How to adjust the proportion of color paste according to different printing requirements?

How to adjust the proportion of color paste according to different printing requirements?
In silicone screen printing, adjusting the proportion of color paste according to different printing requirements requires comprehensive consideration of many factors. Here are some specific methods:
Color depth requirements
Light color effect: When you need to obtain a light color effect, you should reduce the proportion of color paste. For example, for some light tones such as light pink and light blue, the proportion of color paste may be between 1% and 3%. Start adding at a lower proportion, stir evenly and test print to observe the color effect. If the color is not light enough, you can add a small amount of color paste and test print again until you achieve a satisfactory light color effect.
Dark color effect: If you want to achieve a dark color effect, such as dark purple, black, etc., you need to increase the proportion of color paste, which can generally be 5% - 10% or even higher. Also, add it at a relatively low proportion first, stir and test print, and gradually increase the amount of color paste according to the depth of the color. The proportion of each increase should not be too large to avoid the color being too dark beyond expectations.
Hiding power requirements
High hiding power requirements: If the printed substrate has a darker base color or needs to completely cover the base color, a higher hiding power is required. At this time, the proportion of color paste added should be appropriately increased, because the higher the color paste content, the stronger the hiding ability of the silicone is generally. For example, when printing a white pattern on a dark background, it may be necessary to increase the proportion of white color paste added to about 8% - 10% to ensure that the pattern is clear and the base color does not show through.
Low hiding power requirements: For some printings that do not need to completely cover the base color, but want to present a semi-transparent or vaguely transparent effect of the base color, the proportion of color paste added should be reduced. For example, to make a pattern with a hazy effect, the proportion of color paste added may be between 2% - 4%, so that the printed silicone has a certain degree of transparency and part of the base color is visible.
Printing process requirements
Fine pattern printing: When printing fine patterns, the fluidity and transferability of the silicone are critical. Adding too much color paste may make the silicone thicker, affecting its ability to flow on the screen and pass through the mesh, resulting in the inability to clearly present the details of the pattern. Therefore, for fine pattern printing, the color paste addition ratio should be relatively low, controlled at about 3% - 5%, to ensure that the silicone has good fluidity and can accurately print the pattern.
Large-area pattern printing: Large-area pattern printing has relatively low requirements for silicone fluidity, but high requirements for color uniformity. At this time, the color paste addition ratio can be adjusted appropriately and selected within a suitable range according to color requirements. For example, when printing a large area of ​​solid color background, if the color requirement is moderate, the color paste addition ratio can be around 5% to ensure uniform color during the printing process.
Product performance requirements
High physical performance requirements: If the printed silicone product has high requirements for physical properties such as tensile strength and wear resistance, the color paste addition ratio should not be too high. Because too much color paste may affect the original physical properties of silicone. Generally speaking, on the premise of meeting the color requirements, try to control the color paste addition ratio below 5% to ensure that the physical properties of the product are not greatly affected.
Relatively low physical performance requirements: If the product does not have high requirements for physical properties and mainly focuses on color effects, the color paste addition ratio can be appropriately increased within a certain range to achieve the ideal color. However, be careful not to add too much to avoid other problems, such as long drying time and poor performance of silicone.
Printing equipment and screen factors
Different screen mesh: The screen mesh will affect the amount of silicone permeability and printing effect. For screens with higher mesh, the amount of silicone permeability is relatively small, and the color paste ratio may need to be appropriately increased to ensure the color saturation; for screens with lower mesh, the amount of silicone permeability is large, and the color paste addition ratio can be appropriately reduced. For example, when using a 200-mesh screen, the color paste addition ratio may be slightly higher than when using a 150-mesh screen by 1% - 2%.
Printing equipment performance: Different printing equipment, such as manual screen printers and automatic screen printers, have different parameters such as printing pressure and speed, which also have a certain impact on the color paste addition ratio. When printing manually, the fluidity of the silicone may need to be better, and the color paste addition ratio can be slightly lower; the printing parameters of the automatic printing machine are relatively stable, and the color paste addition ratio can be adjusted according to the specific situation, but generally there will be differences from manual printing.