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Processing, Dyeing & Finishing
  Developments in digital printing

One of the important issues associated with digital printing on textiles is speed reliability as this has
commercial implication for the industry, reveal Aravin Prince P and Raja P.

The digital printing was introduced in 1950 for paper printing. But this printing technique was
extended to textiles from 1970 onwards only. Digital printing in simple terms is the process of
creating prints generated and designed from a computer, as opposed to analogue printing, which
requires printing screens.

Among the various approaches for digital printing including electro photography, inkjet has gained
a very significant place in the field of innovative printing techniques. This technique is more related
to those used in reprographics industry than textile printing. For eg, reference is made to toners and
inks rather than dyes, pigments and printing pastes. Similarly, print resolution and speed are
defined in "drops per inch" (DPI) and "characters per second" (CPS), rather than in mesh/raster and
yards/metre per minute.

Inkjet printing

From the roller printing technology of the fifties through screen-printing to today's state-of-the-art
inkjet printing technology by using digital CAD system have evolved in stages of developments.

In digital inkjet printing, print heads containing banks of fine nozzles,

fire fine droplets of individual coloured inks on to pre-treated fabrics.
The print design is created digitally and the ink droplets are mixed
together on the fabric surface to create final colour, so called spot colour.

The print design concept is manipulated digitally and the set-up time to
produce short runs, sampling, or proofing is dramatically decreased. All
the costs that are generated due to screen engraving, past making, strike-offs, downtime and
wastage are also completely eliminated. The dyes are supplied in colour cartridges by the dye
maker and, ones connected in the printer, are ready for instant use. Inkjet printing has a low water
consumption and low energy consumption process compared with conventional printing process.

Principles of inkjet printing

The basic principle is directing minute droplet of ink from a nozzle onto the printing substrate. A
common feature of droplet formation is computer control of droplet position on the substrate by
their response to high frequency digital electronic signals. The droplet formation involves the
application of controlled pressure on the liquid ink in its reservoir; as it streams into the printing
nozzles, the ink stream is broken into droplets.

Classification of inkjet printers

Basically, inkjet technology can be classified into:

1. Coarse resolution type.

2. Fine resolution type.

I. Coarse resolution type:

It is based on valve control technology. It has maximum resolution of
40Dpi. It is used in carpet industry.

II. Finer resolution type:

It has the fine resolution up to 300Dpi. The most important features of

this inkjet printer are the printing heads & nozzles. Numerous nozzles
are used to each colour. These nozzles are 10 to 1000 µ in diameter. It
can be subdivided into:

1. Continuous stream printing.

2. Drop-on demand.

Continuous steam printing:

In this system, ink is forced at a high pressure & high frequency through a nozzle. The emerging
stream of ink is broken into small droplets. These droplets can be selectively charged and deflected
by pasting through high voltage plates. Drop selection is achieved by deflecting the desired drops
for the image to the substrate and collecting the unwanted for recycling. In this system, ink is
electrically conductive & as the ink passes through the charged plates, current flows in the column.

Two possible methods of obtaining a design by this process are:

1. Raster scan method.

2. Binary continuous inkjet system.

Raster scan method:

In this method charged droplets are deflected onto the substrate in a predetermined manner & the
uncharged droplets are collected in a feedback and then it is recycled.

Binary continuous inkjet system:

In this method the uncharged droplets will be unaffected by the deflection plates which carry a
charge opposite to that of the charging plates. The undeflected drops then strike the substrate to
form the image. Drops carrying a charge are deflected to a gutter by the deflection plates for
recycle.

Besides these the multi-deflection continuous inkjet has also been used for textile printing. This
differs from the binary system in that the dye drops are given a variable charge that gives different
deflections as the drops pass through the deflection plates. This allows multiple positions on the
substrate (up to 30) to be printed from a single jet. This technology found application in printers for
industrial marketing and served as the basis for t-shirt printers.

