Ink-jet recording medium and ink-jet image forming method using the recording medium

#The invention relates to an ink-jet recording medium, hereinafter referred to as a recording medium, and an ink-jet image forming method using the recording medium.

#Recently, the technology of the ink-jet recording has been considerably progressed, and an image having a high quality, so called as photographic image quality, can be obtained by progress of technology of printer, ink and recording medium to be exclusively used for the ink-jet recording. Accompanied with the rising of the image quality, the storage ability of the image formed by the ink-jet is become to be compared with that of the usual silver halide photography, and the degradation of the image caused by the moving of the colorant such as low water-proof ability and the low anti-spreading ability and the degradation a chemical reaction such as the low light-fastness and the low resistively against an oxidant gas are pointed out.

#Many means have been proposed for improvement of the storage ability. For instance, Japanese Patent Examined Publication No. 2-31673 discloses that the improvement of the water-proof ability and the weather resistance and the raising of the image glossiness of the ink-jet recording medium can be attained by providing a layer constituted by a thermoplastic organic polymer particle at the outermost surface of the medium and forming a polymer protective layer after the image formation by fusing the thermoplastic organic polymer particle.

#FIG. 1 shows a schematic constitution of an ink-jet recording apparatus having a heating roller usable in the invention.

#FIG. 2 shows a schematic constitution of an ink-jet recording apparatus having a heating belt usable in the invention.

#The invention is described in detail below.

#In the invention, the transfer amount of the ink to the ink-jet recording medium is not less than 10 ml/m2. The transfer amount of the ink is preferably from 10 ml/m2 to 30 ml/m2.

#In the invention, Bristow method is a method for measuring the liquid absorbing behavior of paper or cardboard in a short period. The measurement is performed according to the test method of liquid absorbing property of paper or cardboard defined by J. TAPPI Paper and Pulp Test Method No. 51-87 (Bristow method), and the measurement result is represented by the transfer amount of ink ml/m2 for a contact time of 40 milliseconds. In the invention, the measurement is carried out using the later-described aqueous ink for easily judging the measuring area even though the measurement is carried out using purified water or ion-exchanged water in the above-mentioned measuring method.