BRAZING and SOLDERING
Dr A Jawahar Babu
Professor of Mechanical Engineering
SR Gudlavalleru Engineering College
07/08/2025
Overview of Brazing and Soldering
Both use filler metals to
When to use brazing or soldering
permanently join metal parts, but
instead of fusion welding:
there is no melting of base metals
• Metals have poor weldability
• Dissimilar metals are to be joined
• Intense heat of welding may
damage components being joined
• Geometry of joint not suitable for
welding
• High strength is not required
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Brazing
Joining process in which a filler metal
is melted and distributed by
capillary action between faying
surfaces of metal parts being joined
• No melting of base metals occurs
– Only the filler melts
• Filler metal Tm greater than 450C
(840F) but less than Tm of base
metal(s) to be joined
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• If joint is properly designed and brazing operation
is properly performed, solidified joint will be
Strength of stronger than filler metal out of which it was
formed
• Why?
Brazed – Small part clearances used in brazing
– Metallurgical bonding that occurs between
Joint base and filler metals
– Geometric constrictions imposed on joint by
base parts
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Brazing Compared to Welding
• Any metals can be joined, including dissimilar metals
• Can be performed quickly and consistently, permitting high
production rates
• Multiple joints can be brazed simultaneously
• Less heat and power required than FW
• Problems with HAZ in base metal are reduced
• Joint areas that are inaccessible by many welding processes can be
brazed; capillary action draws molten filler metal into joint
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Disadvantages and Limitations of
Brazing
• Joint strength is generally less than a welded joint
• Joint strength is likely to be less than the base metals
• High service temperatures may weaken a brazed joint
• Color of brazing metal may not match color of base metal parts, a
possible aesthetic disadvantage
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Brazing Applications
• Automotive (e.g., joining tubes
and pipes)
• Electrical equipment (e.g., joining
wires and cables)
• Cutting tools (e.g., brazing
cemented carbide inserts to
shanks)
• Jewelry
• Chemical process industry
• Plumbing and heating contractors
join metal pipes and tubes by
brazing
• Repair and maintenance work
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Brazed Joints
Butt Joints for Brazing
Figure 32.1 (a) Conventional butt joint, and adaptations of the
butt joint for brazing: (b) scarf joint, (c) stepped butt joint, (d)
increased cross‑section of the part at the joint.
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Lap Joints for Brazing
Figure 32.2 (a) Conventional lap joint, and adaptations of the lap joint for brazing:
(b) cylindrical parts, (c) sandwiched parts, and (d) use of sleeve to convert butt
joint into lap joint.
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Some Filler Metals for Brazing
Base metal(s) Filler metal(s)
Aluminum Aluminum and silicon
Nickel-copper alloy Copper
Copper Copper and phosphorous
Steel, cast iron Copper and zinc
Stainless steel Gold and silver
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Desirable Brazing Metal Characteristics
• Melting temperature of filler metal is
compatible with base metal
• Low surface tension in liquid phase for good
wettability
• High fluidity for penetration into interface
• Capable of being brazed into a joint of
adequate strength for application
• Avoid chemical and physical interactions with
base metal (e.g., galvanic reaction)
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Applying Filler Metal
Figure 32.4 Several techniques for applying filler metal in brazing: (a)
torch and filler rod. Sequence: (1) before, and (2) after.
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Applying Filler Metal
Figure 32.4 Several techniques for applying filler metal in brazing: (b)
ring of filler metal at entrance of gap. Sequence: (1) before, and (2) after.
Brazing Fluxes
• Similar purpose as in welding; they dissolve, combine
with, and otherwise inhibit formation of oxides and other
unwanted byproducts in brazing process
• Characteristics of a good flux include:
– Low melting temperature
– Low viscosity so it can be displaced by filler metal
– Facilitates wetting
– Protects joint until solidification of filler metal
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Heating Methods in Brazing
• Torch Brazing - torch directs flame against work in vicinity of joint
• Furnace Brazing - furnace supplies heat
• Induction Brazing – heating by electrical resistance to
high‑frequency current in work
• Resistance Brazing - heating by electrical resistance in parts
• Dip Brazing - molten salt or molten metal bath
• Infrared Brazing - uses high‑intensity infrared lamp
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Braze welding
• Braze welding is used for filing a
more conventional welding
conventional weld joint, such as
the V-joint shown. A greater
quantity of filler metal is deposited
than in brazing, and no capillary
action occurs.
• In braze welding, the joint consists
entirely of filler metal; the base
metal does not melt and is
therefore not fused into the joint as
in a conventional fusion welding
process. The principal application
of braze welding is repair work
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Soldering
• Soldering is similar to brazing and can be
defined as a joining process in which a filler
metal with melting point (liquidus) not
exceeding 450C (840F) is melted and
distributed by capillary action between the
faying surfaces of the metal parts being joined.
• As in brazing, no melting of the base metals
occurs, but the filler metal wets and combines
with the base metal to form a metallurgical
bond
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Soldering
• An appropriate flux must be applied to the faying surfaces, and
the surfaces are heated. Filler metal, called solder, is added to
the joint, which distributes itself between the closely fitting
parts
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Soldering
• As an industrial process, soldering is most
closely associated with electronics Assembly It
is also used for mechanical joints, but not for
joints subjected to elevated stresses or
temperatures.
• Typical clearances in soldering range from
0.075 to 0.125 mm (0.003–0.005 in),
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Advantages of soldering
• low energy input relative to brazing and fusion welding,
• variety of heating methods available,
• good electrical and thermal conductivity in the joint
• capability to make air-tight and liquid-tight seams for
containers, and easy to repair and rework.
• The biggest disadvantages of soldering are
• (1) low joint strength unless reinforced by mechanically
means and
• (2) possible weakening or melting of the joint in
elevated
temperature service.
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Joint designs in soldering
• As in brazing, soldered joints are limited to lap
and butt types, although butt joints should not
be used in load-bearing applications.
• Soldering technology has added a few more
variations of its own to deal with the special
part geometries that occur in electrical
connections.
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Joint designs in soldering
• In soldered mechanical joints of sheet-metal
parts, the edges of the sheets are often bent
over and interlocked before soldering, to
increase joint strength.
• For electronics applications, the principal
function of the soldered joint is to provide an
electrically conductive path between two parts
being joined.
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Joint designs in soldering
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Solders and fluxes
• Most solders are alloys of tin and lead, since
both metals have low melting points. Tin-zinc,
tin-antimony and tin silver are other solder
materials.
• As lead is poisonous, lead-free solders are
becoming increasingly important as legislation
to eliminate lead from solders is enacted.
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Soldering fluxes
Soldering fluxes should do the following:
• Be molten at soldering temperatures,
• Remove oxide films and tarnish from the base
part surfaces,
• Prevent oxidation during heating,
• Promote wetting of the faying surfaces,
• Be readily displaced by the molten solder
during the process, and
• Leave a residue that is noncorrosive and
nonconductive.
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Soldering fluxes
• Soldering fluxes can be classified as organic or
inorganic.
• Organic fluxes are made of either rosin (i.e., natural
rosin such as gum wood, which is not water-soluble) or
• water soluble ingredients (e.g., alcohols, organic acids,
and halogenated salts).
• Inorganic
• fluxes consist of inorganic acids (e.g., muriatic acid)
and salts (e.g., combinations of zinc and ammonium
chlorides) and are used to achieve rapid and active
fluxing where oxide films are a problem.
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Pre soldering operations
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Soldering Methods
Three methods of soldering are in vogue.
o Hand soldering
o Wave soldering
o Reflow soldering
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Hand soldering
• Hand soldering is performed manually using a hot soldering
iron. A bit, made of copper, is the working end of a soldering
iron.
Its functions are
• to deliver heat to the parts being soldered,
• to melt the solder,
• to convey molten solder to the joint, and
• to withdraw excess solder.
• Most modern soldering irons are heated by electrical
resistance. Some are designed as fast-heating soldering
guns, which are popular in electronics assembly for
intermittent (on/off) operation actuated by a trigger.
• They are capable of making a solder joint in about a second.
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Wave soldering
• Wave soldering is a mechanized technique that
allows multiple lead wires to be soldered to a
printed circuit board (PCB) as it passes over a
wave of molten solder.
• In wave soldering, liquid solder is pumped
from a molten bath through a slit onto the
bottom of the board to make the soldering
connections between the lead wires and the
metal circuit on the board.
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Wave soldering
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Reflow soldering
• This process is also widely used in electronics to
assemble surface mount components to printed
circuit boards .
• In the process, a solder paste consisting of solder
powders in a flux binder is applied to spots on the
board where electrical contacts are to be made
between surface mount components and the copper
circuit.
• The components are then placed on the paste spots,
and the board is heated to melt the solder, forming
mechanical and electrical bonds between the
component leads and the copper on the circuit
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Reflow soldering
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THANK YOU
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