inquiring mind about solder

[chicopee]

My one year old Frigidaire refrigerator had to have the compressor, condenser, evaporator and filter driers replaced. It was repaired and works well now. I was looking at some pieces to de discarded and one piece of piping peaked my curiosity. it was a piece of copper tubing soldered to aluminum piping. What type of solder is being used for that soldered connection? In my younger days going back to the 60's, I was informed such soldered connection was a NO-NO.

 

[TugboatEng]

https://www.aluminium-brazing.com/2010/03/19/brazing-aluminium-and-copper/

 

[chicopee]

TbE I appreciate your article. One is never too old to learn a thing or two.

 

[TugboatEng]

I wish I could tell you more which is why I only posted a link. I knew it was possible, this guy used to talk about joining aluminum to steel though he never revealed his technique.

https://www.tinmantech.com/

He mentioned using intermediate layers of materials that could alternately be joined to aluminum, to each other, and then to steel. Without that information, his website is still quite interesting. Check out the Articles section. Say goodbye to the rest of your night.

 

[EdStainless]

With the solder be careful of the flux, it is vicious stuff.
They also weld, but using transition pieces. They explosively weld Al to steel and then cut strips of it. Weld the steel to steel and the Al to Al. It is how the superstructure on ships is built.

= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =
P.E. Metallurgy, consulting work welcomed

 

[MintJulep]

https://www.aluminium-brazing.com/2010/03/19/brazing-aluminium-and-copper/

 

[TugboatEng]

Ed, that's Deta bar. We have it on our tugs for attaching aluminum wheelhouses to the steel hull. Good stuff, it eliminates the corrosion problems associated with bolted transitions.

https://www.nobelclad.com/products/structural-transition-joints#

 

[chicopee]

One of my jobs goig back in the 60's, we used silver solder to braze copper tubing joints to make coaxial cable for UHF and VHF TV antennae. Back then aluminum tubing was contemplated by the purchasing department to obviously reduce cost but aluminum was never used thanks to the knowledge of the people that did welding and brazing as they knew that connections between copper and aluminum would not hold. So a word for young engineers who are finally getting their feet wet in manufacturing, a good source of information are the people in the shops who many of them have had multitude of successes and failures, so they what works.

 

[TugboatEng]

I disagree with this. Knowledge, technology, and rules are aways changing and the old ways sometimes aren't the best ways. I'm introducing no-hotwork solutions to my very apprehensive industry. I find that most of their failures and apprehensive come from improper applications.

 

[WKTaylor]

Following may provide some useful insights in this subject [useful for me]...

Aluminum Association [AA]...
AA ABH21 Aluminum Brazing Handbook
AA ASH22 Aluminum Soldering Handbook

and while I'm on a roll...
American Welding Society [AWS]..
AWS A2.4 Standard Symbols for Welding, Brazing, and Nondestructive Examination
AWS BRH Brazing Handbook

and just because...
AA WATP23 Aluminum Welding - Theory and Practice.

Regards, Wil Taylor
o Trust - But Verify!
o We believe to be true what we prefer to be true. [Unknown]
o For those who believe, no proof is required; for those who cannot believe, no proof is possible. [variation,Stuart Chase]
o Unfortunately, in science what You 'believe' is irrelevant. ["Orion", Homebuiltairplanes.com forum]