Process color (CMYK) and spot color pigments for offset, flexographic, gravure, and screen printing inks.
Discuss Your ApplicationOffset printing inks demand pigments with high tinctorial strength, controlled rheology for ink fountain stability, and resistance to over-printing solvents. Whether you're formulating sheetfed offset, web offset, or UV-curable inks, the pigment selection determines your dot gain control, color consistency from press start to finish, and resistance to offset to the next sheet in the stack.
Process color (CMYK) ink pigments are standardized: process cyan uses Pigment Blue 15:3 (beta phthalocyanine); process magenta uses Pigment Red 57:1 (calcium lake of BONA azo) or Pigment Red 122 (quinacridone) for premium magenta; process yellow uses Pigment Yellow 12, 13, 14 (diarylide grades) or Pigment Yellow 174 for premium HR ink applications; process black uses carbon black.
Spot color inks for packaging and Pantone-matching use: PR48:1 and PR48:2 (bright bluish-reds), PR53:1 (red lake), PY3 (clean yellow), PY83 (diarylide HR for high-temperature drying), PG7 (clean green), and various specialty grades. Each pigment is available in dry powder for solvent-borne inks and flushed (water-mixed) form for water-based and oil-based ink systems.
All our ink-grade pigments are screened for the 24 banned aromatic amines (REACH compliant) and tested for resistance to common over-printing solvents (toluene, MEK, ethanol). For premium UV-curable ink applications, we offer specifically-treated grades that don't migrate or bleed through the cured film.
The industry-standard process magenta is Pigment Red 57:1 (calcium lake of BONA-based azo). For premium magenta with higher chroma and lightfastness, use Pigment Red 122 (quinacridone). PR57:1 is more cost-effective; PR122 holds shade better in long runs and outdoor applications.
Dry powder pigments are pure pigment crystals that you disperse into your ink vehicle during ink manufacture. Flushed pigments are pre-dispersed in oil or water vehicle, eliminating the dispersion step and giving better strength development. Solvent-based offset inks typically use dry powder; water-based and gravure inks often use flushed pigments for production efficiency.
Yes. All Kanani ink-grade pigments are tested for resistance to common over-printing solvents including toluene, methyl ethyl ketone (MEK), ethanol, ethyl acetate, and isopropyl alcohol per standard ink-industry test methods. Test data is documented in the Certificate of Analysis for premium ink grades.
Share your binder system, processing temperature, and required performance — our technical sales team will recommend the right grade and ship a free 50-100g sample for qualification.
