JP2010047700A - Aqueous ink-jet ink, and ink-jet printing method using the same - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an aqueous ink-jet ink good in printed image flexibility and ink-jet head maintenance, high in the scratch resistance of printed images as well, and giving high-grade prined images with no occurrence of beadings or the like and good ink storage stability, and to provide a printing method using the same. <P>SOLUTION: The aqueous ink-jet ink to be used for printing on a printing medium under heating is provided, comprising a pigment, a free water-soluble acrylic copolymer resin, a water-dispersible polymeric microparticles, and a water-miscible organic solvent selected from glycol ethers or ≥4C 1,2-alkanediols. In this ink, the Tg of the free water-soluble acrylic copolymer resin is 65°C or higher, and the Tg of the water-dispersible polymeric microparticles is lower than 50°C. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an aqueous inkjet ink used for printing by heating a recording medium and an inkjet recording method using the same.

  In recent years, inkjet recording methods can be easily and inexpensively produced images, and thus have been applied to various printing fields such as photographs, various printing, marking, and special printing such as color filters.

  Ink jet inks used in such an ink jet recording method include water-based inks composed of water and a small amount of organic solvent, non-aqueous inks substantially free of water using organic solvents, and solid inks at room temperature by heating and melting. There are a plurality of inks such as a hot melt ink for printing and an actinic ray curable ink that is cured by an actinic ray such as light after printing.

  On the other hand, a sheet made of polyvinyl chloride, which is a non-water-absorbing recording medium, is used in a wide range of applications such as outdoor postings that require long-term weather resistance and printed materials that require adhesion to a recording medium having a curved surface. ing. As an example of an inkjet ink that can be recorded on a recording medium made of polyvinyl chloride, an inkjet ink containing cyclohexanone is disclosed (for example, see Patent Document 1). Since such an ink-jet ink evaporates and scatters in the atmosphere when the solvent is dried, the burden on the environment is a problem. In addition, there are concerns about odors and safety impacts on workers, and facilities such as sufficient ventilation are required.

In response to the above-mentioned problems, water-based pigment inks are disclosed in which a recording medium coated with a vinyl film or a vinyl resin is used as a recording medium and is heat-fixed using an ink-soluble resin (see, for example, Patent Documents 2 and 3). .) However, it is difficult for the inks described in these patent documents to achieve both of the ejection properties in the inkjet and the flexibility of the image portion that is generally required from the viewpoint of stretching printed materials such as outdoor sign applications on curved surfaces. It was a challenge. Further, particularly when a non-water-absorbing recording medium is used, it is desired to improve image strength against image spots and physical force.
Japanese translation of PCT publication No. 2002-526631 JP 2005-113147 A JP 2007-297586 A

  The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned problems, and its purpose is that the recorded image portion has good flexibility and ink jet head maintenance, and the image portion has good scratch resistance and occurrence of beading and the like. It is an object of the present invention to provide a water-based inkjet ink capable of obtaining a high-quality image without ink and storage stability of the ink, and an inkjet recording method using the same.

  The above object of the present invention is achieved by the following configurations.

  1. In the water-based inkjet ink used for printing by heating the recording medium, at least a pigment, a free water-soluble acrylic copolymer resin, a water-dispersible polymer fine particle, and a glycol ether or 1,2- carbon number of 4 or more It has a water-soluble organic solvent selected from alkanediols, the Tg of the free water-soluble acrylic copolymer resin is 65 ° C. or more, and the Tg of the water-dispersible polymer fine particles is less than 50 ° C. Water-based inkjet ink.

  2. 2. The aqueous inkjet ink as described in 1 above, wherein the water-dispersible polymer fine particles have a Tg of less than 35 ° C.

  3. Water-soluble organic solvents selected from the glycol ethers or 1,2-alkanediols having 4 carbon atoms are propylene glycol monoalkyl ether, dipropylene glycol monoalkyl ether, tripropylene glycol monoalkyl ether and 1,2 The water-based inkjet ink as described in 1 or 2 above, which is at least one selected from hexanediol.

  4). 4. The mass ratio between the water-dispersible polymer fine particles and the pigment (water-dispersible polymer fine particles / pigment) is 0.2 or more and 2.0 or less, according to any one of the above items 1 to 3. Water-based inkjet ink.

  5. 5. An ink jet recording method comprising performing recording on a non-water-absorbing recording medium using the water-based ink-jet ink according to any one of 1 to 4 above.

  6). 5. An ink jet recording method comprising: performing recording using the water-based ink-jet ink according to any one of 1 to 4, and drying a recording medium by a drying unit.

  According to the present invention, a water-based inkjet which can provide a high-quality image and storage stability of an ink with good flexibility of the recorded image portion, good maintainability of the inkjet head, good scratch resistance, no occurrence of beading, etc. An ink and an ink jet recording method using the ink could be provided.

  Hereinafter, the best mode for carrying out the present invention will be described in detail.

  As a result of intensive studies in view of the above problems, the present inventor has found that at least a pigment, a free water-soluble acrylic copolymer resin (hereinafter also referred to as a water-soluble resin), and water-dispersed polymer particles (hereinafter also referred to as polymer particles). And a water-soluble organic solvent selected from glycol ethers or 1,2-alkanediols having 4 or more carbon atoms, and the Tg of the free water-soluble acrylic copolymer resin is 65 ° C. or higher, The water-based inkjet ink characterized in that the dispersed polymer fine particles have a Tg of less than 50 ° C. is excellent in flexibility of an image formed by heating and printing a recording medium and a returnability after maintenance of the head. The present invention has found that the image film has good scratch resistance, high-quality images with no beading, and excellent ink storage stability. Led was is up.

