ARS | Publication request: VEGETABLE OIL-BASED PRINTING INKS AND ENVIRONMENTAL ADVANTAGES

Submitted to: Recent Research Developments in Oil Chemistry
Publication Type: Review Article
Publication Acceptance Date: December 26, 1996
Publication Date: N/A

Technical Abstract: Printing ink vehicles that require no petroleum components were prepared by modifying vegetable oil. The apparent weight average molecular weights (Mw) of ink vehicles made from representative vegetable oils, such as soybean, sunflower, cottonseed, safflower and canola oils were compared by gel-permeation chromatography and a correlation between viscosity and apparent Mw of these vehicles was established. Physical properties of inks formulated with these vehicles meet or exceed the industry standards for lithographic newsprint applications. Formulated news ink were evaluated for their potential biodegradation with Gravimetric method (using mixed cultures of soil microorganisms) and the "Modified Sturm Test" (using activated sludge). Commercial news inks consisting of vehicles prepared with petroleum resin base and either mineral oil or vegetable oil solvents were used for comparison. Results of both methods showed that the USDA inks degraded faster and more completely than either of the petroleum resin-based commercial inks. Also comparison of deinking properties and analysis of volatile organic compounds showed the superior environmental properties of the vegetable oil-based inks over petroleum resin-based inks.