The invention pertains to a printing form and a process for preparing a polymeric printing form from a curable composition that includes a multifunctional urethane in a specified reactive group equivalent weight range, and an initiator. The process includes coating the curable composition onto a supporting substrate, such as a print cylinder, to form a layer, curing the layer with heat or by exposure to actinic radiation, and engraving the resulting cured layer to form at least one printing cell in the cured layer. The process prepares novel polymeric printing forms, particularly novel polymeric gravure printing forms, having a cured polymer-based composition layer that is engravable, resistant to solvent inks, and capable of printing gravure-quality images. The present invention shortens the time to prepare gravure printing cylinders and removes the need for and disposal of toxic heavy metals such as copper and chrome associated with conventional gravure print cylinder preparation.

The invention pertains to a printing form and a process for preparing a polymeric printing form from a curable composition that includes a multifunctional urethane in a specified reactive group equivalent weight range, and an initiator. The process includes coating the curable composition onto a supporting substrate, such as a print cylinder, to form a layer, curing the layer with heat or by exposure to actinic radiation, and engraving the resulting cured layer to form at least one printing cell in the cured layer. The process prepares novel polymeric printing forms, particularly novel polymeric gravure printing forms, having a cured polymer-based composition layer that is engravable, resistant to solvent inks, and capable of printing gravure-quality images. The present invention shortens the time to prepare gravure printing cylinders and removes the need for and disposal of toxic heavy metals such as copper and chrome associated with conventional gravure print cylinder preparation.

A technology for curing a photocurable resin composition by ultraviolet ray/infrared ray hybrid irradiation is provided. An infrared ray irradiation is applied at least one of before or after the application of ultraviolet ray irradiation to a photocurable resin composition, from which volatile components have been removed by a heating process, to have the photocurable resin composition cured.

It becomes possible to relax the ultraviolet ray irradiation conditions for photo curing by applying an infrared ray irradiation as compared with the case in which the infrared ray irradiation is not applied, and, in particular, the scratch resistance characteristics of a cured film are significantly enhanced. Moreover, because of a combination of ultraviolet ray irradiation and infrared ray irradiation, the curing time period of a cured film can be reduced and/or stress relaxation effects can be produced. Besides, it becomes possible to control the reflectance of a cured film by varying an irradiation amount of infrared ray.

A technology for curing a photocurable resin composition by ultraviolet ray/infrared ray hybrid irradiation is provided. An infrared ray irradiation is applied at least one of before or after the application of ultraviolet ray irradiation to a photocurable resin composition, from which volatile components have been removed by a heating process, to have the photocurable resin composition cured.

It becomes possible to relax the ultraviolet ray irradiation conditions for photo curing by applying an infrared ray irradiation as compared with the case in which the infrared ray irradiation is not applied, and, in particular, the scratch resistance characteristics of a cured film are significantly enhanced. Moreover, because of a combination of ultraviolet ray irradiation and infrared ray irradiation, the curing time period of a cured film can be reduced and/or stress relaxation effects can be produced. Besides, it becomes possible to control the reflectance of a cured film by varying an irradiation amount of infrared ray.

A photocurable composition contains at least one ultraviolet absorber represented by Formula (1), and a hard coating agent including the photocurable composition. ##STR00001##
wherein R.sup.1, R.sup.2 and R.sup.3 may be the same as or different from each other and represent a branched or linear alkyl group with 1-20 carbon atoms and is substituted with a (meth)acryloyloxy group; the alkyl group may be substituted with a hydroxyl group, an alkoxy group having 1-8 carbon atoms, or an acyloxy group having 1-8 carbon atoms; the alkyl group may be interrupted by an oxygen atom, a sulfur atom, a carbonyl group, an ester group, an amide group, or an imide group; and R.sup.4, R.sup.5 and R.sup.6 may be the same as or different from each other and represent a hydrogen atom, a halogen atom, a hydroxyl group, an alkyl group having 1-12 carbon atoms, or an alkoxy group having 1-12 carbon atoms.

The invention pertains to a printing form and a process for preparing a polymeric printing form from a curable composition that includes a multifunctional urethane in a specified reactive group equivalent weight range, and an initiator. The process includes coating the curable composition onto a supporting substrate, such as a print cylinder, to form a layer, curing the layer with heat or by exposure to actinic radiation, and engraving the resulting cured layer to form at least one printing cell in the cured layer. The process prepares novel polymeric printing forms, particularly novel polymeric gravure printing forms, having a cured polymer-based composition layer that is engravable, resistant to solvent inks, and capable of printing gravure-quality images. The present invention shortens the time to prepare gravure printing cylinders and removes the need for and disposal of toxic heavy metals such as copper and chrome associated with conventional gravure print cylinder preparation.

The invention pertains to a printing form and a process for preparing a polymeric printing form from a curable composition that includes a multifunctional urethane in a specified reactive group equivalent weight range, and an initiator. The process includes coating the curable composition onto a supporting substrate, such as a print cylinder, to form a layer, curing the layer with heat or by exposure to actinic radiation, and engraving the resulting cured layer to form at least one printing cell in the cured layer. The process prepares novel polymeric printing forms, particularly novel polymeric gravure printing forms, having a cured polymer-based composition layer that is engravable, resistant to solvent inks, and capable of printing gravure-quality images. The present invention shortens the time to prepare gravure printing cylinders and removes the need for and disposal of toxic heavy metals such as copper and chrome associated with conventional gravure print cylinder preparation.

A technology for curing a photocurable resin composition by ultraviolet ray/infrared ray hybrid irradiation is provided. An infrared ray irradiation is applied at least one of before or after the application of ultraviolet ray irradiation to a photocurable resin composition, from which volatile components have been removed by a heating process, to have the photocurable resin composition cured. It becomes possible to relax the ultraviolet ray irradiation conditions for photo curing by applying an infrared ray irradiation as compared with the case in which the infrared ray irradiation is not applied, and, in particular, the scratch resistance characteristics of a cured film are significantly enhanced. Moreover, because of a combination of ultraviolet ray irradiation and infrared ray irradiation, the curing time period of a cured film can be reduced and/or stress relaxation effects can be produced. Besides, it becomes possible to control the reflectance of a cured film by varying an irradiation amount of infrared ray.

A technology for curing a photocurable resin composition by ultraviolet ray/infrared ray hybrid irradiation is provided. An infrared ray irradiation is applied at least one of before or after the application of ultraviolet ray irradiation to a photocurable resin composition, from which volatile components have been removed by a heating process, to have the photocurable resin composition cured. It becomes possible to relax the ultraviolet ray irradiation conditions for photo curing by applying an infrared ray irradiation as compared with the case in which the infrared ray irradiation is not applied, and, in particular, the scratch resistance characteristics of a cured film are significantly enhanced. Moreover, because of a combination of ultraviolet ray irradiation and infrared ray irradiation, the curing time period of a cured film can be reduced and/or stress relaxation effects can be produced. Besides, it becomes possible to control the reflectance of a cured film by varying an irradiation amount of infrared ray.

Provided is a hollow resin particle which includes a shell portion and a hollow portion surrounded by the shell portion, can achieve a low dielectric constant and a low dielectric loss tangent, and can exhibit excellent heat resistance. In addition, there is provided a method for producing such a hollow resin particle. Furthermore, there is provided a use of such a hollow resin particle. The hollow resin particle according to an embodiment of the present invention is a hollow resin particle including a shell portion and a hollow portion surrounded by the shell portion, wherein the shell portion contains a polymer (P) having an ether structure represented by Formula (1) and a phosphate structure.

##STR00001##