Patent ID: 8501053

Claim:
A photoactive color changing ink, coating, plastic, or printed article comprising: A) an organic polymer and B) from about 2 to about 75 weight %, based on the total weight of components A and B, of a multi-color photoactive color changing composition comprising, a) from 1 to 5 parts by weight of one or more photochromic material, an organic photochromic dye, wherein the photochromic material is an organic spiropyran or spirooxazine photochromic dye of the formulae: b) from 1 to 20 parts by weight of one or more phenolic photolatent acid, wherein the phenolic photolatent acid b) is a hindered phenol selected from the group consisting of alkylated monophenols, alkylthiomethylphenols, hydroquinones, alkylated hydroquinones, tocopherols, alkylidenebisphenols, hydroxybenzylated malonates, aromatic hydroxybenzyl compounds, esters of β-(3,5-di-tert-butyl-4-hydroxyphenyl)propionic acid, esters of β-(5-tert-butyl-4-hydroxy-3-methylphenyl)propionic acid, esters of β-(3,5-dicyclohexyl-4-hydroxyphenyl)propionic acid, esters of 3,5-di-tert-butyl-4-hydroxyphenyl acetic acid, and amides of β-(3,5-di-tert-butyl-4-hydroxyphenyl)propionic acid, and c) from 1 to 10 parts by weight of one or more acid sensitive chromogenic color former of the formula I wherein R 1 and R 2 independently of each other are C 6 -C 14 aryl or C 5 -C 14 heteroaryl, wherein the aryl or heteroaryl optionally are substituted by one or more C 1 -C 12 alkyl, C 1 -C 12 alkoxy, C 1 -C 12 dialkylamino, C 1 -C 12 alkylamino, C 6 -C 14 aryl, C 6 -C 14 arylamino, di(C 1 -C 14 aryl)amino or halogen; or R 1 and R 2 together form a ring or ring system, optionally comprising one or more heteroatoms selected from the group consisting of O, S and N; m is 0 and n is 1; X is CH or N; E denotes a C 6 -C 14 aryl or C 5 -C 14 heteroaryl ring or ring system, wherein the C 6 -C 14 aryl or C 5 -C 14 heteraryl ring or ring system optionally is substituted by one or more C 1 -C 12 alkyl, C 1 -C 12 alkoxy C 1 -C 12 alkylamino, C 1 -C 12 dialkylamino, NO 2 , CN or halogen, wherein the parts by weight of a), b) and c) are based on the total weight of A) and B); and wherein, a weight ratio of color former component c) to photolatent acid component b) ranges from 1:10 to 2:1, and a ratio of component a) to the combined weight of components b) and c) is from 1:20 to 2:1.