Eastman-Kodak Company

Kodak Polychrome Graphics, Gmbh

Polychrome Corporation

Shashikant Saraiya

Jianbing Huang

S Peter Pappas

Frederic E Mikell

Ting Tao

Jayanti Patel

Heidi M Munnelly

Kevin Barry Ray

Anthony Paul Kitson

Xing-Fu Zhong

Ken-ichi Shimazu

Eric E Clark

Paul R West

Scott A Beckley

Ajay Shah

Larisa Novoselova

Celin M Savariar-Hauck

Hans-Joachim Timpe

My T Nguyen

Thi N Do

James Laurence Mulligan

Robert W Hallman

Alan Stanley Monk

Patrick Friedman

Jian Bing Huang

Kouji Hayashi

Christopher David McCullough

Akira Igarashi

Eiji Hayakawa

William Rowe

John Kalamen

William P Keaveney

Thomas R Jordan

Kevin Wieland

Richard R Durand, Jr

Eugene Lynn Sheriff

Nicki R Miller

Paul Richard West

Nishith Merchant

Socrates Peter Pappas

Jianfei Yu

Ken Shimazu

Jen-Chi Huang

Omkar J Natu

Andrew Krebs

Richard M Goodman

Xing Fu Zhong

Grant Thomas Donald Shouldice

Peter S Pappas

Tore Harms

Hirokazu Fujii

Kevin David Wieland

Frederic Eugene Mikell

Eric Clark

An infrared radiation-sensitive positive-working imageable element has a substrate and single imageable layer that includes a first polymeric binder having urethane or urea moieties in its backbone. The first polymeric binder is also insoluble in water and soluble in a weakly alkaline solution. This imageable element can be imaged and processed using weakly alkaline processing solutions that are free of silicates and metasilicates, which processing solutions may also be used to 'gum' the imaged and developed printing surface.

Positive-working imageable elements and method of use

Lithographic printing plate precursors have been designed so that they can be stored, shipped, and used in stacks without interleaf paper between individual precursors. This is achieved by incorporating polymeric particles having an average diameter of from about 3 to about 20 &#x3bc;m into the outermost precursor layer such as an imagable layer or topcoat. The polymeric particles comprise a core of a crosslinked polymer and have grafted hydrophilic polymeric surface groups that are grafted onto the particle surfaces by polymerizing hydrophilic monomers in the presence of the crosslinked polymeric particles. The lithographic printing plates can be either negative- or positive-working elements.

Lithographic printing plate precursors and stacks

A negative-working lithographic printing plate precursor can be imaged with infrared radiation and processed in a single step using a single processing solution having a pH of from about 3 to 11. The precursor has a primary polymeric binder that comprises recurring units derived from one or more N-alkoxymethyl(meth)acrylamides, provided that such recurring units are present in the primary polymeric binder in an amount of at least 10% based on the total dry primary polymeric binder weight. In addition, the primary polymeric binder is present in an amount of from about 12 to about 70% based on total imageable layer dry weight. The imaged precursor can be processed off-press or on-press.

Method of preparing lithographic printing plates

A substrate useful for forming lithographic printing plate precursors includes a metal or polymer support and an interlayer comprising a trialkoxysilyl polyethylene glycol acrylate having the following Structure (I): wherein Rand Rare independently hydrogen or Cto Calkyl, Cto Calkenyl, Cto Calkoxy, Cto Cacyl, Cto Cacyloxy, phenyl, halo, or cyano groups, or Rand Rtogether can form a cyclic group, Ris hydrogen, or a Cto Calkyl, phenyl, halo, or cyano group, Rand Rare independently hydrogen or methyl groups, Ris hydrogen or a Cto Calkyl group, Xis &#x2014;O&#x2014; or &#x2014;NR&#x2014; wherein R is hydrogen or an alkyl or aryl group, Xis &#x2014;NR'&#x2014; wherein R&#x2032; is hydrogen or an alkyl or aryl group, m is an integer of from 15 to 200, and n is an integer of from 1 to 12. The lithographic printing plates can be negative-working and particularly useful for on-press development and have a sulfuric acid-anodized aluminum support.

Substrate and imageable element with hydrophilic interlayer

Positive-working imageable elements comprise a radiation absorbing compound and inner and outer layers on a substrate having a hydrophilic surface. The inner layer comprises a specific polymeric binder represented by Structure (I):-(A)-(B)-(C)-(D)&#x2003;&#x2003;(I)

Multi-layer imageable element with improved properties

A radiation-sensitive composition includes a radically polymerizable component, initiator composition, a radiation absorbing compound, and a polymeric binder having recurring units that are derived from various ethylenically unsaturated polymerizable monomers provided that at least 40 mol % of the recurring units have a tertiary carbon atom in the backbone and the rest of the recurring units have a secondary or quaternary carbon atom in the backbone. This composition can be used to provide negative-working imageable elements that can be imaged and developed to provide lithographic printing plates that have desired imaging speed and excellent run length without the need for a post-exposure backing step.

Negative-working imageable elements and methods of use

A radiating-sensitive composition and negative-working imageable element includes a free radically polymerizable component, an initiator composition capable of generating radicals sufficient to initiate polymerization of the free radically polymerizable component upon exposure to imaging radiation, a radiation absorbing compound, and particles of a poly(urethane-acrylic) hybrid that are distributed throughout the composition forming an imageable layer in the element. Imaging can be accomplished at a wide range of wavelengths from about 150 to about 1500 nm, and development can be accomplished using an organic solvent-based developer, warm water, plate cleaner, or on-press using a combination of a lithographic printing ink and a fountain solution.

