JP2002099191A - Cleaning device, and method and device for image formation using the same - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a cleaning device which can maintain cleaning performance for a long period and form an excellent electrophotographic image free of an image defect when an organic photoreceptor and polymer toner are used, and a method and a device for image formation using the cleaning device. SOLUTION: The cleaning device has a cleaning blade 126A and a metal thin plate member 126B, and the cleaning blade is brought into contact with the metal thin plate member on the surface on the opposite side from a surface abutting against the organic photoreceptor 121; and a step is formed between the tip of the cleaning blade and the tip of the metal thin plate member and farther away from the metal-thin plate member than from the organic photoreceptor.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a cleaning device used for an electrophotographic copying machine, a printer, and the like, and an image forming method and an image forming apparatus using the cleaning device.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, an organic photoconductor containing an organic photoconductive substance (hereinafter simply referred to as a photoconductor) is most widely used as an image carrier used in an electrophotographic image forming apparatus. Organic photoreceptors are advantageous over other photoreceptors in that materials that can be used for various exposure light sources from visible light to infrared light can be easily developed, materials that do not pollute the environment can be selected, and manufacturing costs are low. However, the drawback is that the mechanical strength is weak, and the photoreceptor surface is liable to be deteriorated or damaged when copying or printing a large number of sheets.

Further, since the organic photoreceptor has a large contact energy with a toner for visualizing an electrostatic latent image formed on the photoreceptor, it is necessary to transfer the toner image onto a transfer material in a transfer step. It is difficult to remove the residual toner remaining on the body, and it tends to cause various problems in cleaning the surface of the photoreceptor.

[0004] On the other hand, in the electrophotographic image forming method, digital image formation has become mainstream due to recent advances in digital technology. Digital image forming methods are based on visualizing small dot images of one pixel, such as 400 dpi (dots per inch), and high image quality technology that faithfully reproduces these small dot images is required. Have been.

On the other hand, with respect to the deterioration of the surface of the organic photosensitive member due to cleaning, various techniques for increasing the mechanical strength of the surface of the photosensitive member have been proposed. As a technique for improving the surface wear of an organic photoreceptor, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 9-258460 proposes a photoreceptor having a polycarbonate resin having a strong hardness in a surface layer. Unlike a conventional organic photoreceptor, the photoreceptor having the polycarbonate resin layer has a small surface abrasion due to cleaning, and therefore has a large frictional force with a cleaning blade (hereinafter simply referred to as a blade). Cleaning defects such as blade turn-up and toner slippage caused by vibration of the blade are likely to occur.

Another technique for improving image quality is a technique relating to a toner manufacturing technique. Until now, so-called pulverized toner obtained by mixing a binder resin and a pigment, kneading and then pulverizing and then classifying a toner powder in a classification step has been mainly used for forming an electrophotographic image. The toner obtained via the above method has a limit in making the particle size distribution of the toner particles uniform, and the particle size distribution and the shape of the toner particles are insufficiently uniform. It is difficult to achieve a sufficiently high image quality in an electrophotographic image using such a pulverized toner.

In recent years, an electrophotographic developer using a polymerized toner or an image forming method has been proposed as a means for achieving a uniform particle size distribution and shape of toner particles.
Since the polymerized toner is manufactured by uniformly dispersing the raw material monomers in an aqueous system and then polymerizing the same, a toner having a uniform particle size distribution and shape of the toner can be obtained.

Here, when the polymerized toner is used in an image forming apparatus using an organic photoreceptor, a new technical problem has arisen. That is, as described above, the polymerized toner is formed in a substantially spherical shape because the toner shape is formed during the polymerization process of the monomer. As is well known, the spherical residual toner on the organic photoreceptor easily causes cleaning failure. In particular, the surface of an organic photoreceptor is easily worn, and if toner adheres to the unevenness of the surface caused by the abrasion, a minute amount of toner that does not occur in an image is generated for a long period of time. (A charging wire or a charging roller) is contaminated, and as a result, image unevenness occurs in a halftone image or the like.

Various proposals have been made to improve cleaning defects such as blade turn-up and toner slippage which occur in the above-described image forming method using polymerized toner. Above all, proposals have been made to change the shape of the polymerized toner from a spherical shape to an elliptical shape, and proposals to make the surface shape of the polymerized toner uneven have been made. However, even these proposals have not been sufficient solutions.

[0010]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to solve the above-mentioned problems, and to use an organic photoreceptor and a polymerized toner.
An object of the present invention is to provide a cleaning device that can maintain a cleaning performance for a long period of time and can form a favorable electrophotographic image without image defects, and an image forming method and an image forming apparatus using the cleaning device.

[0011]

The inventors of the present invention have conducted various studies to solve the above-mentioned problems, and as a result, by attaching a thin metal plate member to the cleaning blade, it has been found that good cleaning performance can be ensured and that the cleaning blade can be used. Stable vibration can be maintained, and the above problem can be solved. That is, it has been found that the object of the present invention is achieved by adopting one of the following constitutions.

1. The electrostatic latent image formed on the organic photoreceptor is developed with a developer containing toner, and the toner image visualized by the development is transferred from the organic photoreceptor to a transfer material. In a cleaning device having a cleaning blade for removing residual toner, the cleaning device has a cleaning blade and a metal sheet member, and the cleaning blade is connected to the metal sheet member on a surface opposite to a surface in contact with the organic photoconductor. The cleaning blade and the metal sheet member are provided with a step, and the step is such that the metal sheet member is located farther from the organic photoreceptor. Cleaning device.

2. The electrostatic latent image formed on the organic photoreceptor is developed with a developer containing toner, and the toner image visualized by the development is transferred from the organic photoreceptor to a transfer material. In a cleaning device having a cleaning blade for removing residual toner, the cleaning device has a cleaning blade and a metal sheet member, and the cleaning blade is connected to the metal sheet member on a surface opposite to a surface in contact with the organic photoconductor. A cleaning device, which is in close contact with the cleaning blade and is designed so that the free length a of the cleaning blade and the free length b of the thin metal plate member satisfy Expression 1.

Equation 1 0.1 <b / a ≦ 0.9 3. The electrostatic latent image formed on the organic photoreceptor is developed with a developer containing toner, and the toner image visualized by the development is transferred from the organic photoreceptor to a transfer material. In a cleaning device having a cleaning blade for removing residual toner, the cleaning device has a cleaning blade and a metal sheet member, and the cleaning blade is connected to the metal sheet member on a surface opposite to a surface in contact with the organic photoconductor. A cleaning device, which is in close contact with the cleaning device, and is designed so that the thickness t ₁ of the cleaning blade and the thickness t ₂ of the sheet metal member satisfy Expression 2.

Equation 2 1/200 ≦ t ₂ / t ₁ ≦ 1 4. The electrostatic latent image formed on the organic photoreceptor is developed with a developer containing toner, and the toner image visualized by the development is transferred from the organic photoreceptor to a transfer material. In a cleaning device having a cleaning blade for removing residual toner, the cleaning device has a cleaning blade and a metal sheet member, and the cleaning blade is connected to the metal sheet member on a surface opposite to a surface in contact with the organic photoconductor. A cleaning device, which is in close contact with the metal sheet member and is designed so that the Brinell hardness HB of the thin metal plate member satisfies Expression 3.

Formula 3 50 ≦ HB ≦ 450 (HB: N / mm ² ) The electrostatic latent image formed on the organic photoreceptor is developed with a developer containing toner, and the toner image visualized by the development is transferred from the organic photoreceptor to a transfer material. In a cleaning device having a cleaning blade for removing residual toner, the cleaning device has a cleaning blade and a metal sheet member, and the cleaning blade is connected to the metal sheet member on a surface opposite to a surface in contact with the organic photoconductor. A cleaning apparatus, which is in close contact with the cleaning blade and is designed so that the elastic modulus D ₁ of the cleaning blade and the elastic modulus D ₂ of the thin metal plate member satisfy Expression 4.

Equation 4 14 ≦ D ₂ / D ₁ ≦ 28000 The electrostatic latent image formed on the organic photoreceptor is developed with a developer containing toner, and the toner image visualized by the development is transferred from the organic photoreceptor to a transfer material. In a cleaning device having a cleaning blade for removing residual toner, the cleaning device has a cleaning blade and a metal sheet member, and the cleaning blade is connected to the metal sheet member on a surface opposite to a surface in contact with the organic photoconductor. A step is provided between the tip of the cleaning blade and the tip of the sheet metal member, and the step is such that the sheet metal member is located farther from the organic photoreceptor; And the metal sheet member is designed so as to satisfy the above-mentioned equations (1) to (4).

[7] The electrostatic latent image formed on the organic photoreceptor is developed with a developer containing toner, and the toner image visualized by the development is transferred from the organic photoreceptor to a transfer material. An image forming method, wherein the remaining toner is removed by the cleaning device according to any one of the above items 1 to 6.

8. The electrostatic latent image formed on the organic photoreceptor is developed with a developer containing toner, and the toner image visualized by the development is transferred from the organic photoreceptor to a transfer material. An image forming apparatus, wherein the remaining toner is removed by the cleaning device according to any one of the above items 1 to 6.

9. 9. The toner according to the item 8, wherein the toner has a coefficient of variation of a shape coefficient of toner particles of 16% or less and a number variation coefficient of 27% or less in a number particle size distribution of the toner particles. Image forming device.

10. The toner has a shape factor of 1.
9. The image forming apparatus as described in 8 above, wherein a toner containing 65% by number or more of toner particles in a range of 2 to 1.6 is used.

11. 9. The image forming apparatus according to the item 8, wherein a toner containing 50% by number or more of toner particles having no corners is used as the toner.

12. The organic photoreceptor has a structure in which a photosensitive layer is provided on a conductive support, and the surface layer of the photosensitive layer contains polycarbonate having an average molecular weight of 40,000 to 25,000. The image forming apparatus according to any one of claims 8 to 11.

The present invention will be described in more detail. By adopting the above-described configuration of the present invention, the present inventors can prevent the toner remaining on the organic photoreceptor from turning up the blade or slipping off the toner without excessively increasing the frictional force generated between the organic photoreceptor and the cleaning blade. It has been found that generation of toner can be prevented, toner remaining on the organic photoreceptor can be effectively removed, and good and stable images can be obtained over a long period of time. Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail.

FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram showing the overall configuration of the image forming apparatus of the present invention. The image forming apparatus shown in FIG.
The image forming apparatus is a digital image forming apparatus, and includes an image reading unit A, an image processing unit B (not shown), an image forming unit C, and a transfer paper transport unit D as a transfer paper transport unit.

An automatic document feeder for automatically transporting a document is provided above the image reading section A.
The document placed on the document 11 is separated and conveyed one by one by a document conveying roller 112, and an image is read at a reading position 113a. The document for which reading of the document has been completed is discharged onto the document discharge tray 114 by the document conveying roller 112.

On the other hand, the image of the original placed on the platen glass 113 is read in a V-shape by a reading operation at a speed v of a first mirror unit 115 comprising an illumination lamp and a first mirror constituting a scanning optical system. Reading is performed by moving the second mirror unit 116 including the second and third mirrors located in the same direction at the speed v / 2.

The read image is formed on a light receiving surface of an image sensor CCD, which is a line sensor, through a projection lens 117. The linear optical image formed on the image pickup device CCD is sequentially subjected to A / D conversion after being photoelectrically converted into an electric signal (luminance signal), and subjected to processing such as density conversion and filter processing in an image processing unit B. After that, the image data is temporarily stored in the memory.

In the image forming unit C, as an image forming unit, a drum-shaped photosensitive member (hereinafter, also referred to as a photosensitive drum) 121 serving as an image carrier, a charger 122 serving as a charging unit, and a developing unit are provided on the outer periphery thereof. Developing device 123, a transfer device 124 as a transfer unit, a separator 125 as a separation unit,
A cleaning device 126 and a PCL (precharge lamp) 127 are arranged in the order of operation. Photoconductor 12
Numeral 1 is a photoconductive compound formed on a drum substrate by coating. For example, an organic photoreceptor (OPC) is preferably used, and is driven and rotated clockwise in the drawing.

After the rotating photosensitive member 121 is uniformly charged by the charger 122, the exposure optical system 130 performs image exposure based on the image signal called from the memory of the image processing section B. Exposure optical system 1 as writing means
Reference numeral 30 denotes a laser diode (not shown) as a light source,
An optical path is bent by a reflection mirror 132 through a rotating polygon mirror 131, an fθ lens (no sign), and a cylindrical lens (no sign) to perform main scanning. Image exposure is performed on the photoconductor 121 at the position of Ao. Then, a latent image is formed by rotation (sub-scan) of the photoconductor 121. In one example of the present embodiment, a character portion is exposed to form a latent image.

