Water-based metal ink

Metal inks are very different from ordinary pigment inks. They usually give printed products a distinctive feeling. They have a strong visual impact on people and are often very attractive to users. For printers and ink manufacturers, this strong visual effect cannot be taken lightly, and the provision of metallic ink may be a requirement for some ink manufacturers. However, considering the considerations of products, technologies, and economic factors, a professional metal ink manufacturer can produce a product with better performance than an ordinary manufacturer. Selecting a professional manufacturer is often the best choice.
Common manufacturer's problems in producing metal inks Most ink manufacturers are located around parent companies or product bases, so that they can make full use of the parent company's favorable conditions to reduce costs and produce qualified inks. But for some special inks, such as metallic inks, this kind of innate favorable conditions may not reflect its advantages.
Because most common inks are first mixed with dyes and then milled by the parent company's off-the-shelf ball or roller mill equipment, they are then finished. But for metal inks, it can be different. Its mixing process is very gentle, not to mention grinding. Grinding can cause the ink to lose its metallic luster. As a result, the final result is often the continuous work flow of the entire factory, interrupted by the small but important requirement of the ink manufacturer of the subsidiary, which in turn has a great negative impact on the production cost of the entire factory.
The composition of metallic inks is very different from that of ordinary pigment inks. They are all composed of sheet-like micro-metals and have a larger volume than those of common organic pigment inks. The ink system should also try to make the ink coated in a sheet shape so as to achieve the reflection effect of the metal microchip. In contrast, organic inks are required to fully infiltrate and combine organic ink particles in order to achieve enhanced adhesion and produce bright effects. In general, the technical content of metallic inks is higher than that of ordinary inks. Its technical workers think that other ink making techniques are easier.
In fact, one of the most practical methods for professional metal ink manufacturers is to buy directly from a professional manufacturer, so that they can avoid the disadvantages caused by their own production.
Wolstenholme International is a good choice. It does not use the existing ink grinding equipment as other processing plants, but it is specially equipped with machines suitable for the manufacture of large-scale metal inks. The raw materials are piled up and the products are distributed all over the country. In addition, the company also obtained ISO9001 production certification and ISO140001 environmental certification, once again laid a solid foundation for its professional production.
As professional manufacturers, they understand the composition and characteristics of metallic inks better than ordinary manufacturers, and can effectively avoid the chemical reaction of water-based inks with the same water-based ink carriers (ink fountains or other). This corrosive chemical reaction tends to affect the storage and gloss characteristics of the ink. This knowledge is derived from the professional manufacturer's full understanding of the structure, setup and operation of printing machines that affect the performance of metallic inks.
Transmission roller line professionals know that with the increase in the number of screens, the mesh will be smaller and the aperture will be closer to the size of the metal ink microchip. In general, a 300-line/inch screen has a ratio of mesh to wall size of 10:1, and the aperture of the mesh is 77 microns, which is better than all metal ink particles used in flexographic or gravure printing. The film must be large.
If the screen is 400 lines/inch (157 lines/cm), the aperture of its mesh is 57 micrometers, if it is 550 lines/inch (216 lines/cm), the aperture of the mesh is 42 micrometers; 700 lines/inch (275 lines/cm), 33 microns, and 1000 lines/inch (394 lines/cm), only 23 microns. However, if this is true, the pore size is too close to the average size of the average metal ink particle (5-12 microns), but the printing effect is not very good. Because if the size of the mesh is too small, the passage of larger particles in the ink will be intercepted, and in severe cases, the printing color density will be reduced. Moreover, even if this is not the case, due to too many particles in the screen, the ink on the squeegee will gather too much and must be cleaned. This will cause work to stop, which is not worth the candle. According to Wolstenholme International's experience, the size of the mesh should be about 3 times the average size of the metal microchip, which is appropriate.
Ink Viscosity Problems Another issue that needs attention is the effect of metal microplates on ink viscosity. If the ink is too thick, not only will the ink be affected when passing through the screen, but also uneven printing density and filming will occur on the gravure printing base or the flexographic printing plate at the time of printing.
Unlike organic pigment inks, which we generally know, metallic inks do not become sticky due to the increased fineness of the ink particles and the increased number of screen lines. This is mainly because when the metal sheet is rotated or swayed in the flow process, it needs a higher energy than ordinary particles, and a large number of microchips need a large thrust force when passing through the ink medium, so the viscosity of the ink is required. increase. On the other hand, when the tiny microchips require only a small amount of thrust, the flow can be smooth and natural, and the viscosity is very low.
Larger metal microchips can better enhance the metallic effect of the ink, but in order to achieve low viscosity and print uniformity, smaller microchips are often required. In particular, the current roller conveyor mesh is relatively small, so the size of the metal foil in the ink should be smaller.
Generally speaking, the size and shape of the metal sheet in the ink is not the same. To obtain a good printing effect, the long strip of microchip is the best choice. Too fine and too thick are not good. Too fine, one can easily cause the diffusion of light, so that the ink loses its metallic luster, and the second is that it is also easily oxidized, not to mention the metallic luster. If it is too thick, it will cause the mesh to clog or the squeegee to accumulate ink. The ink will also thicken, and it will also affect the uniformity of the coloring and printing of the print.
New products Modern ink transfer rollers and printing cylinders restrict the size of the metal particles in the ink. For this reason, manufacturers have developed new products to meet the requirements of delicate gravure printing and flexographic ink transfer rollers.
Superoto 590 produced by Wolstenholme International is a very special product. Its average size of metal microchips is the same as that of ordinary ink metal sheets, but the maximum microchip size is up to 25 micrometers.
If the metal sheet is evenly distributed in the ink, the printing will achieve the best metal effect. The uniform distribution of the metal sheet depends on the characteristics of the resin and the solvent in the ink. Good resin can make the metal sheet very evenly distributed. If you can look under the microscope, you will realize this distribution method, and its printing effect is very good. However, the use of bad resin ink, its metal micro-distribution is very uneven. Under the microscope, you will see that the metal sheet is sticking together. It is difficult to distinguish the individual sheets. The effect of the metallic gloss of the printed product will be greatly reduced.
Of course, the specific issues should be analyzed in detail. Different inks will have different performance capabilities in different prints. Even when using the best narrow-sheet water-based metal inks, different formulations are selected according to the different prints. In five different printing applications, such as web-coated web printing, tissue paper printing, gift wrap, corrugated cardboard, and coating, different ink systems should be selected.
With the increase in people’s awareness of the direct purchase of finished metallic inks, Wolstenholme International feels that ordinary ink manufacturers are extremely unwilling to make their own metal inks.