Stock material or miscellaneous articles – Structurally defined web or sheet – Discontinuous or differential coating – impregnation or bond
Reexamination Certificate
2002-05-24
2003-08-26
Kelly, Cynthia H. (Department: 1774)
Stock material or miscellaneous articles
Structurally defined web or sheet
Discontinuous or differential coating, impregnation or bond
Reexamination Certificate
active
06610389
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an ink-jet recording material which is excellent in a printing paper feeding and conveying property and a feeding and conveying precision as well as has high ink-absorption property, and a recording method of an ink-jet recording using the same and a recorded material using the same, more specifically to an ink-jet recording material in which chalking immediately after printing with a pigment ink is prevented, and a recording method of an ink-jet recording using the same and a recorded material using the same.
2. Prior Art
As a recording material to be used for an ink-jet recording system, a recording material which comprises a porous ink-absorptive layer comprising a pigment such as amorphous silica, and a water-soluble binder such as polyvinyl alcohol being provided on a support such as a usual paper or the so-called ink-jet recording sheet has generally been known.
Also, in Japanese Patent Publication No. 56552/1991, Japanese Provisional Patent Publications No. 188287/1990, No. 81064/1998, No. 119423/1998, No. 175365/1998, No. 193776/1998, No. 203006/1998, No. 217601/1998, No. 20300/1999, No. 20306/1999 and No. 34481/1999, U.S. Pat. No. 5,612,281, and EP 0 813 978 A, and the like, there have been disclosed ink-jet recording materials using synthetic silica fine particles prepared by a gas phase process (hereinafter referred to as “fumed silica”).
Moreover, in Japanese Provisional Patent Publications No. 276671/1990, No. 67684/1991, No. 251488/1991, No. 67986/1992, No. 263983/1992 and No. 16517/1993, there have been disclosed ink-jet recording materials using alumina hydrates. These fumed silica and alumina hydrates are ultra fine particle shaving an average particle size of a primary particle of several nm to several tens nm, and have characteristics of giving high glossiness and high ink-absorption properties. In recent years, a photo-like recording sheet has earnestly been desired, and glossiness becomes more important. As such a recording material, there has been proposed a recording material in which an ink-receptive layer mainly comprising these fine particles is coated on a water resistant support such as a polyolefin resin-coated paper (a polyolefin resin such as polyethylene, etc. is laminated on the both surfaces of paper) or a polyester film, etc.
However, in these ink-jet recording materials using a water resistant support such as a polyolefin resin-coated paper or a polyester film, there is a problem that they are inferior in a printing paper feeding and conveying property and a feeding and conveying precision at the time of printing, and there are some cases in which continuous feeding of paper is difficult or sufficient printing quality cannot be obtained. In particular, high speed printing of a printer proceeds at present and it has been desired to further improve a feeding and conveying precision to maintain printing quality.
When an ink-receptive layer is provided on such a water resistant support, the support itself does not have any ink-absorption property so that a relatively large amount of a composition for forming the ink-receptive layer shall be coated. In such a case, depending on materials of the ink-receptive layer, a problem of curl which is dependent on environment for preparation occurs so that a paper feeding and conveying property is lowered.
To solve such problems as mentioned above, a back coating layer has generally been provided on a back surface which is a different surface from that on which the ink-receptive layer is provided.
As a means for improving a paper feeding and conveying property of an ink-jet recording material made of paper, in Japanese Provisional Patent Publication No. 266550/1995 or No. 278357/1994, friction coefficients between recording materials and between a recording material and a paper feeding roll have been regulated. However, with regard to a recording paper using a water resistant support, it has different stiffness or modulus of elasticity from usual paper, so that there are portions that cannot judge only by the friction coefficient. Moreover, in Japanese Provisional Patent Publication No. 197839/1996, there has been proposed a recording paper using a film as a support and a back coating layer is provided, and in Japanese Provisional Patent Publication No. 142011/1997, there has been proposed a recording paper in which gelatin is back coated on a support made of a resin coated paper. However, the ink-receptive layers of the above references comprise a polymer component, so that they are inferior in ink-absorption property. Thus, they are difficult to give a high quality printing with a high speed printer and there is no description therein about improvements in a feeding and conveying precision and chalking with a pigment ink.
In Japanese Provisional Patent Publication No. 296669/2000, it has been proposed to prevent from uneven glossiness in case of using a dye ink by providing an ink-receptive layer mainly comprising fine particles such as fumed silica or alumina compound and by using a polymer latex as a back coating layer. However, this recording material uses a regular or irregular shaped fine microrough surface as a support or a surface of the ink-receptive layer is made fine microrough surface by applying a treatment to the surface of the ink-receptive layer, so that a surface glossiness is low and a feeding and conveying precision is rather lowered. Also, there is neither description about improvement in the feeding and conveying precision nor effects on printing quality with a pigment ink or on chalking by ink.
Thus, there have been proposed many measures in various kinds of items but they are insufficient as an ink-jet recording material using a water resistant support and having high glossiness and curl balance and excellent in a feeding and conveying precision.
In an ink-jet recording system, a water-soluble dye ink has been mainly used as ink, which is prepared by dissolving various kinds of water-soluble dyes in water or a mixture of water and an organic solvent(s). The water-soluble dye ink is excellent in preventing from clogging (no clogging) at an ink-projecting head of an ink-jet recording apparatus, and excellent in coloring property and resolution of printed image after printing. However, there is a problem in water resistance of the recorded image since the ink is water-soluble, and the water-soluble dye is inherently inferior in weather resistance (discoloration or disappearance of an image by light, air, temperature, humidity and the like). Thus, there are disadvantages in particular that the recorded image is rapidly faded or disappeared when the recorded sheet is displayed in the open.
On the other hand, whereas a pigment ink is excellent in water resistance and preservability, it has been said to be inferior in coloring property. However, some of recently developed pigment inks are excellent in coloring property than those of conventionally used whereby an ink-jet recording material for pigment ink is becoming more important.
As a problem inherently possessed by the pigment ink other than coloring property, there is mentioned a problem of chalking. The pigment ink has a relatively large particle size as compared with that of a dye and remains on a surface of a recording paper after printing. If its fixing property is not good, a phenomenon of chalking occurs, in which the ink is peeled off when the printed portion is rubbed, so that it is a significant problem of an ink-jet recording material. In particular, in a recording material for an ink-jet recording having a void structure using ultrafine particles, drying property after printing is good, so that there is a high possibility of causing chalking since printed papers are laminated within a short period of time after printing.
For the purpose of improving a feeding and conveying property or blocking resistance, there has been proposed to use spherical fine particle polymer having an average particle size of 5 to 15 &mgr;m in an ink-receptive l
Ishimaru Tomoko
Maruyama Masahiko
Tokunaga Yukio
Kelly Cynthia H.
Magnelli Denison & Selter PLLC
Mitsubishi Paper Mills Limited
Shewareged B.
White, Jr. Paul E.
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