JP2003270992A - Fixing roller, fixing device and image forming apparatus using the same, and method for manufacturing the fixing roller - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a fixing roller which can prevent a so-called offset phenomenon caused by an unfixed image remaining on a recording material used in an image forming apparatus, to provide a fixing device and an image forming apparatus which use the above roller, and to provide a method for manufacturing the fixing roller. <P>SOLUTION: The fixing roller 1 used for the fixing device of an image forming apparatus comprises a roller core 2, an offset preventing coating layer 3 formed on the peripheral surface of the roller core 2, a conductive protective layer 3 formed while keeping at least continuity on the offset preventing coating layer 3, and a lubricating molecular layer 5 formed by directly fixing the molecular end to the conductive protective layer 4. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2003,JPO

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a fixing roller used in an image forming apparatus, a fixing apparatus and an image forming apparatus using the same, and a method for manufacturing the fixing roller.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, various fixing systems have been proposed and implemented as a fixing device used in an image forming apparatus such as a general electronic photocopier. Among them, a roller fixing type, particularly a heating roller fixing device (heat roll fixing method) in which at least one of a pair of rollers is a heating roller heated by a heat source is predominant. Here, of the pair of rollers, the roller in contact with the image bearing side of the recording material will be referred to as a fixing roller or a heat fixing roller, and the other roller will be referred to as a pressure roller. In a roller fixing type fixing device, since the fixing roller is in direct contact with the image bearing surface of the recording material, the developer (hereinafter,
A part of the toner (referred to as toner) adheres to and adheres to the surface of the fixing roller, and this adhered toner is transferred onto the recording material again as the roller rotates, so-called "offset phenomenon" is likely to occur.

As means for preventing this offset phenomenon, the following various means have been adopted in the prior art. (A) A fluorine resin such as polytetrafluoroethylene resin (hereinafter referred to as PTFE) or an offset prevention coating layer of a highly releasable material (non-adhesive material) such as silicon rubber is provided on the outer peripheral surface of the fixing roller. , The releasability (non-adhesiveness) of the surface layer of the fixing roller is improved. (B) A means for applying a release agent such as silicone oil to the outer peripheral surface of the fixing roller is provided. (C) A rubbing cleaning means such as a blade or a web for cleaning and removing contaminants on the outer peripheral surface of the fixing roller is provided. (D) A DC bias having the same polarity as the toner of the unfixed image remaining after being carried on the recording material is applied to the core metal (roller core portion) of the fixing roller. (E) The above means (a) to (d) are combined. However, the conventional means for preventing the offset phenomenon has the following problems.

First, in the above-mentioned arrangement (a) of the anti-offset layer, the roller provided with the coating layer of fluororesin such as PTFE exhibits excellent non-adhesiveness, but depending on the kind of the toner binding resin, the release layer Some of them have poor properties, and some of the toner adheres to contaminate the roller surface. Further, in recent years, there has been a strong demand for high durability of various parts such as fixing rollers due to reasons such as cost reduction, improvement of serviceability, and regulation of industrial waste. However, a coating layer of fluororesin such as PTFE is required. The abrasion resistance of the provided fixing roller is not sufficient by itself, and has a drawback that the life is short. This is because the surface of the fixing roller is rubbed by the cleaning means such as a plate, the release agent applying means, the recording material separating claw, the temperature detecting element, the pressure roller, and the like and is abraded. It also receives the rubbing of the recording material passing between the fixing roller and the pressure roller. When passing a large amount of paper (recording material), paper dust is generated from the paper and adheres to the fixing roller. The paper dust will be removed by a cleaning blade or the like that is in contact with the fixing roller. However, the paper dust is remarkably generated especially at the edge portion of the paper, and various inorganic fillers contained in the paper dust cause the roller to roll. The surface wears. And the fixing roller loses smoothness due to surface abrasion,
This is because the original releasability tends to decrease.

Further, since the coating layer of pure fluororesin is generally insulative or has high resistance, its surface is charged by frictional charging due to rubbing against a roller contact member such as a recording material and a pressure roller. Then, a so-called "electrostatic offset phenomenon" in which the toner on the recording material is adsorbed to the surface layer of the fixing roller by an electrostatic action is likely to occur. In other words, the fluororesin is greatly negatively (−) charged by rubbing against the recording material, and when the toner has a positive (+) polarity, the toner is attracted to the electric field of the negatively charged fluororesin coating layer, It becomes easy to adhere to the surface of the fixing roller due to the electrostatic offset phenomenon.

[0006] Generally, as means for improving wear resistance of fluororesin, etc., it has relatively high hardness such as glass powder, silica, silicon carbide powder, diamond powder, corundum powder, and metal powder such as nickel and iron. Inorganic fillers can be incorporated and thereby enhanced. However, if the mixing amount is small, the effect of improving wear resistance is not sufficient, and if the mixing amount is increased, the releasability deteriorates, the surface property of the fixing roller also deteriorates, and the offset prevention effect decreases. . Moreover, in general, these fillers have poor dispersibility in the fluororesin, and even if they can be dispersed, the adhesiveness between the filler and the fluororesin deteriorates, and a part of the filler in the fixing roller coating layer is released. Such a phenomenon has occurred. In the case where the dispersion is poor, in many cases, the portion having a small amount of the filler is first scraped into stripes or spots, and toner is embedded in the scraped portion, resulting in a decrease in the non-adhesiveness of the fixing roller.

