Page 59 - 스크린인쇄기술정보지-11월호-전자책

FESP A NEW S Nessan Clear y
FESPA NEWS
Marshall Atkinson

The third option is discharge ink, which is mainly designed for printing to darker fabrics. This ink, which is also water-

based, has to be mixed with an activator, which causes a chemical reaction on the fabric to pull out the dye that’s already

on the fabric where the ink is applied. In some cases, the discharge agent can emit formaldehyde gas. The results can be a

bit inconsistent, depending on the dye that was originally used to darken the fabric.

The advantage is that there’s no need to print a white layer as the discharge ink fills the blank spot, which helps the colours
stand out from the darker fabric. Discharge ink will only work well with natural fibres such as cotton. It’s not the easiest ink

to work with, because you have to mix the ink and activator paste together in the right combination and control the

temperature while ensuring there is plenty of ventilation. That said, it can produce the best results of all the different types

of ink particularly for darker materials, with the most natural hand feel.

In addition, there are also a number of special effects inks available including metallics, shimmer, and glow in the dark.

These can all be used to add value to the garment.

In conclusion, its vital to pick the right ink for the substrate you are printing to. If you are printing to dark blended materials

then a plastisol based ink is the best option. But for light cotton materials, then water-based inks will give a much more
natural feel, and be more environmentally-friendly. Ultimately, of course, it comes down to producing the effect necessary

to allow you to charge the price that you want for the garments you are printing.

* The article has been provided by FESPA (www.fespa.com) and translated by SPAK, and unauthorized use is prohibited.

November 2024 • 57