Textile Sublimation Printing: Impact of Total Ink Limiting Level and Sublimation Transfer Paper on Black Print Quality

Abstract

The different sublimation transfer paper was printed in black color with total ink limiting levels, from 100 % to 400 %, using an ink jet printing system with the CMYK color system. Then the test image was transferred to fabric using the sublimation printing process. The ink jet printer was installed with sublimation dye. Color strength, CIELab color coordinate, color difference ΔE*, and GLCM (grey level co-occurrence matrix) image processing method were used for analyzing print quality. The significant change in print quality is caused by the sublimation transfer paper, resulting in a medium color difference noticeable to the human eye, while the total ink limiting level for printing sublimation transfer paper did not cause a significant change in print quality. The print with the maximum color strength is obtained with the 270 % total ink limiting level. The color difference between prints obtained with lighter sublimation transfer paper with a higher transfer rate printed with 100 % and 270 % total ink limiting levels was less than 1, suggesting a color difference undetectable to the human eye. Considering the importance of ink in terms of costs in businesses, the optimal total ink limiting level for printing sublimation transfer paper and achieving good print quality was 100 %. The total ink limiting level for printing sublimation transfer paper is useful for saving money on ink, so good print quality will be reached at a lower total ink limiting level.