JP2008281915A - Method for producing toner, production device for toner, and toner - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To obtain toner whose productive efficiency is improved, and in which the width of the variation in the values of many characteristics such as fluidity and charging properties is reduced. <P>SOLUTION: A toner composition liquid is made into droplets by a droplet forming means 11 composed of a thin film 16 at which a plurality of nozzles 15 are formed and electromechanical converting means 17 arranged around the thin film 16 and vibrating the thin film 16, so as to be discharged, thus the toner having monodispersibility of particle sizes is obtained. The droplet forming means 11 and a flow passage member 13 feeding the toner composition liquid to the droplet forming means 11 are adhered with the adhesive layer 18 of an elastic adhesive, and the phenomenon that the temperature of the thin film 16 composing the droplet forming means 11 is made high during adhesion is prevented, and further, corrosion caused by the toner composition liquid is prevented so as to improve its durability. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a method for producing a toner used as a developer for developing an electrostatic charge image in electrophotography, electrostatic recording, electrostatic printing, etc., a toner production apparatus, and toner, in particular, monodispersity of toner particle size. It is about productivity improvement.

  A developer that develops an electrostatic charge image in electrophotography, electrostatic recording, electrostatic printing, etc. is temporarily applied to an image carrier such as an electrostatic latent image carrier on which an electrostatic charge image is formed in the development process. After being attached and making the electrostatic image visible, it is transferred from the electrostatic latent image carrier to a transfer medium such as transfer paper in the transfer process and fixed to the transfer medium in the fixing process. As a developer for developing an electrostatic charge image formed on the latent image holding surface of the image carrier, a two-component developer composed of a carrier and a toner and a one-component developer not requiring a carrier (magnetic toner) Non-magnetic toner) is known.

  Conventionally, dry toners used for electrophotography, electrostatic recording, electrostatic printing, etc. include a toner binder such as a styrene resin or a polyester resin that is melt-kneaded with a colorant and then finely pulverized. Toner is widely used.

  Recently, a toner production method using a suspension polymerization method or an emulsion polymerization aggregation method, so-called polymerization type toner, has been studied. In addition to this, Patent Document 1 discloses a production method involving volume shrinkage called a polymer dissolution suspension method. In this production method, the toner material is dispersed and dissolved in a volatile solvent such as a low-boiling organic solvent, and this is emulsified and formed into droplets in an aqueous medium containing a dispersant, and then the volatile solvent is removed. Unlike suspension polymerization and emulsion polymerization aggregation methods, this method has a wide range of versatile resins that can be used, and is particularly useful for full-color processes that require transparency and smoothness of the image area after fixing. It is excellent in that it can be used.

  However, since the polymerization toner is premised on the use of a dispersant in an aqueous medium, the dispersant that impairs the charging characteristics of the toner remains on the toner surface and the environmental stability is impaired. Or a very large amount of washing water was required to remove this, and it was not always satisfactory as a production method.

  As a toner production method that does not use an aqueous medium, a spray drying method is known as shown in Patent Document 2. In this manufacturing method, a molten liquid or a liquid in which a toner composition liquid is dissolved is formed into fine particles using various atomizers and discharged, and dried to obtain particles. However, the particles obtained by the spray granulation method are relatively coarse and large, and the particle size distribution is wide, which causes the characteristics of the toner itself to deteriorate.

  On the other hand, in the toner manufacturing method disclosed in Patent Document 3, piezoelectric droplets are applied to a fluid toner composition containing a resin and a colorant and discharged from a nozzle to a solidified portion to form fine droplets. The fine droplets are dried and solidified in the solidifying portion to form toner particles. In addition, the manufacturing method disclosed in Patent Document 4 converges a piezoelectric pulse with an acoustic lens, and discharges the toner composition from the nozzle to a solidified portion by the converged acoustic pulse to form a micro droplet, which is dried and solidified. Thus, toner particles are formed.

In addition, the manufacturing method disclosed in Patent Document 5 forms a fine droplet by vibrating a fluid toner composition containing a resin and a colorant at a certain frequency with a piezoelectric body and ejecting it from a nozzle. The fine droplets are dried and solidified to form toner particles.
JP-A-7-152202 Japanese Patent Publication No.57-201248 Japanese Patent No. 3786034 Japanese Patent No. 3786035 JP 2006-293320 A

  However, in the toner manufacturing apparatuses described in Patent Document 3 and Patent Document 4, only one droplet can be discharged from one nozzle using one piezoelectric body, and can be discharged per unit time. There were the disadvantages that the number of droplets was small and the productivity was poor.

  In addition, as shown in Patent Document 5, when a plurality of nozzles are provided for one piezoelectric body, the speed at which the vibration of the piezoelectric body is transmitted to each nozzle differs depending on the distance from the piezoelectric body, so that the nozzles are discharged from each nozzle. There is a disadvantage in that a time lag occurs in the liquid droplets to be discharged, and the discharge amount differs between nozzles.

  The present invention improves such disadvantages, improves the toner production efficiency, and further reduces the range of fluctuation caused by particles in the conventional manufacturing method in many characteristic values required for the toner such as fluidity and charging characteristics. An object of the present invention is to provide a toner manufacturing method, a toner manufacturing apparatus, and a toner capable of obtaining a small amount of toner.

  The toner manufacturing method of the present invention uses at least a resin and a droplet forming means composed of a thin film in which a plurality of nozzles are formed and an electromechanical conversion means arranged around the thin film to vibrate the thin film. A toner having a droplet forming step of periodically discharging a toner composition liquid containing a colorant from the plurality of nozzles and a particle forming step of solidifying the discharged toner composition liquid droplets In this manufacturing method, the droplet forming means and the flow path member for supplying the toner composition liquid to the droplet forming means are bonded with an elastic adhesive.

  The toner manufacturing apparatus according to the present invention uses a droplet forming means composed of a thin film having a plurality of nozzles and an electromechanical conversion means for vibrating the thin film, and a toner composition liquid containing at least a resin and a colorant In the toner manufacturing apparatus for periodically forming and discharging droplets from the plurality of nozzles, and solidifying the discharged droplets of the toner composition liquid, a toner composition is formed in the droplet forming unit and the droplet forming unit. The flow path member for supplying the liquid is bonded with an elastic adhesive.

  The flow path member is directly bonded to the thin film on which the nozzle of the droplet forming means is formed, and the electromechanical conversion means is formed on the nozzle side with respect to the bonded portion of the flow path member and the thin film. And

  The thickness of the adhesive layer of the elastic adhesive is 2500 μm or less, and the difference between the thinnest part and the thickest part of the adhesive layer is 100 μm or less.

  Further, a fluorine-based elastomer may be used as the elastic adhesive. This fluoroelastomer desirably has a silicone cross-linking reactive group at the fluorinated polyether skeleton and molecular terminals.

  The toner of the present invention is manufactured by the toner manufacturing apparatus. This toner has a particle size distribution (weight average particle diameter / number average particle diameter) in the range of 1.00 to 1.15 and a weight average particle diameter of 1 to 20 μm.

  According to the present invention, there is provided a toner manufacturing method and a manufacturing apparatus comprising: a droplet forming means comprising a thin film having a plurality of nozzles formed thereon and an electromechanical converting means arranged around the thin film to vibrate the thin film; Since the liquid droplets are ejected, it is possible to obtain a single-dispersed toner having an unprecedented particle size.

  Further, by adhering the droplet forming means and the flow path member for supplying the toner composition liquid to the droplet forming means with an elastic adhesive, the thin film constituting the droplet forming means is prevented from becoming high temperature during bonding. Durability can be improved by preventing corrosion by the toner composition liquid.

  By using a fluorine-based elastomer as the elastic adhesive, particularly a fluorine-based elastomer having a fluorinated polyether skeleton and a silicone crosslinking reactive group at the molecular end, the droplet forming means and the flow path member can be stably bonded. And durability can be further improved.

  In addition, by controlling the thickness of the adhesive layer to 2500 μm or less and the difference between the thinnest part and the thickest part of the adhesive layer to 100 μm or less, uniform film vibration can be given to the thin film, and a constant size Can be stably ejected.

  Furthermore, since the produced toner is a particle having a monodispersibility in particle size, it depends on the particles found in the conventional production methods in many characteristic values required for the toner such as fluidity and charging characteristics. It has no or very little variation, and can be used stably as a developer for developing an electrostatic image in electrophotography, electrostatic recording, electrostatic printing, etc., and a good quality image can be stably formed.

  FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of a toner manufacturing apparatus according to the present invention. As shown in the figure, the toner manufacturing apparatus 1 includes a droplet ejecting unit 2 having a droplet forming unit and a storage unit, and a droplet ejected from the droplet ejecting unit 2 with the droplet ejecting unit 2 disposed above. A solidified droplet of the toner composition liquid to form toner particles, a toner collecting unit 4 for collecting toner particles T formed by the particle forming unit 3 and the collected toner And a raw material storage unit 6 that stores the toner composition liquid and supplies the toner composition liquid to the droplet ejection unit 2 via the pipe 7.

  Here, the case where one droplet ejecting unit 2 is arranged is shown. Preferably, as shown in FIG. 2, a plurality of, for example, 100 to 1,000 droplet ejecting units 2 are provided from the viewpoint of controllability. These are arranged side by side on the upper surface part 3A of the drying tower storage part constituting the particle forming part 3. In this case, each droplet ejection unit 2 is connected to the raw material container 6 via the pipe 7 to supply the toner composition liquid. The toner composition liquid is supplied automatically by a droplet formation phenomenon by the droplet jetting unit 2 and is configured to supply liquid using an auxiliary pump during operation of the apparatus. You can also.

  As shown in the side sectional view of FIG. 3 and the bottom view of FIG. 4, the droplet ejecting unit 2 forms a droplet of a toner composition liquid 10 in which a toner composition containing at least a resin and a colorant is dispersed or dissolved. A droplet forming unit 11 to be discharged and a flow path member 13 having a reservoir (liquid channel) 12 for supplying the toner composition liquid 10 to the droplet forming unit 11 are provided.

  The droplet forming means 11 is disposed on the flow path member 13 and has a thin film 16 formed with a plurality of nozzles (discharge ports) 15 facing the storage portion 12, and is disposed around the thin film 16 to vibrate the thin film 16. And an electromechanical conversion means 17 which is an annular mechanical vibration means.

  The material of the thin film 16 and the shape of the nozzle 15 are not particularly limited and may be appropriately selected. For example, the thin film 16 is formed of a metal plate having a thickness of 5 to 500 μm and the nozzle 15 is opened. A diameter of 3 to 35 μm is preferable from the viewpoint of generating fine liquid droplets having a very uniform particle diameter when the liquid droplets of the toner composition liquid are ejected from the nozzle 15. Here, the opening diameter of the nozzle 15 means a diameter if it is a perfect circle, and means a short diameter if it is an ellipse. The number of the plurality of nozzles 15 is preferably 2 to 3000.

The electromechanical conversion means 17 is not particularly limited as long as it can apply a certain vibration to the thin film 16 at a constant frequency. For example, a piezoelectric body excited by a bimorph type flexural vibration is preferable. Examples of the piezoelectric body include piezoelectric ceramics such as lead zirconate titanate (PZT). However, since the amount of displacement is generally small, the piezoelectric body is often used by being laminated. In addition, piezoelectric polymers such as polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF), single crystals such as quartz, LiNbO ₃ , LiTaO ₃ , KNbO _{3, and the} like can be given. The electromechanical conversion means 17 is bonded and fixed to the thin film 16 with an elastic adhesive that does not dissolve in the toner composition liquid 10. A drive voltage is applied to the electromechanical conversion means 17 from a drive circuit (not shown) via a lead wire or the like.

