JP2004098682A - Member contacting with material to be printed, having ink-repellent layer and method for forming layer on the member - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a member, contacting with a material to be printed, whose surface does not slide against the material to be printed, and further which has an ink-repellent property. <P>SOLUTION: On the surface of a carrier part having a fine structure of the member contacting with the material to be printed, the ink-repellent layer having at least one derivative of an amphipathic organic compound, whose polar area has an acidic property, are formed. The method for forming this ink-repellent layer is characterized in that a material having the said derivative is surface-treated with an alcohol solution thereof to be applied. The member contacting with the material to be printed is very profitably a surface of an impression cylinder for rear face printing in a machine for treating of the material to be printed, particularly a printing machine. This layer can be formed in the machine for treating the material to be printed. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2004,JPO

Description

(4) The present invention relates to a printing material contact member having an ink repellent layer on the surface of a carrier having a fine structure. Furthermore, the present invention relates to a method for forming a layer on a surface of a carrier having a microstructure of a contact member for a printing medium.

(4) Various members such as a cylinder, a gripper, a transport belt, a transport roller, a blanket cylinder, a stopper, and a guide member come into contact with the print medium while passing through the print processing machine. These contacts can occur for various reasons, for example, the need to adjust the position or motion of the substrate, the need to increase or decrease the speed of the substrate along the path, Alternatively, this is performed because it is necessary to press at least a part of the surface of the printing medium against a certain surface. For these and various other purposes, it may be necessary to bring the substrate into contact with the surface, where printing inks, especially printing inks, which have been applied slightly earlier, are present or in part. is there. Furthermore, due to the arrangement or operation of the printing-substance processing machine, the points or surfaces of the printing-substrate-contacting member which come into contact with the printing-substrate at any one time hold the printing ink, in particular the printing ink which has just arrived. May come into contact with another member at another time. Therefore, it is necessary to prevent the printing ink from migrating to the contacting point or surface of the printing medium contact member.

The problems described above are particularly important for backside printing impression cylinders in the printing unit of a substrate processing machine. In the case of direct lithographic printing, the printing medium is pressed against the plate cylinder by the force of the back-side printing impression cylinder (and also of the impression cylinder), and in the case of indirect lithographic printing, the blanket cylinder (and the transfer cylinder). ) Is pressed. The lithographic printing method may in particular be an offset printing method or a dry offset printing method. In this case, the back-side printing impression cylinder contacts the printing medium from at least the printing gap from the side opposite the plate cylinder or the rubber blanket cylinder. On the opposite side, for example, printing may take place in a printing unit that is arranged beforehand along the path of the substrate through the substrate processing machine and may already have ink. Such a situation arises, in particular, during the so-called reverse printing of sheet-fed processing presses. Furthermore, if the printing medium is not in the printing gap, the back-side printing impression cylinder may also contact the plate cylinder or rubber blanket cylinder that guides the printing ink.

A series of concepts has already been shown on how to configure the surface of the printing material contact member so that neither the printing material contact member nor the printing material itself is stained with the printing ink. Many different attempts are discussed in the opening part of US Pat. For example, in a group of trials involving a chrome-plated nickel structure, a convex or irregular surface member or a hemispherical structure having granular aluminum, the surface of the contact member has fine irregularities. The effects of this are being pursued. In an attempt in the technical description of Patent Document 1, a known material is used in the production of a plate. These materials can be brought into a strongly hydrophilic and thus ink-repellent state by a photocatalytic reaction. Such materials include, for example, titanium oxide or zirconium oxide.

The microstructured surface of the substrate-contacting member, which has a lower surface energy and therefore a lower attraction to the printing ink, in particular the back-side printing impression cylinder, is also formed by a plasma-sprayed aluminum oxide layer with a silicon coating. it can.

