Assessing the Qualities of Printers and Printer Ink

Everyday household printers basically come in two kinds - the inkjet printer and the laser printer. Of the two the inkjet is by some margin the more widely used, whereas the laser printer is usually favoured by those who frequently require large print runs.

The inkjet printer works by propelling droplets of ink onto a sheet of paper from a number of nozzles that are contained in a printhead. There are usually two methods through which this can be achieved, these are piezoelectric vibrations and thermal heating.


Using the piezoelectric method crystals are used to generate electronic pulses which cause vibrations. These compel droplets of ink to be expelled from the nozzles in the printhead. Because these may vary in size it the inkjet is able to print in finer detail when needed. Piezoelectric vibrations are able to use a better quality of ink than other methods despite still keeping printer ink usage to a minimum. However the technology that is involved has been patented by Epson and therefore cannot be offered by any other supplier.

The thermal heating method involves a metal plate inserted inside the inkjet cartridge which receives an electrical current that heats the element thereby causing the ink to bubble and expand. The pressure created by the bubbles forces the ink through the nozzles. When these bubbles cool down a vacuum is created permitting fresh ink to enter the nozzle. The technology is efficient because the droplets that aren't used automatically return to the tank.

It is because this bubble technology is used that printers using it are sometimes referred to as bubble jet printers. This is the most common type amongst the inkjet printers.

One problem that inkjet print technology has historically encountered in respect of the printer ink that it uses has been that of the conflicting requirements for a colouring agent that will remain on the surface and for the expeditious dispersal of the carrier fluid.

There have also been complications that are caused by ink drying on the printhead's nozzles. To prevent this from occurring most inkjet printers are equipped with a mechanism which allows them to reapply moisture to the printhead. Because there is no solvent on hand to perform this task, ink itself is transported to the printhead in order to remoisten it.

Desktop inkjet printers, whether household or industrial, normally use aqueous inks comprised of a mixture of water, glycol and pigment or dye. Aqueous inks are typically used in printers with thermal inkjet heads, due to the fact that they require water in order to perform.