Situations where color printing affects the ink color of prints
Plate printing is a widely used production process. To improve the quality and efficiency of color printing, further analysis and discussion are required. The visual effect of the print's ink color is one of the important factors in measuring the quality of a printed product. There are several situations that directly affect the ink color of the print.
1. The impact of printing ink layer thickness and viscosity on the print's ink color
An appropriate thickness of the printing ink layer is an important measure to ensure the quality of the print's ink color and prevent smudging. If the ink layer is too thick, its viscosity will increase, which can easily cause paper fibers to be pulled out, affecting the uniformity of the print's ink color. If the printing ink layer is too thin or the ink viscosity is insufficient, the printed ink color will appear lighter, resulting in poor visual effects. As the printing machine runs longer or the printing speed increases, the friction coefficient increases, and the temperature of the ink will gradually rise. Consequently, the ink becomes thinner, and its viscosity decreases accordingly. Therefore, when adjusting the ink, all these situations must be comprehensively considered to ensure that the batch products achieve relatively balanced printing ink colors.
2. The impact of printing pressure on the print's ink color
Printing pressure is one of the important conditions for achieving the transfer of printed marks. Since the surface of the printing plate is not absolutely flat, and the surface of the paper inevitably has slight unevenness and variations in thickness, if the printing pressure is insufficient or uneven, the ink color on the printing plate will inevitably appear inconsistent in density. Therefore, the ideal printing process is based on "three levels" (i.e., the printing plate surface, the inking roller, and the blanket are relatively flat to obtain good contact conditions), using a relatively thin ink layer through balanced printing pressure, allowing the print to achieve more uniform ink color. If the printing pressure is insufficient or uneven, there may be poor contact between the blanket and the printing plate surface. Increasing the ink supply can satisfy the visual effect of the printing plate's ink color, but this will increase the consumption of ink and also easily cause smudging on the print, which is not advisable.