At Siemens AG in Fürth, the drying time in the cleaning of heavily polluted electronic/electromechanical assemblies was reduced by more than 13 hours through the use of a vacuum drying oven. Before the electronics assembly is stored in the vacuum oven for drying, it passes through an ultrasonic bath containing detergent and is then rinsed for two to three minutes with tap water. Before the actual drying process, waterdrops are blown away with compressed air.
The Printed Circuit Board Industry Association (VdL)/ Electronic Components and Systems Division within German Electrical and Electronic Manufacturers’ Association (ZVEI)-Working Group “Qualitymanagement” recently published recommendations and guideline values on “Drying bare Printed Circuit Boards” and “Storage conditions for bare Printed Circuit Boards”. The recommendations also refer to a considerably shorter drying time in the vacuum – thereby reducing energy consumption as well.