JP4540517B2 - Thermal transfer image receiving sheet - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a thermal transfer image receiving sheet.

As a method of forming an image using thermal transfer, a thermal transfer sheet in which a thermal diffusion dye (sublimation dye) as a recording material is carried on a base sheet such as a plastic film, and another base such as paper or plastic film A thermal diffusion transfer method (sublimation thermal transfer method) is known in which a thermal transfer image receiving sheet provided with a dye receiving layer on a sheet is superposed on each other to form a full color image. Since this method uses a thermal diffusion dye as the color material, the density and gradation can be freely adjusted in dot units, and a full color image as it is on the original can be clearly displayed on the image receiving sheet. It is applied to color image formation for computers. The image is of a high quality comparable to a silver salt photograph.

In recent years, quality requirements for images have become even higher, not only for dyeing sensitivity (sensitivity) to the receiving layer, but also for light resistance so that the receiving layer after thermal diffusion is less likely to fade even if exposed to light. There is a need for an excellent thermal transfer image-receiving sheet.

Examples of the receiving layer-forming resin include vinyl chloride / vinyl acetate copolymers, vinyl chloride / ethylene acetate copolymers such as vinyl graft EVA, EVA graft EVA and EVA graft vinyl chloride (see, for example, Patent Document 1). . However, the receiving layer described in Patent Document 1 is in an intermediate transfer medium for once transferring ink to thermal transfer and then retransferring it to another recording material, and is in a special mode.

A vinyl chloride / vinyl acetate copolymer has been conventionally added to an organic solvent when applied to a base sheet for forming a receiving layer. However, there is a concern about the deterioration of the working environment due to the use of an organic solvent, and there is a demand for improvement in light resistance after dye diffusion in the formed receiving layer.
Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 6-312583 (Claim 3)

An object of the present invention is to provide a thermal transfer image-receiving sheet having improved light resistance in view of the above-described present situation.

The present invention relates to a thermal transfer image-receiving sheet in which a receiving layer is formed on a base sheet, wherein the receiving layer comprises a silicone oil and an ethylene / vinyl chloride / acrylate copolymer emulsion or an ethylene / vinyl acetate / vinyl chloride copolymer. An ethylene / vinyl chloride / acrylic acid ester copolymer emulsion or an ethylene / vinyl acetate / vinyl chloride copolymer emulsion , which is formed using a polymer emulsion and receives a heat diffusion type dye. Is a thermal transfer image-receiving sheet characterized by containing an emulsifier .
The present invention is described in detail below.

The thermal transfer image-receiving sheet of the present invention is formed by forming a receiving layer on a base sheet, and the receiving layer is made of an ethylene / vinyl chloride / acrylate copolymer emulsion or an ethylene / vinyl acetate / vinyl chloride copolymer. The emulsion is formed using a combined emulsion (hereinafter, each emulsion is collectively referred to as “ethylene / vinyl chloride copolymer emulsion”).
In the present invention, the receiving layer may be formed directly on the base sheet as long as it is formed using the ethylene / vinyl chloride copolymer emulsion. It may be formed on the intermediate layer formed above.

