On Tue, 29 Sep 2009 15:40:25 +1000, Bob Larter
wrote:

Jeff Liebermann wrote:
On Tue, 29 Sep 2009 01:12:21 +1000, Bob Larter
wrote:

I stick mine on sheets of Velostat (black, conductive) foam, cut to fit
my parts drawers. It seems to work okay.

Bad idea. I did the same thing in the 1970's and 80's. Much later,
when I pulled out the IC's, the leads were gone. What happened is
that the foam absorbed moisture from the air, held onto it, and slowly
corroded the leads. In addition, some of the black foam deteriorated
into a crumbly mess. There are apparently different types (neoprene,
polyethylene, etc) of foam.

Black conductive foam is probably adequate for storing IC's for a few
years, but as I discovered, not for 20-30 years.

There was an article on the topic in May 1992 QST titled "Black
Conductive Component-Protection Foam Damages Parts (Mitchell): Feb, p.
75". If interested, I'll see if I can download or find a copy.

Please do, I'd be interested in reading it.

See:
http://802.11junk.com/jeffl/crud/QST_Feb_1992_p75.pdf
If you don't believe it, I have my pile rotting foam and rusted IC's
in the closet. I'll post a photo when (and if) I recover from my
latest culinary disaster.


--
Jeff Liebermann
150 Felker St #D http://www.LearnByDestroying.com
Santa Cruz CA 95060 http://802.11junk.com
Skype: JeffLiebermann AE6KS 831-336-2558