JP2012115782A - Production apparatus and container for powder - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a production apparatus for powder used in an image forming apparatus and producing powder of a toner or the like and a powder container which discharges the powder of a toner or the like adopted in the image forming apparatus, which suppresses adhesion and fixation of the powder.SOLUTION: In the production apparatus and the container for powder formed by a conductive polyethylene sheet 1 wherein a portion that contacts with the powder is a conductive polymer sheet, the joining parts of ends of the conductive polyethylene sheet 1 are adhered to each other by using a polyethylene-based adhesive 3, and the joining parts of the surfaces with which the powder is in contact are made smooth.

Description

  The present invention relates to a powder manufacturing apparatus for manufacturing powder such as toner used in an image forming apparatus. The present invention also relates to a powder container that is used in an image forming apparatus and stores and discharges powder such as toner.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, in a powder manufacturing apparatus that manufactures powders such as toner used in an image forming apparatus, the amount of processing or reduction in yield due to adhesion or adhesion of powder to the inner surface of the apparatus, There are known problems such as occlusion stoppage that are blocked by the In addition, in a powder container such as a toner hopper that stores toner used in the image forming apparatus, the powder adheres to or adheres to the inner surface of the container, and the stored powder cannot be discharged well. Are known.

  On the other hand, in recent years, the toner has been reduced in particle size in order to make the image clearer, and accordingly, the electrostatic adhesion tends to increase due to the influence of van der Waals force. Further, low-temperature fixability of toner is desired for energy saving of the image forming apparatus, and the softening point tends to be lowered. For this reason, in the powder manufacturing apparatus and the powder container for manufacturing the toner, the problem of adhesion and fixation is remarkable.

In order to solve the problem of adhesion and fixation of powder, various types of processing for processing the inner surface of a manufacturing apparatus or a container have been proposed.
Patent Document 1 describes a manufacturing apparatus that smoothes the inner surface of a transport pipe by polishing or resin coating. Patent Document 2 describes a manufacturing apparatus that performs a blasting process on a surface in contact with toner. Patent Document 3 describes that a flexible polyethylene sheet having a low coefficient of friction and wear resistance is treated on the inner side surface of a container. All of these apparatuses have an effect of suppressing the adhesion and fixing of the toner to some extent, but the effect is insufficient for the toner having a small particle diameter and a low softening point.

  The present applicant has proposed a toner manufacturing apparatus in which a toner contact part is lined (backed) with a conductive polymer sheet in Patent Document 4. In this device, in addition to the effect of suppressing adhesion of toner by the surface property of a polymer sheet such as polyethylene having flexibility and abrasion resistance that can alleviate the impact caused by collision or pressing of the toner, in consideration of the dielectric property of the toner. By imparting conductivity to the polymer sheet, toner adhesion is also suppressed electrostatically. In an apparatus in which such a conductive polymer sheet is lined, an effect of suppressing adhesion and fixing of toner having a small particle size and a low softening point is obtained as compared with Patent Documents 1 to 3.

  In the case where the toner contact portion is lined with a polymer sheet, the entire surface in contact with the toner can be easily covered with the polymer sheet in the planar region. On the other hand, in curved areas such as conical or cylindrical toner reservoirs, pipes, or classifiers, the polymer sheet is cut and the ends are joined, and the ends of the polymer sheet are in contact with the toner contact surface. The joints will come. In an ordinary polymer sheet, the opposing surfaces of the joint are bonded with an adhesive so that the surfaces in contact with the toner are smooth.

  However, since the conductive polymer sheet of Patent Document 4 contains carbon for imparting conductivity, it has been found that it is difficult to bond the opposing surfaces with a general adhesive. If the opposing surfaces cannot be bonded together, a step or gap will be created at the joint. The toner is liable to stay in the unevenly raised portions, and the toner adhesion is promoted. Further, the toner is buried in the recessed portion of the gap, and the toner adhesion is promoted. As described above, when the conductive polymer sheet is used for the lining treatment to suppress the adhesion and adhesion of the toner, it is difficult to satisfactorily suppress the adhesion and adhesion of the toner because the toner adheres to the sheet joining portion in the curved region. It was.

  SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and a first object thereof is to suppress adhesion and adhesion of powder in a powder manufacturing apparatus for manufacturing powder such as toner used in an image forming apparatus. Then, it is providing the powder manufacturing apparatus which can maintain the stable performance. A second object is to be used in an image forming apparatus, and in a powder container for storing and discharging powder such as toner, it is possible to satisfactorily discharge powder by suppressing adhesion and adhesion of the powder. It is to provide a powder container.

