Types of Gravure Inks: Applications and Selection Guide

Date: Feb 28 2025 From: Star Color

Gravure printing, with its advantages of high precision, high color reproducibility and high production efficiency, is widely used in fields such as packaging, publishing, and decorative materials. Whether it is food packaging, cosmetic boxes, or books and magazines, gravure printing can demonstrate excellent printing effects. As the core material of gravure printing, the performance of gravure inks directly determines the quality of printed products. From the vividness of colors to the adhesion of inks, from the drying speed to the environmental protection performance, every aspect has a crucial impact on the final printing effect. Therefore, for printing practitioners, it is essential to understand the types and characteristics of gravure inks.

Core Classification of Gravure Inks

Classification by Solvent Type
- Solvent-based Gravure Inks: Solvent-based gravure inks use organic solvents such as toluene, ethyl acetate, and ketones as the dispersion medium, and are composed of resins, pigments, and additives. Their most significant feature is the fast drying speed. Due to the rapid evaporation of organic solvents, they are very suitable for high-speed printing, with a printing speed of 200 - 600 meters per minute. In terms of adhesion, they still perform excellently and are particularly suitable for non-absorbent substrates such as BOPP films, PET, and aluminum foils. However, solvent-based inks also have obvious environmental problems. Their VOC (Volatile Organic Compounds) emissions are relatively high. To meet environmental protection requirements, corresponding waste gas treatment equipment is needed.
- Water-based Gravure Inks: Water-based gravure inks use water as the main solvent, and are combined with water-based resins and environmentally friendly pigments. Their greatest advantage lies in excellent environmental protection performance, with extremely low VOC emissions, meeting strict regulatory requirements such as REACH in the European Union and EPA in the United States. Since the evaporation speed of water is relatively slow, efficient drying equipment such as hot air or infrared drying equipment is required. In terms of applicable substrates, water-based gravure inks are suitable for paper, cardboard, and some specially treated plastic films.
Classification by Drying Method
- Evaporation Drying Type Inks: The drying principle of evaporation drying type inks mainly relies on the evaporation of solvents. Both solvent-based inks and water-based inks belong to this type. The advantage of this drying method is the fast drying speed, which can well adapt to the production needs of high-speed gravure printing machines. However, it also has certain limitations. Especially, the evaporation of solvents in solvent-based inks will generate harmful gases. Therefore, the ventilation conditions in the workshop need to be strictly controlled to avoid the impact of solvent residues on the health of operators and the environment.
- Ultraviolet (UV) Curing Inks: Ultraviolet (UV) curing inks trigger a photopolymerization reaction through the irradiation of UV lamps, causing the inks to cure instantly. They have the characteristic of zero VOC emissions. Since they do not contain solvents, they have the best environmental protection performance. In addition, the cured inks will form a hard coating with high wear resistance, which can resist scratches and chemical corrosion. However, UV curing devices are required, and the equipment investment is relatively high.
- Electron Beam (EB) Curing Inks: The drying principle of electron beam (EB) curing inks is to trigger the cross-linking and curing of inks through electron beam radiation. Its characteristics are that it does not require a photoinitiator, which is very suitable for food direct contact packaging and ensures food safety. It also has the ability of deep curing and can handle thick ink layers, achieving special printing effects such as 3D embossing. In practical applications, electron beam (EB) curing inks are often used in fields with high requirements for safety and printing effects, such as pharmaceutical packaging and labels for sterile medical supplies.

Types of Gravure Inks: Applications and Selection Guide

How to Select Gravure Inks? Analysis of Key Factors

Substrate Type: Different substrates have different requirements for inks. For non-absorbent materials such as plastic films, solvent-based or UV inks are better choices because they can form good adhesion on non-absorbent surfaces. For absorbent materials such as paper, water-based or low-viscosity solvent-based inks are more suitable as they can penetrate and dry better.
Printing Speed: Printing speed is also an important factor in selecting gravure inks. For high-speed machines ( > 200 meters per minute), fast-drying solvent-based or UV inks can meet the needs of rapid production and ensure the continuity and efficiency of the printing process. For low-speed printing, suitable inks can be selected according to other factors.
Environmental Protection Requirements: With the increasing awareness of environmental protection, environmental protection requirements have become a key factor in selecting gravure inks. For the European and American markets, due to the high requirements for environmental protection, water-based or UV inks should be preferentially selected to meet local regulatory requirements.
End Use: The end use also affects the selection of gravure inks. For food packaging, food-grade inks must be selected. For outdoor advertisements, weather-resistant inks that can resist ultraviolet rays should be selected to ensure that the advertisements do not fade after long-term exposure outdoors.

III. Market Trends and Future Development

Environmental Protection: With the increasing global attention to environmental protection, it is expected that by 2025, the market share of water-based, UV, and EB inks will exceed 40%. This reflects the printing industry's response to environmental protection and also prompts ink manufacturers to increase their research and development and investment in environmentally friendly inks.
Functionality: Nowadays, consumers have more diverse functional requirements for printed products. The demand for functional inks such as anti-counterfeiting and color-changing inks is gradually increasing. These functional inks can not only enhance the added value of products but also provide enterprises with a differential competitive advantage.
High Efficiency: In order to meet the increasing demand for production efficiency, the development of low-viscosity inks for ultra-high-speed gravure printing machines at 800 meters per minute has become the future development direction. Low-viscosity inks can maintain good fluidity and printing performance during high-speed printing, improving production efficiency and reducing production costs.

There are various types of gravure inks, and each type of ink has its own characteristics. When selecting gravure inks, factors such as substrates, printing conditions, environmental protection regulations, and end uses need to be comprehensively considered. With the continuous progress of technology, water-based and UV curing inks will gradually become the mainstream, while functional inks provide enterprises with a differential competitive advantage.

Zhongzhixing water-based gravure inks strictly follow the concept of environmental protection. They adopt an environmentally friendly water-based formula with low VOC emissions, meeting international environmental protection regulatory requirements, so you don't have to worry about environmental protection issues. In terms of printing performance, Zhongzhixing water-based gravure inks have good fluidity and adhesion, and are suitable for a variety of substrates. Whether it is paper, cardboard, or specially treated plastic films, excellent printing effects can be achieved.