Xeikon reveals more details on its new Trillium printing technology
Trillium offers best in speed and cost without compromising print quality
Xeikon will reveal more details of Trillium, its new breakthrough printing technology, at drupa 2012. The new technology incorporates 20 years of Xeikon electrophotographic (EP) knowledge with a new liquid image development system based on High Viscosity Toner (HVT), formerly called Quantum. The unique combination offers far lower running costs at significantly improved speeds, while maintaining the high quality levels and eco-sustainability of Xeikon’s current presses. For printers, this means no longer having to compromise between image quality and productivity/cost. The technology will be first implemented in a range of products dedicated to the document and commercial printing markets.
“For the last few years, the conventional wisdom has been that printers choose electrophotographic (EP) presses for high quality and inkjet for high speed and lower costs,” says Wim Maes, CEO of Xeikon. “Xeikon’s Trillium technology changes this thinking as it utilizes the best of both and closes the gap between speed/cost and quality. As it is toner based and a waterless non-Volatile Organic Compound (VOC) technology, it will also enables printing on untreated substrates. Moreover, it is fully compatible with the existing paper recycling technologies and has the potential to become fully sustainable from a toner composition perspective.”
Delivering both high image quality and high speed
Xeikon’s Trillium is a colloidal suspension (or sol) of toner in a carrier liquid (a pharmaceutical grade white oil), which allows toner particles down to 2 microns in size – up to 4 times smaller than its dry form. The smaller toner particles enable high resolution and result in less toner consumption. The unique implementation of High Viscosity Toner (HVT) allows the use of the smallest gaps in the transfer zones to deliver a combination of high image quality and high speed. Another key strength of Trillium technology lies in its ability to print mid- to high image coverage at high quality, which makes it particularly suitable for direct marketing and commercial printing applications. Furthermore, the technology offers a lot more head room for both speed and width improvements in the future.
Xeikon owns key technology patents
With ownership of the key patents for both the toner and technology, Xeikon has the rights to incorporate HVT in a printing press and produce the necessary consumables. Recent announcements by other companies clearly illustrate the viability of Toner technology as an alternative to Ink Jet and takes EP to the next level.
The name “Quantum” was an internal name used to describe the liquid development step in the EP process, the patents for which the company acquired a couple of years ago. Today the development step is more commonly described as HVT and is a key part of Trillium.
A six step process
The new printing process consists of six steps: charging, expose & erase, develop & clean, intermediate transfer, substrate transfer and fixation of the toner. The particles are not charged during manufacturing; instead they are charged just before printing. Trillium incorporates both a transfer and fuse process – unlike the transfuse step of other technologies. This allows for a modular-machine approach and speed increases.
Trillium, as implemented by Xeikon, is perfectly compatible with existing deinking and recycling installations and has already been tested. It also uses the same type of polyester resin system as used in Xeikon’s dry toners incorporating an environmental friendly catalyst which includes no organic tin compounds. The carrier liquid is also recycled in the printing process without evaporation, so the toner is 100% VOC free. Furthermore, since the current toner in an oil colloidal suspension (or sol) can be replaced by bio resins and vegetable oil, the new toner also has the potential to become fully sustainable.
Implemented first in presses for the document printing market
Xeikon will first implement the Trillium technology in a new range of printers dedicated to the document and commercial printing markets. The new Trillium-based range of presses will be marketed in parallel with the current 8000 Series.
Come and see Xeikon’s Trillium technology in action at drupa 2012!
On the Bridge to the Future, Xeikon will be offering live demonstrations of Trillium in action. During the show, after a short presentation, the system will run a design to illustrate the speed and quality achievable with the new technology. The model demonstrated at the show will run at a speed of 60 m/min. On the booth, Xeikon will also display some technological illustrations of how Trillium technology can be implemented in a printing press.
drupa 2012 takes place in Düsseldorf, Germany from May 3-16, 2012. Xeikon will exhibit in Hall 8A, Booth B44.