In order to achieve the first object, the invention according to claim 1 is a powder manufacturing apparatus in which a portion in contact with the powder is formed of a conductive polymer sheet, and the ends of the conductive polymer sheet are bonded with polyethylene. It is characterized by having been joined with an agent.
Further, the invention of claim 2 is the powder production apparatus of claim 1, wherein the polyethylene-based adhesive uses polyethylene as a thermoplastic resin as a binder and is welded at a temperature of 80 to 120 ° C. for 2 to 3 seconds. It is characterized by being combined.
The invention according to claim 3 is the powder manufacturing apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the conductive polymer sheet has a volume resistivity of 10 ⁻⁶ [Ω · cm] or less.
According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the powder manufacturing apparatus according to any one of the first, second, or third aspect, the contact surface of the conductive polymer sheet with the powder has an arithmetic average roughness Ra of 0.06 [ μm] ≦ Ra ≦ 0.10 [μm], the maximum height Ry is 0.30 [μm] ≦ Ry ≦ 0.80 [μm], and the ten-point average roughness Rz is 0.20 [μm] ≦ Rz ≦ 0. .50 [μm], and the root mean square roughness Rq is in the range of 0.08 [μm] ≦ Rq ≦ 0.12 [μm].
The invention according to claim 5 is the powder production apparatus according to any one of claims 1, 2, 3 or 4, wherein the conductive polymer sheet is a polyethylene sheet containing carbon. .
The invention of claim 6 is the powder production apparatus according to any one of claims 1, 2, 3, 4 or 5, wherein the powder has a volume average particle size of 2 to 15 [μm] and an average circularity. Of 0.93 to 0.96, true specific gravity of 1.02 to 1.45, bulk density of 0.2 to 0.6 [g / cc], outflow start temperature of 70 ° C. or less, raw material of the toner, Alternatively, the toner is an external additive of the toner.
The invention according to claim 7 is the powder manufacturing apparatus according to any one of claims 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 or 6, wherein the portion in contact with the powder is the inner surface of the storage section. Is.
The invention according to claim 8 is the powder manufacturing apparatus according to any one of claims 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 or 6, characterized in that the portion in contact with the powder is the inner surface of the low-speed rotating part. To do.
The invention according to claim 9 is the powder manufacturing apparatus according to any one of claims 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 or 6, wherein the portion in contact with the powder is a non-rotating portion of a pulverizer or a classifier. It is characterized by being.
The invention according to claim 10 is the powder production apparatus according to any one of claims 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 or 6, wherein the portion in contact with the powder is a transport pipe or an exhaust duct. It is what.
In order to achieve the second object, the invention according to claim 11 is a powder container in which a portion in contact with the powder is formed of a conductive polymer sheet, and the ends of the conductive polymer sheet are bonded to each other by polyethylene. It is characterized by having been joined with an agent.
The invention according to claim 12 is the powder container according to claim 11, wherein the polyethylene-based adhesive is made of thermoplastic resin polyethylene as a binder, and is welded at a temperature of 80 to 120 ° C. for 2 to 3 seconds. It is characterized by being combined.
The invention of claim 13 is the powder container of claim 11 or 12, wherein the conductive polymer sheet is a polyethylene sheet containing carbon.
The invention of claim 14 is the powder container according to any one of claims 11, 12 or 13, wherein the powder to be contained has a volume average particle diameter of 2 to 15 [μm] and an average circularity of 0. .93 to 0.96, true specific gravity of 1.02 to 1.45, bulk density of 0.2 to 0.6 [g / cc], outflow start temperature of 70 ° C. or less, or development including the toner It is characterized by being an agent.

  In this invention, as shown in the experiment mentioned later, it becomes possible to adhere | attach the electroconductive polymer sheet edge parts by using a polyethylene-type adhesive agent. For this reason, the surface which contacts the powder of a sheet | seat junction part can be made smooth, and adhesion or adhesion of the powder to a junction part can be suppressed.

According to the first to tenth aspects of the present invention, in a powder manufacturing apparatus for manufacturing powder such as toner used in an image forming apparatus, it is possible to suppress adhesion and adhesion of powder and to maintain stable performance. There is an effect.
According to the invention of claims 11 to 14, in the powder container used for the image forming apparatus for storing and discharging the powder of toner or the like, the powder stored in the powder container while suppressing adhesion and fixing of the powder. There is an excellent effect that the body can be discharged well.

Explanatory drawing of the powder storage part employ | adopted for the toner manufacturing apparatus of 1st embodiment, and transport piping. Explanatory drawing of the fluid tank and transportation piping which are employ | adopted for the toner manufacturing apparatus of 1st embodiment. Explanatory drawing of the junction part of a polymer sheet edge part. Explanatory drawing which cuts a conductive polymer sheet edge part into V shape, and joins it with PE type adhesive agent. Explanatory drawing of the mode of toner discharge from the toner hopper of the second embodiment. FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram illustrating how toner is discharged from a conventional toner hopper.