The ethylene / vinyl chloride copolymer emulsion used in the present invention is an ethylene / vinyl chloride / acrylic acid ester copolymer or an ethylene / vinyl acetate / vinyl chloride copolymer (hereinafter, each copolymer is collectively referred to as “ It is also referred to as “ethylene / vinyl chloride copolymer”). The emulsion may contain only one kind of the ethylene / vinyl chloride copolymer, or may contain two or more kinds having different monomer compositions, average molecular weights, and the like.
The ethylene / vinyl chloride copolymer is a copolymer obtained by polymerizing at least three monomers of ethylene, vinyl chloride and acrylate, or three monomers of ethylene, vinyl acetate and vinyl chloride. There is no particular limitation as long as it is a copolymer of a small amount of a small amount of monomers other than these three types of monomers, but an ethylene / vinyl chloride / acrylate terpolymer or ethylene It is preferably a terpolymer / vinyl acetate / vinyl chloride.
The ethylene / vinyl acetate / vinyl chloride copolymer may be a copolymer of an ethylene / vinyl acetate copolymer [EVA] and vinyl chloride. As the EVA / vinyl chloride copolymer, EVA is vinyl chloride. May be obtained by graft copolymerization of EVA and graft copolymer of EVA on polyvinyl chloride. EVA includes those in which all or part of vinyl acetate units in the copolymer is saponified.
In the present invention, the “acrylic ester” constituting the ethylene / vinyl chloride / acrylic ester copolymer is a concept including a methacrylic ester in addition to the acrylic ester. Examples of the acrylic acid ester include methyl acrylate, ethyl acrylate, butyl acrylate, 2-ethylhexyl acrylate, 2-ethoxyethyl acrylate, 2-hydroxyethyl acrylate, n-stearyl acrylate, tetrahydrofurfuryl acrylate, and trimethylolpropane triacrylate. Examples of the methacrylic acid ester include methyl methacrylate, ethyl methacrylate, t-butyl methacrylate, tridecyl methacrylate, cyclohexyl methacrylate, triethylene glycol dimethacrylate, 1,3-dimethacrylic acid 1,3- Examples include butylene and trimethylolpropane trimethacrylate.

The ethylene / vinyl chloride copolymer emulsion may contain an emulsifier such as a nonionic surfactant, a cationic surfactant, and an anionic surfactant.
In the ethylene / vinyl chloride copolymer emulsion, the emulsifier is added in an amount of 0.000 to 100 parts by mass of the ethylene / vinyl chloride copolymer. The amount is preferably 1 to 5 parts by mass.
In addition to the copolymer and the emulsifier, the ethylene / vinyl chloride copolymer emulsion may be blended with known additives for the purpose of storage stability and the like.
In the present invention, as the ethylene / vinyl chloride copolymer emulsion, commercially available products such as SE1320 and S-830 (both manufactured by Sumika Chemtex) can be used.

The receiving layer may also contain other resins other than the above-mentioned ethylene / vinyl chloride copolymer.
Examples of the other resin include polyolefin resin, polyvinyl resin, polyester resin, polycarbonate resin, polyamide resin, poly (meth) acrylic acid resin, cellulose derivative resin, and polyether resin.

In the present invention, the receiving layer may also be formed by blending a release agent in order to prevent thermal fusion with the thermal transfer sheet during image formation.
Examples of the release agent include known ones such as silicone oil, phosphate ester compounds, and fluorine compounds, but silicone oil is particularly preferable.
Examples of the silicone oil include epoxy-modified silicone oil, alkyl-modified silicone oil, amino-modified silicone oil, fluorine-modified silicone oil, phenyl-modified silicone oil, epoxy / polyether-modified silicone oil, vinyl-modified silicone oil, hydrogen-modified silicone oil, etc. Modified silicone oil is preferred.
The release agent is preferably added so as to be about 0.5 to 30 parts by mass with respect to 100 parts by mass of the ethylene / vinyl chloride copolymer.

The receptor layer is formed by appropriately blending known additives such as an antioxidant, an ultraviolet absorber, a light stabilizer, a filler, a pigment, an antistatic agent, a plasticizer, a hot-melt material, and the like. Also good.

Examples of the antioxidant include chroman compounds, coumarone compounds, phenolic compounds, hydroquinone derivatives, hindered amine derivatives, spiroindane compounds, sulfur compounds, phosphorus compounds, and the like known compounds for improving image durability. Can be mentioned.

Examples of the ultraviolet absorber and the light stabilizer include known compounds described in JP-A-1-204788.
Examples of the filler include inorganic compound fine particles and organic compound fine particles.
Examples of the inorganic compound fine particles include silica gel, calcium carbonate, titanium oxide, acidic clay, activated clay, and alumina. Examples of the organic compound fine particles include fluorine resin particles, guanamine resin particles, acrylic resin particles, and silicon resin. Examples thereof include resin particles such as particles.

