What is the difference between reflow soldering and wave soldering

1. Wave soldering is to dissolve the tin strip into a liquid state through the tin tank, and use the motor to stir to form a wave peak, so that the PCB and the parts are welded together, which is generally used for the welding of the hand plug-in and the SMT glue board. Reflow welding is mainly used in the SMT industry, which melts and welds the solder paste printed on the PCB through hot air or other thermal radiation conduction.

2. Different processes: wave soldering should first spray flux, and then go through preheating, welding, and cooling zone. Reflow welding through preheating zone, reflow zone, cooling zone. In addition, wave soldering is suitable for hand insert board and dispensing board, and all components are required to be heat-resistant, over the crest surface can not have the SMT solder paste components, SMT solder paste board can only be reflow soldering, can not use wave soldering.

Let's explain it in the simplest way possible

Reflow soldering: Mechanical and electrical connections between surface-attached component terminals or pins and printed circuit board pads are achieved by remelting paste paste pre-allocated to the printed circuit board pads. It is a step in SMT (Surface Mount Technology).

Wave soldering: wave soldering is a kind of automatic soldering equipment through high temperature heating to weld plug-in components, from the function, wave welding is divided into lead wave welding, lead-free wave welding and nitrogen wave welding, from the structure, a wave welding is divided into spray, preheating, tin furnace, cooling four parts.