The latent image on the photosensitive member 121 is subjected to reversal development by the developing device 123, and a visible toner image is formed on the surface of the photosensitive member 121. In the transfer paper transport section D, a paper feed unit 141 (A) as a transfer paper storage unit in which transfer papers P of different sizes are stored below the image forming unit;
141 (B) and 141 (C) are provided, and a manual paper feed unit 142 for performing manual paper feed is provided on the side. Transfer paper P selected from any of them is guided by guide rollers 143. Paper is fed along the conveyance path 140,
The transfer sheet P is temporarily stopped by a pair of registration rollers 144 for correcting the inclination and deviation of the transfer sheet to be fed, and then re-feeded.
And the photosensitive member 121 is guided by the transfer entry guide plate 146.
The upper toner image is transferred to the transfer sheet P by the transfer unit 124 at the transfer position Bo, and then the charge is removed by the separator 125, the transfer sheet P is separated from the surface of the photoconductor 121, and is transferred to the fixing unit 150 by the transfer device 145. You.

The fixing device 150 has a fixing roller 151 and a pressure roller 152, and transfers the transfer paper P to the fixing roller 15.
1 and the pressure roller 152,
The toner is fused by heating and pressing. The transfer paper P on which the toner image has been fixed is discharged onto the discharge tray 164.

FIG. 2 is a configuration diagram of a cleaning device using the cleaning blade of the present invention.

In the cleaning device, a cleaning blade 126A and a thin metal plate member 126B are attached to a support 191. Rubber elastic material is used as the material of the cleaning blade, and the material is urethane rubber, silicon rubber, fluorine rubber, chloropyrene rubber,
Butadiene rubber and the like are known, and among these, urethane rubber is particularly preferred in that it has excellent wear characteristics as compared with other rubbers. For example, urethane rubber obtained by reacting and curing a polycaprolactone ester and a polyisocyanate described in JP-A-59-30574 is preferable.

Further, the metal sheet member of the present invention has a thickness of 0.3 mm.
It is a metal plate having a thickness of from 01 to 2 mm, particularly preferably from 0.02 to 0.5 mm, and means a member having a shape that can be bonded to a cleaning blade. As the material of the metal sheet, any metal material can be used as long as it is a flexible metal sheet.
System, SUS400 stainless steel plate, aluminum plate,
A phosphor bronze plate or the like is used.

In the present invention, the metal sheet member 126
When B and the cleaning blade 126A are fixed to the support member 191, the metal thin plate member is arranged so that the cleaning blade is brought into close contact with the photosensitive member on the surface opposite to the contact surface, and is attached and held on the support member. At this time, a portion where the cleaning blade and the metal sheet member are in contact has a mechanism capable of reliably transmitting and absorbing the vibration generated by the blade to the metal sheet member. By employing such a holding method, the vibration of the cleaning blade can be effectively absorbed by the thin metal plate member, and the vibration of the blade can be stabilized.

The conditions for properly pressing the cleaning blade against the surface of the photoreceptor are determined by a delicate balance of various characteristics, and are quite narrow. It depends on the characteristics such as the thickness of the cleaning blade and the setting requires accuracy. However, the thickness of the cleaning blade cannot be always set under proper conditions because the thickness of the cleaning blade may vary at the time of manufacture. It may deviate from the proper area. In particular, when combined with an organic photosensitive layer using a high molecular weight binder resin, if it is out of an appropriate region, it causes blade turning or toner slip through.

Therefore, the present invention is also an effective means for canceling the variation in the characteristics of the cleaning blade and the like, and even if the thickness of the cleaning blade varies, the vibration of the blade caused by the thin metal plate member can be effectively prevented. By the absorption, the setting condition of the cleaning blade on the photoreceptor surface can be stably maintained in an appropriate region.

In the present invention, it is preferable that the tip of the cleaning blade that is pressed against the surface of the photoconductor is pressed against the photoconductor in a direction opposite to the rotating direction of the photoconductor (counter direction). As shown in FIG. 2, it is preferable that the distal end portion of the cleaning blade forms a pressing surface when pressed against the photosensitive member.

The positional relationship between the cleaning blade of the present invention and the metal sheet member is such that a step is provided between both ends as shown in FIG. Further, the free length of the sheet metal member is shorter than the free length of the cleaning blade. With such a configuration, the vibration of the cleaning blade is absorbed by the thin metal plate member without hindering the deformation at the tip portion of the cleaning blade (the deformation caused by pressing against the photoconductor). Can be stabilized.

The ratio of the free length of the cleaning blade and the free length of the sheet metal member in the cleaning device of the present invention satisfies Equation 1 where a is the free length of the cleaning blade and b is the free length of the thin sheet member as shown in FIG. Designed to be. The free length is the length of the cleaning blade, the metal sheet member, and the portion not held by each support member. As shown in FIG. 2, the cleaning blade before deformation and the metal sheet member from the end portion B of the support member 191. It shows the length to the tip point of each member.

Equation 1 0.1 <b / a ≦ 0.9 b / a falls within the above range, that is, when b / a exceeds 0.1 and 0.
By designing it to be 9 or less, without damaging the deformation at the tip of the cleaning blade (deformation due to pressing against the photoreceptor), the vibration of the cleaning blade is absorbed by the thin metal plate member, and the blade is turned up. It has been found that stable cleaning performance without causing toner or toner slip-through can be realized. Furthermore, in the present invention, 0.1.
The range of 3 to 0.7 is more preferable. On the other hand, b / a is 0.
If it is less than 1, toner slip-through tends to occur, and b / a
Is greater than 0.9, blade turning is likely to occur.

The ratio of the thickness of the cleaning device the cleaning blade and the sheet metal member of the present invention t ₁ the thickness of the cleaning blade as shown in Figure 2, when the thickness of the sheet metal member and t _2, wherein 2 is designed.

Equation 2 1/200 ≦ t ₂ / t ₁ ≦ 1 t ₂ / t ₁ falls within the above range, that is, the value of t ₂ / t ₁ is 1/200.
By designing to be 1, the cleaning blade is stably held by the support member, and the vibration of the cleaning blade is absorbed by the thin metal plate member, and stable cleaning performance without turning over the blade or slipping through the toner is realized. I found what I could do. Further, t ₂
/ Value of t ₁ is in the range of 1 / 100-1 / 4 is preferred. On the other hand, if t ₂ / t ₁ is less than 1/200, toner slip through tends to occur, and if t ₂ / t ₁ is greater than 1, blade turn-up tends to occur.

In the present invention, preferable values of the contact load P and the contact angle θ of the cleaning blade to the photoreceptor are P = 5 to 40 N / m and θ = 5 to 35 °.

The contact load P is a normal direction vector value of the pressing force P 'when the blade 126A is brought into contact with the photosensitive drum 121.

The contact angle θ represents the angle between the tangent line X at the contact point A of the photosensitive member and the blade before deformation (indicated by a dotted line in the drawing). 172 is a fixing screw for fixing the support member, and 193 is a load spring.

The cleaning blade free length a represents the length of the tip of the blade before deformation from the position of the end B of the support member 191 as shown in FIG. A preferred value of the free length is a = 6 to 15 mm. The thickness of the cleaning blade is preferably 0.5 to 10 mm.
Here, the thickness of the cleaning blade and the thin metal plate member of the present invention indicates a direction perpendicular to the bonding surface of the support 191 as shown in FIG.

The cleaning blade used in the present invention is preferably a rubber elastic body. By simultaneously controlling the physical properties of the cleaning blade and the thin metal plate member,
The cleaning conditions of the present invention can be better adjusted, and the cleaning properties of the toner can be more effectively controlled.

The cleaning apparatus of the present invention is designed so that the Brinell hardness HB of the sheet metal member satisfies the equation (3).

Equation 3 50 ≦ HB ≦ 450 (HB: N / mm ² ) By designing HB to be in the above range, that is, the value of HB is set to 50 to 450, the metal sheet member becomes stable to the supporting member. It has been found that the vibration of the cleaning blade can be absorbed by the thin metal plate member, and stable cleaning performance without blade turning or toner slip-through can be realized. Furthermore, the value of HB is 70-400.
Is particularly preferred. On the other hand, when HB is less than 50, toner slip-through tends to occur, and when HB exceeds 450, blade turn-up tends to occur.

Here, the Brinell hardness HB of the present invention is JI
4 shows the Brinell hardness measured by the Brinell hardness test method of SZ2243. Using an indenter of a hard sphere or a cemented carbide sphere measured by the Brinell hardness test method, the hardness is obtained from the test load and the hardness obtained from the surface area of the dent when a spherical dent is formed on the test surface, and is expressed by the following formula. expressed.

HB = 0.102F / S = 0.102 × 2F / πD (D− (D ² −d ² ) ^1/2 ) where HB is the Brinell hardness value F: Test load (N) S: depression of the surface area (mm ²⁾ D: indenter diameter (mm) d: modulus D ₂ of the recess diameter (mm) cleaning device of the present invention is a cleaning blade of an elastic modulus D ₁ and the sheet metal member satisfies equation 4 Designed to be.

Equation 4 14 ≦ D ₂ / D ₁ ≦ 28000 That is, D ₂ / D ₁ is within the above range, that is, the value of D ₂ / D ₁ is 14
By designing to be 28,000, the cleaning blade is stably held by the support member, and the vibration of the cleaning blade is absorbed by the thin metal plate member, realizing stable cleaning performance without blade turning and toner slip-through. I found what I could do. Further, the value of D ₂ / D ₁ is particularly preferably in the range of 20 to 1,000. On the other hand, if D ₂ / D ₁ is less than 14, toner slip-through tends to occur, and if D ₂ / D ₁ is greater than 28000, blade turn-up tends to occur.

Here, the elastic modulus D ₁ of the cleaning blade
Indicates the tensile modulus measured by the plastic tensile test method of JIS K7113. That is, the ratio between the tensile stress and the strain corresponding to the tensile stress of the plastic test piece within the limit of tensile proportionality, and when the linear portion is included in the tensile stress-strain curve, the inclination is determined from the slope of the close contact at the deformation start point of the test piece.

The elastic modulus D ₁ of the cleaning blade is calculated by the following equation using the linear portion of the tensile stress-strain curve.

D = Δσ / Δε D: N / mm ² D (elastic modulus): N / mm ² Δσ: difference in stress due to the original average cross-sectional area between two points on a straight line Δε: strain between the same two points On the other hand, the elastic modulus D ₂ of the metal sheet member indicates the proof stress obtained by the offset method measured by the metal material tensile test method of JISZ2241, and is calculated by the following equation.

D ₂ = Fε / A ₀ Here, D ₂ is the proof stress calculated by the offset method. Fε: A relation diagram between the load and the amount of elongation is obtained by using an extensometer, and the specified permanent elongation (ε%: A parallel line is drawn from the point on the elongation axis corresponding to 0.2% in the present invention to a straight line portion at the beginning of the test, and the load (N) at the point where this line intersects with the diagram A ₀ : original cross-sectional area of the sample (Mm ² ) As another physical property of the cleaning blade, the hardness is preferably in a range of 55 to 90 in JISA hardness at 25 ± 5 ° C. If it is smaller than 55, the cleaning performance tends to be reduced, and if it is larger than 90, the blade is easily inverted. The rebound resilience of the cleaning blade is preferably in the range of 25 to 80. If the rebound resilience exceeds 80, reversal of the blade tends to occur, and if it is less than 25, the cleaning performance deteriorates. Young's modulus is 294-588
Those in the range of N / cm ² are preferred.

The cleaning blade may be sprayed with a fluorine-based lubricant on the edge of the cleaning blade which comes into contact with the photoreceptor, if necessary. It is preferable to apply a dispersion in which a fluorine-based polymer and a fluorine-based resin powder are dispersed in a fluorine-based solvent.

Next, the organic photoreceptor of the present invention will be described. In the present invention, an organic electrophotographic photoreceptor (organic photoreceptor) is an electrophotography constituted by providing an organic compound with at least one of a charge generation function and a charge transport function essential for the configuration of the electrophotographic photoreceptor. Photoreceptor means all known organic electrophotographic photoreceptors such as a photoreceptor composed of a known organic charge generating substance or organic charge transporting substance, and a photoreceptor having a charge generating function and a charge transporting function composed of a polymer complex. contains.

Hereinafter, the constitution of the organic photoreceptor used in the present invention will be described. Conductive Support As the conductive support used in the photoreceptor of the present invention, any of a sheet shape and a cylindrical shape may be used, but in order to design the image forming apparatus compactly, the cylindrical conductive support is used. Is more preferred.

