Surface treating material and surface treating process

Abstract

The present invention is an object to provide a surface treating material and a surface treating process using the surface treating material capable of giving simply and effectively desired surface property on a surface of an image recording layer of an image recording material after image recording, and the surface treating material comprising at least a fusible particle and a hardly fusible particle which are used for changing a surface property on a surface of an image recording layer of an image recording material after image recording, the fusible particle is melted to form a continuous film by the surface treatment, and a flow starting temperature of the fusible particle is 50° C. or more, and less than a heating temperature in the surface treatment, and the hardly fusible particle is not melted with maintaining particle shape by the surface treatment, and a volume average particle diameter of the hardly fusible particle is 1 μm to 30 μm.

1 . A surface treating material comprising: 
 a fusible particle and a hardly fusible particle which are used for changing a surface property on a surface of an image recording layer of an image recording material after image recording, wherein the fusible particle is melted to form a continuous film by a surface treatment, and a flow starting temperature of the fusible particle is 50° C. or more, and less than a heating temperature in the surface treatment, and    wherein the hardly fusible particle is not melted with maintaining a particle shape by the surface treatment, and a volume average particle diameter of the hardly fusible particle is 1 μm to 30 μm.    
   
   
       2 . The surface treating material according to  claim 1 , wherein the surface treating material comprises a base, and a surface layer comprising the fusible particle and the hardly fusible particle disposed on or above the base.  
   
   
       3 . The surface treating material according to  claim 2 , wherein the surface treating material comprises a releasing layer comprising a releasing agent between the base and the surface layer.  
   
   
       4 . The surface treating material according to  claim 2 , wherein the base is any one of a sheet shape, a belt shape, and an endless belt shape.  
   
   
       5 . The surface treating material according to  claim 1 , wherein a total adhesion amount of the fusible particle and the hardly fusible particle in the surface layer is 1 g/m 2  to 30 g/m 2 .  
   
   
       6 . The surface treating material according to  claim 1 , wherein the surface property is changed on at least a part of the surface of the image recording material.  
   
   
       7 . The surface treating material according to  claim 1 , wherein the surface property is any one selected from a matte, a semimatte, an emboss, a luster, a silk finish, and a combination thereof.  
   
   
       8 . The surface treating material according to  claim 1 , wherein the surface treating material comprises a sea-island structure in a state where the hardly fusible particle is dispersed with maintaining the particle shape in the continuous film.  
   
   
       9 . The surface treating material according to  claim 1 , wherein a mixing mass ratio of the hardly fusible particle and the fusible particle (hardly fusible particle/fusible particle) is 0.5/100 to 10/100.  
   
   
       10 . The surface treating material according to  claim 1 , wherein the fusible particle is transparent and a volume average particle diameter is 1 μm to 30 μm.  
   
   
       11 . The surface treating material according to  claim 1 , wherein a volume average particle diameter of the hardly fusible particle is 2 μm to 30 μm and bigger than a thickness of the continuous film.  
   
   
       12 . The surface treating material according to  claim 1 , wherein a particle size distribution of the hardly fusible particle is 0.4 or less.  
   
   
       13 . The surface treating material according to  claim 1 , wherein the hardly fusible particle is of 2 kinds or more differing in at least any one of volume average particle diameter and shape.  
   
   
       14 . The surface treating material according to  claim 1 , wherein the hardly fusible particle comprises any one of the hardly fusible particle resin and an inorganic particle.  
   
   
       15 . The surface treating material according to  claim 14 , wherein a flow starting temperature of the hardly fusible particle resin is higher than the heating temperature in the surface treatment.  
   
   
       16 . The surface treating material according to  claim 14 , wherein the hardly fusible particle resin is a crosslinking particle, and the crosslinking particle comprises any one selected from a crosslinking acrylic resin, a crosslinking styrene resin, a crosslinking urethane resin, a crosslinking polyester resin, a crosslinking epoxy resin, a crosslinking melamine resin, a fluorine-containing setting-resin and a silicone-containing setting-resin.  
   
   
       17 . The surface treating material according to  claim 1 , wherein the fusible particle comprises any one selected from a saturated polyester resin, an acrylic resin, a polystyrene resin and crystalline polyolefin resin.  
   
   
       18 . The surface treating material according to  claim 1 , wherein the fusible particle comprises a wax, and a melting point of the wax is less than the heating temperature in the surface treatment.  
   
