Thermal Transfer Printing Research Articles

A non-enzymatic flexible and wearable sensor based on thermal transfer printing technology for continuous glucose detection in sweat

Non-invasive, flexible wearable sensors are an important method to continuously measure glucose in sweat for diabetes and human health monitoring and management. However, how to create an alkaline environment at any time so that CuO based sensors can be applied to wearable devices to detect sweat glucose while finding a way to efficiently and quickly produce the sensors in small batches have been a challenge. Herein, we report a non-enzymatic thermal transferred flexible and wearable sensor based on CuO/CaTiO3 for continuous glucose detection in sweat. The sensor is manufactured using thermal transfer printing technology, which offers advantages like low cost, ease of operation, and rapid small batch production. CuO is known for its excellent electrocatalytic activity, making it a suitable candidate for glucose oxidation. Meanwhile, CaTiO3 particles provide a large specific surface area, good biocompatibility, and electrical conductivity, which enhance the electron transfer rate during detection and broaden the linear range of glucose detection. Specially designed NaOH/Nafion/PEO blend film make the measurements always in a strong alkali environment without any pretreatment and preparation. The synthesized material with this as-prepared flexible and wearable sensor exhibits superior performance towards glucose monitoring, such as high sensitivity of 487.3 μA mM−1 cm−2 with limit of detection(LOD) 0.75 μM, wide dynamic linear range from 0.01 mM to 2 mM and fast response time of less than 0.1 s. Additionally, the proposed sensor also exhibited excellent biocompatibility, selectivity, reproducibility and flexibility, as well as good stability with about 88 % of its initial activity after 5 weeks’ storage and it has been successfully applied for the detection of glucose concentration in human sweat real samples. This research contributes to the development of flexible and wearable sensors for non-invasive sweat diagnostics, enabling continuous glucose monitoring for various applications in healthcare and wellness.

The Effectiveness of Thermal Transfer Printing (Sublimation) on Metal Surfaces to Enrich the Appearance of Jewelry

The Effectiveness of Thermal Transfer Printing (Sublimation) on Metal Surfaces to Enrich the Appearance of Jewelry

Preparation and properties of alcohol‐resistant thermal transfer printing inks for multifunctional label printing via physical blending of resins

AbstractDue to the rise of the logistics industry and the widespread use of ink labels, problems such as the narrow operating temperature range of ink, poor alcohol resistance, and insufficient scratch resistance need to be solved urgently. In this work, creates alcohol‐resistant thermal transfer inks by mixing polypropylene chloride (VP‐365) and epoxidized hydrogenated bisphenol A (P) resin and incorporating them into the ink formulation. The synthetic ink has a lower glass transition temperature (118.2°C), allowing the ink to print at lower temperatures. It has small wetting angles (68°, 63°, 58°, 46°, and 40°) and a large adhesion force (10.44 – 14.4 N) for different labels. Further, to evaluate the printing performance of the ink, the ink was scratched under 1000 g pressure and in the environment of isopropyl alcohol to evaluate its printing performance. The produced ink has high scratch resistance (300 times) and good alcohol resistance (140 times). Moreover, the developed ink showed good printability, printing media versatility, high adhesion, and excellent alcohol resistance. The synthesis method is facile and cost‐effective, which paves a novel way towards high‐performance ink printing and thermal transfer technology industries.

New Solvent Dyes with High Chroma and High Light Stability for Dye Sublimation Thermal Transfer Printer

New Solvent Dyes with High Chroma and High Light Stability for Dye Sublimation Thermal Transfer Printer

Highly Durable Janus Fabrics Based on Transfer Prints for Personal Moisture Management.

Janus fabrics with moisture management ability have great potential for improving both physiological and psychological comfort of human body. However, current methods for creating Janus fabrics are typically complex, environmentally unfriendly, and costly. More importantly, the prepared Janus fabrics have demonstrated insufficient mechanical properties and poor fastness, rendering them unsuitable for practical applications. Here, this work proposes a method for constructing Janus fabrics through thermal transfer printing of hydrophobic transfer prints onto a superhydrophilic cotton fabric, followed by creation of a conical micropore array on the fabric surface. The as-prepared Janus fabrics exhibit excellent unidirectional liquid transport capacity, capable of transporting 50µL water completely in 11.6 s in the positive direction. Attributed to the durable property of the transfer prints, the Janus fabrics are capable of withstanding over 900 friction cycles and 250 home laundry cycles, which is a great advance in this research field. Additionally, the fabrication process has no detrimental effect on the fabric's breathability, elasticity, and flexibility. Furthermore, the Janus fabric can maintain human body temperature 3.6 °C cooler than that worn with cotton fabric. The fabrication method can provide useful insights for the design and creation of durable Janus fabrics to maximize personal comfort.

QUALITY EVALUATION OF UHF RFID ANTENNAS AND PASSIVE TAGS ON PAPER SUBSTRATES

The effect of antenna design modification, paper substrates and relative electrical permittivity of background materials on the reflection coefficient of UHF RFID antennas was studied. Simulation software was used to modify the design and calculate the reflection coefficient of the antennas. By modifying the coupling of the dipole with the induction loop of the antennas, areduction of the simulated reflection coefficient was achieved compared to thecommercial antenna. The positive effect of antenna modification was also confirmed by measuring thereflection coefficient of antennas printed on paper by thermal transfer printing, placed on extruded polystyrene and particle board. The reflection coefficient of the modified antennas was lower when placed on extruded polystyrene, whose relative electrical permittivity was lower than particle board. After installing the memory chip to the antennas printed on paper and paperboard, the identification, reading and recording range of passive UHF RFID tags were measured after they were placed on thicker paperboard, extruded polystyrene and particle board. The positive effect of antenna modification on improving the communication quality of passive UHF RFID tags placed on background materials with a relative electrical permittivity of 2.4 to 6.7 wasconfirmed.

Highly durable machine-learned waterproof electronic glove based on low-cost thermal transfer printing for amphibious wearable applications

Highly durable machine-learned waterproof electronic glove based on low-cost thermal transfer printing for amphibious wearable applications

A fabrication technique for paper-based analytical devices via two-sided patterning with thermal-transfer printer and laminator

In this study, we propose a novel technique for fabricating paper-based analytical devices (PADs) using a wax-based thermal-transfer printer and a thermal laminator, which allows prototyping and roll-to-roll mass production of PADs without utilizing widely used conventional wax printers. This fabrication scheme involves two-sided patterning to form hydrophobic barriers and an ink ribbon that contains sufficient wax content to form hydrophobic barriers without undesirable components or additives. First, a thermal-transfer printer forms positive patterns on the ink ribbon for the front and back sides of the device design. Subsequently, a laminator performs the two-sided thermal transfer of the patterns from the ink ribbon to a paper substrate and the thermal formation of hydrophobic barriers for channels. The hydrophobicity of the prepared ink is similar to that of ink used in wax printers and exhibits excellent stability in organic solvents and surfactants. Hydrophobic barriers and channels were successfully formed using various paper substrates typically used for PADs. The two-sided scheme allows the formation of 3D channels, including vertical paths in a single paper substrate. The utility of the proposed fabrication technique was demonstrated using a dip-type 3D PAD for sensing glucose.

Fabrication of Laser-Induced 3D Porous Graphene Electrodes for High-Performance Textile Microsupercapacitors

In recent decades, form factor of electronic devices is continuously evolving from flat device to curved and foldable devices to rollable devices. Electronic textile (E-textile) or electronic skin (E-skin) is attracting a lot of attention as one of the ultimate form factor devices. Many researchers have tried to change the form factor as E-textiles or E-skin for lots of electronics such as sensors, actuators, energy harvesting applications, displays, and even energy storage devices. Unlike devices such as displays and sensors that have practical applications, reliable energy storage devices in the form as E-textile and E-skin have not yet been for practical applications. Microsupercapacitors (MSCs) has received a lot of attention as power sources for wearable, textile or stretchable electronic devices due to their fast charging capability, long life cycle, and good safety. Most of electrode patterns for textile MSCs have been fabricated using inking based printing techniques such as screen printing, inkjet printing, and 3D printing. Although the ink printing techniques are considered to be compatible with large-scale production, the preparation of inks based on high performance namaterials requires a costly, time-consuming and complicated process including high temperature synthesis or dispersion in an toxic organic solvent. A robust textile MSC fabrication process with low cost, large-area, and high-performance is thus requiredLaser-induced graphene (LIG), acquired by the direct laser synthesis of various types of carbon precursors, have widely investigated as electrode materials of MSCs with the advantages of 3D porous electrodes with hierarchical porosity, high crystallinity, and high surface area. However, these superior properties of LIG electrode were not adopted in textile energy storage devices yet.In this work, LIG-based MSCs were fabricated by thermal transfer printing on textile. A LIG electrode directly laser-written on a PI film was transferred onto the adhesive film area of textile substrates during thermal transfer printing. The electrochemical performances of the as-fabricated textile LIG-MSCs were investigated. Especially, LIG-MSCs based on LIG-metal composite electrodes exhibit fast ion transport for high-rate performance with capacitive rectangular shapes at high scan rates of up to 20V/s, suggesting outstanding rate capability among graphene-based textile MSCs. Moreover, LIG-MSCs demonstrated the possibility of practical usage as textile energy storage devices such as cyclic stability, a waterproof property, and control of the working voltage or capacitance by series or parallel connection.

INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGIES FOR DECORATING LIGHT INDUSTRY PRODUCTS

The article is devoted to the solution of the task of forming project images in modern mass fashion in the context of the use of innovative decoration technologies on the example of designing an author’s collection of women’s clothing. The scientific novelty of the study consists of the analysis and systematization of creative and innovative decoration technologies with the aim of further integration into the fashion design of clothing. The study’s practical significance lies in the study of characteristic techniques and elements of innovative clothing decoration. The article describes the stages and provides recommendations for producing the author’s prints for decorating products of the author’s collection. The authors focused on developing the author’s print using computer technologies in universal graphic reactors of both raster and vector graphics for further thermal transfer printing. The study demonstrates the process of forming a sketch of a fashionable design image using an information model, which allows authors to present it as a single symbolic system using modern practices of visual presentation of trendy innovations. The products in the collection are made of different materials, which, when combined into sets, give the image of unusualness and sophistication. The collection was developed in the format of the Pop Art style using fashion trends. The authors defined and thought out the main images, forms, and constituent elements of the designed products of the author’s collection sets. When creating clothing models, special attention was paid to the originality and multifunctionality of the collection’s products and their parts. The creative and design, constructive, and technological solutions of models of sets of the author’s collection were produced and presented at the All-Ukrainian competition of young designers “Colours of Podillia” (Khmelnytskyi, KhNU, 2022), were developed.

Durability Study of Thermal Transfer Printed Textile Electrodes for Wearable Electronic Applications.

Textile-based electronics hold great promise because they can endow wearable devices with soft and comfortable characteristics. However, the inherent porosity and fluffiness of fabrics result in high surface roughness, which presents great challenges in the manufacture of high-performance fabric electrodes. In this work, we propose a thermal transfer printing method to address the above challenges, in which electrodes or circuits of silver flake/thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) composites are prefabricated on a release film by coating and laser engraving and then laminated by hot-pressing to a variety of fabrics and textiles. This universal and scalable production technique enables fabric electrodes to be made without compromising the original wearability, washability, and stretchability of textiles. The prepared fabric electrodes exhibit high conductivity (5.48 × 104 S/cm), high adhesion (≥1750 N/m), good abrasion/washing resistance, high patterning resolution (∼40 μm), and good electromechanical performance up to 50% strain. To demonstrate the potential applications, we developed textile-based radio frequency identification (RFID) tags for remote identification and a large-sized heater for wearable thermotherapy. More importantly, the solvent-free thermal transfer printing technology developed in this paper enables people to DIY interesting flexible electronics on clothes with daily tools, which can promote the commercial application of smart textile-based electronics.