Further, when the filler is removed, there is a problem that the toner is buried in the removed portion, or the released filler acts as an abrasive on the contrary, which accelerates the wear of the fixing roller. . On the other hand, attempts have been made to reduce the particle size of the filler, but the adhesiveness between the filler and the fluororesin is poor, and the result is that the entire surface of the fluororesin layer is abraded.

As a means for preventing electrostatic offset, carbon black, metal powder, low-resistance fine powder such as titanium dioxide, or conductive whisker-like single crystal fiber such as potassium titanate is used as the coating layer. By mixing the filler, the resistance of the coating layer is lowered to prevent triboelectric charging of the coating layer, whereby the electrostatic offset phenomenon can be prevented. In this case, the performance required for the conductive filler is that the dispersibility in the coating layer material is good and uniform, the adhesion to the coating layer material is good, and the abrasion resistance of the coating layer is improved. That is, the coating layer can be provided with sufficient conductivity, and the surface of the coating layer can be made smooth. However, it has been difficult for the conventional fillers to satisfy all the above performances.

For example, in the case of carbon or a conductive whisker-like single crystal fiber, not only the effect of strengthening the fluororesin coating layer and improving the wear resistance is not recognized, but the coating layer becomes streaky after long-term use. There are cases in which the surface smoothness is deteriorated due to the uniform wear, an offset phenomenon is caused, and the fixing property is deteriorated. this is,
This is because a fine powder filler such as carbon has a fine particle size and does not have a so-called filler effect that strengthens the resin. Also,
It has a drawback that the dispersibility is poor and secondary agglomeration is likely to occur, and an amount more than necessary has to be used in order to satisfy the electrostatic offset resistance.

Further, whisker-shaped single crystal fibers such as potassium titanate have a relatively large specific surface area and thus have a good electrostatic offset resistance, but also have a small effect of improving wear resistance. It is considered that this material is relatively brittle because the material is a whisker, and it is difficult to take the three-dimensional cross-linking structure required for reinforcing the strength of the resin in the fluororesin.

On the other hand, the above-mentioned (b) means for applying a releasing agent such as silicone oil, (c) means for cleaning by rubbing, (d)
The bias applying means is an auxiliary offset preventing means for the fixing roller having the offset preventing coating layer (a) formed thereon. However, by supplying oil to the surface of the fixing roller by the release agent applying means, dirt can be reduced, but the wettability of the oil is poor, and it becomes uneven or mottled so that uniform application is not possible. It was difficult. Therefore, the amount of oil supplied must be increased, and problems such as oil dripping on the recording material and spots occur. Also,
Regarding (c) and (d), the effect was not effective.

[0012]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object thereof is an offset phenomenon that appears when unfixed toner remains on a fixing roller and is retransferred and fixed on an indefinite part of a recording material. Fixing roller, which can prevent
To provide a fixing device and an image forming apparatus using the same, and a manufacturing method of a fixing roller.

[0013]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a fixing roller used in a fixing device of an image forming apparatus, wherein a roller core portion and an offset prevention coating layer formed on an outer peripheral surface of the roller core portion. And a conductive protective layer formed while maintaining at least continuity on the offset prevention coating layer, and a lubricating molecular layer formed by directly fixing the molecular end to the conductive protective layer. The fixing roller is characterized by being provided. With such a configuration, the offset prevention coating layer of the fixing roller is provided with a conductive protective layer for preventing surface shape change and abrasion due to friction of the roller surface, and for preventing electrification, and on the conductive protective layer. Non-adhesiveness to developing agents such as toner, since the molecular end of the lubricating molecular layer capable of sustaining abrasion resistance, lubricity and low surface free energy is directly fixed to the conductive protective layer. Further, it is possible to provide a high-quality and highly durable fixing roller for an image forming apparatus, which can effectively prevent a so-called offset phenomenon while maintaining non-adhesiveness and reduce the occurrence of rubbing wear and scratches.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the fixing roller of the first aspect, the offset prevention coating layer is made of a material containing a fluororesin as a main component. With such a structure, in addition to the effect of the invention of claim 1, the use of a material mainly containing a fluororesin having a high mold release property and a low surface free energy for the offset prevention coating layer provides higher quality and high quality. A durable fixing roller for an image forming apparatus can be provided.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the fixing roller according to the first aspect, the conductive protective layer is made of a material containing amorphous carbon as a main component. With such a configuration, in addition to the action of the invention of claim 1, the roller surface is protected to prevent electrostatic offset of the fixing roller,
It is possible to provide a fixing roller for an image forming apparatus that can maintain the non-adhesive and non-adhesive effects of a developer such as toner while maintaining the conductivity of the roller surface, and that has high quality and high durability.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the fixing roller according to the first aspect, the lubricating molecular layer is made of a material containing a lubricating polymer containing a perfluoroalkyl group as a side chain as a main component. And With such a structure, in addition to the function of the invention of claim 1, a material mainly containing a lubricating polymer having a side chain of a perfluoroalkyl group having lubricity and low surface free energy in the outermost surface layer of the fixing roller is used. Since the lubricous molecular layer is formed, it is possible to provide a fixing roller of an image forming apparatus which is excellent in lubricity, wear resistance, and releasability, and which has higher quality and durability.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the fixing roller according to the first aspect, the image forming apparatus is an electrophotographic image forming apparatus. With such a configuration, the environment inside and outside the electrophotographic image forming apparatus,
That is, since it is possible to provide a fixing roller having a surface excellent in weather resistance and corrosion resistance against temperature change, humidity change, presence of floating active or inactive chemical substance, it is possible to provide a highly durable and high-quality electrophotographic type fixing roller. It is possible to provide a fixing roller that enables an image forming apparatus.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the fixing roller according to the first aspect, the fixing roller is a heat fixing roller. With such a configuration, a fixing roller having a surface excellent in weather resistance and corrosion resistance against the environment in which the heat fixing roller is used, that is, temperature change, humidity change, floating active or inactive chemical substance is provided. Since it can be provided, a highly durable and high quality fixing roller for the heat fixing roller can be provided.

