阅读说明：本技术 喷墨记录方法 (Ink jet recording method ) 是由 伊井智明 津留功 吉田典弘 新关义晴 平馆淳 山田公哉 酒井秀树 于 2018-06-15 设计创作，主要内容包括：本发明涉及一种喷墨记录方法,该喷墨记录方法使用具有向印刷基材喷出黑色油墨进行记录的单元、和位于该基材的输送方向下游侧的干燥单元的装置,该印刷基材为标签印刷基材,该黑色油墨为水性复合黑色油墨,该复合黑色油墨中的炭黑的含量为复合黑色颜料中的25质量％以下,该干燥单元为将喷出在该印刷基材上的该复合黑色油墨的温度加热至95℃以上且125℃以下的红外线加热器。根据该方法,即使是在标签印刷基材上进行记录,也能够得到不发生移染及印刷基材的变形的良好的记录物。(The present invention relates to an inkjet recording method using an apparatus having a unit for ejecting a black ink to a printing substrate to perform recording, and a drying unit located on a downstream side in a conveying direction of the substrate, wherein the printing substrate is a label printing substrate, the black ink is an aqueous composite black ink, a content of carbon black in the composite black ink is 25 mass% or less of a composite black pigment, and the drying unit is an infrared heater for heating a temperature of the composite black ink ejected on the printing substrate to 95 ℃ or higher and 125 ℃ or lower. According to this method, even when recording is performed on the label printing substrate, a good recorded matter free from transfer dyeing and deformation of the printing substrate can be obtained.)

1. An ink-jet recording method, wherein,

the ink jet recording method uses a device having a unit for ejecting black ink to a printing substrate to perform recording and a drying unit located on the downstream side of the substrate in the conveying direction,

the printing substrate is a label printing substrate,

the black ink is water-based composite black ink,

the content of carbon black in the composite black ink is 25% by mass or less of the composite black pigment,

the drying unit is an infrared heater for heating the temperature of the composite black ink ejected on the printing substrate to 95 ℃ to 125 ℃.

2. The ink jet recording method according to claim 1, wherein,

the composite black pigment contains a cyan pigment, a magenta pigment, and a yellow pigment.

3. The inkjet recording method according to claim 1 or 2, wherein,

in the aqueous composite black ink, the total content of the composite black pigments containing carbon black is 2 to 20 mass%.

4. The inkjet recording method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein,

each pigment constituting the composite black pigment contained in the aqueous composite black ink contains pigment particles in which the pigment is dispersed with a polymer.

5. The inkjet recording method according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein,

the aqueous composite black ink contains 0.08 to 1% by mass of carbon black, 0.1 to 2% by mass of cyan pigment, 0.4 to 3% by mass of magenta pigment, and 0.4 to 2.5% by mass of yellow pigment.

6. The inkjet recording method according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein,

the infrared heater is a mid-infrared lamp heater.

7. The inkjet recording method according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein,

the label printing substrate is provided with a preheater for heating the surface temperature of the printing substrate to 35 ℃ to 65 ℃ on the upstream side of the recording position.

8. The inkjet recording method according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein,

the transport speed of the label printing substrate is 6m/min or more.

9. The inkjet recording method according to any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein,

the method comprises the following steps: and a step of mixing the cyan ink, the magenta ink, the yellow ink, and the black ink to obtain an aqueous composite black ink.

Technical Field

The present invention relates to an inkjet recording method.

Background

The ink jet recording system is a recording system in which ink droplets are directly ejected from very fine nozzles onto a recording medium and are attached to the recording medium to obtain characters or images. This system is easy to be full-colored and suitable for printing in small quantities and in many kinds, and is therefore not limited to consumer printing for general consumers, but in recent years, it is also applied to the fields of commercial printing and industrial printing.

In the field of commercial printing or industrial printing, in order to improve productivity, high-speed inkjet printing has been proposed in which a roll-shaped recording medium is scanned by a so-called single-pass method in which recording is completed only by passing the recording medium under a recording head with a configuration in which a linear fixed recording head capable of recording over the entire width of the recording medium is provided.

For example, japanese patent laid-open No. 2014-: a conveying member that conveys a label paper having labels attached to a long strip of release paper at regular intervals; a head unit having a plurality of line-type printing heads for ejecting ink to the label; a head unit moving member; and a peeling member that peels the label from the release paper.

In addition, there has been proposed an ink jet recording method using a composite black ink containing a plurality of color pigments as a black ink.

For example, japanese patent laid-open No. 2000-.

Jp 2013-47311 a (patent document 3) discloses an ink set comprising a black aqueous ink containing carbon black, at least 1 coloring pigment selected from a magenta pigment and a cyan pigment, a water-soluble polymerizable compound, and a polymerization initiator, and the content ratio of the carbon black is 70% by mass or less with respect to the total amount of all the pigments. In the examples, an ink in which the content of carbon black is 50% by mass or more based on the total amount of all pigments is described.

Disclosure of Invention

The present invention relates to an inkjet recording method using an apparatus having a unit for performing recording by ejecting a black ink onto a printing substrate, the printing substrate being a label printing substrate, and a drying unit located on a downstream side in a conveying direction of the substrate, wherein the black ink is an aqueous composite black ink, a content of carbon black in the composite black ink is 25% by mass or less in a composite black pigment, and the drying unit is an infrared heater for heating a temperature of the composite black ink ejected onto the printing substrate to 95 ℃ or higher and 125 ℃ or lower.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a schematic diagram showing an internal configuration of an inkjet recording apparatus used in the present invention, and (a) is a front view thereof, and (b) is a plan view thereof.

Detailed Description

In high-speed printing in which recording is performed on label printing paper using an aqueous ink, since there are winding operations and overlapping operations of printing paper, a technique for increasing the drying speed of the ink is required, and a drying system for irradiating infrared rays immediately after printing is considered to be effective.

However, organic pigments such as yellow pigment, magenta pigment, and cyan pigment used for color printing are different from carbon black used for black printing in infrared absorption amount, and therefore, the color portion cannot be dried with the minimum energy that can dry the black portion that easily absorbs infrared rays, or conversely, when high infrared energy is irradiated to dry the color portion, the black portion becomes extremely high temperature. Therefore, a rapid temperature rise in the black portion that easily absorbs infrared rays causes the following specific disadvantages.

When the label printing paper is a paper base, there are problems as follows: the paper itself, the adhesive and the release paper are deformed by the vaporization and expansion of the moisture contained therein, or in the case of a paper base material having no adhesive, the paper itself is deformed by the vaporization and expansion of the moisture contained therein. Further, when the label printing paper is a film base material, there are problems as follows: when the black portion exceeds the softening point (glass transition point) of the film, thermal shrinkage occurs, and deformation occurs.

Therefore, in the label printer of patent document 1, if an infrared drying system is simply used to increase the drying speed of the recorded matter, since both the transfer dyeing and the suppression of the deformation of the label printing paper cannot be sufficiently achieved, the recorded matter that can satisfy the practical requirements cannot be obtained.

In the ink jet recording methods of patent documents 2 and 3, a composite black ink is used for adjusting the color tone, but no consideration is made on drying of a recorded matter or suppression of deformation of printing paper.

The present invention relates to an ink jet recording method capable of obtaining a good recorded matter without causing transfer dyeing or deformation of a printing substrate even when recording is performed on a label printing substrate.

Here, "record" is a concept including printing and printing of recorded characters and images, and "recorded matter" is a concept including printed matter and printed matter in which characters and images are recorded.

The present inventors have found that, in a recording method using a label printing substrate, by using a specific composite black ink and using an infrared heater under specific conditions, a good recorded matter free from offset dyeing and deformation of the printing substrate can be obtained.

That is, the present invention relates to an inkjet recording method using an apparatus having a unit for ejecting a black ink to a printing substrate, and a drying unit located on a downstream side in a conveying direction of the substrate, wherein the printing substrate is a label printing substrate, the black ink is an aqueous composite black ink, a content of carbon black in the composite black ink is 25% by mass or less in a composite black pigment, and the drying unit is an infrared heater for heating a temperature of the composite black ink ejected on the printing substrate to 95 ℃ or higher and 125 ℃ or lower.

According to the present invention, it is possible to provide an ink jet recording method capable of obtaining a good recorded matter without causing transfer dyeing and deformation of a printing substrate even when recording is performed on a label printing substrate.

[ ink jet recording method ]

The inkjet recording method of the present invention is an inkjet recording method using an apparatus having a unit for ejecting a black ink on a printing substrate to perform recording, and a drying unit located on a downstream side in a conveying direction of the substrate, wherein the printing substrate is a label printing substrate (hereinafter, also simply referred to as "printing substrate"), the black ink is an aqueous composite black ink, a content of carbon black in the composite black ink is 25 mass% or less of a composite black pigment, and the drying unit is an infrared heater for heating a temperature of the composite black ink ejected on the printing substrate to 95 ℃ or higher and 125 ℃ or lower.

The inventor thinks that: according to the ink jet recording method of the present invention, by using the composite black ink, even when an infrared heater is used, the difference in the amount of infrared absorption between the colors of the ink is extremely small, and the temperature difference due to heating of the recording surface is not generated, so that quick drying can be achieved without causing offset dyeing and thermal deformation of the printing substrate.

< Label printing substrate >

The label printing substrate used in the present invention is typically a substrate having a surface layer having printability (printability) provided on a support, and may be a substrate on which printing is directly performed on a support. Specifically, there may be mentioned: 2-layer composition (surface layer/support), 4-layer composition (surface layer/support/adhesive layer/release paper), 3-layer composition (support/adhesive agent/release paper), and single-layer composition (support).

The support of the printing substrate may be paper or a resin film. As the paper, there can be mentioned: paper mainly contains wood pulp such as chemical pulp, mechanical pulp, and ancient paper pulp, and non-wood pulp such as Kenaf (Kenaf) and bagasse (bagass). As the resin film, there can be mentioned: polyester films such as polyethylene terephthalate, polyethylene films, polypropylene films, polyvinyl chloride films, polycarbonate films, and the like.

The surface of the printing substrate may be a surface on which a plurality of layers such as a gloss-appearing layer are formed as in a coated paper used in general printing, or may be a surface on which a gloss-appearing treatment such as calendering or casting is further performed. In order to impart printability, the surface layer may have an ink-receiving layer.

The pressure-sensitive adhesive layer can be formed by a known technique of applying an acrylic resin or the like, and the release paper can be provided by a known method. In addition, an ink-receiving layer can be formed by coating a coating liquid containing an inorganic or organic filler material on a surface layer or a support using various coaters and drying it.

After printing, the printed product is cut into a predetermined size as needed, and is used as a label for labeling.

< aqueous composite Black ink >

In the present invention, an aqueous composite black ink (hereinafter, also simply referred to as "ink") is used from the viewpoint of preventing offset dyeing and thermal deformation of a printing substrate and improving water resistance and weather resistance of a recorded matter.

The aqueous composite black ink is preferably an aqueous ink containing a composite black pigment (a), a water-insoluble polymer (B), an organic solvent (D) and water. The aqueous composite black ink may contain additives such as a surfactant, if necessary.

In the present specification, the term "aqueous" means that the ink contains water in a maximum proportion in a medium. The aqueous ink of the present invention does not contain a polymerization initiator.

< composite black pigment (A) >

The composite black pigment preferably comprises a cyan pigment, a magenta pigment, and a yellow pigment. Since the cyan pigment, the magenta pigment, and the yellow pigment have different absorption wavelengths, respectively, a wide range of light is absorbed by mixing them, and black is displayed. The composite black pigment may contain 25 mass% or less of carbon black.

The composite black ink contains a predetermined amount of each of a cyan pigment, a magenta pigment, and a yellow pigment, and thereby exhibits a black level equivalent to that of a black ink containing carbon black alone.

In the composite black pigment, when the balance of the amounts of the cyan pigment, the magenta pigment, and the yellow pigment is slightly poor, light of a specific wavelength is reflected without being absorbed, and thus a color close to the reflected light can be visually recognized. Therefore, the proportion of each pigment in the aqueous composite black ink is preferably 2.5% by mass or more, more preferably 5% by mass or more, and still more preferably 7.5% by mass or more of the cyan pigment, preferably 10% by mass or more, more preferably 20% by mass or more, and still more preferably 30% by mass or more of the magenta pigment, and preferably 10% by mass or more, more preferably 15% by mass or more, and still more preferably 20% by mass or more of the yellow pigment, in the composite black pigment, from the viewpoint of suppressing the hue fluctuation.

The ratio of cyan pigment to magenta pigment to yellow pigment is preferably 0.025 to 0.5: 0.2 to 0.75: 0.1 to 0.6, more preferably 0.075 to 0.4: 0.3 to 0.65: 0.2 to 0.5, and still more preferably 0.1 to 0.35 to 0.6: 0.25 to 0.45.

In the aqueous composite black ink, carbon black is preferably added for the purpose of absorbing a wide range of light and improving the degree of blackness. Examples of the carbon black include furnace black, hot lamp black, acetylene black, and channel black.

From the viewpoint of suppressing thermal deformation of the printing substrate due to drying by the infrared heater, the content of carbon black in the aqueous composite black ink is 25 mass% or less, preferably 20 mass% or less, more preferably 16 mass% or less, and still more preferably 13 mass% or less in the composite black pigment containing carbon black.

In the present invention, the total content of the composite black pigment containing carbon black in the aqueous composite black ink is preferably 1.5% by mass or more, more preferably 1.8% by mass or more, further preferably 2% by mass or more, and preferably 10% by mass or less, more preferably 8% by mass or less, further preferably 6% by mass or less, from the viewpoint of suppressing the change in hue and improving the optical density of an image.

The composite black pigment (a) is preferably a mixed pigment in which the cyan pigment, the magenta pigment, the yellow pigment, and optionally carbon black (hereinafter, these are also collectively referred to as "pigments") are dispersed by a polymer, more preferably a particle in which at least a part of the surface of each pigment constituting the composite black pigment (a) is coated with the water-insoluble polymer (B), and further preferably a mixture of water-insoluble polymer particles (hereinafter, also referred to as "pigment-containing polymer particles") containing each pigment, from the viewpoint of the fixability of a recorded matter recorded on a printing substrate.

The morphology of the pigment-containing polymer particles may be such that at least each pigment and the water-insoluble polymer form particles. For example, it also includes: the water-insoluble polymer contains a particle form of each pigment; a particle form in which the pigment is uniformly dispersed in the water-insoluble polymer; a particle morphology in which a pigment is exposed on the surface of the water-insoluble polymer particles; and a mixture of these.

