INK DISPERSION

• US 20120103542A1
• Filed: 10/29/2010
• Published: 05/03/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 10/29/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. (HP Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. (HP Inc.)
• Inventors: Ng, Hou T., Bhattacharyya, Manoj K., Tom, Howard S.
• Granted Patent: US 8,764,894 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 162/5
• CPC Class Codes: C09D 11/32 characterised by colouring agents
• CPC Class Codes: C09D 11/38 characterised by non-macromolecular additives other than solvents, pigments or dyes
• CPC Class Codes: C09D 11/40 Ink-sets specially adapted for multi-colour inkjet printing
• CPC Class Codes: C09D 11/54 Inks based on two liquids, one liquid being the ink, the other liquid being a reaction solution, a fixer or a treatment solution for the ink
• CPC Class Codes: D21C 5/02 Working-up waste paper mechanical part D21B1/08, D21B1/32
• CPC Class Codes: Y02W 30/64 Paper recycling

Abstract

An ink dispersion includes an ink vehicle and a colorant dispersed in the ink vehicle. The ink vehicle includes a non-ionic surfactant and a solvent. The non-ionic surfactant has an HLB value ranges from about 5 to about 16, and is chosen from: i) a material represented by one of the formulas R₁—O—(OR₂)_n—H, R₁—(OR₂)_n—OH or R₁—C₆H₄—(OR₂)_n—OH, wherein: R₁ is chosen from a) a linear or cyclic alkyl group including from 3 to 20 carbon atoms, or b) a substituted or non-substituted alkyl group including from 6 to 18 carbon atoms, R₂ is chosen from CH₂CH₂ or CH₂CH₂CH₂, and n is an integer chosen from 2 to 100; or ii) a diester having at least one ethylene oxide repeating unit; or iii) an octylphenol having at least one ethylene oxide repeating unit.

Claims

1. An ink dispersion, comprising:

an ink vehicle, including;

a non-ionic surfactant having an HLB value ranging from about 5 to about 16, the non-ionic surfactant being chosen from i) a material represented by one of the formulas R₁—

O—

(OR₂)_n—

H, R₁—

(OR₂)_n—

OH or R₁—

C₆H₄—

(OR₂)_n—

OH, wherein;

R₁ is chosen from a) a linear or cyclic alkyl group including from 3 to 20 carbon atoms, or b) a substituted or non-substituted alkyl group including from 6 to 18 carbon atoms, R₂ is chosen from CH₂CH₂ or CH₂CH₂CH₂, and n is an integer chosen from 2 to 100;

or ii) a diester having at least one ethylene oxide repeating unit, or iii) an octylphenol having at least one ethylene oxide repeating unit; and

a solvent; and

a colorant dispersed in the ink vehicle.

2. The ink dispersion as defined in claim 1 wherein the ink vehicle further includes an anionic surfactant or a cationic surfactant.

3. The ink dispersion as defined in claim 1 wherein the anionic surfactant is present in amount ranging from about 1 wt % to about 10 wt % with respect to a colorant loading, and wherein the non-ionic surfactant is present in an amount ranging from about 2 wt % to about 20 wt % with respect to the colorant loading.

4. The ink dispersion as defined in claim 1 wherein the non-ionic surfactant is chosen from an ethoxylated fatty alcohol represented by the formula CH₃(CH₂)_m(OCH₂CH₂)_nOH, wherein m is an integer ranging from 1 to 18, and n is an integer ranging from 1 to 200.

5. The ink dispersion as defined in claim 4 wherein the non-ionic surfactant is chosen from C₁₆H₃₃—

(OCH₂CH₂)₂OH, C₁₂H₂₅—

(OCH₂CH₂)₄OH, H(OCH₂CH₂)₈—

OCH₂(CH₂)₁₆CH₃, C₁₈H₃₅—

(OCH₂CH₂)₁₀OH, C₁₈H₃₅—

(OCH₂CH₂)₂₀OH, and combinations thereof.

6. The ink dispersion as defined in claim 4 wherein the non-ionic surfactant is chosen from decaethylene glycol monododecyl ether, diethylene glycol monodecyl ether, diethylene glycol monohexadecyl ether, diethylene glycol monooctyl ether, diethylene glycol monotetradecyl ether, ethylene glycol monodecyl ether, ethylene glycol monohexadecyl ether, ethylene glycol monooctadecyl ether, ethylene glycol monooctyl ether, heptaethylene glycol monodecyl ether, heptaethylene glycol monododecyl ether, heptaethylene glycol monohexadecyl ether, hexaethylene glycol monodecyl ether, hexaethylene glycol monododecyl ether, hexaethylene glycol monohexadecyl ether, hexaethylene glycol monooctadecyl ether, hexaethylene glycol monotetradecyl ether, octylphenyl polyethylene glycol, nonylphenyl polyethylene glycol, octaethylene glycol monodecyl ether, octaethylene glycol monododecyl ether, octaethylene glycol monohexadecyl ether, octaethylene glycol monotetradecyl ether, pentaethylene glycol monodecyl ether, pentaethylene glycol monododecyl ether, pentaethylene glycol monohexadecyl ether, pentaethylene glycol monohexyl ether, pentaethylene glycol monooctadecyl ether, pentaethylene glycol monooctyl ether, pentaethylene glycol monotetradecyl ether, polyoxyethylene (10) tridecyl ether, polyoxyethylene (8) stearate, polyoxyethylene (25) propylene glycol stearate, steareth-100, tetraethylene glycol monodecyl ether, tetraethylene glycol monododecyl ether, tetraethylene glycol monohexadecyl ether, tetraethylene glycol monooctadecyl ether, tetraethylene glycol monooctyl ether, tetraethylene glycol monotetradecyl ether, polyethylene glycol p-(1,1,3,3-tetramethylbutyl)-phenyl ether, and combinations thereof.