Examples of the pigment include known compounds such as titanium white, calcium carbonate, zinc oxide, barium sulfate, silica, talc, clay, kaolin, activated clay, and acid clay.
Examples of the antistatic agent include known compounds such as a cationic surfactant, an anionic surfactant, a nonionic surfactant, a polymer antistatic agent, and conductive fine particles.

The plasticizer and the heat-meltable substance are usually added to promote transfer of the obtained thermal transfer image-receiving sheet.
Examples of the plasticizer include known compounds such as phthalic acid plasticizers, phosphate ester plasticizers, and polyester plasticizers.
Examples of the hot-melt material include known compounds having an action of promoting transfer, such as alcohols, ketones, and higher fatty acid esters.

The thermal transfer image receiving sheet of the present invention is formed by forming a receiving layer on a base sheet.
The substrate sheet in the thermal transfer image-receiving sheet of the present invention is not particularly limited, and papers; films or sheets formed from synthetic resins, etc .; laminates obtained by laminating the papers, films, sheets, etc .; etc. Can be mentioned.
In addition, a substrate sheet having a porous structure can also be suitably used in the present invention.
The base sheet has a role of holding the receptor layer and heat is applied during thermal transfer. Therefore, it is preferable that the base sheet has a mechanical strength that does not hinder handling even in a heated state.

The paper is not particularly limited, and examples thereof include cellulose fiber paper, fine paper, art paper, coated paper, cast coated paper, glossy paper, impregnated paper, paperboard, and synthetic paper.
Examples of the synthetic paper include synthetic resin-impregnated paper, synthetic rubber latex-impregnated paper, condenser paper, and sulfuric acid paper.
In the present invention, the base paper may contain additives such as a sizing agent, a fixing agent, a paper strength enhancer, an antistatic agent, a dye, a pigment, a fluorescent brightening agent, an antioxidant, and an antifriction agent as necessary. It may be included.
The base paper can be produced by a method described in, for example, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 1-263081.

Examples of the synthetic resin for forming the base sheet include: polyester resins such as polyethylene terephthalate and polyethylene naphthalate; polycarbonate resins; polyurethane resins; imide resins such as polyimide and polyetherimide; cellulose derivatives; Olefin resins such as polyethylene and polypropylene; ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymers; styrene resins such as polystyrene; acrylic resins such as polyacryl and polyacrylate; polyamide resins such as various nylons; polyvinyl chloride, polyvinyl alcohol, Vinyl resins such as polyvinyl butyral; Ketone resins such as polyetherketone and polyetheretherketone; Sulfone resins such as polysulfone and polyethersulfone; Tetrafluoroethylene-perfluoro Fluorine-based resin such as (alkyl vinyl ether) copolymer; and the like.
The substrate sheet may be a film or sheet obtained by mixing one or more of the synthetic resins, or a film formed by adding a pigment, a filler, or the like to the synthetic resin, or It may be a sheet.

Examples of the laminate used as the base sheet in the present invention include a laminate obtained by laminating a cellulose fiber paper and a film or sheet made of the above synthetic resin, and one or more layers made of the above synthetic resin. Or a film or sheet formed.

The laminate can be produced by a known lamination method such as dry lamination, wet lamination, or extrusion. For the purpose of improving the interlayer adhesion, each of the above layers can be appropriately subjected to primer treatment or corona discharge treatment on the surface thereof before being laminated.
The thickness of the substrate sheet in the thermal transfer image-receiving sheet of the present invention is usually 10 to 1000 μm, preferably 50 to 300 μm, and can be appropriately selected from the range.
In addition, in this specification, the thickness of a base material sheet means the thickness of the whole laminated body, when a base material sheet is a laminated body.

As described above, the thermal transfer image receiving sheet of the present invention may be one in which an intermediate layer is provided between the receiving layer and the substrate sheet.
In the present invention, the “intermediate layer” means all layers between the base sheet and the receiving layer.
By providing the intermediate layer, the thermal transfer image-receiving sheet of the present invention can be made excellent in, for example, heat insulating properties, cushioning properties, barrier properties, interlayer adhesion properties, whiteness, hiding properties, antistatic properties, and the like. .