In the aqueous composite black ink, the "pigment-free water-insoluble polymer particles (C)" described later may be blended separately from the pigment-containing polymer particles.

Specific examples of the cyan pigment, magenta pigment, and yellow pigment used in the present invention will be described below.

Examples of the cyan pigment include c.i. pigment blue 15, c.i. pigment blue 15:2, c.i. pigment blue 15:3, c.i. pigment blue 15:4, c.i. pigment blue 16, c.i. pigment blue 60, c.i. pigment green 7, and silicone crosslinked aluminum phthalocyanine described in the specification of U.S. patent No. 4311775.

Among these, from the viewpoint of preventing offset dyeing and thermal deformation of a printing substrate, and from the viewpoint of weather resistance, 1 or more selected from c.i. pigment blue 15:3, c.i. pigment blue 15:4, and c.i. pigment blue 16 are preferable, and 1 or more selected from c.i. pigment blue 15:3 and c.i. pigment blue 15:4 are more preferable.

Examples of the magenta pigment include c.i. pigment red 2, c.i. pigment red 3, c.i. pigment red 5, c.i. pigment red6, c.i. pigment red 7, c.i. pigment red 15, c.i. pigment red 16, c.i. pigment red 48:1, c.i. pigment red 53:1, c.i. pigment red 57:1, c.i. pigment red 122, c.i. pigment red 123, c.i. pigment red 139, c.i. pigment red 144, c.i. pigment red 149, c.i. pigment red 166, c.i. pigment red 177, c.i. pigment red 178, c.i. pigment red 222, and c.i. pigment violet 19.

Among these, from the viewpoint of preventing offset dyeing and thermal deformation of a printing substrate, and from the viewpoint of weather resistance, 1 or more selected from c.i. pigment red 122, c.i. pigment red 202, c.i. pigment red 209, and c.i. pigment violet 19 is preferable, and 1 or more selected from c.i. pigment red 122 and c.i. pigment violet 19 is more preferable.

Examples of the yellow pigment include c.i. pigment orange 31, c.i. pigment orange 43, c.i. pigment yellow 12, c.i. pigment yellow 13, c.i. pigment yellow 14, c.i. pigment yellow 15, c.i. pigment yellow 17, c.i. pigment yellow 74, c.i. pigment yellow 93, c.i. pigment yellow 94, c.i. pigment yellow 109, c.i. pigment yellow 110, c.i. pigment yellow 128, c.i. pigment yellow 138, c.i. pigment yellow 150, c.i. pigment yellow 151, c.i. pigment yellow 154, c.i. pigment yellow 155, c.i. pigment yellow 180, and c.i. pigment yellow 185.

Among these, from the viewpoint of preventing transfer dyeing and thermal deformation of a printing substrate, and from the viewpoint of weather resistance, 1 or more selected from c.i. pigment yellow 74, c.i. pigment yellow 109, c.i. pigment yellow 110, c.i. pigment yellow 128, c.i. pigment yellow 138, c.i. pigment yellow 150, c.i. pigment yellow 154, c.i. pigment yellow 155, and c.i. pigment yellow 185 are preferable, and 1 or more selected from c.i. pigment yellow 74, c.i. pigment yellow 155, and c.i. pigment yellow 185 are more preferable.

The above pigments may be used alone or in combination of 2 or more.

< Water-insoluble Polymer (B) >)

The water-insoluble polymer has the following functions: a function as a dispersant for dispersing and stably maintaining dispersion of a pigment in an aqueous medium; and as a fixing agent (fixing agent) for a printing substrate.

The term "water-insoluble polymer" as used herein means a polymer which is insoluble in water and precipitates when dissolved in water and has a particle diameter detectable when it is dried at 105 ℃ for 2 hours to a predetermined amount, and preferably a polymer in which a particle diameter of 20nm or more, more preferably 50nm or more is observed. When the water-insoluble polymer is an anionic polymer, the solubility of the polymer is determined in a state where the anionic groups of the polymer are neutralized by 100% with sodium hydroxide.

The polymer to be used includes polyesters, polyurethanes, vinyl polymers and the like, and from the viewpoint of improving the storage stability of the ink, a vinyl polymer obtained by addition polymerization of a vinyl monomer (vinyl compound, 1-vinylidene compound, 1, 2-vinylidene compound) is preferable.

The water-insoluble polymer is preferably a vinyl-based polymer containing 1 or more species selected from the group consisting of a structural unit derived from an ionic monomer (a), a structural unit derived from a hydrophobic monomer (b) having an aromatic ring, and a structural unit derived from a hydrophilic nonionic monomer (c), more preferably 2 or more species of these structural units, and still more preferably 3 species of these structural units.

For example, the water-insoluble polymer can be obtained by addition polymerization of the ionic monomer (a), the hydrophobic monomer (b) having an aromatic ring, and the hydrophilic nonionic monomer (c) by a known method.

[ Ionic monomer (a) ]

In the production of the "aqueous dispersion of pigment-containing polymer particles" (hereinafter, also referred to as "aqueous pigment dispersion"), which will be described later, the ionic monomer (a) is used as the monomer component of the water-insoluble polymer, from the viewpoint of improving the storage stability of the finally obtained aqueous composite black ink.

Examples of the ionic monomer (a) include anionic monomers and cationic monomers. In addition, a monomer that is not ionic under neutral conditions, such as an acid or an amine compound, is included in the ionic monomer as long as it is a monomer that becomes ionic under acidic or basic conditions.

Examples of the anionic monomer include 1 or more selected from a carboxylic acid monomer, a sulfonic acid monomer, a phosphoric acid monomer, and the like.

Examples of the carboxylic acid monomer include acrylic acid, methacrylic acid, crotonic acid, itaconic acid, maleic acid, fumaric acid, citraconic acid, and 2-methacryloyloxymethylsuccinic acid.

Examples of the sulfonic acid monomer include styrenesulfonic acid, 2-acrylamido-2-methylpropanesulfonic acid, and 3-sulfopropyl (meth) acrylate.

Examples of the phosphoric acid monomer include vinylphosphonic acid, vinylphosphate, bis (methacryloyloxyethyl) phosphate, diphenyl-2-acryloyloxyethyl phosphate, diphenyl-2-methacryloyloxyethyl phosphate and the like.

The "(meth) acrylate" means 1 or more selected from methacrylate and acrylate. The same applies to the following.

On the other hand, examples of the cationic monomer include unsaturated tertiary amine-containing vinyl monomers such as N, N-dimethylaminoethyl (meth) acrylate, N-dimethylaminopropyl (meth) acrylamide, and vinylpyrrolidone, and unsaturated ammonium salt-containing vinyl monomers.

Among the ionic monomers (a), from the viewpoint of improving the storage stability of the resulting ink, anionic monomers are preferable, carboxylic acid monomers are more preferable, acrylic acid and methacrylic acid are even more preferable, and methacrylic acid is even more preferable.

[ hydrophobic monomer (b) having aromatic ring ]

From the viewpoint of improving the storage stability and the ejection property of the obtained ink, the hydrophobic monomer (b) having an aromatic ring is used.

Examples of the hydrophobic monomer (b) having an aromatic ring include 1 or more selected from styrene monomers, (meth) acrylate esters having an aromatic group, and styrene macromonomers.

From the same viewpoint as above, the styrene-based monomer is preferably styrene or 2-methylstyrene, and more preferably styrene.

From the same viewpoints as described above, the aromatic group-containing (meth) acrylate is preferably benzyl (meth) acrylate or phenoxyethyl (meth) acrylate, and more preferably benzyl (meth) acrylate.

The styrene-based macromonomer is a compound having a polymerizable functional group at one end and a number average molecular weight of 500 to 100,000, and from the same viewpoint as described above, the number average molecular weight is preferably 1,000 or more, more preferably 2,000 or more, further preferably 3,000 or more, and preferably 10,000 or less, more preferably 9,000 or less, further preferably 8,000 or less. Wherein the number average molecular weight is a value measured by gel permeation chromatography using chloroform containing 1mmol/L of dodecyldimethylamine as a solvent and polystyrene as a standard substance.

Commercially available styrene-based macromonomers include AS-6 (S), AN-6 (S), HS-6 (S) (trade name of Toyo chemical Co., Ltd.).

From the same viewpoint as above, the hydrophobic monomer (b) having an aromatic ring is preferably used in combination with at least 2 kinds selected from the group consisting of a styrene-based monomer, an aromatic group-containing (meth) acrylate and a styrene-based macromonomer, and more preferably used in combination with styrene or benzyl (meth) acrylate and a styrene-based macromonomer.

[ hydrophilic nonionic monomer (c) ]

The hydrophilic nonionic monomer (c) is used from the viewpoint of improving the storage stability of the resulting ink, suppressing thickening during drying of the ink, and improving the ejection property.

The hydrophilic nonionic monomer (c) is preferably a monomer represented by the formula (1).

In the formula (1), R¹Represents a hydrogen atom or a methyl group, preferably a methyl group.

R²Represents a hydrogen atom, an alkyl group having 1 to 20 carbon atoms, or a phenyl group in which a hydrogen atom may be substituted with an alkyl group having 1 to 9 carbon atoms, preferably a hydrogen atom, an alkyl group having 1 to 10 carbon atoms, more preferably an alkyl group having 1 to 3 carbon atoms, and further preferably a methyl group.

m represents an average molar number of addition, and m is 2 or more, preferably 3 or more, more preferably 4 or more, and 100 or less, preferably 50 or less, more preferably 20 or less, and further preferably 10 or less.

The monomer (c) represented by the above formula (1) includes 1 or more selected from polyethylene glycol mono (meth) acrylate, methoxypolyethylene glycol mono (meth) acrylate, octyloxypolyethylene glycol mono (meth) acrylate, and stearyloxypolyethylene glycol mono (meth) acrylate, and more preferably methoxypolyethylene glycol mono (meth) acrylate.

Specific examples of commercially available monomers represented by formula (1) include: NK ESTER M-20G, NK ESTER M-23G, NK ESTER M-40G, NK ESTER M-60G, NK ESTER M-90G, NK ESTER M-230G, NK ESTER M-450G, NK ESTER M-900G (both of the above are manufactured by shin-chan chemical industries, Ltd.), BLEMMER PME-200 (manufactured by Nippon oil Co., Ltd.), and the like.

The monomers (a) to (c) may be used alone or in combination of 2 or more.

The water-insoluble polymer may contain a structural unit derived from a monomer other than the above-mentioned monomers (a) to (c) within a range not impairing the object of the present invention.

Examples of the other monomers include alkyl (meth) acrylates (the alkyl group has 1 to 22 carbon atoms) such as methyl (meth) acrylate and 2-ethylhexyl (meth) acrylate, hydroxyalkyl (meth) acrylates such as 2-hydroxyethyl (meth) acrylate and 3-hydroxypropyl (meth) acrylate, and silicone macromonomers.

From the viewpoint of improving the storage stability and the ejection property of the obtained ink, the content (content in an unneutralized amount. hereinafter the same) of the monomers (a) to (c) in a monomer mixture (hereinafter also simply referred to as "monomer mixture") or the content of the structural units derived from the components of the monomers (a) to (c) in the water-insoluble polymer in the production of the water-insoluble polymer is as follows.

When the ionic monomer (a) is contained, the content thereof is preferably 3% by mass or more, more preferably 5% by mass or more, further preferably 8% by mass or more, and preferably 40% by mass or less, more preferably 30% by mass or less, further preferably 25% by mass or less.

When the hydrophobic monomer (b) having an aromatic ring is contained, the content thereof is preferably 15% by mass or more, more preferably 30% by mass or more, further preferably 40% by mass or more, and is preferably 84% by mass or less, more preferably 80% by mass or less, further preferably 72% by mass or less.

When a styrene-based macromonomer is contained as the monomer (b), it is preferable to use the styrene-based macromonomer in combination with another monomer of the monomer (b) such as a styrene-based monomer and/or an aromatic group-containing (meth) acrylate. The content of the styrene-based macromonomer is preferably 5% by mass or more, more preferably 15% by mass or more, further preferably 20% by mass or more, and preferably 40% by mass or less, more preferably 35% by mass or less, further preferably 30% by mass or less.

When the hydrophilic nonionic monomer (c) is contained, the content thereof is preferably 13% by mass or more, more preferably 15% by mass or more, further preferably 18% by mass or more, and preferably 45% by mass or less, more preferably 40% by mass or less, further preferably 35% by mass or less.

In addition, when the monomers (a) to (c) are contained, the mass ratio of [ (a) component/[ (b) component + (c) component ] ]) is preferably 0.03 or more, more preferably 0.05 or more, further preferably 0.1 or more, and preferably 0.5 or less, more preferably 0.4 or less, and further preferably 0.3 or less, from the viewpoint of improving the storage stability of the resulting ink.

(production of Water-insoluble Polymer)

The water-insoluble polymer is produced by copolymerizing the monomer mixture by a known polymerization method. The polymerization method is preferably a solution polymerization method.

The organic solvent a used in the solution polymerization method is not limited, and from the viewpoint of improving the productivity of the aqueous pigment dispersion described later, 1 or more compounds selected from ketones, alcohols, ethers, and esters having 4 to 8 carbon atoms are preferable, ketones having 4 to 8 carbon atoms are more preferable, and methyl ethyl ketone is further preferable.

In the polymerization, a polymerization initiator or a polymerization chain transfer agent may be used. The polymerization initiator is more preferably an azo compound, and still more preferably 2, 2' -azobis (2, 4-dimethylvaleronitrile) or the like. As the polymerization chain transfer agent, thiols are preferable, and 2-mercaptoethanol and the like are more preferable.

The preferable polymerization conditions vary depending on the kind of the polymerization initiator, however, the polymerization temperature is preferably 50 to 90 ℃ and the polymerization time is preferably 1 to 20 hours. The polymerization atmosphere is preferably a nitrogen atmosphere or an inert gas atmosphere such as argon.

After the polymerization reaction is completed, the polymer produced can be separated from the reaction solution by a known method such as reprecipitation or solvent distillation. The polymer obtained may be subjected to reprecipitation, membrane separation, chromatography, extraction, or the like to remove unreacted monomers and the like.

From the viewpoint of improving the productivity of the pigment water dispersion, it is preferable that the water-insoluble polymer is used as a polymer solution without removing a solvent used in the polymerization reaction, and the organic solvent a contained therein can be used as an organic solvent b described later.

From the viewpoint of improving the productivity of the aqueous pigment dispersion, the solid content concentration of the water-insoluble polymer solution is preferably 25% by mass or more, more preferably 30% by mass or more, and preferably 60% by mass or less, more preferably 50% by mass or less, and further preferably 45% by mass or less.

From the viewpoint of improving the storage stability and the ejection property of the resulting ink, the weight average molecular weight of the water-insoluble polymer used in the present invention is preferably 10,000 or more, more preferably 20,000 or more, further preferably 30,000 or more, and preferably 150,000 or less, more preferably 100,000 or less. Among them, the weight average molecular weight of the water-insoluble polymer can be measured by the method described in examples.

[ production of pigment-containing Polymer particles ]

From the viewpoint of improving the productivity of the ink, it is preferable for the pigment-containing polymer particles to be prepared as an aqueous dispersion of the pigment-containing polymer particles (pigment aqueous dispersion).

The pigment aqueous dispersion may be obtained as a pigment aqueous dispersion containing a cyan pigment, a magenta pigment, a yellow pigment or carbon black, respectively, by a method including the following steps (1) and (2).

Step (1): a step of obtaining a dispersion-treated product by dispersing a mixture containing a water-insoluble polymer, an organic solvent b, a pigment and water (hereinafter, also referred to as "pigment mixture").

Step (2): and (2) removing the organic solvent (b) from the dispersion-treated product obtained in step (1) to obtain a pigment water dispersion.

(step (1))

In step (1), first, the water-insoluble polymer, the organic solvent b, the pigment, water, and if necessary, a neutralizing agent, a surfactant, and the like are preferably mixed to obtain a pigment mixture. The order of addition is not limited, and it is preferable to add the water-insoluble polymer, the organic solvent b, the neutralizing agent, water, and the pigment in this order.

(organic solvent b)

The organic solvent b used in the step (1) is not particularly limited, and is preferably an aliphatic alcohol having 1 to 3 carbon atoms, a ketone having 4 to 8 carbon atoms, an ether, an ester, or the like, and from the viewpoint of improving wettability with respect to the pigment, solubility with respect to the water-insoluble polymer, and adsorbability with respect to the pigment of the water-insoluble polymer, a ketone having 4 to 8 carbon atoms is more preferable, methyl ethyl ketone and methyl isobutyl ketone are even more preferable, and methyl ethyl ketone is even more preferable.

When a water-insoluble polymer is synthesized by a solution polymerization method, a solvent used in the polymerization may be used as it is.

From the viewpoint of improving the wettability to the pigment and the adsorption of the water-insoluble polymer to the pigment, the mass ratio of the water-insoluble polymer to the organic solvent [ water-insoluble polymer/organic solvent ] is preferably 0.1 or more, more preferably 0.15 or more, further preferably 0.2 or more, and preferably 0.7 or less, more preferably 0.6 or less, further preferably 0.5 or less.

(neutralizing agent)

A neutralizer is used from the viewpoint of improving the storage stability of the resulting ink. In the case of neutralizing agents, the pH of the aqueous pigment dispersion is preferably neutralized to: preferably 7 or more, more preferably 7.5 or more, and 11 or less, more preferably 9.5 or less.

Examples of the neutralizing agent include hydroxides of alkali metals, ammonia, and organic amines.

Examples of the alkali metal hydroxide include lithium hydroxide, sodium hydroxide, potassium hydroxide, and cesium hydroxide, and sodium hydroxide is preferable.

The neutralizing agent is preferably a hydroxide of an alkali metal or ammonia, and more preferably a combination thereof. In addition, the water-insoluble polymer may be neutralized in advance.

From the viewpoint of improving the storage stability of the obtained ink, reducing coarse particles, and improving the ejection property of the ink, the degree of neutralization of the water-insoluble polymer is preferably 30 mol% or more, more preferably 40 mol% or more, further preferably 50 mol% or more, and preferably 300 mol% or less, more preferably 200 mol% or less, further preferably 150 mol% or less.

The "degree of neutralization" is a value obtained by dividing the molar equivalent of the neutralizing agent by the molar amount of the anionic group of the water-insoluble polymer.

(contents of respective components in the pigment mixture, etc.)

The contents of the respective components in the pigment mixture are as follows from the viewpoint of improving the storage stability and the ejection property of the obtained ink and from the viewpoint of improving the productivity of the pigment water dispersion.

The content of the pigment in the pigment mixture is preferably 10% by mass or more, more preferably 12% by mass or more, further preferably 14% by mass or more, and preferably 30% by mass or less, more preferably 25% by mass or less, further preferably 20% by mass or less.

The content of the water-insoluble polymer in the pigment mixture is preferably 2.0% by mass or more, more preferably 4.0% by mass or more, further preferably 5.0% by mass or more, and is preferably 15% by mass or less, more preferably 10% by mass or less, further preferably 8.0% by mass or less.

The content of the organic solvent in the pigment mixture is preferably 10% by mass or more, more preferably 12% by mass or more, further preferably 15% by mass or more, and preferably 35% by mass or less, more preferably 30% by mass or less, further preferably 25% by mass or less.

The content of water in the pigment mixture is preferably 40% by mass or more, more preferably 45% by mass or more, further preferably 50% by mass or more, and preferably 75% by mass or less, more preferably 70% by mass or less, further preferably 65% by mass or less.

From the viewpoint of reducing the viscosity of the ink at the time of solvent evaporation and improving the storage stability and ejection property of the ink, the mass ratio of the pigment to the water-insoluble polymer [ pigment/water-insoluble polymer ] is preferably 0.4 or more, more preferably 1 or more, further preferably 1.5 or more, and preferably 9 or less, more preferably 6 or less, further preferably 4 or less.

(Dispersion of pigment mixture)

In the step (1), a method for obtaining a dispersion-treated product by dispersing the pigment mixture is not particularly limited. The average particle diameter of the pigment particles can be controlled so that the average particle diameter of the pigment particles becomes the desired particle diameter by micronization only by primary dispersion, but it is preferable to control the average particle diameter of the pigment particles to be the desired particle diameter by pre-dispersing the pigment mixture and then further applying shear stress to the mixture to effect primary dispersion.

The temperature at the time of preliminary dispersion is preferably 0 ℃ or more, and preferably 40 ℃ or less, more preferably 30 ℃ or less, and further preferably 20 ℃ or less, and the dispersion time is preferably 0.5 hours or more, more preferably 1 hour or more, and preferably 30 hours or less, more preferably 10 hours or less, and further preferably 5 hours or less.

When the pigment mixture is predispersed, a mixing and stirring device such as an anchor blade or a dispersing blade can be used. The mixing/stirring device is preferably a high-speed stirring/mixing device.

The temperature at the time of main dispersion is preferably 0 ℃ or higher, and preferably 40 ℃ or lower, more preferably 30 ℃ or lower, and further preferably 20 ℃ or lower.

Examples of the means for imparting shear stress to the primary dispersion include a kneader such as a roll mill and a kneader, a high-pressure homogenizer such as a Microfluidizer (Microfluidics), a paint shaker, a bead mill, and other media type dispersing machines, and combinations thereof. Among these, from the viewpoint of achieving a small particle size of the pigment, a high-pressure homogenizer is preferable.

When the main dispersion is performed using a high-pressure homogenizer, the pigment can be controlled to have a desired particle diameter by controlling the treatment pressure and the number of treatments. From the viewpoint of productivity and economy, the treatment pressure is preferably 60MPa or more, more preferably 100MPa or more, further preferably 130MPa or more, and preferably 200MPa or less, more preferably 180MPa or less, further preferably 170MPa or less. The number of treatments is preferably 3 or more, more preferably 5 or more, and more preferably 7 or more, and preferably 30 or less, more preferably 25 or less, and more preferably 15 or less.

(step (2))

The step (2) is a step of removing the organic solvent b from the dispersion-treated product obtained in the step (1) to obtain a pigment water dispersion. The removal of the organic solvent can be carried out by a known method.

In order to suppress the formation of aggregates during the removal of the organic solvent, it is preferable to adjust the mass ratio of the organic solvent b to water (organic solvent b/water) by adding water to the dispersion-treated product before the removal of the organic solvent.

The mass ratio of (organic solvent b/water) is preferably 0.08 or more, more preferably 0.1 or more, and preferably 0.4 or less, more preferably 0.2 or less.

The nonvolatile content concentration (solid content concentration) of the pigment water dispersion after the adjustment of the mass ratio (organic solvent b/water) is preferably 5% by mass or more, more preferably 8% by mass or more, further preferably 10% by mass or more, and preferably 30% by mass or less, more preferably 25% by mass or less, further preferably 20% by mass or less.

As the apparatus for removing the organic solvent b in the step (2), a rotary reduced-pressure evaporation apparatus such as a rotary evaporator, a stirred tank thin-film evaporator, or the like is preferable from the viewpoint of efficiency.

The temperature of the dispersion-treated product when removing the organic solvent b may be appropriately selected depending on the kind of the organic solvent b used, and is preferably 20 ℃ or higher, more preferably 25 ℃ or higher, further preferably 30 ℃ or higher, and is preferably 80 ℃ or lower, more preferably 70 ℃ or lower, further preferably 65 ℃ or lower under reduced pressure. The pressure at this time is preferably 0.01MPa or more, more preferably 0.02MPa or more, further preferably 0.05MPa or more, and preferably 0.5MPa or less, more preferably 0.2MPa or less, further preferably 0.1MPa or less.

The time for removing the organic solvent b is preferably 1 hour or more, more preferably 2 hours or more, and preferably 24 hours or less, more preferably 12 hours or less.

The treatment for removing the organic solvent b is preferably performed until the solid content concentration becomes preferably 10% by mass or more, more preferably 20% by mass or more, and preferably performed until the solid content concentration becomes preferably 35% by mass or less, more preferably 30% by mass or less.

The resulting concentrate is preferably subjected to a centrifugal separation treatment, whereby an aqueous pigment dispersion can be obtained from the recovered liquid layer portion.

The organic solvent in the obtained aqueous pigment dispersion is preferably substantially removed, and may remain without impairing the object of the present invention. The amount of the residual organic solvent is preferably 0.1% by mass or less, and more preferably 0.01% by mass or less.

The pigment water dispersion of the pigment-containing polymer particles obtained has a nonvolatile content concentration (solid content concentration) of preferably 10% by mass or more, more preferably 15% by mass or more, and preferably 30% by mass or less, more preferably 25% by mass or less, from the viewpoint of improving the dispersion stability of the pigment water dispersion and from the viewpoint of facilitating the production of the ink.

The resulting pigment water dispersion of pigment-containing polymer particles is a substance in which the solid components of the pigment and the water-insoluble polymer are dispersed in a medium having water as a main medium.

From the viewpoint of improving the storage stability and the ejection property of the obtained ink, the average particle diameter of the pigment-containing polymer particles in the pigment water dispersion is preferably 40nm or more, more preferably 60nm or more, further preferably 80nm or more, and preferably 150nm or less, further preferably 140nm or less.

The average particle diameter of the pigment-containing polymer particles was measured by the method described in examples.

The average particle diameter of the pigment-containing polymer particles in the ink using the pigment-containing polymer particles is the same as that in the aqueous pigment dispersion, and the preferable average particle diameter is the same as that in the aqueous pigment dispersion.

(content of pigment-containing Polymer particles)

In the case of using the pigment-containing polymer particles as the pigment, the content of the pigment-containing polymer particles in the ink is preferably 1.4% by mass or more, more preferably 2.8% by mass or more, further preferably 4.2% by mass or more, and preferably 21% by mass or less, more preferably 14% by mass or less, and further preferably 8.4% by mass or less, from the viewpoints of accelerating the drying property on the paper surface at the time of recording on the printing substrate, suppressing the reduction in the dot diameter of the ink during drying, and improving the image uniformity, and improving the optical density.

(content of Water-insoluble Polymer)

In the case of using the pigment-containing polymer particles, the content of the water-insoluble polymer in the ink is preferably 0.4% by mass or more, more preferably 0.8% by mass or more, and further preferably 1.2% by mass or more, from the viewpoint of improving the storage stability, ejection property, and image uniformity of the ink. The content of the water-insoluble polymer in the ink is preferably 6% by mass or less, more preferably 4% by mass or less, and even more preferably 2.4% by mass or less, from the viewpoints of reducing the viscosity of the ink when the solvent is volatilized, increasing the dot diameter when recording is performed on a printing substrate, improving the optical density, and improving the storage stability and ejection property of the ink.

< pigment-free Water-insoluble Polymer particles (C) >)

From the viewpoint of the fixing property of a recorded matter recorded on a printing substrate, it is preferable that the aqueous composite black ink contains pigment-free water-insoluble polymer particles.

The water-insoluble polymer particles preferably contain a structural unit derived from (meth) acrylic acid (c1) and a structural unit derived from (meth) acrylic acid ester (c 2).

The monomer of the component (c1) includes acrylic acid and methacrylic acid, and preferably methacrylic acid. Examples of the monomer of component (c2) include: (meth) acrylate having an alkyl group having 1 to 22 carbon atoms (preferably 1 to 10 carbon atoms, more preferably 1 to 8 carbon atoms), (meth) acrylate containing an aromatic group such as benzyl (meth) acrylate or phenoxyethyl (meth) acrylate, and more preferably methyl methacrylate or 2-ethylhexyl acrylate.

From the viewpoint of storage stability and fixing property of the ink, the content of the structural unit derived from the component (c1) in the entire structural units of the water-insoluble polymer particles is preferably 1% by mass or more, more preferably 1.5% by mass or more, further preferably 2% by mass or more, and preferably 6% by mass or less, more preferably 5.8% by mass or less, further preferably 5.5% by mass or less. The content of the structural unit derived from the component (c2) is preferably 94% by mass or more, more preferably 94.5% by mass or more, and preferably 99% by mass or less, more preferably 98% by mass or less.

As the water-insoluble polymer particles, synthetic products or commercially available products may be used.

When the water-insoluble polymer particles are synthesized, a mixture of the component (c1) and the component (c2) may be copolymerized by a known emulsion polymerization method or the like. From the viewpoint of compatibility with the ink, it is preferable that the polymer particles (C) be used in the form of a polymer dispersion in which water is used as a dispersion medium without removing a solvent used in the polymerization reaction.

The solid content concentration of the dispersion of the water-insoluble polymer particles is preferably 30% by mass or more, more preferably 40% by mass or more, and preferably 60% by mass or less, more preferably 50% by mass or less, from the viewpoint of being blended in the ink together with the pigment-containing polymer particles.

From the viewpoint of the fixability, the weight average molecular weight of the water-insoluble polymer particles is preferably 10 ten thousand or more, more preferably 20 ten thousand or more, and further preferably 50 ten thousand or more.

From the viewpoint of the storage stability of the ink, the average particle diameter of the water-insoluble polymer particles is preferably 10nm or more, more preferably 30nm or more, further preferably 50nm or more, and preferably 300nm or less, more preferably 200nm or less, further preferably 150nm or less.

Among them, the weight average molecular weight and the average particle diameter of the water-insoluble polymer particles can be measured by the methods described in examples.

Examples of commercially available dispersions of water-insoluble polymer particles include: examples of the acrylic resin include acrylic resins such as "Neocryl A1127" (manufactured by DSMneeResins, anionic self-crosslinking water-based acrylic resin), "Joncryl 390" (manufactured by BASF Japan K.K.), "styrene-acrylic resins such as" Joncryl 7100 "," Joncryl 734 "," Joncryl 538 "(manufactured by BASF Japan K.K.), and" VINYL chloride-based resins such as "VINYL BLAN 701" (manufactured by Nikkiso chemical Co., Ltd.).

From the viewpoint of dispersion stability and convenience in blending into an ink, the content of the water-insoluble polymer particles in the dispersion containing the water-insoluble polymer particles is preferably 10% by mass or more, more preferably 20% by mass or more, further preferably 30% by mass or more, and is preferably 70% by mass or less, more preferably 60% by mass or less, further preferably 55% by mass or less.

In the case of using the water-insoluble polymer particles, the content of the water-insoluble polymer particles in the ink is preferably 1% by mass or more, more preferably 1.2% by mass or more, further preferably 1.5% by mass or more, and preferably 4% by mass or less, more preferably 3.5% by mass or less, further preferably 3% by mass or less, from the viewpoint of fixability and image uniformity.

< organic solvent (D) >)

From the viewpoint of improving the storage stability of the aqueous composite black ink and improving the image uniformity by spreading of ink dots, an organic solvent is used. Preferred examples of the organic solvent include polyhydric alcohols.

Examples of the polyol include: ethylene glycol, diethylene glycol, polyethylene glycol, propylene glycol, dipropylene glycol, polypropylene glycol, 1, 3-propanediol, 1, 3-butanediol, 1, 4-butanediol, 3-methyl-1, 3-butanediol, 1, 5-pentanediol, 1, 6-hexanediol, 2-methyl-2, 4-pentanediol, 1,2, 6-hexanetriol, 1,2, 4-butanetriol, 1,2, 3-butanetriol, 3-methyl-1, 3, 5-Pentanetriol (PETRIOL), and the like. Of these, ethylene glycol (boiling point 197 ℃ C.), propylene glycol (boiling point 188 ℃ C.) and diethylene glycol (boiling point 244 ℃ C.) are more preferable, and diethylene glycol and propylene glycol are still more preferable.

The aqueous composite black ink of the present invention may contain, as required, various additives such as a surfactant, a wetting agent, a penetrant, a humectant, a viscosity modifier, a pH modifier, an antifoaming agent, an antiseptic, a mildewproofing agent, a rust inhibitor, and an antioxidant, which are generally used in aqueous inks.

The surfactant is used for adjusting ink characteristics such as surface tension, and includes a nonionic surfactant, an anionic surfactant, a cationic surfactant, and the like, preferably a nonionic surfactant and an anionic surfactant, and more preferably a nonionic surfactant.

Among the nonionic surfactants, ethylene oxide adducts of acetylenic diols, alkylene oxide adducts of alcohols, fatty acid alkanolamides, and the like are preferable.

These surfactants may be used alone or in combination of 2 or more.

The content of the surfactant is not particularly limited, and may be 0.01 to 5% by mass, preferably 0.1 to 4% by mass, and more preferably 0.5 to 3% by mass in the ink.

Production of Water-based composite Black ink

The aqueous composite black ink of the present invention can be obtained by mixing a cyan pigment, a magenta pigment, a yellow pigment, or carbon black added as needed, with the water-insoluble polymer (B), the organic solvent (D), water, and additives such as water-insoluble polymer particles (C) and a surfactant added as needed to prepare inks of respective colors, and mixing them.

(content of Water)

From the viewpoint of storage stability, optical density, and ejection property of the ink, the content of water in the ink is preferably 20% by mass or more, more preferably 30% by mass or more, further preferably 40% by mass or more, and preferably 75% by mass or less.

(physical Properties of ink)

From the viewpoint of the storage stability and the ejection property of the ink, the viscosity of the ink at 32 ℃ is preferably 2mPa · s or more, more preferably 3mPa · s or more, further preferably 5mPa · s or more, and is preferably 12mPa · s or less, more preferably 9mPa · s or less, further preferably 7mPa · s or less.

From the viewpoint of storage stability, ejection property, member resistance, and skin irritation of the ink, the pH of the aqueous ink is preferably 7 or more, more preferably 8 or more, and even more preferably 8.5 or more, and is preferably 11 or less, more preferably 10 or less, and even more preferably 9.5 or less.

< ink jet recording method >

The inkjet recording method of the present invention uses an apparatus having a unit for recording by ejecting black ink onto a printing substrate, which is a label printing substrate, and a drying unit located on the downstream side in the conveying direction of the substrate, wherein the black ink is an aqueous composite black ink, the content of carbon black in the composite black ink is 25% by mass or less of the composite black pigment, and the drying unit is an infrared heater for heating the temperature of the composite black ink ejected onto the printing substrate to 95 ℃ or higher (preferably 105 ℃ or higher) and 125 ℃ or lower.

< ink jet recording apparatus >

Next, an ink jet recording apparatus suitable for use in the ink jet recording method of the present invention will be described with reference to fig. 1.

Fig. 1 is a schematic diagram showing an internal configuration of an inkjet recording apparatus used in the present invention, and (a) is a front view thereof, and (b) is a plan view thereof.

In fig. 1, an inkjet recording apparatus 1 mainly includes: a paper feed unit A for holding a paper feed roller 10; a recording section B having a recording unit 21; a drying section C for fixing and curing the ink by irradiating the recorded matter with infrared rays; and a paper discharge portion D having a paper discharge roller 40 for winding the recorded matter. The printing substrate (roll paper) 11 is unwound from the paper feed roller 10, and is wound around the paper discharge roller 40 via the recording unit B and the drying unit C.

The recording apparatus 1 is configured to have a shape (for example, about 3m) that is approximately the width (for example, about 30cm) of the printing substrate 11 and is long in the conveyance direction.

The recording apparatus 1 is provided with a plurality of line-type recording heads 21a for recording on the printing substrate 11 conveyed from the paper feed roller 10 while being held at a predetermined position, and a drying section C for fixing and curing the discharged ink in a short time by infrared irradiation, thereby enabling high-speed recording.

(paper feed section A)

The printing substrate 11 pulled out substantially horizontally from the paper feed roller 10 passes between the pair of pressing rollers 12, is guided downward by the first guide roller 13, is guided upward by the floating roller 14 configured to be rotatable and movable in the vertical direction, and is guided upward in the left-right direction in the figure by the second guide roller 15.

Between the dancer 14 and the second guide roller 15, there is preferably a preheater 16 for preheating the printing substrate 11.

In fig. 1, the preheater 16 is an electric planar heater formed as a curved surface having a convex shape on the side in contact with the printed substrate 11, and is configured to: the back surface side of the printing substrate 11 is pressed against the preheater 16 by 4 free rollers 17.

The output of the preheater 16 is controlled so that the surface temperature of the printing substrate 11 is preferably 35 ℃ or higher, more preferably 40 ℃ or higher, and preferably 65 ℃ or lower, more preferably 60 ℃ or lower immediately below the recording unit 21, depending on the material and thickness of the printing substrate 11, the transport speed, and the like.

By preheating the printing substrate 11 by the preheater 16, the ink viscosity can be reduced when the ink droplets reach the printing substrate 11 in the recording portion B. This makes it possible to control the difference in dot size even when the paper quality of the printing substrate 11 is changed and the spread of ink dots is insufficient, and to perform satisfactory recording without changing the ink.

(recording section B)

The recording unit 21 has a plurality of recording heads 21a that discharge an aqueous composite black ink and a color ink, for example, cyan, magenta, and yellow, and performs ink jet recording on the printing substrate 11. Although fig. 1 shows an example in which a 4-color recording head is used, a 5-color or higher recording head may be used.

The aqueous composite black ink is preferably obtained by mixing a cyan ink containing a cyan pigment, a magenta ink containing a magenta pigment, a yellow ink containing a yellow pigment, and a black ink containing carbon black.

A suction box 22 may be provided below the recording unit 21 to suck the printing substrate 11 downward by negative pressure so as to maintain a constant gap between the recording unit 21 and the recording surface.

The discharge system of the recording head 21a may be a thermal system or a piezoelectric system, and is preferably a piezoelectric system.

From the viewpoint of efficiency of high-speed recording and the like, the voltage applied to the recording head 21a is preferably 5V or more, more preferably 10V or more, further preferably 15V or more, and preferably 40V or less, more preferably 35V or less, further preferably 30V or less.

From the viewpoint of efficiency of high-speed recording and the like, the driving frequency is preferably 1kHz or more, more preferably 3kHz or more, further preferably 5kHz or more, and preferably 80kHz or less, more preferably 60kHz or less, further preferably 40kHz or less.

From the viewpoint of maintaining the accuracy of the arrival position of the ink droplets and from the viewpoint of improving the image quality, the amount of the ink droplets ejected is preferably 0.5pL or more, more preferably 1.0pL or more, further preferably 3pL or more, and preferably 30pL or less, more preferably 25pL or less, further preferably 20pL or less per 1 droplet.

The head resolution is preferably 300dpi (dots/inch) or more, more preferably 500dpi or more, and still more preferably 550dpi or more.

From the viewpoint of reducing the viscosity of the ink and improving the continuous ejection property, the temperature in the recording unit 21 at the time of recording is preferably 20 ℃ or higher, more preferably 25 ℃ or higher, further preferably 30 ℃ or higher, and is preferably 45 ℃ or lower, more preferably 40 ℃ or lower, further preferably 38 ℃ or lower.

From the viewpoint of productivity, the transport speed of the printing substrate 11 is preferably 6m/min or more, more preferably 15m/min or more, still more preferably 20m/min or more, still more preferably 30m/min or more, and still more preferably 40m/min or more.

After that, the printing substrate 11 is conveyed to the drying section C.

(drying section C)

The drying section C is provided with an infrared heater 31 for irradiating infrared rays to the aqueous composite black ink ejected onto the printing substrate 11, and the ejected ink is dried and fixed and cured by heating to a temperature of 95 ℃ to 125 ℃.

The drying temperature is preferably 98 ℃ or more, more preferably 100 ℃ or more, and preferably 123 ℃ or less, more preferably 120 ℃ or less.

The term "sticking" as used herein means both the penetration of ink droplets reaching the printing substrate 11 into the paper and the drying of the ink from the surface, and means that the ink reaching the surface of the printing substrate 11 does not exist in the form of droplets. The term "solidification" means that the ink droplets reaching the printing substrate 11 are solidified, and the ink is fixed on the surface of the printing substrate 11.

The infrared heater 31 is a heating element in which a composite oxide film containing Si, Fe, Zr, Ti, Mn, and the like is provided on the surface of quartz glass, ceramics, and the like.

In fig. 1,6 infrared lamp heaters were provided. The number of the infrared lamp heaters is preferably 3 or more, more preferably 4 or more, further preferably 5 or more, and preferably 10 or less, more preferably 9 or less, further preferably 8 or less, depending on the power or the like.

The infrared lamp heater is preferably a medium infrared (wavelength: 2.5 to 8 μm) lamp heater, and preferably a medium infrared reflector is provided above the lamp heater, from the viewpoint of performing heating and drying with good productivity. The mid-infrared lamp heater is, for example, a xenon lamp heater, and the xenon lamp heater may be composed of a quartz glass tube, a tungsten heating wire attached to the inside of the quartz glass tube, and a halogen gas sealed in the quartz glass tube for preventing deterioration of the heating wire.

The infrared ray irradiation conditions are such that the output power is preferably 800W or more, more preferably 900W or more, further preferably 1000W or more, and preferably 1500W or less, more preferably 1400W or less, further preferably 1300W in terms of the rated voltage 200V.

The irradiation time of infrared rays is preferably 0.5 seconds or more, more preferably 1.0 second or more, and further preferably 1.5 seconds or more from the viewpoint of sufficient drying, and the irradiation time of infrared rays is preferably 10 seconds or less, more preferably 6 seconds or less, and further preferably 3 seconds or less from the viewpoint of productivity.

From the viewpoint of preventing deformation of the printing substrate 11 and energy saving, the distance between the infrared heater 31 and the printing substrate 11 is preferably 30mm or more, more preferably 40mm or more, further preferably 50mm or more, and preferably 90mm or less, more preferably 80mm or less, further preferably 70mm or less.

The drying conditions for the surface temperature of the ink at the outlet of the drying section C to be 95 ℃ to 125 ℃ can be achieved by a combination of a transport speed of the printing substrate 11 of 12.5 to 50m/min, 3 to 6 infrared heaters, and an output of the infrared heaters per unit time of 550 to 1,100W.

For example, the surface temperature of the aqueous composite black ink can be obtained at 118 ℃ by setting the transport speed to 25m/min, the number of infrared heaters to 6, and the output of the infrared heaters to 1,100W. Further, the surface temperature of the aqueous composite black ink was 110 ℃ when the conveying speed was 12.5m/min, the number of infrared heaters was 6, and the output of the infrared heater was 800W. The surface temperature of the aqueous composite black ink was 115 ℃ as determined by a conveying speed of 12.5m/min, an infrared heater number of 3, and an infrared heater output of 1,100W.

(paper discharge section D)

The printing substrate 11 having passed through the drying section C is post-heated by the drying buffer section as necessary via rollers 32 to 34, and is conveyed to the paper discharge section D.

The printing substrate 11 is wound onto a paper discharge roller 40.

The transport speed is, for example, 50m/min at maximum, and may be configured as follows: a length of the printing substrate 11 exceeding 400m can be used.