Beyond Wax Printing: Fabrication of Paper-Based Microfluidic Devices Using a Thermal Transfer Printer.

Paper-based microfluidic devices, also known as microPADs, are an emerging analytical platform with the potential to improve point-of-care diagnostics. MicroPADs are fabricated by patterning hydrophobic inks onto sheets of paper to create hydrophilic channels and test zones. One of the main advantages of microPADs is that they are inexpensive and simple to fabricate, making them accessible even to researchers with limited budgets or no prior fabrication expertise. Wax printing, where a solid ink printer is used to pattern wax on paper, has been the most convenient and popular method for fabricating paper-based microfluidic devices. Unfortunately, solid ink printers were discontinued in 2016 and are no longer available commercially. Here we introduce a method for fabricating microPADs using a portable thermal transfer printer that retains the convenience of wax printing. Devices fabricated by thermal transfer printing were comparable to devices fabricated via wax printing and laser printing. The low cost, convenience, and portability of the thermal transfer printer make this approach an exciting prospect for replacing wax printing and facilitating the continued development of paper-based microfluidics.

Transfer Printing of Solution‐Processed 3D ZnO Nanostructures with Ultra‐High Yield for Flexible Metasurface Color Filter

AbstractThis work describes a facile thermal transfer printing process for solution‐processed high‐quality ZnO nanostructures. Nanostructures are synthesized through patterned solution growth and transfer‐printed onto a polymer substrate with an inverted configuration. Thus, the shape of the solution‐processed ZnO nanostructures can be regulated to have diversified forms, clearly defined edges, and improved surface profiles. To further demonstrate the scalability of such transfer printing process, a metasurface color filter with 300 µm × 500 µm “windmill” pattern is designed and more than 300 000 nanorod units included. After the structures are transferred, the color filter can be gradually tuned by O2 plasma treatment. Moreover, the uneven height of as‐synthesized nanorods with different diameters can be evenly rescaled, implying a precise control over the vertical dimension. Lastly, an ultra‐high transfer accuracy is validated with a lateral displacement of less than 7 nm. The presented work demonstrates a facile and low‐cost transfer printing route toward ZnO‐based metasurfaces on flexible substrates.

The study of the mechanism of image formation during thermal transfer printing on fabric packaging

The study of the mechanism of image formation during thermal transfer printing on fabric packaging

Assessment of the Impact of the Surface Modification Processes of Cotton and Polyester Fabrics with Various Techniques on Their Structural, Biophysical, Sensory, and Mechanical Properties.

This article presents research on the assessment of the impact of surface modification of cotton and polyester fabrics using four techniques (flocking, layer by layer, screen printing and thermal-transfer printing) on their structural, mechanical, biophysical, and sensory properties. Depending on geometry and raw materials of the fabrics, the clothing made of them it is characterized by certain biophysical properties which are intended to protect the human body against external factors, but also against excessive sweating and overheating or cooling down. The aforementioned properties of the modified textiles were determined with: optical microscopy, microcomputed tomography, a tensile testing machine, sweating guarded-hotplate, air permeability tester, and the Kawabata evaluation system. Based on analysis of obtained results, it can be concluded that flocking reduces air permeability the most (−77% for cotton fabric and −99.7% for polyester fabric), and total hand value (−58% and −57%) and increases water vapor resistance the most (+769% and +612%) while the screen printing increases the thermal resistance the most (+119% and +156%) compared to unmodified textiles. It can be concluded that, when modifying textile substrates, the area of modification and their size on clothing products should be carefully selected so as not to adversely affect the feelings of potential wearers.

