UNDER THE HOOD | FUJIFILM ACUITY TRITON It’s not often that a genuinely new contender enters the field of wide-format inkjet inks. Most of the stalwarts – eco-solvent, UV, even latex – have been around for a decade or more, and some of them for over three. Resin inks appeared with printers from Mutoh in 2018, followed by Epson in 2020 and Roland in 2023, but these water-based inks so far seem to have remained something of a niche offering alongside more established alternatives. This year, Fujifilm hopes to have found the holy grail in the form of AQUAFUZE, a water-based UV-curable ink that aims to combine the best characteristics of both ink types and the downsides of neither. To recap those advantages, aqueous inks are ‘greener’, containing fewer hazardous chemicals, particularly volatile organic compounds (VOCs), and thus expand the range of applications to places like schools and hospitals. UV-cured inks stick well to most substrates without special priming, have good light and scratch/scuff resistance and perhaps most importantly, emerge from the printer immediately ready for finishing or further processing. The downsides are that the water has to be driven off in aqueous printing (resin and latex) and this can entail temperatures that rule out using some heat-sensitive substrate types. Some materials also have to be primed or pre-treated in order for aqueous inks to behave correctly on contact, without smearing or soaking in. The finished print also tends to be more fragile in respect of scuffs and scratches. Meanwhile, UV inks contain chemical components that are skin irritants and can still emit VOCs after curing, making them unsuitable for close-range indoor environments. The pile height of the ink, which when cured essentially forms a plastic layer on top of the substrate, can also make lamination more difficult, producing silvering effects around type or other elements surrounding unprinted areas. Give Out the Good, Leave Out the Bad Fujifilm says it has been working on developing the ‘ultimate’ ink since around 2014. According to Michael Bush, marketing communications manager at Fujifilm Speciality Ink Systems, based in Broadstairs, Kent, the aim was to offer an ink that would be “smooth and durable across all substrates, safe to use, and ready to finish straight away”. He notes that Fujifilm’s expertise in single-pass aqueous ink technology, as used in the JetPress sheetfed (and more recently continuous-feed) inkjet presses, and UV inks developed for Inca Digital before its acquisition by Agfa, coupled with the parent company’s expertise in polymer chemistry and novel material manufacturing, provided a portfolio of high-end technologies that could be brought to bear. The result is the AQUAFUZE inks, which were previewed at drupa in 2024, and first launched by Mutoh, together with the Fujifilm and Mutoh announced earlier this year versions of what is essentially the same machine, a 1.6m water-based UV printer, claiming to offer the best of both ink worlds. Michael Walker dives into the details Understanding Fujifilm’s Water-Based UV LED Printer Michael Walker is a trade journalist, technical writer, and editor with over 37 years’ experience in the print, prepress, photography, and digital imaging sectors, with a particular interest in the digital transformation of processes. In addition to editing Desktop Publishing Today and Digital Printer magazines, he is co-author with Neil Barstow of Getting Colour Right (Ilex Press, 2004) and Practical Colour Management for Photographers and Digital Image Makers (2009, self-published e-book) and winner of a Communicators in Business Gold Award. 44 email: editor@printmonthly.co.uk September / October 2025 - Issue 356
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