Radiation-curable inkjet ink for application to glass, ceramic, or metal

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9790388-B2
Application number	US-201514887188-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Oct 19, 2015
Priority date	Oct 19, 2015
Publication date	Oct 17, 2017
Grant date	Oct 17, 2017

Abstract

A radiation-curable ink composition for application to glass, ceramic, or metal by an inkjet printer. The ink composition can be applied to a glass, ceramic, or metal substrate to decorate, protect, etc. the substrate. In some embodiments, the ink composition includes a glass frits component, a chromophore component, and a UV-curable component. The glass frits component facilitates the fusing of the ink component with a glass, ceramic, or metal substrate to which the ink composition is applied. The chromophore component is the primary colorant of the ink composition. The UV-curable component facilitates activation of polymerization upon exposure to ultra-violet (UV) radiation, which causes the ink composition to cure and fix/pin to the underlying substrate. After the ink composition is applied to a substrate and cured by exposure to UV radiation, the substrate is heated to a temperature that causes the ink composition to fuse with the substrate.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A ultra-violet (UV) radiation-curable, frit-based, inkjet ink composition for application by an inkjet printer to glass, ceramic, or metal, the inkjet ink composition consisting of:
a glass frits component, present in the inkjet ink composition in a predetermined concentration, with a melting point of less than 750 degrees Celsius (C) and a median diameter (D50) of less than 10 microns,
wherein the glass frits component is individualized to fuse with a glass, ceramic, or metal substrate after the inkjet ink composition is applied to the glass, ceramic, or metal substrate by an inkjet printer, and after the inkjet ink composition is heated to a temperature above the melting point of the glass frit component and below the melting point of the glass, ceramic, or metal substrate;

a chromophore component, present in the inkjet ink composition in a predetermined concentration, that is individualized to maintain color performance after being heated to 500 degrees C. for 5 minutes,
wherein the chromophore component includes an inorganic pigment that is individualized to obtain a selected color after being fused with the glass, ceramic, or metal substrate; and

an ultra-violet (UV) curable component, present in the inkjet ink composition in a predetermined concentration, that is individualized to an UV absorbance signature of the inkjet ink composition to result, after the inkjet ink composition is applied to the glass, ceramics, or metal by the inkjet printer, in activation of polymerization when exposed to UV radiation,
wherein the UV curable component is individualized to facilitate the glass frits component and the chromophore component being jetted, as part of the inkjet ink composition, by an inkjet of the inkjet printer.

2. The inkjet ink composition of claim 1 , wherein the glass frits component has a melting point of less than 550 degrees C. which facilitates melting of the glass frits component at a temperature that is lower than the melting point of the glass, ceramic, or metal substrate.

3. The inkjet ink composition of claim 1 , wherein the chromophore component is individualized to maintain color performance after being heated to 800 degrees C. for 40 minutes.

4. The inkjet ink composition of claim 1 , wherein the glass frits component comprises between 20 and 45 percent by weight of the inkjet ink composition.

5. The ink composition of claim 1 , wherein the UV-curable component includes a photo-initiator component, and wherein the photo-initiator component comprises any of:
1-hydroxy-cyclohexyl-phenyl-ketone,
2-hydroxy-2-methyl-1-phenyl-propan-1-one,
bifunctional hydroxyacetophenone,
2-methyl-1[4-(methylthio)phenyl]-2-morpholinopropan-1-one,
2-benzyl-2-dimethylamino-1-(4-morpholinophenyl)-butanone-1,
2-dimethylamino-2-(4-methyl-benzyl)-1-(4-orpholin-4-yl-phenyl)-butan-1-one,
bis(2,4,6-trimethylbenzoyl)-phenylphosphineoxide,
2,4,6-trimethylbenzoyl-diphenyl-phosphineoxide,
2,4,6-trimethylbenzoylphenyl phosphinate,
isopropylthioxanthone,
2,4-diethylthioxanthone,
4-phenylbenzophenone,
benzophenone,
4-benzoyl-4′-methyl diphenyl sulphide,
phenyl glyoxylic acid methyl ester,
2,2-dimethoxy-1,
2-diphenylethan-1-one, or
oligo [2-hydroxy-2-methyl-1-[4-(1-methylvinyl) phenyl] propanone].

6. The ink composition of claim 1 , wherein the UV curable component includes a photo-initiator component that utilizes amine to enable the photo-initiator component to result in the activation of the polymerization upon the exposure to the UV radiation, and wherein the amine comprises any of:
Ebecryl 7100,
Ebecryl P-115,
Ebecryl P-104,
Ebercryl LED 02,
Genomer 5161,
Genomer 5142,
Genomer 5275,
Genomer 5271,
CN 371,
CN 383,
CN 386,
Photomer 4967,
Photomer 4771,
Photomer 4250,
Photomer 4775,
Photomer 5006,
Photocryl A101, or
Photocryl A102.