Perfluoroorganyl groups, especially perfluoroalkyl groups, have a lower surface energy (like Teflon ™) and, therefore, a lower adsorption power for printing inks. For example, from Patent Document 2, by using an organic thiol (R-SH) that forms a layer having a self-assembled monolayer (SAM), a layer such as Teflon (trademark) is formed on the surface of an inkjet nozzle. It is known to prepare for. In this case, the thiol can be replaced by a fluoroalkyl group.
German Patent Publication No. 10115876 U.S. Pat. No. 6,325,490

As for the printing medium contact member, it is necessary to prevent, on the one hand, the printing ink from migrating to the contact position or surface of the printing medium contact member, and, on the other hand, the printing medium to which the printing medium contact member comes into contact It must be ensured that no slippage occurs. This viewpoint is not taken into consideration in the technical description of the layer using an organic thiol according to Patent Document 2.

Generally, the disclosed concept for forming a layer on a substrate contact member is relatively labor intensive. If the ink-repellent surface is worn, it is necessary to replace the surface, that is, remove the worn substrate processing member from the substrate processing machine, that is, remove it, and insert a substitute member.

An object of the present invention is to provide a printing material contact member whose surface repels ink but does not slip on the printing material, and a method for easily forming such a surface.

The object of the present invention is to form a layer on a surface of a carrier having a microstructure of a contact member having a feature according to the present invention. Achieved by the method. Other advantageous aspects of the invention are set out in the accompanying claims and in the dependent claims.

The printing material contact member according to the present invention includes an ink-repellent layer on a surface of a carrier having a microstructure, and the ink-repellent layer includes at least one of an amphiphilic organic compound having a polar region having an acid property. Contains derivatives. The derivative of the amphiphilic organic compound forms a layer on the surface of the support without filling or filling the microstructure of the support. In other words, a nanostructure can be formed on the surface of the supporting portion by the derivative of the amphiphilic organic compound without flattening the fine structure on the surface of the supporting portion. The idea of the present invention involves combining the properties of a surface with a microstructure for fixing a printing substrate with the properties of an ink-repellent layer due to the above-mentioned derivatives (caused by nanostructures).

The printing medium contact member may be a cylinder (particularly advantageous), a gripper, a gripper support surface, a transport belt, a transport roller, a blanket cylinder, a stopper, a guide member, and the like. The carrier having a microstructure, which constitutes a part of the printing medium contact member, may have a rugged or hemispherical structure on a microscopic scale (micrometer range). The carrier having a microstructure can be provided with minute projections that are uniformly (particularly preferable) or unevenly dispersed on a microscopic scale in a flat surface as compared with the minute projections. Due to this microstructure, the substrate, which is on the surface, can rest on a smooth support surface with few supporting parts, and therefore rests the substrate without slipping over a few raised points. be able to. The derivative of the amphiphilic organic compound can form a self-assembled monolayer (SAM) on a carrier having a fine structure. A plurality of derivatives of one amphipathic organic compound or a plurality of derivatives of a plurality of amphipathic organic compounds can be used, and a single self-assembled monomolecular film can be formed in cooperation therewith. .

The derivative of the amphiphilic organic compound may be an amphiphilic organic compound that is substituted one or more times (with one or more various substituents). The amphiphilic organic compound may be a compound such as a surfactant. The amphiphilic organic compound has at least one element of the main group of the IV, V or VI of the periodic system, in particular carbon (C), phosphorus (P), sulfur (S) or nitrogen (N) It can be an inorganic or organic acid substituted with aliphatic, or aromatic residues (nonpolar regions). This residue may be unsubstituted or substituted aliphatic, or unsubstituted or substituted aromatic. The residue, that is, the nonpolar region, may particularly have a carbon chain, and has 12 to 25 carbon atoms. The amphiphilic organic compound whose polar region has the properties of an acid is, in an exemplary embodiment of the reusable plate according to the invention, a hydroxamic acid derivative {RC (O) -NH-OH}, or a phosphonic acid. derivative {R-P (O) - (OH) 2}, in particular, n- heptadecane - Hidorookisamu acid - derivative or n- octadecane _{{CH 3 (CH 2) 16} -C (O) -NH-OH} - phosphonic acid _{{CH 3 - (CH 2)} 17 -P (O) - (OH) 2} or a derivative of. The derivative of the amphiphilic organic compound may have a substituent from the group of fluorine (F), bromine (Br), chlorine (Cl), hydroxyl, benzyl, and phenyl. In a preferred embodiment, the derivative of the amphiphilic organic compound is substituted in the non-polar region such that it is both ink repellent (oleophobic) and water repellent (hydrophobic). In a preferred embodiment, the derivative of the amphiphilic organic compound is fluorinated in its non-polar region.

In a preferred embodiment, the carrying part having a microstructure of the contacting member of the printing medium is a metal whose surface is naturally oxidized. The supporting part is made of titanium (Ti), zirconium (Zr), molybdenum (MO), nickel (Ni), body (Cu), aluminum (Al), chromium (Cr), iron (Fe), silver (Ag). , And gold (Au). The material of the carrier can be manufactured by a well-known industrial production method to form a fine structure. Long-chain alkanehydroxamic acids and alkanephosphonic acids form self-assembled monolayers on spontaneously oxidized surfaces, as described in "Self-assembly of long-chain hydroxamic acids on native oxides of metals." See "Self-assembled Monolayers of Long-Chain Hydroxamic Acids on the Native Oxides of Metals", JP Folkers et al., Langmuir, 1995, Vol. 11, pages 813-824. JPFolkers et al., 1995, Langmuir, Vol. 11, pp. 813-824, which specifically mentions the synthesis of some hydroxamic acids, the preparation of naturally oxidized surfaces as carriers or substrates. And measuring the contact angle with water. The contents disclosed in Langmuir, Vol. 11, pp. 813-824, 1995, are incorporated by reference into the description of the printing material contact member according to the present invention.

Advantageously, the functions relating to guiding the printing material on the surface of the printing material contact member and transferring the printing ink to the surface of the printing material contact member are highly reliable and reproducible. Hydroxamic acid derivatives or phosphonic acid derivatives can reproducibly form ink-repellent metal oxide surfaces having a contact angle measured with water of greater than 90 degrees.

In a preferred embodiment, the printing medium contact member is a back side printing impression cylinder, or forms a part of the front side of the back side printing impression cylinder.

被 The printing material contact member according to the present invention can be used for a printing material processing machine, particularly a printing machine. Accordingly, a printing-substrate processing machine according to the invention is characterized in that it has at least one printing-substrate-contacting member. The sheet processing machine, in particular the printing press, may be for processing sheets or for processing webs. Sheet-fed processing presses, especially duplex printing presses, may include a paper feed device, a plurality of printing units, and a paper output device. Typical printing substrates are paper, cardboard, paperboard, organic polymer films and the like. The substrate may be in sheet form or web form. The printing press according to the present invention may perform printing by direct or indirect lithographic printing (offset printing).

方法 A method of forming a layer on the surface of a carrier having a microstructure of a contact member of a printing medium also leads to the idea according to the present invention. In other words, the idea according to the invention also comprises providing a method in which a layer can be formed to repel ink on a substrate contacting member with a carrier having a microstructure.

In the layer forming method according to the present invention, a substance containing at least one derivative of an amphipathic organic compound whose polar region has acid properties is applied to a surface by treating the surface with an aqueous solution or an alcohol solution of these substances. It is characterized by:

In the method for forming a layer on the surface of the carrier having a microstructure according to the present invention, the surface to be treated is an organic solvent capable of dissolving the non-adhered portion of the substance, In particular, it can be cleaned with aqueous or alcoholic solutions, in particular with ethanol. Further, this surface to be treated can be dried with an anhydrous treatment gas, such as nitrogen or dry air.