  Conventionally, in water-based inkjet inks, investigations have been made to add polymer fine particles having a low Tg from the viewpoint of fastness and flexibility of an image film on a recording medium, but the ink remaining on the nozzle surface of the recording head is fixed. There was a problem that it was easy and the returnability due to maintenance was low.

  To solve this problem, the flexibility of the image film can be obtained by adding a water-soluble resin having a Tg of 65 ° C. or higher in addition to the polymer fine particles having a Tg of less than 50 ° C. as in the ink having the configuration defined in the present invention. It has been clarified by the inventor's examination that the returnability of the nozzle after maintenance of the inkjet recording head (hereinafter also referred to as recording head or head) can be achieved.

  The effect of the present invention has not yet been clearly interpreted, but is considered as follows.

  By using a water-soluble acrylic copolymer resin having a Tg of 65 ° C. or more in combination with polymer fine particles like the ink of the present invention, even if the ink remains on the nozzle surface of the head, the water-soluble resin having a relatively high Tg It is presumed that the re-dissolvability of the ink itself has been improved and the nozzle can be easily restored by maintenance work. On the other hand, regarding the flexibility of the image film after recording, the contribution of the polymer fine particles having a Tg of less than 50 ° C. is larger than the influence of the water-soluble resin. Is believed to be maintained.

  In addition, glycol ethers or 1,2-alkanediols, which are water-soluble solvents, increase the viscosity of the ink by promoting the formation of a pseudo-crosslinked state between the water-soluble resin and the water-dispersible polymer fine particles when the ink is dried. It is believed that it has the effect of achieving high image quality without the occurrence of beading.

  Hereinafter, the details of the water-based inkjet ink of the present invention (hereinafter also simply referred to as ink) will be specifically described.

[Water-soluble acrylic copolymer resin]
First, the water-soluble acrylic copolymer resin according to the present invention will be described.

  One feature is that the Tg of the water-soluble acrylic copolymer resin used in the water-based inkjet ink of the present invention is 65 ° C. or higher. When the glass transition temperature Tg of the water-soluble acrylic copolymer resin according to the present invention is 65 ° C. or higher, even when ink remains on the nozzle surface of the recording head and nozzle clogging occurs, The nozzle is easily restored by maintenance work by discharging ink by pressure or suction.

  Tg of water-soluble acrylic copolymer resin prescribed | regulated by this invention uses measuring apparatuses, such as DSC-7 differential scanning calorimeter (made by Perkin Elmer), TAC7 / DX thermal analyzer controller (made by Perkin Elmer), for example. Can be obtained.

  As a specific measurement procedure, water-soluble acrylic copolymer resin 4.5 to 5.0 mg is precisely weighed to two digits after the decimal point, sealed in an aluminum pan (KITNO.0219-0041), and placed in a DSC-7 sample holder. set.

  The reference used an empty aluminum pan. As measurement conditions, the measurement temperature is 0 to 200 ° C., the temperature increase rate is 10 ° C./min, the temperature decrease rate is 10 ° C./min, and the heat-cool-heat control is performed, and the analysis is performed based on the data in the 2nd Heat. Do.

  The glass transition temperature draws an extension of the baseline before the rise of the first endothermic peak and a tangent line indicating the maximum slope between the rise of the first peak and the peak apex, and the intersection is taken as the glass transition point. Show.

  The water-soluble acrylic copolymer resin according to the present invention is stably dissolved in ink in order to enhance image fastness (for example, scratch resistance, alcohol resistance), but after drying on a recording medium. A resin imparted with water resistance is preferred.

  As such a water-soluble resin, a resin having a hydrophobic component and a hydrophilic component in the resin can be designed and used. At this time, as the hydrophilic component, either an ionic or nonionic component may be used, but an ionic component is more preferable, and an anionic component is more preferable. In particular, those which are rendered water-soluble by neutralizing anionic substances with a volatile base component are preferred.

  In particular, at least one of the water-soluble resins has a carboxyl group or a sulfonic acid group as an acidic group, and a resin having an acid value of 60 mgKOH / g or more and less than 300 mgKOH / g exhibits the effect of the present invention. Above preferred.

  Hydrophobic monomers for water-soluble resins include acrylic acid esters (for example, n-butyl acrylate, 2-ethylhexyl acrylate, 2-hydroxyethyl acrylate, etc.), methacrylic acid esters (for example, ethyl methacrylate, butyl methacrylate). , Glycidyl methacrylate, etc.) and styrene.

  Examples of the hydrophilic monomer of the water-soluble resin according to the present invention include acrylic acid, methacrylic acid, acrylamide and the like, and those having an acidic group such as acrylic acid preferably use those neutralized with a base after polymerization. Can do.

  As a molecular weight of the water-soluble resin according to the present invention, an average molecular weight of 3000 to 30000 can be used, and a more preferable molecular weight range is 7000 to 20000.

  As a more preferable acid value of the water-soluble resin according to the present invention, those having a value of about 65 to 250 can be used, and as the polymerization method, solution polymerization is preferably used.

