EB ink characteristics and market prospects (below)

2) Fast curing speed and good curing quality. EB ink curing in the electron beam only takes 1/200 seconds, which is much faster than the UV ink curing speed. This makes it possible to perform on-line operations such as printing, coating, and compounding, which can greatly increase production efficiency. Moreover, the electron beam has a strong penetrating ability and can penetrate the ink layer to completely cure the ink. In addition, the abrasion resistance and chemical resistance of the ink film are also better and the emitted odor is small.

3) Curing produces less heat. Electron beam machining is a cold process that generates less heat than the UV ink cures. In particular, printing on a substrate such as a heat-sensitive film or the like, excessive heat causes the substrate to be deformed during the printing process, resulting in deterioration of print quality and occurrence of print failure. Therefore, EB ink is better than UV ink in this respect, and electron beam has no negative effect on the plastic film substrate. This provides a broad space for its application in the field of flexible packaging printing.

4) Easy to store. The EB ink does not need to insulate the air during storage, unlike ordinary inks. Ordinary ink is the surface crust, and the dark reaction of EB ink occurs first at the bottom of the ink tank and slowly solidifies from the bottom. Once the bottom has cured, the entire tank of ink loses its value. The shelf life of general EB ink is 1 year.

5) Can be converted into UV ink. From the viewpoint of the composition of the EB ink mentioned above, the EB ink is basically similar in composition to the UV ink. Only UV inks require a photoinitiator to initiate. This is because the energy of the ultraviolet rays is lower than that of the electron beam. If a certain amount of photoinitiator is added to the EB ink, UV curing can be performed.

4 EB ink use points

Although EB ink has many advantages, there are also deficiencies. For example, EB ink printing still requires inactive gas printing, or the curing effect is poor, and the ink layer is sticky and yellow. Therefore, in order to better play its advantages, the following points should be noted during use.

1) The use of EB inks requires a relatively high level of curing equipment. Although electron beam curing requires only one ion cathode tube (installed after the last color unit), the active gas content in the curing chamber must be strictly controlled. Oxygen in the air will inhibit the activity of free radicals in the ink layer, which is not conducive to the chain-growth polymerization reaction. Therefore, the curing chamber is usually filled with nitrogen to ensure that the oxygen content in the curing chamber is lower than a certain amount.

2) EB inks require high control over the viscosity and adhesion of inks. Due to the high-speed multi-color printing, the ink is superposed in a wet and wet state. Therefore, in order to allow the ink to be superimposed smoothly and to avoid the occurrence of color mixing, the viscosity of the ink in the actual printing operation is reduced according to the printing color sequence, but the difference in viscosity between the two color sequences cannot be too different. Can affect the ink transfer performance and transfer ink volume. EB inks also require lower viscosity in turn. However, compared with common inks, the difference is that there is a significant gap between their differences, otherwise a series of failures will occur.

3) EB inks have certain requirements on the pH and conductivity of the wetting fluid during use. It is generally considered that the pH is controlled between 3.8 and 4.1, and the conductivity is controlled between 1000 and 2800s/m.

4) EB ink cleaning. The EB ink should be cleaned with a special cleaning solution, usually a mixture of solvents such as isopropyl alcohol and n-heptane. EB inks have certain erosion effects on rubber sticks and blankets. Therefore, corresponding rubber sticks and blankets should be used.

5 Market Analysis

EB ink is favored by users because of its advantages of no volatile solvent, no VOC, little harm to operator's health, small odor, no need of photoinitiator, online direct drying and online operation. Compared to UV inks, EB inks do not require photoinitiators, cure faster, cure more completely, and have a smaller odor, which further increases the development space of EB inks, so EB inks along with EB ink raw materials and The price reduction of the supporting equipment and the further maturation of the design formula will become practical and economical inks that can be vigorously promoted. EB inks are now growing in flexible packaging. The superior performance and high production efficiency of EB inks provide it with a broader market. It is believed that the scope of EB ink application will be further expanded and become an important new type of environmentally friendly ink in the future.

Source: China Packaging Network