Method for making a high solids interactive coating composition and ink jet recording medium

A method for making a coating composition comprising the sequential steps of:

• mixing a binder in water to form a dispersion, said binder selected from the group consisting of polyvinyl alcohol, starches, latexes, polyvinyl pyrrolidone, and modified cellulose;
• adding a cationic fixing agent to said dispersion, said cationic fixing agent selected from the group consisting of:
• acrylamide acrylic polymers, polyamines, polyethylene oxide, allylamine polymers, and quarternary ammonium polymers;
• adding a pigment to said dispersion, at least 50% of said pigment comprising silica;
• and
• adding a styrene acrylic sizing agent to said dispersion to form the coating composition.

A method for making a coating composition for coating a substrate for ink jet printing, the method comprising the sequential steps of:

• adding 30-50 dry weight parts of a partially hydrolyzed low molecular weight polyvinyl alcohol binder per 100 parts of pigment to water to form a dispersion;
• adding 4-10 dry weight parts per 100 parts of pigment of a polycationic quarternary ammonium polymer fixing agent per 100 parts pigment to said dispersion;
• adding pigment to said dispersion, said pigment comprising at least 50% non-agglomerated, absorptive silica;
• cooling said dispersion to at or below 49° C.;
• adding 1-10 dry weight parts styrene acrylic sizing agent per 100 parts of pigment to said dispersion to form the coating composition wherein the coating composition has a pH in the range of 4.5 to 7, a solids content of at least 30%, and is substantially free from grit.

A method for making a coating composition comprising the steps of:

• selecting one or more pigments that when dispersed in water will have a pH of less than 7.0;
• forming an aqueous dispersion of one or more pigments, at least 50% by weight of the pigments comprising a non-agglomerated, absorptive silica, a polyvinyl alcohol binder at a ratio of 30-50 parts dry weight per 100 parts of pigment, a sizing agent at a ratio of 1-10 parts by dry weight per 100 parts dry weight of pigment, and a cationic fixing agent at a ratio of 4-10 parts dry weight per 100 parts of pigment;
• adding the polyvinyl alcohol to the dispersion as an aqueous solution at a temperature at or below 49° C.;
• reacting the polyvinyl alcohol in between the additions of sizing agent and cationic fixing agent so that the polyvinyl alcohol acts a protective colloid to avoid reactions between the sizing agent and the cationic fixing agent that would produce precipitates;
• and
• adjusting the solids content to be at least 30 percent solids.

A method for making an ink jet recording medium comprising the steps of:

• selecting one or more pigments that when dispersed in water will have a pH of less than 7.0;
• forming an aqueous dispersion of one or more pigments, at least 50% by weight of the pigments comprising a non-agglomerated, absorptive silica, a polyvinyl alcohol binder at a ratio of 30-50 parts dry weight per 100 parts of pigment, a sizing agent at a ratio of 1-10 parts by dry weight per 100 parts dry weight of pigment, and a cationic fixing agent at a ratio of 4-10 parts dry weight per 100 parts of pigment;
• limiting reactions between the sizing agent and the cationic fixing agent that would produce precipitates;
• adjusting the solids content to be at least 30 percent solids;
• coating said composition onto at least one side of a substrate;
• and
• drying said composition to form the ink jet recording medium.