JPH1016395A - Photothermal conversion type recording material, image forming material made of image receiving material and formation of image - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide photothermal conversion type recording material by which density reproduction equal to density of printed matter is obtained and color reproduction approximate to printed matter is obtained and good image transfer is obtained by using carbon black as photothermal conversion material and controlling its dispersibility and thereafter controlling film thickness of a photothermal conversion layer and selecting a specific ink layer as a thermal transfer layer. SOLUTION: At least a cushioning layer, a photothermal conversion layer and an ink layer are provided on a substrate. The photothermal conversion layer contains carbon black and resin and its film thickness is O.4-1.2μm and carbon black is dispersed in <=0.5μm average particle diameter. The ink layer contains 15-45wt.% coloring material. A binder contains resin in a range within 40-150 deg.C melting point or softening point as a main component and its film thickness is 0.4-1.0μm.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a photothermal conversion type recording material for converting light energy of a laser or the like into thermal energy to transfer a thermal transferable ink layer, and to form an ink layer from the recording material imagewise. An image receiving material for receiving and an image forming method using the same, particularly a photothermal conversion type useful for forming a high quality image by transferring an ink layer imagewise onto the image receiving material using a laser beam. The present invention relates to a recording material, an image receiving material, and an image forming method using the same.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Thermal transfer recording has features such as noise-free, maintenance-free, low cost, easy colorization, and digital recording. It is used in various fields such as various printers, recorders, facsimile machines, and computer terminals. It's being used.

[0003] As such a thermal transfer recording material, a thermal melting type recording system and a thermal sublimation type recording system are known. As a means for supplying heat to the thermal transfer recording material, a heat source controlled by an electric signal, such as a thermal head or an energizing head, is widely used.

On the other hand, recently, in the medical and printing fields,
There is a demand for a so-called digital recording method capable of high resolution, high speed recording, and image processing.

As a recording system which can meet these demands, a method of irradiating a beam and forming a transferred image on an image receiving material has been developed.

In the heat sublimation dye transfer method, a recording material having a transfer layer containing a heat sublimation dye is superimposed on an image receiving material,
This is a method of sublimating a sublimation type dye by applying heat to the transfer layer and transferring the image onto an image receiving material to form an image.A tone image can be reproduced by the amount of the dye to be transferred. There is a disadvantage that the sharpness of a thin line image or the like is lacking.

On the other hand, in the heat melting type recording system, an ink layer is melted by applying heat imagewise to a thermosensitive recording material provided with an ink layer comprising a colorant and a heat melting binder, and an ink image is formed on an image receiving material. Is a method of transferring This method has a wide range of colorants that can be used, and is particularly suitable for binary recording methods such as laser recording.

[0008] Such a photothermal conversion type fusion transfer recording method by laser irradiation has been applied to a color proof or the like as a simulation of a printed image because it is particularly suitable for recording a binary image. The present applicant has repeatedly conducted research on a photothermal conversion recording material particularly suitable for application to a color proof for printing, and has filed numerous applications.

However, such materials are required to be further improved on a daily basis. For example, in the printing industry,
As the work delivery date is shortened daily, it is required to further increase the sensitivity, and to further improve the approximation to the printed matter, in particular, to reproduce not only the density and color tone but also the unique phenomenon of dot gain. Further, for the purpose of color proofing for judging a mistake in digital data for printing, a material and a recording method which do not cause image defects due to causes other than data are required. Further, as in various image recording materials, it is needless to say that there is a demand for a material which has little fluctuation in recording characteristics due to aging and environmental fluctuation and can be stably produced.

For the purpose of improving the sensitivity of the photothermal conversion type recording material,
In Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. H5-262039, the present applicant mentions that it is effective to make the ink layer thinner. The patent discloses that an agent that absorbs laser light and converts it into heat energy is directly added to the ink layer. In such a method, an agent that can be selected in application to a color proof for printing that demands good color reproduction is provided. Limited, making further improvement difficult.

As a thin film hot-melt ink layer, JP-A-7-117359 and JP-A-8-104063 also disclose a pigment containing 30 to 70% by weight as an ink layer capable of reproducing high density suitable for area gradation. Parts, an amorphous resin having a softening point of 40 to 150 ° C. in an amount of 25 to 60 parts by weight (in the latter patent, 25 to 6 parts by weight).
5 parts by weight) and an ink layer having a thickness of 0.2 to 1.0 μm is disclosed, and JP-A-8-104063 discloses that the ink layer is applied to photothermal conversion recording. However, according to the findings of the applicant's development, it has been found that a photothermal conversion type recording material suitable for higher quality image formation requires an ink layer having a different property and a more improved photothermal conversion layer. However, in the published patent, there is no disclosure of those parts relating to the knowledge of the present applicant.

It is widely known that as a configuration which does not affect the image quality reproduced by the ink layer, it is effective to provide a photothermal conversion function in a layer different from the ink layer.
The present applicant discloses in JP-A-5-286257 that, in a recording material in which a photothermal conversion layer containing a water-soluble coloring material and an ink layer are combined, the thickness of the photothermal conversion layer is set to 1.0 μm or less. Has invented that a recording material having good color reproduction and high sensitivity can be obtained by setting the thickness of the ink layer to 1.0 μm or less. Also, in JP-A-5-338358,
The invention relating to a combination of a photothermal conversion layer containing a solvent-soluble infrared absorbing dye and a water-soluble ink layer was carried out. Further, JP-A-6-255271 discloses that a recording material having a light-to-heat conversion layer containing an infrared absorbing dye is exposed to light having an exposure intensity of 100%.
0 W / mm ² or more, and the relative speed between the material and the exposed part is 1 m /
It has been found that it is preferable to set the total film thickness of the photothermal conversion layer and the ink layer to 1.5 μm or less in scanning exposure in sec in terms of sensitivity, color reproduction, and transferability.

As a result of such research and development, a recording material more preferable in terms of sensitivity, color reproduction and image transferability has been obtained. However, with the demand for higher speed processing, a higher output laser has been developed. A recording device capable of irradiation has been devised, and performance as a recording material suitable for recording with such a device has been required.

In response to this demand, the conventionally known light-to-heat conversion type recording material is liable to cause the problem of destructive transfer of the light-to-heat conversion layer itself during high-output and short-time recording, so that efficient image formation cannot be performed. Has been found. Further, it has been found that the light-to-heat conversion layer using a dye is difficult in terms of the storage stability of the material, and therefore, a light-to-heat conversion layer using carbon black has been developed.

To solve the problem of destructive transfer of the light-to-heat conversion layer during high-power, short-time recording, the present applicant has disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No.
As shown in No. 2538, the inventors invented that the performance of the light-to-heat conversion layer should be 10% or more in breaking elongation, but no knowledge about the light-to-heat conversion agent has been obtained.

On the other hand, an image receiving material for receiving an ink layer from a photothermal conversion type recording material has been continuously developed. As an image receiving material for receiving an image from the light-to-heat conversion type recording material, general paper or the like can be considered, but it is difficult to obtain a sufficient transferred image because the paper has large irregularities and "undulations" on the surface. For this reason, for general thermal transfer recording and the like, the use of highly smooth special paper has been proposed and many of them have been developed.

However, since a color proof for printing is required to form an image on various types of paper used for printing, the image is temporarily transferred to an intermediate transfer image receiving material having a smooth image receiving surface, and then a desired image is transferred. Methods for retransferring an image to the body have been proposed. Further, as a color proofing material in the printing field, it is required to reproduce a full-color image by superimposing four-color halftone dot images of yellow, magenta, cyan, and black. The halftone dots that form the printed image are composed of dots of several tens to one hundred and several tens of μm arranged at equal intervals, and misregistration of color superimposition causes the generation of unnecessary patterns such as moiré and the inaccuracy of reproduced colors. Therefore, a material that does not cause color shift is required.

For this purpose, the use of the intermediate transfer image-receiving material as described above is advantageous. In particular, as described above, in a recording system for transferring a thin ink layer, the use of an intermediate transfer material is very effective without impairing the image quality of the ink layer image. Such an intermediate transfer material for color proof is required to have no adverse effect on the finish of an image transferred to printing paper. That is, it is important not only to not affect the color developability of the ink image itself, but also to make the portion where the ink image is not formed as close as possible to the printing paper.

As the intermediate transfer material which does not adversely affect the color development of the ink layer itself or the impression of the printing paper, a type which can transfer only the ink layer to the final transfer body is preferable.
When used for printing color proofing, the final image is required to reproduce the same dot gain as the printed matter, and it may be effective to transfer the entire image receiving layer of the intermediate transfer material to reproduce this dot gain. I understand. In addition, the image receiving material as an intermediate transfer medium used in combination with the light-heat conversion type recording material must efficiently receive the ink layer, and transfer the unnecessary ink layer during recording, that is, generate no fog. It is required as basic performance that image defects such as transfer omission due to foreign matters such as dust and dust mixed in the recording system hardly occur.

In order to prevent fogging while ensuring the receptivity of the ink layer and to improve the quality of the final image obtained, the thickness of the image receiving layer is controlled and the controlled particle size is controlled. The present inventors have found that the addition of a matting agent is effective. Such knowledge was not shown in the invention of the conventional image receiving material as an intermediate transfer medium.

In order to improve ink receptivity, it is effective to provide a material having a low softening point in the image receiving layer.
Materials with a low softening point may agglomerate and delaminate within the layer during thermal transfer to the final support, which can degrade the quality of the final image. For this reason, by providing a release layer below the image receiving layer and defining its properties, such cohesive failure is prevented, and quality deterioration during storage due to sinking of the matting agent added to the image receiving layer. It also turned out to be unlikely.

[0022]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide a photothermal conversion type recording material in which an ink layer is imagewise transferred onto an image receiving material by irradiation of light energy mainly using a laser. It is an object of the present invention to provide a light-to-heat conversion type recording material that can be stably produced without causing image defects caused by foreign substances such as dust mixed in a recording process while maintaining ink performance suitable for preparation. To provide an image receiving material as an intermediate transfer material suitable for efficiently receiving an ink layer image of a light-to-heat conversion type recording material and reproducing the printed matter on a final support such as printing paper with a quality approximating a printed matter. It is in. Another object is to provide an effective recording method using these image forming materials. The quality similar to the printed matter (original) required for color proof is (1)
That the density reproduction equivalent to the density of the printed matter is obtained, (2)
That color reproduction similar to printed matter is obtained; (3) dot gain reproduction similar to printed matter is obtained; (4)
Good image transfer to printing paper is possible, (5)
The impression of a portion having no image on the printing paper is similar to the impression of the printing paper.

