Fountain solution and dampening additives

At present, there are many manufacturers of offset printing fluid products, such as Beijing Aibixi Company, Sanxiangtang Company, Shanghai Lide Company, and Japan Research Corporation. Although the role of these products is for dampening, if subdivided, these products actually include two types. One is a product that does not need to be diluted or diluted, and can be directly added to the offset printing dampening system (commonly known as the water bucket) for printing. It can be called a fountain solution; the other is before adding the offset printing dampening system. Products that need to be diluted and formulated can be referred to as dampening additives.

There are many products that can be used as dampening additives. For example, peach paste, which is the most widely used in printing plants, is the most common dampening additive. Many products launched by the company called “fetters” are actually dampening additives. The dampening additives are available in a variety of forms, either as powders or as granules or concentrates.

Due to the influence of geography and tradition, many terms in the printing industry are not uniform and non-standard, and the names of fountain solution and dampening additives are no exception. For example, the fountain solution is also called fountain solution, fountain solution, wetting solution, etc., and dampening additives are sometimes referred to as fountain solution, fountain solution, wetting fluid, wetting agent, and the like.

Due to the inconsistent names, there are occasional misunderstandings in the use of printing plants. For example, some printers have misunderstood the issue of dampening additives. The dampening additive is a more formal name, but some printing plant operators believe that the dampening additive is an additive added to the dampening solution that has already been prepared to improve the dampening effect. As a result, they first bought some dampening additives under the trade name of “flood solution”, and formulated the fountain solution according to the instructions, and then added some products with the trade name “winding additive”. As everyone knows, the dampening additive is a product that is directly used to formulate the fountain solution. The liquid that is prepared by the dampening additive after dilution is a qualified dampening solution and can be used for printing. The first preparation of "flood solution" and the addition of "flood additives" are tantamount to superfluousism. The result is unnecessary waste.

When using dampening additives, there is also a problem to be aware of. This is the water quality condition for formulating dampening solution. Except that the peach gum is a natural material, various dampening additives sold on the market, although different in formulation, are basically synthesized from various inorganic salts, organic salts, and other organic substances. Due to the vastness of our country, the natural conditions in different regions vary widely and the water quality is also different. When the fountain solution is formulated, the hardness of the water has great influence on the dampening effect and anti-aging ability of the fountain solution. Therefore, the user should pay attention in the preparation and choose the appropriate dampening additives.