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FR-2

Designation for synthetic resin bonded paper

FR-2 (Flame Resistant 2) is a NEMA designation for synthetic resin bonded paper, a composite material made of paper impregnated with a plasticized phenol formaldehyde resin, used in the manufacture of printed circuit boards. Its main properties are similar to NEMA grade XXXP (MIL-P-3115) material, and can be substituted for the latter in many applications.

01Applications

FR-2 sheet with copper foil lamination on one or both sides is widely used to build low-end consumer electronics equipment. While its electrical and mechanical properties are inferior to those of epoxy-bonded fiberglass, FR-4, it is significantly cheaper. It is not suitable for devices installed in vehicles, as continuous vibration can make cracks propagate, causing hairline fractures in copper circuit traces. Without copper foil lamination, FR-2 is sometimes used for simple structural shapes and electrical insulation.

02Properties

Property Value
Dielectric constant, or relative permittivity 4.5 @ 1 MHz
Dissipation factor 0.024-0.26 @ 1 MHz
Dielectric strength 29 kV/mm (740 V/thou)

03Fabrication

FR-2 can be machined by drilling, sawing, milling and hot punching. Cold punching and shearing are not recommended, as they leave a ragged edge and tend to cause cracking. Tools made of high-speed steel can be used, although tungsten carbide tooling is preferred for high volume production.

Adequate ventilation or respiration protection are mandatory during high-speed machining, as it gives off toxic vapors.

04Trade names and synonyms

  • Carta
  • Haefelyt
  • Lamitex
  • Paxolin, Paxoline
  • Pertinax, taken over by Lamitec and Dr. Dietrich Müller GmbH in 2014
  • Getinax (in the Ex-USSR)
  • Phenolic paper
  • Preßzell
  • Repelit
  • Synthetic resin bonded paper (SRBP)
  • Turbonit
  • Veroboard
  • Wahnerit
Watch videos about FR-2Explainers and documentaries on YouTube (opens in a new tab)

Sources and credits

This article is adapted from the Wikipedia article FR-2, written by its contributors and licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Fathomly has changed the layout, removed citation markers, navigation and maintenance notices, and adjusted punctuation. This adapted version is shared under the same license. For references, see the original article.

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