Thermal image receiver elements having release agents

A thermal image receiver element comprising a support, and having on at least one side of the support:

• a dry image receiving layer having a Tg of at least 25° C., which dry image receiving layer is the outermost layer of the thermal image receiver element, has a dry thickness of at least 0.5 μm and up to and including 5 μm, and comprises a water-dispersible release agent, and a polymer binder matrix that consists essentially of:
• (1) a water-dispersible acrylic polymer comprising chemically reacted or chemically non-reacted hydroxyl, phospho, phosphonate, sulfo, sulfonate, carboxyl, or carboxylate groups, and
• (2) a water-dispersible polyester that has a Tg of 30° C. or less,
• wherein the water-dispersible acrylic polymer is present in an amount of at least 55 weight % of the total dry image receiving layer weight;
• wherein the water dispersible release agent is selected from the group consisting of a water-dispersible fluorine-based surfactant, a silicone-based surfactant, a modified silicone oil, a polysiloxane, a modified polysiloxane and a cross-linked amino modified polydimethyl siloxane.

A thermal image receiver element comprising a support, and having one or both of opposing sides of the support:

• a dry image receiving layer having a Tg of at least 35° C. and up to and including 60° C., which dry image receiving layer is the outermost layer of the thermal image receiver element, has a dry thickness of at least 1 μm and up to and including 3 μm, comprising:
• a water-dispersible release agent, wherein the water dispersible release agent is a crosslinked amino modified polysiloxane present in an amount of at least 1 weight % and up to and including 5 weight %, based on the total dry image receiving layer weight;
• a residual crosslinking agent, wherein the residual crosslinking agent is a carbodiimide or an aziridine derivative compound;
• and
• a polymer binder matrix that consists essentially of:
• (1) a water-dispersible acrylic polymer comprising chemically reacted or chemically non-reacted carboxy or carboxylate groups, wherein the water-dispersible acrylic polymer further comprises recurring ethylenically unsaturated polymerizable monomer units derived from styrene or a styrene derivative;
• and
• (2) a water-dispersible, film-forming polyester that has a Tg of at least 0° C. and up to and including 20° C., which water-dispersible, film-forming polyester having water-dispersibility groups, wherein the polyester is a VYLONAL® MD-1480.

A method for making the thermal image receiver element of claim 1, comprising:

• applying an aqueous image receiving layer formulation to one or both of the opposing sides of a support, the aqueous image receiving layer formulation comprising a water-dispersible release agent, a residual crosslinking agent, and a polymer binder composition consisting essentially of:
• (1) a water-dispersible acrylic polymer comprising chemically reacted or chemically non-reacted hydroxyl, phospho, phosphonate, sulfo, sulfonate, carboxy, or carboxylate groups, and
• (2) a water-dispersible polyester that has a Tg of 30° C. or less, wherein the water-dispersible acrylic polymer is present in an amount of at least 55 weight % of the resulting total dry image receiving layer weight, and is present in the polymeric binder matrix at a dry ratio to the water-dispersible polyester of at least 1:1 to and including 6:1, and
• drying the aqueous image receiving layer formulation to form a dry image receiving layer on one or both opposing sides of the support.