JP2008157982A - Cleaning device, cartridge and image forming apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a cleaning device having high cleaning property and contributing to reduction of the running cost, and to provide a cartridge and an image forming apparatus equipped with the cleaning device. <P>SOLUTION: The cleaning device includes: a plate member to be in contact with the surface of an image holder which moves while holding an image on its surface, the image comprising a toner showing a storage modulus of 1×10<SP>8</SP>Pa to 7×10<SP>8</SP>Pa at 40°C, and to remove an unnecessary substance from the holder surface; and a lubricant supplying part to supply a lubricant to the surface of the image holder in an upstream side of the plate member in the moving direction of the image holder. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a cleaning device that cleans deposits adhering to the surface of an object to be cleaned, a cartridge including the cleaning device, and an image forming apparatus.

  Conventionally, a development obtained by forming an electrostatic latent image on the surface of an image holding member for holding an image and developing the electrostatic latent image with a developer containing toner and a carrier contained in a developing device. 2. Description of the Related Art Image forming apparatuses that transfer and fix an image on a transfer medium to form an image on the transfer medium are known.

  Such an image forming apparatus includes a cleaning blade for cleaning the residue remaining on the surface of the image holding member after the developed image is transferred onto the transfer target (for example, Patent Documents). 1).

  In recent years, for the purpose of improving the image quality, the toner has been made smaller in particle diameter, and accordingly, the contact pressure of the cleaning blade with respect to the image holding member has to be set higher than before.

Furthermore, for the purpose of reducing running cost, a toner having a so-called low melting point corresponding to low-temperature fixing has been proposed.
JP 2005-309383 A

  When the contact pressure of the cleaning blade against the image carrier is set high in order to cope with the reduction in the toner particle size, the heat generation temperature due to friction between the image carrier and the cleaning blade increases, so the low melting point is reduced. The toner that is included melts and sticks thinly to the surface of the image carrier, so that so-called filming is likely to occur. Moreover, since there is a possibility that the wear of the surface of the image holding member may increase, the result goes against the flow of running cost reduction.

  In view of the above circumstances, an object of the present invention is to provide a cleaning device that has high cleaning properties and contributes to a reduction in running cost, a cartridge including the cleaning device, and an image forming apparatus.

In order to achieve the above object, the cleaning device of the present invention comprises:
An image is held on the surface and moved, and the surface of the image holding member on which an image made of toner having a storage elastic modulus at 40 ° C. of 1 × 10 ⁸ Pa to 7 × 10 ⁸ Pa is formed is brought into contact with the surface. A plate-like member for removing unnecessary materials;
And a lubricant supply unit for supplying a lubricant to the surface of the image carrier on the upstream side of the plate-like member in the movement of the image carrier.

A toner having a storage elastic modulus at 40 ° C. of 1 × 10 ⁸ Pa or more and 7 × 10 ⁸ Pa or less is a kind of toner having a so-called low melting point, but the cleaning device of the present invention lubricates upstream of the plate-like member. Since the components are supplied to the image carrier, the frictional force between the image carrier and the cleaning blade is suppressed, and the occurrence of filming and wear of the image carrier due to the increase in heat generation temperature due to friction is suppressed. ing. Therefore, according to the cleaning device of the present invention, the cleaning performance can be improved and the running cost can be reduced.

  Here, it is preferable that the lubricant supply unit includes a brush roll that rotates in contact with the surface of the image carrier, and a solid lubricant that contacts the brush roll.

  In this way, the lubricating component can be supplied to the image carrier with a simple configuration.

  Further, it is also a preferable aspect that the toner has a volume average particle diameter of 80 nm or more and 300 nm or less of silica added externally.

  For example, when the volume average particle diameter is less than 80 nm, the silica as the external additive tends to be embedded in the surface of the toner particles, so that the adjustment of the charging performance tends to be insufficient, so-called fogging is caused, and When the average particle diameter exceeds 300 nm, the toner particles are easily separated from the toner particles and contaminate members in the apparatus. Therefore, when this cleaning device is for cleaning an image carrier on which an image made of toner to which silica having a volume average particle size of 80 nm or more and 300 nm or less is externally added is formed, for example, the controllability of developing strength is reduced. Generation | occurrence | production of charging inhibition etc. can be suppressed.

In order to achieve the above object, the cartridge of the present invention comprises:
An image carrier for holding an image on the surface;
A plate-like member that contacts the surface of the image carrier and removes unnecessary materials from the surface;
And a lubricant supply unit for supplying a lubricant to the surface of the image carrier on the upstream side of the plate-like member in the movement of the image carrier.

In order to achieve the above object, an image forming apparatus of the present invention comprises:
An image carrier that moves while holding an image on the surface;
An image forming unit that forms an image on the image carrier with a toner having a storage elastic modulus at 40 ° C. of 1 × 10 ⁸ Pa to 7 × 10 ⁸ Pa;
A transfer portion that transfers an image from the image carrier to a transfer target; and a plate-like member that removes unwanted matter from the surface by contacting the surface of the image carrier after the image is transferred by the transfer portion And a lubricant supply unit for supplying a lubricant to the surface of the image carrier upstream of the plate-like member and downstream of the transfer unit in the movement of the image carrier;
It is provided with.

  According to the image forming apparatus of the present invention, it is possible to suppress deterioration in image quality and reduce running cost by providing a cleaning device that has high cleaning performance and contributes to reduction in running cost.

  According to the present invention, a cleaning device that has high cleaning properties and contributes to a reduction in running cost, a cartridge including the cleaning device, and a cleaning device that improves image quality and reduces running cost are provided. An image forming apparatus can be provided.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described.

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

  FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a printer 1 according to the present embodiment. The printer 1 includes an image carrier 10, a charger 11, an exposure device 12, a developing device 13, a transfer device 14, and a fixing device. 15, a cleaner 7, a paper feeding device 16, and a paper transport unit 17.

  In the printer 1, exposure light generated by the exposure device 12 based on image data transmitted from the outside is applied to the surface of the image carrier 10 rotated in the direction of arrow A, to which a predetermined charge is applied by the charger 11. Is formed by developing the electrostatic latent image with a developer containing a toner and a magnetic carrier, which is accommodated in a developing device 13 having a developing roll 131. The image is transferred by the transfer roll 14 onto the recording paper that has been pulled out from the paper supply device 16 by the paper transport unit 17 and transported in the direction of arrow B, and is fixed by the fixing device 15 having a low fixing temperature. An image is formed on the paper. Note that the developer containing the toner and the magnetic carrier is stirred in the developing device 13, and the toner is charged by this stirring, and the charged toner is electrostatically attached to the magnetic carrier. The magnetic carrier to which the charged toner is electrostatically attached is held by a developing roll 131 having a magnet inside and is carried to the developing area 130, and becomes a magnetic carrier due to a potential difference between the surface of the image carrier and the developing roll. The adhered toner leaves the carrier and moves to the surface of the image carrier. As a result, the electrostatic latent image formed on the surface of the image carrier is developed with toner.