The cylindrical conductive support of the present invention means a cylindrical support necessary for forming an image endlessly by rotating, and has a straightness of 0.1 mm or less and a runout of 0.1 mm or less. Conductive supports in the range are preferred. Exceeding the ranges of straightness and runout makes it difficult to form a good image.

As the conductive material, a metal drum of aluminum, nickel, or the like, a plastic drum on which aluminum, tin oxide, indium oxide, or the like is deposited, or a paper / plastic drum coated with a conductive substance can be used. The conductive support preferably has a specific resistance of 103 Ωcm or less at room temperature.

The conductive support used in the present invention may have a surface on which a sealed alumite film is formed. The alumite treatment is usually performed in an acidic bath such as chromic acid, sulfuric acid, oxalic acid, phosphoric acid, boric acid, and sulfamic acid, but anodizing treatment in sulfuric acid gives the most preferable result. In the case of the anodic oxidation treatment in sulfuric acid, the sulfuric acid concentration is preferably 100 to 200 g / L, the aluminum ion concentration is 1 to 10 g / L, the liquid temperature is about 20 ° C., and the applied voltage is preferably about 20 V. It is not limited. The average thickness of the anodic oxide coating is usually 2
It is preferably 0 μm or less, particularly preferably 10 μm or less.

Intermediate Layer In the present invention, an intermediate layer having a barrier function may be provided between the conductive support and the photosensitive layer.

In the present invention, in order to improve the adhesiveness between the conductive support and the photosensitive layer or to prevent charge injection from the support, an intermediate layer (below the lower layer) is provided between the support and the photosensitive layer. (Including a subbing layer). Examples of the material for the intermediate layer include polyamide resins, vinyl chloride resins, vinyl acetate resins, and copolymer resins containing two or more of the repeating units of these resins. Among these undercoating resins, a polyamide resin is preferable as a resin capable of reducing an increase in residual potential due to repeated use. The thickness of the intermediate layer using these resins is 0.01 to 0.5 μm.
Is preferred.

The intermediate layer most preferably used in the present invention is an intermediate layer using a curable metal resin obtained by thermosetting an organic metal compound such as a silane coupling agent and a titanium coupling agent. The thickness of the intermediate layer using a curable metal resin is preferably 0.1 to 2 μm.

Photosensitive Layer The photosensitive layer of the photoreceptor of the present invention may have a single-layer structure in which a charge generation function and a charge transport function are provided on the intermediate layer in one layer. It is preferable to adopt a configuration in which the functions of the layers are separated into a charge generation layer (CGL) and a charge transport layer (CTL). By adopting a configuration in which functions are separated, an increase in residual potential due to repeated use can be controlled to be small, and other electrophotographic characteristics can be easily controlled according to the purpose. In the photoreceptor for negative charging, the charge generation layer (C
GL) and a charge transport layer (CTL) thereon. In the case of a positively charged photoreceptor, the order of the layer configuration is opposite to that of the negatively charged photoreceptor. The most preferred photosensitive layer structure of the present invention is a negatively charged photosensitive member having the function-separated structure.

The structure of the photosensitive layer of the function-separated negatively charged photosensitive member will be described below. Charge generation layer Charge generation layer: The charge generation layer contains a charge generation material (CGM). As other substances, a binder resin and other additives may be contained as necessary.

As the charge generating material (CGM), a known charge generating material (CGM) can be used. For example, phthalocyanine pigments, azo pigments, perylene pigments, azurenium pigments, and the like can be used. Among them, CGM that can minimize the increase in residual potential due to repeated use
Has a steric and potential structure capable of forming a stable aggregation structure among a plurality of molecules, and specifically includes CGM of a phthalocyanine pigment and a perylene pigment having a specific crystal structure. For example, Bragg angle 2θ for Cu-Kα ray
CGM such as titanyl phthalocyanine having a maximum peak at 27.2 ° and benzimidazole perylene having a maximum peak at 2θ of 12.4 have almost no deterioration due to repeated use, and the residual potential increase can be reduced.

When a binder is used as a dispersion medium of CGM in the charge generation layer, a known resin can be used as the binder, but the most preferred resin is a formal resin, a butyral resin, a silicone resin, a silicone-modified butyral resin, a phenoxy resin. Resins. The ratio between the binder resin and the charge generating substance is preferably from 20 to 600 parts by mass per 100 parts by mass of the binder resin. By using these resins, the increase in residual potential due to repeated use can be minimized. The thickness of the charge generation layer is preferably from 0.01 μm to 2 μm.

Charge transport layer Charge transport layer: The charge transport layer contains a charge transport material (CTM) and a binder resin for dispersing the CTM to form a film.
As other substances, additives such as antioxidants may be contained as necessary.

As the charge transport material (CTM), a known charge transport material (CTM) can be used. For example, triphenylamine derivatives, hydrazone compounds, styryl compounds, benzidine compounds, butadiene compounds and the like can be used. These charge transport materials are usually dissolved in a suitable binder resin to form a layer. Among these, the CTM that can minimize the increase in residual potential due to repeated use has a high mobility and a characteristic in which the ionization potential difference with the CGM to be combined is 0.5 (eV) or less, and is preferably 0. .25 (eV) or less.

The ionization potential of CGM and CTM is measured with a surface analyzer AC-1 (manufactured by Riken Keiki Co., Ltd.).

Examples of the resin used for the charge transport layer (CTL) include polystyrene, acrylic resin, methacrylic resin, vinyl chloride resin, vinyl acetate resin, polyvinyl butyral resin, epoxy resin, polyurethane resin, phenol resin, polyester resin, and alkyd. Resins, polycarbonate resins, silicone resins, melamine resins, and copolymer resins containing two or more of the repeating units of these resins. In addition to these insulating resins, poly-
A high-molecular organic semiconductor such as N-vinylcarbazole may be used.

The most preferred binder for these CTLs is a polycarbonate resin. Polycarbonate resins are most preferred for improving the dispersibility and electrophotographic properties of CTM. In the case of a photoreceptor in which the charge transport layer is a surface layer, a polycarbonate which is resistant to mechanical abrasion is preferred, and a polycarbonate having an average molecular weight of 40,000 to 25,000 is preferred. Here, the average molecular weight may be any of a number average molecular weight, a weight average molecular weight, and a viscosity average molecular weight. The ratio of the binder resin to the charge transporting material is preferably from 10 to 200 parts by mass per 100 parts by mass of the binder resin. The thickness of the charge transport layer is preferably from 10 to 40 μm.

Protective Layer Various resin layers can be provided as a protective layer of the photoreceptor. In particular, by providing a crosslinked resin layer, the organic photoreceptor of the present invention having high mechanical strength can be obtained.

The solvent or dispersion medium used for forming the intermediate layer, photosensitive layer, protective layer, etc. of the present invention includes n-butylamine, diethylamine, ethylenediamine, isopropanolamine, triethanolamine, triethylenediamine, N, N- Dimethylformamide, acetone, methyl ethyl ketone, methyl isopropyl ketone, cyclohexanone, benzene, toluene, xylene, chloroform, dichloromethane, 1,2-dichloroethane, 1,
2-dichloropropane, 1,1,2-trichloroethane, 1,1,1-trichloroethane, trichloroethylene, tetrachloroethane, tetrahydrofuran, dioxolan, dioxane, methanol, ethanol, butanol, isopropanol, ethyl acetate, butyl acetate, dimethyl sulfoxide, methyl Cellosolve and the like. Although the present invention is not limited to these, dichloromethane, 1,2-dichloroethane, methyl ethyl ketone and the like are preferably used. In addition, these solvents can be used alone or as a mixed solvent of two or more kinds.

Next, as a coating method for producing the organic electrophotographic photoreceptor of the present invention, a coating method such as dip coating, spray coating, and circular amount control type coating is used.
The coating process on the upper layer side of the photosensitive layer is performed by spray coating or by a circular amount control type (a typical example is a circular slide hopper type) in order to minimize dissolution of the lower layer film and achieve uniform coating. It is preferable to use It is most preferable that the protective layer of the present invention uses the above-mentioned circular amount control type coating method. The circular amount control type coating is described in detail in, for example, JP-A-58-189061.

Next, the toner used in the present invention will be described. The toner of the present invention is preferably a polymerized toner having a relatively uniform particle size distribution and shape of individual toner particles. Here, the term “polymerized toner” means a toner obtained by forming a toner binder resin and forming the toner shape by polymerization of a raw material monomer of the binder resin and a subsequent chemical treatment. More specifically, it means a toner obtained through a polymerization reaction such as suspension polymerization and emulsion polymerization and, if necessary, a step of fusing particles together after the polymerization reaction.

The polymerized toner used in the cleaning device using the cleaning blade of the present invention is preferably a toner having a specific shape. Hereinafter, the polymerized toner that can be preferably used in the present invention will be described.

As a preferred polymerized toner applied to the present invention, toner particles having a shape factor in the range of 1.2 to 1.6 are 65% by number or more, and the coefficient of variation of the shape factor is 1%.
6% or less. It has been found that, even when such a polymerized toner is used, the present invention can stabilize the vibration of the cleaning blade and exhibit excellent cleaning performance.

The stability of the vibration of the cleaning blade also depends on the particle size of the toner particles. The smaller the particle size, the higher the adhesion to the image carrier, so that the vibration tends to be excessive, and Has a high probability of slipping through the cleaning blade. However, when the toner particle diameter is large, such slip-through is reduced,
The problem that image quality, such as resolution, falls occurs.

As a result of an examination from the above viewpoints, the use of a toner having a coefficient of variation of the shape factor of the toner of 16% or less and a number variation coefficient of 27% or less in the number particle size distribution of the toner is as follows. It has been found that it is excellent in cleaning properties and fine line reproducibility and can form high-quality image for a long period of time.

Further, by using toner particles having no corners at 50% by number or more and controlling the number variation coefficient in the number and particle size distribution to 27% or less, excellent cleaning properties and fine line reproducibility and high quality can be obtained. Image quality can be formed over a long period of time.

The shape factor of the toner of the present invention is represented by the following equation, and indicates the degree of roundness of the toner particles.

Shape factor = ((maximum diameter / 2) ² × π) / projected area Here, the maximum diameter is defined as a parallel line when a projected image of a toner particle on a plane is sandwiched between two parallel lines. Means the width of the particle at which the distance between the particles becomes maximum. The projection area refers to the area of the projected image of the toner particles on the plane.

In the present invention, the shape factor can be determined by taking a photograph in which the toner particles are magnified 2000 times with a scanning electron microscope, and referring to the “SCCANNING” based on the photograph.
The measurement was performed by analyzing a photographic image using "IMAGE ANALYZER" (manufactured by JEOL Ltd.). In this case, the shape factor of the present invention was measured by using the above formula using 100 toner particles.

The polymerized toner according to the present invention is preferably such that the number of toner particles having a shape factor in the range of 1.2 to 1.6 is at least 65% by number, more preferably 7%.
0% by number or more.

When the toner particles having a shape coefficient in the range of 1.2 to 1.6 are 65% by number or more, the triboelectrification property in the developer conveying member or the like becomes more uniform, and the excessively charged toner Is not accumulated, and the toner is more easily exchanged than the surface of the developer conveying member. Therefore, problems such as a development ghost are less likely to occur. Further, the toner particles are less likely to be crushed, so that the contamination of the charging member is reduced, and the charging property of the toner is stabilized.

The method for controlling the shape factor is not particularly limited. For example, a method of spraying toner particles in a hot air flow, a method of repeatedly applying mechanical energy by an impact force in a gas phase, or a method of adding a toner particle in a solvent that does not dissolve a toner to give a swirling flow, etc. Thus, there is a method in which a toner having a shape factor of 1.2 to 1.6 is prepared, and is added to a normal toner so as to fall within the range of the present invention. Also, controlling the overall shape at the stage of adjusting the so-called polymerization toner,
There is a method in which a toner whose shape factor is adjusted to 1.0 to 1.6 or 1.2 to 1.6 is similarly added to a normal toner to adjust the shape.

The variation coefficient of the shape factor of the polymerized toner preferably used in the present invention is calculated from the following equation.

Coefficient of variation = [S / K] × 100 (%) [where S represents the standard deviation of the shape coefficient of 100 toner particles, and K represents the average value of the shape coefficient. The variation coefficient of the shape factor is 16% or less, preferably 14% or less. When the variation coefficient of the shape factor is 16% or less, the gap of the transferred toner layer is reduced, the fixing property is improved, and the offset is less likely to occur. Further, the charge amount distribution becomes sharp, and the image quality is improved.

In order to uniformly control the shape factor of the toner and the variation coefficient of the shape factor without a lot-to-lot variation, resin particles (polymer particles) are polymerized, fused and formed in a process of controlling the shape. An appropriate process end time may be determined while monitoring the characteristics of certain toner particles (colored particles).

Monitoring means that a measuring device is incorporated in-line and process conditions are controlled based on the measurement result. That is, for example, in the case of a polymerization toner formed by incorporating measurement of shape and the like in-line and associating or fusing resin particles in an aqueous medium, the shape and particle size are sequentially sampled in steps such as fusing. Is measured, and the reaction is stopped when the desired shape is obtained.

The monitoring method is not particularly limited, but a flow type particle image analyzer FPIA-
2000 (manufactured by Toa Medical Electronics Co., Ltd.) can be used. This apparatus is suitable because the shape can be monitored by performing image processing in real time while passing the sample liquid. That is, a pump or the like is used from the reaction field to constantly monitor and measure the shape and the like, and stop the reaction when the desired shape and the like are obtained.

The number particle size distribution and the number variation coefficient of the toner of the present invention are measured by Coulter Counter TA-II or Coulter Multisizer (manufactured by Coulter). In the present invention, a Coulter Multisizer was used, connected to an interface (manufactured by Nikkaki) for outputting a particle size distribution and a personal computer. The aperture used in the Coulter Multisizer is 100 μm and the aperture is 2 μm.
The volume and number of the above toners were measured to calculate the particle size distribution and the average particle size. The number particle size distribution represents the relative frequency of the toner particles with respect to the particle size, and the number average particle size represents the median size in the number particle size distribution.

The number variation coefficient in the number particle size distribution of the toner is calculated from the following equation. Number variation coefficient = [S / Dn] × 100 (%) [where S represents a standard deviation in the number particle size distribution, and D
n indicates a number average particle size (μm). The number variation coefficient of the toner of the present invention is 27% or less, and preferably 25% or less. When the number variation coefficient is 27% or less, the gap of the transferred toner layer is reduced, the fixing property is improved, and the offset is less likely to occur. Further, the charge amount distribution is sharpened, the transfer efficiency is increased, and the image quality is improved.

The method for controlling the number variation coefficient of the present invention is not particularly limited. For example, a method of classifying toner particles by wind force can be used, but classification in a liquid is effective for further reducing the number variation coefficient. As a method of classifying in a liquid, there is a method of separating and collecting toner particles according to a sedimentation speed difference caused by a difference in toner particle diameter by controlling a rotation speed by using a centrifugal separator.

In particular, when a toner is produced by a suspension polymerization method, a classification operation is indispensable in order to reduce the number variation coefficient in the number particle size distribution to 27% or less. In the suspension polymerization method,
Before polymerization, it is necessary to disperse the polymerizable monomer in an aqueous medium into oil droplets of a desired size as a toner. That is, mechanical shearing by a homomixer, a homogenizer, or the like is repeated on a large oil droplet of the polymerizable monomer to reduce the oil droplet to the size of toner particles. In the method by a gentle shear, the number and particle size distribution of the obtained oil droplets becomes broad, and therefore,
The particle size distribution of the toner obtained by polymerizing this becomes wide. For this reason, a classification operation is required.

The toner particles having no corners according to the present invention are toner particles having substantially no projections on which electric charges are concentrated or projections which are easily worn by stress. Assuming that the major axis of the toner particle T is L, when the inside of the circle C having a radius (L / 10) is rolled while being in contact with the peripheral line of the toner particle T at one point on the inside, The case where the circle C does not substantially protrude outside the toner T is referred to as “toner particles without corners”. “Cases that do not substantially protrude” refer to cases where there are no more than one protrusion having a protruding circle. Further, the “longer diameter of the toner particle” refers to the width of the particle at which the interval between the parallel lines is the largest when the projected image of the toner particle on the plane is sandwiched between two parallel lines. FIGS. 13B and 13C show projected images of toner particles having corners, respectively.

The measurement of the toner having no corner was performed as follows. First, a photograph in which toner particles are enlarged by a scanning electron microscope is taken, and further enlarged to obtain a photographic image of 15,000 times. Next, the presence or absence of the corners is measured for this photographic image. This measurement was performed for 100 toner particles.

In the toner of the present invention, the ratio of toner particles having no corners is at least 50% by number, preferably at least 70% by number. When the ratio of the toner particles having no corners is 50% by number or more, generation of fine particles and the like due to stress with the developer conveying member and the like are less likely to occur,
It is possible to prevent so-called excessively adherent toner from being adhered to the surface of the developer transport member, to suppress contamination of the developer transport member, and to sharpen the charge amount. In addition, the amount of toner particles that are easily worn or broken and the number of toner particles having a portion where charges are concentrated are reduced, the charge amount distribution is sharpened, the chargeability is stabilized, and good image quality can be formed over a long period of time.

The method for obtaining a toner having no corners is not particularly limited. For example, as described above, as a method of controlling the shape coefficient, a method of spraying toner particles into a hot air flow, a method of repeatedly applying mechanical energy by an impact force in a gas phase, or a method of dissolving a toner It can be obtained by adding to a solvent that does not contain and giving a swirling flow.

In the polymerization toner formed by associating or fusing resin particles, the surface of the fused particles has many irregularities at the stage of stopping the fusion, and the surface is not smooth. By setting conditions such as the temperature, the number of rotations of the stirring blade, and the stirring time, toner having no corners can be obtained. These conditions vary depending on the physical properties of the resin particles. For example, by setting the rotation speed higher than the glass transition temperature of the resin particles, the surface becomes smooth and a toner having no corners can be formed.

The toner of the present invention preferably has a number average particle diameter of 3 to 8 μm. When toner particles are formed by a polymerization method, the particle diameter can be controlled by the concentration of the coagulant, the amount of the organic solvent added, the fusing time, and the composition of the polymer itself.

When the number average particle diameter is 3 to 8 μm, in the fixing step, it is possible to reduce the presence of toner having excessive adhesion to the developer conveying member, toner having low adhesion, and the like. In addition to being able to stabilize for a long period of time, the transfer efficiency is increased and the image quality of halftone is improved, and the image quality of fine lines and dots is improved.

In the polymerized toner preferably used in the present invention, when the particle diameter of the toner particles is D (μm), the natural logarithm InD is plotted on the horizontal axis, and the horizontal axis is divided into a plurality of classes at intervals of 0.23. in histogram showing the particle size distribution of number criteria, the relative frequency of the toner particles contained in the modal class (m _1), the relative frequency of the toner particles contained in the following frequent the rank of the modal class (m ₂ ) And (M) is 7
The toner is preferably 0% or more.

When the sum (M) of the relative frequency (m ₁ ) and the relative frequency (m ₂ ) is 70% or more, the dispersion of the particle size distribution of the toner particles is narrowed. By using this, the occurrence of selective development can be reliably suppressed.

In the present invention, the histogram showing the number-based particle size distribution is obtained by plotting a natural logarithm lnD (D: particle size of individual toner particles) in a plurality of classes (0 to 0) at intervals of 0.23.
0.23: 0.23 to 0.46: 0.46 to 0.69:
0.69 to 0.92: 0.92 to 1.15: 1.15
1.38: 1.38 to 1.61: 1.61 to 1.84:
1.84 to 2.07: 2.07 to 2.30: 2.30 to
2.53: 2.53 to 2.76...) Is a histogram showing the number-based particle size distribution, which is a particle size data of a sample measured by a Coulter Multisizer according to the following conditions. Is transferred to a computer via an I / O unit, and the computer creates the program using a particle size distribution analysis program.

[Measurement Conditions] (1) Aperture: 100 μm (2) Sample preparation method: electrolytic solution [ISOTON R-1
1 (manufactured by Coulter Scientific Japan)
An appropriate amount of a surfactant (neutral detergent) is added to 50 to 100 ml, and the mixture is stirred, and 10 to 20 mg of a measurement sample is added thereto. This system is prepared by subjecting it to a dispersion treatment with an ultrasonic disperser for 1 minute.

Among the methods for controlling the shape factor, a polymerization toner is preferred because it is simple as a production method and has excellent surface uniformity as compared with a pulverized toner.

The toner of the present invention is prepared by a suspension polymerization method or emulsion polymerization of a monomer in a liquid to which an emulsion of necessary additives is added.
It can be produced by a method of producing fine polymer particles, and then adding an organic solvent, a coagulant and the like to associate. A method of preparing by mixing and associating with a dispersion liquid such as a release agent or a colorant necessary for the composition of the toner at the time of association, or dispersing a toner component such as a release agent or a colorant in a monomer. And then emulsion polymerization. Here, the association means that a plurality of resin particles and colorant particles are fused.

The aqueous medium in the present invention means a medium containing at least 50% by mass of water.

That is, a coloring agent and, if necessary, various constituent materials such as a release agent, a charge control agent, and a polymerization initiator are added to the polymerizable monomer, and a homogenizer, a sand mill, a sand grinder, and an ultrasonic disperser are added. Various constituent materials are dissolved or dispersed in the polymerizable monomer by a machine or the like. The polymerizable monomer in which these various constituent materials are dissolved or dispersed is dispersed in an aqueous medium containing a dispersion stabilizer into oil droplets of a desired size as a toner using a homomixer, a homogenizer, or the like. Thereafter, the stirring mechanism is moved to a reaction device, which is a stirring blade described later, and heated to cause the polymerization reaction to proceed. After completion of the reaction, the toner of the present invention is prepared by removing the dispersion stabilizer, filtering, washing and drying.

Further, as a method of producing the toner of the present invention, a method of preparing by associating or fusing resin particles in an aqueous medium can also be mentioned. This method is not particularly limited.
No. 5,252, JP-A-6-329947, and JP-A-9-15904. That is, a method of associating a plurality of resin particles and dispersed particles of a constituent material such as a colorant, or a plurality of fine particles composed of a resin and a colorant, particularly, after dispersing these in water using an emulsifier, the critical aggregation concentration At the same time as adding the above flocculant and salting out, the formed polymer itself is heated and fused at a temperature equal to or higher than the glass transition temperature to gradually form a fused particle, thereby gradually growing the particle size. At this point, a large amount of water was added to stop the growth of the particle size, and the surface was smoothened while heating and stirring to control the shape. The toner of the invention can be formed. Here, an organic solvent that is infinitely soluble in water may be added together with the coagulant.

As the polymerizable monomer constituting the resin, styrene, o-methylstyrene, m-methylstyrene, p-methylstyrene, α-methylstyrene, p-chlorostyrene, 3,4- Dichlorostyrene,
p-phenylstyrene, p-ethylstyrene, 2,4-
Dimethylstyrene, p-tert-butylstyrene, p
-N-hexylstyrene, pn-octylstyrene,
pn-nonylstyrene, pn-decylstyrene, p
Styrene or a styrene derivative such as -n-dodecylstyrene, methyl methacrylate, ethyl methacrylate,
N-butyl methacrylate, isopropyl methacrylate,
Methacrylate derivatives such as isobutyl methacrylate, t-butyl methacrylate, n-octyl methacrylate, 2-ethylhexyl methacrylate, stearyl methacrylate, lauryl methacrylate, phenyl methacrylate, diethylaminoethyl methacrylate, and dimethylaminoethyl methacrylate. , Methyl acrylate, ethyl acrylate, isopropyl acrylate, n-butyl acrylate, t-butyl acrylate, isobutyl acrylate,
Acrylic ester derivatives such as n-octyl acrylate, 2-ethylhexyl acrylate, stearyl acrylate, lauryl acrylate, phenyl acrylate, and the like, olefins such as ethylene, propylene, and isobutylene, vinyl chloride, vinylidene chloride, and vinyl bromide , Vinyl fluoride such as vinyl fluoride and vinylidene fluoride; vinyl esters such as vinyl propionate, vinyl acetate and vinyl benzoate; vinyl ethers such as vinyl methyl ether and vinyl ethyl ether; vinyl methyl ketone and vinyl ethyl ketone , Vinyl ketones such as vinyl hexyl ketone, N-vinyl compounds such as N-vinyl carbazole, N-vinyl indole, N-vinyl pyrrolidone, vinyl compounds such as vinyl naphthalene and vinyl pyridine, acrylonitrile, Acrylonitrile, there are acrylic acid or methacrylic acid derivatives such as acrylamide. These vinyl monomers can be used alone or in combination.

Further, it is more preferable to use a polymerizable monomer constituting the resin in combination with one having an ionic dissociation group. For example, those having a substituent such as a carboxyl group, a sulfonic acid group, and a phosphate group as a constituent group of the monomer, specifically, acrylic acid, methacrylic acid,
Maleic acid, itaconic acid, cinnamic acid, fumaric acid, monoalkyl maleate, monoalkyl itaconate, styrenesulfonic acid, allylsulfosuccinic acid, 2-acrylamido-2-methylpropanesulfonic acid, acid phosphooxyethyl Methacrylate,
3-chloro-2-acid phosphooxypropyl methacrylate and the like.

Further, divinylbenzene, ethylene glycol dimethacrylate, ethylene glycol diacrylate, diethylene glycol dimethacrylate, diethylene glycol diacrylate, triethylene glycol dimethacrylate, triethylene glycol diacrylate, neopentyl glycol dimethacrylate,
Polyfunctional vinyls such as neopentyl glycol diacrylate can be used to form a crosslinked resin.

These polymerizable monomers can be polymerized using a radical polymerization initiator. In this case, an oil-soluble polymerization initiator can be used in the suspension polymerization method. As the oil-soluble polymerization initiator, 2,2'-azobis- (2,4
-Dimethylvaleronitrile), 2,2'-azobisisobutyronitrile, 1,1'-azobis (cyclohexane-1-carbonitrile), 2,2'-azobis-4-methoxy-2,4-dimethylvalero Azo or diazo polymerization initiators such as nitrile and azobisisobutyronitrile, benzoyl peroxide, methyl ethyl ketone peroxide, diisopropyl peroxycarbonate, cumene hydroperoxide, t-butyl hydroperoxide, di-t-butyl peroxide , Dicumyl peroxide, 2,4-dichlorobenzoyl peroxide, lauroyl peroxide, 2,2-bis-
Examples thereof include peroxide-based polymerization initiators such as (4,4-t-butylperoxycyclohexyl) propane and tris- (t-butylperoxy) triazine, and polymer initiators having a peroxide in a side chain. .

When the emulsion polymerization method is used, a water-soluble radical polymerization initiator can be used. Examples of the water-soluble polymerization initiator include persulfates such as potassium persulfate and ammonium persulfate, azobisaminodipropane acetate, azobiscyanovaleric acid and salts thereof, and hydrogen peroxide.

The dispersion stabilizers include tricalcium phosphate, magnesium phosphate, zinc phosphate, aluminum phosphate, calcium carbonate, magnesium carbonate, calcium hydroxide, magnesium hydroxide, aluminum hydroxide, calcium metasilicate, and calcium sulfate. , Barium sulfate,
Bentonite, silica, alumina and the like can be mentioned. Further, a surfactant generally used as a surfactant such as polyvinyl alcohol, gelatin, methyl cellulose, sodium dodecylbenzenesulfonate, ethylene oxide adduct, and higher alcohol sodium sulfate can be used as a dispersion stabilizer.

As the resin excellent in the present invention, a resin having a glass transition point of 20 to 90 ° C. is preferable, and a resin having a softening point of 8
The thing of 0-220 ° C is preferred. The glass transition point is measured by a differential calorimetric analysis method, and the softening point can be measured by a Koka flow tester. Furthermore, these resins have a number average molecular weight (Mn) of 10 as measured by gel permeation chromatography.
00 to 100000, weight average molecular weight (Mw) 200
Those having 0 to 1,000,000 are preferred. Further, as a molecular weight distribution, Mw / Mn is 1.5 to 100, particularly 1.8.
-70 are preferred.

The coagulant to be used is not particularly limited, but those selected from metal salts are preferably used. Specifically, as a monovalent metal, for example, a salt of an alkali metal such as sodium, potassium, and lithium, and as a divalent metal, for example, a salt of an alkaline earth metal such as calcium and magnesium, or a divalent metal such as manganese or copper Salt,
Examples include salts of trivalent metals such as iron and aluminum, and specific salts include sodium chloride, potassium chloride, lithium chloride, calcium chloride, zinc chloride, copper sulfate, magnesium sulfate, and manganese sulfate. Can be.
These may be used in combination.

It is preferable that these coagulants are added at a concentration higher than the critical coagulation concentration. The critical aggregation concentration is an index relating to the stability of the aqueous dispersion, and indicates the concentration at which aggregation occurs when a coagulant is added. This critical aggregation concentration is
It varies greatly depending on the emulsified component and the dispersant itself. For example, Seizo Okamura et al.
7, 601 (1960), edited by The Society of Polymer Science and the like, and a detailed critical aggregation concentration can be determined. As another method, a desired salt is added to the target particle dispersion at a different concentration, the 、 (zeta) potential of the dispersion is measured, and the salt concentration at which this value changes is defined as the critical aggregation concentration. You can also ask.

The amount of the coagulant of the present invention may be not less than the critical coagulation concentration, but is preferably 1.2 to the critical coagulation concentration.
It is better to add it at least twice, more preferably at least 1.5 times.

The infinitely soluble solvent means a solvent that is infinitely soluble in water, and in the present invention, a solvent that does not dissolve the formed resin is selected.
Specifically, methanol, ethanol, propanol,
Examples thereof include alcohols such as isopropanol, t-butanol, methoxyethanol and butoxyethanol, nitriles such as acetonitrile, and ethers such as dioxane. Particularly, ethanol, propanol and isopropanol are preferred.

The amount of the solvent to be infinitely dissolved is 1 to 100% by volume based on the polymer-containing dispersion to which the flocculant is added.
Is preferred.

In order to make the shape uniform, it is preferable to prepare a colored particle, and after the filtration, a slurry containing 10% by mass or more of water based on the particle is fluidized and dried. Those having a polar group in the polymer are preferred. It is considered that the reason for this is that the existing water exerts an effect of slightly swelling the polymer in which the polar group is present, so that the shape is particularly easily uniformized.

The toner of the present invention contains at least a resin and a colorant, but may contain a releasing agent or a charge control agent as a fixability improving agent, if necessary. Further, an external additive composed of inorganic fine particles, organic fine particles, and the like may be added to the toner particles containing the resin and the colorant as main components.

As the colorant used in the toner of the present invention, carbon black, magnetic substance, dye, pigment and the like can be arbitrarily used. As the carbon black, channel black, furnace black, acetylene black, and the like can be used.
Thermal black, lamp black and the like are used. Ferromagnetic metals such as iron, nickel, and cobalt as magnetic materials,
Alloys containing these metals, compounds of ferromagnetic metals such as ferrite and magnetite, alloys that do not contain ferromagnetic metals but show ferromagnetism by heat treatment, such as manganese-copper-
An alloy of a type called a Heusler alloy such as aluminum, manganese-copper-tin, chromium dioxide, or the like can be used.

As the dye, C.I. I. Solvent Red 1, 49, 52, 58, 63, 111, 1
22, C.I. I. Solvent Yellow 19, 44, 7
7, 79, 81, 82, 93, 98, 10
3, 104, 112, 162, C.I. I. Solvent Blue 25, 36, 60, 70, 93, 9
5 and the like, and mixtures thereof can also be used. Examples of the pigment include C.I. I. Pigment Red 5,
48: 1, 53: 1, 57: 1, 122, 1
39, 144, 149, 166, 177, 1
78, 222, C.I. I. Pigment Orange 31, 43 and C.I. I. Pigment Yellow 14, 17, and 9
3, 94, 138, C.I. I. Pigment Green 7, C.I. I. Pigment Blue 15: 3, 60 and the like, and mixtures thereof can also be used. The number average primary particle size varies depending on the type, but
About 200 nm is preferable.

As a method of adding a colorant, a method of adding polymer particles prepared by an emulsion polymerization method at the stage of aggregating by adding an aggregating agent to color the polymer, a method of polymerizing a monomer, or the like. And a method of adding a colorant, polymerizing, and forming colored particles can be used. When the colorant is added at the stage of preparing the polymer, it is preferable to use the colorant after treating the surface with a coupling agent or the like so as not to inhibit the radical polymerizability.

Further, low molecular weight polypropylene (number average molecular weight = 1500 to 9000) or low molecular weight polyethylene as a fixing property improving agent may be added.

The charge control agents are also various known ones.
What can be dispersed in water can also be used. Specifically, nigrosine dyes, metal salts of naphthenic acid or higher fatty acids, alkoxylated amines,
Quaternary ammonium salt compounds, azo-based metal complexes, salicylic acid metal salts or metal complexes thereof.

The particles of the charge control agent and the fixability improving agent have a number average primary particle diameter of 10 to 50 in a dispersed state.
Preferably, the thickness is about 0 nm.

In a suspension polymerization toner in which a toner component such as a colorant is dispersed or dissolved in a so-called polymerizable monomer is suspended in an aqueous medium and then polymerized to obtain a toner, a polymerization reaction is performed. By controlling the flow of the medium in the reaction vessel, the shape of the toner particles can be controlled. That is, when a large number of toner particles having a shape factor of 1.2 or more are formed, the flow of the medium in the reaction vessel is made turbulent, and the polymerization proceeds to be present in the aqueous medium in a suspended state. When the oil droplets gradually become polymerized, the oil droplets become soft particles, and when the oil droplets collide, the particles collide to promote the coalescence of the particles, resulting in particles with an irregular shape . When spherical toner particles having a shape factor smaller than 1.2 are to be formed, spherical particles can be obtained by using a medium flow in the reaction vessel as a laminar flow to avoid collision of the particles. By this method, the distribution of the toner shape can be controlled within the scope of the present invention. Hereinafter, the reaction apparatus preferably used in the present invention will be described.

FIG. 3 is an explanatory view showing a reactor (stirring device) having a generally used stirring blade having a single-stage structure, wherein 2 is a stirring tank, 3 is a rotating shaft, 4 is a stirring blade, and 9 is a stirring blade. Is a turbulence forming member.

In the suspension polymerization method, by using a specific stirring blade, a turbulent flow can be formed, and the shape can be easily controlled. Although the reason is not clear, when the configuration of the stirring blade 4 as shown in FIG. 3 is one stage, the flow of the medium formed in the stirring tank 2 is
Only the flow that moves along the wall from the lower part to the upper part.
Therefore, conventionally, a turbulent flow is generally formed by arranging a turbulent flow forming member 9 such as a wall surface of the stirring tank 2 to increase the efficiency of stirring. However, in such a device configuration, although a turbulent flow is partially formed, the turbulent flow acts in a direction in which the flow of the fluid stagnates, and as a result, the slip with respect to the particles is reduced. Can't control.

A reactor having a stirring blade which can be preferably used in the suspension polymerization method will be described with reference to the drawings.

FIGS. 4 and 5 are a perspective view and a sectional view, respectively, showing an example of such a reactor. FIG.
In the reactor shown in FIG. 5, a rotary shaft 3 is vertically provided at a central portion of a vertical cylindrical stirring tank 2 having a heat exchange jacket 1 mounted on an outer peripheral portion thereof. Are provided with a lower stirring blade 40 disposed close to the bottom surface of the, and a stirring blade 50 disposed further above. The upper-stage stirring blade 50 is disposed at an intersection angle α that precedes the rotation direction with respect to the lower-stage stirring blade 40. When producing the toner of the present invention, the intersection angle α is preferably less than 90 degrees (°). The lower limit of the intersection angle α is not particularly limited, but is preferably about 5 ° or more, and more preferably 10 ° or more.
When a three-stage stirring blade is provided, it is preferable that the intersection angle α between adjacent stirring blades is less than 90 degrees.

With such a configuration, the medium is first stirred by the stirring blade 50 provided in the upper stage, and a flow to the lower side is formed. Next, the flow formed by the upper-stage stirring blade 50 is further accelerated downward by the stirring blades 40 disposed at the lower stage, and a downward flow is separately formed by the stirring blades 50 themselves, so that the flow as a whole is reduced. It is presumed that it accelerates and proceeds. As a result, it is presumed that a basin having a large shear stress formed as a turbulent flow is formed, so that the shape of the obtained toner particles can be controlled.

In FIGS. 4 and 5, arrows indicate the direction of rotation, 7 is an upper material inlet, 8 is a lower material inlet, 9
Is a turbulent flow forming member for effective stirring.

The shape of the stirring blade is not particularly limited, but may be a square plate, a blade having a cutout, or a central portion having one or more holes, a so-called slit. Things and the like can be used. These specific examples are shown in FIG. The stirring blade 5a shown in FIG. 12 (a) has no bore, and the stirring blade 5a shown in FIG.
b has a large middle hole 6b at the center, the stirring blade 5c shown in FIG. 5C has a horizontally long middle hole 6c (slit), and the stirring blade 5d shown in FIG. Hole 6d
(Slits). Further, in the case where a three-stage stirring blade is provided, even if the middle hole formed in the upper stirring blade and the middle hole formed in the lower stirring blade are different, they are the same. There may be.

FIGS. 6 to 10 are perspective views showing specific examples of a reactor having a stirring blade which can be preferably used. In FIGS. 6 to 10, reference numeral 1 denotes a heat exchange jacket; 2 is a stirring tank, 3 is a rotating shaft, 7 is an upper material inlet, 8 is a lower material inlet, and 9 is a turbulence forming member.

In the reactor shown in FIG.
Is formed with a bent portion 411, and the stirring blade 51 is formed with a fin (projection) 511.

