Now, universal printers and universal UV flatbed printers are more and more accepted by people. The inks they use are divided into UV inks and eco-solvent inks. Then, what is the difference between these two inks?
1. They have different drying methods.
UV ink is dried by UV lamp irradiation, and it can be dried immediately. Eco-solvent ink is naturally dried or dried, which is not as convenient as UV ink.
2. The printing effect is different.
UV ink can use white ink, but eco-solvent ink cannot use white ink. UV ink can print the effect of oil painting, while weakly soluble ink can only print the effect of a flat surface.
3. Different coating requirements.
UV ink does not need to be a protective coating, it can be color-fast and non-fading; Eco-solvent ink must be a protective coating, otherwise, it will fade.
4. UV ink can print more materials than eco-solvent ink.
UV ink is a new kind of ink, which has a broader application prospect than eco-solvent ink. In the future, universal UV flatbed printers using UV ink will be more cost-effective and more widely used than universal flatbed printers using eco-solvent inks.
UV ink is a consumable specially used for printing patterns on UV printer equipment. Its pigment particle diameter is less than 1 micron, does not contain volatile organic eco-solvents, has ultra-low viscosity, and has no irritating odor. It can ensure that the UV ink does not block the head during the jet printing process. UV ink can be sprayed and dried immediately, suitable for printing metal, glass, ceramics, and other materials. The cured ink layer has high hardness, strong adhesion, scrub resistance, eco-solvent resistance, high gloss, and strong outdoor weather resistance.
Due to their own essential characteristics, UV ink and eco-eco-solvent ink determine their respective application methods and application fields. Since the UV ink is attached to the substrate, it can achieve a relief effect after repeated printing. However, because the weak eco-solvent does not adhere to the surface of the carrier but penetrates into the carrier, there is no way to print the relief effect. Due to the weak eco-solvent ink, many materials need to be coated when printing, and the printed products without coating treatment are easy to fade, while UV ink can be directly used to print many materials without any coating treatment. , Simple, convenient, and practical.
UV ink reduces the volatile organic compounds that escape from eco-solvent-based inks during the heating and drying process. It should be equipped with inkjet post-processing equipment. The post-processing methods are mainly inkjet catalytic oxidation and cooling recovery. UV100% liquid content, no VOC, so there is no environmental pollution problem. And because it has the advantages of being non-toxic, instant drying, fine ink particles, high concentration, good stability, etc., it has been widely used in China.
UV ink can save post-processing equipment for hot drying tunnels and ovens to accumulate volatile organic compounds. Because it does not dry the ink by heating and drying, the mechanism and electronic components will not be disturbed by high temperature caused by heating, and at the same time, it will not cause shrinkage, thermal expansion, or warping of the roll due to high temperature. Therefore, the current consumption of UV ink is growing at a rate of 10%-20%/year.