  Here, the toner used in the printer 1 is coated with silica having a volume average particle diameter of 150 nm as an external additive for adjusting the charging property when stirring with the magnetic carrier.

  This is because silica as an external additive tends to be embedded in the surface of toner particles when the volume average particle diameter is less than 80 nm, for example, and thus the adjustment of the charging performance tends to be insufficient, for example, a large amount of transfer residue. This is because if the volume average particle diameter exceeds 300 nm, the toner particles are easily separated from the toner particles, causing problems such as contamination of the charger.

The toner used in the printer 1 is a small-diameter toner having a storage elastic modulus of 4 × 10 ⁸ Pa at 40 ° C. in order to cope with low-temperature fixability. A toner having a storage elastic modulus of less than 1 × 10 ⁸ Pa at 40 ° C. is so soft that it causes a problem of being easily fixed to an image carrier, while a storage elastic modulus at 40 ° C. of 7 × 10 ⁸ Pa. This is because a toner exceeding Pa causes problems such as an increase in wear of an image carrier and a cleaning blade because it is quite hard. The printer 1 is a monochrome image dedicated machine.

  Further, the printer 1 shown in FIG. 1 includes a cleaner which is an embodiment of the cleaning device of the present invention for cleaning toner remaining on the surface of the image carrier 10 after the developed image is transferred onto the recording paper. 7 is provided. Further, in the printer 1, the cleaner 7 and the image holding body 10 are mounted on a cartridge 20 which is an embodiment of the cartridge of the present invention, and is loaded so that it can be pulled out from the inside of the printer 1. When an image defect caused by the cleaner 7 or the image carrier 10 occurs, the cartridge can be replaced by the user's hand.

  FIG. 2 is a schematic configuration diagram of the cleaner shown in FIG.

  FIG. 2 shows a housing 70, a cleaning blade 71, and a lubricant supply part 72 that constitute the cleaner 7.

  A cleaner 7 shown in FIG. 2 is fixed to the housing 70, a cleaning blade 71 fixed to the housing 70 and contacting the surface of the image carrier 10 to remove unnecessary materials from the surface, and the rotation of the image carrier 10 A lubricant supply unit 72 that supplies a lubricant to the surface of the image carrier 10 upstream of the cleaning blade 71 is configured.

  The lubricant supply unit 72 is in contact with the surface of the image carrier 10 and rotates in the direction of arrow C, the solid lubricant 722 made of zinc stearate in contact with the brush roll 721, and the solid lubricant The arm 723 to which the agent 722 is fixed and the weight 724 for pressing the solid lubricant 722 fixed to the arm 723 against the brush roll 721 are configured. The arm 723 is rotatable about a shaft 7231, and the lubricant supply unit 72 can apply a certain amount of lubricant to the image carrier 10 regardless of the remaining amount of the solid lubricant 722. It can be done.

In the printer 1 of the present embodiment, small particle size toner is used for the purpose of improving the image quality, and the contact pressure of the cleaning blade 71 with respect to the image carrier 10 is set high in order to ensure cleaning performance. . Further, for the purpose of reducing running cost, a low melting point toner having a storage elastic modulus at 40 ° C. of 4 × 10 ⁸ Pa is used, and the fixing temperature of the fixing device 15 is set to a low temperature. Here, in spite of using such a low-melting-point toner, the problem arises when the contact pressure of the cleaning blade with respect to the image carrier is set high. 10 and filming caused by melting of the low melting point toner by frictional heat generated between the cleaning blade 71 and the cleaning blade 71. On the other hand, in the printer 1 of the present embodiment, a lubricant is applied to the surface of the image carrier 10 upstream of the cleaning blade 71 and downstream of the transfer roll 14 in the rotation of the image carrier 10, thereby cleaning the cleaning blade. Filming is prevented by suppressing the friction between 71 and the image carrier 10. This also suppresses the wear of the image carrier 10.

Here, the toner used in the printer 1 of the present embodiment will be described.
In addition to the above, the crystalline resin is more preferably an aliphatic crystalline polyester resin having an appropriate melting point and an alkyl group having 6 or more carbon atoms. The polyester resin having an alkyl group having 6 or more carbon atoms can be obtained by using a polymerizable monomer having an alkyl group having 6 or more carbon atoms in a polyvalent carboxylic acid or polyhydric alcohol, such as dodecenyl succinic acid. However, the present invention is not limited to this.

  Examples of the polyvalent carboxylic acids used in the production of the resin used in the toner include aromatics such as terephthalic acid, isophthalic acid, orthophthalic acid, 1,5-naphthalenedicarboxylic acid, 2,6-naphthalenedicarboxylic acid, and diphenic acid. Aromatic carboxylic acid such as aromatic dicarboxylic acid, p-oxybenzoic acid, p- (hydroxyethoxy) benzoic acid, succinic acid, alkyl succinic acid, alkenyl succinic acid, adipic acid, azelaic acid, sebacic acid, dodecanedicarboxylic acid, etc. Aliphatic dicarboxylic acid, fumaric acid, maleic acid, itaconic acid, mesaconic acid, citraconic acid, hexahydrophthalic acid, tetrahydrophthalic acid, dimer acid, trimer acid, hydrogenated dimer acid, cyclohexane dicarboxylic acid, cyclohexene dicarboxylic acid, etc. Unsaturated aliphatic and alicyclic dicarboxylic acids, etc. , Also can be used other trimellitic acid as a polycarboxylic acid, trimesic acid, and the like trivalent or higher polyvalent carboxylic acids such as pyromellitic acid.

  Examples of the polyhydric alcohol used for the production of the resin include aliphatic polyhydric alcohols, alicyclic polyhydric alcohols, aromatic polyhydric alcohols and the like. Aliphatic polyhydric alcohols include ethylene glycol, propylene glycol, 1,3-propanediol, 2,3-butanediol, 1,4-butanediol, 1,5-pentanediol, 1,6-hexanediol, Ring opening of lactones such as neopentyl glycol, diethylene glycol, dipropylene glycol, dimethylol heptane, 2,2,4-trimethyl-1,3-pentanediol, polyethylene glycol, polypropylene glycol, polytetramethylene glycol, ε-caprolactone Examples include aliphatic diols such as lactone-based polyester polyols obtained by polymerization, triols such as trimethylolethane, trimethylolpropane, glycerin, and pentaerythritol, and tetraols.

  Alicyclic polyhydric alcohols include 1,4-cyclohexanediol, 1,4-cyclohexanedimethanol, spiroglycol, hydrogenated bisphenol A, ethylene oxide adduct and propylene oxide adduct of hydrogenated bisphenol A, tricyclodecane Examples include diol, tricyclodecane dimethanol, dimer diol, hydrogenated dimer diol and the like.

  As aromatic polyhydric alcohols, para-xylene glycol, meta-xylene glycol, ortho-xylene glycol, 1,4-phenylene glycol, ethylene oxide adduct of 1,4-phenylene glycol, bisphenol A, ethylene oxide adduct of bisphenol A and Examples thereof include propylene oxide adducts.

  A monofunctional monomer may be introduced into the polyester resin for the purpose of blocking the polar group at the end of the resin and improving the environmental stability of the toner charging characteristics. Monofunctional monomers include benzoic acid, chlorobenzoic acid, bromobenzoic acid, parahydroxybenzoic acid, sulfobenzoic acid monoammonium salt, sulfobenzoic acid monosodium salt, cyclohexylaminocarbonylbenzoic acid, n-dodecylaminocarbonylbenzoic acid Acid, tertiary butylbenzoic acid, naphthalenecarboxylic acid, 4-methylbenzoic acid, 3-methylbenzoic acid, salicylic acid, thiosalicylic acid, phenylacetic acid, acetic acid, propionic acid, butyric acid, isobutyric acid, octanecarboxylic acid, lauric acid, stearyl Monocarboxylic acids such as acids and lower alkyl esters thereof, or monoalcohols such as aliphatic alcohols, aromatic alcohols, and alicyclic alcohols can be used.

  Other methods for producing the crystalline resin are not particularly limited, and can be produced by a general polyester polymerization method in which an acid component and an alcohol component are reacted. Examples thereof include direct polycondensation and transesterification. Depending on the type of monomer, it is manufactured separately.

  The crystalline resin can be produced at a polymerization temperature of 180 to 230 ° C., and the reaction system is reduced in pressure as necessary to carry out the reaction while removing water and alcohol generated during the condensation. When the monomer is not dissolved or compatible at the reaction temperature, a solvent having a high boiling point may be added as a solubilizer and dissolved. In the polycondensation reaction, the dissolution auxiliary solvent is distilled off. In the case where a monomer having poor compatibility exists in the copolymerization reaction, it is preferable that the monomer having poor compatibility and the monomer and the acid or alcohol to be polycondensed are condensed in advance and then polycondensed together with the main component.

  Catalysts that can be used in the production of crystalline resins include alkali metal compounds such as sodium and lithium; alkaline earth metal compounds such as magnesium and calcium; metal compounds such as zinc, manganese, antimony, titanium, tin, zirconium, and germanium A phosphorous acid compound, a phosphoric acid compound, an amine compound, etc., specifically, the following compounds are mentioned.

  For example, sodium acetate, sodium carbonate, lithium acetate, lithium carbonate, calcium acetate, calcium stearate, magnesium acetate, zinc acetate, zinc stearate, zinc naphthenate, zinc chloride, manganese acetate, manganese naphthenate, titanium tetraethoxide, titanium Tetrapropoxide, titanium tetraisoproxide, titanium tetrabutoxide, antimony trioxide, triphenylantimony, tributylantimony, tin formate, tin oxalate, tetraphenyltin, dibutyltin dichloride, dibutyltin oxide, diphenyltin oxide, zirconium tetrabutoxide, naphthenic acid Zirconium, zirconyl carbonate, zirconyl acetate, zirconyl stearate, zirconyl octylate, germanium oxide, triphenyl Sufaito, tris (2, 4-t-butylphenyl) phosphite, ethyltriphenylphosphonium bromide, triethylamine, compounds such as triphenyl amine. The amount of such a catalyst added is preferably 0.01 to 1.00% by weight based on the total amount of raw materials.

  As melting | fusing point of crystalline resin, Preferably it is 50-100 degreeC, More preferably, it is 60-100 degreeC. When the melting point is lower than 50 ° C., the storage stability of the toner and the storage stability of the toner image after fixing may become a problem. When the melting point is higher than 100 ° C., sufficient low-temperature fixing cannot be obtained as compared with the conventional toner. There is a case.

  In addition, the crystalline resin may show a plurality of melting peaks, but here, the melting point is the maximum peak.

  Furthermore, for example, DSC-7 manufactured by Perkin Elmer can be used for measurement of the resin melting point. The temperature correction of the detection part of this apparatus can be similarly performed by measuring the glass transition point of the resin using the melting points of indium and zinc.

  The crystalline resin used for the toner has a weight average molecular weight (Mw) of 8,000 to 35,000 as measured by gel permeation chromatography (GPC) method in which tetrahydrofuran (THF) is soluble, preferably Is 10,000 to 25,000. When the weight average molecular weight is less than 8,000, the compatibility with the amorphous resin or the release agent proceeds, and plasticity may occur. On the other hand, if it exceeds 35,000, the viscosity at the time of melting the toner increases, and the fixability and image gloss may be impaired. Here, the molecular weight of the resin was measured with a THF solvent using a TSO gel GPC / HLC-9120, a Tosoh column “TSKgel SuperHM-M” (15 cm), and a monodisperse polystyrene standard sample. The molecular weight was calculated using the prepared molecular weight calibration curve. The same measurement was performed for the non-crystalline polyester resin described later.

  The toner preferably has a melting point (mp) measured in accordance with ASTM D3418-8 of crystalline resin of 50 to 100 ° C. When the melting point is less than 50 ° C., the thermal stability of the toner is lowered, and when it exceeds 100 ° C., the image glossiness at the time of toner fixing is lowered.

  Moreover, it is preferable to control the acid value (mg number of KOH necessary for neutralizing 1 g of resin) of the crystalline resin to 5 to 50 mg KOH / g. When the acid value is less than 5 mgKOH / g, the crystalline resin particles form aggregates, which makes it difficult to form a structure with the release agent, and the crystalline resin particles exist independently in the toner. Alternatively, it may grow large and be exposed on the toner surface, which is not preferable from the viewpoint of toner fluidity and chargeability. Further, when the acid value exceeds 50 mgKOH / g, it may be difficult to encapsulate the toner. The toner crystalline resin has an acid value of 5 to 50 mg KOH / g, the amorphous resin has an acid value of 10 to 50 mg KOH / g, the crystalline resin has a melting point of 50 to 100 ° C. according to ASTM D3418-8, and has a weight average molecular weight. (Mw) is 8,000 to 35,000, the glass transition temperature (Tg) of the amorphous resin determined in accordance with ASTM D3418-8 is 50 to 65 ° C., and the weight average molecular weight (Mw) is 20,000. It is preferable that the ratio by weight of the crystalline resin and the amorphous resin is 5/95 to 40/60.

  Next, as the amorphous resin, those obtained by polycondensation of the above-described polyvalent carboxylic acids and polyhydric alcohols using the above catalyst are preferable.

  The amorphous resin can be produced by subjecting the polyhydric alcohol and polyhydric carboxylic acid to a condensation reaction according to a conventional method. For example, the above polyhydric alcohol and polyvalent carboxylic acid, if necessary, a catalyst, and blended in a reaction vessel equipped with a thermometer, a stirrer, a flow-down condenser, and in the presence of an inert gas (such as nitrogen gas), Heat at 150 to 250 ° C. to continuously remove by-product low-molecular compounds out of the reaction system, stop the reaction when a predetermined acid value is reached, cool, and obtain the desired reactant Can be manufactured.

