Hi, I’m Alex, a technical engineer at StarColor. I’ve worked in the printing ink industry for 15 years, and in the past two years, one issue keeps coming up:

Water-based flexo ink rubbing off when printing on nonwoven fabric.

I’ve seen customers lose thousands on rework because the printed pattern faded just by rubbing it by hand. The truth is, this problem is rarely caused by “bad ink” alone. In most cases, it’s a combination of substrate characteristics, wrong ink selection, and improper flexo settings.

Let me break it down based on real cases I’ve handled.

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1. The Nonwoven Substrate Itself

Nonwoven fabric is very different from smooth plastic films like PET or PE. It’s porous, loose, and made of interwoven fibers. There’s no dense surface layer for the ink to firmly grip.

In my experience, nearly 40% of rubbing-off issues are related to the substrate.

Different Types of Nonwoven Matter

• Spunbond: relatively smooth surface, best for flexo printing.
• Spunlace: denser fibers, moderate printability.
• Needle-punched: loose structure, large pores, highest risk of ink rub-off.

If the fabric is too loose or too low in weight (for example below 20gsm), ink cannot properly anchor into the fibers. It simply sits on the surface and rubs off easily.

Surface Contamination

Some nonwoven fabrics contain oils, waxes, or dust from production and storage. These create a barrier layer, preventing the resin in water-based ink from bonding to the fibers.

Hydrophobic Treatment

Many food-related nonwovens are treated to be water- or oil-repellent. This lowers surface energy, making it difficult for water-based ink to spread and form a strong film.

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2. Wrong Ink Selection

This accounts for about 30% of the problems I see.

Many printers assume that any flexo water-based ink will work on nonwoven fabric. That’s simply not true.

Standard water-based inks for PE or PET are formulated for smooth plastic surfaces. They lack fiber-anchoring resins and film-strengthening additives required for nonwoven materials.

The result?

• Thin surface film
• Brittle ink layer
• Poor abrasion resistance

I’ve had customers solve the issue immediately just by switching from general-purpose ink to nonwoven-dedicated water-based flexo ink.

Over-Dilution Is Another Common Mistake

Some operators add too much water to improve flow. If solid content drops too low, the dried ink film becomes weak and porous, which leads to fading and rubbing.

Abrasion resistance additives are also important, especially for shopping bags and reusable packaging.

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3. Flexo Printing Parameters

Even with the right ink and substrate, poor press settings can still cause problems. About 20% of rubbing issues come from process errors.

Anilox Roller Selection

If the anilox line count is too high, ink transfer is too low and cannot penetrate the fibers. If it’s too low, excessive ink leads to incomplete drying.

As a general reference:

• Spunbond: 400–600 LPI
• Spunlace: 300–400 LPI
• Needle-punched: 200–300 LPI

Printing Pressure

Nonwoven is soft. Too much pressure damages the fiber structure; too little causes poor ink transfer. Pressure should be lighter than when printing on plastic film.

Drying Is Critical

Water-based ink dries by water evaporation. On porous nonwoven fabric, moisture can remain inside fibers if drying is insufficient.

I usually recommend staged drying:

• Pre-drying at 60–70°C
• Final drying at 75–85°C

Rushing production by increasing speed often leads to incomplete film formation and easy rubbing.

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Final Thoughts

In most cases, ink rubbing on nonwoven fabric is not a complex technical problem. It’s caused by misunderstanding the material, using the wrong ink, or copying flexo settings from plastic printing.

If you focus on three things, the problem can usually be eliminated:

• Use water-based flexo ink specifically designed for nonwoven fabric
• Match the correct anilox and light pressure
• Ensure sufficient drying and curing time

I’m Alex. If you’re dealing with issues like rubbing, poor adhesion, uneven coverage, or sticky ink layers on nonwoven printing, feel free to reach out. Chances are, I’ve seen a similar case before.