Drop on demand:

The impulse or drop on demand inkjet is a system of fundamental simplicity. This technology, as the
name suggests produces an ink droplet when required and fires this on to the substrate. It differs
from continuous inkjet systems in two aspects: I. The image forming ink droplets are not charged, so
no deflection device is involved. II. Electrical signals are normally used to control the moment when
an individual droplet is needed. The DOD printers are of the following types: 1. Bubble jet/Thermal
jet. 2. Piezoelectric. 3. Valve-jet. 4. Electrostatic inkjet.
Bubble jet: Majority of the DOD printers currently in use are of this type. In this technology, the
printer depends on a thermal pulse to generate the ink drop. In fact, computer signal heats a
resister to a high temperature, which creates a vapour bubble in a volatile component in the
printing ink and this vapour bubble causes a drop of ink to be ejected from the nozzle. The vapour
bubble must then cool and collapse allowing the ink chamber to refill
from a reservoir. Cycle time is limited about 10,000 drops per second and
volume per drop of ink is in the range of 150-200 Picolitres (1x10-12).
Thus, single thermal inkjet can deliver about 0.1ml of ink per minute.

The biggest problem with the thermal inkjet is the high rate of nozzle failure. High temperature
(>3500C) required for rapid drop ejection, cause decomposition of ink components on the resister,
leading to poor heat transfer and/or nozzle clogging. Resister failure resulting from rapid thermal
cycling is also a major problem. But, the main advantage of thermal inkjet/ bubble jet technology is
the low cost of nozzle fabrication. Thus, thermal inkjets offer low cost print heads but suffer from
problems of reliability and speed.

Piezoelectric:

The piezo inkjet uses a piezoelectric transducer for ejecting ink droplets. These transducers may be
of different forms but all work on the principle that when a varying voltage is applied across them,
they expand and contract proportionally to the applied voltage. In a typical piezoelectric printer, the
computer imposes an electrical potential across a piezoelectric material, which causes a contraction
in the direction of an electric field and an expansion in the perpendicular direction.

On removal of the potential, the piezoelectric returns to its normal dimensions and the ink chamber
is filled from an ink reservoir by capillary action. The cycle time of the piezo-based printers is
limited by the ink replenishment rate and can be somewhat higher (14,000 cycles per second) than
the thermal inkjet, but drop volumes are relatively smaller (as low as a few picolitres). The small
drop size allows the piezo-based printers to produce very high resolution prints (2880 Dpi is
commercially available). These printers also have the advantage of much greater print head life
than the thermal based system.

The micro jet technology is a further development of the piezoelectric inkjet in which piezo ceramic
walls of the inkjet channels vibrate to eject ink droplets. The advantages with this are high
resolution and potential to economically produce wide nozzle arrays. Also, piezotype systems are
suited for both aqueous and solvent based inks, as well as for hot melt or phase change inks in
many non-textile applications.

Valve jet:

As the name suggests, this involves the use of valves. Solenoid valves are used in it, to control the
flow of ink in an air stream that carries the drops to the substrate. Resolution is limited to 25 Psi and
thus not quite suitable for apparels. However, these machines have been used.

Fabric pre-treatment for inkjet printing

In the case of inkjet printing, a highly effective pre-treatment is necessary. Fabric must be singed to
remove surface hairs that could lower the fabric printing quality and also prevent the risk of flaws
being generated by surface fibres touching the print head and blocking the nozzles. Desizing,
scouring and bleaching to remove impurities and to provide a fabric of uniform absorbency and
whiteness are essential. In inkjet printing the colours depth obtainable is an important limiting
factor, and fabric mercerisation can be used to increase the apparent colour depth of the print.

The type of fabric pre-treatment will vary with the dyes used in the inks. For inkjet printing of
reactive dyes onto cellulosic fabrics the pad liquor applied on the fabric may contain alginates for
penetration control, urea to increase colour depth and alkali, which is essential for the formation of
a covalent bond between the dye and the fibre.

Ink consumption:

Digital printing techniques make new demands on the colourants and formulations used. While in
screen printing colours are applied in the form of high viscosity pastes. In inkjet printing the
requirement is for very thin ink formulations, moreover the colours or dyes to be used for inkjet
printing should have small particle size and over sized particles block the jets. The average particle
size of the inks must therefore be negligible compared to the nozzle orifices and then only smooth
ink flow can be guaranteed. Besides these the choice of auxiliary system is crucial for the stability of
ink formulations. Basically inkjet printing ink is classified into two types, they are:

1. Water based inks.

2. Solvent based inks.

Solvent Based Inks

Ink Chemistry Fibres Post Processing Markets Supported

Polyester (not often used in inkjet

Dye printers-only currently used in the None Soft Signage
Gretag Carolina printer)
Pigment Vinyl, Polyester, Nylon None Outdoor Signage

