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The Restriction of Hazardous Substances (RoHS) Directive 2002/95/EC stipulates maximum limits for the hazardous metals cadmium, lead and mercury as well as the hexavalent chromium and the brominated flame retardants in electrical and electronic products. To ensure compliance, reliable analysis methods are required.This poster deals with the wet-chemical determination of trace concentrations of the six RoHS-restricted substances in a wide variety of materials including metals, electrotechnical components, plastics and wires. After sample preparation according to IEC 62321, the metals lead, cadmium and mercury are best determined by anodic stripping voltammetry (ASV) and the flame retardants PBB and PBDE are quantified by direct-injection ion chromatography (IC) using spectrophotometric detection. Chromium(VI) can be determined either by adsorptive stripping voltammetry (AdSV) or IC. Both methods are very sensitive and meet prescribed RoHS limits.

An automatic titration method is described using biamperometric endpoint indication for the determination of antimony in antimony-alloyed cable lead (approx. 1% Sb). A 0.01 mol/L KBrO3 solution is used as the titrant.

The metals Cd, Co, Cu, Fe, Ni, Pb, and Zn are determined in the sub-ppb range (limit of detection 0.05 µg/L) by means of stripping voltammetry. The DP-ASV method is used for Cd, Cu, Pb, and Zn whereas Co, Ni, and Fe are determined by means of the DP-CSV method (dimethylglyoxime or catechol complexes).Use of the VA Processor and the sample changer allows automatic determination of the above metal ions in one solution. The method has been specially developed for trace analysis in the manufacture of semiconductor chips based on silicon. It can naturally also be employed successfully in environmental analysis.

Lithium-ion batteries must be completely free of water (concentration of H2O < 20 mg/kg), because water reacts with the conducting salt, e.g., LiPF6, to form hydrofluoric acid.The water content of several materials used in lithium ion batteries can be determined reliably and precisely by coulometric Karl-Fischer titration. In this Application Bulletin the determination for the following materials is described:raw materials for the manufacture of lithium-ion batteries (e.g., solvents for electrolytes, carbon black/graphite); electrode coating preparations (slurry) for anode and cathode coating; the coated anode and cathode foils as well as in separator foil and in the combined material; electrolytes for lithium-ion batteries;

Cleanliness is indispensable in electronics production. Ionic contaminations in particular lead to a drastic worsening of the quality of the printed circuit boards. The present Application Note describes the determination of cations on printed circuit board surfaces. The intelligent Partial Loop Injection Technique (MiPT) used for this purpose permits the determination of cations and anions in the same sample. The determination of the anions is described in AN-S-317.

Copper is arguably one of the most technologically relevant metals, especially for the semiconductor industry. The deposition process used in this industry is known as the dual-damascene process and it involves the electrodeposition of copper from an acidic cupric compound, in the presence of additives.This Application Note illustrates the use of the Autolab rotating ring disc electrode (RRDE) for the study of electrodeposition of copper and the detection of the Cu+ intermediate.

In the application note AN-EIS-004 on equivalent circuit models, an overview of the different circuit elements that are used to build an equivalent circuit model was given. After identifying a suitable model for the system under investigation, the next step in the data analysis is estimation of the model parameters. This is done by the non-linear regression of the model to the data. Most impedance systems come with a data-fitting program. In this application note, the way NOVA is uses to fit the data is shown.

In this application note, the advantage of recording the raw time domain data for each individual frequency during an electrochemical impedance measurement is described.

Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) is a powerful technique which provides information about the processes occurring at the electrode-electrolyte interface. The data collected with EIS are modeled with a suitable electrical equivalent circuit. The fitting procedure will change the values of the parameters until the mathematical function matches the experimental data within a certain margin of error. In this Application Note, some suggestions are given in order to get acceptable initial parameters and to perform an accurate fitting.

Automated determination of the H2SiF6 and HF contents of industrial grade hexafluorosilicic acid.

In the semiconductor industry, thermoset resins combined with fabric or paper are used as an intermediate layer between substrates of printed circuit boards (PCB). These polymer-based sheets (laminates) are chosen depending on thickness and their thermomechanical and electrical characteristics. Near infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) is a fast, non-destructive and easy-to-use analytical method which allows the measurement of multiple key quality parameters in less than a minute. The following Application Note describes the determination of the transition time of PCB laminates by NIRS, a parameter correlating with the thickness, glass transition temperature, and tensile strength of the material.

The chemicals used in the manufacture of semiconductors must exhibit an exceptional purity, because even traces of contaminants have a negative effect on electrical properties. For the manufacture of printed circuit boards, the light-sensitive photoresist applied to the substrate (wafer) is exposed to light at defined areas with the aid of a photo template and then developed in a chemical reaction. The developer contains 2.38 to 2.62% tetramethylammonium hydroxide (TMAH) and ensures that the exposed areas can be readily separated from the substrate. The monitoring of the TMAH concentration in the developer solution takes place with a process analyzer from Metrohm Applikon that is configured specially for titration. In addition to this, the analyzer helps with the mixing of the TMAH solutions.

Determination of bromide, sulfite, sulfate, and thiosulfate in a photographic developer solution using anion chromatography with conductivity detection after chemical suppression.

