As a developer of anti-counterfeiting materials for 15 years, I am often asked, “Why can supermarket cashiers use ultraviolet pens to quickly determine the authenticity of banknotes?” The answer lies in the anti-counterfeiting ink technology we will discuss today. Through this article, you will learn:
- the working principles of the six main types of anti-counterfeiting inks
- how to quickly determine authenticity with the naked eye and simple tools
- the latest breakthroughs in rare earth fluorescent materials
I. The technological code of anti-counterfeiting inks
1.1 The double-edged game of photosensitive technology
I remember that in 2018, when we had a technical exchange with the Swiss National Bank, they showed me an anti-counterfeiting upgrade for the euro that really impressed me – the same banknote uses both **short-wave (254nm) and long-wave (365nm)** ultraviolet excitation technology. This design means that counterfeiters need to break through both fluorescent systems at the same time, and the cost of counterfeiting has soared by 83% (according to INTERPOL 2022 data).
Comparison of mainstream photosensitive technologies:
- Ultraviolet fluorescent ink: cost only $0.02/cm², recognition rate 98.7%
- Infrared ink: mostly used in passport chips, requires special equipment to read
- Photochromic ink: Japanese JIS standard requires color difference ΔE ≥ 5.0
1.2 Rare earth materials break the game
Pain points of traditional fluorescent materials:
✓ Organic type is prone to aging (37% attenuation in half a year)
✓ Non-organic models have excessive toxicity (lead content > 300ppm)
✓ Solvent-based models pollute the environment (VOC emissions exceed the standard by 4 times)
Our rare earth europium complexes developed in 2021 have broken through the triple technical bottleneck:
- Fluorescence lifetime extended to 2.3ms (traditional material 0.8ms)
- Quantum efficiency of 89% (industry average 62%)
- Achieved application in water-based systems (reduction of solvent usage by 70%)
2. Smart choices in action
2.1 The golden balance between cost and effect
Advice for small and medium-sized enterprises:
- Food packaging: choose thermal ink (detection cost <$50)
- Drug labels: recommend chemical encryption ink (acid-base development)
- High-end goods: must use three-band fluorescent combination
![Comparison of anti-counterfeiting ink application scenarios]center]alt text=“Guide to selecting anti-counterfeiting solutions for different industries” keywords=“anti-counterfeiting ink application, ultraviolet fluorescence, thermal ink”]
2.2 My hard-won lesson
A case of anti-counterfeiting failure for a liquor brand in 2016:
- Mistake: using organic fluorescent ink alone
- Result: 40% of the labels faded after 3 months
- Improvement plan: combination of rare earth complexes and microtext
3. Future trends and innovative opportunities
3.1 A new era of smart anti-counterfeiting
AI-responsive ink being tested by our team:
- Features: mobile phone flashlight to stimulate specific spectra
- Advantages: real-time network verification (error rate 0.0001%)
- Cost: 25% lower than traditional solutions
3.2 An environmental revolution is underway
Latest breakthrough:
- Water-based rare earth ink has passed REACH certification
- Light curing system reduces energy consumption by 60
- COD value of printing wastewater < 50 mg/L
Personal insight:
I remember that in the anti-counterfeiting campaign in China, we successfully located the underground factory by analyzing the fluorescence decay curve of the counterfeit ink (a 15% decrease within 0.5 seconds). This has inspired us: dynamic anti-counterfeiting features will be the main battlefield in the next decade.
Interactive question:
What is the most ingenious anti-counterfeiting design you have seen in your daily life? Feel free to leave a comment and share your observations!
(1) Reference formula for UV fluorescent ink
Acrylic copolymer solution (MAA/MMA/EA/BA solid content 45%) 132
Tetraethylene glycol diacrylate 40
Photoinitiator 369 3
Fluorescent pigment 140
Low-melting point glass binder 3
Butanone 3
(2) Reference formula for UV security ink
EA 100
TPGDA 9
TMPTA 6
Other diluents 30~35
6512 5
Diphenylamine 0.3
Rare earth fluorescent complexes 1~3
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| Polythiol/Polymercaptan | ||
