Pigment inks, dye based inks, and dry toners

 

When shopping for a plotter, the question of which types of ink are appropriate for your application is one that can be confusing, and is often a deciding factor in which machine to purchase. There are a few main factors that should be considered when looking at plotters.

Essentially, there are three main options that we offer in plotters that should be taken into consideration; pigmented inks, dye based inks, and LED based printing technology.

 

LED printing:                                                                                                                           LED (Light Emitting Diode) technology can be a very effective method of printing for black and white applications. LED printing is similar to laser printing in that light is projected on to an electrostatic drum, thereby allowing toner to be attached to the drum in the areas that have been charged by the light emission. The toner is then transferred from the drum to the paper where it is pressed and heated in order to bond it to the paper. LED printers tend to be very effective for black and white renderings, and tend to have great longevity. There is only one toner to deal with, and no print heads that can clog and need to be replaced.

 

Dye Based Inks: 

Dye inks are just what they sound like, ink that dyes the paper or other medium. The potential advantage of these inks is that the end result gives a smoother surface layer on the medium which will result in a more even light refraction. This in turn can, in theory, deliver more consistent color interpretation. This theory does not, however, take into account the light refraction properties of the surface of the paper or other medium. The potential disadvantage of these inks is the bleeding of one color into another as the wet ink is laid into the paper.

 

Pigmented Inks:

A simple description of a pigmented ink would be crushing a berry and using the crushed pulp to color a medium. These inks have come a long way since the days of cave paintings. Canon's current line of pigmented inks have a smaller drop size than that of the competition's dye based ink. Additionally, the Canon Pigment inks have been chemically formulated to prevent the different inks from mixing, so that there is no bleeding of one ink into another. This allows for precise printing of one color over another. The potential disadvantage of these inks is that the pigment particles, as they dry, leave a slightly rough surface, that affects the light refraction properties of the ink, which can effect color interpretation. However, the roughness of the surface of the ink can be effected in different ways by the surface properties of the printing medium, and in our experience has shown no noticeable adverse effects in regards to color interpretation.

 

Ink Longevity:       

There have been numerous tests performed on the longevity of dye vs. pigmented inks. Most of the data points to pigmented inks as being able to last longer than dye based inks. There are many factors that play into this. Under artificial lighting conditions, the two inks generally perform similarly, but under natural light, tests have shown that pigmented inks do generally hold up better. The tests suggest that the time range that these inks will withstand light depredation is in the range of 80 to 100 years. If you desire greater longevity for your plots, there are spray sealants that can extend the life of your plots.

 

Do Print Heads clog faster when using pigmented inks?

There is no evidence to suggest that print heads will clog faster when using pigmented inks as opposed to dye based inks. With Inkjet printers, the inks are distributed through print heads that have thousands of tiny holes, or jets in as little as a couple square inch area. With both dye and pigment based inks, the ink is suspended in a liquid medium that evaporates away, leaving the dry ink on the paper. After printing, ink that remains in the jets can dry, and clog the jets. The technology is designed so that when new ink enters the print head, that the dry ink in the jets can be re-dissolved in the suspension medium, thus clearing the jets. The best way to prevent clogged print heads is to print regularly. When a print head is stagnant for too long, the ink in the jets can dry to a point that it can not be entirely re-absorbed into the print medium, thus clogging the print head.