Tara Materials, Inc. conducted image permanence testing on various Fredrix Print Canvases. The test process and the results are as follows:
Light stability studies were conducted on the following different digital canvases, simulating fluorescent room illumination without glazing for approximately 100 years. For this test, cool white fluorescent light with an illumination intensity of 50 kilolux was used. The prints were directly (no glass) exposed to the high-intensity cool- white fluorescent light for a total of 168 days. One hundred sixty-eight days of constant, high-intensity exposure is approximately equivalent to 102 years of display under cool-white fluorescent light, assuming a typical display intensity of 450 lux for 12 hours per day. IPI’s fluorescent unit was custom built. It uses forty-two GE F72T12- CW-1500-0 Cool White fluorescent tubes to achieve the high intensity. A non-reactive and non-yellowing white material (100% cotton cellulose, 4-ply white mount board) was used as a backing for the samples. The temperature and humidity across the specimen plane were 70°F ±5°F and 50% RH ±3% RH.
Test targets consisting of cyan, magenta, yellow, red, green, blue, and black patches, each at ten levels of darkness in roughly equal increments, were printed by Tara. All target patches were measured in Status A visual, red, green, and blue density using a GretagMacbeth Spectrolino spectrophotometer before testing and at one week intervals during exposure. In density mode, this device conforms to ANSI/NAPM Standard IT2.17-1995, ANSI/NAPM Standard IT2.18-1996, ANSI/NAPM Standard IT2.19-1994, ISO Standard 5-4:1995, ISO Standard 5-3:1995, and ISO Standard 5-2:1991. Sample patches were read in ANSI/ISO Status A visual, red, green, and blue as specified in ANSI/NAPM Standard IT2.18-1996 and ISO Standard 5-3:1995. Results for each material are based on the averages of the two replicates corresponding to each sample.
The calculations used to determine the amount of colorant fading suffered by the samples during testing were calculated as percentage of change from original density.
The following table indicates simulated years of exposure to reach the first endpoint:
(">" - Predicted years to reach first endpoint)
It must be understood that these results pertain exclusively to the particular array of materials tested including printer, colorant, and media. Use of other ink sets on these same canvases will produce different results and may vary the ranking of products. Therefore, these results cannot be construed to indicate that other ink sets used in conjunction with these canvases will perform as well or have similar behavior.
For more details, please contact Rick January. (770) 963-5256 ext. 152
Data from independent tests performed at the Image Permanence Institute at Rochester Institute of Technology.
http://imagepermanenceinstitute.org/
|