Specialty UV inks, such as glitter inks, also are available. UV inks often contain additives to tailor the ink to the proper screen printing application. UV inks are commonly used in screen printing for decals, nameplates, signage, CDs, metal decoration, container decoration and automotive artwork, as well as for industrial applications. UV inks are used to print on smooth surfaces. The energy required by UV inks likely will continue to decrease as new light technologies, like LED lights, are used to cure UV inks. With fast curing under UV lights, screen printing shops that print with UV inks often will use less energy than shops using solvent or water-based inks that require large conveyor dryers. UV inks also don’t dry in the screen like water-based inks, so you’re less likely to waste ink. Lower ink usage. While UV inks usually cost more to purchase up front, screen printers generally see UV ink supplies go farther because there’s no solvent required.The ink allows printers to achieve extremely fine graphic details when screen printing with UV inks. UV inks are thin and generally call for printing through a finer screen mesh. Unlike their solvent-based counterparts, UV inks emit no volatile organic compounds during curing, making them a more environmentally-friendly and worker-friendly ink option. Faster production times. Because UV inks can be cured almost instantly, it can be faster and easier to produce UV prints, depending on the number of colors you need to print and the curing unit you have available.On top of that, the curing window for UV inks is more forgiving than solvent-based inks, making it very difficult to over-cure UV inks. For screen printers, that means faster production time. UV ink cures almost instantly when exposed to UV light. There are several reasons UV inks have come to dominate the screen printing ink market. In fact, in the United States, UV inks make up between 60 to 65 percent of ink sales in the screen printing industry. Since it was introduced, UV ink has grown to dominate the industrial screen printing market. The ink itself sits on top of the substrate, rather than settling in, making it ideal for printing on smooth surfaces. The inks also contain a photoinitiator that, when exposed to UV light, releases free radicals that enable the oligomers and monomers to bond, creating a solid ink image. ![]() The inks themselves are composed of solid monomers and oligomers – molecules and molecular complexes that determine the physical properties of the ink – as well as pigments and performance additives. ![]() How UV inks workĪs the name implies, UV inks cure under UV light. ![]() If you’re considering branching out your screen printing from textiles, UV inks can help open up new possibilities.įor those printers who are looking to branch out to different substrates to complement their lineup of garment prints, or those just researching a screen printing startup, it’s worth taking the time to learn about UV inks and how they can be used to augment an existing printing operation.
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