Flexible Cushion Belt Compressibility (1)

The liner material is very important for the flexographic version. This article describes several liner materials and explains how to choose the liner material that is suitable for your flexo version. The increase in the quality of flexographic printing with foam gaskets has been recognized by our customers. The pad tape plays a role in reducing dot generation during photographic screening operations, and accelerates line speed by creating a compressible layer to control printed substrate contact and reduce skipping of printing. At present, there are many manufacturers producing foam liners, and each manufacturer produces at least two kinds of firmer liners, and even some manufacturers produce as many as eight. If one considers tack, thickness, sleeve properties, etc., which type of tape to choose will be a difficult task to handle. This article provides important attributes of the liner material to help printers better understand how to choose the best liner. Compressibility testing is achieved through the intuitive compression of how pads affect quality. This article mainly predicts dot gain, ink density, and pressure latitude through simple attribute measurements. Most of the liner tape structure consists of five layers: (1) release liner layer; (2) pressure sensitive adhesive layer (PSA) on one side of the printing plate; (3) reinforcement film layer; (4) foam layer; Roller side pressure sensitive adhesive layer (PSA). Although each layer plays a role in the completion of printing tasks, it is not repeated here. This article focuses on the foam layer. The types of foam used in the liner tapes are ethylene, polyethylene, rubber, and polyurethane, and are mostly composed of polyethylene (PE) and polyurethane (PUR). Until recently, the different properties of PE and PUR have caused different applications in their respective fields. Most thin-walled tapes with a thickness of 15 or 20 mm are made of PE foam and therefore have a more manageable feature. The PUR foam is mainly used as a thicker gasket (usually 60 mm), and is especially used to make a gasket with a high degree of pressure resistance, such as a liner plate. PUR gaskets are also less susceptible to damage from excessive pressure during installation and are less susceptible to damage by the contact device during printing. PUR foam manufacturers have also recently produced thin liner tapes, which also have better handling properties and greater compressibility selectivity for improved print quality. PE foams have a relatively low density and compact hornless honeycomb structure that consists of PE and vinyl acetate groups interconnected. Their firmness (or softness) is mainly controlled by the foam density. This is why many manufacturers use "density" instead of the more precise term "compressibility" to explain the reasons for firmness. The PUR foam has a spherical microstructure and an open cell, and the firmness is mainly controlled by the change in the polymerization modulus. ******This article is pending.******