The present invention relates to a printing plate including a first silicone layer and a second silicone layer which have different ink acceptabilities on a support. An object of the present invention is to provide a printing plate that dispenses with a development step and that has excellent image reproducibility, ink repellency, ink acceptability, and printing durability.

The blanket cylinder of a printing press is used to remove oleophobic debris from an imaged dry printing member. Following imaging—e.g., imagewise exposure of the printing member to radiation that ablates the layer below the oleophobic layer, or de-anchors it from the oleophobic layer without ablation—the printing member is brought into rolling contact with the blanket cylinder, and the press is operated “on impression.” This rolling contact may remove not only the oleophobic top layer but ablation debris of the underlying imaging layer as well.

Disclosed herein are methods for an ink-based digital printing system, comprising providing an imaging member a reimageable surface layer disposed on a structural mounting layer, the reimageable surface layer comprising a fluorosilicone elastomer and an infrared-absorbing filler comprising carbon black, and a plurality of surface defects on the reimageable surface layer, wherein the surface defects comprises carbon black exposed through the fluorosilicone elastomer of the reimageable surface layer. The method also comprises applying a coating of rejuvenating oil comprising an amino-functional organopolysiloxane to the reimageable surface layer, whereby at least a portion of the plurality of surface defects are coated by the amino-functional organopolysiloxane, thereby rejuvenating the imaging member.

An object of the present invention is to provide a waterless lithographic printing plate precursor that sufficiently repels ink, which tends to adhere to non-imaging areas, and maintains its repelling effects, and a printing method using a waterless lithographic printing plate obtained from the waterless lithographic printing plate precursor. The following are provided: a lithographic printing plate precursor having at least a heat sensitive layer and an ink repellent layer, wherein the ink repellent layer contains an ink repelling, the ink repellent liquid having a boiling point of not less than 150° C. at 1 atmospheric pressure; and a method of producing a printed material, comprising the step of transferring an ink containing a photosensitive component in an amount from 10% by mass to 50% by mass to a printing substrate using a lithographic printing plate and then irradiating the printing substrate with ultraviolet light, wherein the lithographic printing plate precursor has at least an ink repellent layer on a substrate, an ink repellent liquid contained in the ink repellent layer has a surface tension of 30 mN/m or less.

An object of the invention is to provide a water-based lithographic printing method that is excellent in printing quality and environmental aspects. The invention concerns a method of producing a printed material, including the steps of: allowing a water-based ink to adhere to a surface of a heat sensitive layer of a lithographic printing plate having a surface on which an ink repelling layer and the heat sensitive layer exist; and transferring the adhering water-based ink directly or via a blanket to a printing substrate.

The invention provides a waterless offset lithographic printing plate precursor that is mountable on a magnet type printing cylinder and has high durability and halftone dot reproducibility. The waterless offset lithographic printing plate precursor contains at least a heat-sensitive layer and a silicone rubber layer disposed on a substrate, the substrate being of a ferromagnet material.

The present invention relates to a printing plate including a first silicone layer and a second silicone layer which have different ink acceptabilities on a support. An object of the present invention is to provide a printing plate that dispenses with a development step and that has excellent image reproducibility, ink repellency, ink acceptability, and printing durability.

The present invention provides a lithographic printing plate precursor including at least a heat-sensitive layer and an ink repellent layer disposed on a substrate, the rate of gas generation therefrom being 6.510.sup.5 g/m.sup.3 to 12.510.sup.5 g/m.sup.3 as determined by GC-MS analysis in which the lithographic printing plate precursor is heated in a nitrogen stream at 450 C. for 5 minutes, and also provides a method for producing a lithographic printing plate and a method for producing printed matter therefrom.

Provided is a precursor for lithographic printing having excellent printing durability and ink repellency as well as high reproducibility of the high definition images. The precursor for lithographic printing includes, at least a heat sensitive layer and an ink repellent layer wherein the ink repellent layer has an elastic modulus of the plate surface under the surface load of 14000 N/m2 of at least 25 MPa and up to 35 MPa.

Embodiments of the present invention involve three-layer printing members having a central layer that is non-conductive yet abalatable at commercially realistic fluence levels. In various embodiments, the central layer is polymeric with a dispersion of nonconductive carbon black particles therein at a loading level sufficient to provide at least partial layer ablatability and water compatibility of the resulting ablation debris.