According to a seventh aspect of the invention, an offset prevention coating layer formed on the outer peripheral surface of the roller core portion, a conductive protection layer formed on the offset prevention coating layer while maintaining at least continuity, and a molecule A method of manufacturing a fixing roller comprising a lubricating molecular layer having an end directly fixed to the conductive protective layer, wherein the lubricating molecular layer is formed by a photo-oxidative polymerization reaction. This is a method of manufacturing a characteristic fixing roller. With such a configuration, the offset prevention coating layer of the fixing roller is provided with a conductive protective layer for preventing shape change and abrasion, and on the protective layer, lubricity is provided by a photo-oxidative polymerization reaction process in vacuum. And a molecule having a low surface free energy is directly immobilized on the conductive protective layer to form a lubricious molecular layer that is hard to drop off, so that a high quality and highly durable image forming apparatus can be fixed. A roller manufacturing method can be provided.

According to an eighth aspect of the present invention, an offset prevention coating layer formed on the outer peripheral surface of the roller core portion, a conductive protection layer formed on the offset prevention coating layer while maintaining at least continuity, and a molecule. A method of manufacturing a fixing roller comprising a lubricating molecular layer having an end directly fixed to the conductive protective layer, the method comprising: forming the lubricating molecular layer by a plasma oxidation polymerization reaction. This is a method of manufacturing a characteristic fixing roller. With such a configuration, the offset prevention coating layer of the fixing roller is provided with a conductive protective layer for preventing shape change and abrasion, and on the protective layer, lubricity is provided by a plasma oxidation polymerization reaction process in vacuum. And a molecule having a low surface free energy is directly immobilized on the conductive protective layer to form a lubricious molecular layer that is hard to drop off, so that a high quality and highly durable image forming apparatus can be fixed. A roller manufacturing method can be provided.

According to a ninth aspect of the present invention, an offset prevention coating layer formed on the outer peripheral surface of the roller core portion, a conductive protection layer formed on the offset prevention coating layer while maintaining at least continuity, and a molecule. A method of manufacturing a fixing roller comprising a lubricating molecular layer having an end directly fixed to the conductive protective layer, wherein the lubricating molecular layer is formed by a photo-assisted vapor deposition polymerization reaction. And a method of manufacturing a fixing roller. With such a configuration, the offset prevention coating layer of the fixing roller is provided with a conductive protective layer for preventing shape change and wear, and on the protective layer,
Since a molecule having lubricity and low surface free energy is directly immobilized on the conductive protective layer by a photo-assisted vapor deposition polymerization reaction process in vacuum, a lubricous molecular layer that is hard to drop is formed. Therefore, it is possible to provide a method of manufacturing a fixing roller of a high quality and high durability image forming apparatus.

A tenth aspect of the present invention is a fixing device for an image forming apparatus, comprising the fixing roller according to any one of the first to sixth aspects. With such a configuration, the fixing device of the image forming apparatus has a surface having excellent weather resistance and corrosion resistance against the environment in which the fixing device is used, that is, temperature changes, humidity changes, floating active or the presence of inactive chemical substances. Since the fixing roller can be provided, the fixing device of the image forming apparatus having high durability and high quality can be provided.

An eleventh aspect of the invention is an image forming apparatus including the fixing device according to the tenth aspect. With such a configuration, the environment in which the image forming apparatus is used, that is, temperature change, humidity change, floating activity,
Alternatively, since it is possible to provide a fixing roller having a surface excellent in weather resistance and corrosion resistance against the presence of an inert chemical substance, it is possible to provide a highly durable and high quality image forming apparatus.

