A solder paste includes a solder powder and a flux. The flux includes a rosin, an activator, a solvent, and a thixotropic agent containing a polyethylene glycol. A content of the polyethylene glycol is 10 mass % to 20 mass % with respect to a total mass of the flux, a content of the thixotropic agent excluding the polyethylene glycol is 5 mass % or less with respect to the total mass of the flux, and a content of the rosin is more than 15 mass % and 50 mass % or less with respect to the total mass of the flux.

According to some aspects, techniques are described for designing non-insulated (NI) high temperature superconductor (HTS) magnets that mitigate problems that may arise during quench initiation and propagation. Coupling the HTS material to a co-conductor along its length reduces the effective resistance of the conductive path along the HTS material when it is not superconducting, and that this leads to numerous advantages for quench mitigation.

Provided is a manufacturing method in which a coated solder wire having a dense polysiloxane coating film that is uniformly provided over the entire surface of the solder wire can be efficiently obtained in a single process. A coated solder wire is obtained by a manufacturing method that includes; a radicalization step for forming a radicalized organic silicon compound by mixing a reaction gas that has been plasmatized under atmospheric pressure and an organic silicon compound that is introduced by way of a carrier gas, and radicalizing that organic silicon compound; a reaction area formation step for forming a reaction area that is defined by a helical gas flow and in which the radicalized organic silicon compound is uniformly dispersed; and a coating step for forming a 4 nm to 200 nm thick polysiloxane coating film on the surface of a solder wire by transporting a solder wire inside the reaction area and causing the radicalized organic silicon compound to react with metal on the surface of that solder wire.

Methods of making solder preforms are disclosed. A ribbon of raw material is received, and a first annular solder preform is formed by laser cutting the ribbon. The edges of the first annular solder preform can then be cleaned. The cutout section removed from the middle of the first annular solder preform can then be laser cut to form a second annular solder preform that is smaller than the first annular solder preform.

In general, the invention relates to electro-conductive pastes comprising a glass which comprises molybdenum and lead as a constituent of a solar cell paste, and the use of such in the preparation of photovoltaic solar cells. More specifically, the invention relates to electroconductive pastes, precursors, processes for preparation of solar cells, solar cells and solar modules. The invention relates to an electro-conductive paste at least comprising as paste constituents: a) metallic particles; b) a glass; c) an organic vehicle; and d) an additive; wherein the glass comprises the following: i) Pb in the range from about 1 to about 94 wt. %; ii) Mo in the range from about 2 to about 30 wt. %; iii) O in the range from about 1 to about 50 wt. %; with the wt. % in each case being based on the total weight of the glass.

Disclosed herein is a method of forming an alloy material for use in a wire. The method includes forming a master alloy containing lead and silver; and creating a molten wire alloy by combining the master alloy, additional lead, and a third material in a vessel. The method also includes flowing argon gas through and over the molten wire alloy. The method also includes drawing the molten alloy from the vessel through an actively cooled die, and solidifying the molten wire alloy to form a bar of wire alloy.

A process for the production of a metal mixture composition containing lead and tin, and comprising by weight at least 10% tin and 45% lead, at least 90% of tin and lead together, more lead than tin, from 1-5000 ppm of copper, at least 0.42% antimony and at least 0.0001% wt of sulphur, at most 0.1% of the total of chromium, manganese, vanadium, titanium and tungsten, and at most 0.1% of each one of aluminium, nickel, iron and zinc. The process includes a pre-treatment step for producing the metal mixture composition, followed by a vacuum distillation step wherein lead is removed by evaporation and a bottom stream is obtained comprising at least 0.6% wt of lead.

A process for a producing crude solder product and a copper product includes the steps of providing a black copper comprising >=50% wt of copper together with >=1.0% wt of tin and/or >=1.0% wt of lead, and refining a first portion of the black copper to obtain a refined copper product together with at least one copper refining slag. The process further includes the steps of recovering a first crude solder product from the copper refining slag, thereby forming a solder refining slag in equilibrium with the first crude solder product, and contacting a different portion of the black copper with the solder refining slag thereby forming a spent slag and a lead-tin based metal, followed by separating the spent slag from the lead-tin based metal.

A method of joining a first metal and a second metal is described. The first metal comprises Pb in an amount of at least 50 wt. % by weight of the first metal. The method comprises fusing the first metal and the second metal using non-consumable electrode arc welding.

A disclosed process produces at least one concentrated copper product together with at least one crude solder product, starting from a black copper composition with at least 50% of copper together with at least 1.0% wt of tin and at least 1.0% wt of lead The process includes the step of partially oxidizing the black copper thereby forming a first copper refining slag, followed by partially reducing the first copper refining slag to form a first lead-tin based metal composition and a first spent slag. The total feed to the reducing step includes an amount of copper that is at least 1.5 times as high as the sum of the amounts of Sn plus Pb present, and the first spent slag includes at most 20% wt total of copper, tin and lead together.