  The thin film 16 on which the plurality of nozzles 15 constituting the droplet forming means 11 is formed is bonded and fixed to the flow path member 13 with an adhesive layer 18 of an elastic adhesive that does not dissolve in the toner composition liquid 10. That is, the droplet forming means 11 and the flow path member 13 including the thin film 16 in which the plurality of nozzles 15 are formed and the electromechanical conversion means 17 that is arranged around the thin film 16 and vibrates the thin film 16 include: Although it must be fixed by some method, it can be said to be an excellent method in terms of performance in that fixing by adhesion is the simplest, a thin layer can be easily formed, and membrane vibration of the thin film 16 is hardly inhibited. . Adhesion is a method in which an adhesive is thinly applied between the surfaces to be bonded, and is firmly fixed by curing. Other than gluing, a method of sandwiching with a U-shaped fixing jig is also conceivable, but problems such as shifting the resonance frequency due to the fixing jig and loosening due to vibration in the ultrasonic region may occur over time. Therefore, it is a method lacking in reliability as compared with fixing by adhesion.

  When the droplet forming means 11 and the flow path member 13 are fixed, some processing restrictions arise. One is that processing at a high temperature during bonding cannot be performed. This is because the thin film 16 on which the plurality of nozzles 15 are formed is extremely thin and has a thickness of 500 μm or less, so that the thin film 16 is distorted when exposed to a high temperature even for a moment. The degree of this distortion varies somewhat depending on the thickness of the thin film 16 and the metal type, but in any case, if bonding is performed at approximately 250 degrees or less, the problem of distortion does not occur or is acceptable. Become a level.

  Similarly, a substance that corrodes the thin film 16 during the bonding process cannot be used. For example, when the thin film 16 is made of nickel, this phenomenon is a remarkable phenomenon, but the corrosion proceeds easily if only a slight amount of acidic substance is present. The corroded nozzle 15 changes in nozzle diameter, and not only the purpose of uniform droplet formation cannot be achieved, but also the phenomenon that the durability is remarkably lowered due to corrosion and the nozzles 15 are cracked and connected. There arises a problem that the thin film 16 breaks in the worst case. Therefore, a one-component curable adhesive that does not use a special solvent is desirable for the adhesive, and it is desirable to thermally cure the adhesive at 250 degrees or less. It is also necessary that no products that cause corrosion during the reaction are produced.

  Examples of elastic adhesives satisfying such performance include nitrile rubber, fluoro rubber, perfluoropolyether rubber, silicone rubber, fluorosilicone rubber, epichlorohydrin rubber, acrylic rubber, ethylene rubber, propylene rubber, chloroprene rubber, styrene / butadiene. There are elastomers such as rubber, butyl rubber, urethane rubber, and various natural rubbers. Among them, elastomers such as nitrile rubber, fluorine rubber, perfluoropolyether rubber, silicone rubber, and perfluoropolyether rubber, which have excellent mechanical strength. However, a liquid fluorine-based elastomer is desirable as an adhesive. As this liquid fluorine-based elastomer, one having a fluorinated polyether skeleton and a silicone crosslinking reactive group at the molecular end is more desirable as shown in the following chemical formula.

  Examples of such a liquid fluorine-based elastomer include commercially available product names SIEFL610, SIEFL614, SIEFL617, SIEFL661, SIEFL662, SIEFL604, and SIEFL605, all manufactured by Shin-Etsu Chemical Co., Ltd. It is not limited.

  The thickness of the fluorine elastomer adhesive layer 18 is preferably 2500 μm or less in order to eliminate the influence on the membrane vibration of the thin film 16. If the thickness is larger than this, the effect of the elastomeric elastic body is lost, resulting in a problem that the discharge efficiency is lowered. If the adhesive layer 18 is formed to 2500 μm or less, there is no decrease in the discharge efficiency, or even a negligible level. The difference between the thinnest part and the thickest part of the thickness of the adhesive layer 18 is desirably 100 μm or less. This is because if the adhesive layer 18 is biased, uniform film vibration cannot be achieved, and the difference between the thinnest part and the thickest part is controlled to 100 μm or less to ensure uniform film vibration.

  A liquid supply tube 20 that supplies the toner composition liquid 10 to the reservoir 12 and a bubble discharge tube 21 for discharging bubbles are connected to the flow path member 13 at least at one location. The support member 22 attached to the flow path member 13 is installed and held on the upper surface portion 3A of the drying tower storage portion that becomes the particle forming portion 3. In addition, the structure which installs the droplet ejection unit 2 in the side wall or bottom part of the particle | grain formation part 3 may be sufficient.

  The mechanism of droplet formation by the droplet forming means 11 will be described with reference to FIG. The droplet forming means 11 includes a plurality of nozzles 15 in a relatively large area, for example, a diameter of 1 mm or more, by forming an electromechanical conversion means 17 as a mechanical vibration means on the thin film 16 in an annular shape. The liquid droplets can be stably formed and discharged from the plurality of nozzles 15. When the droplet forming means 11 fixes a peripheral portion 16A of a simple circular thin film 16 as shown in FIGS. 5A and 5B, when the circular thin film 16 is vibrated, the basic vibration is reduced at the periphery. As shown in FIG. 6, the cross-sectional shape is such that the vibration displacement ΔL becomes the maximum displacement ΔLmax at the center of the circular thin film 16 and periodically vibrates in the vibration direction. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 6, it is preferable to vibrate the circular thin film 16 in a vibration mode in which the periphery is a node and does not have a node in the diameter direction (radial direction). When the circular thin film 16 is vibrated, it is known that higher-order vibration modes exist as shown in FIGS. 7 (a) and 7 (b). These modes have one or a plurality of concentric nodes in the circular thin film 16 and have a deformed shape that is substantially symmetrical in the radial direction. Further, as shown in FIG. 8, by making the central portion of the circular thin film 16 have a convex shape, it is possible to control the traveling direction of the droplet and adjust the vibration amplitude.

Here, due to the vibration of the circular thin film 16, a sound pressure Pa proportional to the vibration speed Vm of the circular thin film 16 is generated in the toner composition liquid 10 in the vicinity of the plurality of nozzles 15 provided in the circular thin film 16. This sound pressure Pa is known to occur as a reaction of the radiation impedance Zr of the toner composition liquid 10, and the sound pressure Pac can be expressed by the following equation (1) as a product of the radiation impedance Zr and the membrane vibration velocity Vm.
Pa (r, t) = Zr · Vm (r, t) (1)
The vibration velocity Vm of the thin film 16 is a function of time t because it periodically varies with time, and various periodic fluctuations such as a sine waveform and a rectangular waveform can be formed. Further, as described above, the vibration displacement in the vibration direction is different in each part of the thin film 16, and the vibration velocity Vm is also a function of position coordinates on the thin film 16. Since the preferable vibration mode of the thin film is a deformed shape symmetrical in the radial direction as described above, it is substantially a function of the radius r.

  As described above, the sound pressure Pa proportional to the vibration displacement speed of the distributed thin film 16 is generated, and the toner composition liquid 10 is discharged into the gas phase in response to the periodic change of the sound pressure Pa. The The toner composition liquid 10 periodically discharged to the gas phase forms spheres due to the difference in surface tension between the liquid phase and the gas phase, and thus droplet formation occurs periodically. The liquid droplets are ejected from the nozzle 15. This state is schematically shown in FIG. By applying flexural vibration to the electromechanical conversion means 17 disposed around the thin film 16, the thin film 16 is bent to the side opposite to the storage portion 12 as shown in FIG. As shown to (b), it vibrates between the states bent to the storage part 12 side. As a result, the toner composition liquid 10 is formed into droplets by the vibration of the thin film 16 and the droplets 23 are discharged.

  Here, the vibration frequency of the thin film 16 that enables droplet formation is preferably in the range of 20 kHz to 2.0 MHz, and more preferably in the range of 50 kHz to 500 kHz. If the vibration period is 20 kHz or more, the dispersion of fine particles such as pigment and wax in the toner composition liquid 10 is promoted by the excitation of the liquid. Further, when the displacement amount of the sound pressure Pa is 10 kPa or more, the fine particle dispersion promoting action is more preferably generated. In this case, the diameter of the formed droplet tends to increase as the vibration displacement increases in the region where the plurality of nozzles 15 of the thin film 16 are formed. When the vibration displacement is small, a small droplet is formed or Does not form droplets. In order to reduce the variation in droplet size in the region where the plurality of nozzles 15 are formed, it is necessary to define the arrangement of the plurality of nozzles 15 at the optimum position of the vibration displacement of the thin film 16.

  According to the experiment, the ratio between the maximum value ΔLmax and the minimum value ΔLmin of the vibration direction displacement ΔL of the thin film 16 in the region where the plurality of nozzles 15 of the thin film 16 generated by the electromechanical conversion means 17 shown in FIGS. 6 and 7 is formed. By disposing a plurality of nozzles 15 in a region where R = ΔLmax / ΔLmin is within 2.0, variation in droplet size can be maintained in a necessary region as toner particles capable of providing a high-quality image. I found out.

  Furthermore, generation of satellite particles (particles having a diameter approximately one-half that of the formed droplets) is a major factor causing variations in droplet size (diameter). In contrast, under the condition where the sound pressure exceeds 500 kPa, satellite particles are generated, and many small particles are generated as compared with the main particles. In this case, when the experiment was performed by changing the conditions of the toner composition liquid, the generation start region of the satellite particles was the same in the region where the viscosity was 20 mPa · s or less and the surface tension was 20 to 75 mN / m. The displacement amount of the sound pressure Pa is preferably 101 Pa or more and 500 kPa or less, and more preferably 100 kPa or less. By arranging a plurality of nozzles 15 in the region of the thin film 16 where the displacement of the sound pressure Pa falls within this range, the generation of satellite particles can be suppressed.

Next, an outline of a toner manufacturing process by the toner manufacturing apparatus 1 will be described.
In a state where the toner composition liquid 10 in which the toner composition containing at least a resin and a colorant is dispersed or dissolved is supplied to the storage unit 12 of the droplet ejection unit 2, the electromechanical conversion unit 17 of the droplet forming unit 11 is supplied to the storage unit 12. By applying a driving waveform having a required driving frequency, bending vibration is generated in the electromechanical conversion means 17, and the thin film 16 is periodically vibrated by the bending vibration of the electromechanical conversion means 17, as shown in FIG. Due to the vibration of the thin film 16, the toner composition liquid is periodically formed into droplets from the plurality of nozzles 15 and discharged as droplets 23 into the particle forming unit 3 as the solvent removing unit. At this time, since the plurality of nozzles 15 are provided in the droplet forming means 11 of the droplet ejecting unit 2, a large number of droplets 23 of the toner composition liquid 10 that have been converted into a plurality of droplets are simultaneously released. Therefore, the production efficiency of the toner can be dramatically improved as compared with the case where the toner is manufactured by dripping the toner composition liquid using a conventional liquid discharge head.

