Fire prevention
Conformal coating plays an important role in fire prevention. It can effectively prevent the spread of fire and reduce the risk of fire. The fireproof properties of conformal coating are mainly due to its special composition and structure, which can form a protective film at high temperature to isolate the fire source from combustible materials, thereby playing a fire prevention role. In addition, conformal coating can also slow down the spread of fire when a fire occurs, buying more time for personnel evacuation and fire fighting. Therefore, it is a wise choice to use conformal coating in situations where fire protection is required.

18. Reduce the occurrence of PCB line failures in SMT chip processing and production
Specifically, conformal paint can effectively protect PCB circuits from environmental factors such as moisture, pollution and mechanical shock. This protection can reduce short circuits, open circuits or other electrical performance problems caused by these external factors, thereby significantly reducing the occurrence of failures during the production process. Therefore, the use of conformal coating not only improves the durability of the PCB, but also ensures the smooth progress of the SMT chip processing and production process.

19. Anti-chemicals
It can effectively prevent chemicals from corroding and damaging electronic equipment or other objects. This paint has excellent chemical stability and can resist corrosion from a variety of chemicals, such as acids, alkalis and salts. Therefore, the use of three-proof paint can extend the service life of electronic equipment and other objects, ensuring that they can still work normally in harsh chemical environments.

20. Moisture-proof
Moisture-proof is one of the main functions of conformal coating, which can effectively prevent moisture penetration and absorption, thereby protecting electronic devices from humid environments. In humid environments, electronic devices are susceptible to corrosion and short circuits, and the moisture-proof properties of conformal coating can effectively avoid these problems. In addition, conformal coating can also form a protective film on the surface of the device, further enhancing its moisture-proof ability. Therefore, the use of conformal coating can ensure the stability and reliability of electronic devices in humid environments.

Our SMT factory has an independent conformal coating workshop, providing customers with products that meet international standards. Welcome evert customer from all over the world are to visit our factory. Or send your requirments to us: sales@ucpba.com

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