An impression cylinder plays a vital role in printing by directly contacting the substrate. This substrate can be paper or other materials like plastic or metal. Its primary function is to transfer the image from the printing plate onto the substrate.
Creating the image requires the use of the use of the use of a printing plate made of metal. The image is either etched onto the plate or produced through a photochemical process. Once ready, it gets transferred to the impression cylinder.
The impression cylinder consists of a hard and smooth material, such as steel, covered in vulcanized rubber. This vulcanization process provides durability and resistance to wear while ensuring a grippy surface for holding the paper during printing.
When feeding the substrate into the press, it passes between the printing plate and impression cylinder, which have been inked beforehand. The inked image then transfers onto the substrate itself.
Applying pressure from behind, on what would be considered as its backside, allows for successful ink transfer from front to back onto paper- thanks to this very same impression cylinder.
By adjusting pressure levels applied by this critical component, one can regulate how much ink gets transferred, resulting in different densities within printed images.
For optimal print quality, selecting appropriate materials becomes crucial when constructing an ideal impression cylinder- options include steel, chrome, or ceramic.