Knowde Enhanced TDS
Identification & Functionality
- Technologies
- Product Families
Features & Benefits
- Ready-to-Use Product Features
- Characteristics
Printability of the LIP is very simple and easy thanks to the very good mesh opening for standard and 4-color process shades.
LIP can be processed by hand printing, with semi-automatic machines up to fully automatic machines. LIP is suited for printing speeds up to 1400 prints/h (single prints). The flow characteristics of LIP have been adjusted in such a way that the ink does not drip through the mesh when the machine is standing still or run together in angle opening machines.
Ink Adjustment
The ink should be stirred well before printing.
Drying
Physically fast drying, at 20 °C air temperature to be overprinted within 10-15 min, at 50 °C in the tunnel dryer stackable after 30-40 sec. Drying speed and block resistance are reduced by about 20 % in overprinting. With high dryer capacity and good ventilation provided, the drying temperature can be reduced to 40 °C for less material distortion.
The times mentioned above vary according to the substrate, the ink film thickness, drying conditions and the auxiliaries used. An extended drying time is necessary if Plasticizer WM 1 has been added to the ink.
Fade resistance
Depending on the color shade, pigments of good to excellent fade resistance (blue wool scale 6-8) are used in the Libra Print LIP range. All standard and 4-color process shades are therefore suitable for outdoor use for two years if placed vertically and referred to the middle European climate. Precondition for this is the appropriate and professional processing as well as an max. addition of 50 % of varnish or white to the standard shades. A coat of Printing Varnish LIP 910 over the whole surface will extend the possible outdoor limit to 3 years. In countries with higher exposure to sunlight (between 40th parallel north and 40th parallel south), outdoor resistance will decrease.
Stress resistance
After proper and thorough drying, the ink film of the standard shades exhibits outstanding adhesion as well as rub, scratch, and block resistance and can be molded (caution with 4-color process shades!). LIP exhibits a normal chemical resistance against alcohol and other usual cleaners (e. g. window cleaner), and unleaded petrol. For applications requiring a high solvent resistance in multiple overprinting (e. g. in the case of double-faced stickers), the color shade LIP 922, Light Yellow must not be used (not even proportionately for ink mixtures) but is to be substituted by matching the other LIP basic shades without LIP 922. For a higher rub resistance to dry abrasion of the color shades, we recommend to overcoat with Printing Varnish LIP 910. If the chemical resistance is to be increased, the shades can additionally be overcoated with Printing Varnish SR 910 or a suitable UV-curing varnish.
Applications & Uses
- Applications
- Compatible Substrates & Surfaces
- Field of Application
Substrates
Libra Print LIP is suited to print onto:
• PVC self-adhesive foils
• Rigid and soft PVC
• Polystyrene (PS)
• ABS/SAN
• Acrylics (PMMA)
• PETG
• Polycarbonate (PC)
• Paper, pasteboard, cardboard
• Wood
Since all the print substrates mentioned may be different in printability even within an individual type, preliminary trials are essential to determine the suitability for the intended use. Field of use
Libra Print LIP is highly suitable for the production of PVC-stickers, advertising panels, displays, ring binders, book covers, straps, and letterings of every kind. To decorate tarpaulins made of PVC, we recommend our tarpaulin ink Maraplan PL instead of LIP. LIP is vacuum-formable except for the 4x9 process shades. LIP can also be processed with a spray gun, but preliminary trials are necessary for this process. In order to avoid surface irregularities, we recommend to filter the thinned ink (25 µm screen) before processing.
Technical Details & Test Data
- Gloss Level
Libra Print LIP is glossy and has the following measured gloss values (60° angle). Value 100 stands for high gloss, while value 1 stands for deep-matt:
Basic shades: 50 - 60 gloss unitsLIP 971: 30 - 40 gloss unitsPrinting Varnish LIP 910: 70 - 80 gloss units4-color process shades: 25 - 35 gloss unitsIf a higher gloss is required, we recommend overcoat with Printing Varnish LIP 910.