Examples of the resin forming the intermediate layer and other polymers include polyurethane resin, polyester resin, polybutadiene resin, poly (meth) acrylate resin, epoxy resin, polyamide resin, rosin-modified phenol resin, terpene phenol resin, Examples include ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer resins, polyolefin resins, cellulose resins, gelatin, and casein.

The intermediate layer may be a layer to which a water-soluble polymer is added, for example.
Examples of the water-soluble polymer include polysaccharides such as cellulose resin, starch and agar; proteins such as casein and gelatin; polyvinyl alcohol, ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer, polyvinyl acetate, vinyl chloride-vinyl acetate copolymer. Vinyl resins such as vinyl acetate- (meth) acrylic copolymer, vinyl acetate-veova copolymer, (meth) acrylic resin, styrene- (meth) acrylic copolymer, styrene resin; melamine resin, urea resin, Polyamide resins such as benzoguanamine resins; polyesters; polyurethanes and the like.
In the present invention, the water-soluble polymer is completely dissolved in an aqueous solvent (particle size 0.01 μm or less), colloidal dispersion (particle size 0.01 to 0.1 μm), emulsion (particle size 0.1 to 1 μm). Or the polymer which will be in the state of a slurry (particle size 1 micrometer or more) is meant.

When a urethane resin, a polyester resin, or the like is added to the intermediate layer, a thermal transfer image receiving sheet excellent in interlayer adhesion can be obtained.
Moreover, when the thermoplastic resin having active hydrogen and a curing agent such as an isocyanate compound are used in combination as the intermediate layer, a thermal transfer image-receiving sheet having further excellent interlayer adhesion can be obtained.

For example, when a fluorescent brightener is added to the intermediate layer, white color can be imparted to the thermal transfer image receiving sheet.
The fluorescent brightening agent is not particularly limited, and conventionally known fluorescent brightening agents can be used. For example, stilbene fluorescent brighteners, distilbene fluorescent brighteners, benzoxazole fluorescent brighteners, styryl- Oxazole fluorescent whitening agent, pyrene-oxazole fluorescent whitening agent, coumarin fluorescent whitening agent, aminocoumarin fluorescent whitening agent, imidazole fluorescent whitening agent, benzimidazole fluorescent whitening agent, pyrazoline fluorescent whitening Examples include whitening agents, distyryl-biphenyl fluorescent whitening agents, and the like.
In the thermal transfer image-receiving sheet of the present invention, the whiteness can be adjusted by appropriately selecting the type and amount of the fluorescent whitening agent.

When titanium oxide is added to the intermediate layer, it is possible to obtain a thermal transfer image receiving sheet that conceals glare and unevenness of the base sheet.
Examples of the titanium oxide include rutile type titanium oxide and anatase type titanium oxide, and anatase type titanium oxide is preferable in terms of whiteness.
When the intermediate layer is made of the water-soluble resin described above, the titanium oxide may be added with a hydrophilic treatment applied to the surface, or a dispersant such as a surfactant may be appropriately added and dispersed.

When a conductive inorganic filler, an organic conductive agent or the like is added to the intermediate layer, for example, a thermal transfer image receiving sheet having antistatic properties can be obtained.

The thermal transfer image-receiving sheet of the present invention has a back layer on the surface opposite to the receiving layer-forming side of the base sheet for the purpose of improving the mechanical transportability of the sheet, preventing curling, writing properties, preventing charging, etc. There may be.
In the thermal transfer image-receiving sheet of the present invention, the back layer may be composed of only one layer, or may be composed of two or more layers having different compositions and the like. .

The said back surface layer can be formed from the resin similar to what was illustrated as resin which forms the said intermediate | middle layer, and another polymer.
When forming the back layer, for example, (1) In addition to the above-exemplified resins and the like, an appropriate amount of organic filler or inorganic filler is added, or (2) a resin having high lubricity such as a polyolefin resin or a cellulose resin. When used, a thermal transfer image receiving sheet with improved transportability can be obtained.

