UV foaming ink – Photoinitiator
UV foaming ink is a kind of decorative ink to form three-dimensional pattern on the substrate, due to the printing pattern with three-dimensional sense, showing natural relief shape, like coral, like foam, like wrinkles, pattern natural, beautiful, peculiar, in addition to enhance the effect of decorative arts, but also can be given to the Braille reading of the special features. UV foaming ink printed on paper or fabric by screen printing, can get the graphic augmented UV Foam Ink can be printed on paper or fabric by screen printing, which can get the effect of graphic bulging and its application is becoming more and more widespread. Printing on plastic, leather, textiles and other packages has unique features in terms of its appearance and feel, air permeability, moisture permeability, abrasion resistance, pressure resistance, water resistance, color and lustre.
UV foaming ink is also a microcapsule ink, prepared using microcapsule technology, in the microcapsule filled with blowing agent, heat treatment, the blowing agent to release gas, so that the microcapsule volume increased to the original volume of 5 to 50 times, the microcapsule will be made of UV foaming ink. Because the microcapsules are hollow, so the hardness, scratch resistance is not very good, try not to use hard things to scrape, which is the disadvantage of foaming ink.
Precautions for foaming printing design:
① foaming ink by heating, volume expansion 5 ~ 50 times, the tone of the concentration of light, the design should consider the coordination of color matching.
② foaming ink layer surface coarsening, become opaque, can not be like the general ink as a multi-color overprinting into the color. Must be designed according to the color requirements using their own special color.
③ Because of the increase in volume after foaming, the surface of large-area field pattern is easy to shrink and wrinkle, uneven foaming, damage to the artistic effect, the design of large-area field pattern using 80% of the coarse dots or lines with fine intervals instead of foaming to leave a margin for filling.
④ Foam printing is not good for fine lines below 0.2mm and too fine graphics. It is better not to use foaming ink for all of the printing, but only for the part that needs to be emphasized, and use ordinary ink for the rest of the printing. It is better to arrange foaming ink printing at the end of printing.
⑤ Adding special UV color paste to UV Foam Ink can change the color of the pattern. Adding special foaming agent can control the size and density of the ink pattern. With the same screen, several different foaming patterns can be printed, which greatly increases the artistic and decorative effect of the products.
Foam printing has a wide range of applications, according to the categories of printing materials can be summarized as paper, cloth, leather, metal, glass, non-slip materials and cushioning materials.
Foam printing in packaging, book binding, booklet inserts, Braille publications, maps, wallpaper, cotton textiles and other printing has a broad application prospects.
A practical selection route for photoinitiator-related projects
When technical buyers or formulators screen photoinitiators, the most useful decision frame is usually cure quality plus application fit: which package cures reliably, keeps appearance acceptable, and still works under the lamp, film thickness, and substrate conditions of the actual process.
- Match the package to the lamp first: mercury lamps, UV LEDs, and visible-light systems can rank the same photoinitiators very differently.
- Check depth cure and surface cure separately: a film that feels dry on top can still be weak underneath.
- Balance yellowing with reactivity: the strongest deep-cure route is not always the best commercial choice if color or migration risk becomes unacceptable.
- Use the final formula as the benchmark: pigment load, monomer package, and film thickness can all change the apparent ranking of the same initiator.
Recommended product references
- CHLUMINIT 819: Useful when a formulation needs stronger absorption and deeper cure support.
- CHLUMINIT 1173: A practical comparison point for classic short-wave UV initiation.
- CHLUMINIT ITX: A useful long-wave support route in many printing-ink packages.
- CHLUMINIT CQ: A direct reference for visible-light and color-sensitive curing discussions.
FAQ for buyers and formulators
Why are blended photoinitiator packages so common?
Because one product may control yellowing or lamp fit well while another improves cure depth or line-speed performance, so the full package is often stronger than any single grade.
Should incomplete cure always be solved by adding more initiator?
Not automatically. The real limitation may be the lamp, film thickness, pigment shading, or the rest of the reactive system rather than simple under-dosage.
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Quick answer: Photoinitiator choice is usually driven by lamp match, cure depth, yellowing, and whether the final film still performs on the real substrate. The best package is rarely the cheapest single grade.
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