The eco-solvent printer uses eco-solvent ink, a kind of eco-friendly biodegradable ink which comes from ether extracts taken from refined mineral oil, better call it light- or mild-solvent ink. With a relatively low VOC content and little odor, eco-solvent ink is ideal for both indoor and outdoor graphics and other forms of signage, even usable in an office environment as long as there is adequate ventilation.
The solvent printer uses solvent ink, that the oil-based solution that contains the pigment and resin. With a high content of VOCs (volatile organic compounds), unsuitable for indoor signage production, even require ventilation and extraction to protect the printer operators. While it’s cheap, durable, waterproof and scratch-resistant, caused it is mostly used in many parts of the world.
Due to low VOC content and little odor, the environment-friendly eco-solvent printers are mainly used to make indoor posters, display boards, etc. It also can be used for outdoor signage.
Many of solvent printing has a distinctive lingering smell on the PVC or other substrates, which makes the images more suitable for outdoor use, like grand format outdoor billboards and signage. With strong weather resistance, waterproof and anti-sunlight, the finished prints can place outdoor for a long time without color fading.
WER solvent printers equip with Konica 512i print head, with the high print speed which up to 260m2/hour at most and the machine has good compatibility with inks, even low-cost inks won’t clog the print head.
Solvent ink is cheaper than eco-solvent ink, plus the printing speed of solvent printers is much higher, thus the solvent printer is more cost-efficient for long-term production.