Water Based Inks

Ink Chemistry Fibres Post Processing Markets Supported
Steam/Wash, can be dry
Acid Dyes Silk, Nylon, Wool Fashion textile, indoor soft signage    
cleaned
Fashion textile, indoor & outdoor soft
Disperse Dyes Polyester Heat Fixation
signage
Natural Fibers: Cotton, Silk, Steam/Wash can be dry Fashion textile, indoor & outdoor soft
Reactive Dyes
Rayon, Wool cleaned signage
Pigment without Indoor & outdoor soft signage, home
All Fibers Dry Heat
binder textiles
Pigment with Indoor & outdoor soft signage, home
Cotton and possibly Polyester Dry Heat
binder textiles

Fixation & developments of prints

Fixation/Development of the digitally printed fabric is of paramount

importance. Unless the prints are properly fixed, the demands of the
roller retailers and consumers print of view of wash fastness, rubbing
fastness, light fastness cannot be fulfiled.

Logically based on the type of dyes used in ink formulations, the same
fixation method that have been successfully practiced in normal printing methods such as curing
and chemical padding can be used. In the inks based on reactive dyes the following formulations is
suggested.
Fixation:

Cotton: Steam 1020 C for 8 min, or thermo fixation at 140-1500 C for 5 min, or high temp steaming at
1200 C for 1-4 min.

Viscose: Steam at 1020 C for 8 min.

Recent developments in inkjet printing

One of the most innovative digital inkjet printers is the "Reggiani DReAM" machine, which uses
Scitex Aprion print heads and Ciba Speciality chemical inks. Pretreated cotton fabric 160 cm wide
was printed at 150 m2/h with six colours, the spot mixing giving a very high definition print design
containing 18 final colours at 600Dpi. The Cibacron RAC reactive dye inks used were printed and
can be fixed in steam, washed off and dried as normal. The DReAM inkjet printing machine
incorporates a continuous-blanket washing system and an online drying unit. This high speed inkjet
printer is designed for printing short to medium print runs, and opens up many opportunities in the
latter field.

The Monna Lisa inkjet printer on the Robustelli stand has been designed for printing high quality
print designs, as well as sampling printing, and has generated interest among Italian printers. The
printing speed is claimed to be about 28m2/h at 720 Dpi and 78m2/h at 360 Dpi. The Monna Lisa
uses Epson print heads and reactive and acid dye inks developed by Epson.

The Dupont Artistri 2020 digital inkjet printer incorporates Dupont Artistri software and ink and is
based on a piezo print head system. Sixteen print heads are incorporated on two carriage rolls and
four types of Artistri inks in the 700 series are used, namely acid, disperse, reactive, and pigment
inks. The Dupont Artistri 2020 is capable of printing at 30-50m2/h.

Dupont announced at ITMA 2003 that the Rimslow Pvt Ltd's Steam-X
steamer was a marketing partner for this printer. The Rimslow Steam-X
steamer is a compact steaming unit for print fixation and is fitted in line
after inkjet printing. The unit has a fabric path length of six maters on
the steamer, which is sufficient at normal inkjet printing speeds to fix
acid, reactive, and disperse dyes.

The Colourwings Texjet 254 in-line digital inkjet printer operates with
eight print heads at production rates of up to 50m2/h. The eight colour
disperse print system is heat-fixed by sublimation and a vacuum system
is used to ensure that double-sided prints can be obtained that are
suitable for flags. Pigment, reactive and acid inks can also be printed, and a number of the
Colourwing Texjet 254 printers can be networked to provide a flexible manufacturing process.

Mimaki showed its TX3-1600 piezo DOD printer with eight print heads
capable of printing at 360-720 Dpi and suitable for short run production
and sampling. A novel printer was the Mimaki GP0604 printer for
printing cotton T-shirts and other garments using Mimaki pigment inks.

Leggett and Platt Digital Technologies Inc of the USA exhibited their virtu
RS printer on the Spuhl stand. This uses Virtue-Hue V pigment inks,
which can be applied to polyester and polyester-rich fabrics. The print
image is cold-cured using ultraviolet radiation and then the print image
is passed in to a thermal fixation zone in which the disperse dyes
sublime and are absorbed by the polyester. The Virtue RS printer has UV-protective shielding and is
manufactured 2.5 or 3.5' metres wide. The printing speed is claimed to be up to 125m2/h or about
35m2/h on a six-colour print.