[0024]

1 is a schematic perspective view of a fixing roller according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a schematic partial cross-sectional view of the fixing roller according to the exemplary embodiment of the present invention. The fixing roller 1 is made of, for example, aluminum alloy A505.
A primer layer (not shown) such as PAI is applied to the surface of a metal cored bar 2 (roller core portion in claims) 2 according to a conventional method, and then an offset prevention coating layer is laminated thereon.
As shown in FIG. 2, the offset prevention coating layer 3 is formed on the metal cored bar 2 via a primer layer (not shown).

The conductive protective layer 4 is formed without covering the entire surface of the offset prevention coating layer 3 and maintaining continuity in the surface direction. Here, the purpose of forming the conductive protective layer 4 without completely covering the entire surface of the offset prevention coating layer 3 and maintaining continuity in the surface direction is to prevent the offset prevention coating layer 3 from being a developer such as a toner. This is because it serves as a hard protective layer that protects the surface of the fixing roller while maintaining non-adhesiveness that prevents adhesion and sticking retention, and in addition, this protective layer realizes conductivity on the surface of the fixing roller. Further, the conductive protection layer 4 is provided with a lubricating thin film as described later. The reason why the conductive protective layer 4 is provided with a lubricating thin film is that the conductive protective layer 4 generally has a large surface free energy as compared with the offset prevention coating layer 3. This is to realize free energy. It is shown as the lubricious molecular layer 5 in FIG.

FIG. 3 is a schematic partial sectional view for explaining thin film formation on the fixing roller according to the embodiment of the present invention.
Here, as shown in the figure, the lubricous molecular layer 5 is in a state in which the end of the molecular chain 6 is directly immobilized on the surface of the conductive protective layer 4. The conductive protective layer 4 formed on the offset prevention coating layer 3 of the fixing roller and the lubricating molecular layer 5 formed on the surface of the fixing roller include a developer such as toner, hard components contained therein, paper dust, and the like. Non-adhesion, non-adhesion to inorganic substances such as foreign matter and dust, organic fine particles, fine powder or chemically active ionizing gas, and charged fine particles that easily physically adhere,
The fixing roller has a high durability because of its physical properties such as lubricity and low surface free energy, which fulfills the action of abrasion resistance and the like, and compensates for the defect of the anti-offset coating layer 3 which is originally high in releasability. give.

FIG. 4 is a schematic partial sectional view for explaining each action on the layers of the fixing roller according to the embodiment of the present invention. In this case, as shown in FIG.
The conductive protective layer 4 is formed so as not to completely cover the entire surface and maintain continuity in the surface direction. In some cases, it is desirable that the conductive protective layer 4 is formed without being completely covered. The conductive protective layer 4 is a thin film of amorphous carbon, and is formed with good adhesion after the surface of the offset prevention coating layer 3 is activated. A thin film of a lubricating molecular layer is formed on a hard conductive protective layer 4 of an amorphous carbon thin film. Even when the developer such as toner is melted or solidified and enters the gap between the conductive protective layers 4, the surface of the offset prevention coating layer 3 itself has a releasing action and thus exhibits non-adhesion and non-adhesiveness. Since this gap (gap) is smaller than the size of the isolated body itself such as toner, it is more difficult to adhere and stick to it in a state where it is melted and solidified to have a large volume. Also,
When an inorganic hard foreign substance 33 such as calcium carbonate, which is one of the paper additives, comes to the roller surface, most of the surface of the offset prevention coating layer 3 is hard and has lubricity even if it has an action such as friction or indentation. Since it is covered with a certain surface, it is very unlikely that the surface will be deformed, scratched, or adhered.

Here, it is desirable that the average cross-over size of the region that is not covered with the conductive protective layer 4 and the lubricating molecular layer 5 is smaller than the average particle size of the foreign matter. In addition, the conductive protective layer 4 and the lubricating molecular layer 5 are
Depending on the characteristics of the toner and the like, the entire surface of the offset prevention coating layer 3 may be covered. FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram of a gas phase polymerization reaction device for producing a fixing roller according to an embodiment of the present invention.

The fixing device of the image forming apparatus of the present invention may be applied to the fixing device of the image forming apparatus by using the fixing roller according to the above-described embodiment by using a known technique.

Further, in the image forming apparatus of the present invention, the fixing roller according to the above-mentioned embodiment may be applied to the image forming apparatus by using a known technique.

[0031]

Embodiments (Embodiment 1) This Embodiment 1 with reference to FIG.
Will be explained. The method for producing the lubricative molecular layer in the production of the fixing roller in Example 1 is based on the photo-oxidative polymerization reaction. As described above, a primer layer such as PAI is coated on the surface of a metal core metal (roller core portion) 1 such as aluminum alloy A5052 according to a conventional method, and then an offset prevention coating layer 3 having a thickness of about 18 μm is formed thereon by a conventional method. It was laminated in a film thickness. Among the fluorine-containing resins, the offset prevention coating layer 3 is, here,
A PFA (tetrafluoroethylene-perfluoroalkyl vinyl ether copolymer) resin which has excellent heat resistance and releasability and is easy to form a film is adopted, but the present invention is not limited to this. The offset prevention coating layer 3 is fixed to the roller core metal by, for example, electrostatically coating a fine powder material or applying a water-soluble dispersion and then firing. A conductive protective layer 4 is formed on the offset prevention coating layer 3 as will be described later. However, in some cases, the offset prevention coating layer 3 may be formed of thermal carbon due to the charging characteristics of the developer such as toner. In some cases, a fluorine-containing resin material filled with a conductive carbon fine powder such as the above at a ratio of several wt% is used.

