Print shop employees can turn off the LEDs every time they take a 15-minute break some units are configured so the LEDs turn off between prints, providing further efficiency. Unlike mercury lamps that need time to warm up and typically run all day, LEDs provide energy instantly and can be switched on and off as needed. In contrast, Phoseon LED curing lamps convert greater than 30 percent of the input power to UV curing energy. Courtesy of Phoseon Technology.īecause the power going into a mercury lamp is distributed across a broad spectrum, less than 10 percent of the power going into the lamp is converted into UV curing energy. UV LED inks and curing systems have been engineered for applications such as bottle decorating, container printing, durable decals, membrane switches, and more. Using LEDs to cure UV inks doesn’t generate ozone – nor does it transfer a lot of heat to the printed surface. Plus, mercury UV curing systems generate ozone that must be vented away from the work area. ![]() In addition to UV-A rays, this includes harmful UV-B and UV-C radiation that is hazardous to workers’ eyes and skin.Īccording to Mike Higgins, director of sales, Americas, for Phoseon Technology, mercury lamps run very hot, which can cause heat-sensitive printed materials to warp and wrinkle. Mercury arc lamps produce light across the full spectrum of ultraviolet light (from 100 nanometers to 1800 nm). After the atoms in the gas chamber are excited, they decay and emit photons. UV LED Curing Is More Efficient than Mercury Vapor UV Curing: Traditional UV lamps produce light by generating an electric arc inside an ionized gas chamber (typically mercury). Here are five facts you should know about UV LED screen printing.ġ. Over the past 10 years, the power of the lamps used in UV-LED curing systems has more than doubled, the physical size of the lamps has been reduced, and costs have come down. Although relatively few new screen-printing presses are being built, a growing number of companies would like to replace their old mercury vapor curing systems with UV LED units. Now that the costs have come down, the economic, environmental, and safety benefits of the technology have captured the interest of screen-printing companies, equipment manufacturers, and ink developers. This tended to limit early development in the screen-printing industry to containers and other smaller formats where equipment cost was less of a factor. Until recently, LEDs were expensive, and the need in a screen-printing line to cure the full width of the print at once meant that many more LEDs were required compared to a wide-format inkjet printer. The primary obstacle wasn’t the readiness of the technology, but the cost. WHILE UV LED curing in the digital printing space has grown significantly over the past decade, most screen-printing operations have continued to use traditional curing technology. ![]() ![]()
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