  The glass transition temperature of the non-crystalline resin used in this toner is required to be 50 ° C. or higher when calculated in accordance with ASTM D3418-8, more preferably 55 ° C. or higher, and further 60 ° C. or higher. The temperature is preferably less than 65 ° C. When the glass transition temperature is less than 50 ° C., there is a tendency to aggregate during handling or storage, which may cause a problem in storage stability. On the other hand, when the temperature is 65 ° C. or higher, fixability may be deteriorated.

  The softening point of the amorphous resin used for this toner is preferably in the range of 60 to 90 ° C. In the toner in which the softening temperature of the resin is suppressed to less than 60 ° C., the toner tends to aggregate during handling or storage, and the fluidity may be greatly deteriorated particularly during long-time storage. When the softening point exceeds 90 ° C., the fixability may be hindered. Further, since it is necessary to heat the fixing roll to a high temperature, the material of the fixing roll and the material of the base material to be copied are limited.

  The amorphous resin used in this toner has a weight average molecular weight (Mw) of 20,000 to 50,000, as measured by a gel permeation chromatography (GPC) method in which tetrahydrofuran (THF) is soluble. And preferably 25,000 to 50,000. When the weight average molecular weight is less than 25,000, not only the heat storage property of the toner is lowered, but also the strength of the fixed image is lowered. On the other hand, if it exceeds 50,000, the fixing property is deteriorated and the image gloss is also lowered.

  The acid value of the amorphous resin is preferably 0 to 50 mgKOH / g. When the acid value is less than 10 mgKOH / g, the particle size growth of the aggregates during the production of the toner is accelerated, and there may be a problem that the particle size distribution of the resulting toner is expanded. If the acid value exceeds 50 mgKOH / g, the difference between the acid value of the crystalline resin and the release agent increases, and therefore, only the aggregation with the crystalline resin and the release agent may proceed, and the fixing property may be increased. There is a problem that the toner changes between the toner particles. For example, the acid value of the non-crystalline polyester resin can be adjusted by controlling the carboxyl group at the terminal of the polyester by the blending ratio and reaction rate of the raw material polycarboxylic acid and polyhydric alcohol. Or what has a carboxyl group in the principal chain of polyester is obtained by using trimellitic anhydride as a polyvalent carboxylic acid component.

  In this toner, the weight ratio of the crystalline resin to the amorphous resin is 5/95 to 40/60, and if the ratio of the amorphous resin is less than 60%, good fixing characteristics can be obtained, but in the fixed image. The phase separation structure becomes non-uniform, and the strength of the fixed image, particularly the scratching strength, may be reduced, and the scratch may be easily caused. On the other hand, when it exceeds 95%, sharp melting property derived from a crystalline resin may not be obtained, and plasticity may occur, and toner blocking resistance and image storage stability are maintained while ensuring good low-temperature fixability. May not be possible.

  The preparation of the crystalline resin and the amorphous resin particle dispersion can be prepared by adjusting the acid value of the resin or emulsifying and dispersing using an ionic surfactant or the like.

  In addition, in the case of resins prepared by other methods, if the resin is soluble in an oily solvent with relatively low solubility in water, the resin is dissolved in those solvents to dissolve the ionic surfactant or polymer electrolyte in water. At the same time, the particles are dispersed in water by a disperser such as a homogenizer, and then heated or decompressed to evaporate the solvent, whereby a resin particle dispersion can be prepared. Alternatively, a resin particle dispersion may be prepared by adding a surfactant to the resin and emulsifying and dispersing in water with a disperser such as a homogenizer or by a phase inversion emulsification method.

  The particle diameter of the resin particle dispersion thus obtained can be measured, for example, with a laser diffraction particle size distribution analyzer (LA-700, manufactured by Horiba, Ltd.).

  The release agent used in this toner includes low molecular weight polyolefins such as polyethylene, polypropylene, and polybutene, silicones that exhibit a softening point upon heating; fatty acids such as oleic acid amide, erucic acid amide, ricinoleic acid amide, and stearic acid amide. Amides; plant waxes such as carnauba wax, rice wax, candelilla wax, tree wax, jojoba oil; animal waxes such as beeswax; montan wax, ozokerite, ceresin, paraffin wax, microcrystalline wax, Fischer-Tropsch wax, etc. Mineral waxes, ester waxes of higher fatty acids and higher alcohols such as stearyl stearate and behenyl behenate; butyl stearate, propyl oleate, glyceryl monostearate, di Ester waxes of higher fatty acids such as tea glyceride, pentaerythritol tetrabehenate and unit price or polyhydric lower alcohols; higher such as diethylene glycol monostearate, dipropylene glycol distearate, distearic diglyceride, tetrastearic triglyceride Examples include ester waxes composed of fatty acids and polyhydric alcohol multimers; higher sorbitan fatty acid ester waxes such as sorbitan monostearate; higher cholesterol fatty acid ester waxes such as cholesteryl stearate. Here, these release agents may be used alone or in combination of two or more. Of these, those having a melting point of 40 ° C. to 120 ° C. are used, but in order to meet the recent demand for low-temperature fixability for energy saving, those having a temperature of 50 ° C. to 100 ° C. are particularly preferred. Preferably a thing of 50-80 degreeC is used.

  The addition amount of these release agents is preferably in the range of 0.5 to 30% by weight, more preferably in the range of 1 to 20% by weight, and still more preferably in the range of 5 to 15% by weight with respect to the total amount of the toner. % Range. When the addition amount is less than 0.5% by weight, there is no effect of adding a release agent. When the addition amount exceeds 30% by weight, the chargeability is likely to be affected, or the toner is easily destroyed inside the developing device, and the release In some cases, the mold agent becomes spent on the carrier, and the charge tends to decrease.

  The volume average particle size of the wax particles in the release agent dispersion is preferably in the range of 0.1 to 0.5 μm, particularly preferably 0.1 to 0.3 μm. When the volume average particle size exceeds 0.5 μm, the toner is easily exposed to the toner surface, and the powder fluidity of the toner is deteriorated and filming on the photosensitive member and the developing member is facilitated. In addition, there is a problem that the release agent particles are not included in the coalescing step and are dropped in the coalescing step. In particular, in the case of obtaining a color toner, if the release agent particles are large, the OHP permeability is lowered due to irregular reflection, and the color reproducibility is also lowered. In addition, the said volume average particle diameter can be measured using the laser diffraction type particle size distribution measuring instrument etc. which were mentioned above, for example. When the volume average particle size is 0.1 μm or less, it is not preferable because sufficient releasability cannot be imparted to the toner.

