IG focused Lightfastness and UV Fade Tests

[arcfide]

1 hour ago, Aelfattrum said:

 

Though,as I recall, Diamine Blue-Black has no water-resistance. (A different issue, of course.)

 

I think one of the things that my tests (internal and published) have been showing me is that most inks in general are highly dependent on the amount of ink deposited on the page. If you get enough ink down on the page, it greatly increases both UV resistance and water resistance, regardless of the ink in question. However, IG inks have a distinct advantage when it comes to ink resistant papers and water resistance. This is where a lot of dye-based inks fall flat, but where even relatively week Iron Gall inks can put up a pretty decent showing. The same holds true for some other solvents, but not all (bleach is a classic killer). On the other hand, the effects of UV can be seen pretty rapidly with some IG inks, whereas some dye-based inks hold up pretty well to this. 

 

One question that can't be answered right now is how well modern dye-based inks will hold up under good storage for extremely long periods of time. IG has the better track record here, but I strongly suspect that dyes which are highly UV resistant are also likely to last a very long time in good storage conditions. 

 

IMO, IG inks have the advantage when it comes to handling and performance consistency across a wide range of papers (especially poor paper), reliable water resistance, and generally "holding fast" under a lot of diverse conditions. You can also get some nice shading and interesting colored IG inks that will have more water resistance plus interesting ink effects than the equivalent formulations in pure dye-based inks. The downside is that they can often fade or suffer quickly under UV conditions, meaning that they are best kept in dark storage conditions. 

 

On the other hand, if you are willing to lay down heavy amounts of ink, use absorbent paper, and give up the "lighter" inks, then the dye-based inks can put up a remarkably good showing, and can even consistently outperform many IG inks in UV tests. The downside is that the inks will run significantly, and their water resistance is significantly reduced on ink resistant paper, which is the paper that is commonly used to get those interesting ink effects of shading and sheen. This creates a compromise between shading, sheen, and durability. Moreover, you can get into a situation where there might be enough water to wet a dye-based ink and cause the ink to smudge, but not enough to remove the excess dye. The result can be a "re-inking" of the page that causes the original to be blotched out of existence or obscured, where ironically just washing with more water would have preserved the writing better. 

 

To me, the conclusions I'm seeing here is that the conventional and easy to maintain IG inks like Platinum's Blue Black and Salix are by no means fade-proof, but they are fade resistant in a similar way to some of the darker, saturated dye-based inks, though they can be outperformed by some dye-based inks on UV resistance that are still considered easy to maintain and work with. A combination of water *and* UV resistance without resorting to more extreme measures like Noodler's strategies requires consideration not just of ink, but also of the amount of ink you put on the page and what sort of paper you are using to ensure sufficient paper saturation. 

[Aelfattrum]

thanks for the additional ruminations - this brings up a number of good point, esp. concerning quantities of ink deposited, and interactions with paper used.

 

I think practical ideals are decent water resistance and decent UV resistance (on the assumption that UV resistance correlates with general durability, which may or may not be the case and also probably depends on properties of the writing medium), without necessarily worrying about complete waterfastness or lightfastness.

 

I did some water resistance tests back in May, on a variety of iron gall and non iron gall inks  ( https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/topic/360707-water-resistance-of-some-iron-gall-inks-some-herbins-diamines-others  )

 

 

Since then (27 May 2021) I've had the paper taped up in an east-facing window, and it's interesting to see the results:

 

Original:

 

 

12 hours after writing, soaked in water, and then dried:

 

 

 

after about 2 months UV exposure:

 

 

The Herbin inks (except Poussière de Lune) survived the water pretty well and didn't do too badly in the sunlight, particularly Perle Noire and most especially (perhaps surprisingly) Cacao du Brésil.

 

The Akkkerman no. 10 (an iron gall) seems the standout though in terms of both surviving water and sunlight.

 

The KWZI IGs didn't do terribly well with either water or light. The Scabiosa is dry in general and was in a dryish pen, so this may not be completely fair to it, but still.

 

[arcfide]

Here's the final scan for this test, taken Dec. 9th:

 

 

The Iron Gall inks appear to have relatively stabalized, though the Registrar's continues to fade towards the other IG inks. Diamine Blue Black is now showing significant signs of fading that look worse than the scan portrays. Likewise, Tsuki-yo has faded to quite a light blue compared to its original color, but Kon-peki is going strong, though it has shown some signs of fading. 

 

Of note, I think, is that the Iron Gall inks show a tendency to show significantly more resistance in places of high IG concentration. 

 

Platinum Pigmented Blue and Carbon Black continue to remain indistinguishable from their originals. 

 

 

[yazeh]

Thanks so much for the update. Much appreciated

[jean]

Hello,

 

To complete these tests, here is an additional one.

 

1. Rohrer und Klingner Salix IG

2. Pelikan Blue-black IG

3. KWZ Blue-black IG

4. Sailor Souboku pigmented

5. Montblanc Midnight blue

6. Parker Blue-black

7. Montblanc Burgundy red

8. Noodler's mix, partially bulletproof

 

 

These inks were subjected to daylight and sunlight for 2 months (April-May 2021). That is to say extreme conditions for writings.

I think that there is no need to worry about the lightfastness of our inks under normal conservation conditions. I found writings from 25 years ago in Pelikan blue-royal and Herbin pink-cyclamen that had kept their colors. The same for the blue-black Pelikan, except that the latter has turned to brown-gray, gray-brown while remaining perfectly readable.

[inkstainedruth]

Good to know about KWZI IG Blue-Black, because many IG inks are not remotely lightfast.

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth