Claims
- 1. A process for applying at least one ink-receiving layer to a non-porous substrate, said process comprising:(a) directly forming a porous base coat on a surface of said non-porous substrate, said porous base coat comprising a plurality of pores; (b) drying said base coat, followed by applying a first rewet liquid directly to said porous base coat to form a wetted base coat; (c) directly forming a top coat on said wetted porous base coat; and (d) drying said top coat, followed by applying a second rewet liquid to said top coat to form a wetted top coat, wherein said second rewet liquid comprises an aqueous-based solution containing at least one species selected from the group consisting of (1) a water-soluble polymer selected from the group consisting of polyvinyl alcohol, polyvinyl acetate, polyvinyl pyrrolidone, polyamides, cellulose derivatives, and polyethylene oxide, present in a concentration of about 0.1 to 5 wt %, (2) colloidal silica, present in a concentration of about 0 to 5 wt %, and (3) colloidal alumina, present in a concentration of about 0.1 to 5 wt %, wherein ad process is performed without cast-coating or lamination and whereby said at least one ink-receiving layer is printable with larger dots of a pigment-base ink gum without said second rewet liquid.
- 2. The process of claim 1 wherein said base coat and said top coat each independently comprise at least one pigment, at least one binder, and at least one solvent.
- 3. The process of claim 2 wherein said base coat and said top coat each contain at least one pigment independently selected from the group consisting of silica, alumina, hydrates of alumina, titania, carbonates, glass beads, and organic pigments selected from the group consisting of cross-linked SBR latexes, micronized polyethylene wax, micronized polypropylene wax, acrylic beads, and methacrylic beads.
- 4. The process of claim 2 wherein said at least one binder of said base coat and said at least one binder of said top coat are independently selected from the group consisting of polyvinyl alcohol and its derivatives, polyvinyl pyrrolidone/polyvinyl acetate copolymer, cellulose derivatives, styrene-butadiene latexes, acrylics, and polyurethanes.
- 5. The process of claim 1 wherein said first rewet liquid further includes at least member selected from the group consisting of (1) at least one surfactant, (2) at least one pH modifier, (3) at least one polymer, (4) at least one crosslinker, (5) at least one pigment, and (6) at least one dye stabilizer, said at least one crosslinker operatively associated with at least one binder of either said base coat, said top coat, or both.
- 6. The process of claim 1 wherein said second rewet liquid further comprises at least one species selected from the group consisting of surface tension reducing agents and cross-linking agents.
- 7. The process of claim 6 wherein said surface tension reducing agent is selected from the group consisting of water-miscible organic solvents, polymers, and surfactants and wherein said cross-linking agent is selected from the group consisting of borates, glyoxal, and organic titanates/zirconates.
- 8. The process of claim 7 wherein said water-miscible organic solvent is selected from the group consisting of iso-propanol and 1-butanol, wherein said polymer comprises a copolymer of polyvinyl alcohol and polyvinyl acetate, and wherein said surfactant is selected from the group consisting of acetylenic ethoxylated diols and non-ionic alkoxylated alkynols.
- 9. The process of claim 7 wherein said surface tension reducing agent is added to said second rewet liquid to a concentration in the range of 0.1 to 50 wt % for said water-miscible organic solvent or 0.01 to 0.5 wt % for said polymer or 0.01 to 5 wt % for said surfactant or wherein said cross-linking agent is added to said second rewet liquid to a concentration in the range of 1 to 10 wt %.
