A variety of Carbon Black, or black pigment, used in printing ink, produced by the "cracking" of petroleum oil. Crude oil is essentially a complex mixture of hydrocarbon compounds. Cracking, or the exposure of these hydrocarbons to high temperatures and pressures, weakens and decomposes the carbon-to-carbon bonds in the molecules, and as various substances are boiled off, other residual substances are left behind. The partial burning of these hydrocarbons and the condensation of the flame on a cool surface produces carbon black. (Carbon black obtained from the cracking of natural gas is typically referred to as thermal black.)
Furnace Black pigments vary in shade from a grayish blue to jet black, and possess high lightfastness and resistance to heat, alkalis, acids, solvents, soaps, water, and other substances. (See also Black Pigments.)
('CI Pigment Black 7 No. 77266'.)