Optically Variable Pigment for Printing Ink via Microfibril Detachment
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current methods for producing pigments for printing inks lack the ability to create optically variable structural colors that change with viewing angle and are prone to color degradation when incorporated into a binder, due to the lack of control over refractive index contrast and agglomeration.
Innovation Solution
A manufacturing process involving the formation of optically variable multilayer structures using microfibrils in polymer films, where standing light waves create cross-linked and non-crosslinked polymer layers, which are then detached and optionally coated with functional layers to enhance color intensity and stability, and encapsulated to prevent binder penetration and agglomeration.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If pigment particles are incorporated into a binder to produce printing ink, then the pigment can be used for printing applications, but the binder penetrates the porous pigment particles causing color degradation and loss of optical variability
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies a shell structure (porous pigment particle with controlled porosity) that allows the particle to maintain its optical properties while protecting the internal structure from binder penetration. The shell acts as a barrier that prevents the binder from entering the particle interior, thus maintaining color stability while enabling printing ink production.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent utilizes porous pigment particles with controlled porosity to maintain optical variability through angle-dependent light scattering, while the porous structure is designed to prevent binder penetration that would cause color degradation. The porosity is optimized to allow optical effects without compromising structural integrity against binder intrusion.
2Illumination intensity
If pigment particles are made porous to enhance optical effects, then angle-dependent color variability is improved, but the particles become susceptible to binder penetration and agglomeration
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs porous pigment particles where the porous structure is specifically designed to enhance optical effects through controlled light scattering and interference. The porosity is optimized to maintain angle-dependent color variability while preventing binder penetration that would compromise particle integrity and cause agglomeration.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent creates a composite structure within the pigment particle that combines porous regions for optical effects with protective regions that prevent binder penetration. This composite approach allows the particle to simultaneously achieve enhanced optical variability and maintained structural stability in printing ink applications.
3Illumination intensity
If the refractive index contrast is increased to enhance color intensity, then optical effects are improved, but the pigment becomes more sensitive to binder interaction and color degradation
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses a protective shell structure that maintains the high refractive index contrast necessary for intense color effects while shielding the pigment particle from harmful binder interactions. The shell acts as a barrier that preserves the refractive index difference needed for optical variability without exposing the particle to binder-induced color degradation.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent optimizes the refractive index parameters of the pigment particle to achieve intense color effects while adjusting other parameters (such as surface properties and porosity control) to reduce sensitivity to binder interaction. By carefully balancing these parameters, the pigment maintains high color intensity without excessive sensitivity to binder presence.
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 process results in pigments that maintain intense, angle-dependent color effects and improved processability by ensuring refractive index contrast and preventing binder penetration, while allowing for alignment and enhanced optical effects through magnetic fields.
Implementation Method 1
the polymer film is illuminated with standing light waves, which originate, for example, from the interference of coherent light beams. As a result of the illumination, constructive interferences are formed at certain locations in the polymer film, which lead to cross-linking in the polymer
Implementation Method 2
The tension that arises in the entire polymer layer as a result of the polymerisation of the individual levels is reduced by the development process
Data Source
Figure 1A~1E
Figure 2A~2E
Figure 2F~4
AI summary
A process for producing a printing ink is disclosed. In a first step (S1), a support medium (1) is coated with a template layer (2). This template layer (2) is soluble in a liquid medium. In a second step (S2), the template layer (2) is coated with an optically variable microfibril structure (4), which is generated in a polymer film by the action of standing light waves. In a third step (S3), the template layer (2) is dissolved by action of the liquid medium in which it is soluble, leaving fragments (16) of the optically variable microfibril structure (4) in the medium. In a fourth step (S4), the fragments (16) are recovered from the suspension before being ground into pigments (18) in a fifth step (S5). In a sixth step (S6), the pigments (18) are then suspended in a binder.Furthermore, a pigment (18) is disclosed which has at least one optically variable microfibril structure (4, 8).