The conductive protective layer 4 is a thin film of amorphous carbon, and its thickness is preferably about 50 nm to 0.2 μm. After activating the surface of the offset-preventing coating layer 3 by heating in a vacuum for degassing or reverse-sputtering, the conductive protective layer 4 targets graphite as the target in an inert gas such as argon or in an inert gas and methane. It is formed by sputtering in a mixed gas of hydrocarbon gas. However, the method is not limited to this method. An organic compound such as a hydrocarbon gas or acetone is formed by plasma CVD using a single gas or a gas mixed with hydrogen gas or argon, or the above organic compound is ionized by using high frequency power to apply a voltage to the target. It is also possible by an ion plating method that is formed on the surface of the processed material.

FIG. 5 is a schematic view of a gas phase polymerization reaction device for forming the fixing roller as described above. Referring to the reference numerals of FIG. 5, 10 is a vacuum container, 11 is a roller, and 12
Is a work holder, 13 is a rotation mechanism, 14 is a control system, 1
5 is a light source for photoreaction, 16 is a mass spectrometer, 17 is a measurement control system, 18 is a spectroscopic analyzer, 19 is a measurement control system, 20 is a gas introduction system, 21 is a vacuum valve, 22 is a vacuum exhaust device, 23
Is a material evaporation source, 24 is a sputtering power source (control system),
Reference numeral 25 is a control system, 26 is a discharge tube (discharge tube), 27 is an electromagnet, 28 and 29 are valves (gas introduction system), 30 is a microwave waveguide, and 31 is a radio wave oscillation power supply.

When the amorphous carbon thin film of the conductive protective layer 4 is formed by the sputtering method, the material evaporation source 2 of FIG.
3 (material is a graphite target) using the sputtering power supply 24 and the control system 25 in the above-described manner, and then, in the same vacuum container 10, the molecular ends are fixed to the conductive protective layer 4. Lubricating molecular layer 5
Is formed. The lubricious molecular layer 5 is a polymer thin film containing a perfluoroalkyl group in its side chain. Specifically, perfluoropolyether composed of carbon and fluorine is used. As the main chain _{structure, (- CF 2 CF 2 CF} 2O -)
_{n, (CF (CF 3)} CF 2O -) n, (- CF (CF 3) C
F (CF ₃₎ O-) those having a structure such as _n are used.

The vapor phase polymerization reactor forms a polymer thin film on the conductive protective layer 4. The roller 11 on which the conductive protective layer 4 is formed is fixed to the work holder 12 so that the rotation mechanism 13 can control the rotation during the processing. A control system 14 having a bias voltage application and temperature control function is attached to the roller 11. Vacuum container 1
0 is connected to the vacuum exhaust device 22 via the vacuum valve 21, and the background pressure can reach up to about 10 ⁻⁵ Pa. The vacuum container 10 includes a mass spectrometer 16 and a measurement control system 17 for monitoring a treatment process, and a spectroscopic analyzer 18 and a measurement control system 19 for the spectroscopic analyzer 18.
Has been installed to monitor the process in vacuum.

On the other hand, the vacuum vessel 10 is additionally provided with a plasma generator so that plasma can be generated by plasma discharge using a high frequency coil electrode or an antenna or other discharge. In this embodiment, an ECR (electron cyclotron resonance) plasma source capable of performing electrodeless discharge, high electron density and low temperature process is shown. A discharge gas and a reaction gas are introduced into the discharge tube (discharge cylinder) 26 via valves 28 and 29. An electromagnet 27 is arranged on the outer circumference of the discharge tube, and has a microwave waveguide 30 and a radio wave oscillation power supply 31 for generating a microwave discharge. Further, the vacuum container 10 is provided with a light source 15 for photoreaction through an appropriate window material (not shown) so that strong ultraviolet light can be emitted.

