Barium sulfate helps the environmental protection of ink

1. What is ink?

Ink is a uniform mixture of colored bodies (such as pigments, dyes, etc.), binders, fillers, additives, etc.; it can be printed and dried on the printed body; it is a colored, fluid, slurry-like adhesive. Therefore, color (hue), body (rheological properties such as viscosity and fluidity) and drying properties are the three most important properties of ink. There are many types of inks, and their physical properties are also different. Some are very thick and sticky, while others are quite thin. Some use vegetable oil as a binder; some use resin and solvent or water as a binder. These are all determined by the object of printing, that is, the substrate, the printing method, the type of printing plate, and the drying method.

 

 

2. Development of ink industry

The development of the ink industry is affected by many factors, including upstream raw material prices, downstream printing demand, environmental protection policies and technological innovation.

The main trend of the ink industry is to develop in the direction of green environmental protection, high efficiency, diversification and intelligence to meet the printing needs of different fields and levels.

The main products of the ink industry include gravure ink, lithographic ink, offset ink, flexographic ink, water-based ink, UV ink, special ink, etc. Various inks have different advantages and applications in different printing methods and fields. With the advancement of human civilization and the development of the printing industry, the substrate materials are constantly being developed and expanded, and the printing methods are constantly being innovated. The production process of ink is more sophisticated, and the types and varieties of ink products are constantly increasing. For example, the promotion of waterless offset printing technology has increased the demand for waterless offset printing inks, and the rise of flexible digital printing has also put digital printing inks on the stage of history.

The ink industry presents different development trends worldwide. Europe and the United States are traditional ink production and consumption countries, Asia and the Asia-Pacific region are the growth engines of the ink market, and China is the world's second largest ink producer and consumer, with huge market potential and development space.

 

3. What are Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs)

Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are organic compounds with high vapor pressure at room temperature. They can volatilize in the air and participate in atmospheric photochemical reactions, affecting air quality and human health. There are many types of VOCs. According to their chemical structure, they can be divided into alkanes, aromatic hydrocarbons, alkenes, halogenated hydrocarbons, esters, aldehydes, ketones, etc. More than 300 types have been identified. The sources of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are also very complex, including industrial production, transportation, daily necessities, building decoration, office equipment, etc.

The printing ink industry is one of the important sources of VOC emissions because the ink contains a large amount of organic solvents, pigments, resins and other ingredients. In order to reduce the harm of the printing ink industry to the environment and human body, countries around the world have formulated some laws, regulations, standards, technical measures and management measures to control the content and emission of VOCs in printing inks. In addition to laws, regulations and standards, countries around the world have also taken some technical measures and management measures to control the VOC content and emissions in printing inks, such as source control by using low-VOC or VOC-free raw and auxiliary materials, process control by improving printing processes and operating methods, and terminal control by installing VOC treatment equipment. By establishing and implementing environmental management systems such as ISO 14001 and EMAS, printing companies can improve their environmental awareness and sense of responsibility, as well as their ability to monitor and record VOC emissions.

 

4. Apply precipitated barium sulfate in the printing ink industry

Yunfu Hongzhi New Materials Co., Ltd. specializes in producing special precipitated barium sulfate with controllable particle size, ranging from 30 nanometers to 10 microns, focusing on providing customized products and services. It is worth mentioning that we can perform different surface treatments on products according to customer needs.

The main components of ink are pigments, resins, solvents and additives, among which pigments are the key factors affecting the color and quality of ink. Precipitated barium sulfate, as an inorganic pigment, can play the role of whitening, brightening, thickening, weighting and filling in ink, improve the hiding power, leveling and adhesion of ink, reduce the cost and viscosity of ink, and extend the service life of ink.

 

At the same time, the precipitated barium sulfate of Yunfu Hongzhi New Materials Co., Ltd. can also contribute to the environmental protection development of inks because it has the following advantages:

• The precipitated barium sulfate of Yunfu Hongzhi New Materials Co., Ltd. is a non-toxic and harmless substance that will not cause harm to the human body and the environment, and meets international environmental standards.
• Our precipitated barium sulfate can reduce the use of organic solvents, increase solid content, reduce the emission of volatile organic compounds (VOC), and reduce air pollution.
• Our precipitated barium sulfate can be modified by silicon and aluminum to improve the weather resistance and light resistance of inks, extend the shelf life of printed materials, reduce the fading and aging of printed materials, and protect the beauty and value of printed materials. At the same time, it can effectively improve the suspension and thixotropy, maintain the stability of color matching for a long time, reduce the amount of pigment, and improve its color rendering.
• Our precipitated barium sulfate can increase the solid content and drying speed of inks, shorten the printing cycle, save energy and resources, and improve production efficiency and economic benefits.
• Our precipitated barium sulfate can also replace German and Japanese products, reduce costs, and achieve better gloss and color development effects!

If you want to know more about the application of barium sulfate, please consult us!