Development process in design making

Thus the process illustrated by Figure 1, the role of inkjet printing is limited to creating a sample of
the design.

However, this changes in Figure 2. An idea for a design is still realised through CAD, and while the
role of CAD finishes here, in the process shown in Figure 2, the CAD data itself can be used in the
small-lot production of diverse design.

The price of a single high-quality inkjet-printing machine for use with textiles is very high, and so to
make them economical, individual machines must have a high print speed. Groups taking up this
challenge include those of Kyoto Municipal Textile Research Institute et al, of Toshin Kogyo and
Dupont, and of Ciba Specialty Chemicals, Reggiani and Aprion, and with this, the application of
inkjet printing will become like that shown in Figure 2. An important feature of the process as
shown in Figure 2 is that the following sequence of operations has become a direct line.

 Image design CAD inkjet printing operations and production.

Textile printing in three days with roller, rotary or flat-screen printing is inconceivable; it is simply
not humanly possible. There is no way to work this miracle other than through the use of high-
speed inkjet printing (according to an industry source). In meeting these expectations, the
introduction of 2nd generation inkjet machinery cannot but be overemphasised.

Developments in inks

To meet increasing demand, new inkjet inks are being developed for the textile market. BASF has
introduced Bafixan disperse dye inks and Helizarin pigment inks and has introduced a new
pretreatment system, Luprejet HD. Ciba Specialty Chemicals has designed a range of reactive inks,
Cibacron RAC, for cellulose fabrics, chemical reaction with the fibres ensuring high application
performance and bright shades. Further ink ranges for other fibres are being developed, including
acid inks for high fashion and sportswear fabrics of silk and polyamide/Lycra blends, pigmented
inks especially designed for home furnishing of all fibres and disperse inks for polyester. These
high-tech inks must be of the right consistency to pass through the heads at very high speed and dry
immediately on the fabric.

 In addition, Ciba Specialty Chemicals has designed a special chemical recipe for fabric preparation
suitable for Cibacron RAC inks. The system, which comprises the inks, the preparation recipe and
the printer with its special printing heads, provides customers with a complete integrated inkjet
textile printing solution.

Multi functional agent

One can use Helizarin® EVO P 100 in the digital inkjet process to achieve printing results which you
have experienced up to now only with traditional pigment printing. The properties of the low-
viscosity ink eliminate the need for subsequent application of binder. The ink formulation involving
the newly developed Multi Functional Agent consigns the typical problems of inkjet pigment
printing to history. The textiles retain their pleasant handle.

The first pigment ink to produce wash-resistant and rub-fast textiles, Helizarin® EVO P 100 does
away with the time-consuming and cost-intensive intermediate drying stage and the application of
binder.
Features of the new solution for pigmented inkjet printing:

1. For virtually any fabric

2. Rich colours

3. Greater brilliance

4. Sharp outlines

5. Wash-resistant colours

Conclusion

The rapidly evolving world of digitalised textiles is a reflection of several unique and contrasting
business models that create challenges, treats and opportunities to the future of the textile printing
market. One of the important issues associated with digital printing on textiles is speed & reliability
as this has commercial implication for the industry, in terms of time saving and energy saving
factors.

Inkjet printing has also demerits such as high cost, lower production speed, limited colour space,
and so on. Therefore, these techniques are more essential now and also there is a need to improve
the system with more research & developments.

References

1. Arun K Patra: Digital Printing - Trends and Techniques, Colourage Annual 2005.

2. I Holme: Digital Inkjet Printing, Colourage, April 2006.

3. Digital Creativity, Journal of Textile & Apparel Technology & Management/Volume 4/Issue
1/Summer 2004.

4. Advantage of Digital printing - Journal of Textile & Apparel, Technology &

Management/Volume 4, Issue 3/Spring 2005.

5. B Chavan: Digital Printing, Asian Dyer, Nov-Dec 2005.

6. The Future of Digital Textile Printing, International Textile Bulletin 1/2001.

7. Printing of Textiles - Future Prospects, Colourage, Dec 1995.

8. www.basf.de.

9. www.textrends.com.

10. www.cibase.com.

Note: For detailed version of this article please refer the print version of The Indian Textile
Journal August 2007 issue.

The authors are with the Department of Textile Technology, RVS College of Engg & Tech,
Dindigul, Tamil Nadu. E-mail ID: aravinprince@gmail.com.

published August , 2007

 
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