  The dispersion medium in the release agent dispersion is preferably an aqueous medium, and water, pure water, or ion exchange water is used. A surfactant is used as the dispersant. The wax dispersion used for this toner is prepared by a known dispersion method such as a media type dispersing machine such as a ball mill, a sand mill, or an attritor, a high pressure type dispersing machine such as a nanomizer, a microfluidizer, an optimizer, or a gorin. Any method and conditions may be used as long as the particle size and content as described can be satisfied.

  The colorant is usually present in an effective amount in the toner, for example from about 1 to about 15% by weight of the toner, desirably from about 3 to about 10% by weight. The colorant used here is not particularly limited, and a known colorant can be used and can be appropriately selected according to the purpose. One type of pigment may be used alone, or two or more types of pigments of the same type may be mixed and used. Two or more different types of pigments may be mixed and used. Specific examples of the colorant include carbon blacks such as furnace black, channel black, acetylene black, and thermal black; inorganic pigments such as bengara, aniline black, bitumen, titanium oxide, and magnetic powder; fast yellow, monoazo Azo pigments such as yellow, disazo yellow, pyrazolone red, chelate red, brilliant carmine (3B, 6B, etc.), para brown, etc .; phthalocyanine pigments such as copper phthalocyanine, metal-free phthalocyanine; flavantron yellow, dibromoanthrone orange, perylene red, quinacridone And condensed polycyclic pigments such as red and dioxazine violet.

  Chrome Yellow, Hansa Yellow, Benzidine Yellow, Slen Yellow, Quinoline Yellow, Permanent Orange GTR, Pyrazolone Orange, Vulcan Orange, Watch Young Red, Permanent Red, Dupont Oil Red, Resol Red, Rhodamine B Lake, Lake Red C, Rose Various pigments such as Bengal, Aniline Blue, Ultramarine Blue, Calco Oil Blue, Methylene Blue Chloride, Phthalocyanine Blue, Phthalocyanine Green, Malachite Green Oxalate, Para Brown; Acridine, Xanthene, Azo, Benzoquinone, Azine, Anthraquinone, dioxazine, thiazine, azomethine, indigo, thioindigo, phthalocyanine, aniline black , Polymethine dyes, triphenylmethane dyes, diphenylmethane dyes, thiazole type, various dyes such as xanthene; and the like. You may mix black pigments, such as carbon black, and dye to such an extent that transparency is not reduced to these colorants. Moreover, a disperse dye, an oil-soluble dye, etc. are mentioned.

  The dispersion medium for dispersing the colorant is preferably an aqueous medium, and water, pure water, or ion exchange water is used. A surfactant is used as the dispersant. Preparation of the colorant dispersion used for this toner is, for example, a known dispersion method such as a media type dispersing machine such as a ball mill, a sand mill, or an attritor, a nanomizer, a microfluidizer, an optimizer, or a high-pressure type dispersing machine such as a gorin. As long as it can satisfy the particle size and content as described above, it may be produced by any method or condition.

  Other components that can be used in the toner are not particularly limited and may be appropriately selected depending on the intended purpose. Examples thereof include various known additives such as inorganic particles, organic particles, charge control agents, and release agents. It is done.

  The inorganic particles are generally used for the purpose of improving toner fluidity. Examples of the inorganic particles include silica, alumina, titanium oxide, barium titanate, magnesium titanate, calcium titanate, strontium titanate, zinc oxide, silica sand, clay, mica, wollastonite, diatomaceous earth, cerium chloride. , Bengara, chromium oxide, cerium oxide, antimony trioxide, magnesium oxide, zirconium oxide, silicon carbide, silicon nitride and the like. Among these, silica particles are preferable, and silica particles that have been hydrophobized are particularly preferable.

  The average primary particle diameter (number average particle diameter) of the inorganic particles is preferably in the range of 1 to 1000 nm, and the addition amount (external addition) is 0.01 to 20 parts by weight with respect to 100 parts by weight of the toner. The range of is preferable.

  Organic particles are generally used for the purpose of improving cleaning properties, transfer properties, and sometimes charging properties. Examples of the organic particles include particles such as polystyrene, polymethyl methacrylate, polyvinylidene fluoride, and polystyrene-acrylic copolymer.

  The charge control agent is generally used for the purpose of improving the chargeability. Examples of the charge control agent include salicylic acid metal salts, metal-containing azo compounds, nigrosine and quaternary ammonium salts.

  The volume average particle diameter of the toner is preferably 1 to 12 μm, more preferably 3 to 9 μm, and more preferably 3 to 8 μm. The number average particle diameter of the toner is preferably 1 to 10 μm, and more preferably 2 to 8 μm. If the particle size is too small, the productivity becomes unstable, the chargeability becomes insufficient and the developability may be lowered, and if it is too large, the resolution of the image is lowered.

  Further, this toner preferably has a volume average particle size distribution index GSDv of 1.30 or less. Further, the ratio (GSDv / GSDp) of the volume average particle size distribution index GSDv and the number average particle size distribution index GSDp is preferably 0.95 or more. When the volume distribution index GSDv exceeds 1.30, the resolution of the image may decrease, and the ratio of the volume average particle size distribution index GSDv to the number average particle size distribution index GSDp (GSDv / GSDp) is If it is less than 0.95, the toner chargeability may be reduced, the toner may be scattered or fogged, and image defects may be caused.

  Here, the toner particle size, the above-mentioned volume average particle size distribution index GSDv, and number average particle size distribution index GSDp were measured and calculated as follows. First, with respect to the divided particle size range (channel), the toner particle size distribution measured using a Coulter Multisizer II (manufactured by Beckman-Coulter) is accumulated from the smaller diameter side with respect to the divided particle size range (channel). Draw a distribution and define the particle size to be 16% cumulative as the volume average particle size D16v and the number average particle size D16p. The particle size to be 50% cumulative is the volume average particle size D50v and the number average particle The diameter is defined as D50p. Similarly, particle diameters that are 84% cumulative are defined as volume average particle diameter D84v and number average particle diameter D84p. At this time, the volume average particle size distribution index (GSDv) is defined as D84v / D16v, and the number average particle size index (GSDp) is defined as D84p / D16p. GSDv) and number average particle size index (GSDp) can be calculated.

  The charge amount of the toner is an absolute value, preferably 15 to 60 μC / g, and more preferably 20 to 50 μC / g. If the charge amount is less than 15 μC / g, background stains (fogging) are likely to occur, and if it exceeds 60 μC / g, the image density tends to decrease. The ratio of the charge amount in summer (high temperature and humidity) and the charge amount in winter (low temperature and low humidity) of this toner is preferably 0.5 to 1.5, more preferably 0.7 to 1.3. preferable. When the ratio is outside these ranges, the charging property is highly dependent on the environment, and the charging stability is poor, which is not preferable for practical use.

  Next, a developer containing this toner (hereinafter also referred to as “developer”) will be described.

  The developer includes the above-described toner and ferrite that is a magnetic carrier. Specific examples of the magnetic carrier include the following resin-coated carriers, and the core particles of the resin-coated carrier include those other than ferrite. Ordinary iron powders, magnetite moldings and the like can be mentioned, and the volume average particle size is in the range of about 30 to 200 μm.

