Inkjet printing ink technology

With the development of digital inkjet printing has gone beyond direct mailing and traditional product coding and barcodes, new digital inkjet printing inks have quickly emerged in the market. Undoubtedly, the rapid development of digital inkjet printing has brought challenges to industrial printing companies and processing companies. How to choose inkjet printing inks will have a significant impact on the efficiency of printing and the quality and quality of prints. In that case, how to choose ink for digital inkjet printing systems in order to meet the needs of customers and customers for printing products? When selecting the ink, must consider other factors that affect printing?

This article will provide some practical skills and in-depth analysis to help industrial printing companies and processing companies to develop the best choice for inkjet printing inks. The key point is very simple. First, explain your requirements, and then understand the current state of the art of ink-jet printing inks. Finally, develop the most practical operating guidelines for the printing shop.

Describe demand

First of all, understand customer needs. Documenting customer's technical requirements in detail, such as printing materials, speed, picture quality, picture life, color, and customer's business requirements, such as time-to-market progress and cost parameters. Choosing the right ink often requires a trade-off between functionality and business needs, so you need to be prepared enough to make smart decisions.

Understand the application. Most industrial ink-jet printing systems, such as the Scitextm and Dominotm systems, use high-speed continuous inkjet ink technology (CIJ) for marking and encoding printing and mass-personalized direct mailing of prints. For example, bar code printing requires the black ink to produce a clear, solid mark so that it can be clearly read at close range. The CIJ system can meet this requirement very well.

The on-demand ink-on-demand (DOD) process balances the printing speed of high-quality screens, and is therefore particularly suitable for packaging, shopping signs, textiles, and large-format signage. This kind of printing system is particularly suitable for full-color, high-precision printing, or printing quality as the primary consideration. For example, a large bulletin board for printing film advertisements allows people to see clearly from far away. This requires four or six colors. The color must be thick, and DOD ink can solve the problem of color thickness.

Consider the total operating costs. Careful consideration of the cost of establishing a digital inkjet printing system is critical to maximize the return on investment. During the life of a digital printing system, ink costs are much higher than hardware costs. Excellent inkjet printing equipment suppliers will help you choose the right ink based on your economic budget and quality parameters. The top suppliers have a deep understanding of various digital inkjet printing applications, so that you can pinpoint the key factors for your maximum return on investment.

Understand inkjet printing technology

Learn about printed materials. The rapid development of ink jet printing inks enables printing on various media, including traditional textiles, textiles, wallpapers, glass, plastics, metal foils and films. Just knowing which inkjet technology can be used for different substrates is only half the battle. Try to ask yourself the following questions: (1) Is there any coating on the surface of the substrate? (2) Is the substrate surface porous? (3) Several key questions: 1) Is the printed material coated? 2) Is the substrate surface porous? 3) Is the surface of the substrate wet with condensation or is it condensing? Understanding the interaction between printing materials and inks will help you better plan your print management, increase productivity in your pressroom, and ultimately increase your return on investment (ROI).

Mastering several points for ink jet printing inks: There are mainly three different methods for distinguishing ink jet printing inks: According to different ink jet printing systems (CIJ or DOD), depending on the medium (water, solvent, oil, ultraviolet light or electrons) Beam), depending on the colorant (pigment or dye). Understanding the differences is particularly critical for optimizing digital inkjet printing systems to meet customer needs.

Inkjet printing system: CIJ corresponds to DOD. The inkjet printing inks used by CIJ and DOD are not interchangeable with each other because of the very different technologies they use. Using the CIJ system, the ink droplets are continuously produced as a stream of water, and the entire image is produced by bending the ink flow through the printing plate. With the DOD system, digital signals generate dot inks according to specific needs instead of producing linear inks as in the CIJ system. However, no matter which ink jet system is used, the ink must be formulated to meet the requirements for consistency and surface tension when printing with different print heads at different speeds.

Media: Water-based inks, oil-based inks, solvent inks, and energy-curable inks such as UV and E-beam curing inks can be used on both CIJ and DOD inkjet printing systems. The specific printing materials and applications will help you decide which ink to use.

â—† Water-based inkjet printing inks are commonly used in porous, uncoated substrates, such as paperboard or paper, and are often used for printing direct mailings and other commercial printing applications.

â—† Solvent ink can be used to print the markings and codes from soda bottles until the entire range of outdoor billboards. The inks are economical, versatile and quick-drying, making them ideal for printing on uncoated surfaces such as vinyl, mesh, glass and paper.

â—† Oily inks work best when printing porous materials, because they dry out by absorbing them. They can be formulated with vegetable oils or mineral oils. They are widely used in the printing of the cardboard packaging industry.

â—† UV inks and electron beam inks are mainly developed for the printing of large quantities of flexible or rigid substrates, such as corrugated cardboard and metal foil. When the ink is exposed to ultraviolet light, it cures quickly. Their durability makes them the best choice for printing products such as shopping signs, calling cards, credit cards and frequently used shopping cards through the DOD system.

Colorant: The pigment corresponds to the dye. Inks can be pigmented or dyed. Although both can be used for waterborne, oily, solvent, ultraviolet, and electron beam inks, each has its own characteristics. Dyestuff inks offer a wider range of color gamuts, but not as long as pigment inks. Dyestuff inks are suitable for printing that requires thick colors, such as photo enlargement and printing. The pigment ink can provide longer life and more durable colors, which is very suitable for outdoor billboards, bus car table packaging and other printing.

Consider a custom inkjet printing ink solution. Although a large number of ink products are available for CIJ and DOD systems, custom inkjet printing ink solutions are still highly operational options. Make sure that you can communicate and cooperate with expert suppliers to make inkjet printing inks for specific applications, substrates and printing hardware.

Printing practice

Manage inks before, during, and after printing. The surrounding environmental conditions in the printing and stacking areas can easily affect the use of inkjet printing inks such as temperature, humidity, cleanliness, and air flow. The air conditions in the pressroom must be monitored and controlled very very carefully to help maintain the stability and quality of production.

In addition, it is also considered that ink jet printing inks may be exposed to unfavorable post-printing environments such as ultraviolet light, ozone, adhesives, and friction materials. Any of these factors will adversely affect the quality of the printed product. In this regard, you can choose an inkjet printing ink supplier to work closely with you to work out the best ink based on your specific prepress and postpress environment.

Digital inkjet printing equipment maintenance. Regular hardware maintenance and preventive monitoring ensure that the printing system continues to operate stably and smoothly. Routine daily print analysis, proactive technical support, and troubleshooting preparations ensure optimal product quality and save printing time.

Remember safety first. It is very important that ink-jet printing inks are chemicals and require a considerable level of safety and storage. Ensure that the ink is properly stacked, used, transported, and disposed of according to the MSDS records.

Conclusion

First of all, a reasonable assessment of user needs, keeping in mind that inkjet printing inks is an indispensable part of the digital printing system. By observing the overall inkjet technology, or working with suppliers, you will be able to maintain consistent ink performance over time, increase your return on investment, expand your printing capabilities, and perhaps even achieve the goal of building new businesses.

Sean Skelly Introduction