  The acidic group derived from the acidic monomer of the water-soluble resin according to the present invention is preferably partially or completely neutralized with a base component. As the neutralizing base in this case, an alkali metal-containing base such as Na, K hydroxide, or an amine (ammonia, alkanolamine, alkylamine or the like can be used) can be used. In particular, neutralization with amines having a boiling point of less than 200 ° C. is particularly preferable from the viewpoint of improving image fastness.

  A water-soluble resin having a hydrophobic monomer as a polymerization component can be used as a free polymer in a range of 0.5% by mass or more and 8.0% by mass or less. More preferably, it is the range of 1 mass% or more and 5 mass% or less. By adjusting the total amount of the water-soluble resin and the water-dispersible polymer fine particles used in the present invention to 1% by mass or more and 10% by mass or less, more preferably 3% by mass or more and 8% by mass or less, good image fastness and injection It is easy to balance stability.

  The free polymer as used in the field of this invention has shown the water-soluble polymer which is not adsorb | sucking to the pigment in ink. Apart from the pigment dispersion, it is a water-soluble polymer added later at the time of ink preparation. When the amount of free polymer is measured by GPC using a supernatant obtained by centrifuging the prepared ink at 10,000 rpm for 30 hours, the amount of polymer added later is detected, and therefore, it is expressed as free polymer.

[Water-dispersed polymer particles]
Next, the water-dispersed polymer fine particles according to the present invention will be described.

  One of the characteristics is that the Tg of the water-dispersible polymer fine particles used in the aqueous inkjet ink of the present invention is 49 ° C. or lower, and more preferably 32 ° C. or lower. If the Tg of the polymer fine particles is 49 ° C. or lower, the flexibility of the film on the image area is enhanced, and the printed area can easily follow the recording medium even when the recorded material is bent or wound around a curved surface. Occurrence can be prevented.

  The glass transition temperature Tg of the water-dispersible polymer fine particles according to the present invention can be determined according to the method for measuring the Tg of the water-soluble acrylic copolymer resin.

  The polymer fine particle according to the present invention may be a dispersion obtained by polymerizing in an aqueous system as it is or may be treated, or a polymer polymerized in a solvent system may be dispersed in an aqueous system. , Urethane, styrene, vinyl acetate, vinylidene chloride, vinyl chloride, styrene-butadiene, styrene-acrylonitrile, ethylene-vinyl acetate, polybutadiene, polyethylene, polyisobutylene, polyester, etc. can do.

  As the physical properties of the ink, it is preferable that there is no shear dependency on the viscosity. From this viewpoint, as a dispersion form of the polymer fine particles, an emulsifier such as a surfactant is made as low as possible, or a soap-free type dispersion polymer that does not use an emulsifier. Particles are preferred. A preferable water-dispersible polymer fine particle is a self-dispersing dispersion of a copolymer obtained by polymerizing unsaturated vinyl having a carboxyl group as at least a monomer component. For example, an acrylic monomer alone such as ethyl acrylate or an acrylic monomer Mechanical dispersion is obtained by swelling a dispersion obtained by emulsion polymerization or suspension polymerization of acrylic acid or maleic acid as a carboxylic acid monomer into a composition comprising an ethylenically unsaturated monomer that can be copolymerized with a monomer, and then mechanically shearing. Is an acrylic hydrosol obtained by dividing the particles. Among acrylic hydrosols, it is preferable to contain styrene in the monomer composition from the viewpoint of increasing the refractive index of the resin and obtaining a high gloss feeling.

  Examples of the alkali include ammonia, triethylamine, 2-dimethylaminoethanol, 2-di-n-butylaminoethanol, methyldiethanolamine, 2-amino-2-methyl-1-propanol, diethanolamine, triethanolamine, and 2-methylaminoethanol. In particular, ammonia, 2-amino-2-methyl-1-propanol, and 2-methylaminoethanol are preferable in terms of dispersion stability of the water-dispersed polymer fine particles.

  As the acrylic hydrosol, Jonkrill (trademark) manufactured by Johnson Polymer Co., Ltd. is commercially available.

  The acid value of the polymer fine particles according to the present invention is preferably 30 mgKOH / g or more, more preferably 40 mgKOH / g or more. When the acid value of the polymer fine particles is 30 mgKOH / g or more, it is preferable in that good redispersion / solubility of the ink dry film can be obtained. The upper limit of the oxidation is not particularly limited, but is preferably less than 110 from the viewpoint of easily obtaining a more stable dispersion.

  The average particle size of the water-dispersed polymer fine particles according to the present invention is preferably 300 nm or less, and more preferably 130 nm or less, from the viewpoint that the nozzle of the head is not clogged and a good gloss is obtained. The lower limit of the average particle diameter is preferably 30 nm or more from the viewpoint of the production stability of the fine particles. The average particle size of the water-dispersed polymer fine particles according to the present invention can be easily measured using a commercially available measuring apparatus using a light scattering method or a laser Doppler method. Alternatively, the dispersion of water-dispersible polymer fine particles can be freeze-dried, and the average particle diameter can be converted from the particles observed with a transmission microscope.

  The content of the water-dispersible polymer fine particles according to the present invention is preferably 0.7% by mass or more and 6.0% by mass or less with respect to the total mass of the ink, and has good fixability (abrasion resistance, alcohol resistance) and the ink. It is easy to obtain long-term storage stability. More preferably, it is the range of 1.0 mass% or more and 4.0 mass% or less.

(Water-soluble organic solvent)
Next, glycol ethers that are water-soluble organic solvents according to the present invention and 2-alkanediols having 4 or more carbon atoms will be described.