When the back layer is formed, curling of the obtained thermal transfer image-receiving sheet can be prevented when a water-holding resin such as polyvinyl alcohol or polyethylene glycol is used as a main component.
When the back layer is formed, when fillers, pigments, and the like exemplified as additives in the above-described receiving layer are blended, writing property can be imparted to the resulting thermal transfer image-receiving sheet.

In order to obtain an antistatic function, the back layer is made by adding a conductive resin such as an acrylic resin and / or various antistatic agents such as fatty acid ester, sulfate ester, phosphate ester, and ethylene oxide adduct. There may be.
The amount of the antistatic agent used varies depending on the layer to which the antistatic agent is added, the antistatic agent used, and the like, but the surface electrical resistance value of the thermal transfer image-receiving sheet is 10 ¹³ in order to prevent paper feeding troubles. Usually, it is preferably used in an amount of 0.01 to 3 g / m ² after drying so as to be Ω / cm ² or less.

If the said back surface layer is the quantity used as 3 g / m < ² > or less after drying as a whole, it can usually show the various effects which are aimed.

The receiving layer in the thermal transfer image-receiving sheet of the present invention is formed using the above-mentioned ethylene / vinyl chloride copolymer emulsion.
The method for forming the receiving layer using the ethylene / vinyl chloride copolymer emulsion is not particularly limited. For example, a coating solution is prepared from the above-mentioned ethylene / vinyl chloride copolymer emulsion, and the coating layer is coated. It can be produced by a known method such as a coating method in which the liquid is applied on a substrate sheet or an intermediate layer and dried.

The receptor layer can be applied by a general method such as roll coating, bar coating, gravure coating, gravure reverse coating, comma coating, die coating, or lip coating.
In the coating of the receiving layer, the coating solution may be composed only of the above-mentioned ethylene / vinyl chloride copolymer emulsion, or the above-described other components may be added to the ethylene / vinyl chloride copolymer emulsion. These resins, mold release agents and / or additives may be appropriately blended and prepared.

The coating liquid used in the coating of the receiving layer has a solid concentration of usually 5% by mass or more. The upper limit of the solid content concentration is usually 50% by mass or less because if the concentration becomes too high, the storage stability may decrease and the viscosity may increase.
In the coating of the receiving layer, drying is preferably performed in the range of 50 to 150 ° C., although it varies depending on the composition of the coating solution used.
The coating solution is preferably applied such that the receiving layer has an amount of 0.5 to 10 g / m ² after drying.

Although it does not specifically limit as a method of forming the intermediate | middle layer and back surface layer in the thermal transfer image receiving sheet of this invention, For example, the method etc. which prepare and apply the coating liquid which consists of the above-mentioned structural component are mentioned.
In the above-described coating of the intermediate layer and the back layer, the solvent for preparing the coating liquid is water; alcohols such as ethanol and propanol; cellosolves such as methyl cellosolve and ethyl cellosolve; toluene, xylene, chlorobenzene. Aromatics such as acetone and methyl ethyl ketone; ester solvents such as ethyl acetate and butyl acetate; ethers such as tetrahydrofuran and dioxane; chlorine solvents such as chloroform and trichloroethylene; dimethylformamide and N-methylpyrrolidone And nitrogen-containing solvents such as dimethyl sulfoxide.

In each coating for forming each layer in the present invention, a known resin surface modification such as primer treatment may be performed after coating in order to smooth the layer surface.

The method for forming an image on the image receiving surface of the thermal transfer image receiving sheet of the present invention is not particularly limited, and can be performed by a known thermal diffusion transfer method (sublimation thermal transfer method).
The thermal transfer sheet used for the image formation is not particularly limited. For example, a conventional thermal transfer sheet in which a dye layer containing a thermal diffusion dye (sublimation dye) is provided on a base sheet such as a polyester film. Can be used.
In particular, the thermal transfer sheet is preferably composed of a dye layer made of a polyacetal resin and a base sheet made of a polyester resin.

