Abstract:
A method for manufacturing a microporous film comprising the steps of:
(a) providing a first polymer which is a hydrophobic thermoplastic polymer and a second polymer which is a hydrophilic polymer or copolymer of N-vinylpyrrolidone; (b) dissolving said first and second polymers in a solvent system which is compatible with both polymers, said solvent system comprising a blend of an aprotic organic solvent and an alcohol; (c) coating the resulting solution on a support; (d) effecting at least a partial drying of the resulting coating; and (e) washing the coating in an aqueous medium so as to extract at least 50% by weight of the said second polymer.
Image accepting members comprising a microporous film made by the above method, and preferably comprising a support which is also microporous.
Abstract:
An infrared laser addressable imaging element comprising a substrate; a first layer comprising a reducible light-insensitive silver salt and a binder; and a second layer comprising an infrared absorber, a reducing agent for said silver salt and a binder; characterised in that the binder of said first layer is a polymeric medium having a glass transition temperature of at least 80°C.