[0023]

The inventor of the present invention has conducted intensive studies on a photothermal conversion type image forming material (comprising a recording material and an image receiving material) and an image forming method having the above-mentioned good performance. By using carbon black as the photothermal sensitizer and controlling its dispersibility, the thickness of the photothermal conversion layer is controlled, and it is possible to obtain a photothermal conversion type recording material in which a specific ink layer is selected as the thermal transfer layer. I found it.
Further, the present inventors have found that the quality required for a color proof can be reproduced more faithfully by controlling the configuration of an image receiving material that receives an ink layer, and have reached the present invention.

That is, the above object of the present invention has been attained by the following constitutions.

(1) A photothermal conversion type recording material having at least a cushion layer, a photothermal conversion layer, and an ink layer on a support, wherein the photothermal conversion layer contains carbon black and a resin, and has a film thickness of 0.4. A resin in which carbon black is dispersed to an average particle size of 0.5 μm or less, the ink layer contains 15 to 45% by weight of a colorant, and has a melting point or softening point in the range of 40 to 150 ° C. as a binder. A photothermal conversion type recording material having, as a main component, a film thickness of 0.4 to 1.0 μm.

(2) The resin constituting the light-to-heat conversion layer is TG
Temperature rise rate 10 in nitrogen stream by pyrolysis measurement by Method A
(1) The photothermal conversion type recording according to (1), wherein the resin whose temperature at which the weight loss rate at 50 ° C / min is 50% is 360 ° C or more is contained in all resin components constituting the photothermal conversion layer in an amount of 70% by weight or more. material.

(3) The ink layer contains a fluorine-containing compound in an amount of 0.1 to 0.2.
The light-to-heat conversion type recording material according to (1) or (2), which contains 0.01 to 2.0% by weight.

(4) The ink layer has an average particle size of 0.5 in the liquid.
The photothermographic device according to any one of (1) to (3), which is a layer using a liquid basically prepared by mixing a pigment dispersion dispersed to a particle size of not more than μm and a binder solution. Conversion type recording material.

(5) The ink layer has an average particle size of 0.5 in the liquid.
A layer made of a liquid prepared as a raw material by mixing a pigment dispersion in which a part of a binder used for an ink layer is dispersed as a dispersant and a solution of the binder to a thickness of 1 μm or less (1) (6) The light-to-heat conversion layer according to any one of (4) to (4), wherein the light-to-heat conversion layer is coated on a support provided with a cushion layer, and the light-to-heat conversion layer after the light-to-heat conversion layer is applied. JI on the surface
The photothermal conversion type recording material according to any one of (1) to (5), wherein the 75-degree specular glossiness of SZ-8741-1983 is 65 or more.

(7) A photothermal conversion type recording material having a cushion layer, a photothermal conversion layer, and an ink layer on a carrier, wherein an ink layer is provided on a release surface of a support having a releasable surface; After a light-to-heat conversion layer is further provided on the ink layer, the cushion layer and the light-to-heat conversion layer provided on another support are bonded together, and then the releasable support is peeled off to form a recording material. JIS Z-87 of the ink layer after peeling the mold support
The photothermal conversion type recording material according to any one of (1) to (5), wherein the 75-degree specular glossiness specified by 41-1983 is 80 or more.

(8) The recording material according to any one of (1) to (7), and at least a cushion layer and an image receiving layer on a support. 3-3.0μ
and m, an image receiving material containing a matting agent having an average particle size 1.5 to 5.5 μm larger than the film thickness.

(9) The number of protrusions of the image receiving layer due to the matting agent is 20.
Light-heat conversion type image-forming material according to a 0 to 5000 pieces / mm ² (8).

(10) The photothermal conversion type image forming material according to (8) or (9), wherein the coefficient of static friction between the image receiving layer and the ink layer is 0.3 to 1.0.

(11) The image receiving material is provided with a cushion layer, a release layer and an image receiving layer on a support in this order, the softening points of the cushion layer and the image receiving layer measured by TMA are 70 ° C. or less, and the release layer is The photothermal conversion type image forming material according to any one of (8) to (10), which is a film having a glass transition point of 75 ° C. or more or a tensile strength of 3.5 kg / m ² or more.

(12) The release layer has conductivity (11)
3. The photothermal conversion type image forming material according to item 1.

(13) The image receiving material according to any one of (8) to (12), wherein the image receiving material has a back coat layer on the surface opposite to the image receiving layer, and the suction pressure of the back coat layer is 300 mmHg or more. The light-to-heat conversion type image forming material as described in the above.

(14) The recording material according to any one of (1) to (7), and at least a cushion layer and an image receiving layer on a support, wherein the thickness of the image receiving layer is 0.3. ~ 3.0μ
m, a photothermal conversion type image forming material comprising an image receiving material containing a matting agent having an average particle size of 1.5 to 5.5 μm larger than the film thickness is allowed to stand so that the ink layer and the image receiving layer face each other. And an image forming method in which the image receiving material and the recording material are fixed by suction from the back surface of the image receiving material, and the image is formed by laser exposure from the back surface of the recording material.

(15) The projections of the image receiving layer due to the matting agent
The image forming method according to (14), wherein the number is 200 to 5000 / mm ² .

(16) The image forming method according to (14) or (15), wherein the static friction coefficient between the image receiving layer and the ink layer is 0.3 to 0.7.

(17) The image receiving material is provided with a cushion layer, a release layer and an image receiving layer on a support in this order, the softening points of the cushion layer and the image receiving layer measured by TMA are 70 ° C. or less, and the release layer is The image forming method according to any one of (14) to (16), wherein the film has a glass transition point of 75 ° C. or more or a tensile strength of 3.5 kg / m ² or more.

(18) The image receiving material according to any one of (14) to (17), wherein the image receiving material has a back coat layer on the surface opposite to the image receiving layer, and the suction pressure of the back coat layer is 300 mmHg or more. The image forming method as described in the above.

(19) The image forming method according to any one of (14) to (18), wherein the laser used for exposure is a multi-channel laser light source using a plurality of laser light sources.

Further, a method of retransferring the image receiving layer having received the ink image to a final support on which the image is to be finally formed by heating and / or pressing is also preferable.

Hereinafter, the present invention will be described more specifically.

<Recording Material> The recording material of the present invention basically has a structure of a support / cushion layer / photothermal conversion layer / ink layer.

As a support for a recording material, JP-A-63-163
The film or sheet described in pp. 193886, page 2, lower left column, lines 12 to 18 can be used. In particular, polyethylene terephthalate (PET), polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA), polycarbonate (P
Films such as C) are preferably used. These plastic films can be subjected to various processes such as dimensional stabilization and antistatic. In addition, an undercoat layer may be provided so that each of the layers described below can be satisfactorily coated on the support. The thickness of the support is not particularly limited.
Those having a thickness of 50 μm are generally easy to handle and suitable.

By providing a cushion layer on the recording material,
Even when a thin ink layer is used as in the present invention, adhesion between the image receiving material and the ink layer can be obtained, and efficient recording without unevenness can be performed.

As the cushion layer, a material having a low elastic modulus or a material having rubber elasticity can be used. Specifically, natural rubber, acrylate rubber, butyl rubber, nitrile rubber, butadiene rubber, isoprene rubber, styrene-butadiene rubber, chloroprene rubber, urethane rubber, silicone rubber, acrylic rubber, fluorine rubber, neoprene rubber, chlorosulfonated polyethylene, Epichlorohydrin, EPDM (ethylene propylene diene rubber), elastomer such as urethane elastomer, polyethylene, polypropylene, polybutadiene, polybutene, impact-resistant ABS resin, polyurethane, ABS resin,
Acetate, cellulose acetate, amide resin, polytetrafluoroethylene, nitrocellulose, polystyrene, epoxy resin, phenol-formaldehyde resin, polyester, impact-resistant acrylic resin, styrene-
Butadiene copolymer, ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer,
Acrylonitrile-butadiene copolymer, vinyl chloride-
Examples of the resin include a resin having a small elastic modulus, such as a vinyl acetate copolymer, polyvinyl acetate, a vinyl chloride resin containing a plasticizer, a vinylidene chloride resin, polyvinyl chloride, and polyvinylidene chloride.

Examples of the shape memory resin usable as the cushion layer include polynorbornene and a styrene-based hybrid polymer in which a polybutadiene unit and a polystyrene unit are combined.

As the cushion layer of the present invention, in particular, 25
Those having an elastic modulus at 250 ° C. of 250 kg / mm ² or less or a Tg of 80 ° C. or less are preferred.

The ink layer of the recording material of the present invention is colored or melted or softened by heat generated by the light-to-heat conversion action of the light-to-heat conversion layer upon receiving high-intensity light such as a laser. It means a layer containing a material and a resin, and the transfer mechanism need not be in a completely molten state.

The ink layer of the recording material contains a coloring material of 15 to 45% by weight based on the total amount of the ink layer, and has as a binder a resin whose melting point or softening point is in the range of 40 to 150 ° C. as a main component. It is 0.4 to 1.0 μm.

Examples of the colorant include inorganic pigments such as titanium dioxide, carbon black, graphite, zinc oxide, Prussian blue, cadmium sulfide, iron oxide, and chromates of lead, zinc, barium and calcium, and azo and thioindigo-based pigments. , Anthraquinone-based, anthrone-based, triphenedioxazine-based pigments, vat dye pigments, phthalocyanine pigments and derivatives thereof, organic pigments such as quinacridone pigments, and acid dyes, direct dyes,
Examples of the dye include disperse dyes, oil-soluble dyes, metal-containing oil-soluble dyes, and sublimable dyes.

In particular, when used as a color proof material for the printing industry, various organic pigments similar to those used in printing inks are preferably used. In order to reproduce black, it is preferable to adjust the color by mainly using carbon black and adding pigments such as cyan, blue, and violet as required.

The preferred amount of the coloring material is 20 to 40% by weight, more preferably 25 to 35% by weight, based on the total amount of the ink layer. If the amount of the coloring agent is too large, the ink layer becomes brittle, and the smoothness of the recorded image is lost when performing photothermal conversion type recording. For example, in the case of a thin line, the continuity of the line is impaired, and “graininess” occurs. Further, in applications for print proofing, the shape of a halftone dot is easily broken. On the other hand, when the amount of the coloring agent is small, such a defect hardly occurs, but it becomes difficult to obtain a necessary coloring density.

It is preferable from the viewpoint of the surface properties of the ink layer that the colorant contained in the ink layer is dispersed such that the average particle size after mixing with the binder is smaller than the thickness of the ink layer.

If the average particle size of the particles, mainly the pigment, is larger than the thickness of the ink layer, the smoothness of the surface of the ink layer after coating tends to be significantly impaired. If the smoothness of the ink layer surface is impaired, transfer unevenness occurs due to uneven contact between the ink layer and the image receiving body and uneven conduction of heat energy generated in the light-to-heat conversion layer. Easier to do. More preferably, the average particle size of the pigment-dispersed particles is 0.5 μm or less.

The particle size of the pigment particles is widely measured by a method utilizing light scattering, such as a Coulter counter or MICROTRAC.

In order to obtain a preferable particle size of the pigment contained in the ink layer, a conventionally known method of kneading with a dispersant or a binder resin by a ball mill, a sand mill or the like can be used. By adjusting a pigment dispersion having an average particle diameter of 0.5 μm or less in a liquid and a binder solution, a pigment dispersion having a small particle diameter can be obtained in a short time. became. Unexpectedly, the storage stability of the pigment dispersion is also improved,
It was possible to obtain a liquid in which aggregation of the pigment and the like hardly occurred even in a long-term liquid supply in the production process.

The binder used in the ink layer is mainly composed of a resin having a melting point or softening point in the range of 40 to 150 ° C. Examples of the substance that can be used include a heat-meltable substance, a heat-softening substance, and a thermoplastic resin. More specifically, vegetable waxes such as carnauba wax, wood wax, Ouriculi wax, and Espal wax; animal waxes such as beeswax, insect wax, shellac wax, and spermaceti; paraffin wax, microcrystalline wax, polyethylene wax, ester wax, and acid wax Waxes such as petroleum waxes such as waxes; and mineral waxes such as montan wax, ozokerite and ceresin;
In addition to these waxes and the like, higher fatty acids such as palmitic acid, stearic acid, margaric acid, and behenic acid;
Higher alcohols such as palmityl alcohol, stearyl alcohol, behenyl alcohol, marganyl alcohol, myristyl alcohol, eicosanol; higher fatty acid esters such as cetyl palmitate, myristyl palmitate, cetyl stearate, and myristyl stearate; acetamido, propionamide, Amides such as palmitic acid amide, stearic acid amide and amide wax; and higher amines such as stearylamine, behenylamine and palmitylamine, and thermoplastic resins include
Ethylene copolymer, polyamide resin, polyester resin, polyurethane resin, polyolefin resin,
Resins such as acrylic resin, vinyl chloride resin, cellulose resin, rosin resin, polyvinyl alcohol resin, polyvinyl acetal resin, ionomer resin, petroleum resin; natural rubber, styrene butadiene rubber, isoprene rubber, chloroprene rubber And diene copolymers; rosin derivatives such as ester gum, rosin maleic resin, rosin phenol resin and hydrogenated rosin; and polymers such as phenol resins, terpene resins, cyclopentadiene resins, and aromatic hydrocarbon resins And the like.

Dispersing a part of the binder used in the ink layer as a dispersant at the time of initial dispersion of the pigment is effective particularly when it is necessary to use a pigment having a seemingly low affinity with the binder of the ink layer. It is also effective when two or more resins are used as the ink layer binder.

The main component of the binder used in the ink layer of the present invention is a resin having a melting point or softening point of 40 to 150 ° C. By using a resin as a main component, a uniform ink layer with little cohesive failure is added. In particular, styrene resin,
When an amorphous resin such as a styrene-acrylic resin or a styrene-maleic acid resin was used as a main component, it was confirmed that the transferability of the ink layer was good. Furthermore, it was found that when about 10% of the binder component was added with an ethylene-vinyl acetate resin and an ionomer resin, the abrasion resistance of the ink image on the image receiving material was improved. The combination of these resins
This also has an effect on the smoothness of the edge of the transferred image. It is preferable that the binder is contained in an amount of 40 to 70% by weight of the ink layer.

In addition, a plasticizer for increasing the sensitivity by plasticization, a surfactant for improving coating properties, and a mat material having a smaller particle size than the ink layer for preventing blocking are added to the ink layer. Addition and the like are possible. 0.01 to 2.0% by weight of the fluorine-containing compound based on the total amount of the ink layer
When added, a uniform thin ink layer can be formed, the sensitivity is not reduced, and the reproducibility of small dots and fine lines is improved.

The thickness of the ink layer of the present invention is 0.4 to 1.0.
μm, and more preferably 0.5 to 0.8 μm.

In the light-to-heat conversion type recording material, the sensitivity is improved when the thickness of the ink layer is small, and particularly when the thickness is 1 μm or less, the sensitivity is dramatically improved. However, when the thickness of the ink layer is thinner than 0.4 μm, especially in area gradation recording of a print image or the like, poor transfer of small dots or fine lines occurs, which substantially lowers the sensitivity or excessively heats the ink layer. For this reason, there were many problems that unnecessary transfer of the light-to-heat conversion layer occurred and that the ink layer itself was burnt and a desired color could not be reproduced.

A configuration in which a photothermal conversion substance is added to the ink layer has been known in the past. In such a configuration, the efficiency of using the photothermally converted heat energy for thermal transfer is high, but the efficiency of the photothermal conversion is high. In many cases, the conversion material is not substantially transparent.In particular, when the conversion material is used as a printing proof material, it adversely affects color reproduction. It is preferable to configure as a conversion layer.

When the light-to-heat conversion layer is provided adjacent to the ink layer, the heat conduction efficiency becomes very high. When the light-to-heat conversion layer and the ink layer are adjacent to each other, the thermal energy photo-thermally converted by the light-to-heat conversion layer directly heats the ink layer from the light-to-heat conversion layer side interface. The layer is easily peeled, and the ink layer is effectively transferred.

The photothermal conversion material is a material that absorbs light and converts it efficiently into heat. In particular, since carbon black exerts a substantially uniform light-to-heat conversion effect with respect to light sources of all wavelengths that can be generally used, carbon black is effective for preparing a recording material regardless of the light source. Unexpectedly, it was confirmed that the light-to-heat conversion layer using carbon black had very little unnecessary transfer of the light-to-heat conversion layer as compared with the case where another dye-based light absorber was used. In addition, carbon black was added at 0.
It was found that the uniform transferability of the ink layer was further improved by dispersing with a small particle size of 5 μm or less.

The resin constituting the light-to-heat conversion layer may be a resin having a temperature of 360 ° C. or more at which the weight loss rate at a temperature increasing rate of 10 ° C./min becomes 50% in a nitrogen gas stream measured by thermal decomposition according to the TGA method. 70% by weight of the entire resin constituting the light-to-heat conversion layer
The above content effectively helps to prevent unnecessary transfer of the light-to-heat conversion layer, and the use of such a resin broadens the options of usable light absorbers.

Examples of such a resin include polyalkimide, polyarylate, polyimide, polyetherimide, polyetherketone, polycarbonate, polysulfone, polyethersulfone, polyamidesulfone, polyphenylene ether, polyphenylene sulfide, and the like.
In addition to heat-resistant resins such as polymethyl methacrylate, polystyrene, ethyl cellulose, nitrocellulose, polyvinyl chloride, polyamide, and aramid, polyvinyl alcohol, polyvinyl acetal, polyvinyl pyrrolidone, nylon, polyacrylamide, polyalkylene oxide, gelatin, casein, and methyl cellulose , Hydroxyethyl cellulose, carboxymethyl cellulose, hydroxyethyl starch, gum arabic, saccharose octaacetate, ammonium alginate, sodium alginate, polyvinylamine, polyethylene oxide, polyacrylic acid, and other water-soluble polymers.

In particular, a light-to-heat conversion layer using a water-soluble polymer has good releasability from the ink layer, good heat resistance during light irradiation, and little ablation against excessive heating. When a water-soluble polymer is used, it is desirable that carbon black be modified to be water-soluble or dispersed in an aqueous system.

The light-to-heat conversion layer of the recording material of the present invention has a thickness of 0.4 to 1.2 μm, more preferably 0.5 to 1.2 μm.
1.0 μm. The content of carbon black in the light-to-heat conversion layer can be determined so that the absorbance at the wavelength of the light source used for image recording is 0.3 to 3.0, and more preferably 0.7 to 2.5. Depending on the intensity of the irradiation light,
It is necessary to determine the optimal range.

The light-to-heat conversion layer is preferably thin because the generated heat energy can be effectively conducted to the ink layer effectively.
The effect is dramatically improved at 1.2 μm or less. However, when the light-to-heat conversion layer is less than 0.4 μm, in order to add carbon black necessary for effective light-to-heat conversion,
The strength of the entire layer becomes brittle, the light-to-heat conversion layer is easily broken, and unnecessary transfer frequently occurs.

In the case of the structure of the light-to-heat conversion layer of the present invention, the carbon black can provide a suitable effect at 40% by weight or less of the entire layer, so that unnecessary transfer of the light-to-heat conversion layer does not occur.

The cushion layer is provided for the purpose of increasing the adhesion between the recording material and the image receiving material. The cushion layer is a layer having thermal softening property or elasticity, and may be made of a material which can be sufficiently softened and deformed by heating, a material having a low elastic modulus, or a material having rubber elasticity. Specifically, the same polymer as that used for the cushion layer of the image receiving material described later can be used.

The cushion layer may be formed by coating, laminating, laminating a film or the like in order to have a certain thickness, and may be finished by coating in order to further improve the surface smoothness.

As the method for forming the cushion layer, the same method as the method for forming the image receiving layer of the image receiving material can be used. It is also possible to use a resin layer having a void structure in which a thermo-softening or thermoplastic resin is foamed as a special cushion layer. When further forming a filling cushion layer in which surface smoothness is indispensable, it is desirable to coat it by various coating methods. The total thickness of the preferred cushion layer is 2 μm or more, preferably 4 μm or more.

In order for the light-to-heat conversion layer to absorb the energy of the light source without waste, the transmittance of the support and the cushion layer with respect to the wavelength of the light source is preferably 70% or more, more preferably 80% or more. For this purpose, it is necessary to use a support and a cushion layer having good transparency, and to reduce reflection at the back coat surface of the support and at the interface between the support and the cushion layer.

As a method for reducing the reflection at the interface between the support and the cushion layer, the refractive index of the cushion layer is preferably set to 0.1 or less with respect to that of the support.

The recording material of the present invention needs to be prepared by stacking layers having different functions and properties, such as a cushion layer, a light-to-heat conversion layer, and an ink layer, on a single support. Several methods are known as a method for forming such a multilayer. However, in order to make the performance of the recording material of the present invention the best, the following method is preferable.

One preferred method is a method in which a cushion layer, a light-to-heat conversion layer, and an ink layer are successively applied on a support. In this case, since the cushion layer is a layer having an adhesive surface, it may be provided in advance by an extrusion method, an extrusion lamination method, or the like. What is important is that the light-to-heat conversion layer is formed smoothly on the surface of the cushion layer so that the 75-degree specular glossiness of JIS Z-8741-1983 specified in the surface becomes 65 or more. is there. If the ink layer is formed in a state where the smoothness of the surface of the light-to-heat conversion layer is not ensured, the surface of the ink layer becomes rough and the quality of the final image deteriorates. Further, an ink layer is provided on a release surface of a support having a releasable surface, and a photothermal conversion layer is provided on the ink layer, and then a cushion layer and a photothermal conversion layer provided on another support are provided. Then, a method in which the recording material is prepared by peeling the releasable support after the lamination is performed is also conceivable. This method is suitable for obtaining a recording material with extremely high smoothness, in which the surface of the ink layer of the formed recording material has a specular glossiness at 75 degrees defined by JIS Z-8741-1983 of 80 or more.

In such a recording material producing method,
The peeling force F1 between the release surface and the ink layer needs to be selected to be smaller than the peeling force F2 between the ink layer and the photothermal conversion layer. F1 of about 10 g / cm or less is effective for producing a good recording material. After bonding the light-to-heat conversion layer and the cushion layer, when peeling the releasable support, if the curvature θ at the time of peeling of the releasable support is set to 180 ° or less, good peeling can be achieved. .

The releasable support is preferably a smooth plastic sheet containing a small amount of fillers and the like, and a thin film having a thickness of 50 μm or less is preferable from the viewpoint of peeling workability. The release surface forms a layer on such a support that is crosslinked, substantially insoluble in the coating solvent of the ink layer, or has a fluorine or long chain alkyl compound. Can be obtained. As a crosslinked release layer,
Although there is a wide range of possibilities such as heat curing and ultraviolet curing, a non-silicone compound is preferable in consideration of a decrease in sensitivity of the ink layer after peeling. However, higher fatty acid ester-modified silicone, polyester-modified silicone, and the like were exceptionally able to form good release surfaces without a decrease in sensitivity.
From the viewpoint of releasability, when the ink layer is a solvent system, a water-soluble resin, i.e., a melamine compound, a binder having a hydroxyl group, a carboxyl group, an ammonium group, etc.
A layer crosslinked with a crosslinking agent such as an isocyanate compound or a glyoxal derivative is preferred. A phosphazene resin can also be used effectively.

<Image-Receiving Material> The image-receiving material of the present invention comprises, on a support, at least a cushion layer and an image-receiving layer, more specifically, at least a cushion layer and an image-receiving layer to which an image from a hot-melt transfer ink layer is transferred. An image receiving material for hot-melt transfer type recording, comprising: a matting agent having an image receiving layer having a thickness of 0.3 to 3.0 μm and an average particle size of 1.5 to 5.5 μm larger than the film thickness. Material.

As the support of the image receiving layer, those equivalent to the ink layer can be used.

The image receiving material of the present invention can retransfer an image receiving layer having received an ink image to a final support such as paper.

When the thickness of the image receiving layer is more than 3.0 μm, the image transferred to the final support tends to have a yellow tint,
When the thickness is less than 0.3 μm, the strength of the layer itself is insufficient, and the image is easily lost due to rubbing or the like after being transferred onto the final support. Further, the dot gain of the printed image cannot be reproduced, and the range of choice of the final support to be transferred is narrowed.

The volume average particle diameter of the mat member is 1.5 to 5.5 μm larger than the average film thickness of the portion of the image receiving layer where no mat member exists.
m larger. The matting agent having this particle size has no fog while maintaining the adhesion between the recording material and the image receiving material, and gives a good impression of the image receiving layer after transfer.

As a material of the mat member, known organic fine particles such as an acrylic resin such as PMMA (polymethyl methacrylate), a fluorine-based resin, and a silicon resin can be used. The organic fine particles not only increase the strength of the particles and the solvent resistance, but also have the effect of improving the gloss of the final image.

The protrusion on the surface of the image receiving layer due to the matting agent is 200
It is preferably from 5,000 / mm ² in terms of gloss of the final transfer image and ink acceptability. If the number of protrusions due to the mat material is small, when the image receiving material and the recording material are brought into close contact with each other, the air between the materials cannot be uniformly sucked, which may cause air pockets to cause transfer failure. On the other hand, if the number of protrusions is too large, the transferred ink layer may be easily transferred to the mat material protrusions in a bridging manner, or the printing durability of the transferred image may be reduced. Is excessively suppressed, and it becomes difficult to obtain a gloss particularly favorable for proofing.

Specific examples of the binder for the image receiving layer include adhesives such as polyvinyl acetate emulsion type, chloroprene type and epoxy resin type, natural rubber, chloroprene rubber type, and the like.
Adhesives such as butyl rubber, polyacrylate, nitrile rubber, polysulfide, silicon rubber, petroleum resin, recycled rubber, vinyl chloride resin, SB
R, polybutadiene resin, polyisoprene, polyvinyl butyral resin, polyvinyl ether, ionomer resin, SIS, SEBS, acrylic resin, ethylene-vinyl chloride copolymer, ethylene-acryl copolymer, ethylene-vinyl acetate resin (EVA), PVC Graft EVA resins, EVA graft PVC resins, vinyl chloride resins, various modified olefins, polyvinyl butyral, and the like. Also, polyethylene, polybutadiene, polychloroprene, polyisoprene, polyester, polystyrene,
Polyacrylate, polymethacrylate,
Polyurethane, polyvinyl acetate, polyethyl acrylate, polyvinyl chloride, polyvinylidene chloride, polyamide, polyvinyl pyridine, polyoxymethylene, alkyd resin, griptal resin, epoxy resin, phenoxy resin, phenol resin, urea resin, melamine resin, maleic resin Or an aqueous emulsion resin such as a copolymer thereof and a modified product thereof such as a carboxyl group or a sulfo group.

In particular, acrylic or methacrylic latex such as polyacrylate, polymethacrylate, and polyethyl acrylate are preferable.

These resins can be used alone or in combination of several kinds.

In the image receiving layer, a water-soluble resin may be used in combination with the above-mentioned aqueous emulsion resin. Examples of such a water-soluble resin include cellulose resins such as methylcellulose, ethylcellulose, nitrocellulose, hydroxyethylcellulose, hydroxypropylcellulose, and carboxymethylcellulose; modified polyvinyl alcohol such as polyvinyl alcohol, cation-modified polyvinyl alcohol, and carboxyl-modified polyvinyl alcohol; Water-soluble polyvinyl formal, water-soluble polyvinyl acetal, water-soluble polyvinyl butyral, polyvinyl pyrrolidone, water-soluble polyester, water-soluble nylon, polyacrylic acid, water-soluble polyacrylate, water-soluble polyurethane, gelatin, casein, hydroxyethyl starch, gum arabic , Sucrose octaacetate, ammonium alginate, sodium alginate, polyvinylamine And copolymers of polyethylene oxide or monomer components constituting these resins.

When these water-soluble resins are used in combination,
3 for the aqueous emulsion resin, which is the main component of the image receiving layer
It is preferable to use it in the range of 0% by weight or less.

As a method for preparing an aqueous emulsion resin, when the resin is an emulsion resin (polyvinyl chloride resin, styrene-butadiene copolymer, etc.) formed by solution polymerization using water as a solvent, the resin is appropriately prepared. It can be suspended in water or an aqueous solution together with a surfactant. In addition, if the resin is a dispersion resin (epoxy resin, copolymer of vinyl chloride and other monomer) dispersible in water by using a dispersant or the like, for example, a known resin such as an attritor, a ball mill, a sand grinder, or the like is used. Can be dispersed in water or an aqueous solution.

The coefficient of static friction between the image receiving layer and the ink layer prevents color misregistration due to sheet misalignment when performing multi-color printing on the image receiving layer, and prevents image misregistration when image formation is completed. The thickness is preferably in the range of 0.3 to 1.0 in order to achieve both the peeling of the recording material and the transportability when transporting the recording material. That is, when the coefficient of static friction between the ink layer and the image receiving layer is smaller than 0.3, the materials are liable to slip at the time of superposition, and color misregistration tends to occur. On the other hand, if the static friction coefficient is larger than 1.0, the slippage becomes poor, and the peeling conveyance is not performed smoothly.

By providing the cushion layer, image transfer defects due to fine dust mixed during image recording can be reduced. In the case of the general fusion heat transfer method, the colorant layer of the recording material has a film thickness of 2 μm or more, and the melt viscosity is designed to be very low. Therefore, dust mixed between the recording material and the image receiving material is reduced. It is covered with the molten colorant layer and does not cause much problem, but in particular, in the photothermal conversion type recording using the thin film colorant layer as described above, dust mixed between the recording material and the image receiving material is This is a problem because clear transfer omission occurs.

The cushion layer provided on the image receiving material of the present invention preferably has an elastic modulus at 25 ° C. of 1 to 250 k.
g / mm < ² >, more preferably 2-150 kg / mm < ² >. Alternatively, JIS K2530
The layer may have a penetration of 15 to 500, more preferably 30 to 300, as defined in -1976. By providing the cushion layer having such a property, the adhesiveness when the ink sheet and the image receiving sheet are brought into close contact with each other is increased. Is reduced, and defects in the transferred image are reduced. On the other hand, an effect of increasing the transfer sensitivity is also obtained.

The material forming the cushion layer is preferably composed mainly of various rubbers and resins having a low glass transition point (Tg). Such materials include natural rubber, acrylate rubber, butyl rubber, nitrile rubber, butadiene rubber, isoprene rubber, styrene-butadiene rubber,
Chloroprene rubber, urethane rubber, silicone rubber, acrylic rubber, fluoro rubber, neoprene rubber, chlorosulfonated polyethylene, epichlorohydrin, ethylene-
Elastomers such as propylene-diene rubber and urethane elastomer, polyethylene, polypropylene, polybutadiene, polybutene, impact-resistant ABS resin, polyurethane, polynorbornene, ABS resin, acetate, cellulose, acetate, amide resin, polytetrafluoroethylene, nitrocellulose, and polystyrene , Epoxy resin, phenol-formaldehyde resin, polyester, polyisoprene resin, impact-resistant acrylic resin, styrene-butadiene copolymer, styrene-ethylene-butadiene copolymer, ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer, ethylene-ethyl acrylate copolymer Polymer, acrylate copolymer, styrene-isoprene copolymer, acrylonitrile-butadiene copolymer, vinyl chloride-vinyl acetate copolymer, poly Vinyl acid, a plasticizer-containing vinyl chloride resins, vinylidene chloride resins, polyvinyl chloride, poly vinylidene chloride. Among them, ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer, ethylene-ethyl acrylate copolymer, polybutadiene, styrene-butadiene copolymer,
Styrene-ethylene-butadiene copolymer, acrylonitrile-butadiene copolymer, polyisoprene resin, styrene-isoprene copolymer, acrylate copolymer, polyester, polyurethane, butyl rubber, polynorbornene and the like are more preferably used.

In general, among these, those having a low molecular weight having a weight average molecular weight of 100,000 or less are suitably used, but those having a higher molecular weight as long as the properties required for the cushion layer are satisfied. Can also be used. In addition, by using various plasticizers in combination, the softening point of the resin can be lowered, so that the performance suitable for the cushion layer can be obtained.

The cushion layer can be provided by applying a solvent, but can also be applied and formed in the form of an aqueous dispersion such as latex or emulsion. Preferred as the resin used in such an aqueous dispersion are, for example, polyethylene, polybutadiene, polychloroprene, polyisoprene, polyester, polystyrene, polyacrylate, polymethacrylate, polyurethane, polyvinyl acetate, polyethyl acrylate, Polyvinyl chloride, polyvinylidene chloride, polyamide, polyvinyl pyridine, polyoxymethylene, alkyd resin, glyptal resin, epoxy resin, phenoxy resin, phenol resin, urea resin, melamine resin, maleic resin, etc., or copolymers thereof, and these And modified products such as carboxyl group and sulfo group.

In addition, a water-soluble resin can also be used. Examples of such a water-soluble resin include cellulose resins such as methylcellulose, ethylcellulose, nitrocellulose, hydroxyethylcellulose, hydroxypropylcellulose, and carboxymethylcellulose; modified polyvinyl alcohol such as polyvinyl alcohol, cation-modified polyvinyl alcohol, and carboxyl-modified polyvinyl alcohol; Water-soluble polyvinyl formal, water-soluble polyvinyl acetal, water-soluble polyvinyl butyral, polyvinyl pyrrolidone, water-soluble polyester, water-soluble nylon, polyacrylic acid, water-soluble polyacrylate, water-soluble polyurethane, gelatin, casein, hydroxyethyl starch, gum arabic , Sucrose octaacetate, ammonium alginate, sodium alginate, polyvinylamine There are copolymers of polyethylene oxide or monomer components constituting these resins.

These resins can be used alone or as a mixture if necessary. Even with materials other than those described above, favorable characteristics of the cushion layer can be obtained by adding various additives.

Examples of the additives include a low-melting substance such as a wax and a plasticizer. Specific examples include phthalic acid ester, adipic acid ester, glycol ester, fatty acid ester, phosphoric acid ester, chlorinated paraffin, and the like. In addition, various additives described in, for example, "Practical Handbook of Additives for Plastics and Rubber" and Chemical Industries, Ltd. (issued in 1970) can be added.

The amount of these additives to be added is not particularly limited, and may be selected in such a manner as to exhibit desirable physical properties in combination with the base cushion layer material. Is preferably 10% by weight or less, more preferably 5% by weight or less.

The preferred thickness of the cushion layer is at least 10 μm, more preferably at least 20 μm. Further, when re-transferring to another transfer object (paper such as coated paper, woodfree paper, etc.), the film thickness is preferably 30 μm or more. If the thickness of the cushion layer is 10 μm or less, the transfer or retransfer to the final support may cause a dropout or chipping.

Further, a cushion layer, a release layer and an image receiving layer are provided in this order on a support, and TMA (Thermo mechanical Ana) of the cushion layer and the image receiving layer is provided.
lysis) is 70 ° C. or less and the release layer has a Tg of 75 ° C. or more or a tensile strength of 3.5 kg / m ² or more. This is effective for more effectively receiving an image from the camera and forming an image with less defects.

Such an image receiving layer and a cushion layer can be selected from the above-mentioned materials, and it is also useful to lower the softening point by adding a plasticizer or the like.

By using an image receiving layer having a softening point measured by TMA of 70 ° C. or lower, the image transfer rate is improved. or,
It was confirmed that more stable transfer was possible when transferring the image formed on the image receiving layer to the final support. The use of a material having a softening point measured by TMA of 70 ° C. or less for the cushion layer is, of course, highly effective in improving the compatibility with foreign substances such as dust.

The TMA softening point is determined by heating the object to be measured at a constant rate of temperature increase while applying a constant load, and observing the phase of the object. In the present invention, the TMA softening point is defined as the temperature at which the phase of the measurement object starts to change. The measurement of the softening point by TMA can be performed using an apparatus such as Thermoflex manufactured by Rigaku Denki Co., Ltd.

Specific examples of the binder for the release layer include polyester, polyvinyl acetal, polyvinyl formal, polyparabanic acid, polymethyl methacrylate, polycarbonate, ethyl cellulose, nitrocellulose, and the like.
Styrenes such as methylcellulose, carboxymethylcellulose, hydroxypropylcellulose, polyvinyl alcohol, polyvinyl chloride, polystyrene, acrylonitrile styrene, and those obtained by crosslinking these resins; Tg such as polyamide, polyimide, polyetherimide, polysulfone, polyethersulfone, and aramid. Is 65 ° C
The above-mentioned thermosetting resins and cured products of those resins are mentioned.

As the curing agent, general curing agents such as isocyanate and melamine can be used. Particularly, polycarbonate, acetal, and ethylcellulose are preferable in terms of storage stability.

The tensile strength can be measured by a method according to JIS-K7113.

By including a conductive substance in the release layer, when the image transferred to the image receiving material is transferred to the final support together with the image receiving layer, the release charge generated between the image receiving layer and the release layer is suppressed, and the dust is removed. It is possible to obtain an image receiving material which is excellent in workability without being attracted by the above.

Examples of general antistatic agents include cationic surfactants, anionic surfactants, nonionic surfactants, polymer antistatic agents, conductive fine particles, and “112”.
Compounds described in, for example, "Chemical Products of Japan 90", Kagaku Kogyo Nippo, pp. 875-876, etc. are widely used.

Suitable conductive substances are those having particularly high conductive effects among the above-mentioned substances known as antistatic agents. For example, conductive fine particles such as metal oxides such as carbon black, zinc oxide, titanium oxide and tin oxide, and semiconductors such as organic semiconductors are preferably used. In particular, it is preferable to use conductive fine particles since the antistatic agent is not dissociated from each layer and a stable antistatic effect can be obtained regardless of the environment.

Although the use of a metal vapor-deposited layer as the conductive release layer is effective in terms of the antistatic effect, it is highly likely that the properties of the cushion layer will be lost due to the hardness of the layer, and the use thereof is limited. In order to prevent electrification during transfer separation of the image receiving layer, the surface resistivity of the release layer is preferably set to 1 × 10 ¹⁰ Ω or less when measured in an environment of 23 ° C. and 55% humidity.

When the image receiving layer is transferred from the image receiving material to the final support as in the present invention, the image receiving layer is thermally transferred by heating / pressing with a laminator or the like, so that both the image receiving material and the final support are very dry. Placed in state. Therefore, peeling charging cannot be completely prevented with about 1 × 10 ¹¹ Ω which is widely used as ordinary antistatic.

The release layer may be formed by dissolving the above-mentioned material in a solvent or dispersing it in the form of a latex in a coating method using a blade coater, a roll coater, a bar coater, a curtain coater, a gravure coater, or the like, or an extrusion lamination method using a hot melt. And the like can be applied, and can be applied and formed on the cushion layer. Alternatively, there is a method in which a material obtained by dissolving or dispersing the material in a solvent or in the form of latex on a temporary base is applied by the above-described method and a cushion layer, and then the temporary base is peeled off.

Further, a suction pressure of 300
It has been found that by introducing a layer having a thickness of not less than mmHg, various types of image defects caused by foreign substances mixed during recording can be eliminated.

Further, by forming the back coat layer with a binder and a mat material and adjusting the average particle size and the particle size distribution of the mat material, recording is performed in a state in which the recording material and the image receiving material are in close contact with each other. It has been found that the adhesion between the image receiving material and the recording material at the time of image recording, which is required for the heat mode recording, is ensured, and a good image receiving material with very few image defects generated at the time of recording can be obtained.

As means for obtaining the value of the suction pressure on the back coat surface of the present invention, for example, the following method can be adopted.

(A) After providing the back coat resin layer, irregularities are formed on the back coat surface by embossing.

(B) The back coat surface is made uneven by adding a mat material to the back coat layer.

(C) A substrate having irregularities from the beginning is used as a support, and a backcoat layer having irregularities is formed by providing a backcoat layer having the irregularities or less.

In thermal transfer recording, which requires particularly fine images, it is preferable to use a smooth film or sheet as the support of the material, so that the required suction pressure is obtained by the method (b). Is particularly preferred.

Incidentally, the suction pressure on the back coat surface can be measured using a smoother SM-6B (manufactured by Toei Electric Industry Co., Ltd.).

Examples of the binder used in the back coat layer include gelatin, polyvinyl alcohol, methyl cellulose, nitrocellulose, acetyl cellulose, aromatic polyamide resin, silicone resin, epoxy resin, alkyd resin, phenol resin, melamine resin, fluorine resin, and polyimide. Resin, urethane resin, acrylic resin, urethane modified silicone resin, polyethylene resin, polypropylene resin, Teflon resin, polyvinyl butyral resin, vinyl chloride resin, polyvinyl acetate, polycarbonate, organic boron compounds, aromatic esters, fluorinated polyurethane, poly General-purpose polymers such as ether sulfone can be used.

The use of a crosslinkable water-soluble binder as the binder of the back coat layer to effect crosslinking is effective in preventing the mat material from falling off the powder and improving the scratch resistance of the back coat. It is also highly effective in blocking during storage.

The crosslinking means may employ any one or a combination of heat, actinic rays and pressure without particular limitation, depending on the characteristics of the crosslinking agent used. In some cases, an arbitrary adhesive layer may be provided on the side of the support on which the back coat layer is provided, in order to impart adhesiveness to the support.

As a mat material preferably added to the back coat layer, organic or inorganic fine particles can be used. As an organic mat material, polymethyl methacrylate (P
MMA), fine particles of polystyrene, polyethylene, polypropylene, and other radical polymerizable polymers, and fine particles of condensation polymers such as polyester and polycarbonate.

The back coat layer is preferably provided in an amount of about 0.5 to 3 g / m ² . If the amount is less than 0.5 g / m ² , the coating property is unstable, and problems such as powder removal of the mat material are likely to occur. Further, when the coating material is applied in an amount exceeding 3 g / m ² , the particle size of a suitable matting material becomes very large, and the image receiving layer surface is embossed by a back coat during storage, and in particular, a thin film for transferring a thin colorant layer. In the fusion thermal transfer recording, missing or unevenness of a recorded image is likely to occur.

The number average particle diameter of the mat member is preferably 2.5 μm or more larger than the thickness of only the binder of the back coat layer. Among the mat materials, by setting the particles having a particle diameter of 8 μm or more to be 5 mg / m ² or more, foreign matter failure is particularly improved. Also, as the particle size number average particle value divided by diameter sigma / r _n the standard deviation of the distribution (= coefficient of variation of particle size distribution) is 0.3 or less, by using a narrow particle size distribution It has been found that defects caused by particles having an unusually large particle size can be improved and desired performance can be obtained with a smaller amount of addition. The coefficient of variation is 0.1
More preferably, it is 5 or less.

An antistatic agent can be added to the back coat layer in order to prevent adhesion of foreign matter due to frictional charging with the transport roll.

The back coat layer may be added with various activators, release agents such as silicone oil and fluorine-based resin, etc. in order to impart coating properties and release properties.

The back coat layer of the present invention comprises a TMA (Thermomechanica) of a cushion layer and an image receiving layer.
l Analysis) is 70 ° C
Particularly preferred is the following.

The suction pressure of the back coat layer is 300 mmHg
By doing so, the adhesion of the image receiving material to the material holding means is increased, and it is difficult to cause a positional shift especially when performing full-color overprinting, and at the same time, the recording is improved by improving the adhesion between the recording material and the image receiving material. In addition to the increase in sensitivity, the escape of gas and the like that occurs due to excessive overheating due to adhesion failure due to foreign matter is also improved.

[0139]

EXAMPLES The present invention will be described in more detail with reference to the following examples, but the embodiments of the present invention are not limited thereto. still,
Unless otherwise specified, “parts” in Examples are “parts by weight”
Represents

Example 1 <Preparation of recording material> A coating solution having the following composition was applied to a 25 μm-thick PET (T100, # 25) manufactured by Diafoil Hoechst by wire bar coating, dried, and dried at 60 ° C. The layer was crosslinked by heating for 80 hours to obtain a release support having a release layer having a thickness of 0.7 μm.

Coating solution for release layer : 89 parts of a 10% by weight aqueous solution of polyvinyl alcohol (Gohsenol EG-30: manufactured by Nippon Synthetic Chemical Co., Ltd.) 1.4 parts of fluororesin (Sumilez Resin FP-150: manufactured by Sumitomo Chemical Co., Ltd.) Amine salt (Sumireze resin ACX-P: Sumitomo Chemical Co., Ltd.) 0.3 parts Melamine resin (Sumireze resin 613: Sumitomo Chemical Co., Ltd.) 2.3 parts Water 907 parts On the release surface of the release support Then, an ink layer having the following formulation was applied so as to have a dry film thickness of 0.5 to 0.55 μm to form yellow, magenta, cyan, and black ink layers.

Yellow ink layer coating liquid Yellow pigment dispersion (MHI Yellow # 625: Disazo Yellow MEK dispersion * manufactured by Mikuni Color Co., Ltd.) 15 parts Styrene / acrylic resin (Hymer SBM73F: 7.4 parts manufactured by Sanyo Chemical Co., Ltd.) 40% by weight MEK solution 10% by weight MEK solution of ethylene / vinyl acetate resin (EV-40Y: manufactured by DuPont-Mitsui Polychemicals) 2.2 parts Fluorinated surfactant (Surflon S-382: manufactured by Asahi Glass Co., Ltd.) 0.1 Part Methyl ethyl ketone (MEK) 56.3 parts Cyclohexanone 19 parts * Pigment disazo yellow is contained at 10% by weight in the pigment dispersion.

The average particle size in the pigment dispersion is 0.15 μm
Met.

Magenta Ink Layer Coating Liquid Magenta Pigment Dispersion (MHI Magenta # 527: Brilliant Carmine MEK Dispersion *, manufactured by Gokunigoku Co., Ltd.) 12 parts 40% by weight MEK solution of styrene / acrylic resin (Hymer SBM73F: above) 8 2.4 parts 10% by weight MEK solution of ethylene / vinyl acetate resin (EV-40Y: supra) 2.6 parts Fluorinated surfactant (Surflon S-382: supra) 0.1 part Methyl ethyl ketone 60.9 parts Cyclohexanone 16 parts * Pigment brilliant carmine is contained in the pigment dispersion at 15% by weight.

The average particle size of the pigment dispersion was 0.30 μm.

Cyan Ink Layer Coating Liquid Cyan Pigment Dispersion (MHI Blue # 454: Phthalocyanine Blue MEK Dispersion *, manufactured by Mikuni Dyestuffs Co., Ltd.) 4.4 parts 40% by weight MEK of styrene / acrylic resin (Hymer SBM73F: supra) Solution 10.4 parts 10% by weight MEK solution of ethylene / vinyl acetate resin (EV-40Y: supra) 2.6 parts Fluorinated surfactant (Surflon S-382: supra) 0.1 part Methyl ethyl ketone 50.5 Part Cyclohexanone 32 parts * Pigment phthalocyanine blue is contained in the pigment dispersion at 30% by weight.

The average particle size in the pigment dispersion is 0.13 μm
Met.

Black ink layer coating liquid Black pigment dispersion (MHI black # 220: MEK dispersion of carbon black manufactured by Okuni Pigment Co., Ltd. *) 4.9 parts Cyan pigment dispersion (MHI blue # 454: Phthalocyanine blue manufactured by Okuni Pigment Company) 0.9 part Violet pigment dispersion (MHI Violet # 735: MEK dispersion of dioxazine violet manufactured by Okuni Shikisha **) 1.2 parts Styrene / acrylic resin (Hymer SBM73F: supra) 40 1% by weight MEK solution 10.5 parts 10% by weight MEK solution of ethylene / vinyl acetate resin (EV-40Y: supra) 3.1 parts Fluorinated surfactant (Surflon S-382: supra) 0.1 part Methyl ethyl ketone 55.3 parts Cyclohexanone 24.0 parts * 30% by weight of pigment is contained in the pigment dispersion. . The average particle size was 0.15 μm.

** Pigment is contained at 10% by weight in the pigment dispersion. The average particle size was 0.38 μm.

The styrene / acrylic resin SBM-73F used in the above ink has a softening point of 115 to 125 ° C., and the ethylene / vinyl acetate resin EV-40Y has a softening point of 65 to 75 ° C.
Resin.

Further, a photothermal conversion layer having the following formulation was formed on the ink layer so that the transmittance and absorptance at a wavelength of 830 nm was 0.8. The liquid preparation procedure, after adding a predetermined amount of water and isopropyl alcohol to an aqueous solution of polyvinyl alcohol,
The increase in particle size was suppressed by gradually adding the carbon black dispersion.

Light-to-heat conversion layer coating solution (light-to-heat conversion layer 1-A: 50% by weight of carbon black) 23.7 parts of a 10% by weight aqueous solution of polyvinyl alcohol (Gohsenol EG-30: supra) Carbon black dispersion (Dainippon Ink) 9.1 parts Water 53.8 parts Isopropyl alcohol 13.4 parts (Light-to-heat conversion layer 1-B: 40% by weight of carbon black) Polyvinyl alcohol (Gohsenol EG-30: supra) 10 parts by weight aqueous solution 31 parts Carbon black dispersion (SD-9020: supra) 7.3 parts Water 49.4 parts Isopropyl alcohol 12.3 parts (photothermal conversion layer 1-C: carbon black 30% by weight) 38 parts of a 10% by weight aqueous solution of alcohol (Gohsenol EG-30: supra) carbon black dispersion (SD-9020) 5.4 parts Water 45.3 parts Isopropyl alcohol 11.3 parts (Light-to-heat conversion layer 1-D: 20% by weight of carbon black) 10% by weight aqueous solution of polyvinyl alcohol (Gohsenol EG-30: above) 45.5 parts Carbon black dispersion (SD-9020: supra) 3.6 parts Water 40.7 parts Isopropyl alcohol 10.2 parts Separately, PE having a thickness of 100 μm manufactured by Diafoil Hoechst Co., Ltd.
T film, T100G, # 100) as a support,
A coating solution having the following composition was applied thereon by a reverse roll coater and dried to form a cushion layer having a thickness of 7 μm after drying.

Cushion layer coating liquid SEBS (Clayton G1657: manufactured by Shell Chemical Co., Ltd.) 14 parts Tackifier (Super Ester A100: manufactured by Arakawa Chemical Co., Ltd.) 6 parts Methyl ethyl ketone 10 parts Toluene 80 parts Next, this cushion layer was released from the mold. A recording material was obtained by peeling off a 25-μm-thick PET after roll-to-roll bonding with a light-to-heat conversion layer having an ink layer and a light-to-heat conversion layer applied on the surface thereof.

The ink layers of the obtained four color recording materials had the following 75-degree specular gloss, and in each case, there was no unevenness in the solid printing portion, and an image having a good secondary color tone could be obtained. Was. Yellow layer: 90.2, Magenta layer: 87.3, Cyan layer: 91.5, Black layer: 85.3 <Preparation of image receiving material> PET (T-10) having a thickness of 100 μm
0: above), a backcoat layer coating solution having the following formulation was applied to a dry film thickness of 0.6 μm, and an acrylic latex (Yodosol AD92K: Kanebo NS) was applied on the back surface.
C Co., Ltd., TMA softening point: 45 ° C.) was applied by an applicator to a dry film thickness of about 35 μm to form a cushion layer.

On this cushion layer, a release layer coating solution having the following composition was applied by wire bar coating and dried to form a release layer having a thickness of about 1.3 μm.

Backcoat layer coating liquid Polyvinyl alcohol (Gohsenol EG30: supra) 10% by weight aqueous solution 9.4 parts Mat material (PMMA particles having an average particle size of 5.6μ) 0.6 parts Water 90 parts Release layer coating the coating liquid ethylcellulose: over (Ethocel 10 Dow Chemical Co.) 10 parts isopropyl alcohol 90 parts release layer, an image receiving layer having the following formulation, as the dry film thickness of the non-existent parts of the mat member becomes 1.2μm Apply,
An image receiving material was obtained.

Image receiving layer coating solution Acrylic acid latex 30.4 parts (Iodozol A5805: manufactured by Kanebo NSC, TMA softening point: 42 ° C.) Matting material: 1.9 parts (MX-300: 25% by weight water manufactured by Soken Chemical Co., Ltd.) Dispersion) Fluorine-based resin (FP-150: supra) 5.7 parts Water 60 parts Isopropyl alcohol 2 parts The number of projections on the image receiving layer surface was 3,500 / mm ² (1
(Calculated from the number in the range of 00 μm × 100 μm).

<Image formation> The recording material ink layer surface of each color and the image receiving layer surface of the image receiving material face each other, and are closely adhered to a suctionable drum under reduced pressure (from atmospheric pressure to 200 mmHg), and are rotated. Exposure recording was performed from the back side of the ink sheet in the sub-scanning direction with a laser diode. The exposure illuminance was 0.15 MW / cm ² , and the exposure beam diameter for 1 ch was 6 μm.

The TG measuring device was SSC-2 manufactured by Seiko Denshi.
20, measurement conditions are as follows: heating rate 10 ° C./min, heating start temperature 30 ° C., nitrogen flow 100 cc / min, sample amount 5
Performed at 〜１０10 mg.

Regarding the 75-degree specular gloss of the surface of the ink layer of the recording material of four colors prepared in Example 1, there was no unevenness in the solid printing portion, no displacement occurred, and the color tone of the secondary color was good. Could be obtained.

The ink surface of each recording material was superimposed on the image receiving layer surface of the image receiving material, and the static friction coefficient at a load of 40 g was determined by HEID.
The measurement by ON was as follows.

Yellow: 0.72, Magenta: 0.5
2, cyan: 0.48, black 0.45 FIG. 1 shows dot gains of four colors after image formation.

Example 2 <Preparation of Recording Material> The same liquid as the magenta ink coating liquid of Example 1 was coated on the release support of Example 1 so that the dry film thickness became 0.55 μm. . A liquid having the same formulation as that of the light-to-heat conversion layer 1-C of Example 1 was added to the ink layer by adding isopropyl alcohol to aggregate the carbon black.
A light-to-heat conversion layer 2-A formed so as to have a transmittance and absorptance of 0.8 at a wavelength of 830 nm as a coating solution for a light-to-heat conversion layer of μm.
And a photothermal conversion layer 2-B formed so as to have a dry film thickness of 0.55 μm. Otherwise, in the same manner as in Example 1, two types of recording materials were obtained.

An image was formed together with the recording material of Example 1 and the image receiving material of Example 1. Table 1 shows the results.

[0165]

[Table 1]

The particle size was measured using a Coulter Model manufactured by Nikkaki Co., Ltd.
-Measured by N4SD.

Example 3 <Preparation of Recording Material> The polyvinyl alcohol of the light-to-heat conversion layer 1-C of Example 1 was prepared by using other various binders having different TGA50 thermal decomposition temperatures and a dry film thickness of 0. 0.5 μm.

Table 2 shows the scattering state of the photothermal conversion type layer depending on the binder.

[0169]

[Table 2]

Example 4 <Preparation of Image Receiving Material> An image receiving material was prepared in the same manner as in Example 1 except that the binder for the release layer of the image receiving material of Example 1 was formed using the following binder instead of methyl cellulose. Created.

・ Polycarbonate (PCZ200: manufactured by Mitsubishi Gas Chemical) ・ Polyvinyl acetal (ESLEC KS-1: manufactured by Sekisui Chemical) ・ Ethyl cellulose (N-10-G: manufactured by Shin-Etsu Chemical) ・ Polyester (UE3300: manufactured by Unitika) Table 3 shows the physical properties and printing characteristics of the binder.

[0172]

[Table 3]

Example 5 <Preparation of Image Receiving Material> An image receiving material was prepared in the same manner as in Example 1 except that a coating solution having the following composition was used for the image receiving layer.

Coating solution for image receiving layer Acrylic latex (A5801: manufactured by Kanebo NSC) 10 parts Matting agent 3 parts (MR-2HG: PMMA particles having an average particle diameter of 2.2 μm manufactured by Soken Chemical Co.) Water 87 parts When an image was formed by using, "air pool" was generated, and transfer unevenness was generated.

Example 6 <Preparation of Recording Material> PET (T100
G, # 100: supra) A coating solution having the following composition was applied on a support by a reverse roll coater and dried to form a cushion layer having a dry film thickness of 7 µm.

Cushion layer coating solution SEBS (Clayton G1657: supra) 14 parts Tack Fire (Super Ester A100: supra) 6 parts Methyl ethyl ketone 10 parts Toluene 80 parts On the above cushion layer, a light-to-heat conversion layer of the following formulation was wire-barped. Was applied so that the dry film thickness became 0.6 μm.

Coating solution for light-to-heat conversion layer 14 parts carbon black dispersion (High Micron K Black # 0542: manufactured by Mikuni Dye Co.) 63 parts of 10% by weight aqueous solution of polyvinyl alcohol 63 parts (Gohsenol EG-30: supra) 23 parts of water By changing the solid content, the wire bar, and the drying conditions, five types of light-to-heat conversion layers having different surface properties could be obtained. On this light-to-heat conversion layer, a cyan ink layer having the following formulation was applied to obtain an ink layer having a dry film thickness of 0.6 μm.

Cyan Ink Layer Coating Liquid Cyan Pigment Dispersion (MHI Blue # 454: 4.4 parts phthalocyanine blue MEK dispersion manufactured by Mikuni Dye Co., Ltd.) 40% by weight of styrene / acrylic resin (Hymer SBM100: manufactured by Sanyo Chemical Co., Ltd.) MEK solution 13.0 parts Fluorinated surfactant (Surflon S-382: supra) 0.1 part Methyl ethyl ketone 50.5 parts Cyclohexanone 32 parts Styrene / acrylic resin SBM-100 has a softening point of 95
１０５105 ° C.

The correlation between the surface gloss of the light-to-heat conversion layer and the unevenness of the solid printed portion was as follows.

Light-to-heat conversion layer surface gloss Unevenness of solid printed area 55.8 Notable 68.3 Almost no discomfort 72.4 None 78.8 None 84.2 None Example 7 <Preparation of image receiving material> Back coat By changing the particle size and content of the matting agent in the layer, image receiving materials having different suction pressures on the back coat surface were obtained.

<Image formation by laser thermal transfer> After the image receiving material is wound around the drum surface so that the back coat surface is in contact with the drum, the recording material is wound so that the image receiving layer and the ink layer of the recording material are in contact with each other. The image was transferred onto the image receiving layer by applying laser irradiation from the back surface of the recording material by applying vacuum through suction from the suction holes and suction grooves. At that time, fibers each having a diameter of 20 μm, 1 mm
A 40 μm thick tape cut into four sides was mixed as a foreign substance.

<Image Transfer by Laminator> The image-receiving layer of the image-receiving sheet on which the image was transferred was printed on paper (Mitsubishi Paper Corp .:
2kg, roll temperature 120
The transfer was performed under pressure and heat at a roll speed of 20 mm / sec. The transferred image was evaluated based on the following evaluation method.

Evaluation 1: Influence of Foreign Substances on the Back Side of Image Receiving Material << Fog >> A 50% halftone dot pattern was exposed, and the transferred portion of the obtained transferred image at the unexposed portion was visually evaluated as fog.

：: no fog Δ: fog of 2 mm or less ×: fog of 5 mm or more << Air bleeding defect >> The presence or absence of a defect caused by pressing from the back of the image receiving material is evaluated.

：: No defect Δ: Defect of 5 mm or less ×: Defect of 1 cm or more Evaluation 2: Influence of foreign matter between image receiving material and recording material << Transfer omission >> The presence or absence of missing due to untransfer was visually evaluated.

：: Omission is less than 20 μm from the size of the foreign matter Δ: Omission is 20 to 50 μm larger than the size of the foreign matter X: Omission is more than 50 μm than the size of the foreign object << Burning >> The presence or absence of dirt due to scorching transfer of the light-to-heat conversion layer was visually evaluated.

：: No burn-out Δ: Burn-out, but very small amount X: Burn-out, color tone not reproduced The results are shown in Table 4.

[0188]

[Table 4]

The suction pressure on the back coat surface of each sheet was measured using a smoother SM-6B manufactured by Toei Electric Industry Co., Ltd. The measurement was performed after conditioning the sample at 23 ° C. and 52 RH% for 2 hours.

Example 8 <Preparation of Image-Receiving Material> PET (T-10) having a thickness of 100 μm
0: above) and a dry film thickness of 0.5 g /
coating the back coat layer of m ^2, and obtain an image receiving material.