According to another aspect of the method for forming a layer on the surface of the microstructured carrier of the printing material contact member according to the present invention, the surface of the microstructured carrier is coated with an aqueous solution or an alcohol solution of the aforementioned substance. Prior to treatment by wetting the surface, it is pre-cleaned with an organic cleaning solution, especially an alcohol cleaning solution. Furthermore, in another embodiment of the method according to the invention, the conditioning may be carried out before irradiating the surface with an alcoholic solution of these substances, in particular by irradiation with infrared, visible or ultraviolet light.

In a preferred embodiment, the method of forming a layer on the surface of the carrier having the microstructure of the contact member of the printing medium is performed in a printing medium processing machine, particularly in a printing press. The method of the present invention provides a method for easily recovering the abrasion of an ink-repellent surface. Layering can be performed in a substrate processing machine.

In a particularly advantageous and preferred embodiment of the method according to the invention, it is checked whether the ink-repellent properties of the printing-material contacting member are sufficient and a layer is formed according to the result of the check. When the ink repellency or the property of guiding the printing medium is reduced due to abrasion, a new layer can be formed on the surface of the carrier having the fine structure.

By the method according to the invention, at least one derivative of an amphiphilic organic compound, in particular a hydroxamic acid derivative or a phosphonic acid, whose polar region has the properties of an acid, is provided on the surface of the microstructured carrier of the contacting member of the printing material. It is possible to repeatedly apply a layer made of a derivative to regenerate the layer.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 shows, in the form of a flow chart, an advantageous embodiment of a method for forming a layer on a substrate contacting member according to the invention, which can also be implemented in a substrate processing machine in particular. In this embodiment, the surface of the carrier having the microstructure is a naturally oxidized metal surface, and hence is also referred to as a metal oxide surface. Advantageous embodiments of the layer-forming method according to the invention relate to derivatives of amphiphilic organic compounds and to metal oxide surfaces, without limiting their generality, for example based on naturally oxidized titanium surfaces, The description is based on derivatives of n-octadecane-phosphonic acid.

First, the metal oxide surface is pre-cleaned. The preclean 10 may include a step of cleaning with acetone, ethanol, isopropanol, ethyl acetate or other suitable organic solvent (and in an aqueous or alcoholic solution). In particular, one purpose is to degrease the surface.

(4) Next, the pre-cleaned metal oxide surface of the printing material contact member is adjusted. Adjustment 12 is performed by irradiating the surface with light at a wavelength, intensity, and irradiation time suitable for the next layer formation step.

Application 14 of a substance containing at least one derivative of n-octadecane-phosphonic acid is performed as follows. That is, the titanium surface is wetted with a solution containing the above compound at a suitable concentration almost near the saturation limit, particularly at a concentration of 1 mMol / l. The titanium surface is exposed to a 1 mM ethanol solution of a derivative of n-octadecane-phosphonic acid (stearin-phosphonic acid) for approximately 5 minutes at room temperature.

The cleaning 16 of the treated titanium surface is performed by using an organic solvent for removing the non-adhered part of the substance consisting of the n-octadecane-phosphonic acid derivative solution, that is, such as acetone, ethanol (particularly preferable), isopropanol, and ethyl acetate. It is carried out by washing with an aqueous or alcoholic solution or another suitable organic solvent.

乾燥 Drying 18 of the cleaned and treated titanium surface is carried out completely with anhydrous, so-called dry processing gas, here nitrogen.

Inspection 110 of whether or not the ink repellency of the printing material contact member is sufficient is performed directly on the surface of the carrier having the fine structure or indirectly by inspecting the surface of the printing material. Can be. If abrasion of the ink-repellent layer occurs or is confirmed, the layer forming process can be completely or partially repeated for the corresponding portion of the surface. On account of the simple partial steps of the method according to the invention and their advantageous further developments, the layering or layer reforming can take place in the substrate processing machine.

FIG. 2 is a schematic view of a printing press having a back-side printing impression cylinder provided with an ink-repellent layer as an advantageous embodiment of the contacting member for a printing material according to the present invention.

A printing unit 22 having a plate cylinder 24, a rubber blanket cylinder 26 and a back-side printing impression cylinder 28 according to the invention is shown in a cross-section through a printing-material processing machine, here a printing machine 20. The back-side printing impression cylinder 28 has an ink-repellent layer 30 having at least one derivative of an amphiphilic organic compound whose polar region has an acid property on a carrier 32 having a fine structure. The printing material 34, here in the form of a sheet, moves along the path 36 through the printing press 20 (printing material processing machine). At this time, the printing medium 34 passes through a printing gap formed by the rubber blanket cylinder 26 and the back side printing impression cylinder 28. The path 36 comprises a first sheet guiding cylinder 38 arranged before, a second sheet guiding cylinder 40 arranged after and a third sheet guiding cylinder 42 arranged after. It extends partially along the periphery. The printing press 20 includes a printing unit 44 arranged before the printing unit 22 and a printing unit 44 arranged after the printing unit 22, although not shown in detail in this figure, having a structure corresponding to the printing unit 22. A unit 46 is provided.

Without limiting the generality of the configuration of the printing press 20 which is the printing medium processing machine according to the present invention, referring now to FIG. 2, the printing unit 22 is the first back side printing unit of the printing press 20. In other words, the previously arranged printing unit 46 and possibly another previously arranged printing unit (not shown here) of the printing press 20, of the printing body 34, of the back side printing impression cylinder 28. Printing is performed on the surface (front side printing side) that contacts the front side, while printing is performed on the other side (back side printing side) of the printing medium 34 by the printing unit 22. On a path 36 that extends partially around the circumference of the individual cylinder, the front and back printing sides of the printing body 34 are positioned on the outer periphery of the cylinder supporting or guiding the printing body, relative to the adjacent cylinder. The outer side and the inner side are alternately positioned so as to be in contact with each other. As a result, the printing side of the back side of the printing medium 34 is positioned outside, for example, on a second sheet guide cylinder 40 disposed later, and the inspection is performed. Easier to do. In order to automatically and indirectly check whether the ink repellency of the back side printing impression cylinder 28 is sufficient, the printing unit 22 optically checks whether the printed image on the printing medium 34 is dirty. And a detection device 48 capable of performing the detection. Alternatively, it is obvious for a person skilled in the art that, for this purpose, the machine operator can perform the inspection indirectly by visually examining the printed image. The acquired measurement data is compared with the target value and the actual value to determine whether the layer reformation should be performed completely or partially as soon as the limit threshold for the difference between the target value and the actual value is exceeded. It is sent to the inspection device 50 that can. The printing unit 22 can entirely or partially layer the microstructured carrier 32 of the back printing impression cylinder 28 without having to remove the back printing impression cylinder 28 from the printing unit 22. A layer forming apparatus 52 is provided. Based on the rotation of the cylinder about its axis of symmetry and by moving the layer-forming device 52 parallel to the axis of symmetry of the cylinder, the layer-forming device 52 can be individually positioned on the two-dimensional surface of the reverse printing impression cylinder 28. Point or position. The layer forming device 52 is configured to carry out the individual steps in the method according to the invention or in another advantageous embodiment of the method. The layer forming device 52 can be operated when needed by a machine operator, or the layer forming device 52 and the back-side printing impression cylinder 28 can be guided by the inspection device 50 to a position where a layer needs to be reformed. I will

In summary, the method of forming a layer according to the invention allows the ink-repellent surface of the contacting member to be formed with high reliability and reproducibility with respect to guiding the substrate, and also results in abrasion. It can be seen that the ink-repellent surface can be easily reproduced. In order to make the backside printing surface of the backside printing offset printing method, that is, the surface of the backside printing impression cylinder sufficiently strong ink repellency, a derivative of the amphiphilic organic compound in which the polar region has acid properties as described in detail above. It is sufficient to apply for a few minutes. One round of steps in the described embodiment of the method according to the invention, shown in FIG. 1, can be performed within 30 minutes. By the method according to the present invention, it is possible to adjust the metal oxide surface as produced by the usual industrial production method to ink repellency. Worn areas of the ink-repellent surface can be regenerated a number of times, particularly advantageously in a substrate processing machine.

FIG. 3 shows an advantageous embodiment of a method for forming a layer on a printing-material contact member according to the invention. 1 is a schematic view of a printing press having a back-side printing impression cylinder with an ink-repellent layer, as an advantageous embodiment of the printing-material contacting member according to the present invention.

Explanation of reference numerals

Reference Signs List 10 Pre-cleaning 12 Adjustment 14 Coating 16 Cleaning 18 Drying 20 Printing machine 22, 44, 46 Printing unit 24 Plate cylinder 26 Rubber blanket cylinder 28 Back side printing pressure cylinder 30 Ink repellent layer 32 Carrier 34 Printed object 36 Path 38, 40, 42 sheet guide cylinder 50 inspection device 52 layer forming device 110 inspection

Claims (15)

In a printing medium contact member having an ink-repellent layer (30) on the surface of a carrier (32) having a microstructure,
The printing material contact member, wherein the ink repellent layer (30) has at least one derivative of an amphipathic organic compound in which a polar region has an acid property. The printing medium contact member according to claim 1, wherein the carrier (32) is a metal whose surface is naturally oxidized. 3. The printing substrate according to claim 1, wherein the carrier (32) has at least one substance selected from the group consisting of titanium, zirconium, molybdenum, nickel, a cylinder, aluminum, chromium, iron, silver, and gold. Body contact members. 4. The printed material contact member according to claim 1, wherein the derivative of the amphiphilic organic compound is a hydroxamic acid derivative or a phosphonic acid derivative. 5. 5. The derivative according to claim 1, wherein the derivative of the amphiphilic organic compound is substituted in the nonpolar region so as to be ink-repellent, ie, oleophobic or water-repellent, ie, hydrophobic. Printed object contact member. The printed material contact member according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the derivative of the amphiphilic organic compound is fluorinated in a nonpolar region. 7. The printing material contact member according to claim 1, wherein the printing material contact member is a part of a back printing impression cylinder or a surface of a back printing impression cylinder. . In a printing substrate processing machine (20), particularly in a printing press,
A printing medium processing machine comprising at least one printing medium contact member according to any one of claims 1 to 7. In a method of forming a layer on the surface of a carrier (32) having a microstructure of a printing medium contact member,
Applying a substance containing at least one derivative of an amphipathic organic compound whose polar region has the properties of an acid by treating the surface with an aqueous or alcoholic solution of the substance (14). A method for forming a layer on a surface of a carrier having a microstructure of a contact member for a printing medium. The microstructure of the contact member for printing material according to claim 9, comprising cleaning the surface to be treated with an organic solvent capable of dissolving a portion where the substance is not attached. A method of forming a layer on the surface of a supporting portion having the same. Drying (18) the surface to be treated with an anhydrous treatment gas, comprising applying a layer to the surface of the microstructured support of the contacting member of the printing material according to claim 9 or 10. How to form. Prior to treating the surface of the carrier having a microstructure with an aqueous or alcoholic solution of the substance, pre-cleaning (10) by moistening the surface with an organic solvent. 12. The method for forming a layer on a surface of a carrier having a microstructure of a member to be printed, according to any one of items 11 to 11. The method according to any one of claims 9 to 12, comprising adjusting the surface by irradiation before treating the surface with an alcoholic solution of the substance. A method of forming a layer on the surface of a carrier having a structure. The method according to any one of claims 9 to 13, wherein the method is carried out in a printing substrate processing machine (20). The method according to any one of claims 9 to 14, further comprising: inspecting whether the ink repellency of the contacting member is sufficient (110); and forming a layer according to the inspection result. The method for forming a layer on a surface of a carrier having a microstructure of a contact member for a printing medium according to the above.

Images