TY  - JOUR
AB  - Purpose– The purpose of this paper is to study thermal stability, curing kinetics and physico‐chemical properties of polyurethanes systems for application in in‐mould decoration (IMD) ink.Design/methodology/approach– The thermal stability of three Polyurethane (Pu) systems A, B, C were evaluated by thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). The kinetic parameters of the curing reaction of Pu system C were calculated using non‐isothermal curing kinetics analysis, including the activation energy Ea, the reaction rate constant K(T), the reaction order n, the initial curing temperature (Ti), the peak temperature (Tp), and the finishing temperature (Tf). Additionally, physico‐chemical properties were also evaluated such as flexibility, impact resistance, pencil hardness, adhesive attraction and solvent resistance.Findings– TGA showed that thermal decomposition temperature T5 (5 wt.% weight loss), T10 (10 wt.% weight loss) and Tend (decomposition termination temperature) of Pu system C was 344°C, 363°C, and 489°C, respectively. T5, T10, Tend increased by 77°C, 61°C, 4°C, respectively, and the char yield at 600°C increased by 25.1 wt.% comparing with Pu system B. Curing kinetics analysis showed that Ea of Pu system C was 62.29 KJ/mol, 65.98 KJ/mol and 65.95 KJ/mol by Kissinger, Flynn‐Wall‐Ozawa and Ozawa method, respectively. The order of the curing reaction (n=0.90) demonstrated that it was a complex reaction. Moreover, Pu system C exhibited good physico‐chemical properties. The results showed that Pu system C was suitable to apply into IMD ink.Research limitations/implications– The TGA analysis, curing kinetics analysis and evaluation of physico‐chemical properties provided a simple and practical solution to study suitable resins for IMD ink application.Practical implications– IMD ink for heat transfer printing technology is highly efficient, relatively low cost, clean and environmentally safe. It has been widely applied into medical and pharmaceutical products, electronic devices, telecommunication equipment, computer parts, appliance panels, automotive parts, etc.Originality/value– In this paper, the thermal stability and curing kinetics of Pu for IMD ink are reported for the first time. The paper gives very interesting and important information about thermal stability, curing kinetics and properties of Pu coating system for IMD ink application.
VL  - 41
IS  - 6
SN  - 0369-9420
DO  - 10.1108/03699421211274270
UR  - https://doi.org/10.1108/03699421211274270
AU  - Lin Jing
AU  - Wang Wei
AU  - Wen Xiufang
AU  - Cai Zhi‐Qi
AU  - Pi Pihui
AU  - Zheng Da‐feng
AU  - Cheng Jiang
AU  - Yang Zhuoru
PY  - 2012
Y1  - 2012/01/01
TI  - Thermal stability, curing kinetics and properties of polyurethanes system for in‐mould decoration ink
T2  - Pigment & Resin Technology
PB  - Emerald Group Publishing Limited
SP  - 351
EP  - 358
Y2  - 2024/04/19
ER  -