Erasable pen: the perfect fusion of technology and life

As office and school supplies continue to innovate, a writing tool that is both practical and interesting – erasable pens, has quickly become popular among students and office workers. It not only writes smoothly and has a variety of colors, but also can easily erase the traces of writing, meeting people's needs for writing and modification.

So, how does this magical pen achieve the effect of "writing and erasing"? This article will reveal the scientific principles behind erasable pens in detail for you, and introduce its application and precautions.

1. The basic concept of erasable pens

The so-called erasable pen refers to a pen that can erase the handwriting by rubbing the end of the pen or the attached eraser after writing with special ink. It is also often called "erasable pen", "friction pen" or "erasable gel pen".

Most of the common erasable pens on the market are gel pens, which have the same appearance and feel as ordinary gel pens, but there are mysteries in the ink and the eraser at the end of the pen.

Erasable pens have both the smooth writing feeling of traditional pens and the convenience of pencil erasability. They are widely used in classroom notes, wrong question books, schedule notebooks, office records and other scenes.

2. The core technology of erasable pens: thermochromic ink

The secret of erasable pens being able to be erased mainly comes from its ink. Unlike pigment or dye inks used in ordinary gel pens, erasable pens use thermochromic ink.

This ink contains three main ingredients:

Leuco dye: This is a substance that develops color, such as colorless leuco dyes, which can show color under certain conditions.

Developer: A substance that combines with the color-changing dye to make it develop color, often some organic acids.

Solvent: A carrier that dissolves the above two components while maintaining their combined state at low temperatures.

This ternary system exists stably at room temperature, allowing the ink to maintain its color; when subjected to high temperatures generated by friction, the chemical environment in the solvent changes, causing the dye and developer to separate, and the color disappears.

3. Analysis of working principles

3.1 Normal writing state

When we write on paper with an erasable pen, the thermochromic ink in the pen tip is released onto the paper surface.

At room temperature (usually between -10℃ and 60℃), the color-changing dye and the color developer combine to show the color of the ink itself (such as black, blue, red, etc.). Therefore, it looks no different from an ordinary gel pen. 3.2 The process of erasing writing When we rub the writing with the end of the pen or the eraser part attached, the heat generated by friction causes the local temperature to rise rapidly. When the temperature reaches or exceeds the color change point of the ink (usually around 60℃), the chemical structure of the ink changes: the solvent state changes; the color developer and dye separate; the color disappears. Therefore, the writing on the paper seems to be "erased". In fact, the ink is not really erased, but the chemical state is changed by temperature, and the color becomes invisible. This also explains why there is almost no ink block or paper scraps left after the writing is erased by an erasable pen – because it is not physically scraped or erased. 3.3 Recovery at low temperature Interestingly, the writing written by an erasable pen may reappear if it is placed in a low-temperature environment (such as a refrigerator). This is because the dye and the developer are recombined at low temperatures, and the color is restored.

However, the effect of this restoration is not always complete, and it may vary with time and paper material.

4. The difference between erasable pens and ordinary erasers

Many people mistakenly believe that the tail of an erasable pen is an ordinary eraser, but this is not the case. Ordinary erasers rely on friction to physically peel off the graphite or pigment particles attached to the paper surface, while the "eraser" of an erasable pen itself does not have this peeling ability. Its function is only to create friction and heat up, causing the ink to change color and disappear. Therefore, even if you rub the handwriting quickly with your fingers, theoretically, you can generate heat to make the handwriting fade or disappear, but it is not as efficient as a specially designed eraser.

5. Characteristics of thermochromic ink

Reversibility

The color may be restored at low temperatures.

Limited stability

Long-term exposure to high temperatures and direct sunlight may cause the handwriting to disappear permanently.

Better safety

Usually non-toxic and harmless chemical components are used, which will not cause harm to the human body.

Limited scope of application

Not suitable for important documents or legal documents that are stored for a long time.

6. Application scenarios of erasable pens

Thanks to its unique characteristics, erasable pens have played a role in many scenarios:

Student learning: writing notes, wrong questions, draft calculations, easy to modify.

Schedule management: record work plans and schedules, and can be erased and rewritten for temporary adjustments.

Handbook enthusiasts: beautiful writing and modifiable, it is a common tool in the handbook circle.

Office occasions: suitable for occasions such as meeting minutes and brainstorming that require frequent modifications.

However, it should be noted that it is not suitable for signing contracts, filling out formal files, answering papers, and other documents that need to be preserved for a long time.

7. Precautions for using erasable pens

Avoid high temperature environment: in an environment above 60℃, the handwriting may disappear automatically.

The handwriting may be restored at low temperatures: if you do not want the handwriting to appear again, it is best to process it after erasing (such as laminating, drying, etc.).

Impossible to replace formal document writing tools: due to its reversibility and instability, it is not suitable for writing important documents.

The eraser part is not durable: the eraser at the end of the pen will wear out after a long time, and it needs to be replaced or spared.

The emergence of erasable pens is not only a reflection of the progress of chemical technology, but also the result of people's continuous pursuit of a convenient and efficient lifestyle. It achieves the perfect unity of writing and erasing through thermosensitive color-changing ink, and plays an increasingly important role in learning, work, and life.

Of course, after understanding the working principle of erasable pens, we must also rationally choose the occasion of use to avoid unnecessary trouble caused by the characteristics of ink. I believe that with the continuous development of technology, erasable pens will become more intelligent, stable, and practical, and become an indispensable part of our writing life.

As a professional erasable pen factory, we are committed to developing high-quality products with smooth writing, rich colors, and clean erasing. We not only pay attention to the writing experience and safety of the pen, but also improve the temperature resistance and stability by optimizing the ink formula to meet the needs of different users. In the future, we will continue to innovate and develop more colorful, more environmentally friendly, and smarter erasable pen series to provide convenient and reliable writing solutions for learning, office and creative life.

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