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Ink is a liquid or paste that contains pigments or dyes and is used to color the surface to create an image, text, or design. Ink is used for drawing or writing with a pen, brush or quill. Thicker inks, in the form of a paste, is widely used in letterpress and lithographic printing.

Ink can be a complex medium consisting of solvents, pigments, dyes, resins, lubricants, solvents, surfactants, particles, fluorescent and other materials. Ink components serve many purposes; ink carrier, dyes and other additives affect the flow and thickness of the ink and its dry appearance.

In 2011, global consumption of printing inks generated more than $20 billion in revenue. Demand for traditional print media is declining, on the other hand, more and more printing ink is being consumed for packaging.

Pigment Ink

Pigment inks are more commonly used than dyes, because they are brighter, but also more expensive, less colored and have less color ranges than dyes.

Carbon Ink

Carbon inks are usually made from lampblack or soot and a binding agent such as gum Arabic or animal glue. The bonding agent holds the carbon particles in suspension and adheres to the paper. Carbon particles do not fade over time, even when bleached or when in sunlight. One advantage is that carbon ink does not harm the paper. Over time, the ink is chemically stable and, therefore, does not endanger the strength of the paper. Despite these advantages, carbon inks are not ideal for perseverance and easy storage. Carbon ink is usually smudge in a wet environment and can be washed off the surface.

Dye-Based Ink

Dye-based inks are usually much stronger than pigment-based inks and can produce much more color for a given specific density. However, when dyes are dissolved in the liquid phase, they tend to be absorbed into the paper, making the ink less effective and potentially allowing the ink to shrink along the edges of the image.