"Tin whisker" crisis threatens global electronic systems

Tin Whiskers might sound like the name of a bad 70s metal band (and it may well be, for all we know), but according to Fortune it's actually a serious problem that threatens to bring our happy interconnected world crashing down around our heads. Remember a few years ago when millions of pagers, cellphones and ATMs went on the blink all at once? (Actually, neither do we, but we have this memory problem.) Turns out the culprit was a tin whisker outbreak on a communications satellite, which caused it to go dead. For the uninitiated, tin whiskers are tiny hairlike strands that grow on the surface of some metals. Under certain circumstances, the strands can grow long enough to short out the circuits that host them, with potentially calamitous results. Though the problem first surfaced in telecom systems in the 1940s, scientists thought they had a solution: add lead to all conductive materials and the whiskers went away. Problem is, lead is highly toxic, and is now being banned in electronic products sold in the EU (but not in the freewheeling, devil-may-care U.S.). Unfortunately, manufacturers haven't come up with a lead-free whisker solution, hence the current panic. So, slow death from lead poisoning, or the gradual collapse of the global communications infrastructure. Isn't it fun when technology gives us such great options?

[mitch @ Dec 19th 2005 1:37AM]

Why dont they use lead in satellites and other crucial electronics equiptment that you have to wear protective suits for anyway? Keep lead out of home computers, motherboards and electronics. I havent heard of one home computer failing because of this.

[CaptSnuffy @ Dec 19th 2005 1:37AM]

okay so we'll have electronic death without lead on earth and deep in space where no one is anyway we'll use lead. And once we figure out how to not use lead and have no whiskers then we dont use lead anywhere. problem solved.

[Mark Murray @ Dec 19th 2005 1:37AM]

So, slow death from lead poisoning, or the gradual collapse of the global communications infrastructure. Isn�t it fun when technology gives us such great options?
-----------------
Hmm. How 'bout I just try not to snack on my computer and electronics?

[Sean @ Dec 19th 2005 1:37AM]

Hey Mark, you know how oversensitive the EU is, we need to protect people from their own stupidity even at the possible risk of bringing the entire telecom infrastructure crashing down.

[minipod @ Dec 19th 2005 1:37AM]

I thought lead was only toxic if you somehow get it into your body (ingestions, stabbing someone with um....a bar of led).

How it is toxic on a motherboard in a sealed computer case?

I can see it being hazardous to manufacturers of computers, and all those crazy hackers who eat their motherboards to gain digital zen.... but, is this really a concern for the average person? So much so that lead should be banned from electronics?

[TMAN @ Dec 19th 2005 1:37AM]

How toxic is lead in motherboards? Landfills.

What do most people do with old electronics if they don't send them in for recycling? They throw them away. Anything with a circuit board will have metals that will eventually leach into the soil.

[funkstar @ Dec 19th 2005 1:37AM]

lead in a product like a compter isn't a problem while a consumer is using it, but it is a problem while it is being manufactured and when it reaches the end of it's life and is disposed of.

[RFGURU @ Dec 19th 2005 1:37AM]

The public needs to be educated that the lead in electronics is so miniscule that any attempts to remove it will cause more harm then good.

Lead free technology is poor. It requires hotter temperatures to work, making parts more difficult to build. And then the tin whisker issue....

Lead free is in reality a marketing ploy. A ploy to keep people safe from a danger that hardly exists.

Don't eat your PC. It's high in cholestorol!

[Bill Eccles @ Dec 19th 2005 1:37AM]

Good points, all. Let me see if I can summarize some of them for those who might be late joining us:

1: Snacking on a computer might give you lead poisoning and indigestion, except in the EU where your indigestion will be lead-free.

2: Landfills full of mercury, PVC, polystyrene, and other toxic substances might get indigestion and lead poisoning from all the printed circuit boards which are being tossed in the trash. Except, of course, in the EU where the landfills will be lead-free.

3: The tin whisker problem is real. Did you know that airplanes have jet engines with electronic engine controls?

Talk amongst yourselves.

[Tim @ Dec 19th 2005 1:37AM]

Are y'all talking about the same lead that we get from the ground? So you say if we put it back in the ground it becomes toxic?

Stop eating dirt.

[Dean Shan @ Dec 19th 2005 1:37AM]

I'd take the lead poisoning. But then again I don't eat my electronic gadgets so I guess I won't get either.

[MaxSMoke @ Dec 19th 2005 1:37AM]

I'll take the slow death from Lead too, just don't take away my Internet access! (Where else would I get my free porn from??)

[Tbt @ Dec 19th 2005 1:37AM]

I think we need to address putting dumps where people don't live, and making dumps so that they dont let anything leech into the soil or water table in the first place. Oh yeah, and remember not to eat a satelite when you are on space vacation in SpaceShipOne or whatever.

[Peter @ Dec 19th 2005 1:37AM]

The thing that troubles me is the article's point that trying to reduce lead in electronics is not very efficient. i.e. There is much lower hanging fruit to target than the lead in electronics to have a meaningful impact on the level of toxic chemicals. Also, since the biggest part of the problem appears to be electronics showing up in landfills, the real problem seems to be in educating the consumer of the hazards of such products, and how to properly dispose of them. There are recycling and disposal programs setup by many computer companies where they will take away old and obsolete computers (and in some cases even general consumer electronics) for a small fee. However the consumer has to be educated to know that the cost of such disposal is part of the cost of buying electronics in the modern age and that's just not being done.

[Joel W. Smit @ Dec 19th 2005 1:37AM]

The 'problem' of lead in electronics could be easily remedied if trash were no longer placed in landfills. Thermal Depolymerization Process (TDP) can reclaim the metals and minerals as well as produce a high grade refinable oil from most all waste material and offal. As memory serves one of the byproducts is a good amount of _clean_ water. Politicians rule our lives with laws and regulations meant to help and protect us all. Too bad that so many idiots attain office.

[Mike @ Dec 19th 2005 1:37AM]

So lead in electronics is bad, bad, bad, huh?

So wouldn't the skeptic ask, what bad things can be linked to using lead in electronics for the last 60 years?

Just another reason I am glad I don't live in the EU. Its a shame that their regulations will likely spill over across the pond to the US. i.e. businesses will likely sell one lead free model in the US and the EU.

[steve bennett @ Dec 19th 2005 1:37AM]

Most comments I've read here are from very short-sighted people (who also don't know how to write proper English). The lead in circuit boards and their components eventually ends up in landfills in EVERY country. Rain will then leach this lead out of the parts and into the groundwater, which is where a lot of communities get their drinking water. Even a little bit of lead is very bad for the human body, especially growing children. It does not go away. Technology has produced lead-free solders that, although they have a higher melting point, still get the job done just fine. The biggest problem that I see now is implementing the phase-out of Pb (lead) and DOCUMENTING IT. This is a huge commitment of time and personnel that could have been ramped up in a longer time period instead of being given until next year. Look for forgeries to become commonplace and scandals aplenty!