   
       19 . The surface treating material according to  claim 1 , wherein the image recording material is any one selected from an image-receiving sheet for electrophotography, a recording sheet of melting and heat transfer, a recording sheet of sublimation and heat transfer, a thermosensitve recording sheet and an ink jet recording sheet.  
   
   
       20 . A surface treating process comprising: 
 adhering a surface treating material on a surface of an image recording layer of an image recording material after image recording,    forming a surface treating layer on the surface of the image recording layer of the image recording material after image recording, and    wherein the surface treating material comprises a fusible particle and hardly fusible particle for changing a surface property of the image recording layer of the image recording material after image recording and,    wherein the fusible particle is melted to form a continuous film by a surface treatment, and a flow starting temperature of the fusible particle is 50° C. or more, and less than a heating temperature in the surface treatment, and 
 wherein the hardly fusible particle is not melted with maintaining a particle shape by the surface treatment, and a volume average particle diameter of the hardly fusible particle is 1 μm to 30 μm, and  
 wherein the hardly fusible particle is dispersed in a continuous film which is formed by melting the fusible particle by a heating and pressurizing treatment.  
   
   
   
       21 . The surface treating process according to  claim 20 , wherein a adhesion is performed by any one of an electrostatic adhesion, a coating, an impregnation, a dipping and a spraying.  
   
   
       22 . The surface treating process according to  claim 20 , wherein the heating and pressurizing treatment is performed using a belt surface treating device comprising a heating and pressurizing member, a belt member and a cooler.  
   
   
       23 . The surface treating process according to  claim 20 , wherein a total adhesion amount of the fusible particle and the hardly fusible particle is 1 g/m 2  to 30 g/m 2 .  
   
   
       24 . The surface treating process according to  claim 20 , wherein the surface treating material is adhered on at least a part of an image recording surface of the image recording material.  
   
   
       25 . The surface treating process according to  claim 20 , wherein the surface property is changed by changing any one of a total adhesion amount of the surface treating material depending on an image information, a combination of the hardly fusible particle and the fusible particle, and a mixing ratio of the hardly fusible particle and the fusible particle.  
   
   
       26 . The surface treating process according to  claim 25 , wherein the image information is at least any one selected from an image brightness, an image density, an image tone, an image size, and a combination thereof.  
   
   
       27 . The surface treating process according to  claim 20 , wherein a heating temperature in the heating and pressurizing treatment is 80° C. or more.  
   
   
       28 . The surface treating process according to  claim 20 , wherein the surface property can be changed depending on a selection by a user.  
   
   
       29 . The surface treating process according to  claim 28 , wherein the surface property is any one selected from a matte, a semimatte, an emboss, a luster, a silk finish, and a combination thereof.  
   
   
       30 . A surface treating process comprising: 
 forming a laminated body by putting together a surface layer of a surface treating material and an image recording layer of the image recording material after image recording by heating and pressurizing treatment,    forming a surface treating layer by cooling and separating the laminated body from a base, and    wherein the surface layer of the surface treating material comprising a fusible particle and hardly fusible particle are deposed on a base, 
 wherein the surface layer changes a surface property of the image recording layer of the image recording material after image recording, 
 wherein the fusible particle is melted to form a continuous film by a surface treatment, and a flow starting temperature of the fusible particle is 50° C. or more, and less than a heating temperature in the surface treatment, and 
 wherein the hardly fusible particle is not melted with maintaining a particle shape by the surface treatment, and a volume average particle diameter is 1 μm to 30 μm, and  
 
 
   wherein the a surface treating layer comprises the hardly fusible particle is dispersed in the continuous film which is formed by melting the fusible particle.    
   
   
       31 . The surface treating process according to  claim 30 , wherein the heating and pressurizing treatment is performed using a belt surface treating device comprising a heating and pressurizing member, a belt member and a cooler.  
   
   
       32 . The surface treating process according to  claim 30 , wherein a heating temperature in the heating and pressurizing treatment is 80° C. or more.  
   
   
       33 . The surface treating process according to  claim 30 , wherein the surface property can be changed depending on a selection by a user.  
   
   
       34 . The surface treating process according to  claim 30 , wherein the surface property is any one selected from a matte, a semimatte, an emboss, a luster, a silk finish, and a combination thereof.