  Examples of the coating resin for the resin-coated carrier include styrenes such as styrene, parachlorostyrene, and α-methylstyrene; methyl acrylate, ethyl acrylate, n-propyl acrylate, lauryl acrylate, 2-acrylic acid 2- Α-methylene fatty acid monocarboxylic acids such as ethylhexyl, methyl methacrylate, n-propyl methacrylate, lauryl methacrylate, 2-ethylhexyl methacrylate; nitrogen-containing acrylics such as dimethylaminoethyl methacrylate; vinyl such as acrylonitrile and methacrylonitrile Nitriles; Vinyl pyridines such as 2-vinyl pyridine and 4-vinyl pyridine; Vinyl ethers such as vinyl methyl ether and vinyl isobutyl ether; Vinyl methyl ketone, vinyl ethyl ketone, vinyl isopropenyl keto Homopolymers such as vinyl ketones such as ethylene; olefins such as ethylene and propylene; vinyl-based fluorine-containing monomers such as vinylidene fluoride, tetrafluoroethylene and hexafluoroethylene; and copolymers comprising two or more types of monomers Furthermore, silicone resins containing methyl silicone, methyl phenyl silicone, etc., polyesters containing bisphenol, glycol, etc., epoxy resins, polyurethane resins, polyamide resins, cellulose resins, polyether resins, polycarbonate resins and the like can be mentioned. These resins may be used alone or in combination of two or more. The coating amount of the coating resin is preferably in the range of about 0.1 to 10 parts by weight and more preferably in the range of 0.5 to 3.0 parts by weight with respect to 100 parts by weight of the core particles.

  For the production of the carrier, a heating kneader, a heating Henschel mixer, a UM mixer, or the like can be used. Depending on the amount of the coating resin, a heating fluidized rolling bed, a heating kiln, or the like can be used. .

  In the developer, the mixing ratio of the toner and the carrier is not particularly limited and can be appropriately selected according to the purpose.

  This completes the description of the toner used in the printer 1 of the present embodiment.

In the above-described embodiment, an example in which zinc stearate contacts the brush roll 721 that rotates in contact with the surface of the image carrier 10 has been described. However, in the present invention, the surface of the image carrier 10 is exposed. If the lubricant is supplied, the material is not limited to zinc stearate, but may be a stearic acid cylinder. Furthermore, the supply of the lubricant to the surface of the image carrier 10 is not sprayed by the brush roll 721 but sprayed. Etc. may be performed.
Examples An example of a toner production method showing an embodiment of the present application is shown below, but the present application is not limited to this.

(Preparation of crystalline resin)
First, in a three-necked flask, 100 parts by mass of dimethyl sebacate, 67.8 parts by mass of hexanediol, and 0.10 parts by mass of dibutyltin oxide are removed out of the system under a nitrogen atmosphere. Then, after the reaction at 180 ° C. for 6 hours, the temperature was raised to 210 ° C. while gradually reducing the pressure, the reaction was performed for 6 hours, and then cooled, and a crystalline resin having a weight average molecular weight of 32500 was prepared. did.

(Preparation of non-crystalline resin (1))
Further, in a three-necked flask, 49 parts by mass of dimethyl terephthalate, 72 parts by mass of dimethyl fumarate, 55 parts by mass of dodecenyl succinic anhydride, 157 parts by mass of bisphenol A ethylene oxide adduct, and 171 parts by mass of bisphenol A propylene oxide adduct Then, 0.25 parts by mass of dibutyltin oxide was reacted for 3 hours at 180 ° C. while removing water generated by the reaction outside the system in a nitrogen atmosphere, and the temperature was gradually reduced to 240 ° C. while gradually reducing the pressure. Then, after reacting for 2 hours, an amorphous resin (1) having a weight average molecular weight of 18,200 was obtained by cooling.

(Preparation of cyan colored dispersion)
Furthermore, 50 parts by mass of a cyan pigment (copper phthalocyanine B15: 3, manufactured by Dainichi Seika Co., Ltd.), 5 parts by mass of a nonionic surfactant Nonipol 400 (manufactured by Kao Corporation), and 200 parts by mass of ion-exchanged water were mixed. Then, a cyan colored dispersion was prepared by dispersing for about 1 hour using a high-pressure impact disperser Ultimateizer (manufactured by Sugino Machine Co., Ltd., HJP30006) and adjusting the water content.

(Preparation of release agent dispersion)
60 parts by mass of paraffin wax (Nippon Seiwa Co., Ltd .: HNP9, melting point 77 ° C.), 4 parts by mass of an anionic surfactant (Daiichi Kogyo Seiyaku Co., Ltd .: Neogen RK), and 200 parts by mass of ion-exchanged water The mixture was heated to 120 ° C. and dispersed using a homogenizer (manufactured by IKA: Ultra Tarrax T50), and then at 120 ° C. and 350 kg / cm ² for 1 hour using a Menton Gorin high-pressure homogenizer (Gorin). A mold release agent having a volume average particle size of 250 nm obtained by dispersion treatment under the conditions described above was dispersed, and the amount of moisture was adjusted so that the mold release agent concentration in the dispersion was 20% by mass. An agent dispersion was prepared.

(Preparation of non-crystalline resin (2))
Further, in a three-necked flask, 39 parts by mass of dimethyl terephthalate, 80 parts by mass of dimethyl fumarate, 66 parts by mass of dodecenyl succinic anhydride, 250 parts by mass of bisphenol A ethylene oxide adduct, and 80 parts by mass of bisphenol A propylene oxide adduct And 0.23 parts by mass of dibutyltin oxide, and after reacting at 180 ° C. for 3 hours while removing water generated by the reaction outside the system in a nitrogen atmosphere, gradually reduced pressure to 240 ° C. A non-crystalline resin (2) having a weight average molecular weight of 16,500 was obtained by raising the temperature and reacting for 2 hours and then cooling.

(Preparation of amorphous resin dispersion (C2))
100 parts by mass of the above-described amorphous resin (2), 55 parts by mass of methyl ethyl ketone, and 23 parts by mass of n-propyl alcohol were placed in a three-necked flask, and the resin was dissolved while stirring. After adding mass parts, 350 mass parts of ion-exchanged water was gradually added, and after phase inversion emulsification, non-crystalline resin particles having a volume average diameter of 185 nm obtained by solvent removal were dispersed. An amorphous resin dispersion (C2) having a partial concentration of 25% was prepared.

