Polyhydric Alcohol Ink Additive Suppresses Image Shift
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional two-liquid reaction type image recording methods fail to produce high-quality images during high-speed recording due to excessive reactivity between ink and liquid composition, leading to image shift caused by volumetric shrinkage and aggregation of pigment or resin particles.
Innovation Solution
Incorporating a trihydric or higher polyhydric alcohol compound with a specific alkyleneoxy group structure in the ink or liquid composition to stabilize the dispersion state and reduce volumetric shrinkage during aggregation, thereby suppressing image shift while maintaining high-speed aggregating properties.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If conventional two-liquid reaction type image recording method is used with high reactivity between ink and liquid composition, then aggregation of pigment or resin particles occurs rapidly, but image shift occurs due to volumetric shrinkage
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a polyhydric alcohol compound with specific molecular structure (containing multiple hydroxyl groups with total molecular weight of 200-2000) as an additive in the ink composition. This changes the physical-chemical parameters of the ink system, specifically modifying the aggregation kinetics and volumetric contraction characteristics. The additive controls the aggregation process to reduce volumetric shrinkage while maintaining fast aggregation speed, thereby resolving the contradiction between productivity and manufacturing precision.
2Productivity
If high-speed recording is performed, then productivity increases, but image quality deteriorates due to image shift
Solution Approach 1:
The polyhydric alcohol compound acts as an intermediary substance in the ink formulation. It mediates the interaction between the pigment/resin particles and the liquid composition, controlling the aggregation process to minimize volumetric shrinkage. This intermediary additive enables high-speed recording while preventing image shift, thus maintaining both high productivity and high manufacturing precision.
3Productivity
If reactivity between ink and liquid composition is increased to improve aggregation, then aggregation efficiency improves, but volumetric shrinkage increases causing image shift
Solution Approach 1:
The patent modifies the ink composition by adding a polyhydric alcohol compound with specific molecular weight and hydroxyl group content. This parameter change affects the aggregation mechanism, allowing efficient aggregation while controlling the volumetric shrinkage that occurs during the phase separation process. The additive adjusts the physical parameters of the system to decouple aggregation efficiency from volumetric contraction.
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 use of polyhydric alcohol compounds with a polyethyleneoxy structure in the ink or liquid composition stabilizes the aggregation process, preventing image shift and enhancing image quality by ensuring accurate placement of the coloring material on the recording medium.
Implementation Method 1
a liquid composition that destabilizes the dispersion state of the pigment in the ink
Implementation Method 2
Incorporating a trihydric or higher polyhydric alcohol compound with a specific alkyleneoxy group structure in the ink or liquid composition to stabilize the dispersion state
Data Source
AI summary
An image recording method including the steps of applying an ink containing a coloring material and anionic resin particles to a recording medium, and applying a liquid composition to the recording medium so as to at least partly overlap with an area where the ink is applied, the liquid composition destabilizing a dispersion state of the coloring material or of the anionic resin particles in the ink. The ink contains a trihydric or higher polyhydric alcohol compound having a group formed by substituting a hydrogen atom of a hydroxyl group by a structure represented by —Rn—H, where R is an alkyleneoxy group including an ethyleneoxy group, and the number of Rs per molecule is 40 or more and 120 or less when the polyhydric alcohol is a trihydric alcohol and is 12 or more and 400 or less when the polyhydric alcohol is a tetrahydric or higher polyhydric alcohol.