  The droplets 23 discharged into the particle forming unit 3 are transported by the dry gas 24 flowing in the particle forming unit 3 in the same direction as the flying direction of the droplets 23, and the solvent is removed to form toner particles 25. The dry gas 14 means a gas having a dew point temperature of −10 ° C. or lower under atmospheric pressure. The dry gas 14 may be any gas that can dry the droplets 23. For example, air, nitrogen gas, or the like can be used. The toner particles 25 formed by the particle forming unit 3 are collected by the toner collecting unit 4 on the downstream side, sent to the toner storing unit 5 through a tube (not shown), and stored. The sectional shape of the toner collecting portion 4 is a shape having a tapered surface in which the opening diameter gradually decreases from the inlet portion (the liquid ejecting unit 2 side) toward the outlet portion. The toner is transferred to the toner storage unit 5 by the flow of the dry gas 24 from the outlet. Here, the toner collecting unit 4 may pump the toner particles 25 toward the toner storing unit 5, or the toner particles 25 may be sucked from the toner storing unit 5 side. Further, the flow of the dry gas 24 is preferably a vortex from the viewpoint of generating a centrifugal force and reliably transferring the toner particles 25. Further, it is preferable that the toner collecting portion 4, a tube (not shown), and the toner storage portion 5 are formed of a conductive material and are grounded. Furthermore, this manufacturing apparatus 1 is preferably explosion-proof.

  Moreover, it can also be set as the following structures. For example, the toner particles 25 may be formed by drying one droplet 23 of the toner composition liquid 10 in one cooling unit. Further, the toner particles 25 are formed by allowing the droplets 23 of the toner composition liquid 10 to pass through the conveyance path, and the charge of the toner particles 25 is temporarily neutralized by a static eliminator. The toner can be collected in the toner collecting unit 4. In this case, the charge removal can be performed by soft X-ray irradiation or plasma irradiation.

Further, the droplet 23 of the toner composition liquid 10 may be configured to give a positive charge or a negative charge by induction charge. Inductive charging can be performed by passing the droplet 23 between a pair of electrodes to which a DC voltage is applied. In this case, the electrical conductivity of the toner composition liquid 10 is 1.0 to 10 ⁻⁷ S / m or more, or the electrical conductivity of the toner composition liquid 10 as a solvent is 1.0 to 10 ⁻⁷ S. / M or more is preferable. In addition, the solvent removal unit can be configured to have a conveyance path whose periphery is covered with an electric field curtain charged to a polarity opposite to the charge of the droplet 23.

  As described above, the toner composition liquid is formed by the droplet spraying unit 2 including the thin film 16 in which the plurality of nozzles 15 are formed and the annular electromechanical conversion unit 17 arranged around the thin film to vibrate the thin film 16. Thus, the toner particles 25 can be efficiently produced, and toner particles 25 having a monodispersibility with an unprecedented particle size can be obtained.

  Next, the toner of the present invention will be described. The toner of the present invention is a toner manufactured by a toner manufacturing method using the toner manufacturing apparatus 1, whereby a toner having a monodispersed particle size distribution is obtained. Specifically, the particle size distribution (weight average particle diameter / number average particle diameter) of the toner is preferably in the range of 1.00 to 1.15. Moreover, as a weight average particle diameter, it is preferable to exist in the range of 1-20 micrometers. In addition, the toner manufactured by the toner manufacturing apparatus 1 can be easily redispersed, that is, floated in the air stream by the electrostatic repulsion effect. For this reason, the toner can be easily transported to the developing region without using a transporting unit used in the conventional electrophotographic system. That is, even a weak air current has sufficient transportability, and the toner can be transported to the development area with a simple air pump and developed as it is. Development is so-called powder cloud development, and since there is no disturbance in image formation due to air current, extremely good electrostatic latent image development can be performed. In addition, the toner of the present invention can be applied without any problem even in a conventional developing system. At this time, members such as a carrier and a developing sleeve are simply used as a toner conveying unit, and there is no need to consider a frictional charging mechanism that has been conventionally assigned to functions. Therefore, since the degree of freedom of the material is greatly increased, the durability can be greatly improved, and an inexpensive material can be used, and the cost can be reduced.

Next, the toner composition liquid 10 which is a toner material that can be used in the present invention will be described.
As the toner material, the same material as that of a conventional electrophotographic toner can be used. That is, a toner binder such as a styrene acrylic resin, a polyester resin, a polyol resin, and an epoxy resin is dissolved in various organic solvents, a colorant is dispersed, and a release agent is dispersed or dissolved. The target toner particles 25 can be produced by drying and solidifying the droplets with the production apparatus 1. In addition, a target toner can be obtained by drying and solidifying a liquid obtained by dissolving or dispersing a kneaded material obtained by hot-melting and kneading the above materials in various solvents into fine droplets using the toner manufacturing apparatus 1. .

  The toner material contains at least a resin and a colorant and, if necessary, other components such as a magnetic material and wax. Examples of the resin include at least a binder resin. The binder resin is not particularly limited, and a commonly used resin can be appropriately selected and used. For example, a styrene monomer, an acrylic monomer, a methacrylic monomer, etc. Vinyl polymers, copolymers of these monomers or two or more types, polyester polymers, polyol resins, phenol resins, silicone resins, polyurethane resins, polyamide resins, furan resins, epoxy resins, xylene resins, terpene resins , Coumarone indene resin, polycarbonate resin, petroleum resin, and the like.

  Examples of the styrene monomer include styrene, o-methyl styrene, m-methyl styrene, p-methyl styrene, p-phenyl styrene, p-ethyl styrene, 2,4-dimethyl styrene, pn-amyl. Styrene, p-tert-butyl styrene, pn-hexyl styrene, pn-octyl styrene, pn-nonyl styrene, pn-decyl styrene, pn-dodecyl styrene, p-methoxy styrene, Examples thereof include styrene such as p-chlorostyrene, 3,4-dichlorostyrene, m-nitrostyrene, o-nitrostyrene, and p-nitrostyrene, or derivatives thereof.

  Examples of acrylic monomers include acrylic acid, or methyl acrylate, ethyl acrylate, propyl acrylate, n-butyl acrylate, isobutyl acrylate, n-octyl acrylate, n-dodecyl acrylate, and acrylic acid. Examples include 2-ethylhexyl, stearyl acrylate, 2-chloroethyl acrylate, acrylic acid such as phenyl acrylate, and esters thereof.

  Examples of the methacrylic monomer include methacrylic acid, methyl methacrylate, ethyl methacrylate, propyl methacrylate, n-butyl methacrylate, isobutyl methacrylate, n-octyl methacrylate, n-dodecyl methacrylate, and methacrylic acid 2 -Methacrylic acid such as ethylhexyl, stearyl methacrylate, phenyl methacrylate, dimethylaminoethyl methacrylate, diethylaminoethyl methacrylate, or esters thereof.

The following (1)-(18) is mentioned as an example of the other monomer which forms the said vinyl polymer or a copolymer. (1) Monoolefins such as ethylene, propylene, butylene and isobutylene; (2) Polyenes such as butadiene and isoprene; (3) Vinyl halides such as vinyl chloride, vinylidene chloride, vinyl bromide and vinyl fluoride; (4) Vinyl esters such as vinyl acetate, vinyl propionate and vinyl benzoate; (5) Vinyl ethers such as vinyl methyl ether, vinyl ethyl ether and vinyl isobutyl ether; (6) Vinyl methyl ketone, vinyl hexyl ketone and methyl. Vinyl ketones such as isopropenyl ketone; (7) N-vinyl compounds such as N-vinyl pyrrole, N-vinyl carbazole, N-vinyl indole, N-vinyl pyrrolidone; (8), vinyl naphthalenes; (9) acrylonitrile, Such as methacrylonitrile, acrylamide, etc. (10) unsaturated dibasic acids such as maleic acid, citraconic acid, itaconic acid, alkenyl succinic acid, fumaric acid, mesaconic acid; (11) maleic anhydride, citraconic anhydride, Unsaturated dibasic acid anhydrides such as itaconic acid anhydride and alkenyl succinic acid anhydride; (12
) Maleic acid monomethyl ester, maleic acid monoethyl ester, maleic acid monobutyl ester, citraconic acid monomethyl ester, citraconic acid monoethyl ester, citraconic acid monobutyl ester, itaconic acid monomethyl ester, alkenyl succinic acid monomethyl ester, fumaric acid monomethyl ester Monoesters of unsaturated dibasic acids such as mesaconic acid monomethyl ester; (13) unsaturated dibasic acid esters such as dimethylmaleic acid and dimethylfumaric acid; and (14) α, β-unsaturated such as crotonic acid and cinnamic acid. (15) α, β-unsaturated acid anhydrides such as crotonic acid anhydride and cinnamic acid anhydride; (16) anhydrides of the α, β-unsaturated acid and lower fatty acids, alkenylmalonic acid, Alkenyl glutaric acid, alkenyl adipic acid, these acids And monomers having a carboxyl group such as monoesters thereof; (17) acrylic acid or methacrylic acid hydroxyalkyl esters such as 2-hydroxyethyl acrylate, 2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate, 2-hydroxypropyl methacrylate; (18) 4 -Monomers having a hydroxy group such as (1-hydroxy-1-methylbutyl) styrene and 4- (1-hydroxy-1-methylhexyl) styrene.

  In the toner, the vinyl polymer or copolymer of the binder resin may have a cross-linked structure cross-linked with a cross-linking agent having two or more vinyl groups. Examples of the crosslinking agent used in this case include divinylbenzene and divinylnaphthalene as aromatic divinyl compounds. Examples of diacrylate compounds linked by an alkyl chain include ethylene glycol diacrylate, 1,3-butylene glycol diacrylate, 1,4-butanediol diacrylate, 1,5-pentanediol diacrylate, and 1,6. And xanthdiol diacrylate, neopentyl glycol diacrylate, and those obtained by replacing acrylates of these compounds with methacrylate. Examples of diacrylate compounds linked by an alkyl chain containing an ether bond include diethylene glycol diacrylate, triethylene glycol diacrylate, tetraethylene glycol diacrylate, polyethylene glycol # 400 diacrylate, polyethylene glycol # 600 diacrylate, and dipropylene. Examples include glycol diacrylate and those obtained by replacing acrylate of these compounds with methacrylate.

  Other examples include diacrylate compounds and dimethacrylate compounds linked by a chain containing an aromatic group and an ether bond. Examples of polyester diacrylates include trade name MANDA (manufactured by Nippon Kayaku Co., Ltd.).

  Examples of the polyfunctional crosslinking agent include pentaerythritol triacrylate, trimethylol ethane triacrylate, trimethylol propane triacrylate, tetramethylol methane tetraacrylate, oligoester acrylate, and acrylates of the above compounds in place of methacrylate, triallyl cyanide. Examples include nurate and triallyl trimellitate. These crosslinking agents are preferably used in an amount of 0.01 to 10 parts by weight, more preferably 0.03 to 5 parts by weight, with respect to 100 parts by weight of the other monomer components. Among these crosslinkable monomers, diacrylates bonded to a toner resin by a bond chain containing one aromatic divinyl compound (especially divinylbenzene), one aromatic group and an ether bond from the viewpoint of fixability and offset resistance. Preferred examples include compounds. Among these, a combination of monomers that becomes a styrene copolymer or a styrene-acrylic copolymer is preferable.

