Fusible alloy

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A fusible alloy is a metal alloy

capable of being easily fused,
i.e. easily meltable, at relatively
low temperatures. Fusible
alloys are commonly, but not
necessarily, eutectic alloys.

Sometimes the term "fusible

alloy" is used to describe
alloys with a melting point
below 183 C (361 F; 456 K).
Fusible alloys in this sense are
used for solder.

Introduction
From practical view, low
melting alloys can be divided
up into:

Mercury-containing alloys
Only alkali metal-containing
alloys
Gallium-containing alloys
(but neither alkali metal nor
mercury)
 Only bismuth, lead, tin,
cadmium, zinc, indium and
sometimes thallium-containing
alloys
Other alloys (rarely used)

Some reasonably well known

fusible alloys are Wood's
metal, Field's metal, Rose
metal, Galinstan, and NaK.

Applications
Melted fusible alloys can be
used as coolants as they are
stable under heating and can
give much higher thermal
conductivity than most other
coolants; particularly with
alloys made with a high
thermal conductivity metal
such as indium or sodium.
Metals with low neutron cross-
section are used for cooling
nuclear reactors.

Such alloys are used for

making the fusible plugs
inserted in the furnace crowns
of steam boilers, as a
safeguard in the event of the
water level being allowed to
fall too low. When this happens
the plug, being no longer
covered with water, is heated
to such a temperature that it
melts and allows the contents
of the boiler to escape into the
furnace. In automatic re
sprinklers the orices of each
sprinkler is closed with a plug
that is held in place by fusible
metal, which melts and
liberates the water when,
owing to an outbreak of re in
the room, the temperature
rises above a predetermined
limit.[1]
Low melting alloys and
metallic elements

Well known alloys

Melting
Alloy Eutectic? Bismuth Lead Tin Indium
point

Rose's 98 C
no 50% 25% 25%
metal (208 F)

74 C
Cerrosafe no 42.5% 37.7% 11.3%
(165 F)

Wood's 70 C
yes 50% 26.7% 13.3%
metal (158 F)

Field's 62 C
yes 32.5% 16.5% 51%
metal (144 F)

Cerrolow 58 C
yes 49% 18% 12% 21%
136 (136 F)

Cerrolow 47.2 C
yes 44.7% 22.6% 8.3% 19.1%
117 (117 F)

Bi-Pb- 41.5 C
yes 40.3% 22.2% 10.7% 17.7%
Sn-Cd-In-Tl (107 F)

19 C
Galinstan yes <1.5% 9.5-10.5% 21-22%
(2 F)

Other alloys
(see also solder alloys)
Low melting alloys and metallic elements
Composition
in weight- C eutectic? Name or remark
percent

Cs 73.71, K
22.14, Na 78.2 yes
4.14 [2]

Hg 91.5, Tl
58 yes used in low readings thermometers
8.5

Hg 100 38.8 (yes)

Cs 77.0, K
37.5
23.0

Ga 68.5, In
19 no Galinstan
21.5, Sn 10

K 76.7, Na
12.7 yes
23.3

K 78.0, Na
11 no NaK
22.0

Ga 61, In 25,
8.5 yes
Sn 13, Zn 1

Ga 62.5, In
10.7 yes
21.5, Sn 16.0

Ga 69.8, In
10.8 no
17.6, Sn 12.5

Ga 75.5, In
15.7 yes
24.5

Cs 100 28.6 (yes)

Ga 100 29.8 (yes)

Rb 100 39.30 (yes)

Bi 40.3, Pb
22.2, In 17.2, 41.5 yes
Sn 10.7, Cd
8.1, Tl 1.1

Bi 40.63, Pb
22.1, In 18.1,
46.5
Sn 10.65, Cd
8.2

Bi 44.7, Pb
22.6, In 19.1, Cerrolow 117. Used as a solder in
47 yes
Cd 5.3, Sn low-temperature physics.[3]
8.3

ChipQuik desoldering alloy.[4]

Cerrolow 136. Slightly expands on
Bi 49, Pb 18, cooling, later shows slight
58
In 21, Sn 12 shrinkage in couple hours
afterwards. Used as a solder in
low-temperature physics.[3]

Bi 32.5, In
60.5 yes Field's metal
51.0, Sn 16.5

K 100 63.5 (yes)

Bi 50, Pb Cerrobend. Used in

26.7, Sn 70 yes low-temperature physics as a
13.3, Cd 10 solder.[3]

Bi 49.5, Pb
27.3, Sn 70.9 yes Lipowitz's alloy
13.1, Cd 10.1

Bi 50.0, Pb
25.0, Sn 71 yes Wood's metal
12.5, Cd 12.5

In 66.3, Bi
72 yes
33.7

Bi 42.5, Pb
37.7, Sn 74 no Cerrosafe
11.3, Cd 8.5
Bi 56, Sn 30, ChipQuik desoldering alloy,
79-91 no
In 14 lead-free

Bi 50, Pb 30,
Sn 20, 92 no Onions' Fusible Alloy[5]
Impurities

Bi 52.5, Pb
95 yes
32.0, Sn 15.5

Bi52. Good fatigue resistance

combined with low melting point.
Reasonable shear strength and
Bi 52, Pb
96 yes fatigue properties. Combination
32.0, Sn 16
with lead-tin solder may
dramatically lower melting point
and lead to joint failure.[6]

Bi 50.0, Pb
97 no Newton's metal
31.2, Sn 18.8

Na 100 97.8 (yes)

Bi 50.0, Pb
9498 no Rose's metal
28.0, Sn 22.0

Bi 56.5, Pb
125 yes
43.5

Bi58. Reasonable shear strength

and fatigue properties. Combination
with lead-tin solder may
dramatically lower melting point
and lead to joint failure.[6]
Low-temperature eutectic solder
Bi 58, Sn 42 138 yes with high strength.[7] Particularly
strong, very brittle.[8] Used
extensively in through-hole
technology assemblies in IBM
mainframe computers where low
soldering temperature was required.
Can be used as a coating of copper
 particles to facilitate their bonding
under pressure/heat and creating a
conductive metallurgical joint.[9]
Sensitive to shear rate. Good for
electronics. Used in thermoelectric
applications. Good thermal fatigue
performance.

Bi 57, Sn
139 yes
43[10]

In99. Used for die attachment of

some chips. More suitable for
soldering gold, dissolution rate of
gold is 17 times slower than in
tin-based solders and up to 20% of
gold can be tolerated without
signicant embrittlement. Good
performance at cryogenic
temperatures.[11] Wets many
In 100 157 (yes)
surfaces incl. quartz, glass, and
many ceramics. Deforms indenitely
under load. Does not become brittle
even at low temperatures. Used as a
solder in low-temperature physics,
will bond to aluminium. Can be used
for soldering to thin metal lms or
glass with an ultrasonic soldering
iron.[3]

Li 100 180.5 (yes)

Sn 62.3, Pb
183 yes
37.7

Eutectic solder. Sn63, ASTM63A,

ASTM63B. Common in electronics;
Sn 63.0, Pb
183 no exceptional tinning and wetting
37.0
properties, also good for stainless
 steel. One of the most common
solders. Low cost and good bonding
properties. Used in both SMT and
through-hole electronics. Rapidly
dissolves gold and silver, not
recommended for those.[7]
Sn60Pb40 is slightly cheaper and is
often used instead for cost reasons,
as the melting point dierence is
insignicant in practice. On slow
cooling gives slightly brighter joints
than Sn60Pb40.[12]

KappAloy9 Designed specically for

Aluminum-to-Aluminum and
Aluminum-to-Copper soldering. It
has good corrosion resistance and
tensile strength. Lies between soft
solder and silver brazing alloys,
Sn 91.0, Zn
198 yes thereby avoiding damage to critical
9.0
electronics and substrate
deformation and segregation. Best
solder for Aluminum wire to Copper
busses or Copper wire to Aluminum
busses or contacts.[13] UNS#:
L91090

Sn 92.0, Zn
199 no Tin foil
8.0

Sn99. Good strength, non-dulling.

Use in food processing equipment,
Sn 100 231.9 (yes)
wire tinning, and alloying.[14]
Susceptible to tin pest.

Used as a non-superconducting
solder in low-temperature physics.
Bi 100 271.5 (yes)
Does not wet metals well, forms a
mechanically weak joint.[3]
Tl 100 304 (yes)

Cd 100 321.1 (yes)

Pb 100 327.5 (yes)

For soldering aluminium. Good

Zn 100 419.5 (yes) wettability of aluminium, relatively
good corrosion resistance.[15]

See also
List of elements by melting
point

References
1. Chisholm, Hugh, ed.
(1911). "Fusible Metal".
Encyclopdia Britannica (11th
ed.). Cambridge University
Press.
2. Oshe, Ed. R.W., "Handbook
of Thermodynamic and
Transport Properties of Alkali
Metals", Oxford. UK, Blackwell
Scientic Publications Ltd,
1985, p. 987
3. Guy Kendall White; Philip J.
Meeson (2002). Experimental
techniques in low-temperature
physics . Clarendon. pp. 207.
ISBN 978-0-19-851428-2.
Retrieved 14 May 2011.
4. Johnson Manufacturing Co,
MSDS for Chip Quik Alloy
w/Lead . Retrieved on February
6, 2015.
5. Jenson, W.B. "Ask the
Historian - Onion's fusible
alloy", J. Chem. Ed., 2010, 87,
1050-1051.
6. John H. Lau (1991). Solder
joint reliability: theory and
applications . Springer. p. 178.
ISBN 0-442-00260-2.
7. Ray P. Prasad (1997).
Surface mount technology:
principles and practice .
Springer. p. 385.
ISBN 0-412-12921-3.
8. Charles A. Harper (2003).
Electronic materials and
processes . McGraw-Hill
Professional. pp. 58.
ISBN 0-07-140214-4.
9. Karl J. Puttlitz, Kathleen A.
Stalter (2004). Handbook of
lead-free solder technology for
microelectronic assemblies .
CRC Press.
ISBN 0-8247-4870-0.
10. See phase diagram for the
tin-bismuth binary system here:
http://oregonstate.edu
/instruct/engr322/Homework
/AllHomework
/S12/ENGR322HW4.html
11. T.Q. Collier (MayJun
2008). "Choosing the best
bumb for the buck" . Advanced
Packaging. 17 (4): 24.
ISSN 1065-0555 .
12. msl747.PDF . (PDF).
Retrieved 2010-07-06.
13. "KappAloy" . Kapp Alloy &
Wire, Inc. Retrieved 23 October
2012. |first1= missing
|last1= in Authors list (help)
14. Madara Ogot, Gul Okudan-
Kremer (2004). Engineering
design: a practical guide .
Traord Publishing. p. 445.
ISBN 1-4120-3850-2.
15. Howard H. Manko (8
February 2001). Solders and
soldering: materials, design,
production, and analysis for
reliable bonding . McGraw-Hill
Professional. pp. 396.
ISBN 978-0-07-134417-3.
Retrieved 17 April 2011.

Further reading
"ASTM B774Standard
Specication for Low Melting
Point Alloys". ASTM
International. 1900.
doi:10.1520/B0774 .
Weast, R.C., "CRC Handbook
of Chemistry and Physics",
55th ed, CRC Press, Cleveland,
1974, p. F-22

External links
Fusible (Low Temp) Alloys
Fusible Alloys . Archived
from the original on
2012-10-12.
Jenson, W.B. "Ask the
Historian - Onion's fusible
alloy"

Retrieved from
"https://en.wikipedia.org
/w/index.php?title=Fusible_alloy&
oldid=767374724"

Last edited 3 months ag

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