Conductive thick film compositions compatible to aluminum nitride, alumina and silicon nitride substrates for microelectronic circuit application. The conductive thick film composition includes first copper powder, second copper powder, and glass component. The conductive thick film composition further includes CU.sub.2O, Ag, and at least one metal element selected from Ti, V, Zr, Mn, Cr, Co, and Sn. After firing, the conductive thick film composition exhibit improved sheet resistivity, and improved adhesion with underlying substrate.

The present invention provides a silver paste, containing at least a silver powder, a binder resin, and an organic solvent, in which a content of the silver powder based on the silver paste is 80.00 to 97.00% by mass, D10 is 1.00 to 3.00 μm and D50 is 3.00 to 7.00 μm, where D10 and D50 respectively represent a 10% value and a 50% value of a volume-based cumulative fraction obtained by laser diffraction particle size distribution measurement of the silver powder, the silver powder has a specific surface area of 0.10 to 0.30 m.sup.2/g, the silver powder has a copper content of 10 to 5000 ppm by mass, a content of the binder resin based on the silver powder is 0.430 to 0.750% by mass, and the silver paste has a dry film density of 7.50 g/cm.sup.3 or more.

The present invention relates to a water-based metal fine particle dispersion containing metal fine particles (a) dispersed with a dispersant B, in which the dispersant B contains a vinyl-based polymer (b) containing a constitutional unit derived from a hydrophobic monomer, a constitutional unit derived from a carboxy group-containing monomer and a constitutional unit derived from a polyalkylene glycol segment-containing monomer in an amount of not less than 85% by mass, the fine particles (a) have a cumulant average particle size of 2 to 50 nm, and a concentration of metal in the dispersion is 30 to 80% by mass, and a process for producing the dispersion; a metallic printing ink containing the dispersion; and a metallic printing method using the ink.

A main object of the present invention to provide a coated pigment that is composed of a composite particle comprising a silicon compound coated on the surface of a metal particle, and that can be dispersed with relatively few aggregates. The present invention relates to a coated pigment comprising a composite particle containing a metal particle and one or two or more coating layers on the surface of the metal particle, wherein (1) at least one of the coating layers is a silicon compound-containing layer, and (2) the proportion of aggregates formed by adhesion of at least four of the composite particles with each other is not more than 35% by number.

The present invention relates to an oxidation-stable silver paste comprising silver nanoparticles, and to the use of a paste of this type for the production of decoration elements having a metallic luster on articles having an outer silicate surface, such as porcelain, ceramic, bone china, glass or enamel, to metallic coatings on such substrates and to a process for the production of coatings of this type.

A composition including a first color shifting pigment flake population having a first D50 particle size; and a second color shifting pigment flake population having a second D50 particle size that is different from the first D50 particle size, wherein the first color shifting pigment flake population and the second color shifting pigment flake population have a similar face color and color shift is disclosed. An article including the composition is included. A method of making the composition and a method of making the article are also disclosed.

A method for increasing a detection distance of a surface of an object illuminated by near-IR electromagnetic radiation, including: (a) directing near-IR electromagnetic radiation from a near-IR electromagnetic radiation source towards an object at least partially coated with a near-IR reflective coating that increases a near-IR electromagnetic radiation detection distance by at least 15% as measured at a wavelength in a near-IR range as compared to the same object coated with a color matched coating which absorbs more of the same near-IR radiation, where the color matched coating has a ΔE color matched value of 1.5 or less when compared to the near-IR reflective coating; and (b) detecting reflected near-IR electromagnetic radiation reflected from the near-IR reflective coating. A system for detecting proximity of vehicles is also disclosed.

Disclosed is an acrylic resin and a metal fine particle dispersion including the acrylic resin. The acrylic resin contains a unit of a (meth)acrylate monomer A having a polyalkylene glycol moiety and has at least at one end a carboxylic acid group and/or a carboxylic acid salt group.

A water-based coloring composition contains a metal pigment, water, and an organic solvent. The metal pigment is surface-treated with a first surface treatment agent and a second surface treatment agent, the first surface treatment agent contains a phosphonic-acid-based compound denoted by Formula (1) or a phosphoric-acid-based compound denoted by Formula (2), the second surface treatment agent contains a phosphonic-acid-based compound denoted by Formula (3) or a phosphoric-acid-based compound denoted by Formula (4), and the carbon number of R.sup.1 or R.sup.2 of the first surface treatment agent is higher than the carbon number of R.sup.3 or R.sup.4 of the second surface treatment agent.

Silver powder includes multiple particles 2 containing silver as a main component. A ratio of the number of particles 2 which are flake-like and each of which has a monocrystalline structure and has a largest plane that is a lattice plane (111), to the total number of particles, is not less than 95%. The silver powder is water-dispersible. In the silver powder, a median size D50 is not less than 0.1 m and not greater than 10 m, a standard deviation of particle sizes is not greater than 5 m, an average thickness Tave is not greater than 300 nm, and an aspect ratio (D50/Tave) is not less than 4.