Examples of the polymerization initiator used for the production of the vinyl polymer or copolymer include 2,2′-azobisisobutyronitrile and 2,2′-azobis (4-methoxy-2,4-dimethylvaleronitrile). ), 2,2′-azobis (2,4-dimethylvaleronitrile), 2,2′-azobis (2-methylbutyronitrile), dimethyl-2,2′-azobisisobutyrate, 1,1 ′ -Azobis (1-cyclohexanecarbonitrile), 2- (carbamoylazo) -isobutyronitrile, 2,2'-azobis (2,4,4-trimethylpentane), 2-phenylazo-2 ', 4'-Dimethyl-4'-methoxyvaleronitrile,2,2'-azobis (2-methylpropane), methyl ethyl ketone peroxide, acetylacetone peroxide, cyclohexanone peroxide Ketone peroxides such as id, 2,2-bis (tert-butylperoxy) butane, tert-butyl hydroperoxide, cumene hydroperoxide, 1,1,3,3-tetramethylbutyl hydroperoxide, di -Tert-butyl peroxide, tert-butyl cumyl peroxide, dicumyl peroxide, α- (tert-butylperoxy) isopropylbenzene, isobutyl peroxide, octanoyl peroxide, decanoyl peroxide, lauroyl peroxide, 3,5,5-trimethylhexanoyl peroxide, benzoyl peroxide, m-tolyl peroxide, di-isopropyl peroxydicarbonate, di-2-ethylhexyl peroxydicarbonate, di n- propyl peroxydicarbonate, di-2-ethoxyethyl peroxydicarbonate, di -
Ethoxyisopropyl peroxydicarbonate, di (3-methyl-3-methoxybutyl) peroxycarbonate, acetylcyclohexylsulfonyl peroxide, tert-butyl peroxyacetate, tert-butyl peroxyisobutyrate, tert-butyl peroxy Oxy-2-ethylhexarate, tert-butyl peroxylaurate, tert-butyl-oxybenzoate, tert-butyl peroxyisopropyl carbonate, di-tert-butyl peroxyisophthalate, tert-butyl peroxyallyl carbonate, Isoamylperoxy-2-ethylhexanoate, di-tert-butylperoxyhexahydroterephthalate, tert-butylperoxyazelate, etc.

  When the binder resin is a styrene-acrylic resin, the molecular weight distribution by GPC soluble in the resin component tetrahydrofuran (THF) has at least one peak in the region of molecular weight 3,000 to 50,000 (in terms of number average molecular weight). A resin which is present and has at least one peak in a region having a molecular weight of 100,000 or more is preferable in terms of fixing property, offset property and storage property. Further, as the THF soluble component, a binder resin in which a component having a molecular weight distribution of 100,000 or less is 50 to 90% is preferable, and a binder resin having a main peak in a molecular weight region of 5,000 to 30,000 is more preferable. A binder resin having a main peak in the region of 5,000 to 20,000 is most preferable. The acid value when the binder resin is a vinyl polymer such as styrene-acrylic resin is preferably 0.1 mgKOH / g to 100 mgKOH / g, and preferably 0.1 mgKOH / g to 70 mgKOH / g. More preferably, it is most preferably 0.1 mgKOH / g to 50 mgKOH / g.

The following are mentioned as a monomer which comprises a polyester-type polymer.
Examples of the divalent alcohol component include ethylene glycol, propylene glycol, 1,3-butanediol, 1,4-butanediol, 2,3-butanediol, diethylene glycol, triethylene glycol, 1,5-pentanediol, 1,6-hexanediol, neopentyl glycol, 2-ethyl-1,3-hexanediol, hydrogenated bisphenol A, diol obtained by polymerizing cyclic ethers such as ethylene oxide and propylene oxide to bisphenol A, and the like Can be mentioned. In order to crosslink the polyester resin, it is preferable to use a trivalent or higher alcohol together.

  Examples of the trihydric or higher polyhydric alcohol include sorbitol, 1,2,3,6-hexanetetrol, 1,4-sorbitan, pentaerythritol, such as dipentaerythritol, tripentaerythritol, 1,2,4- Butanetriol, 1,2,5-pentatriol, glycerol, 2-methylpropanetriol, 2-methyl-1,2,4-butanetriol, trimethylolethane, trimethylolpropane, 1,3,5-trihydroxybenzene , Etc.

  Examples of the acid component that forms the polyester polymer include benzene dicarboxylic acids such as phthalic acid, isophthalic acid, and terephthalic acid or anhydrides thereof, alkyldicarboxylic acids such as succinic acid, adipic acid, sebacic acid, and azelaic acid, or Unsaturated dibasic acids such as anhydride, maleic acid, citraconic acid, itaconic acid, alkenyl succinic acid, fumaric acid, mesaconic acid, maleic anhydride, citraconic anhydride, itaconic anhydride, alkenyl succinic anhydride And unsaturated dibasic acid anhydrides. Examples of the trivalent or higher polyvalent carboxylic acid component include trimet acid, pyromet acid, 1,2,4-benzenetricarboxylic acid, 1,2,5-benzenetricarboxylic acid, 2,5,7-naphthalenetricarboxylic acid, 1,2,4-naphthalenetricarboxylic acid, 1,2,4-butanetricarboxylic acid, 1,2,5-hexanetricarboxylic acid, 1,3-dicarboxy-2-methyl-2-methylenecarboxypropane, tetra (methylene Carboxy) methane, 1,2,7,8-octanetetracarboxylic acid, empol trimer acid, anhydrides thereof, partial lower alkyl esters and the like.

  When the binder resin is a polyester resin, the toner has fixability and offset resistance because at least one peak exists in the molecular weight range of 3,000 to 50,000 in the molecular weight distribution of the THF soluble component of the resin component. In addition, as a THF soluble component, a binder resin in which a component having a molecular weight of 100,000 or less is 60 to 100% is preferable, and at least one peak exists in a region having a molecular weight of 5,000 to 20,000. More preferable is a binder resin. When the binder resin is a polyester resin, the acid value is preferably 0.1 mgKOH / g to 100 mgKOH / g, more preferably 0.1 mgKOH / g to 70 mgKOH / g, and 0.1 mgKOH / g. Most preferably, it is g-50 mgKOH / g. The molecular weight distribution of the binder resin is measured by gel permeation chromatography (GPC) using THF as a solvent.

  As the binder resin that can be used in the toner of the present invention, a resin containing a monomer component capable of reacting with both of these resin components in at least one of the vinyl polymer component and the polyester resin component can also be used. . Examples of monomers that can react with the vinyl polymer among the monomers constituting the polyester resin component include unsaturated dicarboxylic acids such as phthalic acid, maleic acid, citraconic acid, and itaconic acid, or anhydrides thereof. Examples of the monomer constituting the vinyl polymer component include those having a carboxyl group or a hydroxy group, and acrylic acid or methacrylic acid esters. Moreover, when using together a polyester polymer, a vinyl polymer, and another binder resin, what has 60 mass% or more of resin whose acid value of the whole binder resin has 0.1-50 mgKOH / g is preferable.

The acid value of the binder resin component of the toner composition is determined by the following method, and the basic operation is in accordance with JIS K-0070.
(1) The sample is used by removing additives other than the binder resin (polymer component) in advance, or the acid value and content of components other than the binder resin and the crosslinked binder resin are obtained in advance. . The sample pulverized product 0.5 to 2.0 g is precisely weighed, and the weight of the polymer component is defined as Wg. For example, when measuring the acid value of the binder resin from the toner, the acid value and content of the colorant or magnetic material are separately measured, and the acid value of the binder resin is obtained by calculation.
(2) A sample is put into a 300 (ml) beaker, and a mixed solution 150 (ml) of toluene / ethanol (volume ratio 4/1) is added and dissolved.
(3) Titrate with a potentiometric titrator using an ethanol solution of 0.1 mol / l KOH.
(4) The amount of use of the KOH solution at this time is S (ml), a blank is measured at the same time, the amount of use of the KOH solution at this time is B (ml), and the following formula is used. However, f is a factor of KOH.
Acid value (mgKOH / g) = [(SB) × f × 5.61] / W

  The toner binder resin and the composition containing the binder resin preferably have a glass transition temperature (Tg) of 35 to 80 ° C., more preferably 40 to 75 ° C., from the viewpoint of toner storage stability. If the Tg is lower than 35 ° C., the toner is likely to deteriorate in a high temperature atmosphere, and offset may easily occur during fixing. On the other hand, when Tg exceeds 80 ° C., fixability may be deteriorated.

Examples of the magnetic material include (1) iron oxide containing magnetic iron oxide such as magnetite, maghemite and ferrite, and other metal oxides, and (2) metals such as iron, cobalt and nickel, or these Alloys of metals and metals such as aluminum, cobalt, copper, lead, magnesium, tin, zinc, antimony, beryllium, bismuth, cadmium, calcium, manganese, selenium, titanium, tungsten, vanadium. (3) and mixtures thereof are used. Specific examples of this magnetic material include Fe ₃ O ₄ , γ-Fe ₂ O ₃ , ZnFe ₂ O ₄ , Y ₃ Fe ₅ O ₁₂ , CdFe ₂ O ₄ , Gd ₃ Fe ₅ O ₁₂ , CuFe ₂ O _4. , PbFe ₁₂ O, NiFe ₂ O ₄ , NdFe ₂ O, BaFe ₁₂ O ₁₉ , MgFe ₂ O ₄ , MnFe ₂ O ₄ , LaFeO ₃ , iron powder, cobalt powder, nickel powder, and the like. These may be used individually by 1 type and may be used in combination of 2 or more type. Among these, fine powders of iron trioxide and γ-iron trioxide are particularly preferred.

  Further, magnetic iron oxides such as magnetite, maghemite, and ferrite containing different elements, or a mixture thereof can be used. Examples of different elements include, for example, lithium, beryllium, boron, magnesium, aluminum, silicon, phosphorus, germanium, zirconium, tin, sulfur, calcium, scandium, titanium, vanadium, chromium, manganese, cobalt, nickel, copper, zinc, And gallium. Preferred heterogeneous elements are selected from magnesium, aluminum, silicon, phosphorus, or zirconium. The foreign element may be incorporated into the iron oxide crystal lattice, may be incorporated into the iron oxide as an oxide, or may be present on the surface as an oxide or hydroxide. Is preferably contained as an oxide.

  The different elements can be incorporated into the particles by adjusting the pH by mixing salts of the different elements at the time of producing the magnetic substance. Moreover, it can precipitate on the particle | grain surface by adjusting pH after magnetic body particle | grains production | generation, or adding salt of each element and adjusting pH. As a usage-amount of a magnetic body, 10-200 mass parts of magnetic bodies are preferable with respect to 100 mass parts of binder resin, and 20-150 mass parts is more preferable. The number average particle diameter of these magnetic materials is preferably 0.1 to 2 μm, and more preferably 0.1 to 0.5 μm. The number average diameter can be determined by measuring an enlarged photograph taken with a transmission electron microscope with a digitizer or the like. Further, as the magnetic properties of the magnetic material, those having a coercive force of 20 to 150 oersted, a saturation magnetization of 50 to 200 emu / g, and a residual magnetization of 2 to 20 emu / g are preferable, respectively. This magnetic material can also be used as a colorant.

