Sublimation Explanation

First off, what really is sublimation?
Sublimation means that a solid is changed into a gas while skipping the liquid phase. Dye sublimation is the process in which heat is used to transfer ink to an item by way of a special ink and paper.  Through this process the ink on the paper becomes a gas and then a permanent part of the substrate or fabric instead of being printed on top of the surface. Because of this process the image will not crack, fade, chip, peel, etc.

The printer.
Printers that can be used for sublimation are equipped with a specific print head called a Piazo. This allows the ink to flow more freely through the print head. It also outputs the ink electronically instead of with heat. The inks in sublimation are not actually a liquid. They are solid particle dyes in a liquid carrier. The liquid then allows it to flow. There are two types of printers for small format sublimation: Epson’s and Ricoh’s.  Both are great to work with and in choosing a printer you must also look at the ink and paper they use.

Ink.
There are two sublimation inks with small format printers and both are made by Sawgrass. There is the Artainium UV+ which is made only for Epson’s and there is Sublijet that works with both Epson and Ricoh. The way the ink works is that when heat is applied to the transfer paper the dye particles are transferred to the substrate or fabric and the liquid carrier stays on the sheet.  Both inks work in cartridges and bulk systems but use different color managements.

Artainium UV+ uses an ICC profile that is attached to the design program for color management. And Sublijet uses a power driver built into the printer. This is a little more user friendly but requires the program’s profile turned off and also gives less color control.

Paper.
Sublimation requires a paper that is designed for the process. It is a carrier sheet for the ink to the substrate. With this being the case the image printed on the paper will not look exactly like what it will on the substrate.  While looking at the paper you need to know how big you need it to be as well as the item you are pressing. Coastal Business Supplies, Inc. offers two types of sublimation paper: Image Right R Premium and Image Right Premium. Your printer affects this decision because Image Right R Premium works best with Sublijet and Ricoh’s, while, Image Right Premium is best paired with Artanium UV+ and Epson’s.

Substrate/Fabric.
Sublimation is mainly used for hard surface items but can also be used on fabrics as well. Sublimation works best with 100% polyester or polyester coated items though you can use poly blends. If you use blends the dye will only stick to the polyester part and will fade with washing. Usually the substrates have white backgrounds but you can use other light colors. White works best because it does not affect the color of the image. Inks are thin which in turn will cause the background color to show through the dye.  And the dye will only stand out if it is darker than the color on the substrate. The best way to know if a poly blend substrate or fabric will work is to test the item and see how it looks. If it is a fabric you should also wash it a couple of times.

Information for this article was found in Sawgrass’ Sublimation 101 and Webinar: Breaking the Rules of Sublimation.