Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/1537616
88 PCB007 MAGAZINE I JULY 2025 H A P PY 'S T EC H TA L K # 41 Products now include: • Jute prepreg • Flax prepreg • Additive manufacturing of printed electronics substrates • The new rigid copper-clad FR-4 replacement Manufacturing Process The production process is continuous, allowing for a lower carbon footprint. We have not seen this used for rigid laminates since the discontinu- ation of Glasteel Industrial Laminates (GIL-1000) in 2003 (Figure 7). The current Soluboard product for a 1.6 mm lam- inate has a 68.38% lower CO2 footprint than stan- dard FR-4, derived from lowering the kg/m2 gen- erated in manufacturing materials-processing and transportation. If assembly switches to low-temper- ature solder (LTS) to reduce the reflow oven energy (by 40%), then a savings of 11.7 kWh is achievable annually, as well as a CO2 drop in emissions of 1.11 tons per week per oven or 57.2 tons per year. The biodegradable composite materials include hydrophobically modified polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) with a halogen-free flame retardant (organic phosphonate). F i g u re 7: T h e S o l u b o a rd p ro d u ct i o n p ro c e s s i s a c o nt i n u o u s -fe e d syste m s u i t a b l e fo r m a k i n g l a rg e p a n e l s i f n e c e s s a r y. ▼