[2][3] The technology for water-jet printing was developed by a team of Chinese scientists led by Sean Xiao-An Zhang, a chemistry professor at Jilin University in China.
The exact wavelengths absorbed vary with the compound used, which allows printing in a variety of colours.
The rewriteable paper was made by first coating ordinary paper with a layer of polyethylene glycol (PEG) to prevent it reacting with the dye, before a second layer of PEG containing the chosen dye was laid on top.
The team used a commercial inkjet printer and a cartridge filled with water to print trial documents.
The print remained legible for around 22 hours before evaporation wiped the page clean.