Diacetylene Color Formation via NIR Pre-Activation and UV Irradiation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current methods for achieving multi-color changes in diacetylene-based materials, such as polydiacetylenes, are limited in their ability to produce distinct colors like blue, red, green, cyan, magenta, and yellow, and often require separate steps for irradiation and heating, which can be inefficient and unsuitable for practical applications like multi-color printing.
Innovation Solution
A diacetylene compound with a specific structure that undergoes a color change upon irradiation, combined with a NIR light absorbing agent, where NIR light is used to pre-activate the diacetylene, allowing a UV light source to induce a color change only in activated areas, while unexposed areas remain colorless, utilizing a thermal print head for initial activation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If separate UV irradiation and heating steps are used to achieve color change, then color transformation can be achieved, but the process becomes inefficient and unsuitable for practical applications
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines UV irradiation and heating steps into a single simultaneous operation. The UV light source provides both the irradiation needed for color change and the heat needed for the transformation, eliminating the need for separate heating equipment and process steps. This merging directly resolves the contradiction by improving productivity while reducing device complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The UV light source is made multi-functional by having it perform both irradiation and heating functions simultaneously. This universal approach allows a single device to accomplish what previously required two separate steps, thereby improving efficiency and simplifying the overall process for practical applications.
2Reliability
If polydiacetylene structures are used for colorimetric sensors, then color change in response to stimuli can be achieved, but the requirement for specific structures like liposomes or Langmuir-Schaefer films limits versatility
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the physical state parameter of the diacetylene compound from requiring complex structured assemblies (liposomes, Langmuir-Schaefer films) to a simpler solution where the diacetylene is dissolved or dispersed in a solvent within a coating. This parameter change enables the same reliable color change response to occur on diverse substrates without requiring specific structural configurations.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention creates a composite coating system comprising the diacetylene compound combined with a solvent and applied to the substrate. This composite approach allows the color-forming diacetylene to be delivered and activated on various substrates uniformly, enhancing versatility while maintaining the reliable color change response through proper material composition.
3Ease of manufacture
If electron beam irradiation is used for differential exposure, then multi-color development can be achieved, but the wavelength requirement below 200 nm limits practical application
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the electron beam irradiation system with a UV light source. This substitution eliminates the need for complex electron beam generation and control equipment, using instead simpler and more widely available UV lighting technology. The UV source achieves the same multi-color development capability through differential exposure while dramatically reducing device complexity and improving ease of manufacture.
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
Enables the creation of visible images with distinct colors on various substrates, including thermoplastics and surface coatings, by controlling the color change reaction to produce desired colors without background coloration, enhancing the efficiency and versatility of color formation processes.
Implementation Method 1
Diacetylenes can be polymerised by irradiation with UV light
Implementation Method 2
NIR light is used to pre-activate the diacetylene
Implementation Method 3
utilizing a thermal print head for initial activation
Implementation Method 4
the polydiacetylene can undergo a thermochromic change, e.g. from magenta to red
Data Source
AI summary
The invention relates to use of a diacetylene compound as a colour former wherein the diacetylene compound has one of general formulae (I) to (V). The invention also includes methods of imparting colour to a material including a compound as defined above, which comprises subjecting the material to irradiation.