Overview of next generation phase change ink

Color printers based on. solid ink (or phase change ink) employing piezo electric printheads have enjoyed wide spread acceptance in several diverse markets with very strong and sustained acceptance in the color office work group printer market. Work continues to further develop and refine this technology to enhance its strengths and mitigate or remove any deficiencies as compared to other technologies in the office market space, especially xerographic color printers. This paper gives a short overview of the color solid ink print process as used in the Xerox Phaser(R) 8xx series printers. A new generation of solid ink was introduced in June 2001 with the introduction of the Phaser(R) 860. This paper looks at three key ink attributes, ink viscosity, color gamut and ink coefficient of friction. The performance of the new Phaser(R) 860 solid ink is compared to previous solid ink printers and xerographic printers.