The colorant is not particularly limited, and a commonly used resin can be appropriately selected and used. For example, carbon black, nigrosine dye, iron black, naphthol yellow S, Hansa yellow (10G, 5G, G ), Cadmium yellow, Yellow iron oxide, Ocher, Yellow lead, Titanium yellow, Polyazo yellow, Oil yellow, Hansa yellow (GR, A, RN, R), Pigment yellow L, Benzidine yellow (G, GR), Permanent yellow (NCG), Vulcan Fast Yellow (5G, R), Tartrazine Lake, Quinoline Yellow Lake, Anthrazan Yellow BGL, Isoindolinone Yellow, Bengala, Red Dan, Lead Zhu, Cadmium Red, Cadmium Mercury Red, Antimon Zhu, Permanent Red 4R, Para Red, Phi -Red, Parachlor ortho nitroaniline red, Resol Fast Scarlet G, Brilliant Fast Scarlet, Brilliant Carmine BS, Permanent Red (F2R, F4R, FRL, FRLL, F4RH), Fast Scarlet VD, Belkan Fast Rubin B, Brilliant Scarlet G, Risor Rubin GX, Permanent Red F5R, Brilliant Carmine 6B, Pigment Scarlet 3B, Bordeaux 5B, Toluidine Maroon, Permanent Bordeaux F2
K, Helio Bordeaux BL, Bordeaux 10B, Bon Maroon Light, Bon Maroon Medium, Eosin Lake, Rhodamine Lake B, Rhodamine Lake Y, Alizarin Lake, Thioindigo Red B, Thioindigo Maroon, Oil Red, Quinacridone Red, Pyrazolone Red, Polyazo Red, Chrome Vermillion, Benzidine Orange, Perinone Orange, Oil Orange, Cobalt Blue, Cerulean Blue, Alkaline Blue Lake, Peacock Blue Lake, Victoria Blue Lake, Metal Free Phthalocyanine Blue, Phthalocyanine Blue, Fast Sky Blue, Indanthrene Blue (RS, BC), indigo, ultramarine blue, bitumen, anthraquinone blue, fast violet B, methyl violet lake, cobalt purple, man Purple, dioxane violet, anthraquinone violet, chrome green, zinc green, chromium oxide, pyridian, emerald green, pigment green B, naphthol green B, green gold, acid green lake, malachite green lake, phthalocyanine green, anthraquinone green, titanium oxide , Zinc white, litbon and mixtures thereof.

  The content of the colorant is preferably 1 to 15% by mass and more preferably 3 to 10% by mass with respect to the toner.

  The colorant used in the toner manufactured by the toner manufacturing apparatus 1 can also be used as a master batch combined with a resin. As the binder resin kneaded together with the production of the master batch or the master batch, in addition to the above-mentioned modified and unmodified polyester resins, for example, polystyrene, poly p-chlorostyrene, polyvinyltoluene and other styrene and its substitutes Polymer: Styrene-p-chlorostyrene copolymer, styrene-propylene copolymer, styrene-vinyltoluene copolymer, styrene-vinylnaphthalene copolymer, styrene-methyl acrylate copolymer, styrene-ethyl acrylate Copolymer, styrene-butyl acrylate copolymer, styrene-octyl acrylate copolymer, styrene-methyl methacrylate copolymer, styrene-ethyl methacrylate copolymer, styrene-butyl methacrylate copolymer, styrene -Α-Chloromethyl methacrylate Polymer, styrene-acrylonitrile copolymer, styrene-vinyl methyl ketone copolymer, styrene-butadiene copolymer, styrene-isoprene copolymer, styrene-acrylonitrile-indene copolymer, styrene-maleic acid copolymer, Styrene copolymers such as styrene-maleic acid ester copolymer; polymethyl methacrylate, polybutyl methacrylate, polyvinyl chloride, polyvinyl acetate, polyethylene, polypropylene, polyester, epoxy resin, epoxy polyol resin, polyurethane, polyamide, polyvinyl Examples include butyral, polyacrylic acid resin, rosin, modified rosin, terpene resin, aliphatic or alicyclic hydrocarbon resin, aromatic petroleum resin, chlorinated paraffin, and paraffin wax. These may be used individually by 1 type, and 2 or more types may be mixed and used for them.

  The masterbatch can be obtained by mixing and kneading a masterbatch resin and a colorant with a high shear force. At this time, an organic solvent can be used in order to enhance the interaction between the colorant and the resin. Also, there is a method of removing the water and organic solvent components by mixing and kneading an aqueous paste containing water, which is a so-called flushing method, together with a resin and an organic solvent, and transferring the colorant to the resin side. Since the wet cake can be used as it is, it does not need to be dried and is preferably used. For mixing and kneading, a high shearing dispersion device such as a three-roll mill is preferably used. As a usage-amount of this masterbatch, 0.1-20 mass parts is preferable with respect to 100 mass parts of binder resin.

The resin for the masterbatch preferably has an acid value of 30 mgKOH / g or less, an amine value of 1 to 100, and a colorant dispersed therein. The acid value is 20 mgKOH / g or less and the amine value is 10 It is more preferable that the colorant is dispersed and used at ˜50. When the acid value exceeds 30 mgKOH / g, the chargeability under high humidity may be lowered, and the pigment dispersibility may be insufficient. Also, when the amine value is less than 1 and when the amine value exceeds 100, the pigment dispersibility may be insufficient. The acid value can be measured by the method described in JIS K0070, and the amine value can be measured by the method described in JIS K7237.

  The dispersant is preferably highly compatible with the binder resin in terms of pigment dispersibility. Specific examples of commercially available products include “Ajisper PB821” and “Azisper PB822” (manufactured by Ajinomoto Fine Techno Co., Ltd.). "Disperbyk-2001" (manufactured by Big Chemie), "EFKA-4010" (manufactured by EFKA), and the like. This dispersant is preferably blended in the toner in a proportion of 0.1 to 10% by mass with respect to the colorant. When the blending ratio is less than 0.1% by mass, the pigment dispersibility may be insufficient, and when it is more than 10% by mass, the chargeability under high humidity may be deteriorated.

  In addition, the weight average molecular weight of the dispersant is preferably the molecular weight of the maximum value of the main peak in terms of styrene in gel permeation chromatography, preferably 500 to 100,000, and more preferably 3000 to 100,000 from the viewpoint of pigment dispersibility. . In particular, 5000 to 50000 is preferable, and 5000 to 30000 is most preferable. When the molecular weight is less than 500, the polarity becomes high and the dispersibility of the colorant may be lowered. When the molecular weight exceeds 100,000, the affinity with the solvent is increased and the dispersibility of the colorant is lowered. There is.

  The addition amount of the dispersant is preferably 1 to 200 parts by mass, more preferably 5 to 80 parts by mass with respect to 100 parts by mass of the colorant. If it is less than 1 part by mass, the dispersibility may be lowered, and if it exceeds 200 parts by mass, the chargeability may be lowered.

  The toner manufactured by the toner manufacturing apparatus 1 may be mixed with a carrier and used as a two-component developer. As the carrier, ordinary carriers such as ferrite and magnetite and resin-coated carriers can be used. The resin-coated carrier is composed of carrier core particles and a coating material that is a resin that coats (coats) the surface of the carrier core particles. Examples of the resin used for the covering material include styrene-acrylic resins such as styrene-acrylic acid ester copolymers and styrene-methacrylic acid ester copolymers, acrylic resins such as acrylic acid ester copolymers and methacrylic acid ester copolymers. Preferable examples include fluorine-containing resins such as resin, polytetrafluoroethylene, monochlorotrifluoroethylene polymer, polyvinylidene fluoride, silicone resin, polyester resin, polyamide resin, polyvinyl butyral, and aminoacrylate resin. In addition to these, resins that can be used as a coating (coating) material for carriers such as an ionomer resin and a polyphenylene sulfide resin can be used. These resins may be used alone or in combination of two or more. A binder type carrier core in which magnetic powder is dispersed in a resin can also be used.

  In the resin-coated carrier, as a method for coating the surface of the carrier core with at least a resin coating agent, a method in which the resin is dissolved or suspended in a solvent and adhered to the applied carrier core, or a method in which the resin core is simply mixed in a powder state Is applicable. The ratio of the resin coating material to the resin-coated carrier may be appropriately determined, but is preferably 0.01 to 5% by mass and more preferably 0.1 to 1% by mass with respect to the resin-coated carrier. Examples of use in which a magnetic material is coated with a coating agent of two or more kinds of mixtures include (1) dimethyldichlorosilane and dimethyl silicon oil (mass ratio 1: 5) with respect to 100 parts by mass of fine titanium oxide powder. Those treated with 12 parts by mass of the mixture, and (2) those treated with 20 parts by mass of a mixture of dimethyldichlorosilane and dimethylsilicone oil (mass ratio 1: 5) with respect to 100 parts by mass of the silica fine powder.

Among the resins, styrene-methyl methacrylate copolymer, a mixture of fluorine-containing resin and styrene copolymer, and silicone resin are preferably used, and silicone resin is particularly preferable. Examples of the mixture of the fluorine-containing resin and the styrene copolymer include, for example, a mixture of polyvinylidene fluoride and a styrene-methyl methacrylate copolymer, a mixture of polytetrafluoroethylene and a styrene-methyl methacrylate copolymer, Vinylidene fluoride-tetrafluoroethylene copolymer (copolymer mass ratio 10:90 to 90:10), styrene-2-ethylhexyl acrylate copolymer (copolymer mass ratio 10:90 to 90:10) and styrene A mixture with 2-ethylhexyl acrylate-methyl methacrylate copolymer (copolymer mass ratio 20 to 60: 5 to 30:10:50) is mentioned. Examples of the silicone resin include modified silicone resins produced by reacting a nitrogen-containing silicone resin and a nitrogen-containing silane coupling agent with a silicone resin.

  Examples of the magnetic material for the carrier core include oxides such as ferrite, iron-rich ferrite, magnetite, and γ-iron oxide, metals such as iron, cobalt, and nickel, or alloys thereof. The elements contained in these magnetic materials include iron, cobalt, nickel, aluminum, copper, lead, magnesium, tin, zinc, antimony, beryllium, bismuth, calcium, manganese, selenium, titanium, tungsten, and vanadium. It is done. Among these, copper-zinc-iron-based ferrites mainly composed of copper, zinc, and iron components, and manganese-magnesium-iron-based ferrites mainly composed of manganese, magnesium, and iron components are preferable.

  The resistance value of the carrier is preferably adjusted to 106 to 1010 Ω · cm by adjusting the degree of unevenness on the surface of the carrier and the amount of resin to be coated. The carrier having a particle diameter of 4 to 200 μm can be used, preferably 10 to 150 μm, more preferably 20 to 100 μm. In particular, the resin-coated carrier preferably has a 50% particle size of 20 to 70 μm. In the two-component developer, it is preferable to use 1 to 200 parts by mass of the toner of the present invention with respect to 100 parts by mass of the carrier, and 2 to 50 parts by mass of toner with respect to 100 parts by mass of the carrier. More preferred.

  The toner manufactured by the toner manufacturing apparatus 1 may contain a wax together with a binder resin and a colorant. The wax is not particularly limited and can be appropriately selected from those usually used. For example, low molecular weight polyethylene, low molecular weight polypropylene, polyolefin wax, microcrystalline wax, paraffin wax, sazol wax, etc. Of aliphatic hydrocarbon waxes, oxides of aliphatic hydrocarbon waxes such as oxidized polyethylene wax or block copolymers thereof, plant waxes such as candelilla wax, carnauba wax, wood wax, jojoba wax, beeswax, Waxes mainly composed of animal waxes such as lanolin and whale wax, mineral waxes such as ozokerite, ceresin, and petrolatum, and fatty acid esters such as montanic acid ester wax and castor wax. Deoxidized carnauba wax and other fatty acid esters are partially or wholly deoxidized.

