A fundamental element of achieving the correct dose of UV light is ensuring the intensity of your UV curing lamp is understood. UV curing intensity as noted on a lamp’s data sheet is typically measured from a particular distance, so if your lamp is not set up to the same distance as the data sheet measurement, you won’t be achieving that quoted intensity of UV curing light on your parts.
Our partners at Dymax have written a white paper explaining how intensity is assessed and how to ensure you are achieving the appropriate intensity. Comparison of Working Distance on Measured Intensity for LED Emitters delves into factors such as differences in part geometry, uniformity of output over area, focus design, and how working distances affect the intensity of the lamp’s output. A big warning notice: what it says on the data sheet and what you get in a real application may be quite different. It can be more complex than you think, and this is a thorough explanation.
There is no substitute for doing the process development work with actual parts, materials and equipment.
For an “in a nutshell” version, check out our 90 second video on UV curing intensity vs. distance:
We recommend a UV radiometer to measure light intensity. You may also be interested in our UV Curing Top Tips to ensure you’re getting the most from your UV curing lamp and process.
