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An Introduction to the Sublimation Printer

A sublimation printer operates on the principle of dye sublimation where the artwork is printed by dispersing dye suspended in a solvent at high temperatures. To achieve the desired print quality and graphics, the process starts with the preparation of a suitable film containing the dyes. The film should have the dyes separated into distinct colors, with the most common ones being yellow, gray, cyan and magenta pigments. Typically, these pigments appear as yellow, black, blue and red respectively.

How the sublimation printing process works

During the printing process, dyed films are placed over the surface that is being printed on and heated by the printer head onto the media. This leads the pigments to be transferred to the media where cooling and solidification takes place at high temperatures. This stage is what is called sublimation and sees the dye being taken through several stages, from solvent to vapor and then to liquid, before finally solidifying. The combination of the phases into a synchronous process gives little room for error being propagated throughout the process. As a consequence, a sublimation printer is considered highly useful in high precision printing work.

Proper care of your sublimation printer

Modern printing has advanced significantly from early printing presses. Although a sublimation printer offers excellent printing solutions, care should be taken to ensure that proper processing and curing of the printout is done. This can be achieved by ensuring that the printer head effectively heats the dye to a solid state before moving to the next line of print. The sublimation printer can be a significant investment, so care should be taken to ensure that the printer and its parts are protected from damage. To help you achieve the greatest longevity for your sublimation printer, Value Rite also offers parts replacement and service. For high quality printing solutions, we remain a one stop shop for all your printing needs.