Granted Patent B2

US 9,416,285 · App. 14/573,913 · Granted Aug 16, 2016

Abstract

Claims (66)

1. An ink composition, comprising:

an ink base; and

a wax emulsion,

wherein a viscosity of the ink composition is between 80 Pa·s and 400 Pa·s at 100 rad/s and 25° C.,

wherein a tack of the ink composition is between 32 g-m and 45 g-m at 60 seconds,

wherein a total wax content of the ink composition is between 1% and 5% by weight, based on a total weight of the ink composition, and

wherein a total water content of the ink composition is between 1% and 15% by weight, based on the total weight of the ink composition.

2. The ink composition of claim 1 :

wherein the ink composition has a viscosity between 90 Pa·s and 300 Pa·s at 100 rad/s and 25° C.,

wherein a tack of the ink composition is between 35 g-m and 40 g-m at 60 seconds,

wherein a total wax content of the ink composition is between 1% and 4%, and wherein a total water content of the ink composition is between 1% and 10%.

3. The ink composition of claim 2 :

wherein the ink composition has a viscosity of about 150 Pa·s at 100 rad/s and 25° C.,

wherein a tack of the ink composition is about 38 g-m at 60 seconds,

wherein a total wax content of the ink composition is about 2%, and

wherein a total water content of the ink composition is about 5%.

4. The ink composition of claim 3 , wherein the ink base comprises an acrylate and a pigment.

5. The ink composition of claim 4 , wherein the ink base comprises at least one of an acrylate monomer, acrylate polymer, acrylate oligomer, a trifunctional acrylate monomer, a polyester acrylate, and mixtures thereof.

6. The ink composition of claim 5 , wherein the wax emulsion comprises at least one of a polyethylene wax emulsion, a polypropylene wax emulsion, a carnauba wax emulsion, a paraffin wax emulsion, an ethylene vinyl acetate wax emulsion, chemically modified analogs thereof, or mixtures thereof.

7. The ink composition of claim 5 , wherein the wax emulsion comprises at least one an acidic, non-ionic polyethylene wax emulsion and a basic, non-ionic wax emulsion of an oxidized high density polyethylene wax.

8. The ink composition of claim 4 , further comprising an aqueous solution, wherein the aqueous solution comprises:

water; and

a surfactant.

9. The ink composition of claim 8 , wherein the surfactant comprises at least one of a water-dispersible silicone surfactant, a fluorosurfactant, a coalescing surfactant, and mixtures thereof.

10. The ink composition of claim 8 , further comprising at least one of stabilizers, dispersants, photoinitiators, and rheology additives.

11. The ink composition of claim 1 , further comprising at least one of water, surfactants, stabilizers, dispersants, photoinitiators, pigments, acrylates, and rheology additives, and

wherein the surfactant lowers the surface tension of the aqueous solution to below a surface tension of at least one of the ink base and a mixture of the ink base and the wax emulsion.

12. A method of preparing an ink composition, comprising:

preparing an ink base; and

mixing a wax emulsion with the ink base,

wherein a viscosity of the ink composition is between 80 Pa·s and 400 Pa·s at 100 rad/s and 25° C.,

wherein a tack of the ink composition is between 32 g-m and 45 g-m at 60 seconds,

wherein a total wax content of the ink composition is between 1% and 5% by weight, based on a total weight of the ink composition, and

wherein a total water content of the ink composition is between 1% and 15% by weight, based on the total weight of the ink composition.

13. The method of claim 12 , further comprising:

dispersing an aqueous solution to the mixture of the ink base and wax emulsion,

wherein the aqueous solution comprises water and a surfactant, and

wherein the aqueous solution is dispersed in the ink composition an inverse emulsion.

14. The method of claim 13 :

wherein the ink composition has a viscosity between 90 Pa·s and 300 Pa·s at 100 rad/s and 25° C.,

wherein a tack of the ink composition is between 35 g-m and 40 g-m at 60 seconds,

wherein a total wax content of the ink composition is between 1% and 4%, and

wherein a total water content of the ink composition is between 1% and 10%.

15. The method of claim 14 :

wherein the ink composition has a viscosity of about 150 Pa·s at 100 rad/s and 25° C.,

wherein a tack of the ink composition is about 38 g-m at 60 seconds,

wherein a total wax content of the ink composition is about 2%, and

wherein a total water content of the ink composition is about 5%.

16. The method of claim 14 , wherein the ink base is formed by mixing a pigment composition with at least one of an acrylate monomer, acrylate polymer, acrylate oligomer, a trifunctional acrylate monomer, a polyester acrylate, and mixtures thereof.

17. The method of claim of claim 16 , further comprising introducing at least one of UV stabilizers, dispersants, photoinitiators, and rheology additives to the ink composition.

18. The method of claim 12 , wherein the method further comprises introducing at least one of water, surfactants, UV stabilizers, dispersants, photoinitiators, pigments, acrylates, and rheology additives to the ink composition.

19. A method of printing using a variable data digital lithographic printing device, comprising:

applying an ink composition to a reimageable surface of an imaging member;

evaporating water from the ink composition applied to the reimageable surface of the imaging member; and

transferring the ink composition from the reimageable surface to a substrate,

wherein the ink composition comprises:

an ink base; and

a wax emulsion,

wherein a viscosity of the ink composition is between 80 Pa·s and 400 Pa·s at 100 rad/s and 25° C.,

wherein a tack of the ink composition is between 32 g-m and 45 g-m at 60 seconds,

wherein a total wax content of the ink composition is between 1% and 5% by weight, based on a total weight of the ink composition, and

wherein a total water content of the ink composition is between 1% and 15% by weight, based on the total weight of the ink composition.

20. The method of claim 19 , wherein the ink composition further comprises an aqueous solution, wherein the aqueous solution comprises:

water; and

a surfactant, and

wherein the surfactant lowers the surface tension of the aqueous solution to below a surface tension of at least one of the ink base and a mixture of the ink base and the wax emulsion.

Assignments (9)