ASTM_F_2037_-_00_2011.pdf

Designation:F203700(Reapproved 2011)Standard Practice forPredicting the Lifetime of Ink Jet Prints Stored in DarkKeeping Conditions in Typical Office Environments1This standard is issued under the fixed designation F2037;the number immediately following the designation indicates the year oforiginal adoption or,in the case of revision,the year of last revision.A number in parentheses indicates the year of last reapproval.Asuperscript epsilon()indicates an editorial change since the last revision or reapproval.1.Scope1.1 This practice describes an accelerated procedure in-tended to predict the lifetime of images stored in dark keepingconditions in typical office environments.1.2 This standard does not purport to address all of thesafety concerns,if any,associated with its use.It is theresponsibility of the user of this standard to establish appro-priate safety and health practices and determine the applica-bility of regulatory limitations prior to use.2.Referenced Documents2.1 ASTM Standards:2D2244 Practice for Calculation of Color Tolerances andColor Differences from Instrumentally Measured ColorCoordinates2.2 ANSI Standards:ANSI/NAPM IT9.91996 Stability of Color PhotographicImagesMethods for Measuring3ANSI/PIMA IT9.241997 Arrhenius-Type PredictionsTest Method3Limitations of Accelerated Image Stability Testing43.Terminology3.1 Definitions:3.1.1 ink jet media,nrecording elements used by ink jetprinters to receive inks.The substrate may be paper,plastic,canvas,fabric,or other ink receptive material.The substratemay,or may not,be coated with an ink receptive layer(s).3.1.2 single accelerated test,ndark stability testing at asingle set of environmental conditions,for example 50C and50%relative humidity(RH).4.Summary of Practice4.1 Printed test samples are covered with polyethyleneterephthalate(PET)sleeve5to simulate an album,or with asample of the same sample type to simulate a stack of prints,and placed in foil-lined bags.Air is forced out of the bags andthe bags are sealed.The bags are placed in dark recirculatingforced-air environmental chambers at multiple temperatures at50%RH.After a predetermined color change is obtained,thetest is terminated and the image life is predicted by ANSI/PIMA IT9.241997.NOTE1The foil bags serve several purposes:they protect the samples,they prevent any outgassing from the samples from contaminating othersamples in the test chamber,and they ensure contact of the PET or receiverto the samples.4.2 The duration of the test may vary widely depending onthe dark stability of the ink/media and the temperature condi-tion.4.3 During the course of the test,the color changes in theprinted samples are periodically evaluated instrumentally.Re-sults are compared to a control incubated at room conditionsand to the same specimen prior to incubation.The color changeis reported as percent retained optical density and colordifference,DE.5.Significance and Use5.1 The image life of printed ink jet media in dark keepingconditions in typical office environments is pertinent to the enduse of these materials.While natural aging is the most reliablemethod of assessing image stability,the length of time requiredmakes this method impractical for most materials.As a result,accelerated tests often are used.This test practice is anaccelerated short-term storage test that simulates long-termstorage but at elevated temperatures.A room condition sampleis also tracked to provide practical data.By measuring the timeneeded to obtain a predetermined color change at a variety of1This practice is under the jurisdiction of ASTM Committee F05 on BusinessImaging Products and is the direct responsibility of Subcommittee F05.07 on Ink JetImaging Products.Current edition approved Oct.1,2011.Published March 2012.Originallyapproved in 2000.Last previous edition approved in 2006 as F203700(2006).DOI:10.1520/F2037-00R11.2For referenced ASTM standards,visit the ASTM website,www.astm.org,orcontact ASTM Customer Service at serviceastm.org.For Annual Book of ASTMStandards volume information,refer to the standards Document Summary page onthe ASTM website.3Available from American National Standards Institute(ANSI),25 W.43rd St.,4th Floor,New York,NY 10036.4S.Anderson and D.Kopperl,Journal of Imaging Science and Technology,37:363373(1993).5Kodak Image Sleeve Cat.1600733.Copyright ASTM International,100 Barr Harbor Drive,PO Box C700,West Conshohocken,PA 19428-2959.United States1 temperature conditions,the image life can be predicted usingthe Arrhenius method.NOTE2The Arrhenius method is a predictive test based on math-ematical extrapolation of high temperature tests to room temperature.Inthis test,long-term color changes are predicted by performing short-termtests at a series of high temperatures.5.1.1 Since the ability of an ink jet print to withstand colorchanges is a function of temperature and humidity,it isimportant that dark stability be assessed under the conditionsappropriate to the end use application.While ink jet prints maybe