7. The ink composition of claim 1 , wherein the UV curable component includes a monomer component that is any of a linear monoacrylate monomer, a cyclic monofunctional monomer, an aromatic monofunctional monomer, a difunctional acrylate monomer, a trifunctional acrylate monomer, or a tetra/higher functional acrylate monomer, and wherein the monomer component includes any of:
cycloaliphatic acrylate monomer,
2(2-ethoxyethoxy) ethyl acrylate,
tetrahydrofurfuryl acrylate,
lauryl acrylate,
2-phenoxyethyl acrylate,
isodecyl acrylate,
acrylic monomer,
octyldecyl acrylate,
octyl ester,
tridecyl acrylate,
caprolactone acrylate,
isobornyl acrylate,
cyclic trimethylolpropane formal acrylate,
alkoxylated tetrahydrofurfuryl acrylate,
1,4-butanediol monoacrylate,
alip. ureth. acrylate,
alkoxylated hexanediol diacrylate,
1,6 hexanediol diacrylate,
tetraethylene glycol diacrylate,
triethylene glycol diacrylate,
tripropylene glycol diacrylate,
methypentanediol diacrylate,
polyethylene glycol (400) diacrylate,
dipropylene glycol diacrylate,
(Propoxylated Neopentyl Glycol) diacrylate esters,
alkoxylated aliphatic diacrylate,
1,6 hexanediol (EO)n diacrylate,
polyethylene glycol 300 diacrylate,
ethoxylated(20) trimethylolpropane triacrylate,
ethoxylated(3) trimethylolpropane triacrylate,
ethoxylated(6) trimethylolpropane triacrylate,
ethoxylated(15)trimethylolpropane triacrylate, or
propoxylated(3) glyceryl triacrylate.

8. The ink composition of claim 1 , wherein the UV curable component includes an oligomer component that includes any of:
acrylated linseed oil oligomer,
acrylated polyester oligomer,
acrylic oligomer/monomer blend,
aliphatic silicone acrylate,
aliphatic urethane acrylate oligomer,
amine modified polyether acrylate oligomer,
aromatic urethane acrylate,
chlorinated polyester,
epoxidized soy bean oil acrylate,
epoxy acrylate blended with monomers,
epoxy acrylate oligomer,
epoxy novolak acrylate blended with monomers,
fluorinated acrylate oligomer,
hexafunctional urethane acrylate,
low viscosity acrylic oligomer,
low viscosity aromatic monoacrylate,
low viscosity diacrylate oligomer,
low viscosity oligomer,
low viscosity triacrylate oligomer,
modified epoxy acrylate,
polyester acrylate oligomer,
siliconized urethane acrylate oligomer,
trifunctional urethane acrylate,
urethane acrylate oligomer, or
urethane acrylate/acrylic ester blend.

9. An ink composition comprising:
an ultra-violet (UV) curable component, present in the ink composition in a predetermined concentration, that is individualized to a UV absorbance signature of the ink composition to result, after the ink composition is applied to a glass, ceramic, or metal substrate by an inkjet printer, in activation of polymerization upon exposure to UV radiation, wherein the UV curable component includes a monomer component that includes a predetermined amount of oxygen; and
a glass frits component, present in the ink composition in a predetermined concentration, with a melting point of less than 750 degrees Celsius (C),
wherein the glass frits component has a median diameter (D50) of less than 10 microns to facilitate flowing of the ink composition through an inkjet of the inkjet printer.

10. The ink composition of claim 9 , wherein the glass frits component has a melting point of less than 550 degrees C.

11. The ink composition of claim 9 , wherein the glass frits component comprises no more than 70 percent by weight of the ink composition.

12. The ink composition of claim 9 , wherein the UV curable component includes an additive component individualized to facilitate application of the ink composition to the glass, ceramic, or metal substrate by the inkjet printer.

13. The ink composition

Assignees

• Electronics For Imaging Inc

Inventors

• Wang Jiangping
• Tennis Matthew
• Zavada Mark
• Zhang Huilei
• Edwards Paul
• Fage Loius Justus

Classifications

• C09D4/00

  Coating compositions, e.g. paints, varnishes or lacquers, based on organic non-macromolecular compounds having at least one polymerisable carbon-to-carbon unsaturated bond {; Coating compositions, based on monomers of macromolecular compounds of groups C09D183/00 - C09D183/16} · CPC title

• C09D11/101

  Inks specially adapted for printing processes involving curing by wave energy or particle radiation, e.g. with UV-curing following the printing · CPC title

• C09D11/38 Primary

  characterised by non-macromolecular additives other than solvents, pigments or dyes · CPC title

• C09D7/1216

  Chemistry & Metallurgy · mapped topic

• B41M5/0058

  on metals and oxidised metal surfaces · CPC title