Printing pastes containing dispersion dyes for printing articles of macr omolecular substances containing a plurality of carboxylic acid ester groups

Articles of aromatic polyesters, cellulose acetate or cellulose triacetate are printed with a paste containing a dispersed dye and 1-10% based on the weight of finished printing paste of a water-soluble polyvinyl ether. Advantageously polyvinyl methyl ether is used having a K-value of 40-50 although polyvinyl ethers containing low molecular weight hydroxyalkyl radicals may also be used. Copolymer ethers containing small amounts of other monomers especially those which improve water-solubility such as maleic anhydride as well as mixtures of any of the above may be employed. Other usual additives may be present, those specified being British gum, tragacanth, crystal gum, sodium carboxymethyl cellulose, the sodium salt of a dialkylsulphonimide with about 10 carbon atoms in each alkyl radical, sodium chloride, sodium sulphate, salts of ligninsulphonic acid and naphthalene sulphonic acid/formaldehyde condensation products. Printing may be followed by drying with hot air and fixation with hot air or steam at about 190 DEG C. Examples are given employing disperse dyestuffs from the monoazo and anthraquinone series.