Application of pearl powder in various printing methods

People admire the fascinating luster of pearls, and if it is everywhere in life, what a wonderful thing. But until the middle of the 20th century, this special pigment that can emit pearl luster was used in printing. This is called “mica titanium pearlescent pigment”, commonly known as pearlescent pigment. Its appearance makes the decorative effect of printed matter more abundant. At present, with the continuous development of the printing industry, especially the increasing demand for high-quality packaging in the market, the application of pearl printing is becoming more and more extensive.

    Pearlescent pigments show great power

    What kind of technology is this pearlescent ink that continues to attract the attention of the printing industry and is gradually selling well in the market? In fact, it is very simple. It is a mixture of pearl powder and solvent-based or water-based ink. It is uniformly dispersed in a translucent ink through a micron-sized wafer layer. Under the action of light refraction and reflection, natural pearls and shells are reproduced. The elegant luster and color of butterflies, fish and metals.

    Although the technical principle is very simple, this pearlescent pigment is still very powerful in practical printing applications.

    1. Good stability

    Since pearlescent pigments are chemically stable inorganic compounds, they are not denatured by oxidation and acid-base effects, and there are no special requirements for storage, transportation, and use. At the same time, pearlescent pigments are not toxic and corrosive, and can be applied to all printed substrates, including food packaging, without being harmful to humans.

    2. Good decoration

    It is believed that printing companies that have used pearlescent pigments will have a deep memory of the extraordinary decorative effects produced on printed materials. Since the pearlescent pigment and the ink are very flexible, the pearlescent effect of different layers and colors can be achieved by different color matching methods and the concentration of the pearlescent pigment in the ink, thereby improving the aesthetics of the printed matter.

    3. Good adaptability

    From a technical point of view, in addition to the offset printing requirements for high granularity, the pearlescent effect can be achieved by any current printing method, or even glazing (over-oil). In terms of substrates, although there are no specific requirements, in order to highlight the good pearlescent effect, a substrate with a smooth and flat surface is more suitable. In the printing operation, in addition to controlling the printing and drying speed, other operations are the same as in peacetime, so there is no operational difficulty.

    4. Good economy

    In general, the cost of pearlescent pigments is not expensive, and the inks mixed therewith can be used in a conventional type. In this way, the same beautiful decorative effect is achieved, and the use of pearlescent pigments is obviously more cost-effective than the selection of substrates with special effects.

    But this is not to say that pearlescent pigments are perfect. Because the pearlescent powder in pearlescent pigments is actually made of titanium dioxide (or other metal oxide) coated mica, according to the current process, the particles are still relatively large, so It is easy to form a precipitate, so that the ink color is printed more and more light, resulting in chromatic aberration. In the operation, there are certain requirements for ink viscosity, inking and drying speed.

    Pearlescent pigments are suitable for all printing methods

    Such pearlescent pigments with excellent performance are not "Wang Yutang's former Yan". For all kinds of printing methods, it can be said that they are not rejected. However, it is worth noting that pearlescent pigments also have specific requirements for different printing methods.

    1. Pearl offset printing

    Although offset printing is fast and low cost, pearlescent offset printing is the goal pursued by many printers. However, compared with the thin ink layer and long ink path of offset printing, the larger pearlescent pigments are very difficult in the transfer process. Therefore, in order to achieve pearl offset printing, it is necessary to select a pearlescent pigment with a small particle size while minimizing the ink path.

2. Pearl screen printing

    It can be said that screen printing is very suitable for such large-grain pearlescent pigments, and can also form more special effects. However, the slow drying speed of the screen printing ink will affect the final effect of the pearlescent ink on the substrate.

    The pearl printing business of Zhejiang Meinung Screen Printing Co., Ltd. has accounted for half of the total business volume, while the pearl screen printing accounted for 70%, especially the pearl screen printing can produce "different angles, different colors" effect, so that Jiangxi The Nanshan Cigarette Factory “Lushan” cigarette label and the special “General” cigarette label of Shandong Jinan Cigarette Factory are shining.

    3. Pearlescent gravure

    The dark color of the gravure is of course very suitable for the application of pearlescent pigments. In fact, it is also the most widely used field of pearlescent pigments in actual production. However, the high cost of gravure itself makes pearl printing not available for larger scale production applications. Henan Golden Mango Printing Co., Ltd. is a gravure-effect finishing method for the cigarette label by gravure printing. The cigarette label box printed with pearl ink improves the grade and enjoyment of the product and increases the added value of the product. It was also after the company introduced the pearl gravure and attracted a lot of business.

    4. Pearlescent flexographic printing

    The use of pearlescent pigments with different color sequences or different particle sizes can achieve a rich pearlescent effect in flexographic printing. In fact, flexographic printing is also the pearlescent printing method that is gradually emerging, but also by flexographic plates. The restriction of the price of the anilox roller is high.