Ink Material Safety Data Sheets

[bencoman]

In the process of researching what a good solute might be, I discovered a site for Canon MSDS I thought others might be interested in: http://www.canon.com.au/support/msds.html#bubble_jet_inks

btw, its my first post, so I'll take this opportunity to say "Great Site." I came across it googling to solve a nozzle-check issue with a Canon S9000.

My problem is the nozzle pattern for ink "E" is: top-half with 32 good columns; bottom-half with alternating good and bad columns. Good columns have 8 horizontal lines, while bad columns have none. Note that as far as I'm aware, only Canon OEM inks have ever been used in this printer, which is from a school photography department which my wife runs. I expect the problem is most likely due to having sat unused for a couple of months over the school break.

I've picked up some good suggestions to try out. So far I've tried gently dabbing a towelette soaked it methylated spirits on the bottom of the printhead, and also soaking the print head for a few minutes in warm water. No luck yet. Based on the MSDS showing alcohol 1-3%, amonia 5-10% and water 60-80%, I think I'll forgo the alcohol and try a gentle syringing with warm water, or maybe ammonia based Windex if I can find it.

wish me luck
Cheers, Ben

 

[bencoman]

Actually I got interested in tabulating the components. I could upload that if anyone wanted.

 

[stratman]

Looking at CLI-8 Black:

Ethylene Glycol = Radiator fluid. Will die if drink enough.

Substituted naphthalene sulfonic acid = Probably a Dye. Naphthalene is the ingredient in the insecticide Moth Balls and acts as a rust preventative. Can cause aplastic anemia.

Heterocyclic compound = Unknown entity. Could be anything from an anaesthetic to a vitamin with lots of nasties inbetween.

Glycerin = Gentle stool softener.

H2O = I'm paying $15 for 10.4 ml's of water?

 

[InkMon]

Has anyone tried watered down acrylic paint, cheap, and dries reasonably quick. Probably a secret the ink suppliers never tell. needs filtering through a 99.9% water filter to remove lumps but hey what's a printer or two worth these days.
I refuse to drink Glycol though even if it unclogs my nozzles

Couldn't resist
Terry

 

[WhiteDog]

I think the MSDS's have been mentioned previously on the site. The napthalene compound in Canon inks is, I believe, a dye mobilizer/stabilizer in the red end of the spectrum, and is present in very small amounts. It is not widely used in indutrial chemistry (just try it on Google) and last time I looked it did not have a toxicity rating. I do not think it is in the mothball family.

Never mentioned that I can remember is that the intake holes in the print head are covered by a micro screen, so lumpy stuff is not going into the head. The stuff on these screens, which are really tiny and of the finest mesh, might contribute to clogs, which may be why cleaning from the head side alone does not always solve the clog.

Using acrylic solutions in place of ink will destroy the print head, which depends for its function on the instantaneous vaporization by heating of the droplets, along with a cooling function delivered by the flow of cool ink from the supply side of the head.

There is in my opinion no upside for garage tinkerers to formulate ink when you can buy gallons of respectable stuff from qualified suppliers.