Transparent conducting screen-printing inks (Printed Electronics Europe 2005)

Conductive polymers are already used for many years in transparent antistatic applications in and outside Agfa, but there is still no real transparent conductive application of it.

 

Development of PEDOT/PSS coated polyester films, as a substitute for ITO sputtered film in Electroluminescent lamp application was not very successful.

 

How hard we tried; technology push didn't result in application of this film.

 

Agfa developed transparent conductive screen printing inks but even solving customers' main problems in existing applications by making use of these inks didn't bring a lot of business.

 

Chances for commercialisation of ORGACONR inks changed drastically when a real market demand for a specific property of it, that could not be supplied by existing materials, was requested by Telecom industry. The introduction of thin flexible EL keypad backlights for cell phones resulted in a break through of ICP's in transparent conductive applications.

 

Once a product is on the market you can proceed from niche into mainstream applications and you will get return on your investments.

Making use of other specific properties of ORGACONR inks as formability and compatibility to high temperature in-mould technology can lead to applications in much larger markets.

Louis Bollens was born in 1950, graduated in 1973 in Material Sci. (Metallurgic Engineering) at the K.U. Leuven Belgium. He was Assistant at same Department of K.U. Leuven till 1978.

 

Then he joined Agfa-Gevaert Coating Technology Department as Research Engineer.

 

Consecutively he was responsible for the Development of Physical Properties of Photographic Materials, Film Substrates, Auxiliary Layers in the Product Research and Development Labs of Agfa-Gevaert.

He was General Project Leader of Development, Scaling up and Introduction into Manufacturing of Conductive Polymers and Antistatic Coatings.

 

In 1997 he became responsible for the Development of Speciality foils and Components (SFC) as R&D manager. In 1999 he joined the SFC Division as Business Development Manager for commercialisation for ORGACONR Products (Transparent Conductive Films, Printing Inks and Intrinsic Conductive Polymers).

 

From 2004 he joined Graphic Systems Division as Business Manager for Advanced Materials.

Agfa-Gevaert is an independent imaging company, which exists already for more than 100 years. Besides H.Q. in Mortsel Belgium there are WW production units and Sales Organisations (WW 17,000 people of which 4000 are located in Belgium). The global TO in Y2004 was 2.8 B€ (after divestiture of Consumer Imaging Division). The company is specialised in Graphic and Health Care imaging applications. In these markets process flow is changing from photographic film and offset printing to digital imaging and digital printing. Pushed by this market evolution Agfa has to change its technology to IT and digital printing.

 

Agfa has a lot of speciality chemicals, film and coating technology developed during its existence.

 

One of these speciality chemicals is an Intrinsic Conductive Polymer (PEDOT) already used for more than 10 years in antistatic protection of photographic film.

 

Based on this PEDOT new products are developed and commercialised for electronic applications by Advanced Materials Group.

After finishing his M.Sc. Metallurgy (1973) at the Engineering Faculty of K.U. Leuven Belgium he worked as Assistant at the Department Metallurgy. In 1978 he started his career at Agfa Gevaert as Project Leader Coating & Drying Technology. In 1989 he became Manager Physical Properties where he was involved in development, industrial introduction, testing and evaluation of new functional coatings and polymer substrates for photographic films. He was General Project Leader of the development and introduction of the transparent conductive polymer PEDOT. In 1998 he became Business Development Mgr. Specialty films where he was involved in the market introduction of new substrates for digital printing, optical films for displays and PCB.

 

In 2001 he became Business Mgr. ORGACON® products where he was responsible for the world wide marketing of PEDOT dispersions, coating solutions ,coated films and inks. During this period he came in contact with companies active in development of Printed Electronic applications as electroluminescent lighting, flexible and stretchable circuits, displays and solar cells, touchscreens, sensors and actuators.

 

In 2008 he left Agfa-Gevaert and started an independent consulting company Printed-e Consulting specialising in Printed Electronics.