Thinner
The thinner is responsible to bring the ink into a printable consistency. The addition of a thinner does not just influence the viscosity, flow capacity and ink dispensing behaviour of the pad printing ink from the pad to the workpiece, but it also has a very particular influence on the drying speed. In addition to universal thinners, "quick" and "slow" thinners are also available.
Retarder
The retardeter is a very slow thinner used to slow down the drying time without having a negative effect on the ink viscosity. It may also be necessary to add retarder when printing large print images or when using slow pad printing machines.
Hardener
Hardener is added to achieve a better consistency of 2-component inks. This means, the hardener will react with the remaining resin bonding agent of the printing ink and will create a cross linking of the printing ink or the ink film on the workpiece.