- 10. A method for increasing dot size of a pigment-based ink printed on an ink-receiving layer applied to a non-permeable substrate, said method comprising:(a) directly forming a porous base coat on a surface of said non-permeable substrate, said porous base coat comprising at least one pigment and at least one binder and further comprising a plurality of pores; (b) drying said base coat, followed by applying a first rewet liquid directly to said porous base coat to form a liquid-coated base coat and to ensure saturation of said pores; (c) directly forming a top coat on said liquid-coated base coat, said top coat comprising at least one pigment and at least one binder; and (d) drying said top coat, followed by applying a second rewet liquid to said top coat to form a liquid-coated top coat, wherein said second rewet liquid comprises an aqueous-base solution containing at least one species selected from the group consisting of (1) a water-soluble polymer selected from the group consisting of polyvinyl alcohol, polyvinyl acetate, polyvinyl pyrrolidone, polyamides, cellulose derivatives, and polyethylene oxide, present in a concentration of about 0.1 to 5 wt %, (2) colloidal silica, present in a concentration of about 0.1 to 5 wt %, and (3) colloidal alumina, present in a concentration of about 0.1 to 5 wt %, wherein said method is performed without cast-coating or lamination and whereby said ink-receiving layer is printable with larger dots of a pigment-base ink than without said second rewet liquid.
- 11. The method of claim 10 wherein said base coat and said top coat each independently comprise at least one pigment, at least one binder, and at least one solvent.
- 12. The method of claim 11 wherein said base coat and said top coat each contain at least one pigment independently selected from the group consisting of silica, alumina, hydrates of alumina, titania, carbonates, glass beads, and organic pigments selected from the group consisting of cross-linked SBR latexes, micronized polyethylene wax, micronized polypropylene wax, acrylic beads, and methacrylic beads.
- 13. The method of claim 11 wherein said at least one binder of said base coat and said at least one binder of said top coat are independently selected from the group consisting of polyvinyl alcohol and its derivatives, polyvinyl pyrrolidone/polyvinyl acetate copolymer, cellulose derivatives, styrene-butadiene latexes, acrylics, and polyurethanes.
- 14. The method of claim 10 wherein said first rewet liquid further includes at least member selected from the group consisting of (1) at least one surfactant, (2) at least one pH modifier, (3) at least one polymer, (4) at least one crosslinker, (5) at least one pigment, and (6) at least one dye stabilizer, said at least one crosslinker operatively associated with at least one binder of either said base coat, said top coat, or both.
- 15. The method of claim 10 wherein said second rewet liquid further comprises at least one species selected from the group consisting of surface tension reducing agents and cross-linking agents.
- 16. The process of claim 15 wherein said surface tension reducing agent is selected from the group consisting of water-miscible organic solvents, polymers, and surfactants and wherein said cross-linking agent is selected from the group consisting of borates, glyoxal, and organic titanates/zirconates.
- 17. The process of claim 16 wherein said water-miscible organic solvent is selected from the group consisting of iso-propanol and 1-butanol, wherein said polymer comprises a copolymer of polyvinyl alcohol and polyvinyl acetate, and wherein said surfactant is selected from the group consisting of acetylenic ethoxylated diols and non-ionic alkoxylated alkynols.
- 18. The process of claim 16 wherein said surface tension reducing agent is added to said second rewet liquid to a concentration in the range of 0.1 to 50 wt % for said water-miscible organic solvent or 0.01 to 0.5 wt % for said polymer or 0.01 to 5 wt % for said surfactant or wherein said cross-linking agent is added to said second rewet liquid to a concentration in the range of 1 to 10 wt %.
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION
The present application is a continuation-in-part of application Ser. No. 09/491,642, filed Jan. 27, 2000.
US Referenced Citations (6)
Number |
Name |
Date |
Kind |
4746543 |
Zinkan et al. |
May 1988 |
A |
5275867 |
Misuda et al. |
Jan 1994 |
A |
5576088 |
Ogawa et al. |
Nov 1996 |
A |
5605750 |
Romano et al. |
Feb 1997 |
A |
5989378 |
Liu et al. |
Nov 1999 |
A |
6187430 |
Mukoyoshi et al. |
Feb 2001 |
B1 |
Foreign Referenced Citations (1)
Number |
Date |
Country |
878322 |
Nov 1998 |
EP |
Continuation in Parts (1)
|
Number |
Date |
Country |
Parent |
09/491642 |
Jan 2000 |
US |
Child |
09/545934 |
|
US |