With reference to FIG. 5, a method for forming the lubricating molecular layer 5 having the molecular ends fixed to the conductive protective layer 4 by a photo-oxidative polymerization reaction will be described below. First, the roller 1 in which the conductive protective layer 4 is formed in the vacuum container 10 which is evacuated.
Install 1. Before forming the lubricating molecular layer 5, oxygen etching by plasma or irradiation of ultraviolet light while flowing oxygen gas to pre-oxidize the surface of the conductive protective layer 4 to increase the surface oxygen concentration and increase the efficiency of surface oxidative polymerization. To increase the concentration of the molecular ends immobilized on the surface. The mass spectrometer 16 and the spectroscopic analyzer 18 are used for controlling the process in vacuum, but are also used for controlling the end point of the above process. After the above process is completed, a mixed gas is introduced from the gas introduction system 20 into the vicinity of the surface of the roller 11 so that, for example, hexafluoropropene and oxygen as raw materials for the lubricative molecular layer 5 are provided in a molar ratio of about 1: 1. It is introduced into the vacuum container 10 until the pressure reaches 10 Pa. At this time, the control system 14 moves the roller 11-
While cooling to 5 to −15 ° C., strong ultraviolet light of about 300 W is applied to the roller surface from the reaction light source 15 (for example, a high pressure mercury lamp) for about 40 to 70 seconds. During this time, the roller 11 is rotating at a low speed in the circumferential direction. Then the vacuum container 10
By returning the inside of the chamber to room temperature while evacuating it, the low molecular weight fluorocarbon compound which is a by-product of the surface oxidative polymerization is removed from the roller 11. By this series of processing, the lubricous molecular layer 5 is formed with a film thickness of several nm to several tens nm.

The fact that the molecular ends of the lubricating molecular layer 5 are fixed on the surface of the conductive protective layer 4 has been confirmed by mass spectrometry and high-sensitivity reflection method FT-IR taken out after the above treatment. Mass element ratio lubricating molecule layer 5 in the analysis (-C ₃ F ₆₀ -) matches the element ratio of _n, highly sensitive reflection method FT
In -IR, a peak attributable to the C-F bond stretching vibration mode was confirmed around 1250 cm ^-1 .

(Embodiment 2) The method for producing the lubricating molecular layer in the method for producing the fixing roller of the second embodiment is based on the plasma oxidation polymerization reaction. Also in this example, the gas phase polymerization reaction device of FIG. 5 is used. Similar to the first embodiment, the roller 11
Forms a conductive protective layer 4 of a thin film of amorphous carbon on the offset prevention coating layer 3 which is a fluorine-containing resin such as PFA, and performs the same pretreatment (plasma etching,
Light irradiation). The surface of the conductive protective layer 4 is pre-oxidized to increase the surface oxygen concentration to increase the efficiency of surface oxidative polymerization and increase the concentration of molecular terminals immobilized on the surface. Subsequent processing for forming the directly fixed lubricating molecular layer on the conductive protective layer 4 is the same as that shown in the first embodiment. Hexafluoropropene, for example, is used as the raw material of the lubricious molecular layer 5. In the second embodiment, plasma oxidation polymerization reaction is used.

The plasma source has a magnetic field strength of 875 Gauss.
Generated by the electromagnet 27, the microwave frequency 2.4
An ECR plasma source equipped with a 5 GHz radio wave (microwave) oscillation power supply 31 and a microwave waveguide 30 was used.
The plasma source has a gas introduction system for gas phase reaction and has a valve 2
From 8 and 29, a mixed gas of inert gas such as argon gas, fluorocarbon gas and oxygen is introduced. Argon gas is separated into electrons with high density and high electron energy and positive ions by ionization. When fluorocarbon, such as CF _4, is introduced into this, the molecular density of CF ₂ which is a polyvalent carbon species increases and becomes an active molecular species. Oxygen gas is ionized and becomes active. The power of the ECR plasma was appropriately 200 to 300W.

The ECR plasma has a microwave power of 300.
At W and a pressure of 10 ⁻² Pa, the electron temperature reached 8 eV, and the electron density reached the order of 10 ¹¹ cm ⁻³ . The action of this plasma is used to generate high-density active species,
A thin film of the lubricating molecular layer could be formed on the surface 1 by the plasma oxidation polymerization reaction. This can be confirmed by using the mass spectrometry method or the high-sensitivity reflection FT-IR method as in Example 1.

(Embodiment 3) The method for producing the lubricative molecular layer in the production of the fixing roller in this Embodiment 3 is based on the photo-assisted vapor deposition polymerization reaction. Also in this example, the gas phase polymerization reaction device of FIG. 5 is used. Similar to the first embodiment, the roller 11
Is a thin film conductive protection layer 4 of amorphous carbon formed on the offset prevention coating layer 3 which is a fluorine-containing resin such as PFA, and the same pretreatment (plasma etching,
Light irradiation). The surface of the conductive protective layer 4 is pre-oxidized to increase the surface oxygen concentration to increase the efficiency of surface oxidative polymerization and increase the concentration of molecular terminals immobilized on the surface. Subsequent processing for forming the lubricating molecular layer to be directly fixed on the conductive protective layer 4 is the same as that in the first embodiment. In the present invention, for example, PFPE (perfluoropolyether) oil is used as the raw material of the lubricious molecular layer 5.

