Conformal Coating & Potting Services

Youngtronics offers Conformal Coating which is a good option for customers whose end products will be used in harsh environments. Conformal coating material is a thin polymeric film which conforms to the contours of a printed circuit board to protect the board’s components. Typically applied at 25-250 μm (micrometers) thickness, it is applied to electronic circuitry to protect against moisture, dust, chemicals, and temperature extremes.

Reasons To Use Conformal Coating

Conformal coatings should be used in cases where protection against harsh conditions, moisture, or vibration is required. The coatings are breathable, allowing trapped moisture in electronic boards to escape while maintaining protection from contamination. Conformal coatings accomplish the following functions:

Insulation – allowing closer conductor spacing
Eliminates the need for complex enclosures
Minimal effect on component weight
Completely protects the assembly against chemical and corrosive attack
Eliminates performance degradation due to environmental hazards
Minimizes environmental stress on a PCB assembly

Alternative Protection - PCB Potting

In addition to conformal coating, we also offer high-quality PCB potting as an option for protecting your printed circuit boards in harsh environments. PCB potting is a method used to protect circuit boards (substrates) by filling the substrate’s enclosure with a liquid material called a potting compound or encapsulation resin. Potting provides excellent resistance to heat, chemicals, impacts, and other common environmental hazards. Typical potting compound materials include epoxy, polyurethane, and silicone compounds.

The term “potting” refers to the way that electronic assemblies are placed within a mold, or pot, in order to be filled with the proper insulating liquid. After the PCB is filled, the liquid hardens and provides long-term protection for the electronic product.

Conformal Coating vs. PCB Potting

The main difference between the conformal coating process and the potting process is that conformal coating typically produces a lighter and thinner layer of protection to PCB assemblies, which puts much less stress on the components below while still maintaining a high level of protection against moisture and other hazards. The potting application, on the other hand, is much more dense and requires more space. It too protects against moisture and other corrosive agents while providing strong defense against shocks and vibrations.

PCB potting is a superior choice for applications that require high resistance to vibration, impacts, abrasion, heat and/or chemicals. In general, it’s a more durable and resilient choice that’s suitable for physically demanding applications.
PCB potting resins offer good protection against electrical arcs, so you’ll often find PCB potting used for high-voltage electrical devices.
PCB potting is a relatively fast process that can be done quickly and easily on an assembly line.
Reworking, repairing, or inspecting a PCB potted device is difficult and can result in damage to the substrate. PCBs with conformal coatings are significantly easier to work with.
Conformal coatings place almost no physical stress on a substrate, which helps protect PCBs with sensitive components such as small pins.
Conformal coating occupies less space inside a device enclosure and increases device weight much less than PCB potting. That makes it a superior choice for devices where size and form factor are important concerns. It’s the industry standard for handheld electronic devices.

Questions on PCB Conformal Coating or Potting?

We’re standing by to assist you with your conformal coating and potting inquiries. As with all of our services, we ensure quality for customers who choose our PCB conformal coating and potting. To request more information, please visit our Contact page by clicking the button below.