Negative-working radiation-sensitive compositions and imageable materials

Sulfated polymers, imageable elements containing these polymers, and methods for preparing images useful as lithographic printing plates from these imageable elements are disclosed. The sulfate groups are attached either to aryl groups that are pendent to the polymer backbone, and/or to alkyl groups that are either pendant to the polymer backbone and/or part of the polymer backbone. The elements can be thermally imaged and developed in water or in fountain solution so that an alkaline developer is not required. They can be imaged and developed on press using fountain solution so that it is unnecessary to mount them in a separate exposure device.

Imageable element comprising sulfated polymers

Positive-working imageable elements comprise a radiation absorbing compound and inner and outer layers on a substrate having a hydrophilic surface. The inner layer comprises a combination of two different polymeric binders one of which has an acid number of at least 30, which combination of polymers provides improved post-development bakeability (more quickly baked or cured at lower temperatures) and desired digital speed with no loss in chemical resistance.

The present invention provides an imageable element including a lithographic substrate and an imageable layer disposed on the substrate. The imageable layer includes a radically polymerizable component, an initiator system capable of generating radicals sufficient to initiate a polymerization reaction upon exposure to imaging radiation, and a polymeric binder having a hydrophobic backbone and including both constitutional units having a pendant cyano group attached directly to the hydrophobic backbone, and constitutional units having a pendant group including a hydrophilic poly(alkylene oxide) segment. When the imageable element is imaged and developed, the resulting printing plate may exhibit improved on-press solvent resistance and longer press life.

Imageable element with solvent-resistant polymeric binder

The present invention relates to a polymerizable coating composition suitable for the manufacture of printing plates, which may be developable on-press. The coating composition comprises (i) a polymerizable compound and (ii) a polymeric binder comprising polyethylene oxide segments, wherein the polymeric binder is selected from the group consisting of at least one graft copolymer comprising a main chain polymer and polyethylene oxide side chains, a block copolymer having at least one polyethylene oxide block and at least one non-polyethylene oxide block, and a combination thereof. The invention is also directed to an imageable element comprising a substrate and the polymerizable coating composition.

Printing plates using binder resins having polyethylene oxide segments

Both single-layer and multilayer imageable elements have a substrate and at least one imageable layer. The elements can be used to prepare either negative- or positive-working imaged elements, for example as lithographic printing plates. The imageable elements also include a radiation absorbing compound and a solvent-resistant polymer comprising pendant phosphoric acid groups, pendant adamantyl groups, or both. When this polymer comprises pendant adamantyl groups, they are connected to the polymer backbone through a urea or urethane group. The imageable elements have improved chemical resistance and thermal bakeability from the presence of the unique solvent-resistant polymer.

Imageable members with improved chemical resistance

A positive-working imageable element comprises inner and outer layers and a radiation absorbing compound such as an IR absorbing dye. The inner layer includes a first polymeric material. The ink receptive outer layer includes a second polymeric binder comprising a polymer backbone and an &#x2014;X&#x2014;C(&#x2550;T)&#x2014;NR&#x2014;S(&#x2550;O)&#x2014; moiety that is attached to the polymer backbone, wherein &#x2014;X&#x2014; is an oxy or &#x2014;NR'&#x2014; group, T is O or S, R and R&#x2032; are independently hydrogen, halo, or an alkyl group having 1 to 6 carbon atoms. After thermal imaging, the element can be developed using an alkaline developer. Use of the particular second polymeric binder reduces sludging in the developer. Its dissolution rate in the developer is slow enough to resist developer attack in the non-imaged areas of the outer layer but rapid enough for the second polymeric binder to be quickly loosened from imaged areas and kept suspended or dissolved for a considerable time.

Multilayer imageable element containing sulfonamido resin

Single-layer and multilayer imageable elements have a substrate and at least one imageable layer and can be used to prepare positive-working lithographic printing plates. The imageable elements also include a radiation absorbing compound and a solvent-resistant polymer binder comprising an &#x2014;N(R)&#x2014;C(&#x2550;X)&#x2014;N(R')&#x2014;S(&#x2550;O)&#x2014; moiety that is attached to the polymer backbone, wherein X is O or S, R and R&#x2032; are independently hydrogen, halo, or an alkyl group having 1 to 6 carbon atoms. This solvent-resistant polymer binder is located in the imageable layer closest to the substrate and provides improved chemical resistance.

The present invention provides an imageable element including a lithographic substrate and an imageable layer disposed on the substrate. The imageable layer includes a radically polymerizable component, an initiator system capable of generating radicals sufficient to initiate a polymerization reaction upon exposure to imaging radiation, and a polymeric binder having a hydrophobic backbone and including both constitutional units having a pendant cyano group attached directly to the hydrophobic backbone, and constitutional units having a pendant group including a hydrophilic poly(alkylene oxide) segment. The invention also provides a method for preparing a suitable polymeric binder. The method comprises contacting a combination of co-monomers in a solvent mixture consisting essentially of a (C&#x2013;C) alkanol and water.

Preparation of solvent-resistant binder for an imageable element

Growing community of inventors

Fort Collins, CO, United States of America

Shashikant Saraiya