[0147] When a bent portion is formed on the stirring blade, the bending angle is preferably 5 to 45 °.

The stirring blade 42 constituting the reaction apparatus shown in FIG.
, A slit 421 is formed, and a bent portion 422 and a fin 423 are formed.

The stirring blade 52 constituting the reaction apparatus
Has the same shape as the stirring blade 50 constituting the reaction apparatus shown in FIG.

The stirring blade 43 constituting the reaction apparatus shown in FIG.
, A bent portion 431 and a fin 432 are formed.

The stirring blade 53 constituting the reaction apparatus
Has the same shape as the stirring blade 50 constituting the reaction apparatus shown in FIG.

The stirring blade 44 constituting the reaction apparatus shown in FIG.
Is formed with a bent portion 441 and a fin 442.

Further, a stirring blade 54 constituting the reaction apparatus is used.
Has a central hole 541 formed at the center.

The reaction apparatus shown in FIG.
(Lower stage), a stirring blade 55 (middle stage), and a stirring blade having a three-stage configuration including a stirring blade 65 are provided.

The stirring blade having the bent portion and the protrusion (fin) extending upward or downward effectively generates a turbulent flow.

The gap between the upper and lower stirring blades having the above-mentioned structure is not particularly limited, but it is preferable that at least a gap is provided between the stirring blades. Although the reason is not clear, it is considered that the flow of the medium is formed through the gap, so that the stirring efficiency is improved. However, the gap has a width of 0.5 to 50%, preferably 1 to 30% with respect to the liquid level in the stationary state.

Further, the size of the stirring blade is not particularly limited, but the sum of the heights of all the stirring blades is 50% to 100%, preferably 60% to 100% of the liquid level in the stationary state. 95
%.

FIG. 11 shows an example of a reaction apparatus used for forming a laminar flow in the suspension polymerization method. This reactor is characterized in that a turbulence forming member (an obstacle such as a baffle plate) is not provided.

The stirring blades 46 and 56 constituting the reaction apparatus shown in FIG. 11 have the same shape and the intersection angle α as the stirring blades 40 and 50 constituting the reaction apparatus shown in FIG. 4, respectively. are doing. Also, in FIG.
1 is a jacket for heat exchange, 2 is a stirring tank, 3 is a rotating shaft,
7 is an upper material inlet, and 8 is a lower material inlet.

The reactor used for forming the laminar flow is not limited to the one shown in FIG.

The shape of the stirring blade constituting the reactor is not particularly limited as long as it does not form a turbulent flow, but is preferably formed by a continuous surface such as a square plate. It may have a curved surface.

On the other hand, in the case of a polymerization toner in which resin particles are associated or fused in an aqueous medium, the flow and temperature distribution of the medium in the reaction vessel at the fusion stage are controlled to further improve the shape after fusion. By controlling the heating temperature, the number of rotations for stirring, and the time in the control step, the shape distribution and shape of the entire toner can be arbitrarily changed.

That is, in a polymerization method toner in which resin particles are associated or fused, the flow in the reaction device is set to a laminar flow,
By controlling the temperature, number of revolutions, and time in the fusion step and the shape control step using a stirring blade and a stirring tank that can make the internal temperature distribution uniform, the desired shape factor and uniform A toner having a shape distribution can be formed. The reason for this is that when fusion is performed in a place where a laminar flow is formed, strong stress is not applied to the particles that are undergoing aggregation and fusion (association or aggregated particles) and the flow is accelerated in a laminar flow. It is presumed that as a result of the uniform temperature distribution in the stirring tank, the shape distribution of the fused particles becomes uniform. Furthermore, heating in the subsequent shape control step,
The fused particles gradually become spherical by stirring, and the shape of the toner particles can be arbitrarily controlled.

As a stirring blade and a stirring tank used for producing a polymerization toner for associating or fusing resin particles, the same stirring blades and stirring tanks as those for forming a laminar flow in the above-mentioned suspension polymerization method can be used. For example, the one shown in FIG. 11 can be used. It is characterized in that no obstacle such as a baffle plate that forms a turbulent flow is provided in the stirring tank. Regarding the configuration of the stirring blade, similarly to the stirring blade used in the above-described suspension polymerization method, the upper stirring blade is disposed with the intersection angle α preceding the lower stirring blade in the rotation direction. In addition, a multi-stage configuration is preferable.

As for the shape of the stirring blade, the same shape as in the case of forming a laminar flow in the above-mentioned suspension polymerization method can be used, and is not particularly limited as long as it does not form a turbulent flow. ) Are preferably formed by continuous surfaces, such as those having a square plate shape shown in (1), and may have a curved surface.

Further, in the toner of the present invention, more effects can be exhibited by adding and using fine particles such as inorganic fine particles and organic fine particles as an external additive. The reason for this is presumed that the embedding and detachment of the external additive can be effectively suppressed, so that the effect is remarkable.

As the inorganic fine particles, it is preferable to use inorganic oxide particles such as silica, titania and alumina. Further, it is preferable that these inorganic fine particles have been subjected to a hydrophobic treatment with a silane coupling agent or a titanium coupling agent. preferable. The degree of the hydrophobizing treatment is not particularly limited, but a methanol wettability of 40 to 95 is preferable. Methanol wettability is to evaluate the wettability to methanol. In this method, an inorganic fine particle to be measured is added to 50 ml of distilled water placed in a beaker having a capacity of 200 ml.
Weigh 2 g and add. Methanol is slowly dropped from a burette whose tip is immersed in the liquid until the whole of the inorganic fine particles is wet with stirring slowly. When the amount of methanol required to completely wet the inorganic fine particles is a (ml), the degree of hydrophobicity is calculated by the following equation.

Degree of hydrophobicity = (a / (a + 50)) × 100 The amount of the external additive added is 0.1 to 5.
0 mass%, preferably 0.5 to 4.0 mass%. Various external additives may be used in combination.

A fatty acid metal salt may be added as an external additive to the toner used in the present invention. Fatty acids and metal salts thereof include undecylic acid, lauric acid, tridecylic acid, dodecylic acid, myristic acid, palmitic acid, pentadecylic acid, stearic acid, heptadecylic acid, arachiic acid, montanic acid, oleic acid, linoleic acid, arachidonic acid, etc. And metal salts thereof include salts with metals such as zinc, iron, magnesium, aluminum, calcium, sodium, and lithium. In the present invention, zinc stearate is particularly preferred.

To prepare a two-component developer, it is prepared by mixing a toner and a carrier. The toner concentration in the developer is 2 to 10% by mass.

The developing method according to the present invention is not particularly limited. Even in the contact development method in which development is performed in a state where the photoconductor surface and the developer layer are in contact with each other in the development area, the photoconductor and the developer layer are kept in a non-contact state in the development area, and an alternating electric field, etc. A non-contact developing method may be used in which the toner is caused to fly in the gap between the photosensitive member surface and the developer layer by the action of the toner to develop the toner.

[0172]

EXAMPLES Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail with reference to examples, but embodiments of the present invention are not limited thereto. In the description, “parts” means “parts by mass”.

The following photoreceptors were prepared as the photoreceptors used in the present invention. Production of Photoconductor P1 Polyamide resin Amilan CM-8000 (manufactured by Toray Industries, Inc.) 3
0 g of methanol 900 ml, 1-butanol 100 m
1 and mixed at 50 ° C. under heating. This liquid was applied on a cylindrical aluminum conductive support having an outer diameter of 80 mm and a length of 360 mm to form a 0.5 μm thick intermediate layer.

Next, 10 g of a silicone resin KR-5240 (manufactured by Shin-Etsu Chemical Co., Ltd.) was dissolved in 1000 ml of t-butyl acetate, and Y-TiOPc (Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. Sho 64-17066) was added thereto.
No., Fig. 1) 10 g was mixed and 20
After time dispersion, a coating solution for the charge generation layer was obtained. This liquid was used to coat the intermediate layer to form a 0.3 μm thick charge generation layer.

Next, 150 g of CTM (T-1: N- (4-methylphenyl) -N- {4- (β-phenylstyryl) phenyl} -p-toluidine) and a viscosity average molecular weight of 5
200 g of a polycarbonate resin TS-2050 (manufactured by Teijin Chemicals Ltd.) was added to 1,2-dichloroethane 1000
The resulting solution was dissolved in the solution to obtain a charge transport layer coating solution. This liquid was used to coat the charge generating layer on a circular slide hopper, and then dried at 100 ° C. for 1 hour to form a charge transporting layer having a thickness of 22 μm. Thus, a photoreceptor P1 including the intermediate layer, the charge generation layer, and the charge transport layer was obtained.

Production of Photoconductor P2 The surface of the photoconductor P1 obtained in the production example of the photoconductor P1 was
(T-1) 30 g of polycarbonate resin Iupilon Z-800 having a viscosity average molecular weight of 80,000 (manufactured by Mitsubishi Gas Chemical Company) 5
0 g was dissolved in 1,000 ml of 1,2-dichloroethane, and the solution was coated on the charge transport layer with a circular slide hopper, and dried at 100 ° C. for 1 hour.
An overcoat layer having a thickness of μm was formed to obtain a photoreceptor P2.

Production of Photoconductor P3 The CTM (T-
1) Polycarbonate resin Iupilon Z-800 (manufactured by Mitsubishi Gas Chemical Company) 200 having 150 g and a viscosity average molecular weight of 80,000
g was dissolved in 1,000 ml of 1,2-dichloroethane to obtain a coating solution for the charge transport layer. Using this solution, each of the charge generation layers was coated, and dried at 100 ° C. for 1 hour to form a charge transport layer having a thickness of 22 μm. Thus, the photoreceptor P3 including the intermediate layer, the charge generation layer, and the charge transport layer
I got

The toner used in the present invention was prepared below. 9. Production of Toners T1 and T2 (Example of Emulsion Polymerization Method) 0.90 kg of sodium n-dodecyl sulfate and pure water
Add 0 L and stir to dissolve. To this solution, add Regal 330
1.20 kg of R (carbon black manufactured by Cabot Corporation) was gradually added, and the mixture was stirred well for 1 hour, and then continuously dispersed for 20 hours using a sand grinder (medium type disperser). This is referred to as “colorant dispersion liquid 1”. A solution consisting of 0.055 kg of sodium dodecylbenzenesulfonate and 4.0 L of ion-exchanged water is referred to as “anionic surfactant solution A”.

Nonylphenol polyethylene oxide 10 mol adduct 0.014 kg and ion exchanged water 4.0 L
Is referred to as “nonionic surfactant solution B”.
223.8 g of potassium persulfate was added to 12.0 L of deionized water.
Is referred to as "initiator solution C".

A 100 L GL (glass lining) reactor equipped with a temperature sensor, a cooling pipe, and a nitrogen introducing device was charged with W.
3.41 kg of AX emulsion (polypropylene emulsion having a number average molecular weight of 3,000: number average primary particle size = 120 nm / solid concentration = 29.9%), the whole amount of “anionic surfactant solution A” and “nonionic surfactant solution B” Add the whole amount and start stirring. Next, ion-exchanged water 4
Add 4.0 L.

The heating was started, and when the liquid temperature reached 75 ° C., the entire amount of “Initiator solution C” was added dropwise. Then, while controlling the liquid temperature to 75 ° C. ± 1 ° C., the styrene 1
2.1 kg, n-butyl acrylate 2.88 kg, methacrylic acid 1.04 kg and t-dodecyl mercaptan 54
8 g are added dropwise. After the completion of the dropwise addition, the temperature of the solution was raised to 80 ° C. ± 1 ° C., and the mixture was heated and stirred for 6 hours. Next, the liquid temperature was cooled to 40 ° C. or lower, stirring was stopped, and the mixture was filtered with a pole filter to obtain “latex-A”.

The resin particles in the latex-A had a glass transition temperature of 57 ° C., a softening point of 121 ° C., a molecular weight distribution of weight average molecular weight = 12.7 million, and a weight average particle size of 12 ° C.
It was 0 nm.

A solution obtained by dissolving 0.055 kg of sodium dodecylbenzenesulfonate in 4.0 L of ion-exchanged pure water is referred to as “anionic surfactant solution D”. Also,
A solution prepared by dissolving 0.014 kg of nonylphenol polyethylene oxide 10 mol adduct in 4.0 L of ion-exchanged water is referred to as “nonionic surfactant solution E”.

Potassium persulfate (Kanto Chemical) 200.
A solution obtained by dissolving 7 g in 12.0 L of ion-exchanged water is referred to as “initiator solution F”.

