How to Select Pretreatment Liquids for Digital Textile Pigment Ink Printing?

Digital inkjet printing technology has become a key growth area in the textile printing and dyeing industry in recent years. In particular, pigment-based digital printing has seen rapid market expansion due to its short process flow, elimination of steaming and washing steps, low energy consumption, excellent color reproducibility, and wide compatibility with various fiber fabrics.

Pigment inks play a vital role in digital printing solutions. However, to achieve the best printing results on fabric, the pretreatment liquid used in the pre-treatment stage is critically important.

As the essential bridge between the fabric and the pigment ink, the performance of the pretreatment liquid directly affects key printing outcomes, including color vibrancy, pattern sharpness, and color fastness of the final product.

Zhengzhou HONGSAM, as the first drafting unit of the national standard Textile Inkjet Printing – Part 4: Pigment Inks (QB/T 4973.4-2016), has been deeply engaged in textile pigment ink development for over 20 years. In addition to continuously optimizing the inks themselves, the company has developed a range of specialized pretreatment liquids precisely matched to different fiber types.

1. Polyester Fabric Specific Pretreatment Agent

For both knitted and woven polyester fabrics, the recommended product is PP-03 Pretreatment Agent. It is applied via padding process, with a suggested dosage of 3–5%.

This product offers excellent color development, produces no yellowing on white grounds, and fully meets the pretreatment requirements for polyester digital printing.

2. Universal Pretreatment Agent for Woven Cotton/Nylon/Modal/Rayon Fabrics

For woven cotton, nylon, modal, and rayon fabrics, PP-17 Pretreatment Agent is the preferred choice. It is applied by padding, with a very low recommended dosage of only 1–2%.

The product delivers outstanding color yield, leaves the fabric with a soft hand feel, and stands out for its cost-effectiveness due to its minimal usage.

3. Specialized Pretreatment Agent for Knitted Cotton Fabrics

HONGSAM PP-104 pre-treatment liquid is specially used for cotton knitted fabrics, especially suitable for knitted cotton wool, knitted brushed jersey and other fabrics with rich hair and fuzz. It adopts the padding pre-treatment process, the recommended add dosage is 1-3%. The fabric pre-treated by PP-104 has excellent color rendering effect and soft hand feeling. The pre-treatment liquid has feather pressing effect, improves the fabric quality.

Precisely matched pretreatment liquid for textile pigment ink can fully highlight the core advantages of textile digital pigment ink printing solutions, making product characteristics more distinct and effects more outstanding, providing strong support and positive impetus for the rapid development of textile digital pigment ink printing.

Pigment ink printing is suitable for almost all types of fiber fabrics because of its physical dyeing principle. Within traditional textile printing industry, pigment printing accounts for over 50%. In the future, with increasingly stringent environmental policies, the digital pigment ink printing solution will shine in the printing and dyeing industry, as it is a water-free direct printing process that is eco-friendly. With over 20 years of expertise in pigment digital printing, HONGSAM provides comprehensive technical support for digital textile printing. We look forward to connecting with industry peers and exploring new opportunities together.