What is ultra-violet curing ink?

Date: Sep 02 2024 From: Star Color

Definition and Principle
Definition: UV curable ink is a special type of ink that rapidly solidifies the resin in the ink into a film through photochemical reactions under ultraviolet (UV) irradiation. This type of ink has significant environmental advantages as it does not use or uses very little solvent during the printing process.

Principle: The curing process of UV ink mainly relies on photochemical reactions. After absorbing ultraviolet light, the photoinitiator in ink will be converted into free radicals or ions, which in turn trigger the polymerization reaction of prepolymers and crosslinking agents, forming polymer compounds and curing into films. During this process, the ink dries extremely quickly and does not require the heat energy or prolonged natural drying required by traditional ink.

Characteristics and advantages
1. Fast drying speed: UV ink can almost instantly cure under ultraviolet irradiation, greatly improving production efficiency. This feature gives UV ink significant advantages in high-speed printing and continuous production.
2. Energy saving and environmental protection: Due to the almost zero or extremely low solvent content of UV ink, it produces almost no volatile organic compounds (VOCs) during the printing process, making it environmentally friendly. Meanwhile, due to the lack of energy required for solvent drying, UV ink also saves energy consumption.
3. High glossiness: The cured UV ink film layer has high glossiness, bright and full colors. This feature makes UV ink present a more vibrant visual effect on the surface of printed materials.
4. Wear resistance and water resistance: The film layer cured by UV ink has excellent wear resistance and water resistance, which can resist wear and moisture erosion during daily use and cleaning processes.
5. Wide printing adaptability: UV ink can be used for various printing methods, such as offset printing, flexographic printing, gravure printing, screen printing, etc., and has strong adaptability to different printing materials. This makes UV ink widely used in various fields such as packaging, publishing, commercial and industrial printing.
6. Excellent chemical properties: UV ink also has good solvent resistance, oil resistance, and chemical resistance, which can maintain stable printing effects in various harsh environments.
What is ultra-violet curing ink?

Application Fields
UV ink is widely used in various fields, including but not limited to:
Packaging printing: UV ink plays an important role in packaging printing, especially in the packaging of industries such as food, medicine, cosmetics, etc. Its high glossiness and wear resistance have been widely recognized.
Publishing and Printing: With the development of printing technology, UV ink has also been applied in the printing of books, magazines, and other publications. Its bright colors and stable printing effects enhance the quality of publications.
Commercial printing: UV ink can significantly enhance the visual effect and texture of commercial printed materials such as advertisements, posters, and brochures, attracting consumers' attention.
Industrial printing: UV ink is also widely used in the printing of industrial products such as electronic products, automotive parts, medical equipment, etc. Its excellent wear resistance and chemical resistance can meet the high requirements of industrial products for printing quality.

Development Trends
With the increasing awareness of environmental protection and the continuous progress of printing technology, the share of UV ink in the ink market is gradually expanding. In the future, UV ink will continue to develop towards high efficiency, environmental friendliness, and multifunctionality. At the same time, with the combined application of new materials such as rare earth luminescent materials and UV ink, the performance of UV ink will be further improved, and the application fields will be more extensive.