Aqueous Gravure Ink with High-Boiling Solvent
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing aqueous gravure inks, particularly those using ethanol or isopropanol as diluents, are not environmentally friendly and struggle with high-resolution printing due to low boiling point solvents and inadequate depth or line density, limiting their suitability for general printing applications.
Innovation Solution
An aqueous gravure ink composition comprising a pigment, polymer, water-soluble organic solvent with a boiling point between 100°C and 260°C, and water, where the solvent content is between 10% and 35% and water is between 50% and 70%, along with a surfactant, particularly a nonionic surfactant, to enhance transfer ratio and drying properties.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If ethanol or isopropanol is used as a diluent in gravure ink, then the ink can be applied for printing, but the working environment is degraded and VOC reduction is not achieved
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the key parameter of the diluent from low-boiling-point alcohols (ethanol, isopropanol) to high-boiling-point water-soluble organic solvents (boiling point 100-260°C). This parameter change maintains the ink's applicability while eliminating VOC emissions, as the higher boiling point prevents evaporative loss during printing operations.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces expensive special inks (pearl ink, luminescent ink) with a conventional aqueous gravure ink formulation, making high-resolution printing accessible without specialized materials. This approach makes the technology economically viable for general printing applications.
2Ease of operation
If low boiling point solvents are used in gravure ink, then the ink can be applied, but high-resolution printing is difficult to achieve
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the boiling point parameter of the solvent from low (ethanol: 78°C, isopropanol: 82°C) to high (100-260°C). This prevents premature evaporation during the printing process, allowing the ink to remain in the gravure cells until transfer, thereby enabling high-resolution printing at 175-200 lines/inch.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent ensures the ink remains stable and non-evaporating during storage and printing preparation by using high-boiling-point solvents. This preliminary stabilization allows the ink to be properly positioned in the gravure cells before transfer, ensuring high-resolution output.
3Object-affected harmful factors
If water-soluble organic solvent with high boiling point is used, then environmentally friendly printing is achieved, but drying property must be optimized
Solution Approach 1:
The patent optimizes the boiling point parameter of the organic solvent to a specific range (100-260°C). This balanced parameter selection ensures environmental friendliness by preventing VOC emissions while controlling drying time - the solvent evaporates at a manageable rate during the drying process without requiring excessive energy or time.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses water (50-70 mass%) as the primary diluent with high boiling point organic solvent (10-35 mass%). This composition provides sufficient volatility for acceptable drying time while maintaining the environmentally friendly characteristic of minimal VOC emissions. The high water content facilitates evaporation without compromising the green chemistry goal.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The proposed ink achieves environmentally friendly, high-resolution printing with excellent highlight suitability and drying properties, suitable for a wide range of printing applications.
Implementation Method 1
the water-soluble organic solvent has a boiling point of 100° C. or more and 260° C. or less
Implementation Method 2
a surfactant, particularly a nonionic surfactant, to enhance transfer ratio and drying properties
Implementation Method 3
excellent in drying property
Data Source
AI summary
Provided is an aqueous gravure ink that is environmentally friendly, allows high-resolution printing by virtue of its excellent highlight suitability, and is excellent in drying property. The aqueous gravure ink comprises: a pigment; a polymer; a water-soluble organic solvent; a surfactant; and water, in which the water-soluble organic solvent has a boiling point of 100° C. or more and 260° C. or less, in which a content of the water-soluble organic solvent in the aqueous gravure ink is 10 mass % or more and 35 mass % or less, and in which a content of the water in the aqueous gravure ink is 50 mass % or more and 70 mass % or less.