Mixing silicone oil with water 'on the fly' could cut consumption by half, Goss's web handling subsidiary Contiweb says.

The company launched a fluid applicator for its Ecocool and Ecoset dryers at DRUPA, which it says offers significant cost benefits, enhances print performance and productivity, and contributes to a better finished product.

Silicone is used to protect the web from mechanical stress and for better runability though the folder. Managing director Bert Schoonderbeck says traditional use of 'ready mixed' silicone/water products are provided by a wide array of chemicals and additives, and can cause maintenance issues and contamination: "With the CFA system, we're giving the printer back more control and also cost benefits," he says.

Contiweb engineers developed the idea of treating the web with a silicone/water mixture in one process in 2004, the process replacing water removed from the paper during drying to restore original dimensions of the substrate. It also avoids web shrinkage, as well as reducing instances of cracking, curling or folding, and delivering an overall more forgiving substrate for postpress handling.

The new applicator mixes silicone oil and water on-the-fly, enabling a single agent to be used as surfactant. The resulting larger oil drops are absorbed less, leading to an average reduction of 50 per cent in silicone oil consumption.