| DMES Monomer | Bis(2-mercaptoethyl) sulfide | 3570-55-6 |
| DMPT Monomer | THIOCURE DMPT | 131538-00-6 |
| PETMP Monomer | 7575-23-7 | |
| PM839 Monomer | Polyoxy(methyl-1,2-ethanediyl) | 72244-98-5 |
| Monofunctional Monomer | ||
| HEMA Monomer | 2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate | 868-77-9 |
| HPMA Monomer | 2-Hydroxypropyl methacrylate | 27813-02-1 |
| THFA Monomer | Tetrahydrofurfuryl acrylate | 2399-48-6 |
| HDCPA Monomer | Hydrogenated dicyclopentenyl acrylate | 79637-74-4 |
| DCPMA Monomer | Dihydrodicyclopentadienyl methacrylate | 30798-39-1 |
| DCPA Monomer | Dihydrodicyclopentadienyl Acrylate | 12542-30-2 |
| DCPEMA Monomer | Dicyclopentenyloxyethyl Methacrylate | 68586-19-6 |
| DCPEOA Monomer | Dicyclopentenyloxyethyl Acrylate | 65983-31-5 |
| NP-4EA Monomer | (4) ethoxylated nonylphenol | 50974-47-5 |
| LA Monomer | Lauryl acrylate / Dodecyl acrylate | 2156-97-0 |
| THFMA Monomer | Tetrahydrofurfuryl methacrylate | 2455-24-5 |
| PHEA Monomer | 2-PHENOXYETHYL ACRYLATE | 48145-04-6 |
| LMA Monomer | Lauryl methacrylate | 142-90-5 |
| IDA Monomer | Isodecyl acrylate | 1330-61-6 |
| IBOMA Monomer | Isobornyl methacrylate | 7534-94-3 |
| IBOA Monomer | Isobornyl acrylate | 5888-33-5 |
| EOEOEA Monomer | 2-(2-Ethoxyethoxy)ethyl acrylate | 7328-17-8 |
| Multifunctional monomer | ||
| DPHA Monomer | 29570-58-9 | |
| DI-TMPTA Monomer | DI(TRIMETHYLOLPROPANE) TETRAACRYLATE | 94108-97-1 |
| Acrylamide monomer | ||
| ACMO Monomer | 4-acryloylmorpholine | 5117-12-4 |
| Di-functional Monomer | ||
| PEGDMA Monomer | Poly(ethylene glycol) dimethacrylate | 25852-47-5 |
| TPGDA Monomer | Tripropylene glycol diacrylate | 42978-66-5 |
| TEGDMA Monomer | Triethylene glycol dimethacrylate | 109-16-0 |
| PO2-NPGDA Monomer | Propoxylate neopentylene glycol diacrylate | 84170-74-1 |
| PEGDA Monomer | Polyethylene Glycol Diacrylate | 26570-48-9 |
| PDDA Monomer | Phthalate diethylene glycol diacrylate | |
| NPGDA Monomer | Neopentyl glycol diacrylate | 2223-82-7 |
| HDDA Monomer | Hexamethylene Diacrylate | 13048-33-4 |
| EO4-BPADA Monomer | ETHOXYLATED (4) BISPHENOL A DIACRYLATE | 64401-02-1 |
| EO10-BPADA Monomer | ETHOXYLATED (10) BISPHENOL A DIACRYLATE | 64401-02-1 |
| EGDMA Monomer | Ethylene glycol dimethacrylate | 97-90-5 |
| DPGDA Monomer | Dipropylene Glycol Dienoate | 57472-68-1 |
| Bis-GMA Monomer | Bisphenol A Glycidyl Methacrylate | 1565-94-2 |
| Trifunctional Monomer | ||
| TMPTMA Monomer | Trimethylolpropane trimethacrylate | 3290-92-4 |
| TMPTA Monomer | Trimethylolpropane triacrylate | 15625-89-5 |
| PETA Monomer | 3524-68-3 | |
| GPTA ( G3POTA ) Monomer | GLYCERYL PROPOXY TRIACRYLATE | 52408-84-1 |
| EO3-TMPTA Monomer | Ethoxylated trimethylolpropane triacrylate | 28961-43-5 |
| Photoresist Monomer | ||
| IPAMA Monomer | 2-isopropyl-2-adamantyl methacrylate | 297156-50-4 |
| ECPMA Monomer | 1-Ethylcyclopentyl Methacrylate | 266308-58-1 |
| ADAMA Monomer | 1-Adamantyl Methacrylate | 16887-36-8 |
| Methacrylates monomer | ||
| TBAEMA Monomer | 2-(Tert-butylamino)ethyl methacrylate | 3775-90-4 |
| NBMA Monomer | n-Butyl methacrylate | 97-88-1 |
| MEMA Monomer | 2-Methoxyethyl Methacrylate | 6976-93-8 |
| i-BMA Monomer | Isobutyl methacrylate | 97-86-9 |
| EHMA Monomer | 2-Ethylhexyl methacrylate | 688-84-6 |
| EGDMP Monomer | Ethylene glycol Bis(3-mercaptopropionate) | 22504-50-3 |
| EEMA Monomer | 2-ethoxyethyl 2-methylprop-2-enoate | 2370-63-0 |
| DMAEMA Monomer | N,M-Dimethylaminoethyl methacrylate | 2867-47-2 |
| DEAM Monomer | Diethylaminoethyl methacrylate | 105-16-8 |
| CHMA Monomer | Cyclohexyl methacrylate | 101-43-9 |
| BZMA Monomer | Benzyl methacrylate | 2495-37-6 |
| BDDMP Monomer | 1,4-Butanediol Di(3-mercaptopropionate) | 92140-97-1 |
| BDDMA Monomer | 1,4-Butanedioldimethacrylate | 2082-81-7 |
| AMA Monomer | Allyl methacrylate | 96-05-9 |
| AAEM Monomer | Acetylacetoxyethyl methacrylate | 21282-97-3 |
| Acrylates Monomer | ||
| IBA Monomer | Isobutyl acrylate | 106-63-8 |
| EMA Monomer | Ethyl methacrylate | 97-63-2 |
| DMAEA Monomer | Dimethylaminoethyl acrylate | 2439-35-2 |
| DEAEA Monomer | 2-(diethylamino)ethyl prop-2-enoate | 2426-54-2 |
| CHA Monomer | cyclohexyl prop-2-enoate | 3066-71-5 |
| BZA Monomer | benzyl prop-2-enoate | 2495-35-4 |