Images_Digital_Edition_January_2020

www.images-magazine.com JANUARY 2020 images 25 TIPS & TECHNIQUES often much more vivid and bright once the fabric comes out of the steamer. Afterwards, the prints need to go through a washing process – this removes any excess dye that hasn’t been fixed and also the pretreatment that was initially put onto the textile. Reactive dyes These dyes were developed to work with cellulose fibres in fabrics – for example, those found in cotton and linen. Reactive dyes can be printed onto a much wider fabric range than acid dyes and can even be used to print protein-based textiles as well. They are often used by people printing for fashion or home furnishings. Similar to acid dyes, reactive dyes require the textile to be pretreated beforehand and they are printed directly onto it. The finishing process is also very similar and involves steaming and washing – however, the timings change as reactive dyes cure more quickly than acid dyes. Pigment inks Pigment inks differ significantly from other solutions as they don’t fully impregnate themselves into the textile, rather they offer more of a surface print. In one way, this is a good thing as the composition of the fabric doesn’t necessarily dictate the successful use of pigment inks, meaning they can print onto a large range of textiles. The compromise is their colourfastness may not be as good as one of the dyes. Having said that, pigment inks have come a long way since they were first used in digital textile printing. Developments with the ink, along with pre- and post-treatment options mean that pigments are now a viable option for many applications and one of the fastest growing segments of the market. They are particularly favoured Acid dyes provide an especially good solution for pecialised services such as printing silk ties The inks used here are known as disperse dyes and can come in many different forms. Some are manufactured specifically to print directly onto the substrate (sometimes referred to as ‘true disperse dyes’), others are for paper transfer and some are a hybrid of the two. Your end application will determine which type of dye will best suit your needs. For example, direct disperse dyes can offer better lightfastness and ink penetration, so are favoured by flag printers. Transfer dyes offer crisper prints and a larger colour gamut, so are favoured by sportswear printers. Regardless of the dye type, they are all manufactured to work predominantly with synthetic fibres, in particular polyester. When the fabric or paper is printed with disperse dyes the colours initially look dull and subdued. It is only during the post- processing that they will come alive. For sublimation this is normally a ‘dry’ process using heat, however direct disperse dyes can also be fixed using steam. With sublimation printing there are normally three key factors that come into play: time, pressure and heat. This usually takes place in either a flatbed heat press (good for rigid substrates or textile panels), a calender heat press (good for lengths of textile), a fixation unit (for fabric printed directly with disperse dyes), or a high- pressure steamer (which is also used for fabric printed directly). The term ‘sublimation’ refers to the process whereby a material transitions from being a solid to a gas then a solid again without entering the liquid phase. Sublimation printing is one of the most diverse methods of printing on the market and people from all sectors utilise it to create everything from personalised products through to exhibition signage. www.rasmart.co.uk by those in the home furnishing and household textile sectors as they offer good lightfastness results. Unlike other direct-to-textile solutions, pigments don’t require the textile to be pretreated before printing. However, for the best colourfastness and most vibrant results, it is recommended. Pigment inks are also looked on favourably as they use a ‘dry’ finishing process, meaning they are ‘fixed’ using heat. This can be done in either a heat press or fixation unit. The colours generally won’t change much during this process and once it’s complete the fabrics are ready to be made into their end product (unless the fabric has been pretreated, in which case some may wish to wash this off beforehand). Disperse (sublimation) dyes Another massively growing sector for textile printing is the sublimation market. Your end application will determine which is the best type of disperse dye for your needs