Photopolymerization process

Claim 1

IN A PROCESS FOR IMAGE PRODUCTION WHICH COMPRISES (A) EXPOSING UNTIL POLYMERIZATION OCCURS, A PHOTOPOLYMERIZABLE ELEMENT WITH ACTINIC RADIATION, IMAGEWIDE AND UNDER ATMOSPHERIC CONDITIONS, SAID PHOTOPOLYMERIZABLE ELEMENT HAVING A SUPPORT BEARING A PHOTOPOLYMERIZABLE STRATUM WHICH IS SOLID BELOW 40*C. AND THERMALLY TRANSFERABLE BY HAVING A STICK TEMPERATURE ABOVE 40*C. AND BELOW 220*C., SAID STRATUM COMPRISING (1) AN ADDITION POLYMERIZABLE, NON-GASEOUS, ETHYLENICALLY UNSATURATED COMPOUND CONTAINING AT LEAST ONE TERMINAL ETHYLENIC GROUP, HAVING A BOILING POINT ABOVE 100*C. AT NORMAL ATMOSPHERIC PRESSURE AND BEING CAPABLE OF FORMING A HIGH POLYMER BY FREE-RADICAL INITIATED, CHAIN-PROPAGATING ADDITION POLYMERIZATION, (2) FROM 0.001 TO 10 OR MORE PARTS PER HUNDRED PARTS BY WEIGHT OF COMPONENT (1) OF A FREERADICAL GENERATING POLYMERIZATION INITIATOR SYSTEM ACTIVATABLE BY ACTINIC RADIATION AND (B) HEATING SAID EXPOSED ELEMENT TO A TEMPERATURE ABOVE SAID STICK TEMPERATURE AND (C) TRANSFERRING THE UNEXPOSED POLYMER TO A RECEPTOR, THE IMPROVEMENT WHICH COMPRISES PRE-HEATING SAID EXPOSED ELEMENT TO A TEMPERATURE ABOVE 35*C. BUT BELOW THE STICK TEMPERATURE OF THE UNDEREXPOSED AREAS, SAID PROCESS BEING FURTHER CHARACTERIZED IN THAT SAID EXPOSURE STEP (A) MUST BE SUFFICIENT THAT, AFTER SAID PRE-HEATING STEP, THERE MUST BE PROVIDED A DIFFERENCE OF AT LEAST 10*C. IN THE STICK TEMPERATURES OF SAID EXPOSED AND UNEXPOSED AREAS.