An evaporation source 23 for heating and evaporating PFPE, which is low vapor pressure oil, is installed in place of the sputtering target. The evaporation source 23 is a control system 24 and 25 having functions such as a heating mechanism and a diameter (aperture) control of the evaporation port.
Are connected. About 80 evaporation source containing PFPE oil
When heated to 0 ° C., the vapor pressure gradually increases and evaporates in a vacuum to deposit on the surface of the roller 11 in the cooled state. At this time, while supplying oxygen gas and hydrocarbon gas for the photochemical reaction from the gas introduction system 20, the ultraviolet light irradiation as used in Example 1 is performed. Strong UV light of about 250 W is applied to one surface of the roller for about 40 to 50 seconds from the reaction light source 15 (for example, a high-pressure mercury lamp). During this period, the roller 11 is rotating at a low speed in the circumferential direction. Then the vacuum container 10
By returning the inside of the chamber to room temperature while evacuating it, the low molecular weight fluorocarbon compound, which is a by-product of the surface oxidative polymerization of the roller 11, is removed. By this series of processing, the lubricous molecular layer 5 was formed with a film thickness of several nm to several tens nm. This can be confirmed by using the mass spectrometry method or the high-sensitivity reflection FT-IR method as in Example 1.

(Comparative Example) The above Examples 1 to 3 are compared with a comparative example. Here, the comparative example is a fixing roller manufactured by a conventional method, in which PFA is fired after powder coating on a raw tube, and then refired after polishing processing. Example 1 described above
Samples Nos. 3 to 3 were prepared by the respective methods using the same tube as the comparative example. The fixing rollers according to the comparative example and Examples 1 to 3 were mounted on a fixing unit of an electrophotographic copying machine and used as a heating fixing roller to compare their characteristics. The results are shown in Table 1 below.

[0045]

[Table 1]

[0046]

According to the first aspect of the invention, the offset prevention coating layer of the fixing roller is provided with a conductive protective layer for preventing the surface shape change and abrasion due to friction of the roller surface, and Since a lubricating molecular layer capable of sustaining abrasion resistance, lubricity and low surface free energy is formed on the protective layer by directly fixing the molecular end to the conductive protective layer, the toner image A high-quality, high-durability fixing roller for an image forming apparatus capable of effectively preventing a so-called offset phenomenon by maintaining non-adhesiveness and non-adhesiveness to an agent and reducing occurrence of rubbing wear and scratches it can.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, in addition to the effect of the first aspect of the invention, by using a material containing a fluororesin as a main component, which has a high releasability and a low surface free energy, in the offset prevention coating layer. Further, it is possible to provide a fixing roller for an image forming apparatus which has higher quality and higher durability.

According to the invention of claim 3, in addition to the effect of the invention of claim 1, in order to prevent electrostatic offset of the fixing roller,
A fixing roller for an image forming apparatus, which protects the roller surface and can maintain the non-adhesive and non-adhesive effect of a developer such as toner while maintaining the conductivity of the roller surface, and which has high quality and high durability. Can be provided.

According to the invention of claim 4, in addition to the effect of the invention of claim 1, a lubricating polymer having a side chain of a perfluoroalkyl group having lubricity and low surface free energy in the outermost surface layer of the fixing roller. Since the lubricative molecular layer is formed of a material containing as a main component, it is possible to provide a fixing roller for an image forming apparatus, which is excellent in lubricity, abrasion resistance, and releasability and which has higher quality and durability.

According to the invention of claim 5, the internal and external environments of the electrophotographic image forming apparatus, that is, temperature changes,
Since it is possible to provide a fixing roller having a surface excellent in weather resistance and corrosion resistance against changes in humidity, floating active substances, or the presence of inactive chemical substances, high durability and high quality can be provided.
A fixing roller that enables an electrophotographic image forming apparatus can be provided.

According to the invention of claim 6, it is excellent in weather resistance and corrosion resistance against the environment in which the heat-fixing roller is used, that is, temperature change, humidity change, floating active or inactive chemical substance. Since the fixing roller having the surface can be provided, a highly durable and high quality fixing roller for the heat fixing roller can be provided.

According to the invention of claim 7, the offset prevention coating layer of the fixing roller is provided with a conductive protective layer for preventing shape change and abrasion, and the photooxidation in vacuum on the protective layer. Due to the polymerization reaction process, molecules with low lubricity and low surface free energy are directly immobilized on the conductive protective layer to form a lubricious molecular layer that does not easily fall off, resulting in high quality and high durability. It is possible to provide a method for manufacturing the fixing roller of the image forming apparatus.

According to the invention of claim 8, the offset prevention coating layer of the fixing roller is provided with a conductive protective layer for preventing shape change and abrasion, and the plasma oxidation in vacuum is performed on the protective layer. Due to the polymerization reaction process, molecules with low lubricity and low surface free energy are directly immobilized on the conductive protective layer to form a lubricious molecular layer that does not easily fall off, resulting in high quality and high durability. The fixing roller of the image forming apparatus can be provided.

According to the ninth aspect of the invention, the offset prevention coating layer of the fixing roller is provided with a conductive protective layer for preventing shape change and abrasion, and the optical assist in vacuum is provided on the protective layer. By vapor deposition polymerization reaction process, molecules with lubricity and low surface free energy are directly immobilized on the conductive protective layer to form a lubricious molecular layer that is hard to drop, so high quality and high durability It is possible to provide a fixing roller for a flexible image forming apparatus.

