UV ink is made by ultraviolet radiation of a certain wavelength, through instant photochemical reaction polymerization curing (Ultra-violet Curing), and its curing speed can be adjusted by the type of photoinitiator, the amount used, the strength of the UV lamp, the drying speed, and the number of UV lamps.
Because of the ultraviolet radiation, UV ink has the characteristics of fast online drying, and this UV characteristic enables it to be printed on non-paper, such as plastic PVC (Polyvinyl chloride), PET (Polyethylene terephtalate), synthetic paper, etc., and because it can be quickly online dried, reprocessing or flipping and reprinting can be done without waiting, so there is no need to spray powder during drying, even if it is printed on paper, it has higher gloss and friction resistance.
Advantages of UV ink:
1. No volatile matter and powder spraying problems.
2. Can improve the quality of the finished product.
3. Save drying time and improve product production efficiency.
4. No need to configure drying equipment, drying space, etc., reducing the demand for production space.
5. Adopting LED ultraviolet light curing, low energy demand, and saving electricity.
Disadvantages of UV ink:
1. The price of raw materials is relatively high, 0.7-1 US dollars/㎡ full coverage color printing cost.
2. The cost of an LED curing lamp is relatively high; the better ones are more than 750 US dollars, some are more than 1450 US dollars, and mercury lamps are about 100 US dollars.
3. It is necessary to have better ventilation equipment, equipped with exhaust fans and air conditioners.