NUMERICAL SIMULATION OF LIQUID TRANSFER BETWEEN SEPARATING WALLS FOR MODELING GRAVURE-OFFSET PRINTING

Abstract

A numerical study of the ink transfer processes that occur during micro-gravure-offset printing is carried out. Specifically, liquid transfer between two parallel separating plates and between a trapezoidal cavity and an upward moving plate are simulated, as models of the printing of ink from the offset pad onto the substrate and the picking up of ink from the gravure plate by the offset pad, respectively. The influences of the separation velocity, liquid viscosity, surface tension, gravity force, and contact angles on the liquid transfer are estimated. Keywords: Contact angle, Ink transfer, Gravure-offset printing