  One feature of the ink of the present invention is that it contains at least one water-soluble organic solvent selected from glycol ethers or 1,2-alkanediols having 4 or more carbon atoms.

  Specific examples of the water-soluble organic solvent include glycol ethers such as ethylene glycol monoethyl ether, ethylene glycol monobutyl ether, diethylene glycol monobutyl ether, diethylene glycol monoethyl ether, triethylene glycol monobutyl ether, propylene glycol monopropyl ether, Examples include dipropylene glycol monomethyl ether, dipropylene glycol monopropyl ether, and tripropylene glycol monomethyl ether.

  Examples of 1,2-alkanediols having 4 or more carbon atoms include 1,2-butanediol, 1,2-pentanediol, 1,2-hexanediol, 1,2-heptanediol, and the like. It is done. The addition amount is preferably in the range of 5.0% to 30% by mass, more preferably in the range of 7.0% to 20% by mass, with respect to the total mass of the ink. It is effective to achieve both storage stability.

  Particularly preferred water-soluble organic solvents are propylene glycol monoalkyl ether, dipropylene glycol monoalkyl ether, tripropylene glycol monoalkyl ether, and 1,2-hexanediol. Further, in the propylene glycol monoalkyl ether, dipropylene glycol monoalkyl ether and tripropylene glycol monoalkyl ether, it is possible to select the range of the carbon number of the monoalkyl ether portion from 1 to 3, and the effect of the present invention and the preservation of the ink. This is particularly preferable in terms of achieving both stability.

  In addition to the glycol ethers and 1,2-alkanediols according to the present invention, a conventionally known water-soluble organic solvent may be added to the ink of the present invention within a range that does not impair the object effects of the present invention. it can.

  Specifically, as the water-soluble organic solvent that can be used in the present invention, an aqueous liquid medium is preferably used. Examples thereof include alcohols (for example, methanol, ethanol, propanol, isopropanol, butanol, isobutanol, secondary Butanol, tertiary butanol), polyhydric alcohols (for example, ethylene glycol, diethylene glycol, triethylene glycol, polyethylene glycol, propylene glycol, dipropylene glycol, polypropylene glycol, butylene glycol, hexanediol, pentanediol, glycerin, hexanetriol, Thiodiglycol), amines (eg, ethanolamine, diethanolamine, triethanolamine, N-methyldiethanolamine, N Ethyldiethanolamine, morpholine, N-ethylmorpholine, ethylenediamine, diethylenediamine, triethylenetetramine, tetraethylenepentamine, polyethyleneimine, pentamethyldiethylenetriamine, tetramethylpropylenediamine), amides (eg, formamide, N, N-dimethylformamide) , N, N-dimethylacetamide, etc.).

  In the present invention, when a recording medium made of polyvinyl chloride is used, the use of a water-soluble organic solvent that is highly swellable or soluble in polyvinyl chloride improves the fixability of the pigment as the coloring material. It can improve and is preferable.

  Specifically, heterocycles (for example, 2-pyrrolidone, N-methyl-2-pyrrolidone, cyclohexyl pyrrolidone, 2-oxazolidone, 1,3-dimethyl-2-imidazolidinone), sulfoxides (for example, dimethyl) Sulfoxide) and the like.

[Pigment]
Next, the pigment according to the present invention will be described.

  As the pigment that can be used in the present invention, conventionally known pigments can be used without particular limitation, and any of water-dispersible pigments, solvent-dispersible pigments, and the like can be used, for example, organic pigments such as insoluble pigments and lake pigments, An inorganic pigment such as carbon black can be preferably used. This pigment is allowed to exist in a dispersed state in the ink, and this dispersion method may be any of self-dispersion, dispersion using a surfactant, polymer dispersion, and microcapsule dispersion. Particularly preferred from the viewpoint of long-term storage stability.

  The insoluble pigment is not particularly limited. Dioxazine, thiazole, phthalocyanine, diketopyrrolopyrrole and the like are preferable.

  Specific pigments that can be preferably used include the following pigments.

  Examples of the magenta or red pigment include C.I. I. Pigment red 2, C.I. I. Pigment red 3, C.I. I. Pigment red 5, C.I. I. Pigment red 6, C.I. I. Pigment red 7, C.I. I. Pigment red 15, C.I. I. Pigment red 16, C.I. I. Pigment red 48: 1, C.I. I. Pigment red 53: 1, C.I. I. Pigment red 57: 1, C.I. I. Pigment red 122, C.I. I. Pigment red 123, C.I. I. Pigment red 139, C.I. I. Pigment red 144, C.I. I. Pigment red 149, C.I. I. Pigment red 166, C.I. I. Pigment red 177, C.I. I. Pigment red 178, C.I. I. Pigment red 202, C.I. I. Pigment red 222, C.I. I. Pigment violet 19 and the like.

  Examples of the pigment for orange or yellow include C.I. I. Pigment orange 31, C.I. I. Pigment orange 43, C.I. I. Pigment yellow 12, C.I. I. Pigment yellow 13, C.I. I. Pigment yellow 14, C.I. I. Pigment yellow 15, C.I. I. Pigment yellow 15: 3, C.I. I. Pigment yellow 17, C.I. I. Pigment yellow 74, C.I. I. Pigment yellow 93, C.I. I. Pigment yellow 128, C.I. I. Pigment yellow 94, C.I. I. And CI Pigment Yellow 138.