In addition, examples of waxes include saturated linear fatty acids such as palmitic acid, stearic acid, montanic acid, and linear alkyl carboxylic acids having a linear alkyl group, prandidic acid, eleostearic acid, and valinalic acid. Unsaturated alcohols such as stearyl alcohol, eicosyl alcohol, behenyl alcohol, carnupyl alcohol, seryl alcohol, mesyl alcohol, or long-chain alkyl alcohols, polyhydric alcohols such as sorbitol, linoleic acid amides, olefinic acids Fatty acid amides such as amide and lauric acid amide, methylene biscapric acid amide, ethylene bis lauric acid amide, hexamethylene bis stearic acid amide and other saturated fatty acid bisamides, ethylene bis oleic acid amide, hexamethylene bis Unsaturated fatty acid amides such as oleic acid amide, N, N′-dioleyl adipic acid amide, N, N′-dioleyl sepasinic acid amide, m-xylene bisstearic acid amide, N, N-distearyl isophthalic acid Grafted onto aromatic bisamides such as amides, fatty acid metal salts such as calcium stearate, calcium laurate, zinc stearate and magnesium stearate, and aliphatic hydrocarbon waxes using vinyl monomers such as styrene and acrylic acid. Examples thereof include waxes, partial ester compounds of polyhydric alcohols such as behenic acid monoglycerides, and methyl ester compounds having a hydroxyl group obtained by hydrogenating vegetable oils and fats.

  More preferable examples include polyolefins obtained by radical polymerization of olefins under high pressure, polyolefins obtained by purifying low molecular weight by-products obtained during polymerization of high molecular weight polyolefins, and polymerization using a catalyst such as a Ziegler catalyst or a metallocene catalyst under low pressure. Polyolefin, polyolefin polymerized using radiation, electromagnetic waves or light, low molecular weight polyolefin obtained by thermal decomposition of high molecular weight polyolefin, paraffin wax, microcrystalline wax, Fitzscher Tropsch wax, Jintole method, hydrocol method, age method Synthetic hydrocarbon waxes synthesized by the above, synthetic waxes having a compound having one carbon atom, hydrocarbon waxes having functional groups such as hydroxyl groups or carboxyl groups, hydrocarbon waxes and hydrocarbons having functional groups Mixture of system wax, styrene these waxes as a matrix, maleic acid ester, acrylate, methacrylate, graft-modified wax with such vinyl monomers of maleic acid.

  In addition, these waxes have a sharp molecular weight distribution using a press perspiration method, a solvent method, a recrystallization method, a vacuum distillation method, a supercritical gas extraction method, or a solution liquid crystal deposition method, a low molecular weight solid fatty acid, a low A molecular weight solid alcohol, a low molecular weight solid compound, and other impurities are also preferable.

The melting point of the wax is preferably 70 to 140 ° C., and more preferably 70 to 120 ° C., in order to balance the fixing property and the offset resistance. If it is less than 70 degreeC, blocking resistance may fall, and if it exceeds 140 degreeC, an offset-proof effect may become difficult to express. Further, by using two or more different types of waxes in combination, the plasticizing action and the releasing action which are the actions of the wax can be expressed simultaneously.
Examples of the types of wax having a plasticizing action include waxes having a low melting point, those having a branch on the molecular structure, and those having a polar group.
Examples of the wax having a releasing action include a wax having a high melting point, and the molecular structure includes a linear structure and a non-polar one having no functional group.
Examples of use include a combination of two or more different waxes having a melting point difference of 10 ° C. to 100 ° C., a combination of polyolefin and graft-modified polyolefin, and the like. When selecting two types of wax, in the case of a wax having the same structure, a wax having a relatively low melting point exhibits a plasticizing action, and a wax having a high melting point exhibits a releasing action. At this time, when the difference in melting point is 10 to 100 ° C., functional separation is effectively expressed. If it is less than 10 ° C., the function separation effect may be difficult to appear, and if it exceeds 100 ° C., the function may not be emphasized by interaction. At this time, the melting point of at least one of the waxes is preferably 70 to 120 ° C, and more preferably 70 to 100 ° C, because the function separation effect tends to be easily exhibited.

  In addition, relatively waxes having a branched structure, those having a polar group such as a functional group, and those modified with a component different from the main component exhibit a plastic action, and have a more linear structure or a functional group. Nonpolar or non-denatured straight groups that do not have a group exhibit a releasing action. Preferred combinations include polyethylene homopolymers or copolymers based on ethylene and polyolefin homopolymers or copolymers based on olefins other than ethylene, polyolefins and graft modified polyolefins, alcohol waxes, fatty acid waxes or ester waxes. And hydrocarbon wax combinations, Fischer-Tropsch wax or polyolefin wax and paraffin wax or microcrystal wax combination, Fischer-Tropsch wax and polyolefin wax combination, paraffin wax and microcrystal wax combination, Carnauba Wax, Can Delila wax, rice wax or montan wax and hydrocarbon-based wax Like a combination of.

  In any case, since it becomes easy to balance the toner storage stability and the fixing property, the peak top temperature of the maximum peak is in the region of 70 to 110 ° C. in the endothermic peak observed in the DSC measurement of the toner. Preferably, it has a maximum peak in the region of 70 to 110 ° C. The total content of the wax is preferably 0.2 to 20 parts by mass and more preferably 0.5 to 10 parts by mass with respect to 100 parts by mass of the binder resin.

  Here, the peak top temperature of the endothermic peak of the wax measured by DSC is defined as the melting point of the wax. As a DSC measuring instrument for wax or toner, it is preferable to measure with a differential scanning calorimeter of high accuracy internal heat type input compensation type. As a measuring method, it carries out according to ASTM D3418-82. The DSC curve used is one that is measured when the temperature is raised at a temperature rate of 10 ° C./min after raising and lowering the temperature once and taking a previous history.

  In addition, a fluidity improver may be added to the toner manufactured by the toner manufacturing apparatus 1. The fluidity improver improves the fluidity of the toner (becomes easy to flow) when added to the toner surface. Examples of the fluidity improver include, for example, carbon black, vinylidene fluoride fine powder, fluorine-based resin powder such as polytetrafluoroethylene fine powder, wet process silica, fine powder silica such as dry process silica, fine powder unoxidized titanium, Fine powder non-alumina, treated silica obtained by subjecting them to surface treatment with a silane coupling agent, titanium coupling agent or silicone oil, treated titanium oxide, treated alumina, and the like can be mentioned. Among these, fine powder silica, fine powder unoxidized titanium, and fine powder unalumina are preferable, and treated silica obtained by surface-treating these with a silane coupling agent or silicone oil is more preferable. The particle size of the fluidity improver is preferably 0.001 to 2 μm and more preferably 0.002 to 0.2 μm as an average primary particle size.

  The fine powder silica is a fine powder produced by vapor phase oxidation of a silicon halide inclusion, and is called so-called dry silica or fumed silica. Examples of commercially available silica fine powders produced by vapor phase oxidation of silicon halogen compounds include, for example, AEROSIL (trade name of Nippon Aerosil Co., Ltd., hereinafter the same) -130, -300, -380, -TT600, -MOX170, -MOX80, -COK84: Ca-O-SiL (trade name of CABOT)-M-5, -MS-7, -MS-75, -HS-5, -EH-5, Wacker HDK (trade name of WACKER-CHEMIE)- N20 V15, -N20E, -T30, -T40: D-CFineSi1ica (trade name of Dow Corning): Franco1 (trade name of Franci1) and the like.

  Further, a treated silica fine powder obtained by hydrophobizing a silica fine powder produced by vapor phase oxidation of a silicon halogen compound is more preferable. In the treated silica fine powder, it is particularly preferred to treat the silica fine powder so that the degree of hydrophobicity measured by a methanol titration test is preferably 30 to 80%. Hydrophobization is imparted by chemical or physical treatment with an organosilicon compound that reacts or physically adsorbs with silica fine powder. As a preferred method, a method of treating a silica fine powder produced by vapor phase oxidation of a silicon halogen compound with an organosilicon compound is preferable.

Examples of the organosilicon compound include hydroxypropyltrimethoxysilane, phenyltrimethoxysilane, n-hexadecyltrimethoxysilane, n-octadecyltrimethoxysilane, vinylmethoxysilane, vinyltriethoxysilane, vinyltriacetoxysilane, dimethylvinylchlorosilane, Divinylchlorosilane, γ-methacryloxypropyltrimethoxysilane, hexamethyldisilane, trimethylsilane, trimethylchlorosilane, dimethyldichlorosilane, methyltrichlorosilane, allyldimethylchlorosilane, allylphenyldichlorosilane, benzyldimethylchlorosilane, bromomethyldimethylchlorosilane, α -Chloroethyltrichlorosilane, β-chloroethyltrichlorosilane, chloromethyldimethylchlorosilane , Triorganosilyl mercaptan, trimethylsilyl mercaptan, triorganosilyl acrylate, vinyldimethylacetoxysilane, dimethylethoxysilane, trimethylethoxysilane, trimethylmethoxysilane, methyltriethoxysilane, isobutyltrimethoxysilane, dimethyldimethoxysilane, diphenyldiethoxysilane , Hexamethyldisiloxane, 1,3-divinyltetramethyldisiloxane, 1,3-diphenyltetramethyldisiloxane, and 2 to 12 siloxane units per molecule, Examples include dimethylpolysiloxane containing 0 to 1 hydroxyl group bonded to Si. Furthermore, silicone oils such as dimethyl silicone oil can be mentioned. These may be used individually by 1 type, and 2 or more types may be mixed and used for them. The number average particle diameter of the fluidity improver is preferably 5 to 100 nm, more preferably 5 to 50 nm.

  The specific surface area by nitrogen adsorption measured by the BET method is preferably 30 m2 / g or more, and more preferably 60 to 400 m2 / g. The surface-treated fine powder is preferably 20 m 2 / g or more, more preferably 40 to 300 m 2 / g. The application amount of these fine powders is preferably 0.03 to 8 parts by mass with respect to 100 parts by mass of the toner particles.

  The toner manufactured by the toner manufacturing apparatus 1 includes, as other additives, protection of the electrostatic latent image carrier / carrier, improvement of cleaning properties, adjustment of thermal characteristics / electrical characteristics / physical characteristics, resistance adjustment, softening point For the purpose of adjustment, improvement of fixing rate, etc., various metal soaps, fluorosurfactants, dioctyl phthalate, tin oxide, zinc oxide, carbon black, antimony oxide, etc. as conductivity imparting agents, titanium oxide, aluminum oxide, An inorganic fine powder such as alumina can be added as necessary. These inorganic fine powders may be hydrophobized as necessary. In addition, lubricants such as polytetrafluoroethylene, zinc stearate, polyvinylidene fluoride, abrasives such as cesium oxide, silicon carbide, strontium titanate, anti-caking agents, white particles and black particles having opposite polarity to the toner particles, Can also be used in small amounts as a developability improver. These additives include silicone varnishes, various modified silicone varnishes, silicone oils, various modified silicone oils, silane coupling agents, silane coupling agents having functional groups, and other organosilicon compounds for the purpose of charge control and the like. It is also preferable to treat with a treating agent or various treating agents.