Cleanliness is indispensable in electronics production. Ionic contaminations in particular lead to a drastic worsening of the quality of the printed circuit boards. The present Application Note describes the determination of anions on printed circuit board surfaces. The intelligent Partial Loop Injection Technique (MiPT) used for this purpose permits the determination of cations and anions in the same sample. The determination of the cations is described in AN-C-149.

Ultrapure chemicals are required in the semiconductor industry. Ionic impurities may lead to compromised products. This application describes the determination of anionic impurities in semiconductor grade 28% ammonium hydroxide solution. To avoid matrix disturbances, Inline Neutralization and Inline Preconcentration with Matrix Elimination needs to be applied.

Lithium-ion (Li-ion) battery electrolyte quality is essential for performance, stability, and safety reasons. Ion chromatography is an accurate method for electrolyte analysis.

The lithium-ion battery market is continuously growing due to the tremendous demand for battery powered consumer products. So-called «NCMs», a mixture of nickel, cobalt, and manganese oxides, have been gathering interest as cathode materials, replacing traditional compounds like cobalt oxides.Quality analysis of the post-sintered materials or recycled batteries can be performed by titration, as demonstrated in this Application Note. A fully automated analysis of the corresponding metals can be performed with OMNIS and its pipetting equipment.

The EU directive on «Restriction of Hazardous Substances» (RoHS) requires the testing of four regulated heavy metals (Pb, Hg, Cd, Cr(VI)) in electrotechnical products. After sample preparation according to IEC 62321 the determination of lead and cadmium in electronic components can be carried out by anodic stripping voltammetry (ASV) using ammonium oxalate buffer pH 2.

The EU directive on «Restriction of Hazardous Substances» (RoHS) requires the testing of four regulated heavy metals (Pb, Hg, Cd, Cr(VI)) in electrotechnical products. After sample preparation according to IEC 62321 the determination of chromium(VI) in electronic components can be carried out by polarography in ammonia buffer pH 9.6.

The EU directive on «Restriction of Hazardous Substances» (RoHS) requires the testing of four regulated heavy metals (Pb, Hg, Cd, Cr(VI)) in electrotechnical products. After sample preparation according to IEC 62321 the determination of mercury in electronic components can be carried out by anodic stripping voltammetry (ASV) at a gold rotating disk electrode (Au-RDE).

The EU directive on «Restriction of Hazardous Substances» (RoHS) requires the testing of four regulated heavy metals (Pb, Hg, Cd, Cr(VI)) in electrotechnical products. After sample preparation according to IEC 62321 the determination of lead and cadmium in polymer materials can be carried out by anodic stripping voltammetry (ASV) using ammonium oxalate buffer pH 2.

The EU directive on «Restriction of Hazardous Substances» (RoHS) requires the testing of four regulated heavy metals (Pb, Hg, Cd, Cr(VI)) in electrotechnical products. After sample preparation according to IEC 62321 the determination of chromium(VI) in polymer materials can be carried out by polarography in ammonia buffer pH 9.6.

The EU directive on «Restriction of Hazardous Substances» (RoHS) requires the testing of four regulatedheavy metals (Pb, Hg, Cd, Cr(VI)) in electrotechnical products. After sample preparation according to IEC62321 the determination of mercury in polymer materials can be carried out by anodic stripping voltammetry (ASV)at a gold rotating disk electrode (Au-RDE).

The EU directive on «Restriction of Hazardous Substances» (RoHS) requires the testing of four regulated heavy metals (Pb, Hg, Cd, Cr(VI)) in electrotechnical products. After sample preparation according to IEC 62321 the determination of lead and cadmium in metallic materials can be carried out by anodic stripping voltammetry (ASV) using ammonium oxalate buffer pH 2.

The EU directive on «Restriction of Hazardous Substances» (RoHS) requires the testing of four regulated heavy metals (Pb, Hg, Cd, Cr(VI)) in electrotechnical products. After sample preparation according to IEC 62321 the determination of chromium(VI) in chromate coating on metallic materials can be carried out by adsorptive stripping voltammetry (AdSV) using DTPA (diethylenetriamine pentaacetic acid) as complexing agent.

The EU directive on «Restriction of Hazardous Substances» (RoHS) requires the testing of four regulated heavy metals (Pb, Hg, Cd, Cr(VI)) in electrotechnical products. After sample preparation according to IEC 62321 the determination of mercury in metallic materials can be carried out by anodic stripping voltammetry (ASV) at a gold rotating disk electrode (Au-RDE).

This article describes an ion chromatography method for the simultaneous determination of HF, HNO3, H2SO4, short-chain organic acids, and of H2SiF6 in acid texturing baths.

This article describes the coupling of ion chromatography with mass spectrometry (IC-MS) and plasma mass spectrometry (IC-ICP/MS) for the trace analysis of potentially hazardous compounds in the environment.

The automated combination of pyrolysis and subsequent ion chromatography (Combustion IC) permits the parallel detection of halogens and sulfur in all flammable solid and liquid matrices. The method is captivating, not only because of its outstanding precision and trueness, but also because of the high sample throughput.