Curable inkjet ink

• US 20070139476A1
• Filed: 12/12/2006
• Published: 06/21/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 12/15/2005
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: E. I. du Pont de Nemours and Company (Corteva, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: E. I. du Pont de Nemours and Company (Corteva, Inc.)
• Inventors: Held, Robert, Schwartz, Nathaniel
• Application Number:
  US11/637,452
• Publication Number:
  US 20070139476A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 347/52
• CPC Class Codes: B41M 5/0047 by ink-jet printing
• CPC Class Codes: B41M 5/0058 on metals and oxidised metal surfaces
• CPC Class Codes: B41M 5/0064 on plastics, horn, rubber, or other organic polymers
• CPC Class Codes: B41M 5/007 on glass, ceramic, tiles, concrete, stones, etc.
• CPC Class Codes: B41M 5/0076 on wooden surfaces, leather, linoleum, skin, or flowers
• CPC Class Codes: B41M 7/0081 using electromagnetic radiation or waves, e.g. ultraviolet radiation, electron beams
• CPC Class Codes: C09D 11/101 Inks specially adapted for printing processes involving curing by wave energy or particle radiation, e.g. with UV-curing following the printing

Abstract

The present invention pertains to a radiation curable inkjet ink and more particularly to radiation curable ink comprising a specified surfactant mixture which provides compatibility with a wide range of substrates.

Claims

1. A radiation curable inkjet ink composition comprising a polymerizable vehicle and a surfactant mixture, wherein the surfactant mixture comprises at least one fluorinated surfactant and at least one acetylenic diol surfactant.

2. The radiation curable inkjet ink composition of claim 1, wherein the fluorinated surfactant is present in an amount of from about 0.1% to about 4.0% by weight, and the acetylenic diol surfactant is present in an amount of from about 0.1% to about 4.0% by weight, based on total ink weight.

3. The radiation curable inkjet ink composition of any one or all of the previous claims, wherein the fluorinated surfactant is represented by the formula:

(R(f)Q)_nA

wherein R(f) is a perfluoroalkyl group having 6 to 22 carbon atoms, Q is a divalent bridging group, A is a water-soluble group, and n is 1 or 2.

4. The radiation curable inkjet ink composition of any one or all of the previous claims, wherein the at least one fluorinated surfactant is nonionic.

6. The radiation curable inkjet ink composition of claim 4, wherein the acetylenic diol surfactant is represented by the following structure:

8. The radiation curable inkjet ink composition of claim 6, wherein the total of all mono-functional and multi-functional polymerizable monomers amounts to at least about 65% by weight of the total weight of ink.

5. The radiation curable inkjet ink composition of any one or all of the previous claims, wherein the acetylenic diol surfactant is represented by the following structure:

wherein R¹ are R² are independently branched or linear alkyls having 3 to 12 carbons, R³are R⁴ are independently hydrogen or methyl, x and y are integers, and x+y is 0 to about 16.

7. The radiation curable inkjet ink composition of any one or all of the previous claims, wherein polymerizable vehicle comprises a mixture mono-functional and multi-functional polymerizable monomers.

9. The radiation curable inkjet ink composition of claim 7 or claim 8, wherein:

the polymerizable mono-functional monomer is selected from the group consisting of n-octyl-acrylate, n-nonyl acrylate, n-decyl acrylate and combinations thereof; and

the multi-functional polymerizable monomer is selected from the group consisting of ethoxylated 1,6-hexanediol diacrylate, propoxylated trimethylolpropane triacrylate and combinations thereof.

10. A method for ink jet printing onto a substrate, comprising the steps of:

(a) providing an ink jet printer that is responsive to digital data signals;

(b) loading the printer with a substrate to be printed;

(c) loading the printer with a radiation curable inkjet ink or inkjet ink set as set forth in any one or all of the previous claims; and

(d) printing onto the substrate using said inkjet ink or inkjet ink set, in response to the digital data signals, and forming thereby a printed article.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the substrate is selected from the group, paper, glass, plastic, metal and wood.

12. The method of claim 10, further comprising the step of exposing the printed article to radiation suitable for curing the ink printed thereon.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the radiation is ultraviolet light.

14. The method of claim 11, wherein the substrate is a plastic selected from the group consisting of polyvinyl chloride, polyvinyl fluoride, polyvinyl butyral, polycarbonate and polyurethane.