Poly(vinyl alcohol): formulation of a polymer ink for the patterning of substrates with a drop-on-demand inkjet printer

Abstract

Nowadays, inkjet-printing technology is considered one of the most promising deposition techniques. It allows the highly precise deposition of functional materials to the required place on a substrate and a cost-saving printing process, especially when the drop-on-demand manner is used. Moreover, it represents the perfect technique for the controlled deposition of polymer material, especially for polymer solutions, because of their low viscosity and better process ability. Poly(vinyl alcohol) was chosen because of its versatile application potential; moreover, its compatibility with the human body only increases its usability in bio-applications. The main purpose of this research was to find the appropriate solvent system for poly(vinyl alcohol) and its printability. Solutions with the best properties were printed in pre-defined patterns and personally defined motifs and the printing conditions were optimized in order to obtain patterns with the best possible shape and resolution, which were analysed by optical microscopy.