I see this a lot. Rhino and orca coatings. I understand what they are but what do they actually do??
Is it just dishwasher safe, anti stain etc?
Rhino coating
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arthur.daley
- Posts: 538
- Joined: 19 Oct 2013, 14:38
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Re: Rhino coating
all sublimation mugs have a polyester coating - its what allows you to print on to the mug. There are various flavours of coatings from various manufacturers. There are also a plethora of mugs available with an un branded coating - best avoided, stick with branded coatings from reputable dealers such as those who advertise and offer discounts here. Different coatings have different qualities and costs.
The way the process works is quite simple and quite clever. The polyester coating on the mug is like a plastic film that is bonded to the surface of the mug - it is sprayed on. When you put the mug into an oven or a press and it is heated up, at a critical tempreture the polyester transfoprms from being like a plastic surface to something closer to a sponge! Whilst this is going on, the ink you printed onto the special paper and which is now tightly wrapped around the mug, is also being heated. The ink is unusual - when it is heated it goes from a solid phase directly to a gaseous phase - think of ice melting as you heat it up, it turns into water and then into steam - solid/liquid/gaseous phases. The ink doesn't do that it goes straight 'from ice to steam'. It does this at a tempreture just a bit higher than the coating opening up like a sponge. The gaseous ink migrates into the sponge like polyester - it has no where else to go, it can't get out through the paper. Whe the mug has had an appropriate cooking time and is removed from the oven or press the tempreture of the mug dropsquite quickly, and as it does, the surface of the coating 'heals' over turning back to being a plastic coating with the now re solidified ink trapped within its structure. This is why you can't scratch the image off the surface of the mug or feel any edges to images etc. I really should be able to remember the two critical tempretures - 125C and 140C spring to mind but that is guess work!
Not exactly a scientific explanation but it pretty much covers the subject
)
Arthur
The way the process works is quite simple and quite clever. The polyester coating on the mug is like a plastic film that is bonded to the surface of the mug - it is sprayed on. When you put the mug into an oven or a press and it is heated up, at a critical tempreture the polyester transfoprms from being like a plastic surface to something closer to a sponge! Whilst this is going on, the ink you printed onto the special paper and which is now tightly wrapped around the mug, is also being heated. The ink is unusual - when it is heated it goes from a solid phase directly to a gaseous phase - think of ice melting as you heat it up, it turns into water and then into steam - solid/liquid/gaseous phases. The ink doesn't do that it goes straight 'from ice to steam'. It does this at a tempreture just a bit higher than the coating opening up like a sponge. The gaseous ink migrates into the sponge like polyester - it has no where else to go, it can't get out through the paper. Whe the mug has had an appropriate cooking time and is removed from the oven or press the tempreture of the mug dropsquite quickly, and as it does, the surface of the coating 'heals' over turning back to being a plastic coating with the now re solidified ink trapped within its structure. This is why you can't scratch the image off the surface of the mug or feel any edges to images etc. I really should be able to remember the two critical tempretures - 125C and 140C spring to mind but that is guess work!
Not exactly a scientific explanation but it pretty much covers the subject
)Arthur
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