Offset lithographic printing of nanocomposite graphene ink.

柯式平版印刷机连续用于印刷杂志的高质量光面彩色页面。印刷机可以有多个彩色打印单元，以允许在纸板、纸张和薄塑料上打印各种图形。该项目的重点是在厚度为1000 mm×707 mm、厚度小于60微米的聚丙烯薄板上进行打印。Nano Products母公司的商业印刷机被设置为在薄塑料上印刷，以在模制标签中生产。这些标签被加载到注塑模腔中，然后在高压下强制聚丙烯熔体进入。当打开型腔时，标签被结合到注塑物体的壁上。这通常用于标签食品包装，如酸奶和奶油罐，冰淇淋桶，和快速消费品。希望这一项目的成果将是一种新的导电和导热胶印平版油墨，它可以与传统的彩色胶印油墨在同一印刷机上使用。未来，人们希望将印刷的石墨烯特性应用于超级电容器、电池、玩具和游戏、电子防伪标签以及柔性光伏设备和显示器的导电层。由于胶印平版印刷的高质量和高速度，柔性电子设备和组件的成本可能会显著降低，这将导致更低的价格。除了已建立的机会，还有在单个柔性基板上打印集电、电力存储、传感、致动、显示和电信设备的战略潜力，使用于物流、医疗诊断和电信设备的新系统级设备成为可能。合作伙伴正在共同努力开发一种新的紫外光固化石墨烯墨水，并测试是否可以配制用于高质量、高速胶印的墨水。

Offset lithographic printing presses are used continuously to print the high quality glossy colour pages of magazines. Thepresses can have multiple colour print units to allow a vast range of graphics to be printed on cardboard, paper and thinplastics. This project is focused on printing on thin polypropylene sheets which are 1000mm by 707mm and less than 60microns thick. Commercial presses at Nano Products parent company are set up to print on thin plastic to produce in mouldlabels. These labels are loaded into injection moulding die cavity prior to polypropylene melt being forced in at highpressure. When the cavity is opened the label is incorporated into the wall of the injection moulded object. This iscommonly used to brand label food packaging such as yoghurt and cream pots, ice cream tubs, and fast moving consumergoods. It is hoped that the outcome of this project will be a new electrical and thermally conductive offset lithographic inkwhich can be used on the same press with conventional colour offset inks. In the future it is hoped that the printedgraphene features can be incorporated in super-capacitors, batteries, toys and games, electronic anti-counterfeit labels andas the conducting layers in flexible photovoltaic devices and displays. Because of the high quality and speed of offsetlithographic printing there are likely to be significant cost reduction of flexible electronic devices and components, whichwill lead to lower prices. As well as established opportunities there is the strategic potential to print power harvesting, powerstorage, sensing, actuation, display and telecommunications devices on a single flexible substrate to enable new systemslevel devices for logistic, healthcare diagnostics and telecommunications devices to name a few.The collaborative partners are working together to develop a new UV cured graphene ink and to test whether it is feasibleto formulate the ink for high quality, high speed offset printing.