The thermal transfer image receiving sheet of the present invention may be formed by transferring a protective layer to the image forming surface after forming an image on the image receiving surface of the thermal transfer image receiving sheet. By transferring the protective layer, the light resistance of the obtained sheet can be further improved, and durability such as sebum resistance can be improved.

The protective layer can be formed from a known protective layer forming resin such as a thermoplastic resin, a heat crosslinkable resin, or an ionizing radiation crosslinkable resin.
Examples of the thermoplastic resin include polyester resins, polycarbonate resins, urethane resins, epoxy resins, phenoxy resins, and resins obtained by modifying these resins with silicone.
The protective layer may be formed by blending one or more thermoplastic resins, thermally crosslinkable resins, and ionizing radiation crosslinked resins.
In addition to the resin, the protective layer may be formed by appropriately blending the additives described for the receiving layer, such as an ultraviolet blocking resin, an ultraviolet absorber, a conductive resin, and a filler, as necessary. .

The protective layer may be composed of only one layer, or may be composed of two or more layers having different compositions and the like.
The protective layer may have an adhesive layer in order to improve transferability to the thermal transfer image receiving sheet (printed material), adhesion, and the like.
Although the said adhesive bond layer can be formed from a conventionally well-known thing, it is more preferable to form from a thermoplastic resin whose glass transition temperature (Tg) is 50-80 degreeC.
Examples of the thermoplastic resin include those having a glass transition temperature within the above range from polyester resin, vinyl chloride-vinyl acetate copolymer resin, acrylic resin, butyral resin, epoxy resin, polyamide resin, vinyl chloride resin, and the like. It is preferable to select. In terms of adhesiveness, the thermoplastic resin preferably has a smaller average molecular weight.
The said protective layer is 0.1-30 micrometers normally in the whole layer, Preferably it can be set as the thickness of 0.5-5 micrometers.

Since the thermal transfer image-receiving sheet of the present invention has the above-described configuration, it is excellent in light resistance and has a dye dyeing property comparable to that of a receiving layer made of a vinyl chloride / vinyl acetate copolymer conventionally coated using an organic solvent. Also has.

Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in more detail with reference to Examples and Comparative Examples, but the present invention is not limited to these Examples and Comparative Examples.
In the text, “part” or “%” is based on mass unless otherwise specified.

Example 1
As a base sheet, synthetic paper (YUPO FPG-150, thickness 150 μm, manufactured by Oji Oil Chemical Co., Ltd.) was used. On one surface of this, a primer layer coating solution having the following composition was dried with a wire bar (100 ° C. 1 minute), and then applied to an amount of 1.0 g / m ² , and on the obtained primer layer, the receiving layer coating solution having the following composition was dried with a wire bar (130 ° C., 1 minute). ) After that, it was applied so as to have an amount of 4.0 g / m ² to obtain the thermal transfer image receiving sheet of the present invention.
(Primer layer coating solution)
Polyester (Vaironal MD-1480, solid content concentration 25%; manufactured by Toyobo Co., Ltd.)
100 parts water 25 parts (receptive layer coating solution composition)
Ethylene / vinyl chloride / acrylic acid ester copolymer emulsion (SE1320, solid content concentration 50%; manufactured by Sumika Chemitex Corporation)
100 parts polyether-modified silicone (KF-615A, manufactured by Shin-Etsu Chemical Co., Ltd.) 2.5 parts water 160 parts

Example 2
A thermal transfer image-receiving sheet was prepared in the same manner as in Example 1 except that S-830 (ethylene / vinyl acetate / vinyl chloride copolymer emulsion, solid content concentration 50%, manufactured by Sumika Chemitex Corporation) was used instead of SE1320. .