Opacity
The LIP color shades are brilliant with medium opacity. To increase the ink’s opacity on dark substrates, it is possible to add up to 15% of Opaquing Paste OP 170.- Metallics and Auxiliaries
Metallic Pastes
S 191 Silver 15-25% S 192 Rich Pale Gold 15-25% S 193 Rich Gold 15-25% S 291 High Gloss Silver 10-20% S 292 High Gloss Rich Pale Gold 10-20% S 293 High Gloss Rich Gold 10-20% Metallic Powders
S 181 Aluminum 17% S 182 Rich Pale Gold 25% S 183 Rich Gold 25% S 184 Pale Gold 25% S 186 Copper 33% S 190 Aluminum, rub-resistant 13% These metallics are to be added to LIP 910 in the recommended amount, whereat the addition may be individually adjusted to the respective application. We recommend preparing a mixture which can be processed within a maximum of 8 h since metallic mixtures usually cannot be stored. Due to their chemical structure, the processing time of mixtures with Pale Gold S 184 and Copper S 186 is even reduced to 4 h. Owing to the smaller pigment size of Metallic Pastes it is possible to work with finer fabrics like 140-31 to 150-31. Owing to the bigger pigment size of Metallic Powders we recommend the use of a coarser fabric like 100-40. Shades made of Metallic Powders are always subject to an increased dry abrasion which can only be reduced by overvarnishing.
All metallic shades are displayed in the Marabu "Screen Printing Metallics" color chart.
AuxiliariesUKV 2 Thinner 10-15% VP Retarder Paste 5-20% SA 1 Surface Additive 3-5% WM1 Plasticizer 2-5% ABM Matting Base 1-20% MP Matting Powder 1-2% ES Printing Modifier 0.5-1% OP 170 Opaquing Paste 0-15% PSV Thinner, quick and mild resp.spray thinnerUR 3 Cleaner (flp. 42°C) UR 4 Cleaner (flp. 52°C) UR 5 Cleaner (flp. 72°C) SV 5 Retarder SV 10 Retarder, slow Thinner is added to the ink to adjust the printing viscosity. For slow printing sequences and fine motifs, it may be necessary to add retarder to the thinner. For an additional thinning of the ink containing retarder, only pure thinner should be used. Thinner PSV is suited for the use on polystyrene or other plastics sensitive to tension cracks. The addition of surface additive SA 1 can increase the resistance against abrasion and other mechanical stress (max. addition 10%). Plasticizer WM 1 is recommended if high flexibility is required from the printed ink film. This is important for thin substrates with a natural tendency to roll, as well as for applications involving cutting or die-cutting of the printed surface. The use of Plasticizer WM 1 reduces the drying speed. For the production of doublesided stickers the use of WM 1 is essential. The degree of gloss can be reduced by adding Matting Paste ABM or Matting Powder MP, decreasing the opacity as well as the vacuumformability at the same time. Printing Modifier ES contains silicone and can be used to rectify flow problems on critical substrates. If an excessive amount is added, flow problems are increased and adhesion may be reduced, especially when overprinting. By adding Opaquing Paste 170, the opacity of color shades can significantly be increased without considerably influencing the chemical and dry abrasion resistance. OP 170 is not suitable for white shades, and should not be used for prints that will be exposed to more than 2 years outdoor application. For spray varnishing, our Quick Thinner PSV should be used (by adding approx. 40 %) after preliminary trials. The cleaners UR 3 and UR 4 are recommended for manual cleaning of the working equipment. Cleaner UR 5 is recommended for manual or automatic cleaning of the working equipment.
Printing Parameters
All types of commercially available polyester fabrics (1:1 plain weave ) and solvent-resistant stencils can be used.
Packaging & Availability
- Range
Basic Shades 920 Lemon 922 Light Yellow 924 Medium Yellow 926 Orange 930 Vermilion 932 Scarlet Red 934 Carmine Red 936 Magenta 940 Brown 950 Violet 952 Ultramarine Blue954 Medium Blue 956 Brilliant Blue 960 Blue Green 962 Grass Green 970 White 971 White 980 Black 4-Color Process Shades Standard 429 Process Yellow 439 Process Magenta459 Process Cyan 489 Process Black Further Products 409 Transparent Base910 Overprint VarnishLIP 971 White features a very high flexibility at a lower degree of gloss, and is best suited for vacuum-forming or shaping. When printing onto PVC self-adhesive foils, it shows less tendency to edge curling or shrinkage than LIP 970. The process shades are not vacuum-formable. All shades are intermixable. Mixing with other ink types or auxiliaries must be avoided in order to maintain the special characteristics of this ink. All basic shades are included in our MarabuColorFormulator (MCF). They build the basis for the calculation of individual color matching formulas, as well as for shades of the common color reference systems HKS®, PANTONE®, and RAL®. All formulas are stored in the Marabu-Color Manager software.
Storage & Handling
- Shelf Life
Shelf life depends very much on the formula/ reactivity of the ink system as well as the storage temperature. It is 3.5 years for an unopened ink container if stored in a dark room at a temperature of 15-25°C. Under different conditions, particularly higher storage temperatures, the shelf life is reduced. In such cases, the warranty given by Marabu expires.