What is Low VOC Ink?
Date: Apr 23 2025 From: Star Color Views:
With the growing awareness of environmental protection in the printing industry, many printing enterprises are actively seeking green transformation. Low VOC ink has emerged as a result and is gradually becoming a favorite in the industry. So, what exactly is low VOC ink? What are its unique advantages? And what should be paid attention to when purchasing it?
I. Core Definition and Standards of Low VOC Ink
Scientific Explanation of VOC
VOC stands for Volatile Organic Compounds. During the printing process, the VOCs released by traditional inks are a major source of indoor air pollution. According to relevant data, they account for up to 68% of the pollution in printing workshops. These volatile organic compounds not only have a serious impact on air quality but may also pose a hazard to human health upon long-term exposure, leading to respiratory diseases, nervous system disorders, and other problems.
International Certification Thresholds
In order to standardize the ink market and reduce VOC emissions, a series of strict international certification standards have been formulated:
- EU Blue Angel Certification: Requires that the VOC content of the ink be ≤ 5%. This certification is widely recognized in the European market. Low VOC inks that have obtained this certification indicate that their environmental performance has reached the high standards of Europe.
- US Green Seal GS-50 Standard: For solvent-based inks, the VOC limit is set at 300g/L. This standard prompts ink products produced in the United States and those exported to the US market globally to continuously optimize their formulas and reduce VOC content.
- China Environmental Labeling Certification: The minimum requirement for water-based inks is that VOC ≤ 5%. With the increasing emphasis on environmental protection in China, this certification has promoted the transformation of domestic printing enterprises towards green production.
Research by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) shows that the use of low VOC inks can reduce VOC emissions in printing operations by 74% - 89%. This significant change in data intuitively demonstrates the great potential of low VOC inks in terms of environmental protection.
II. Analysis of Dual Advantages in Environmental Protection and Business
Low VOC inks demonstrate excellent advantages in both environmental protection and business aspects. The differences between them and traditional inks can be clearly seen through the following comparison table:
| Comparison Dimension |
Traditional Ink |
Low VOC Ink |
| Toxicity Risk |
Contains carcinogens such as benzene and formaldehyde, posing a great threat to the health of operators and the environment |
Uses bio-based raw materials such as soybeans and vegetable oils, which are non-toxic and harmless, reducing the toxicity risk from the source |
| Drying Energy Consumption |
Usually requires high-temperature baking at temperatures above 120°C, resulting in huge energy consumption |
Can achieve room-temperature curing, saving 35% of energy compared to traditional inks, greatly reducing energy consumption and enterprise operating costs |
| Compliance Cost |
Needs to pay a high annual waste gas treatment fee, with an average of up to $28,000 per factory |
Some regions or countries provide environmental protection subsidies of up to 30% of the cost to encourage enterprises to use environmentally friendly inks, reducing the economic burden on enterprises and enhancing their environmental image at the same time |
III. Five Core Application Scenarios
Food-grade Packaging Printing
Food packaging is directly related to the health and safety of consumers, so the requirements for inks are extremely strict. Low VOC inks have passed the FDA 21 CFR standard certification, ensuring that no harmful substances will be released when in contact with food. For example, the label-free bottle body printing of Coca-Cola uses low VOC inks, which not only ensures the beauty of the product packaging but also guarantees the safety of the food.
Indoor Publication Printing
For indoor publications, especially children's books, the requirements for the environmental friendliness of inks are even higher. According to the national standard GB/T 18883-2022, the VOC concentration of children's books should be < 0.5mg/m³. Low VOC inks can meet this strict standard, creating a healthy and safe reading environment for children.
Electronic Product Screen Printing
The production process of electronic products has diverse requirements for the performance of inks. Low VOC inks can not only withstand high temperatures, remaining unchanged for 10 seconds at a high temperature of 260°C, but also have no halogen residues, without having a negative impact on the performance of electronic products and ensuring the quality and safety of electronic products.
Other Application Scenarios
In addition to the above application scenarios, low VOC inks are also widely used in cosmetic packaging printing. Due to their environmental protection and non-toxic properties, they will not contaminate the quality of cosmetics. In terms of clothing label printing, low VOC inks can provide clear and long-lasting printing effects while meeting environmental protection requirements. In outdoor advertising printing, low VOC inks have good weather resistance and can maintain bright colors for a long time in an environment exposed to wind and sun.
IV. Four-step Purchase Guide
Certification Verification
When purchasing low VOC inks, first check whether the product has relevant certification marks and provide a VOC test report. This is an authoritative recognition of the environmental performance and quality of the ink. In addition, you can also use the ECOS database, which contains information on more than 2,300 certified products, making it convenient for users to query and compare to ensure that the selected ink meets environmental protection and quality standards.
Performance Testing
- Adhesion Test: According to the ASTM D3359 standard, the B grade should be ≥ 4. Good adhesion can ensure that the ink adheres firmly to the printing material surface and is not easy to fall off, ensuring the service life and quality of the printed matter.
- Lightfastness Test: After a xenon lamp test for 300 hours, ΔE < 3. Inks with strong lightfastness have little color change under long-term light exposure and can maintain the color stability of the printed matter, which is especially suitable for outdoor advertisements, indoor decorative paintings, and other printed matter that need to be displayed for a long time.
Brand Recommendations
Water-based Ink: Zhongzhixing Low VOC Water-based Ink is highly recommended. After being tested by CNAS, its VOC content is lower than 1%. It is mainly applied to substrates such as paper bags, envelopes, cake papers, paper cups, and paper plates. It has the characteristics of low viscosity, low odor, strong adhesion, high abrasion resistance, and strong covering power, and is very suitable for high-speed or medium-speed flexographic printing machines currently.
V. Industry Challenges and Solutions
Although low VOC inks have many advantages, there are still some challenges in the industry currently. On the one hand, the cost of low VOC inks has a premium of 20% - 40% compared to traditional inks, which to a certain extent limits their large-scale promotion. On the other hand, for some special materials such as PET, it is difficult for low VOC inks to adhere, affecting the printing quality and effect.
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