Backcoat Layer Coating Solution Polyvinyl Alcohol (Gohsenol EG30: supra) 10% by weight aqueous solution 9.4 parts Mat material (MX-1000: manufactured by Soken Chemical Co.) 0.6 parts Water 90 parts Acrylic latex (Iodozol AD92K: described above) on the back side, about 30 μm in dry film thickness
Was applied with an applicator to give a cushion layer. A release layer coating solution having the following composition was applied thereon by wire bar coating and dried to form a release layer having a dry film thickness of about 1.5 μm.

Release Layer Coating Liquid Carbon Black Dispersion (Microlith Black CA *: manufactured by Nippon Ciba Geigy Co., Ltd.) 3 parts Ethyl cellulose (Ethocel 10: supra) 7 parts Isopropyl alcohol 85 parts Methyl ethyl ketone 5 parts * Microlith Black C -A is a dispersion of fine particles of carbon black in ethyl cellulose and contains about 60 parts by weight of carbon black.

When the surface resistivity of the release layer was measured at the stage when the release layer was applied, it was 9.2 × 10 ⁹ Ω. Further, on the release layer, an image receiving layer coating solution having the following formulation was applied by wire bar coating to prepare an image receiving material.

Coating solution for image receiving layer Acrylic latex (Iodozol A5805: manufactured by Kanebo NSC) 19.8 parts Matting agent (MX-300: supra) 0.36 part Matting agent (MX-500: manufactured by Soken Chemical Co., Ltd.) 0.24 parts Fluororesin (Sumirez Resin FP-150: supra) 3.2 parts Isopropyl alcohol 8.8 parts Water 32.4 parts This image receiving material and the image receiving material of Example 1 were used in Example 1 respectively. Form an image with the created magenta recording material,
The image receiving layer of the image receiving sheet on which the image has been transferred is superimposed on printing paper (Toshibishi Art: supra), pressure 2 kg, roll temperature 120
The transfer was performed under pressure and heat at a roll speed of 20 mm / sec.

When the indoor environment was at a humidity of about 40%, almost no charge was felt at the time of peeling, but under dry conditions of 20% humidity, the image receiving material of Example 1 felt peeling charge. When measured with a surface voltmeter, when the image receiving material of Example 1 was peeled off, it was 10 kV under an environment of 20% humidity.
It was confirmed that the object was charged. Further, the potential after 1 minute was 5 V or more, and a phenomenon was observed in which the final supports on which the images were transferred were stuck together.

The surface specific resistance of the release layer of the image receiving material of Example 1 was 3.5 × 10 ¹² Ω, but the image receiving material of Example 8 had a small amount of release charge of 1.2 kV and was about 30 seconds. And almost became zero. This phenomenon did not change either immediately after the pressure / heat transfer or after several hours from the pressure / heat transfer.

When re-transfer to mat paper (New Age: manufactured by Shin-Oji Paper Co., Ltd.) was performed using each of the image receiving materials of the present invention, good transfer could be performed by setting the transfer temperature to 140 ° C. Was.

Example 9 An ink coating liquid having the following formulation was prepared by a liquid preparation method according to the following methods A and B, and stored for 3 months at room temperature (25 ° C., RH 50%).

Prescription pigment for ink liquid (Brilliant Carmine 6B) 3.8 parts Dispersing aid (Solsperse S20000) 0.3 part Styrene / acrylic resin (SBM-73F: above) 5.5 parts Styrene / vinyl acetate copolymer (EV-40Y: supra) 0.4 part Methyl ethyl ketone 90 parts (Method A) A pigment and a dispersant assistant were mixed and diluted and dispersed with 16 parts of MEK to obtain a pigment dispersion having a dispersion average particle diameter of 0.16 μm. An MEK solution of a styrene / acrylic resin and a styrene / vinyl acetate copolymer was mixed with the mixture to obtain an ink liquid.

(Method B) After mixing a pigment, a dispersing aid and 0.5 part of styrene / acrylic resin, the mixture was diluted and dispersed with 15 parts of MEK to obtain a pigment dispersion having an average pigment particle diameter of 0.25 μm. The remaining styrene / acrylic resin and styrene /
The MEK solution of the vinyl acetate copolymer was mixed to obtain an ink liquid.

FIG. 2 shows the variation of the pigment particle size during storage of the ink liquid in both the liquid preparation methods.

[0202] Method B was advantageous for long-term storage, probably because Brilliant Carmine 6B was not very well mixed with the resin used.

[0203]

As described above, according to the present invention, it is possible to maintain the ink performance suitable for producing a color proof for printing, and to stably produce without causing image defects caused by foreign substances such as dust mixed in the recording process. Light-to-heat conversion type recording material, an intermediate transfer material suitable for efficiently receiving the ink layer image of the light-to-heat conversion type recording material and reproducing the printed matter on a final support such as printing paper with a quality approximating printed matter. An image receiving material was obtained, and an effective recording method could be provided using these image forming materials.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing the relationship between dot gain and halftone dot when four color recording materials are used in Example 1.

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a change in pigment particle size during storage of an ink liquid due to a difference in an ink liquid preparation method in Example 9.

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁶ Identification code Agency reference number FI Technical display location B41M 5/26 JH

Claims (19)

[Claims] 1. A light-to-heat conversion type recording material having at least a cushion layer, a light-to-heat conversion layer, and an ink layer on a support, wherein the light-to-heat conversion layer contains carbon black and a resin and has a thickness of 0.4 to 0.4. 1.2 μm, carbon black is dispersed to an average particle size of 0.5 μm or less, the ink layer contains 15 to 45% by weight of a coloring material, and a resin having a melting point or softening point in a range of 40 to 150 ° C. as a binder. As the main component,
A photothermal conversion type recording material having a thickness of 0.4 to 1.0 [mu] m. 2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the resin forming the light-to-heat conversion layer is heated at a rate of 10 ° C. /
The resin whose temperature at which the weight loss rate per minute is 50% is 360 ° C. or more is contained in 70% of all the resin components constituting the light-to-heat conversion layer.
The light-to-heat conversion type recording material according to claim 1, wherein the content is at least 10% by weight. 3. An ink layer comprising a fluorine-containing compound in an amount of 0.01
The light-to-heat conversion type recording material according to claim 1, wherein the content is from 2.0 to 2.0% by weight. 4. The ink layer has an average particle diameter of 0.5 μm in the liquid.
The pigment dispersion, which is dispersed below, and a layer prepared from a solution prepared by mixing a solution of a binder, wherein the layer is formed from a liquid, and the layer is formed from the liquid. Photothermal conversion type recording material. 5. The ink layer has an average particle size of 0.5 μm in the liquid.
Hereinafter, a pigment dispersion obtained by dispersing a part of a binder used in an ink layer as a dispersant and a solution of the binder is mixed, and the layer is basically a liquid prepared as a raw material. The photothermal conversion type recording material according to any one of claims 1 to 4. 6. A light-to-heat conversion layer is coated on a support provided with a cushion layer, and the surface of the light-to-heat conversion layer after the light-to-heat conversion layer is coated has a 75-degree specular glossiness defined by JIS Z-8741-1983. The number is 65 or more.
The photothermal conversion type recording material according to any one of the above. 7. A cushion layer, a light-to-heat conversion layer on a support,
A photothermal conversion type recording material having an ink layer, wherein an ink layer is provided on a release surface of a support having a releasable surface, and further a photothermal conversion layer is provided on the ink layer. After laminating the cushion layer and light-to-heat conversion layer provided above,
The recording material is prepared by peeling the releasable support, and JIS Z-8741- of the ink layer after the releasable support is peeled off.
The photothermal conversion type recording material according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein a 75 degree specular glossiness specified in 1983 is 80 or more. 8. A recording material according to claim 1, which has at least a cushion layer and an image receiving layer on a support, and the thickness of the image receiving layer is 0.3 to 3 0.0 μm,
A light-to-heat conversion type image forming material comprising an image receiving material containing a matting agent having an average particle size 1.5 to 5.5 μm larger than the film thickness. 9. The protrusion of the image receiving layer due to the matting agent is 200 to 200.
Light-heat conversion type image-forming material according to claim 8, which is a 5,000 / mm ^2. 10. The image forming apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the static friction coefficient between the image receiving layer and the ink layer is 0.3 to 1.0.
3. The photothermal conversion type image forming material according to item 1. 11. An image receiving material is provided with a cushion layer, a release layer and an image receiving layer on a support in this order, the softening points of the cushion layer and the image receiving layer measured by TMA are 70 ° C. or less, and the release layer is The photothermal conversion type image forming material according to any one of claims 8 to 10, wherein the film has a glass transition point of 75 ° C or higher or a tensile strength of 3.5 kg / m ² or higher. . 12. The photothermal conversion type image forming material according to claim 11, wherein the release layer has conductivity. 13. The image receiving material has a back coat layer on the surface opposite to the image receiving layer, and the suction pressure of the back coat layer is 30.
The pressure is equal to or higher than 0 mmHg.
The photothermal conversion type image forming material according to any one of the above. 14. A recording material according to claim 1, comprising at least a cushion layer and an image receiving layer on a support, wherein the thickness of the image receiving layer is from 0.3 to 3. 0 μm,
A photothermal conversion type image forming material comprising an image receiving material containing a matting agent having an average particle size of 1.5 to 5.5 [mu] m larger than the film thickness is allowed to stand so that the ink layer and the image receiving layer face each other. An image forming method, comprising: performing laser exposure from the back surface of a recording material to form an image in a state where the image receiving material and the recording material are fixed by suction from the back surface of the material. 15. The projections of the image receiving layer due to the matting agent are 20
The image forming method according to claim 14, characterized in that the 0 to 5000 pieces / mm ^2. 16. The image forming method according to claim 14, wherein the coefficient of static friction between the image receiving layer and the ink layer is 0.3 to 0.7. 17. An image receiving material comprises a support, a cushion layer, a release layer, and an image receiving layer provided in this order, the softening points of the cushion layer and the image receiving layer measured by TMA are 70 ° C. or less, and the release layer comprises 17. The image forming method according to claim 14, wherein the film has a glass transition point of 75 [deg.] C. or more or a tensile strength of 3.5 kg / m < ² > or more. 18. The image receiving material has a back coat layer on the surface opposite to the image receiving layer, and the suction pressure of the back coat layer is 30.
The pressure is equal to or higher than 0 mmHg.
8. The image forming method according to any one of 7. 19. The image forming method according to claim 14, wherein a laser used for exposure is a multi-channel laser light source using a plurality of laser light sources.