  In preparing the developer, inorganic fine particles such as the hydrophobic silica fine powder mentioned above may be added and mixed in order to improve the fluidity, storage stability, developability and transferability of the developer. For mixing external additives, a general powder mixer can be appropriately selected and used. However, it is preferable to equip a jacket or the like to adjust the internal temperature. In order to change the load history applied to the external additive, the external additive may be added in the middle or gradually, and the rotation speed, rolling speed, time, temperature, etc. of the mixer may be changed. The load may then be given a relatively weak load and vice versa. Examples of the mixer that can be used include a V-type mixer, a rocking mixer, a Roedige mixer, a Nauter mixer, a Henschel mixer, and the like.

  A method for further adjusting the shape of the obtained toner is not particularly limited and may be appropriately selected depending on the intended purpose. For example, a toner material composed of a binder resin and a colorant is melt-kneaded and then finely pulverized. Using a hybridizer, mechano-fusion, etc., the resulting material is mechanically adjusted, or the so-called spray-drying method is used to dissolve and disperse the toner material in a solvent in which the toner binder is soluble, and then using a spray-drying device. Examples thereof include a method of removing a solvent to obtain a spherical toner and a method of forming a spherical toner by heating in an aqueous medium.

As the external additive, inorganic fine particles can be preferably used. Examples of inorganic fine particles include silica, alumina, titanium oxide, barium titanate, magnesium titanate, calcium titanate, strontium titanate, zinc oxide, tin oxide, quartz sand, clay, mica, wollastonite, diatomaceous earth, Examples thereof include chromium oxide, cerium oxide, pengala, antimony trioxide, magnesium oxide, zirconium oxide, barium sulfate, barium carbonate, calcium carbonate, silicon carbide, and silicon nitride. The primary particle diameter of the inorganic fine particles is preferably 5 μm to 2 μm, more preferably 5 μm to 500 μm. The specific surface area according to the BET method is preferably 20 to 500 m ² / g. The use ratio of the inorganic fine particles is preferably 0.01 to 5% by mass of the toner, and more preferably 0.01 to 2.0% by mass.

  In addition, polymer fine particles such as polystyrene obtained by soap-free emulsion polymerization, suspension polymerization and dispersion polymerization, methacrylic acid ester and acrylic acid ester copolymer, polycondensation systems such as silicone, benzoguanamine, and nylon, thermosetting resins And polymer particles.

  Such an external additive can be made hydrophobic by the surface treatment agent and prevent deterioration of the external additive itself even under high humidity.

  Examples of the surface treatment agent include a silane coupling agent, a silylating agent, a silane coupling agent having a fluorinated alkyl group, an organic titanate coupling agent, an aluminum coupling agent, silicone oil, and modified silicone. An oil etc. are mentioned suitably.

The primary particle diameter of the inorganic fine particles is preferably 5 μm to 2 μm, and more preferably 5 μm to 500 μm. Moreover, as a specific surface area by BET method, it is preferable that it is 20-500 m < ² > / g. The use ratio of the inorganic fine particles is preferably 0.01 to 5% by weight of the toner, and more preferably 0.01 to 2.0% by weight.

  Examples of the cleaning property improver for removing the developer after transfer remaining on the electrostatic latent image carrier or the primary transfer medium include fatty acid metal salts such as zinc stearate, calcium stearate, stearic acid, and polymethyl methacrylate. There may be mentioned polymer fine particles produced by soap-free emulsion polymerization such as fine particles and polystyrene fine particles. The polymer fine particles preferably have a relatively narrow particle size distribution and a volume average particle size of 0.01 to 1 μm.

  The developing method using the toner manufactured by the toner manufacturing apparatus 1 of the present invention can use all the electrostatic latent image carriers used in the conventional electrophotography, but for example, an organic electrostatic latent image carrier, A crystalline silica electrostatic latent image carrier, a selenium electrostatic latent image carrier, a zinc oxide electrostatic latent image carrier and the like can be suitably used.

  First, a carbon black dispersion as a colorant was prepared. In this carbon black dispersion liquid, 17 parts by mass of carbon black (Regal 400; manufactured by Cabot) and 3 parts by mass of a pigment dispersant were primarily dispersed using a mixer having stirring blades in 80 parts by mass of ethyl acetate. As the pigment dispersant, Ajisper PB821 (manufactured by Ajinomoto Fine Techno Co., Ltd.) was used. The obtained primary dispersion was finely dispersed by a strong shearing force using a dyno mill to prepare a secondary dispersion in which aggregates of 5 μm or more were completely removed.

  Next, a wax dispersion was prepared. In this adjustment, 18 parts by mass of carnauba wax and 2 parts by mass of wax dispersant were primarily dispersed using a mixer having stirring blades in 80 parts by mass of ethyl acetate. The primary dispersion was heated to 80 ° C. with stirring to dissolve the carnauba wax, and then the liquid temperature was lowered to room temperature to precipitate wax particles so that the maximum diameter was 3 μm or less. As the wax dispersant, a polyethylene wax grafted with a styrene-butyl acrylate copolymer was used. The obtained dispersion was further finely dispersed by a strong shearing force using a dyno mill and adjusted so that the maximum diameter was 2 μm or less.

  Next, a toner composition dispersion liquid having the following composition to which a resin as a binder resin, the colorant dispersion liquid, and the wax dispersion liquid were added was prepared. In this preparation, 100 parts by mass of a polyester resin as a binder resin, 30 parts by mass of the colorant dispersion, 30 parts by mass of the wax dispersion, and 840 parts by mass of ethyl acetate were stirred for 10 minutes using a mixer having stirring blades. And uniformly dispersed. Pigments and wax particles did not aggregate due to shock due to solvent dilution.

The obtained dispersion was supplied to the nozzle 15 of the droplet forming means 11 of the toner manufacturing apparatus 1. The used thin film 16 has an outer diameter of 8.0 mm and a perfect circle. The cross-sectional area B of the liquid contact surface opening 19 is gradually reduced from 50 μm, and a nozzle 15 having a cross-sectional area A of the liquid discharge surface opening 18 of 10 μm is provided. It was produced by processing by nickel electroforming. The thickness of the thin film 16 was 20 μm. The nozzles 15 were provided only in a range of about 4 mm in diameter at the center of the thin film 16 in a staggered pattern so that the distance between the nozzles was 100 μm. In this case, the number of effective discharge holes is 1000 in calculation.
Here, the thin film 16 having the nozzle 15, the droplet forming means 11 having the electromechanical conversion means 17, and the flow path member 13 are bonded with a one-component curable liquid fluoroelastomer (product name SIEFL610, manufactured by Shin-Etsu Chemical Co., Ltd.). . Since the thickness of the adhesive layer 18 shrinks by several percent after curing, the amount of adhesive was adjusted so that an average of 1000 μm of the adhesive layer 18 was formed after curing in consideration of this. As a result, the average thickness of the adhesive layer 18 was 990 μm, and the difference between the thinnest part and the maximum pressure part was 80 μm in actual measurement.
After the dispersion was prepared, the droplets were discharged under the following toner production conditions, and then the droplets were dried and solidified to produce toner base particles.
[Toner preparation conditions]
Dry air flow rate: Dry nitrogen gas in the device 30.0 L / min Temperature in the device: 27-28 ° C
Dew point temperature: -20 ° C
Nozzle frequency: 98 kHz

The dried and solidified toner particles 25 were collected by suction with a filter having 1 μm pores. Particle size of collected particles The particle size distribution of the collected particles was measured under the following measurement conditions using a flow particle image analyzer (FPIA-2000). The weight average particle size (D4) was 5.0 μm, and the number average The particle size (Dn) was 4.7 μm. And during the 3 hours of continuous operation, there was no decrease in production due to blockages. The resulting toner was evaluated as follows, and the results are shown in Table 1.
(1) Particle size distribution A measurement method using a flow particle image analyzer will be described. The measurement of toner, toner particles, and external additives using a flow particle image analyzer can be performed using, for example, a flow particle image analyzer FPIA-2000 manufactured by Toa Medical Electronics Co., Ltd.
The measurement is performed by removing fine dust through a filter, and as a result, nonion in 10 ml of water having a measurement range of 10 ⁻³ cm ³ in water, for example, the number of particles having an equivalent circle diameter of 0.60 μm or more and less than 159.21 μm is 20 or less. system surfactant (preferably Junyaku Co. Contaminon N Wako) was added a few drops of addition, the measurement sample was added 5 mg, 20 kHz ultrasonic disperser STM Co. UH-50, 1 under the condition of 50 W / 10 cm ³ Dispersion treatment is performed for 5 minutes, and further, dispersion treatment is performed for a total of 5 minutes, and a sample dispersion liquid in which the particle concentration of the measurement sample is 4000 to 8000 pieces / 10 ⁻³ cm ³ (targeting particles having a diameter equivalent to the measurement circle) is used. Then, the particle size distribution of particles having an equivalent circle diameter of 0.60 μm or more and less than 159.21 μm is measured.
The sample dispersion liquid is passed through a flow path (expanded along the flow direction) of a flat and flat transparent flow cell (thickness: about 200 μm). In order to form an optical path that passes across the thickness of the flow cell, a strobe and a CCD camera are mounted on the flow cell so as to be opposite to each other. While the sample dispersion is flowing, strobe light is irradiated at 1/30 second intervals to obtain an image of the particles flowing through the flow cell, so that each particle has a certain range parallel to the flow cell. Photographed as a two-dimensional image. From the area of the two-dimensional image of each particle, the diameter of a circle having the same area is calculated as the equivalent circle diameter.
By this measurement, the equivalent circle diameter of 1200 or more particles can be measured in about 1 minute, and the number based on the equivalent circle diameter distribution and the ratio (number%) of particles having a prescribed equivalent circle diameter can be measured. . As shown in Table 1, the results (frequency% and cumulative%) can be obtained by dividing the range of 0.06-400 μm into 226 channels (divided into 30 channels for one octave). In actual measurement, particles are measured in the range where the equivalent circle diameter is 0.60 μm or more and less than 159.21 μm.
(2) Charge amount The charge amount of the manufactured toner was measured by a suction-type charge amount measuring device. Specifically, a toner weight range of 200 to 250 mg was sucked into a Faraday cage equipped with a filter capable of collecting the toner, and an electrometer was connected thereto, and the total charge amount of the sucked toner was measured. The weight increased from the filter weight measured in advance is weighed with a five-digit precision chemical balance as the toner weight on the filter, and the total charge is divided by the collected toner weight to obtain the charge amount per unit weight (q / m). As sought. There is “Model 210HS-2A” manufactured by Trek Japan Co., Ltd. as a commercially available charge amount measuring device having the same measurement principle, but a self-made measuring device having the same configuration was used. As a filter for collecting toner, glass microfiber (Whatman) having a diameter of 21 mm was used. Although there is almost no difference in measurement due to the suction time, the suction time was specified within 30 seconds.
(3) Charge amount at room temperature and high humidity (NH) Measurement was performed by the above charge amount measurement method in an environmental test chamber at a temperature of 30 ° C. and a humidity of 90%. The measurement was performed after leaving the sample in this environment for 12 hours.
(4) Charge amount distribution The charge amount distribution of the manufactured toner was measured by a charge amount distribution measuring device (E-Spart analyzer, EST-2 type manufactured by Hosokawa Micron Corporation). Specifically, a certain amount of toner was directly introduced into the toner inlet of the measuring machine with a feeder, and the charge amount distribution was measured. As an index indicating the distribution of the charge amount, it is represented by the most frequent (peak) value [q / d] and the width of the distribution at the half height of the most frequent, so-called half width. As for the characteristics of the toner, it is desirable that the charge amount distribution is sharper, but generally, the half-value width tends to increase as the charge amount increases.
(5) Fine line reproducibility The developer is put into a modified machine with an improved developer part of a commercially available copying machine (Imagiono 271; manufactured by Ricoh), and 6000 paper manufactured by Ricoh is used with a printing ratio of 7% image occupancy. And run. Compare the original 10th image and the 30,000th image thin line with the original, zoom in with an optical microscope at a magnification of 100, and compare the line omission state with the stage sample in 4 stages. evaluated. In Table 1, the image quality is higher in the order of double circle> single circle>triangle> cross. In particular, the evaluation of the cross mark cannot be adopted as a product. In the case of negatively charged toner, an organic electrostatic latent image carrier was used, and in the case of positively charged toner, an amorphous silicon electrostatic latent image carrier was used.
In development method 1, the toner was directly conveyed to the development site by an air stream and developed with a powder cloud. In development method 2, a resin-coated carrier used in conventional electrophotography was used as a conveying means. As a carrier, spherical ferrite particles having an average particle diameter of 50 μm are used as a core material, a silicone resin is used as a coating material constituting material, a silicone resin is dispersed in toluene, a dispersion is adjusted, and the core is heated in a heated state. After spray coating the material, firing and cooling, carrier particles having an average coated resin film thickness of 0.2 μm were prepared. "

