Flux (metallurgy)

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In metallurgy, a flux (from Latin fluxus 'flow') is a chemical cleaning agent, flowing agent, or purifying agent. Fluxes may have more than one function at a time. They are used in both extractive metallurgy and metal joining.

Some of the earliest known fluxes were sodium carbonate, potash, charcoal, coke, borax,^[1] lime,^[2] lead sulfide^[3] and certain minerals containing phosphorus. Iron ore was also used as a flux in the smelting of copper. These agents served various functions, the simplest being a reducing agent, which prevented oxides from forming on the surface of the molten metal, while others absorbed impurities into slag, which could be scraped off molten metal.^[4]

Fluxes are also used in foundries for removing impurities from molten nonferrous metals such as aluminium, or for adding desirable trace elements such as titanium.

As cleaning agents, fluxes facilitate soldering, brazing, and welding by removing oxidation from the metals to be joined. In some applications molten flux also serves as a heat-transfer medium, facilitating heating of the joint by the soldering tool or molten solder.