A type of inorganic color pigment used in printing inks derived from various cadmium compounds, such as cadmium selenide or cadmium sulfide. Cadmium Yellows include shades ranging from greenish to golden yellow. Cadmium pigments are highly fast-to-light, extremely opaque, and are highly resistant to heat, alkalis and soaps, which makes them useful for printing soap packaging, but they are not acid resistant, and tend to blacken when used in conjunction with lead-based pigments. Cadmium Yellows lack tinctorial strength and print poorly. They are also highly toxic, and FDA regulations have prohibited their use in many applications. Other cadmium-based pigments include the Cadmium Reds and Cadmium Oranges, as well as Cadmium-Mercury Reds. The cadmium pigments are rarely used any longer, having been replaced by less toxic organic pigments, except in cases where extreme chemical resistance is necessary. (See also Inorganic Color Pigments.)
('CI Pigment Yellow 37 No. 77199'.)