The Rheology of Lithographic Inks and Their Press Performance.

In an attempt to predict the press performance of lithographic inks, a series of measurements of commercial heatset and web offset newspaper inks, whose press performance was known, were subjected to a series of rheological measurements. It was found that measurements of the percentage increase in shortness as dampening solution was emulsified into the ink in increments provided an excellent correlation with press performance. Inks that performed poorly tend to increase in shortness dramatically as the dampening solution is emulsified into them.