(Preparation of crystalline / amorphous mixed resin dispersion (A1))
10 parts by weight of crystalline resin, 90 parts by weight of amorphous resin (1), 50 parts by weight of methyl ethyl ketone, and 15 parts by weight of isopropyl alcohol are placed in a three-necked flask and heated to 60 ° C. with stirring to give the resin. After dissolution, 25 parts by mass of a 10% aqueous ammonia solution is added, and 400 parts by mass of ion-exchanged water is gradually added to perform phase inversion emulsification, and then the pressure is reduced and the solvent is removed, so that the volume average particle diameter is 158 nm. A crystalline / noncrystalline mixed resin dispersion (A1) having a solid content concentration of 25% in which the crystalline / noncrystalline mixed resin particles were dispersed was prepared.

(Production of toner)
720 parts by weight of this crystalline / amorphous mixed resin dispersion (A1), 50 parts by weight of a colorant dispersion, 70 parts by weight of a release agent dispersion, and a cationic surfactant (manufactured by Kao Corporation: Sanisol B50) 1.5 parts by mass is placed in a round stainless steel flask, 0.1N sulfuric acid is added to adjust the pH to 3.8, and the concentration of polyaluminum chloride as a flocculant is 10% by weight. 30 parts by mass of an aqueous nitric acid solution was added, and then the mixture was dispersed at 30 ° C. using a homogenizer (manufactured by IKA, Ultra Turrax T50). After heating to 40 ° C. at 1 ° C./min in a heating oil bath and holding at 40 ° C. for 30 minutes, 160 parts by mass of the amorphous resin dispersion (C2) was gradually added to this dispersion. For an additional hour.
Thereafter, 0.1 N sodium hydroxide was added to adjust the pH to 7.0, and then the mixture was heated to 95 ° C. at 1 ° C./min while maintaining stirring and held for 5 hours, and then 20 ° C./min. The mixture was cooled to 20 ° C. at a rate of, filtered, washed with ion-exchanged water, and then dried using a vacuum dryer. The number ratio of particles having a volume average particle diameter of 6.1 μm and 3 μm or less was 3 A toner having a storage elastic modulus of 4 × 10 ⁸ at 40 ° C. of 34% was obtained.

  The volume average particle size is measured using Coulter Multisizer type II (Beckman-Coulter), and the electrolyte is ISOTON-II (Beckman-Coulter), and sodium dodecylbenzenesulfonate 5 as a dispersant. 10 mg of a measurement sample was added to 2 ml of a weight% aqueous solution, and a sample in which the measurement sample was added to 100 ml of the above-described electrolyte solution was prepared. Using Multisizer type II, the particle size distribution of 1.0 to 30 μm is measured using an aperture with an aperture diameter of 50 μm to obtain volume average distribution and number average distribution, and the measured particle size distribution is divided into particle size ranges. A cumulative distribution is drawn from the small diameter side on the volume basis for (channel), and the particle diameter (D50v) is 50% cumulative. Was the volume average particle diameter of the measurement sample. A cumulative distribution was drawn from the small diameter side on the basis of the number, and the ratio of the number of particles of 3 μm or less to the total number of measured particles was defined as the number ratio of the particles of 3 μm or less. The volume ratio of the particles having a volume average particle diameter of 3 μm or less can be usually obtained by software built in the above-mentioned Coulter Multisizer II type.

  For this toner, 1.2 parts by mass of a commercially available fumed silica RX50 (manufactured by Nippon Aerosil Co., Ltd.) having a particle diameter of 65 nm as an external additive is used with respect to 100 parts by mass of the toner, and a Henschel mixer (manufactured by Mitsui Miike Seisakusho) is used. Is added under conditions of a peripheral speed of 30 m / s for 5 minutes, and further, 8 parts by mass of toner to which an external additive has been added and 100 parts by mass of a carrier are mixed to produce a two-component developer. . The carrier is 100 parts by mass of ferrite particles (volume average particle size: 50 μm), 14 parts by mass of toluene, and a styrene-methyl methacrylate copolymer (component ratio: styrene / methyl methacrylate = 90/10, weight average molecular weight Mw = 80000). ) First, a coating solution in which 2 parts by mass and 0.2 parts by mass of carbon black (R330: manufactured by Cabot) were dispersed by stirring the above components excluding ferrite particles with a stirrer for 10 minutes was prepared, This coating solution and ferrite particles are put into a vacuum degassing type kneader (manufactured by Inoue Seisakusho), stirred at 60 ° C. for 30 minutes, further depressurized while heating, degassed, dried, and then sieved at 105 μm. It was obtained by dividing.

  Note that the “crystalline resin” refers to a resin having a clear endothermic peak rather than a stepwise endothermic amount change in differential scanning weight measurement (DSC). Here, “crystallinity” used for the toner means that the DSC curve has a clear endothermic peak in differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), specifically, measured at a heating rate of 10 ° C./min. This means that an endothermic peak occurs and then returns to the baseline of the DSC curve.

  Hereinafter, experiments (Examples 1 to 6 and Comparative Examples 1 to 3) performed to confirm the effect of the present embodiment will be described.

  In Examples 1 to 6 and Comparative Examples 1 to 3, a cleaning blade as shown in FIG. 2 is brought into contact with an image carrier instead of a printer cleaning device manufactured by Fuji Xerox Co., Ltd. A black and white image having a patch portion with a density of 100% in a remodeling machine equipped with a cleaning device for applying a lubricant to the surface of the image carrier upstream of the cleaning blade and downstream of the transfer roll in rotation of the carrier. 10,000 print output under high temperature and high humidity of 28 ° C and 85% humidity, and 10,000 print output under low temperature and low humidity of 10 ° C and 15% humidity on the image carrier After differentiating the type of solid lubricant to be supplied and the developer to be used, the evaluation items are 'toner filming' of the image carrier, 'abrasion' and 'others' of the image carrier. The stomach is concerned with the evaluation.

In Example 1, the toner in the developer to be used was externally added with silica having a storage elastic modulus at 40 ° C. of 4 × 10 ⁸ Pa and a volume average particle diameter of 65 nm described in the above embodiment. And a solid lubricant made of zinc stearate was used.

In Example 2, the weight molecular weight of the crystalline resin in the developer used is reduced to 24500 by allowing the crystalline resin to stand at 210 ° C. for 6 hours in the preparation of the crystalline resin described above for 4 hours at 210 ° C. Thus, the same conditions as in Example 1 were adopted except that a toner whose storage elastic modulus at 40 ° C. was adjusted to 1 × 10 ⁸ [Pa] was employed.

In Example 3, the weight molecular weight of the crystalline resin in the developer used is increased to 37700 by allowing the crystalline resin to stand at 210 ° C. for 6 hours in the preparation of the crystalline resin described above for 4 hours at 230 ° C. Thus, the same conditions as in Example 1 were adopted except that a toner whose storage elastic modulus at 40 ° C. was adjusted to 7 × 10 ⁸ [Pa] was employed.

  Example 4 was performed under the same conditions as Example 1 except that silica having a volume average particle diameter of 350 nm was externally added to the toner.

  In Example 5, the same conditions as in Example 1 were used except that silica having a volume average particle diameter of 150 nm was externally added to the toner.

  Example 6 was the same as Example 5 except that the solid lubricant was copper stearate.

  Comparative Example 1 was the same as Example 5 except that the solid lubricant was omitted.

Comparative Example 2 has the same conditions as Example 1 except that a toner whose storage elastic modulus at 40 ° C. was adjusted to 0.9 × 10 ⁸ [Pa] by reducing the weight molecular weight of the crystalline resin was used. did.

In Comparative Example 3, the same conditions as in Example 1 were adopted except that a toner whose storage elastic modulus at 40 ° C. was adjusted to 8 × 10 ⁸ [Pa] by increasing the weight molecular weight of the crystalline resin was used.

The three evaluation items for each of Examples 1 to 6 and Comparative Examples 1 to 3 are “toner filming” of the image carrier, “wear” of the image carrier, and “others”. Evaluation of “toner filming” and “wear” was performed as follows.
Toner filming ○: No toner filming on the image carrier and good image quality Δ: Toner filming is slightly seen on the image carrier but has little effect on image quality ×: On the image carrier Toner filming is observed and image quality is deteriorated. Abrasion ○: Wear rate of less than 30 nm / kcycle Δ: Wear rate of 30 nm / kcycle or more and less than 50 nm / kcycle ×: Wear rate of 50 nm / kcycle or more

  Table 1 shows toner 'storage modulus', 'silica volume average particle size', and 'solid lubricant' in each of Examples 1 to 6 and Comparative Examples 1 to 3. The setting conditions and evaluation results of evaluation items of “toner filming” of the image carrier, “wear” of the image carrier, and “others” are shown.

In Example 1, toner having a volume average particle diameter of 65 nm and externally added silica having a storage elastic modulus of 4 × 10 ⁸ at 40 ° C. and a solid lubricant made of zinc stearate are used. As a result of the use, “toner filming” of the image carrier is “◯”, “wear” of the image carrier is “◯”, and “others” are mostly “transfer residual”. It is good. The evaluation result for 'Others' is 'Large transfer residue' indicates that the volume average particle size of the silica added to the toner is too small, making it easy to be embedded in the toner particles. This is because the charging performance, which is the performance of charging when the recording is performed, is lowered and 'fogging' occurs.

Although Example 2 and Example 3 use a toner to which silica having a volume average particle diameter of 65 nm is externally added and a solid lubricant composed of zinc stearate is used in common, In this case, the storage elastic modulus at 40 ° C. is different from 1 × 10 ⁸ Pa and 7 × 10 ⁸ Pa, respectively. In Example 2, “toner filming” of the image carrier is “△”, “abrasion” of the image carrier is “◯”, and “other” is “large transfer residue”. It is good. In Example 3, “toner filming” of the image carrier is “◯”, “wear” of the image carrier is “△”, and “others” is “large transfer residue”. Things are generally good. In Example 2, since the storage elastic modulus is smaller than that in Example 1, filming is likely to occur. In Example 3, since the storage elastic modulus is larger than that in Example 1, the surface of the image holding member. Wear is more likely to occur.

  In Example 4, “toner filming” of the holding member is “◯”, “wear” of the image holding member is “◯”, and “others” is “charger contamination”. It is good. The 'other' 'charger contamination' is because the silica added to the toner has a volume average particle size that is too large, so that it is easily separated from the toner particles.

  In Example 5, the “toner filming” of the image carrier is “◯”, and the “wear” of the image carrier is “◯”. The difference between Example 5, Example 1 and Example 4 is 'silica particle size'. From these, 'silica particle size' is evaluated as 'others' at 150 nm between 65 nm and 350 nm. It was confirmed to be good.

  In Example 6, “toner filming” of the image carrier is “◯”, and “abrasion” of the image carrier is “Δ”. As compared with the evaluation of Example 5, it was confirmed that the effect of reducing the frictional force between the image carrier and the cleaning blade was higher than that of zinc stearate than that of the stearic acid cylinder.

  In Comparative Example 1, since the solid lubricant was omitted with respect to the conditions of Example 5 or Example 6, the evaluation of 'wearability' was lowered to 'x', which was poor as a whole. As a result, it was confirmed that the presence of the solid lubricant is indispensable for achieving both cleanability and running cost.

In Comparative Example 2 and Comparative Example 3, the storage elastic modulus was set to 0.9 × 10 ⁸ Pa and 8 × 10 ⁸ Pa, and in Comparative Example 2, “toner filming” of the image carrier was “×”. “,“ Abrasion ”of the image carrier is“ ◯ ”, and“ Other ”is“ Transfer residual amount ”, which is poor as a whole. In Comparative Example 3, “toner filming” of the image carrier is “◯”, “wear” of the image carrier is “x”, and “others” is “large transfer residue”. The cage as a whole is bad. Example 1, Example 2 and Example 3 differing from Comparative Example 2 and Comparative Example 3 in that the storage elastic modulus is in the range of 1 × 10 ⁸ Pa to 7 × 10 ⁸ Pa from In order to achieve both improvement and reduction in running cost, it has been confirmed that it is essential to set the storage elastic modulus of the toner at 40 ° C. in the range of 1 × 10 ⁸ Pa to 7 × 10 ⁸ Pa.

1 is a schematic configuration diagram of an embodiment of an image forming apparatus of the present invention. It is a schematic block diagram of the cleaner shown in FIG.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Printer 7 Cleaner 70 Housing 71 Cleaning blade 72 Lubricant supply part 721 Brush roll 722 Solid lubricant 723 Arm 7231 Shaft 724 Weight 10 Image holding body 11 Charger 12 Exposure device 13 Developer 14 Transfer roll 15 Fixing device 16 Paper tray 17 Paper transport device

Claims (3)

An image is held on the surface of the image carrier, which moves and retains an image having a storage elastic modulus at 40 ° C. of 1 × 10 ⁸ Pa or more and 7 × 10 ⁸ Pa or less. A plate-like member for removing unnecessary materials;
A cleaning apparatus comprising: a lubricant supply unit that supplies a lubricant to the surface of the image carrier on the upstream side of the plate-like member in the movement of the image carrier. An image carrier for holding an image on the surface;
A plate-like member that contacts the surface of the image carrier and removes unnecessary materials from the surface;
A cartridge comprising: a lubricant supply unit that supplies a lubricant to the surface of the image carrier upstream of the plate-like member in the movement of the image carrier. An image carrier that moves while holding an image on the surface;
An image forming unit that forms an image on the image carrier with toner having a storage elastic modulus at 40 ° of 1 × 10 ⁸ Pa to 7 × 10 ⁸ Pa;
A transfer portion that transfers an image from the image carrier to a transfer target; and a plate-like member that contacts the surface of the image carrier after the image is transferred by the transfer portion and removes unnecessary materials from the surface. A cleaning device comprising: a lubricant supply unit that supplies a lubricant to the surface of the image carrier upstream of the plate-like member and downstream of the transfer unit in the movement of the image carrier;
An image forming apparatus comprising:

Images