  Examples of the pigment for green or cyan include C.I. I. Pigment blue 15, C.I. I. Pigment blue 15: 2, C.I. I. Pigment blue 15: 3, C.I. I. Pigment blue 16, C.I. I. Pigment blue 60, C.I. I. And CI Pigment Green 7.

  Examples of black pigments include C.I. I. Pigment black 1, C.I. I. Pigment black 6, C.I. I. Pigment black 7 and the like.

  The average particle diameter of the dispersed state of the pigment contained in the aqueous inkjet ink of the present invention is preferably 50 nm or more and less than 200 nm. When the average particle size of the pigment dispersion is less than 50 nm or 200 nm or more, the stability of the pigment dispersion tends to deteriorate, and the storage stability of the ink tends to deteriorate.

  The particle size of the pigment dispersion can be determined by a commercially available particle size measuring instrument using a dynamic light scattering method, an electrophoresis method, or the like. Accurate and often used.

  The pigment used in the present invention is preferably used after being dispersed by a disperser together with a dispersant and other necessary additives according to various desired purposes. As the disperser, a conventionally known ball mill, sand mill, line mill, high-pressure homogenizer, or the like can be used. In particular, the particle size distribution of the ink produced by dispersion with a sand mill is sharp and preferable. The material of the beads used for sand mill dispersion is preferably zirconia or zircon from the viewpoint of contamination of bead fragments and ionic components. Furthermore, the bead diameter is preferably 0.3 mm to 3 mm.

  Further, in the ink of the present invention, the mass ratio of the water-dispersible polymer fine particles to the pigment (water-dispersible polymer fine particles / pigment) according to the present invention is 0.2 to 2.0. The object and effects of the invention can be further manifested, and in particular, both flexibility and maintenance can be achieved, which is preferable from the viewpoint of increasing the strength of the image film.

(Polymer dispersant)
In the ink of the present invention, a polymer dispersant can be used in the above pigment dispersion.

  The polymer dispersant referred to in the present invention has a polymer component having a molecular weight of 5000 or more and 200000 or less. The polymer dispersant is selected from styrene, styrene derivatives, vinyl naphthalene derivatives, acrylic acid, acrylic acid derivatives, maleic acid, maleic acid derivatives, itaconic acid, itaconic acid derivatives, fumaric acid and fumaric acid derivatives. Examples thereof include a block copolymer comprising at least one kind of monomer, a random copolymer and salts thereof, polyoxyalkylene, and polyoxyalkylene alkyl ether.

  In the case of an acidic polymer dispersant, it is preferably added after neutralization with a neutralizing base. Here, the neutralizing base is not particularly limited, but is preferably an organic base such as ammonia, monoethanolamine, diethanolamine, triethanolamine, or morpholine.

  Moreover, in this invention, it is preferable that the addition amount of a polymer dispersing agent is 10-100 mass% with respect to a pigment.

  The pigment dispersion used in the present invention is particularly preferably a so-called capsule pigment in which the pigment is coated with a resin. Various known methods can be used as a method for coating the pigment with the resin. Preferably, in addition to the phase-emulsification method and the acid precipitation method, the pigment is dispersed using a polymerizable surfactant. It is preferable to select from a method in which a monomer is fed to the substrate and coating is performed while polymerizing.

  As a more preferred method, the water-insoluble resin is dissolved in an organic solvent such as methyl ethyl ketone, and after partially or completely neutralizing the acidic groups in the resin with a base, the pigment and ion-exchanged water are added and dispersed. After that, a production method in which the organic solvent is removed and water is added as necessary is preferable.

  The mass ratio of pigment to resin can be selected in the range of 100: 40 to 100: 150 in pigment: resin ratio. In particular, the range of 100: 60 to 100: 110 has good image durability, injection stability, and ink storage stability.

[Surfactant]
Next, the surfactant that can be applied to the present invention will be described.

  In the present invention, the surface tension of the ink is preferably 32 mN / m or less and more preferably 30 mN / m or less because of the need to have permeability to the water-absorbing recording medium and sufficient wettability to the non-water-absorbing recording medium. preferable.

  The surfactant that can be used in the present invention can be used without particular limitation as long as the surface tension of the ink can be adjusted to 32 mN / m or less, but an anionic compound is used as another component of the ink. In view of inclusion, the ionicity of the surfactant is preferably an anionic, nonionic or betaine type.

  In the present invention, preferably a fluorine-based or silicon-based surfactant having a high static surface tension reducing ability, an anionic active agent such as dioctyl sulfosuccinate having a high dynamic surface tension reducing ability, Nonionic surfactants such as low molecular weight polyoxyethylene alkyl ethers, polyoxyethylene alkyl phenyl ethers, acetylene glycols, pluronic surfactants and sorbitan derivatives are preferably used. It is also preferable to use a fluorine-based or silicon-based active agent in combination with a surfactant having a high ability to reduce the dynamic surface tension.

