Flint Launches Water Ink Revolution

Flint Ink has launched what it claims to be a revolutionary, highly concentrated colour technology for water inks called X-Treme Dispersions.

Flint Ink has launched what it claims to be a revolutionary, highly concentrated colour technology for water inks called X-Treme Dispersions.

The new colourants increase the colour strength of water ink systems by 20% without compromising the runability of the ink, said the company.

In the past, increasing pigment strength in water ink systems made them heavier, more viscous and difficult to run.

X-Treme Dispersions enables printers and converters to create sophisticated, detailed graphics of intense color with thinner ink films at faster press speeds.

Printers gain high-strength colour, high-end graphics capabilities, and on-press stability in one product.

Flint's pigment scientists, pigment and dispersion manufacturing, and the packaging division's product development lab were responsible for the development.

The new colourants yield clean, precise images on combination plates fitted with the finest anilox rolls.

They create vibrant, resistant ink systems that dry quickly and run easily.

They are available in an array of Pantone colours, and are well suited to inks for flexographic and gravure presses.

The inks are more fluid and easier to handle, allowing for faster filling of ink cells.

In addition, the high colour concentration of the pigments makes the residual ink easier to recycle, whilst providing significant cost-savings, claimed Flint.

In one instance, a converter changed from a standard ink using a 280-line flexo anilox to an X-Treme Dispersions ink using a 380-line roller, and reduced ink usage by 30%.

"Our Xtreme Dispersions are the single most significant technological advancement in water inks in the past 10 years," said Steve D'Angelo, director of marketing at Flint Ink's North America packaging division.

"They use a unique, proprietary chemistry to create stronger inks without increasing viscosity, resulting in significant improvements in print quality, ink curing and press speed.

With more concentrated pigment ink systems have more room for resin and other additives that improve ink performance both on the press and the substrate," he explained.

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