7. The ink dispersion as defined in claim 1 wherein the non-ionic surfactant is a displector, and wherein the displector, when combined with a frother from a waste paper recycling system, enables deinking of the colorant from a medium on which the colorant is established.

8. The ink dispersion as defined in claim 1 wherein the ink dispersion is a water-based dispersion or a latex-based dispersion.

9. The ink dispersion as defined in claim 1 wherein the solvent is water, and the ink vehicle further includes a co-solvent present in an amount ranging from about 0.1 wt % to about 30 wt % of a total weight percent of the ink dispersion.

10. The ink dispersion as defined in claim 9 wherein the co-solvent is chosen from 1,2-hexanediol, 2-pyrrolidinone, di-(2-hydroxyethyl)-5,5-dimethylhydantoin, and combinations thereof.

11. The ink dispersion as defined in claim 1 wherein the ink vehicle further includes a biocide present in an amount ranging from about 0.01 wt % to about 0.2 wt % of a total weight percent of the ink dispersion.

12. The ink dispersion as defined in claim 1 wherein the colorant is chosen from at least one of a pigment or a dye, and wherein the colorant is present in an amount ranging from about 3 wt % to about 6 wt % of a total weight percent of the ink dispersion.

13. The ink dispersion as defined in claim 12 wherein the pigment is chosen from a self-dispersed pigment, a polymer-attached pigment, a surfactant-absorbed pigment, a polymer-coated pigment, or combinations thereof.

14. The ink dispersion as defined in claim 12 wherein the dye is chosen from a water-soluble dye, a pigment-coated dye, or combinations thereof.

15. An ink system, comprising:

a printing system, including;

at least one ink chamber for storing an ink, the ink including;

an anionic surfactant, a cationic surfactant, or combinations thereof;

a non-ionic surfactant having an HLB value ranging from about 5 to about 16, the non-ionic surfactant being represented by R₁—

O—

(OR₂)_n—

H, R₁—

(OR₂)_n—

OH, or R₁—

C₆H₄—

(OR₂)_n—

OH, wherein;

R₁ is chosen from i) a linear or cyclic alkyl group including from 3 to 20 carbon atoms, or ii) a substituted or non-substituted alkyl group including from 6 to 18 carbon atoms;

R₂ is chosen from CH₂CH₂ or CH₂CH₂CH₂; and

n is an integer chosen from 2 to 100;

a solvent; and

a colorant dispersed therein; and

at least one fluid ejector for depositing, onto a medium, a portion of the ink retrieved from the at least one ink chamber; and

the medium upon which the portion of the ink is to be deposited.

16. The ink system as defined in claim 15 wherein the printing system is a digital printing system that uses thermal inkjet printing or piezoelectric inkjet printing.

17. The ink system as defined in claim 15 wherein the HLB value of the non-ionic surfactant ranges from about 8 to about 13.

18. The ink system as defined in claim 15 wherein the non-ionic surfactant is chosen from C₁₆H₃₃—

(OCH₂CH₂)₂OH, C₁₂H₂₅—

(OCH₂CH₂)₄OH, H(OCH₂CH₂)₈—

OCH₂(CH₂)₁₆CH₃, C₁₈H₃₅—

(OCH₂CH₂)₁₀OH, C₁₈H₃₅—

(OCH₂CH₂)₂₀OH, or combinations thereof.

19. The ink system as defined in claim 15 wherein the anionic surfactant is present in amount ranging from about 1 wt % to about 10 wt % with respect to a colorant loading, and wherein the non-ionic surfactant is present in an amount ranging from about 2 wt % to about 20 wt % with respect to the colorant loading.

20. A method of deinking a printed medium, comprising:

converting the printed medium into a slurry, the slurry including pulp and an ink that was printed on the medium; and

separating the ink from the slurry by interacting a deinking component of the ink with a colorant that is present in the ink, the deinking component being chosen from a non-ionic surfactant having an HLB value ranging from about 5 to about 16, the non-ionic surfactant being represented by R₁—

O—

(OR₂)_n—

H, R₁—

(OR₂)_n—

OH, or R₁—

C₆H₄—

(OR₂)_n—

OH, wherein;

R₁ is chosen from i) a linear or cyclic alkyl group including from 3 to 20 carbon atoms, or ii) a substituted or non-substituted alkyl group including from 6 to 18 carbon atoms;

R₂ is chosen from CH₂CH₂ or CH₂CH₂CH₂; and

n is an integer chosen from 2 to 100.

21. The method as defined in claim 20 wherein the printed medium includes digital printed papers.

22. The method as defined in claim 20, further comprising removing the separated ink from the slurry by incorporating a frother into the slurry.