Comparative Examples 1-4
A thermal transfer image-receiving sheet was prepared in the same manner as in Example 1 except that instead of the receiving layer coating solution of Example 1, the products shown in Table 1 were used and a receiving layer having the following composition was prepared.
(Comparative Example 1)
Vinyl chloride / vinyl acetate copolymer resin (Solvine C, manufactured by Nissin Chemical Industry Co., Ltd.) 100 parts Polyether-modified silicone (KF-615A, manufactured by Shin-Etsu Chemical Co., Ltd.) 5 parts Methyl ethyl ketone 210 parts Toluene 210 parts (Comparative Example 2)
Polyester (Vaironal MD-1200, solid content concentration 30%; manufactured by Toyobo Co., Ltd.)
100 parts polyether-modified silicone (KF-615A, manufactured by Shin-Etsu Chemical Co., Ltd.) 1.5 parts water 56 parts (Comparative Example 3)
Polyester (Vaironal MD-1500, solid content concentration 30%; manufactured by Toyobo Co., Ltd.)
100 parts polyether-modified silicone (KF-615A, manufactured by Shin-Etsu Chemical Co., Ltd.) 1.5 parts water 56 parts (Comparative Example 4)
Acrylic resin (AQ4635, solid content concentration 30%; manufactured by Daicel Chemical Industries) 100 parts Polyether-modified silicone (KF-615A, manufactured by Shin-Etsu Chemical Co., Ltd.) 1.5 parts Water 56 parts

Test Example Thermal transfer image-receiving sheets of Examples and Comparative Examples were evaluated by the following methods.
<Evaluation method>
1. A printing method printer (P-330, manufactured by Olympus) and a thermal transfer sheet (for P-330) were used, and each of the thermal transfer image receiving sheets of Examples 1-2 and Comparative Examples 1-4 was used. Yellow, magenta, After the gradation pattern was printed in the order of cyan, the protective layer was transferred to obtain a printed matter.

2. Dyeing ability (sensitivity)
About the printed matter obtained from each Example and each comparative example, it measured using the chromaticity meter (Macbeth densitometer RD-918; Macbeth company make). The value obtained in Comparative Example 1 was 5 points (reference), 6 to 10 points were better than the standard, and 1 to 4 points were inferior to the standard.
3. Light-resistant prints obtained from each Example and each Comparative Example were irradiated with 400 kJ / m ² using a xenon weatherometer (Atlas Ci4000), and the density change and color difference of the image before and after irradiation were measured with a chromaticity meter. (Macbeth RD-918; manufactured by Macbeth) and a color difference meter (CR321; manufactured by Minolta).
The value obtained in Comparative Example 1 was 5 points (reference), 6 to 10 points were better than the standard, and 1 to 4 points were inferior to the standard.

Each evaluation result is shown in Table 1.

From each evaluation result, in the receiving layer, in the comparative example 4 using the acrylic resin with water, the dye dyeing property is inferior, and in the comparative examples 2-3 using the polyester and water, the vinyl chloride / vinyl acetate copolymer is used. Although it was dye dyeing property comparable to Comparative Example 1 using an organic solvent and inferior in light resistance, in Examples 1-2, while maintaining dye dyeing property exceeding Comparative Examples 1-3, It turned out that the light resistance far superior to Comparative Examples 1-4 was shown.

Since the thermal transfer image-receiving sheet of the present invention has the above-described configuration, it is excellent in light resistance and has a dye dyeing property comparable to that of a receiving layer made of a vinyl chloride / vinyl acetate copolymer conventionally coated using an organic solvent. Also has.

Claims (2)

In the thermal transfer image receiving sheet formed by forming a receiving layer on the base sheet,
The receiving layer is formed using silicone oil and an ethylene / vinyl chloride / acrylic acid ester copolymer emulsion or an ethylene / vinyl acetate / vinyl chloride copolymer emulsion, and receives a heat diffusion type dye. der which is,
The thermal transfer image-receiving sheet, wherein the ethylene / vinyl chloride / acrylic acid ester copolymer emulsion or the ethylene / vinyl acetate / vinyl chloride copolymer emulsion contains an emulsifier . 2. The thermal transfer image receiving sheet according to claim 1, wherein after the image is formed on the image receiving surface of the thermal transfer image receiving sheet, a protective layer is transferred to the image forming surface.