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(2)What is the difference between UV and water based ink?

Date: Jul 10 2024  From: Star Color   


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III. Application Characteristics

UV Ink:
Color Performance: UV ink boasts high color saturation and gloss, enabling it to produce vibrant and eye-catching printing effects. This is particularly crucial for high-end packaging, advertising, and other printed materials that require attention-grabbing visuals.

Wear and Weather Resistance: The ink film formed after UV ink curing exhibits excellent wear resistance, chemical resistance, and weather resistance, protecting printed materials from external environmental degradation.

Scope of Application: UV ink is suitable for various printing materials and processes, including paper, plastic, metal, etc. However, due to its higher cost and stricter equipment requirements, it is typically employed in high-end printing applications.

Water-Based Ink:
Color Performance: Water-based ink offers relatively soft and natural color representation, ideal for delicate images and texts. While its color saturation and gloss may slightly trail behind UV ink, it adequately meets the needs of many application scenarios.

Fluidity and Adhesion: Water-based ink possesses excellent fluidity and adhesion, enabling even coating on the substrate surface and achieving strong adhesion. This is crucial for enhancing print quality and stability.

Scope of Application: Water-based ink is widely applicable to various printing methods and substrates, including offset, flexographic, and gravure printing. Its environmental performance and versatility have led to its widespread adoption across multiple industries.

IV. Applicable Fields

UV Ink:
High-End Packaging Printing: UV ink's high color saturation, gloss, and exceptional wear and weather resistance make it the preferred ink type for high-end packaging printing. From exquisite gift boxes to luxurious cosmetics packaging and premium food packaging, UV ink enhances their visual appeal and elevates their overall quality.

Commercial Printing: UV ink also excels in the commercial printing sector. Its rapid curing speed and high-quality printing results enable commercial prints to reach the market swiftly and captivate consumers' attention.

Label Printing: UV ink holds a significant position in label printing. Its durability, resistance to fading and deformation, make it ideal for labels requiring long-term preservation and usage.

Water-Based Ink:
Food Packaging: In the food packaging industry, water-based ink is highly valued for its outstanding environmental performance. As food packaging must directly contact food, ink safety is paramount. Water-based ink's non-toxic, odorless, and solvent-free nature aligns with food safety standards, making it the ideal choice for food packaging printing.

Children's Toys & Stationery: Environmental protection and health are primary considerations for children's toys and stationery. Water-based ink's gentle composition and easy-to-clean properties ensure these products pose no potential health risks to children. Its use also facilitates maintenance and upkeep.

Advertising & Publishing Printing: In advertising and publishing printing, water-based ink has extensive applications. While UV ink may excel in color performance and wear resistance, water-based ink's environmental friendliness and cost-effectiveness meet basic printing needs while adhering to modern sustainability aspirations.

Eco-Labels & Certifications: As consumer awareness of eco-friendly products grows, businesses seek eco-labels and certifications to demonstrate their environmental commitments. Water-based ink, as a representative of eco-friendly inks, helps enterprises obtain relevant certifications, enhancing brand image and market competitiveness.

Special Applications: Beyond the aforementioned fields, water-based ink plays a vital role in special applications. For instance, in textile printing, it achieves soft and breathable print effects. In electronic product printing, it minimizes corrosion and damage to electronic components.

UV ink and water-based ink each possess unique strengths and applicable fields. UV ink dominates high-end printing with its rapid curing speed, high-quality printing effects, and exceptional wear and weather resistance. Conversely, water-based ink, with its remarkable environmental performance, versatility, and economic cost, finds widespread use across multiple industries. As environmental regulations tighten and consumer environmental awareness rises, the market prospects for water-based ink will continue to broaden.