Aluminum paste in printing industry

In the printing industry, aluminum pastes are used depending on the respective printing process and chemistry.

For solvent-based printing applications in flexographic or gravure printing, solvents with a low boiling point such as ethyl acetate are preferably used in the aluminum paste in order to ensure optimum drying behavior even at high printing speeds.

Pastes with a very low mineral oil content or mineral oil-free pastes are used for food packaging where low-migration regulations must be observed. By comparison, screen printers prefer to use solvents with a high boiling point such as butyl glycol, methoxypropyl acetate or methoxypropanol to achieve a smooth, uniform and highly brilliant surface in the printing application.