Preparation of Chemically Prepared Toners (CPT) by Polymerisation for Ceramic Decoration

Abstract

In ceramics decoration by xerography, once the toner particles have been deposited, the substrates need to be subjected to thermal treatment at temperatures above 400 °C to eliminate the organic constituents in the toner and enable the inorganic constituents to be integrated into the ceramic surface. The inorganic component includes an active inorganic fraction in decoration that is able to modify the aesthetic appearance of the surface to be coated, and an inorganic fraction that facilitates fusibility and integration into the substrate.At present, this type of toner is made by the pulverisation method, with the presence of irregularly-shaped particles and inorganic particles that are only partly coated by the plastic organic matrix, which can lead to problems of particle flowability and electrical conductivity.This paper describes a new method of ceramic toner preparation by suspension polymerisation that avoids the above problems. The method allows a high inorganic component content in the toner composition to be reached, assuring good colour saturation in decoration.