Technique: Ink preparation station including shear force mixing, speed mixing and sonication machines for ink mixing and development.
Contact person (RISE): Yusuf Mulla (yusuf.mulla@ri.se)
Responsible: Robert Brooke (Robert.brooke@ri.se)
Description: Ink preparation and mixing equipment including Disolver DisperMill, Moeller, speed mixer (Hauschild), vortex mixer (VWR), ultrasonic bath (Branson 2210), weighing stations and fume hoods. The mixing machines, expect for the speed mixer, have the option of being placed in the fumehood.
Shear force mixing, ultrasonic and centrifugal mixing are all available with the above machines. The speed mixer is based on a method formally called dual axis centrifugation in which the sample rotates around two axes simultaneously. Dual axis centrifugation has a remarkable effect of dispersing solid particles in various fluids. (While singe axis centrifugation has the opposite effect as it separates particles from fluids based on density variations).
Depending on the ink viscosity the mixing machine of choice can mix the ink components into a homogenous paste/liquid for pilot scale printing in our printing machines (inkjet, screen, slot-die etc).
Pilot scale production of inks is possible with the equipment available with batch mixing.
