Hey all, just wondering if there’s anyone else out there that’s successfully used a titanium oxide-alcohol solution to laser engrave white tiles and if so: What kind of mixture/solution do you use? I’ve been using 70% isopropyl with water soluable TiO2 powder but have struggled to find a mixture that works consistently.
Currently I’ve been mixing roughly 1oz of iso with between 1.5 and 3 grams of TiO2 but can’t find a sweet spot. 1.5 requires a lot of coats and can still leave under-coated streaks that you can see in the engraved image. 3+ Grams seems almost too much, there’s visible detail loss and when the tile is washed there are details that literally get washed away.
Anyone else doing it this way, what are your ratios/mixtures?
Doesn’t really dissolve in alcohol either… I’ve done both and it will seperate out of both.
The addition of gum arabic or clear, water soluble glue seems to help with the surface tension issue when applying it to glass or other hydrophobic materials.
If I am not mistaken, boiling sulphuric acid will dissolve it, but I ain’t going down that road.
Glue, acrylic paint both work well and clean up with water.
The stuff Pantai sells is 100% water soluble, I’ve tried both ELO’s and Pantai. ELO is an oil only but Pantai makes a formula that works for both (Albeit at a higher price…) It is non-alcohol soluble however, which is probably why I should have been using a better solvent in the first place like Ethanol or Acetone
Thank you! This sent me down a research hole and I realized that isopropyl is definitely not the solvent to go with. I’m going to try some results with 100% Acetone tonight as TiO2 powder should be completely soluble in it, fingers crossed!
Titanium dioxide (TiO2) is insoluble in all solvents, organic, inorganic, polar and non-polar. The only things that will dissolve TiO2 are chemicals that actually react with it and convert it into a different Titanium compound (such as Titanium Sulphate (or Sulfate as it’s supposed to be called now!)).
Whatever water ‘soluble’ TiO2 you’ve seen is probably a suspension of TiO2 in some other medium and it’s that medium that will be soluble/miscible with water. If you intend to spray it on you will have to dilute it significantly and this will mean that the TiO2 particles will settle out just as if you’d used pure TiO2 powder.
It’s possible that other titanium compounds that are soluble in water might work instead. They could potentially undergo decomposition and oxidation due to the intense heat generated by the laser but that’s only conjecture. I’d also be concerned that during any decomposition noxious or corrosive fumes might be generated.
hey, for my first time I have made 50/50 with demineralised water and tio and the result was perfect, its more difficult to find a good spray. as usual for my array test
and the texture of the tile is very important I want to test some quality of tile
regards
If details are washing away with the 3 gram mix then you are not burning through the Ti02 layer. It’s either too thick or you need more laser to burn down to the tile surface and bond the layers together.
Hi, I use 2 parts methylated spirits (denatured alcohol) to 1 part TiO2.
Mixed in a jar, then lightly brush on, 2 coats. Dries very quickly. (brush is also reusable without washing. I have a Xtool D1 Pro 20w
Speed was 508 mm/min @ 60%
The method I saw (cannot recall where) mentioned that Titanium Dioxide does not dissolve, but suspends within the mixture. He was using de-natured alcohol. He brushed it on lightly left to right and top to bottom. I am trying Rustoleum and the results are spectacular. It is easy to get off with steel wool. It does not damage the tile or engraving. The sweet spot on my Creality Falcon 2 40 watt Diode laser is about 1400@80%. I am just not sure about the focus. Should it be higher from the work surface or lower. I use lower for cutting thicker woods and use the higher setting for thinner woods.