A WAX emulsion (polypropylene emulsion having a number average molecular weight of 3000: number average primary particle diameter: 120 nm / solid content: 29.9) was placed in a 100 L GL reactor equipped with a temperature sensor, a cooling pipe, a nitrogen introducing device, and a comb baffle. %), 3.41 kg, the whole amount of “anionic surfactant solution D” and the whole amount of “nonionic surfactant solution E” are added, and stirring is started. Next, 44.0 L of ion-exchanged water
Input. Heating is started, and when the liquid temperature reaches 70 ° C., “Initiator solution F” is added. Then, a solution prepared by previously mixing 11.0 kg of styrene, 4.00 kg of n-butyl acrylate, 1.04 kg of methacrylic acid, and 9.02 g of t-dodecylmercaptan is added dropwise. After completion of the dropwise addition, the mixture was heated and stirred for 6 hours while controlling the liquid temperature to 72 ° C. ± 2 ° C. Further, the liquid temperature was raised to 80 ° C. ± 2 ° C., and the mixture was heated and stirred for 12 hours. The liquid temperature is cooled to 40 ° C. or less, and the stirring is stopped. The solution was filtered through a Pall filter, and this filtrate was designated as "latex-B".

The glass transition temperature of the resin particles in Latex-B was 58 ° C., the softening point was 132 ° C., and the molecular weight distribution was weight average molecular weight = 245,000 and weight average particle diameter was 11
It was 0 nm.

Sodium chloride 5.36k as salting-out agent
g in ion-exchanged water 20.0 L is referred to as “sodium chloride solution G”.

A solution obtained by dissolving 1.00 g of a fluorinated nonionic surfactant in 1.00 L of ion-exchanged water is referred to as “nonionic surfactant solution H”.

A 100 L S equipped with a temperature sensor, a cooling pipe, a nitrogen introducing device, and a particle size and shape monitoring device.
US reactor (reactor having the configuration shown in FIG. 11, intersection angle α)
Is 20 °), the latex prepared above-A = 2
0.0 kg, latex-B = 5.2 kg, colorant dispersion 1 = 0.4 kg, and ion-exchanged water 20.0 kg are stirred. Then, the mixture was heated to 40 ° C., and sodium chloride solution G and isopropanol (manufactured by Kanto Chemical Co., Ltd.) 6.00 k
g, Nonionic surfactant solution H are added in this order. Then, after leaving it for 10 minutes, the temperature was started and the liquid temperature was 8
The temperature is raised to 5 ° C. in 60 minutes, and heated and stirred at 85 ± 2 ° C. for 0.5 to 3 hours to grow the particle size while salting out / fusing.
Next, 2.1 L of pure water is added to stop the particle size growth.

The fused particles prepared above were placed in a 5 L reaction vessel equipped with a temperature sensor, a cooling pipe, and a device for monitoring the particle size and shape (reactor having the structure shown in FIG. 11; intersection angle α was 20 °). 5.0 kg of the dispersion liquid is added, and the liquid temperature is 85 ° C.
The shape was controlled by heating and stirring at ± 2 ° C. for 0.5 to 15 hours. Thereafter, the mixture is cooled to 40 ° C. or less and the stirring is stopped. Next, classification is performed in the liquid by a centrifugal sedimentation method using a centrifugal separator, and the liquid is filtered through a sieve having openings of 45 μm, and the filtrate is used as an associated liquid. Next, non-spherical particles in the form of a wet cake were collected by filtration from the associated liquid using a Nutsche. afterwards,
It was washed with ion-exchanged water.

The non-spherical particles were dried at a suction temperature of 60 ° C. using a flash jet drier, and then dried at a temperature of 60 ° C. using a fluidized bed drier. To 100 parts by mass of the obtained colored particles, 1 part by mass of silica fine particles and 0.1 part by mass of zinc stearate were externally added and mixed with a Henschel mixer to obtain a toner by an emulsion polymerization association method as shown in the following table. In the monitoring of the salting-out / fusion step and the shape control step, the number of rotations of the stirring and the heating time are controlled to control the variation coefficient of the shape and the shape coefficient. Was adjusted to obtain toner T1 and toner T2 shown in Table 1.

Production of Toner T3 (Example of Suspension Polymerization Method) Styrene = 165 g, n-butyl acrylate = 35
g, carbon black = 10 g, metal di-t-butylsalicylate = 2 g, styrene-methacrylic acid copolymer = 8 g, paraffin wax (mp = 70 ° C.) = 20
g was heated to 60 ° C. and uniformly dissolved and dispersed at 12,000 rpm with a TK homomixer (manufactured by Tokushu Kika Kogyo Co., Ltd.).
To this, 2,2'-azobis (2,4-
(Valeronitrile) = 10 g was added and dissolved to prepare a polymerizable monomer composition. Then, 710 g of ion-exchanged water
Was added with 450 g of a 0.1 M aqueous sodium phosphate solution, and TK was added.
While stirring with a homomixer at 13000 rpm, 1.
68 g of 0M calcium chloride was gradually added to prepare a suspension in which tricalcium phosphate was dispersed. The polymerizable monomer composition was added to this suspension, and the mixture was added to a TK homomixer.
The mixture was stirred at 0000 rpm for 20 minutes to granulate the polymerizable monomer composition. Thereafter, a reactor (crossing angle α is 45 °) having a stirring blade configuration as shown in FIG.
The reaction was performed at 〜95 ° C. for 5 to 15 hours. Tricalcium phosphate is dissolved and removed with hydrochloric acid, and then, using a centrifuge,
Classification was performed in the liquid by centrifugal sedimentation, followed by filtration, washing and drying. In 100 parts by mass of the obtained colored particles,
1 part by mass of silica fine particles and 0.1 part by mass of zinc stearate were externally added and mixed with a Henschel mixer to obtain a toner by a suspension polymerization method.

By monitoring at the time of the polymerization, controlling the liquid temperature, the number of rotations of the stirring, and the heating time, the variation coefficient of the shape and the shape coefficient is controlled. By adjusting the coefficient, a toner T3 shown in Table 1 below was obtained.

[0194]

[Table 1]

Preparation of Developer Preparation of Developer 1 To 100 parts of the toner T1, 0.4 parts of hydrophobic silica particles (R805: manufactured by Nippon Aerosil Co., Ltd.) having an average particle size of 12 nm as external additives, and titania particles ( T805: manufactured by Nippon Aerosil Co., Ltd.) and mixed with a Henschel mixer at room temperature at a peripheral speed of the stirring blade of 40 (m / sec) for 10 minutes to obtain a negatively chargeable toner. The fixation ratio of this toner was 45%.

A ferrite carrier coated with a silicone resin and having a volume average particle diameter of 60 μm was mixed with the above toner to prepare a developer 1 having a toner concentration of 5%.

Preparation of Developers 2 and 3 Developer 2 was prepared in the same manner as in Preparation of Developer 1 except that toner T2 was used instead of toner T1.
A developer 3 was prepared in the same manner except that the toner T3 was used instead of the toner T1.

The cleaning blade and the metal sheet member used in the cleaning device of the present invention are described in each of the embodiments. Commercially available cleaning blades and metal sheet members were mainly used, but urethane rubbers were newly produced for cleaning blades which cannot be obtained as commercial products.

The preparation of a new urethane rubber was carried out using an ethylene adipate prepolymer (Mn = 2000, NCO% = 6.5%) as a raw material of the urethane prepolymer.
To this, 1,4-butanediol and trimethylolpropane were mixed at appropriately changed mixing ratios, poured into a pre-heated mold, and heated and cured to produce urethane rubbers having different physical property values, Molded. After molding, width, thickness,
The length was adjusted and cut to produce a cleaning blade.

The metal thin plate member and the cleaning blade were adhered to the support plate with a hot melt adhesive to obtain a cleaning blade for an example.

Example 1 Change in Free Length of Thin Metal Plate Member and Cleaning Blade Configuration: As shown in FIG. 2, the thin metal plate member and the cleaning blade were bonded to a support member. Tables 2 and 3 show the free length a of the cleaning blade and the free length b of the sheet metal member.
Were varied as described in.

Other cleaning conditions Cleaning blade contact angle: 20 ° Cleaning blade load (N / m): 25 N / m Evaluation of cleaning performance.

As shown in Tables 2 and 3, the free lengths of the cleaning blade and the metal sheet member were changed, and a digital copying machine Konica 7050 (corona charging, laser exposure, Reverse process, electrostatic transfer, claw separation, cleaning blade) were used to evaluate toner slip-through, blade turnover, blade squeal, and image unevenness. The evaluation was a character image with a pixel ratio of 7%, a halftone photographic image,
Using an original image in which a solid white image and a solid black image are each divided into quarters, under normal temperature and normal humidity environment (24 ° C., 60%
RH) A copy test of 50 sheets / minute of A4 paper was continuously performed for 90 minutes. However, before starting the above evaluation, in order to make the photoreceptor and the cleaning blade familiar, the setting powder is sprayed on the photoreceptor and the cleaning blade, and the photoreceptor is removed.
Rotated for minutes. Other conditions for image evaluation are described below. The evaluation results are shown in Tables 2 and 3.

Other Evaluation Conditions The other evaluation conditions using the above 7050 were set as follows.

Charging conditions: Charger: Scorotron charger, initial charging potential was -750
V Exposure conditions Exposure amount is set so that the exposed portion potential is -50V.

Developing conditions DC bias; -550 V Dsd; 550 μm Developer layer regulation; Edge cut system Developer layer thickness; 700 μm Developing sleeve diameter: 40 mm Transfer conditions Transfer pole: Corona charging system, Transfer dummy current value: 45 μA Evaluation Criteria Toner slippage (slippage in the table) 現 像: No slippage of developed toner Δ: More than 0 to less than 20% of developed toner ×: Slippage of 20% to less than 50% of developed toner XX: 50% or more of developed toner Blade turnover (Mechre in the table) The time of blade turnover was displayed.

Blade squeal An abnormal sound caused by abnormal friction between the cleaning blade and the photosensitive member is called blade squeal, and the presence or absence of the abnormal sound was evaluated.

Evaluation of Image Quality (with / without Image Irregularity) Evaluation was made on the occurrence of image irregularity in the halftone photographic image obtained by continuous copying for 90 minutes.

Conditions of Table 2 Photoconductor: P1 Developer: 1 (toner: T1) Cleaning blade: thickness t ₁ : 2 mm, manufactured by Hokushin Kogyo Co., Ltd. (hardness 70 °, rebound resilience 60%) Metal sheet member: SUS304, thickness t ₂ : 0.05mm

[0210]

[Table 2]

Conditions in Table 3 Photoconductor: P2 Developer: 2 (toner: T2) Cleaning blade: thickness t ₁ : 2 mm, manufactured by Hokushin Kogyo Co., Ltd. (hardness 70 °, rebound resilience 70%) Metal sheet member: SUS304, thickness t ₂ : 0.025 m
m

[0212]

[Table 3]

As is clear from Tables 2 and 3, when the free length of the thin metal plate member and the cleaning blade satisfies the condition of the formula 1, that is, 0.1 <b / a ≦ 0.9, the blade is turned up and the toner slips through. Also, no blade squealing occurred and good cleaning properties were shown. Also, no image unevenness was observed. On the other hand, when 0.1 ≧ b / a or b / a> 0.9, either toner slippage, blade turning or blade squealing occurred, and image unevenness also occurred.

Example 2 Change in Thickness of Thin Metal Plate Member and Cleaning Blade Configuration: As shown in FIG. 2, the thin metal plate member and the cleaning blade were bonded to a support member. The thickness t ₁ of the cleaning blade and the thickness t ₂ of the sheet metal member were changed as shown in Table 4.

Cleaning blade contact angle: 20 ° Cleaning blade load (N / m): 20 N / m Evaluation of cleaning performance.

As shown in Table 4, the thicknesses of the cleaning blade and the metal sheet member were changed, and the digital copying machine Kon manufactured by Konica Corporation basically having the image forming process shown in FIG.
ica 7050 (corona charging, laser exposure, reversal development,
Using electrostatic transfer, claw separation, and a cleaning blade process), the cleaning properties of toner slip-through, blade turn-up and blade squeal were evaluated, and image unevenness in continuous copying was evaluated. The conditions for the image evaluation are the same as in the first embodiment. Table 4 shows the evaluation results.

Conditions in Table 4 Photoconductor: P3 Developer: 3 (toner: T3) Cleaning blade: manufactured by Hokushin Kogyo Co., Ltd. (hardness: 70)
°, rebound resilience 28%), free length a: 9 mm, metal sheet member: SUS303, free length b: 5.4 mm

[0218]

[Table 4]

As is clear from Table 4, the thickness ratio between the sheet metal member and the cleaning blade is equal to the condition of the expression 2, that is, 1 /.
In the case of 200 ≦ t ₂ / t ₁ ≦ 1, good cleaning properties are shown without turning up the blade, slipping off the toner, and squealing the blade. Also, no image unevenness occurred. Meanwhile 1/200> t ₂ / t ₁ or t ₂ / t _{1> 1} case of toner slipping, blade curling, or any of the blade squeaking occurs, the image unevenness occurs.

