It has been an enjoyable few months working with new carbon printers this summer. I have been teaching traditional dichromate sensitising. I have also been introducing a new faster workflow by using Diazidostilbene (DAS) sensitiser, which so far, as I can gather has no harmful side effects. It is also a more greener product to work with, than other chemicals I have used in the past.
Students have enjoyed experimenting with this new DAS . Good results are being gained with negatives that yield a density range of 1.80
Pyro stain negs also work very well with this sensitising technique.
We have been making a 0.50% DAS sensitiser that is mixed directly into liquid carbon pigment. The DAS carbon tissue has an excellent shelf life which is another advantage. I have used tissue that is six months old and results are amazingly constant.
I enjoy using both methods in my carbon printing and will continue to work with both sensitisers.
Alternative Process by David Chalmers 
August 22nd, 2014 at 8:59 am
That’s great information. So you are saying that potassium dichromate has a shelf life. I absolutely agree and that comes from my experiments, but many of my carbon printer colleagues are saying that it does not have a shelf life!
November 19th, 2014 at 12:28 am
DAS has frwat shelf lude as a working stick of ready to use tissue
PD in soloution ia good for 6 months or so. I have not used stock older than this as it is usually replenished.
Have you tried using DAS yet?