WHAT IS DECORAL® PROCESS?
Decoral® process is a process for DECORating Aluminium. It is based based on Sublimation, a phisycal-chemical process, which is the direct transition of a substance from the solid phase to the gas phase.
Such technology is also named Heat-Transfer Process.
The Decoral® process can be also extended to other materials (metal, glass, plastic, ceramic), the basic requirement being that these materials can resist a temperature of 200° C for about 10 minutes with no deformation.
Through Decoral® process countless effects and patterns such as woodgrain, marble, granite, fancies, pictures can be transferred on surfaces.
Decoral System® was the first Company worldwide to use the Heat-transfer process on aluminium extrusions and laminates in Architectural
WHAT DO YOU NEED TO APPLY THE DECORAL® PROCESS?
In order to apply the Decoral® process you need to have the following equipment and materials:
1) A Special Decoral® Equipment;
2) A Special Decoral® Polyurethane coating powder to be sprayed and cured in a Coating Unit;
3) A Decoral® Heat-Transfer film (plastic film carrying the desired effect printed with special inks).
HOW DOES THE DECORAL® PROCESS WORK?
The object (shape, extrusion, laminate, etc.), which we would like to apply Decoral® process on will undergo the following phases:
1) It must be processed in a standard coating unit using a special Polyurethane powder coating. Coating process consists of three different stages: preatreatment, powder spraying, curing. The coating layer works a sort of bed which the special heat-transfer inks will be transferred into by sublimation.
2) Painting the object with a special polyurethane powder coating, the powder is the layer coating ( ground ) which will then receive the sublimation inks;
3) After cooling down from coating, the object is then wrapped with Decoral® Heat-Transfer film. Air will be vacuumed from inside in order to make the film perfectly adhere to the object.
4) Cover the object with the Sublimatic Film, apply perfectly the film all over the surfaces to be decorated;
5) Film-Wrapped and vacuumed objects are then moved and cured in a special Decoral Oven, running at high temperatures (between 200°C and 230°C), where inks contained in the Film are transferred by Sublimation into the Coating layer of the objects.
6) The Wrapped object is then placed in a high temperature Decoral® Oven where, by Sublimation, special inks are transferred from the Heat-transfer Film into the coating layer.
7) After curing, it is ejected from the oven and the exhausted film easily removed.
8) After the curing time , pull out the object from the oven and remove the film (carrier) now devoid of decoration’s inks.
9) The object is now fully decorated and ready for being delivered to other working stations (e.g. cutting assembly for windows and doors) or packaging units.
WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS OF DECORAL® PROCESS?
1) It can be applied on countless extrusions, laminates, 3D objects;
2) It is simple;
3) It has an excellent aestethic output;
4) It is compliant with worldwide accepted Quality Labels;
5) It is flexible (It is easy and fast to obtain tailor-made effects)
6) Minimum maintenance required on finishings
WHICH MATERIALS CAN I APPLY THIS PROCESS ON?
To a huge number of artifacts to be used in different fields. The process can be applied on all types of materials that can be coated, are compatible with the sublimation inks and must resist temperatures of 200°C with no deformation.