[Other ink additives]
In addition to the above, the ink of the present invention may be publicly known depending on the purpose of improving the emission stability, compatibility with the print head or ink cartridge, storage stability, image storage stability, and other various performances, if necessary. Various additives such as a viscosity modifier, a specific resistance modifier, a film forming agent, an ultraviolet absorber, an antioxidant, a fading inhibitor, an antifungal agent, a rust inhibitor, a pH adjuster, and the like are appropriately selected and used. For example, oil droplet fine particles such as liquid paraffin, dioctyl phthalate, tricresyl phosphate, silicone oil, ultraviolet absorbers described in JP-A-57-74193, 57-87988, and 62-261476, JP-A-57-74192, JP-A-57-87989, JP-A-60-72785, JP-A-61-146591, JP-A-1-95091 and JP-A-3-13376 Examples thereof include color brighteners, fluorescent whitening agents described in JP-A Nos. 59-42993, 59-52689, 62-280069, 61-242871, and JP-A-4-219266. it can.

〔recoding media〕
Next, the non-water absorbent recording medium according to the present invention will be described.

  The ink of the present invention is suitable not only for printing on a non-absorbent medium such as a vinyl chloride sheet, but also for printing on plain paper, coated paper, inkjet dedicated paper, and the like.

  Non-absorbent recording media include polymer sheets, boards (for example, soft vinyl chloride, hard vinyl chloride, acrylic plates, polyolefins, etc.), glass, tile, rubber, synthetic paper, and the like.

  Examples of the low-absorbency or absorbent recording medium include plain paper (for example, copy paper, plain paper for printing), coated paper, art paper, ink jet exclusive paper, ink jet glossy paper, cardboard, and wood.

  In particular, a preferable non-water-absorbing recording medium capable of obtaining a good image and high image fastness is a recording medium having at least polyvinyl chloride on the recording surface side.

  Specific examples of the recording medium made of polyvinyl chloride include SOL-371G, SOL-373M, SOL-4701 (manufactured by Big Technos Co., Ltd.), glossy vinyl chloride (manufactured by Systemgraph Co., Ltd.), KSM-VS, KSM. -VST, KSM-VT (above, manufactured by Kimoto Co., Ltd.), J-CAL-HGX, J-CAL-YHG, J-CAL-WWWG (above, manufactured by Kyo Show Osaka Co., Ltd.), BUS MARK V400 F vinyl, LITEcal V-600F vinyl (above, manufactured by Flexcon), FR2 (manufactured by Hanwha), LLBAU13713, LLSP20133 (above, manufactured by Sakurai Co., Ltd.), P-370B, P-400M (above, manufactured by Kambo Plus Co., Ltd.), S02P, S12P, S13P, S14P, S22P, S24P, 34P, S27P (manufactured by Grafityp), P-223RW, P-224RW, P-249ZW, P-284ZC (manufactured by Lintec Corporation), LKG-19, LPA-70, LPE-248, LPM-45 LTG-11, LTG-21 (manufactured by Shinsei Co., Ltd.), MPI 3023 (manufactured by Toyo Corporation), Napoleon Gloss PVC (manufactured by Futaki Electronics Co., Ltd.), JV-610, Y-114 ( As described above, manufactured by ICC Corporation), NIJ-CAPVC, NIJ-SPVCGT (hereinafter, manufactured by Nichie Corporation), 3101 / H12 / P4, 3104 / H12 / P4, 3104 / H12 / P4S, 9800 / H12 / P4, 3100 / H12 / R2, 3101 / H12 / R2, 3104 / H12 / R 2, 1445 / H14 / P3, 1438 / One Way Vision (manufactured by Inetrcoat), JT5129PM, JT5728P, JT5822P, JT5829P, JT5829R, JT5829PM, JT5829RM, JT5929PM (above, manufactured by Mactac, MP1100, MP1100 MPI2001, MPI2002, MPI3000, MPI3021, MPI3500, MPI3501 (above, manufactured by Avery), AM-101G, AM-501G (above, manufactured by Ginichi Co., Ltd.), FR2 (manufactured by Hanwha Japan Co., Ltd.), AY-15P, AY-60P, AY-80P, DBSP137GGH, DBSP137GGL (above, manufactured by Insight Inc.), SJT-V200F, SJ T-V400F-1 (above, manufactured by Hiraoka Oryome Co., Ltd.), SPS-98, SPSM-98, SPSH-98, SVGL-137, SVGS-137, MD3-200, MD3-301M, MD5-100, MD5- 101M, MD5-105 (manufactured by Metamark), 640M, 641G, 641M, 3105M, 3105SG, 3162G, 3164G, 3164M, 3164XG, 3164XM, 3165G, 3165SG, 3165M, 3169M, 3451SG, 3551G, 3551M, 3631, 3641M , 3651G, 3651M, 3651SG, 3951G, 3641M (above, manufactured by Orafol), SVTL-HQ130 (manufactured by Lamy Corporation), SP300 GWF, SPCLEARAD vinyl l (above, manufactured by Catalina), RM-SJR (produced by Ryoyo Shoji Co., Ltd.), Hi Lucky, New Lucky PVC (above, produced by LG), SIY-110, SIY-310, SIY-320 (above, Sekisui Chemical) Kogyo Co., Ltd.), PRINT MI Frontlit, PRINT XL Lightweight banner (above, manufactured by Endutex), RIJET 100, RIJET 145, RIJET165 (above, manufactured by Ritrama), NM-SG, NM-SM Co., Ltd. Manufactured), LTO3GS (manufactured by Lucio Co., Ltd.), easy print 80, performance print 80 (manufactured by Jetgraph Co., Ltd.), DSE 550, DSB 550, DSE 800G, DSE 802/137, V250WG, 300WG, V350WG (manufactured by Hexis Ltd.), Digital White 6005PE, 6010PE (or, Multifix Co., Ltd.).