Example 3 Change in Brinell Hardness of Thin Metal Plate Metal thin plate member: A metal thin plate member having a different Brinell hardness HB as shown in Table 5 was used.

Structure: As shown in FIG. 2, a metal thin plate member and a cleaning blade were bonded to a support member. The Brinell hardness of the sheet metal member was changed as shown in Table 5.

Cleaning blade contact angle: 20 ° Cleaning blade load (N / m): 20 N / m Evaluation of cleanability.

As shown in Table 5, the Brinell hardness of the metal sheet member was changed, and the digital copying machine Konica 7050 manufactured by Konica Corporation basically had the image forming process shown in FIG.
(It has a process that employs corona charging, laser exposure, reversal development, electrostatic transfer, nail separation, and cleaning blade), and evaluates the cleaning properties of toner slip-through, blade turn-up, and blade squeal to obtain images of halftone photographic images. Unevenness evaluation was performed. The conditions for the image evaluation are the same as in the first embodiment.
Table 5 shows the evaluation results.

Conditions in Table 5 Photoconductor: P3 Developer: 1 (toner: T1) Cleaning blade: manufactured by Hokushin Kogyo Co., Ltd. (hardness 67)
°, rebound resilience 50%), free length a: 9 mm, thickness t1: 2 mm Metal sheet member: free length b: 5.4 mm, thickness t ₂ : 0.
05mm

[0225]

[Table 5]

As is clear from Table 5, the Brinell hardness HB of the sheet metal member is equal to the condition of the formula 3, that is, 50 ≦ HB ≦ 45.
In the case of 0, the blade is not turned up and the toner does not slip through, showing good cleaning properties and no image unevenness. On the other hand, when 50> HB or 450 <HB, toner slip-through or blade turn-up occurs, and image unevenness also occurs.

Example 4 Change in Elastic Modulus of Thin Metal Plate Member and Cleaning Blade Configuration: As shown in FIG. 2, the thin metal plate member and the cleaning blade were bonded to a support member. The elastic moduli D ₁ and D ₂ of the cleaning blade and the metal sheet member were changed as shown in Table 6.

Cleaning blade contact angle: 20 ° Cleaning blade load (N / m): 20 N / m Evaluation of cleaning performance.

As shown in Table 6, the elastic modulus of the cleaning blade and the metal sheet member was changed, and the digital copying machine Kon manufactured by Konica Corporation basically had the image forming process shown in FIG.
ica 7050 (corona charging, laser exposure, reversal development,
(Electrostatic transfer, claw separation, and a process employing a cleaning blade) were used to evaluate the cleaning properties of toner slip-through, blade turning, blade squeal, and image unevenness. Evaluation conditions were the same as in Example 1. Table 6 shows the evaluation results.

Conditions in Table 6 Photoconductor: P3 Developer: 1 (toner: T1) Cleaning blade: free length a: 9 mm, thickness t ₁ :
2 mm metal sheet member: free length b: 5.4 mm, thickness t ₂ : 0.
05mm

[0231]

[Table 6]

As is clear from Table 6, when the elastic modulus ratio between the metal sheet member and the cleaning blade satisfies the condition of Equation 4, that is, 14 ≦ D ₂ / D ₁ ≦ 28000, co-occurrence of blade turning and toner slippage occurs. Good cleaning properties and no image unevenness. Meanwhile 14> D ₂ / D ₁ or D ₂ / D _1> For 28000 toner slipping, or blade curling occurs, the image unevenness occurs.

Example 5 Example Conditions 1 to 8 The combinations of the photosensitive member, the developer and the cleaning conditions were set as shown in Table 7.

Change in Combination of Metal Sheet Member and Cleaning Blade Configuration: The combination of the cleaning blade and metal sheet member depends on the material of the cleaning blade and the metal sheet member,
The combination of the free length and the thickness was changed, and as a result, the values of Expressions 1 to 4 were changed as shown in Table 7.

Cleaning blade contact angle: described in Table 7 Cleaning blade load (N / m): described in Table 7 Evaluation of cleaning property.

As shown in Table 7, the combination of the photoreceptor, toner, cleaning blade, and metal sheet member was changed, and a digital copying machine Konica 7050 (corona charging, laser exposure) basically having the image forming process shown in FIG. , Reversal development, electrostatic transfer, claw separation, and cleaning blade) to evaluate toner slip-through, blade turnover, and blade squeal.
The image unevenness of the halftone photographic image was evaluated. The conditions for the image evaluation are the same as in the first embodiment. Example conditions are shown in Table 7, and evaluation results are shown in Table 8.

[0237]

[Table 7]

[0238]

[Table 8]

As is clear from Tables 7 and 8, among the combinations of the sheet metal member and the cleaning blade, the formulas 1 to
Combinations satisfying the condition of Expression 4 and Examples 1 to 6 show good cleaning properties without co-occurrence of blade turning and toner slip-through, and no image unevenness. on the other hand,
In the combinations that do not satisfy the conditions of Expressions 1 to 4, and Example Conditions 7 and 8, at least one of toner slip-through, blade turn-up or blade squealing occurs, and image unevenness also occurs.

[0240]

As is clear from the above embodiment, the use of a cleaning device having a cleaning blade with a thin metal plate adhered thereto under the conditions of the present invention allows the residual toner on the organic photoreceptor to be turned up or slipped off. There is no occurrence and cleaning can be performed effectively. Further, the present invention can provide an image forming method and an image forming apparatus using the cleaning device.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram illustrating an entire configuration of an image forming apparatus of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a configuration diagram of a cleaning device using the cleaning blade of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram showing a reaction device having a single-stage stirring blade.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing an example of a reaction apparatus having a stirring blade which can be preferably used.

FIG. 5 is a sectional view of the reaction apparatus shown in FIG.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing a specific example of a reactor having a stirring blade which can be preferably used.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing a specific example of a reactor having a stirring blade which can be preferably used.

FIG. 8 is a perspective view showing a specific example of a reaction apparatus having a stirring blade which can be preferably used.

FIG. 9 is a perspective view showing a specific example of a reactor having a stirring blade which can be preferably used.

FIG. 10 is a perspective view showing a specific example of a reactor having a stirring blade which can be preferably used.

FIG. 11 is a perspective view showing an example of a reaction apparatus used for forming a laminar flow.

FIG. 12 is a schematic view showing a specific example of the shape of a stirring blade.

FIG. 13A is an explanatory diagram showing a projected image of a toner particle having no corner, and FIGS. 13B and 13C are explanatory diagrams showing a projected image of a toner particle having a corner.

[Explanation of symbols]

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Heat exchange jacket 2 Stirrer tank 3 Rotating shaft 4 Stirrer blade 40 Stirrer blade 411 Bend part 421 Slit 423 Fin 50 Stirrer blade 541 Middle hole 55 Stirrer blades 5a, 5b, 5c, 5d Stirrer blades 6b, 6c, 6d Middle hole Part 7 Upper material input port 8 Lower material input port 9 Turbulence forming member α Crossing angle 121 Photoconductor 122 Charger 123 Developing device 124 Transfer device 125 Separator 126 Cleaning device 126A Cleaning blade 126B Metal sheet member 127 PCL (Precharge lamp) ) 130 the thickness of the thickness t ₂ sheet metal members free length t ₁ cleaning blade free length b sheet metal member of an exposure optical system 191 supports a cleaning blade

Claims (12)

[Claims] An electrostatic latent image formed on an organic photoreceptor is developed with a developer containing a toner, and a toner image visualized by the development is transferred from the organic photoreceptor to a transfer material. In a cleaning device having a cleaning blade for removing toner remaining on an organic photoconductor, the cleaning device has a cleaning blade and a thin metal plate member, and the cleaning blade has a surface opposite to a surface abutting on the organic photoconductor. The step is provided in close contact with the sheet metal member, and a step is provided between the tip of the cleaning blade and the end of the sheet metal member, and the step is such that the sheet metal member is located farther from the organic photoconductor. A cleaning device, comprising: 2. An electrostatic latent image formed on an organic photoreceptor is developed by a developer containing a toner, and a toner image visualized by the development is transferred from the organic photoreceptor to a transfer material. In a cleaning device having a cleaning blade for removing toner remaining on an organic photoconductor, the cleaning device has a cleaning blade and a thin metal plate member, and the cleaning blade has a surface opposite to a surface that contacts the organic photoconductor. A cleaning device which is in close contact with the metal sheet member and is designed so that the free length a of the cleaning blade and the free length b of the metal sheet member satisfy Expression 1. Formula 1 0.1 <b / a ≦ 0.9 3. An electrostatic latent image formed on the organic photoreceptor is developed by a developer containing a toner, and a toner image visualized by the development is transferred from the organic photoreceptor to a transfer material. In a cleaning device having a cleaning blade for removing toner remaining on an organic photoconductor, the cleaning device has a cleaning blade and a thin metal plate member, and the cleaning blade has a surface opposite to a surface that contacts the organic photoconductor. The cleaning blade has a thickness t ₁ and a thickness t ₂ , which are in close contact with the metal sheet member.
Is a cleaning device designed to satisfy Equation 2. Equation 2 1/200 ≦ t ₂ / t ₁ ≦ 1 4. An electrostatic latent image formed on the organic photoreceptor is developed with a developer containing a toner, and the toner image visualized by the development is transferred from the organic photoreceptor to a transfer material. In a cleaning device having a cleaning blade for removing toner remaining on an organic photoconductor, the cleaning device has a cleaning blade and a thin metal plate member, and the cleaning blade has a surface opposite to a surface abutting on the organic photoconductor. A cleaning device, which is in close contact with the metal sheet member and is designed so that the Brinell hardness HB of the metal sheet member satisfies Expression 3. Formula 3 50 ≦ HB ≦ 450 (HB: N / mm ² ) 5. An electrostatic latent image formed on an organic photoreceptor is developed by a developer containing a toner, and a toner image visualized by the development is transferred from the organic photoreceptor to a transfer material. In a cleaning device having a cleaning blade for removing toner remaining on an organic photoconductor, the cleaning device has a cleaning blade and a thin metal plate member, and the cleaning blade has a surface opposite to a surface abutting on the organic photoconductor. is in close contact with the sheet metal member, the elastic modulus D ₂ of the elastic modulus D ₁ and the sheet metal member of the cleaning blade is a cleaning apparatus characterized by being designed so as to satisfy the equation 4. Formula 4 14 ≦ D ₂ / D ₁ ≦ 28000 6. An electrostatic latent image formed on an organic photoreceptor is developed by a developer containing toner, and a toner image visualized by the development is transferred from the organic photoreceptor to a transfer material. In a cleaning device having a cleaning blade for removing toner remaining on an organic photoconductor, the cleaning device has a cleaning blade and a thin metal plate member, and the cleaning blade has a surface opposite to a surface abutting on the organic photoconductor. A step is provided between the tip of the cleaning blade and the tip of the sheet metal member, which is in close contact with the sheet metal member, and the step is such that the sheet metal member is located farther from the organic photoconductor. The cleaning device is characterized in that the cleaning blade and the metal sheet member are designed to satisfy the above-mentioned equations (1) to (4). 7. An electrostatic latent image formed on the organic photoreceptor is developed by a developer containing a toner, and a toner image visualized by the development is transferred from the organic photoreceptor to a transfer material. An image forming method, wherein the toner remaining on the organic photoreceptor is removed by the cleaning device according to claim 1. 8. An electrostatic latent image formed on the organic photoreceptor is developed by a developer containing a toner, and a toner image visualized by the development is transferred from the organic photoreceptor to a transfer material. An image forming apparatus, wherein the toner remaining on the organic photoreceptor is removed by the cleaning device according to claim 1. 9. The toner according to claim 1, wherein the coefficient of variation of the shape coefficient of the toner particles is 16% or less, and the number variation coefficient in the number particle size distribution of the toner particles is 27% or less. An image forming apparatus according to claim 8. 10. A toner having a shape factor of 1.2.
9. The image forming apparatus according to claim 8, wherein a toner containing 65% by number or more of toner particles in a range of from 1.6 to 1.6 is used. 11. The image forming apparatus according to claim 8, wherein a toner containing 50% by number or more of toner particles having no corners is used as the toner. 12. The organic photoconductor has a structure in which a photosensitive layer is provided on a conductive support, and the surface layer of the photosensitive layer contains polycarbonate having an average molecular weight of 40,000 to 25,000. The image forming apparatus according to claim 8, wherein: