Printing on water-impermeable substrates with water-based inks

1. A method of printing with water-based inkjet inks on a water-impermeable, low-surface-energy substrate, comprising:

a) modifying surface properties of the water-impermeable, low-surface-energy substrate to increase the surface energy and make it receptive to a water-based coating composition;

(b) coating the modified surface of the water-impermeable, low-surface-energy substrate with a first layer comprising a colorless and transparent water-based tie-layer composition;

c) coating over the first layer with a second layer comprising a colorless water-based ink-receptive composition comprising:

i) a water-soluble multivalent metal salt; and

ii) a hydrophilic binder polymer;

d) depositing directly on the surface of the second layer one or more water-based ink compositions containing an anionically stabilized pigment colorant, wherein the one or more water-based ink compositions are deposited in a predetermined pattern with an inkjet deposition system in response to electrical signals;

e) drying the first and second coated layers and the deposited inks to substantially remove the water; and

f) post-coating the one or more dried deposited ink layers and any exposed first and second layers with one or more functional compositions to form a multi-layered structure.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the low-surface-energy substrate has an initial surface energy less than 40 dyn/cm and is modified to increase the surface energy to greater than 45 dyn/cm.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the low-surface-energy substrate is selected from polyesters, polyimides, polycarbonates, polystyrenes, polyolefins, polyurethanes, polyvinyl acetates, polyvinyl chlorides, polyvinylidene chlorides, and copolymers, mixtures, co-extrudates, or laminates thereof.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the water-based tie-layer composition comprises a single layer.

5. The method of claim 4 , wherein the water-based tie-layer composition is selected from polyethyelene imines, epoxy resins, polyvinyl alcohols, polyurethanes, or copolymers or mixtures thereof.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein the water-based tie-layer composition comprises two or more sub-layers.

7. The method of claim 1 , wherein the water-based tie-layer composition is applied at a dry coverage from 0.05 g/m 2 up to and including 1.5 g/m 2 .

8. The method of claim 1 , wherein the multivalent metal salt includes a cation selected from Mg+2, Ca+2, Ba+2, Zn+2, and Al+3.

9. The method of claim 1 , wherein the multivalent metal salt includes calcium chloride, calcium acetate, calcium nitrate, magnesium chloride, magnesium acetate, magnesium nitrate, or hydrated versions of these salts.

10. The method of claim 1 , wherein the hydrophilic binder polymer is a polyvinyl alcohol, a polyurethane, or derivatives, copolymers, or blends thereof.

11. The method of claim 1 , wherein the hydrophilic binder polymer is cross-linked.

12. The method of claim 1 , wherein the weight ratio of the multivalent metal salt to the hydrophilic binder polymer is from 0.75:1 to 2.5:1, inclusive.

13. The method of claim 1 , wherein the water-based ink-receptive composition is applied at a dry coverage from 0.05 g/m 2 up to and including 1.5 g/m 2 .

14. The method of claim 1 , wherein the water-based ink-receptive composition is applied at a wet coverage of less than 10 g/m 2 .

15. The method of claim 1 , wherein the water-based tie-layer and the water-based ink-receptive layer are applied simultaneously using a curtain coater.

16. The method of claim 1 , wherein the one or more water-based ink-receptive compositions are selected from a cyan ink, a magenta ink, a yellow ink, a black ink, an orange ink, a green ink, a red ink, a blue ink, a violet ink, and a white ink.

17. The method of claim 16 , wherein the pigment dispersant is an anionic polymer comprising a carboxylate functionality.

18. The method of claim 1 , wherein the one or more water-based ink-receptive compositions includes a pigment dispersed with an anionic surfactant or an anionic polymer.

19. The method of claim 1 , wherein the water-based ink-receptive compositions includes a polyurethane additive.

20. The method of claim 1 , wherein the water-based ink-receptive composition contains less than 10 wt % co-solvents and is free of radiation curable initiators, sensitizers, monomers, or oligomers.

21. The method of claim 1 , wherein the unprinted ink is continuously recirculated.

22. The method of claim 1 , wherein the inkjet deposition system is a continuous inkjet system.

23. The method of claim 1 , wherein the inkjet deposition system produces ink drops at the rate of 100 kHz or greater.

24. The method of claim 1 , wherein the inkjet deposition system deposits adjacent drops in the process direction at intervals of less than 100 milliseconds.

25. The method of claim 1 , wherein the water-based tie-layer composition, the water-based ink-receptive composition, and the water-based ink each contain less than 10 wt % co-solvents and are free of radiation curable initiators, sensitizers, monomers, or oligomers.

26. The method of claim 1 , wherein the functional composition forms a white opaque layer.

27. The method of claim 1 , wherein the functional composition forms a clear protective layer.

28. The method of claim 1 , wherein the functional composition is an adhesive, further comprising the step of laminating a second substrate to the surface of the adhesive to form a multi-layered structure.