[Inkjet recording method]
In the ink jet recording method of the present invention, when an image is recorded on a recording medium using the ink of the present invention, the recording surface side of the recording medium is heated and recorded. Heating the recording medium is preferable from the viewpoint of improving the drying property and the thickening speed of the ink, obtaining high image quality, and improving the durability of the formed image.

  As the heating temperature, it is preferable to heat the recording medium so that the surface temperature on the recording surface side is 35 ° C. or higher and 90 ° C. or lower. By heating to 35 ° C or higher and 90 ° C or lower, it is easy to obtain high image quality and sufficient image durability, as well as shortening drying time and printing stably without affecting ink ejection. Can do. More preferably, the recording surface temperature of the recording medium is 40 ° C. or higher and 60 ° C. or lower.

  As a heating method, it is possible to select a heating method in which a heating heater is incorporated in the recording medium conveyance system or the platen member and heated from the lower side of the recording medium, or a non-contact heating method from the lower side or the upper side by a lamp or the like.

[Inkjet head]
In the ink jet recording method of the present invention, the ink jet head used when forming the image by ejecting the ink of the present invention may be an on-demand system or a continuous system. In addition, as a discharge method, an electro-mechanical conversion method (for example, a single cavity type, a double cavity type, a bender type, a piston type, a shear mode type, a shared wall type, etc.), an electro-thermal conversion method (for example, thermal ink jet) Any ejection method such as a mold, a bubble jet (registered trademark) mold, or the like may be used.

  EXAMPLES Hereinafter, the present invention will be specifically described with reference to examples, but the present invention is not limited thereto. In addition, although the display of "part" or "%" is used in an Example, unless otherwise indicated, "part by mass" or "mass%" is represented.

Example 1
<Preparation of ink>
(Preparation of cyan pigment dispersion)
As a pigment dispersant, a styrene-acrylic acid copolymer (John Cryl 678, molecular weight 8500, acid value 215 mgKOH / g) 3.0 parts, dimethylaminoethanol 1.3 parts, and ion-exchanged water 80.7 parts are stirred at 70 ° C. Mixed and dissolved.

  Next, C.I. I. 15 parts of Pigment Blue 15: 3 was added and premixed, and then dispersed using a sand grinder filled with 50% by volume of 0.5 mm zirconia beads to disperse cyan pigment with a cyan pigment content of 15%. A liquid was prepared.

[Preparation of water-based inkjet ink]
(Preparation of ink 1)
While stirring 20.0 parts of the cyan pigment dispersion, the water-soluble acrylic copolymer aqueous solution A shown in Table 1 (John Krill 60J, manufactured by Johnson Polymer Co., Ltd., Tg 85 ° C., solid content concentration 34.0%) 5.9 parts were added, and then each of the compounds shown below was sequentially added to prepare an ink composition, which was then filtered through a 0.8 μm filter to obtain ink 1.

Pigment dispersion 20.0 parts Water-soluble acrylic copolymer aqueous solution A (Johncrill 60J) 5.9 parts Water-dispersed polymer fine particles c (Johncrill PDX-7692, manufactured by Johnson Polymer Co., Ltd., Tg 49 ° C., solid content concentration 36 .5%) 4.1 parts 1,2-hexanediol 8.0 parts tripropylene glycol monomethyl ether 10.0 parts propylene glycol 10.0 parts Surfactant (BYK-347, manufactured by Big Chemie) 0.5 part Ion Exchange water 41.5 parts (Preparation of ink 2-16)
In the preparation of the ink 1, the same procedure was carried out except that the water-soluble acrylic copolymer aqueous solution and the type of water-dispersed polymer fine particles, the type of water-soluble organic solvent and the amount added were changed as shown in Table 2. Thus, inks 2 to 16 were produced. In addition, the addition amount of the water-soluble acrylic copolymer aqueous solution and the water-dispersed polymer fine particles shown in Table 2 is expressed as converted to solid mass.

  In addition, the detail of each water-soluble organic solvent described by the abbreviation in Table 2 is as follows.

<Water-soluble organic solvent>
HDO: 1,2-hexanediol TPGME: tripropylene glycol monomethyl ether DPGME: dipropylene glycol monomethyl ether PGPE: propylene glycol monopropyl ether DEGBE: diethylene glycol monobutyl ether DEG: diethylene glycol PG: propylene glycol

《Image formation》
Equipped with a piezo-type head with a nozzle diameter of 28 μm, drive frequency of 18 kHz, number of nozzles of 512, minimum liquid amount of 14 pl, nozzle density of 180 dpi (where dpi represents the number of nozzles per inch, ie 2.54 cm), and maximum recording density Each ink was loaded into an on-demand ink jet printer having a 1440 × 1440 dpi.

  Next, each ink was ejected onto JT5929PM (manufactured by Mactac), which is a recording medium made of polyvinyl chloride, under the conditions of printing resolution: 720 dpi × 720 dpi, head conveyance speed: 200 mm / sec bidirectional printing, and a solid of 10 cm × 10 cm. Images were printed and used as recorded images.

  During printing on a polyvinyl chloride recording medium, the recording medium was heated from the back side and controlled with a heater so that the surface temperature of the recording medium during image recording was 45 ° C. After recording, the recorded matter was dried using a heating fan. The surface temperature of the recording medium was measured using a non-contact thermometer (IT-530N type, manufactured by Horiba, Ltd.).

<Evaluation of recorded images>
The created recorded image was evaluated according to the following method.