  In Example 1, Example 1 is used except that the droplet forming means 11 and the flow path member 13 constituting the liquid chamber are bonded with a one-component curable liquid fluoroelastomer (product name SIEFL614, manufactured by Shin-Etsu Chemical Co., Ltd.). The target toner was obtained in the same manner as above. Again, since the thickness of the adhesive layer 18 shrinks by several percent after curing, the amount of adhesive was adjusted in consideration of this so that the adhesive layer 18 having an average of 1000 μm was formed after curing. As a result, the average thickness of the adhesive layer 18 was 980 μm, and the difference between the thinnest part and the maximum pressure part was 75 μm in actual measurement. The toner thus obtained had a weight average particle diameter (D4) of 5.2 μm and a number average particle diameter (Dn) of 4.7 μm. At this time, the amount of collected toner was 36.0 g per hour. Table 1 shows the results of the evaluation performed on the obtained toner.

  In Example 1, the same procedure as in Example 1 was performed except that the droplet forming means 11 and the flow path member 13 were bonded with a one-component curable liquid fluoroelastomer (product name SIEFL617, manufactured by Shin-Etsu Chemical Co., Ltd.). No toner was obtained. Again, since the thickness of the adhesive layer 18 shrinks by several percent after curing, the amount of adhesive was adjusted in consideration of this so that the adhesive layer 18 having an average of 1000 μm was formed after curing. As a result, the average thickness of the adhesive layer 18 was 1010 μm, and the difference between the thinnest part and the maximum pressure part was 90 μm in actual measurement. The toner thus obtained had a weight average particle diameter (D4) of 5.3 μm and a number average particle diameter (Dn) of 4.9 μm. At this time, the amount of collected toner was 35.7 g per hour. Table 1 shows the results of the evaluation performed on the obtained toner.

  In Example 1, the amount of adhesive was adjusted so that the adhesive layer 18 having an average of 2500 μm was formed after curing after the thickness of the adhesive layer 18 between the droplet forming means 11 and the flow path member 13 was cured. As a result, the average thickness of the adhesive layer 18 was 2480 μm, and the difference between the thinnest part and the maximum pressure part was measured to be 95 μm. Except for this, the target toner was obtained in the same manner as in Example 1. The toner thus obtained had a weight average particle diameter (D4) of 5.2 μm and a number average particle diameter (Dn) of 4.8 μm. At this time, the amount of collected toner was 38.1 g per hour. Table 1 shows the results of the evaluation performed on the obtained toner.

[Comparative Example 1]
A colorant and wax dispersion, and a dispersion to which a resin was added were prepared under the same conditions as in Example 1. In Example 1, the amount of the adhesive was adjusted so that the adhesive layer 18 having an average of 3000 μm was formed after the thickness of the adhesive layer 18 between the droplet forming means 11 and the flow path member 13 was cured. As a result, the average thickness of the adhesive layer 18 was 2960 μm, and the difference between the thinnest part and the maximum pressure part was 90 μm in actual measurement. Except for this, a toner for comparison was obtained in the same manner as in Example 1. Further, the amount of collected toner at this time was 3.1 g per hour, which was 1/10 or less compared with Example 1. The production amount per hour is very small, and when trying to obtain the same production amount as in Example 1, the apparatus scale is 10 times larger, and it has been found that realistic production cannot be performed under these conditions.
[Toner creation conditions]
Dry air flow rate: In-apparatus air 30.0 L / min In-apparatus temperature: 27-28 ° C
Piezoelectric pulse frequency: 98 kHz
The dried and solidified toner particles were measured by measuring the particle size of the particles sucked and collected with a filter having 1 μm pores and the particle size distribution of the collected particles with a flow type particle image analyzer (FPIA-2000). Toner base particles having an average particle diameter of 5.1 μm and a number average particle diameter of 4.8 μm were obtained. Table 1 shows the results of the evaluation performed on the obtained toner.

[Comparative Example 2]
A colorant dispersion, a dispersion containing a resin and a wax were prepared under the same conditions as in Example 1. The amount of adhesive was adjusted so that an average of 1000 μm of the adhesive layer 18 was formed after the thickness of the adhesive layer 18 between the droplet forming means 11 and the flow path member 13 used in Example 1 was cured. The adhesive layer 18 was intentionally biased so that the difference between the thickest part and the thickest part was 150 μm or more. As a result, the average thickness of the adhesive layer 18 was 990 μm, and the difference between the thinnest part and the thickest part was 160 μm in actual measurement. Except for this, a toner for comparison was obtained in the same manner as in Example 1. At this time, the amount of collected toner was 32.1 g per hour.
The dried and solidified toner particles were measured by a flow type particle image analyzer (FPIA-2000) to determine the particle size of particles collected by suction with a filter having 1 μm pores. A toner base particle having a diameter of 7.2 μm, a number average particle diameter of 3.6 μm, and a wide particle size distribution was obtained. Table 1 shows the results of the evaluation performed on the obtained toner.

  As shown in Table 1, according to the present invention, it was found that the toner can be converted into a toner very efficiently, the particle size distribution is sharp, and the toner characteristics are very good. In addition, an image obtained by developing using the toner produced in the present invention was extremely excellent in image quality faithful to the electrostatic latent image.

  As described above, the toner manufacturing apparatus according to the present invention has almost no influence on the membrane vibration, and thus the toner can be produced very efficiently, and further has a monodispersibility with an unprecedented particle size. Due to the particles, there are no or very few fluctuations due to the particles found in the conventional production methods in many of the characteristic values required for the toner such as fluidity and charging characteristics. A high-quality image can be stably formed by using it as a developer for developing an electrostatic charge image in recording, electrostatic printing or the like.

1 is a configuration diagram illustrating a schematic configuration of a toner manufacturing apparatus according to the present invention. It is a layout view of a droplet jetting unit. It is side surface sectional drawing which shows the structure of a droplet ejection unit. It is a bottom view of a droplet jetting unit. It is a schematic diagram which shows the vibration state of the nozzle and thin film which were formed in the thin film. It is a wave form diagram which shows the vibration state of a thin film. It is a wave form diagram which shows the other vibration state of a thin film. It is a schematic diagram which shows the other shape of a thin film. It is a schematic diagram which shows the droplet discharged from a nozzle by the vibration of a thin plate.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1; Toner manufacturing apparatus, 2; Droplet jet unit, 3; Particle formation part, 4; Toner collection part,
5; toner storage unit, 6; raw material storage unit, 7; pipe, 10; toner composition liquid,
11; droplet forming means, 12; reservoir (liquid flow path), 13; flow path member, 15; nozzle,
16; thin film, 17; electromechanical conversion means, 18; adhesive layer, 20; liquid supply tube,
21; Bubble discharge tube, 22; Support member, 23; Droplet, 24; Dry gas,
25; toner particles.

Claims (15)

A toner composition liquid containing at least a resin and a colorant is produced by using a droplet forming means composed of a thin film having a plurality of nozzles and an electromechanical conversion means arranged around the thin film to vibrate the thin film. A droplet forming step for periodically discharging droplets from the plurality of nozzles;
In a toner manufacturing method comprising a particle forming step of solidifying droplets of the discharged toner composition liquid,
A method for producing toner, characterized in that the droplet forming means and a flow path member for supplying a toner composition liquid to the droplet forming means are bonded with an elastic adhesive.   The flow path member is directly bonded to the thin film on which the nozzle of the droplet forming means is formed, and the electromechanical conversion means is formed on the nozzle side with respect to the bonded portion of the flow path member and the thin film. The method for producing a toner according to claim 1.   The method for producing a toner according to claim 1, wherein a thickness of the adhesive layer of the elastic adhesive is 2500 μm or less.   4. The toner manufacturing method according to claim 1, wherein a difference between the thinnest part and the thickest part of the adhesive layer of the elastic adhesive is 100 μm or less.   The toner production method according to claim 1, wherein the elastic adhesive is a fluorine-based elastomer.   6. The method for producing a toner according to claim 5, wherein the fluorinated elastomer of the elastic adhesive has a fluorinated polyether skeleton and a silicone crosslinking reactive group at a molecular end. Using a thin film formed with a plurality of nozzles and an electromechanical conversion means for vibrating the thin film, a toner composition liquid containing at least a resin and a colorant is periodically discharged from the plurality of nozzles. In the toner manufacturing apparatus, the liquid droplets are ejected and solidified, and the ejected toner composition liquid droplets are solidified.
An apparatus for producing toner, wherein the droplet forming means and a flow path member for supplying a toner composition liquid to the droplet forming means are bonded with an elastic adhesive.   The flow path member is directly bonded to the thin film on which the nozzle of the droplet forming means is formed, and the electromechanical conversion means is formed on the nozzle side with respect to the bonded portion of the flow path member and the thin film. The toner manufacturing apparatus according to claim 7.   The toner manufacturing apparatus according to claim 7, wherein a thickness of the adhesive layer of the elastic adhesive is 2500 μm or less.   The toner manufacturing apparatus according to claim 7, wherein a difference between the thinnest part and the thickest part of the adhesive layer of the elastic adhesive is 100 μm or less.   The toner manufacturing apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the elastic adhesive is a fluorine-based elastomer.   The toner production apparatus according to claim 11, wherein the fluorine-based elastomer of the elastic adhesive has a fluorinated polyether skeleton and a silicone crosslinking reactive group at a molecular end.   A toner manufactured by the toner manufacturing apparatus according to claim 7.   14. The toner according to claim 13, wherein the particle size distribution (weight average particle diameter / number average particle diameter) is in the range of 1.00 to 1.15.   The toner according to claim 13, wherein the toner has a weight average particle diameter of 1 to 20 μm.

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