Побудова ієрархічної моделі факторів впливу на якість маркування пластикових паковань термотрансферним друком

Побудова ієрархічної моделі факторів впливу на якість маркування пластикових паковань термотрансферним друком

THE RESEARCH OF QUALITY OF THERMOTRANSFER PRINT IMAGES ON COTTON TEXTILE MATERIAL

The article presents thermogravimetric studies of cotton textile material before and after printing by thermal transfer printing. Thermal transfer printing on garments and knitwear, umbrellas, bags, advertising banners, posters, etc. is popular. Transfer printing technology involves the transfer of the image to the textile material using an intermediate medium. First, the desired image is formed on a special paper or film using screen printing. Then, with the help of temperature in special presses, it is transferred to the textile material. If the image is multicolored, the whole process is repeated separately for each color. Heat transfer technology allows to apply high- and multi-color images to finished products or semi-finished products with high accuracy; to carry out personalized printing. Since thermal transfer printing involves the presence of high temperatures to obtain an image on the material, a comprehensive thermal analysis of cotton fabric was performed before and after printing. A test scale with a raster line from 100 to 140 lines / cm was used for research. Densitometric indicators of quality of the formed thermotransfer images by plastezol paints are given. It is established that with the increase of the line of raster images the color indicators of the prints on the textile material decrease slightly, which must be taken into account when fulfilling orders in industrial conditions. Using electron microscopy, the process of interaction of dye with cotton fibers in the fixation of printed images was studied. Significant influence on the quality of prints on textile material of surface structure of cotton fibers, their structure, dye composition and printing modes is confirmed. It is established that cotton fabric with printed image at 140 oC provides high quality color printed thermal transfer images. This is confirmed by such qualimetric indicators as optical density, image contrast, brightness. Modeling the mechanism of fixing the printed image on the fabric during thermal transfer printing can be divided into four stages: diffusion of the dye from the environment to the surface of the fibers; sorption of the dye on the surface; diffusion of dye inside the fiber; sorption of the dye on the inner surface of the fiber, which require more detailed and in-depth studies.

Streptomerocyanine dyes

Abstract Dyes synthesized by condensation of e. g. 4-N,N-dialkylaminobenzaldehydes, 5-N,N-dialkylamino-2-thiophenaldehydes or 5-N,N-dialkylamino-2-furaldehydes, with open chain active methylene compounds have been given the labels merocyanine, neutrocyanine, methine or styryl dyes. All these classifications are misnomers. In terms of systematic nomenclature, their proper classification is as streptomerocyanine dyes. They are used in textile coloration and in dye diffusion thermal transfer printing (D2T2). Furthermore, they have been investigated for their potential as sensitizer dyes in dye sensitized solar cells (DSSC) and for photorefractive applications.

PASSIVE UHF RFID TAGS WITH THERMAL-TRANSFER-PRINTED ANTENNAS

Papers for the thermal transfer printing of UHF RFID antennas were prepared by coating and calendering. Real and imaginary components of the impedance of the UHF RFID antennas depended on their design, coating composition and conditions of paper calendering. Passive UHF RFID tags were constructed from antennas and chips whose real and imaginary components of impedance in the 860–960 MHz frequency band were at approximately the same level. The communication quality of passive UHF RFID tags was evaluated by measuring the reading range using the designed UHF RFID reading unit. The reading range of experimental UHF RFID tags with printed antennas on paper and commercial UHF RFID tags with chemically etched antennas on a PET film were identical in the 860 MHz frequency.

Hemioxonol dyes

Abstract Following the classification of hemicyanine dyes Leslie G. S. Brooker suggested the term hemioxonol dye be applied to the case of an oxonol colorant in which one of its terminal unsaturated heterocycles has been replaced by an open chain N(R1)R2 group or saturated heterocyclic ring. For historical reasons, dyes formed from the reaction of 4-N,N-dialkylaminobenzaldehydes or 4-N,N-dialkylaminocinnamaldehydes with a heterocycle containing an active methylene group adjacent to a carbonyl group are often called benzylidene dyes and cinnamylidene dyes, respectively. In terms of systematic nomenclature, their proper classification is as hemioxonol dyes. They are used as filter dyes and antihalation dyes in silver halide photography. Their current main usage is in dye diffusion thermal transfer printing (D2T2).