(Evaluation of flexibility)
The recording image was formed on a 3 mm diameter stainless steel rod with the formation surface facing outward, and the degree of occurrence of cracks at that time was visually observed, and the flexibility was evaluated according to the following criteria.

◎: No cracking due to bending (winding) ○: Weak cracking is observed when bending (winding) more than 10 times △: Weak when bending (winding) more than 10 times Cracks are observed x: Clearly cracked once bent (wrapped) (evaluation of maintenance recovery)
Ink was continuously discharged for 5 minutes in an environment of 15 ° C. and 40% RH, and then left for 10 minutes without capping the nozzle surface. Thereafter, maintenance work was performed, the returnability of each nozzle was confirmed, and the maintenance returnability was evaluated according to the following criteria.

◎: Normal recovery after one maintenance operation ○: Normal recovery after two maintenance operations △: Normal recovery after three to six maintenance operations ×: Normal recovery after six maintenance operations (Evaluation of scratch resistance)
For each of the created solid images, a scratch strength tester HEIDON-18 (manufactured by HEIDON) was used, and the measurement needle was measured using a 0.8 mmR sapphire needle. The measurement was carried out by conducting a 10 cm scratch test at a constant load three times, and determining the limit load at which no scratched part existed as far as the support as the scratch strength of the present invention, and judging according to the following criteria.

○: 100 g or more Δ: Less than 100 g and 50 g or more ×: Less than 50 g (Evaluation of beading resistance)
About each produced solid image, generation | occurrence | production of beading (image spot) was observed visually, and beading tolerance was evaluated according to the following reference | standard.

◎: Image spots are not generated at any density and a uniform image is obtained. ○: Image mottle is slightly generated at the density of the intermediate area, but a substantially uniform image is obtained. Δ: A weak spot in the image is generated at the density in the intermediate area, but it is within the allowable range. X: A spot in the image is generated in almost all the density areas, and the image is not uniform overall (ink) Evaluation of preservability)
Each prepared ink is stored at 70 ° C. for 2 weeks, and then the ejection cycle and the light emission cycle are synchronized with a CCD camera using the strobe light emission type ink flight observation device described in FIG. 2 of JP-A-2002-363469. The flying state of each ink was monitored. The emission stability was evaluated according to the following criteria.

○: No abnormality in injection for all nozzles during storage for 2 weeks. Δ: Nozzle where bending in the flight direction is observed in storage for 2 weeks, but within a practically acceptable range. X: 1 for storage for 2 weeks. Table 2 shows the results obtained by clogging with more than one nozzle, which is outside the allowable range for practical use.

  As is clear from the results shown in Table 2, the ink satisfying the requirements of the present invention is effective in achieving both the flexibility of the film of the printing portion and the maintenance of the head, and further the occurrence of beading is suppressed. An image was obtained, and the scratch resistance and ink storage stability were also good.

Example 2
<Preparation of ink>
(Preparation of inks 17 to 22)
Inks 17 to 22 were prepared in the same manner as in ink 3 prepared in Example 1, except that the addition amount of pigment dispersion and water-dispersed polymer fine particles and the ratio (mass ratio) thereof were changed as shown in Table 3. Prepared. In addition, the addition amount of the pigment dispersion and the water-dispersed polymer fine particles shown in Table 3 is expressed as converted to solid mass.

《Image formation》
Under the same conditions as in Example 1, a solid image of 10 cm × 10 cm was printed on each polyvinyl chloride recording medium to obtain a recorded image.

<Evaluation of recorded images>
With respect to each of the created recorded images, the evaluation of flexibility and the evaluation of maintenance returnability were performed in the same manner as in Example 1.

  The results obtained as described above are shown in Table 3.

  As apparent from the results shown in Table 3, the ink in which the mass ratio of the water-dispersible polymer fine particles to the pigment (water-dispersible polymer fine particles / pigment) is in the range of 0.2 to 2.0 is It can be seen that both flexibility and maintainability can be achieved.

Claims (6)

In the water-based inkjet ink used for printing by heating the recording medium, at least a pigment, a free water-soluble acrylic copolymer resin, a water-dispersible polymer fine particle, and a glycol ether or 1,2- carbon number of 4 or more It has a water-soluble organic solvent selected from alkanediols, the Tg of the free water-soluble acrylic copolymer resin is 65 ° C. or higher, and the Tg of the water-dispersed polymer fine particles is less than 50 ° C. Water-based inkjet ink. 2. The aqueous inkjet ink according to claim 1, wherein the water-dispersible polymer fine particles have a Tg of less than 35 ° C. 3. Water-soluble organic solvents selected from the glycol ethers or 1,2-alkanediols having 4 carbon atoms are propylene glycol monoalkyl ether, dipropylene glycol monoalkyl ether, tripropylene glycol monoalkyl ether, and 1,2 The water-based inkjet ink according to claim 1, wherein the aqueous inkjet ink is at least one selected from hexanediol. The mass ratio of the water-dispersible polymer fine particles to the pigment (water-dispersible polymer fine particles / pigment) is 0.2 or more and 2.0 or less, according to any one of claims 1 to 3. The water-based inkjet ink of description. 5. An ink jet recording method, wherein recording is performed on a non-water-absorbing recording medium using the water-based ink-jet ink according to claim 1. An ink jet recording method, comprising: recording with the water-based ink-jet ink according to claim 1, and then drying the recording medium by a drying unit.