According to the tenth aspect of the invention, the weather resistance and the corrosion resistance against the environment in which the fixing device of the image forming apparatus is used, that is, the temperature change, the humidity change, the floating active or the presence of the inactive chemical substance. Since it is possible to provide the fixing roller having an excellent surface, it is possible to provide the fixing device of the image forming apparatus having high durability and high quality.

According to the eleventh aspect of the invention, the weather resistance and the corrosion resistance are excellent against the environment in which the image forming apparatus is used, that is, the temperature change, the humidity change, the floating active substance or the presence of the inactive chemical substance. Since the fixing roller having the surface can be provided, it is possible to provide the image forming apparatus having high durability and high quality.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view of a fixing roller according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic partial cross-sectional view of a fixing roller according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a schematic partial cross-sectional view illustrating thin film formation on a fixing roller according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a schematic partial cross-sectional view illustrating the operation of each layer on the fixing roller according to the exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram of a gas phase polymerization reaction device for producing a fixing roller according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 fixing roller 2 Metal core (roller core) 3 Offset prevention coating layer 4 Conductive protective layer 5 Lubricating molecular layer 6 molecular chains 7 Molecular chain end 10 vacuum container 11 Laura 12 work holder 13 Rotation mechanism 14 Control system 15 Light source for light reaction 16 mass spectrometer 17 Measurement control system 18 Spectroscopic analyzer 19 Measurement control system 20 gas introduction system 21 vacuum valve 22 Vacuum exhaust system 23 Material evaporation source 24 Sputtering power supply (control system) 25 control system 26 Discharge tube (discharge tube) 27 electromagnet 28, 29 valve (gas introduction system) 30 microwave waveguide 31 Radio wave power supply

─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁷ Identification code FI theme code (reference) // C10N 30:06 C10N 30:06 40:06 40:06 (72) Inventor Tatsuya Sato Ota-ku, Tokyo Nakamagome 1-Chome 3-6 F-term in Ricoh Co., Ltd. (reference) 2H033 AA09 BB03 BB04 BB05 BB13 BB14 3J103 AA02 AA14 AA72 FA05 FA12 FA14 FA18 GA66 HA03 HA43 HA60 4F100 AA37C AB01A AB10 AK01D AK17B16A10A10ABAA00ABAA00ABAA00ABAA00ABAA00ABAA00ABAA00ABAA10ABAA00ABAA00ABAA00ABAA10ABAA00ABAA00ABAA00ABAA00ABAA00ABAA00ABAA00ABAA00ABAA00ABAA00ABAA00ABAA10ABAA00ABAA10ABAA00ABA10ABA10A04 EJ612 JA12C JG01C JK16D 4H104 CD04A LA03 PA04 QA12

Claims (11)

[Claims] 1. A fixing roller used for a fixing device of an image forming apparatus, comprising a roller core portion, an offset prevention coating layer formed on an outer peripheral surface of the roller core portion, and at least continuous on the offset prevention coating layer. A fixing roller characterized by comprising: a conductive protective layer formed to maintain the property, and a lubricating molecular layer formed by directly fixing the molecular ends to the conductive protective layer. 2. The fixing roller according to claim 1, wherein the offset prevention coating layer is made of a material containing a fluororesin as a main component. 3. The fixing roller according to claim 1, wherein the conductive protective layer is made of a material containing amorphous carbon as a main component. 4. The fixing roller according to claim 1, wherein the lubricating molecular layer is made of a material containing a lubricating polymer having a perfluoroalkyl group as a side chain as a main component. 5. The fixing roller according to claim 1, wherein the image forming apparatus is an electrophotographic image forming apparatus. 6. The fixing roller according to claim 1, wherein the fixing roller is a heat fixing roller. 7. An offset prevention coating layer formed on an outer peripheral surface of a roller core portion, a conductive protection layer formed on the offset prevention coating layer while maintaining at least continuity, and a molecular terminal directly attached to the offset protection coating layer. A method of manufacturing a fixing roller, comprising: a lubricating molecular layer fixed to a conductive protective layer; wherein the lubricating molecular layer is formed by a photo-oxidative polymerization reaction. Manufacturing method. 8. An offset prevention coating layer formed on the outer peripheral surface of a roller core portion, a conductive protection layer formed on the offset prevention coating layer while maintaining at least continuity, and a molecular terminal directly attached to the offset protection coating layer. A method of manufacturing a fixing roller, comprising: a lubricating molecular layer fixed to a conductive protective layer; wherein the lubricating molecular layer is formed by a plasma oxidation polymerization reaction. Manufacturing method. 9. An offset prevention coating layer formed on an outer peripheral surface of a roller core portion, a conductive protection layer formed on the offset prevention coating layer while maintaining at least continuity, and a molecular terminal directly attached to the offset protection coating layer. A method of manufacturing a fixing roller, comprising a lubricative molecular layer fixed to a conductive protective layer, wherein the lubricating molecular layer is formed by a photo-assisted vapor deposition polymerization reaction. Roller manufacturing method. 10. A fixing device for an image forming apparatus, comprising the fixing roller according to claim 1. Description: 11. An image forming apparatus comprising the fixing device according to claim 10.