Discover how our conformal coating material helped a customer improve throughput, and lower overall costs and energy consumption.
- An AC and DC EV charging technology innovator wanted to improve its conformal coating processes. The coatings protect the rectifier printed circuit boards (PCBs) for the power supply system within EV chargers.
- The project’s objectives included maintaining or enhancing product reliability, reducing energy consumption, simplifying and accelerating processing, and lowering overall costs.
- Conformal coatings are vital materials used to protect electronic components and subsystems from the effects of contamination from moisture, mixed gases, and environmental extremes. They are especially critical for high-power electronics.
- Because the customer’s existing conformal coating material was a solvent-borne, VOC- containing formulation requiring a two-step process to achieve target thickness, it was time-consuming and energy-hungry. Two cycles of flash-off (15 mins. each) and oven curing (30 mins. each), totaling one and a half hours were required.
- Material cost and waste were significant, as nearly 78% of the material was solvent, so only 22% of solids remained on the PCB after flash-off. This required a second pass to achieve the material thickness needed. In addition to the coating thickness challenge, cost was a concern. The customer was paying by volume for a product and ¾ of it was being evaporated into the environment.
- Given the demands on EV charging infrastructure, material reliability and compliance with the highest industry electrical and flammability standards are also required. The existing material demonstrated inconsistent performance during high-voltage testing.
- Henkel’s conformal coating, Loctite Stycast CC 8555, addressed many of the customer’s challenges. The material is a one-part, VOC-free formulation that provides robust PCB and component protection for high-power electronics in extreme environments like outdoor EV charging stations.
In an evaluation versus the customer’s previous conformal coating, Loctite Stycast CC 8555 demonstrated:
- Processing - Better wetting and no-voiding coating uniformity were observed, even at a lower thickness than the previous coating material. Loctite Stycast CC 8555 also provides a fast UV cure with no oven drying necessary, eliminating process time and reducing energy use and costs.
- Material volume - Loctite Stycast CC 8555 delivered consistent coverage with one-third to one-half of the sprayed volume of the solvent-based conformal coating. Waste and environmental volatiles are also reduced, saving cost and providing a sustainable solution.
- Reliability and Standards Certification - Henkel’s conformal coating meets the industry’s most stringent reliability standards, achieving a UL 746E rating and a UL 94 V0 flammability rating. During the evaluation, Loctite Stycast CC 8555 passed all high-voltage testing metrics, indicating its reliable performance in this application.
- After transitioning to the award-winning Loctite Stycast CC 8555, the customer has improved throughput, lowered costs by over $100,000 annually, and realized a 100% ROI in just three months. Products built with Loctite Stycast CC 8555-protected PCBs are operating successfully in the field.
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