The SE Series ink is a pad and screen printing silicone ink for printing on silicone rubber products, such as wristbands and swim caps. These inks are designed to provide excellent adhesion and durability, ensuring that the printed designs withstand various adhesion tests. Additionally, the SE Series offers a wide range of vibrant, intermixable colors, allowing for creative and eye-catching prints on silicone items.
Some of this ink’s features include high opacity, high gloss, extreme flexibility, and exceptional adhesion to silicone. Additionally, the SE Series printing inks are dishwasher safe and resistant to alkali.
Printing applications
Many industries use this ink to print rubber parts. Industries that use this ink include promotional, medical, toys, drinkware, aerospace, automotive, and custom silicone molding.
Examples of everyday silicone items to screen print with this ink include kitchenware, silicone wristbands, silicone swim caps, promotional items, and remote controls.
Industrial application examples include silicone handles for tools, automotive hoses, silicone-coated fiberglass, silicone tubing, etc. Read about the top five silicone applications.
Printing and decorating methods
Printing methods for the Natron® SE ink include pad printing, screen printing, color-filling, and spraying. Here are the ink mixing parameters for the various silicone printing methods.
Components needed to ready the silicone ink for printing.
The Natron® SE Series from Boston is a two-component ink line. Therefore, it requires a catalyst to bond to silicone rubber. Additionally, depending on the application, a solvent is required to alter the ink’s viscosity.
Ink mixing instructions
To successfully mix the ink, you need mixing supplies, such as a scale, mixing sticks, and cups.
- The mixing ratio for all ink colors is 10:1, which is 10 parts ink to 1 part catalyst. Mix the ink and the catalyst thoroughly together before adding the solvent.
- Add the appropriate thinner (solvent) to change the viscosity of the ink. Available print thinners include SF, TRM, SS, and SR. See the TDS to determine the appropriate solvent for your specific application.
Please note that there is no set ratio when adding the solvent/diluent/thinner; use the TDS recommendations as your starting point and experiment to find the best ratio for your application. Silicone thinner or diluent will not adversely affect the adhesion of the inks to silicone rubber.
How to dry and cure silicone ink prints
Use heat to dry, cure, and make the ink stay (bond) on silicone. Depending on the density of the silicone, the range to dry the printed product is 275°F – 400°F for 6 – 10 minutes. Increasing the temperature reduces the cure time.
Incompatible / cure inhibitors
Natron SE Series ink for printing on silicone rubber and other platinum-based inks will not dry if it comes into contact with sulfur-containing compounds, amines, some urethanes, or organic acids. Therefore, avoid these materials; they will prevent the inks from drying and curing.
Related products
- TRM Silicone solvent
- LG Catalyst
- One color pad printer machine