Hereinafter, as an example of a powder manufacturing apparatus to which the present invention is applied, a first embodiment using a toner manufacturing apparatus for manufacturing toner used in an image forming apparatus will be described. However, the present invention is not limited to the following embodiments.
In image forming apparatuses such as copying machines, facsimile machines, and printers, toner is used to develop a latent image. The toner production method is roughly classified into a pulverization method and a polymerization method, and a simple and popular production method includes a pulverization method.

  As a general production process by the pulverization method, raw materials composed of additives such as a binder resin, a colorant, and, if necessary, a charge control agent, a magnetic material, a release agent, and a fluidity-imparting agent are mixed. Then, after the mixed raw materials are melt-kneaded and cooled and solidified, the kneaded product is coarsely pulverized to obtain a coarsely pulverized product. The coarsely pulverized product is pulverized and refined by a pulverizer, classified into a desired particle size distribution by a classifier, and further added with a fluidizing agent to obtain a toner. Between each processing process, it connects with transport piping.

  The toner obtained by such a process has a volume average particle diameter of 2 to 15 [μm], an average circularity of 0.93 to 0.96, a true specific gravity of 1.02 to 1.45, and a bulk density of 0.1. It is preferable to be 2 to 0.6 [g / cc] and an outflow start temperature of 70 ° C. or lower. The toner having such characteristics is a low-temperature fixing toner having a small particle diameter, and a high-quality image can be obtained and energy saving of the image forming apparatus can be achieved. When used in a two-component development method, various magnetic carriers and the above toner are mixed and used as a developer.

In this embodiment, the powder is made difficult to adhere or adhere to the inner surface of the toner manufacturing apparatus having such a process.
FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram of a powder storage unit and a transportation pipe employed in the toner manufacturing apparatus. The inner surface of the powder storage part 10 is formed with the conductive polyethylene sheet 1 which is a conductive polymer sheet, and the ends of the conductive polyethylene sheet are joined with a polyethylene-based adhesive. Furthermore, the transport piping inner surfaces 12 and 13 are formed of the conductive polyethylene sheet 1, and the ends of the conductive polymer sheet are joined with a polyethylene adhesive. Such a powder storage unit 10 can be applied to any powder storage unit such as a toner raw material, a powder in the middle of manufacturing, an additive, and a toner during the toner manufacturing process. Moreover, it can be applied to any of the transportation pipes that transport these.

  FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram of a fluid tank and transportation piping employed in the toner manufacturing apparatus. During the toner manufacturing process, the toner pulverized by the pulverizer is put into the fluid tank 20. The toner in the fluid tank 20 is transported to a classifier (not shown) through the transport pipes 22 and 23 in a state where the toner is fluidized by the powder pump 21 to a uniform bulk density. The inner surface of the low-speed rotating part such as the fluid tank 20 is formed by the conductive polyethylene sheet 1 described above, and the conductive polyethylene sheet ends are joined together with a polyethylene-based adhesive. Furthermore, the inner surfaces of the transport pipes 22 and 23 are formed of a conductive polyethylene sheet, and the ends of the conductive polymer sheet are joined with a polyethylene adhesive.

  In addition to the above, the non-rotating part of a pulverizer or a classifier can be cited as an example of a portion suitable for suppressing the adhesion and adhesion of toner by forming the inner surface with a conductive polyethylene sheet. Moreover, the exhaust pipe and exhaust duct of a grinder or a classifier are mentioned. In addition, the present invention can be applied to any place where the toner contacts.

The conductive polyethylene sheet preferably has a volume resistivity of 10 ⁻⁶ [Ω · cm] or less. The conductive polyethylene sheet preferably has a smooth contact surface with the toner. Specifically, the contact surface has an arithmetic average roughness Ra of 0.06 [μm] ≦ Ra ≦ 0.10 [μm], and a maximum height Ry of 0.30 [μm] ≦ Ry ≦ 0.80 [μm. The ten-point average roughness Rz is 0.20 [μm] ≦ Rz ≦ 0.50 [μm], and the root mean square roughness Rq is 0.08 [μm] ≦ Rq ≦ 0.12 [μm]. preferable.
Here, the arithmetic average roughness Ra is a value obtained by summing and averaging the absolute values of the deviation Yi from the average line to the measurement curve. The maximum height Ry is the sum of the height Yp from the average line to the highest peak and the depth Yv to the deepest valley bottom. The ten-point average roughness Rz is the sum of the average value of the peak height from the highest to the fifth and the average value of the depth of the valley from the deepest to the fifth, as seen from the line parallel to the average line. It is. The root mean square roughness Rq is a square root of a value obtained by summing and averaging the square values of the deviation Yi from the mean line to the measurement curve.

The conductive polyethylene sheet preferably has a low friction coefficient and flexibility. This conductive polyethylene sheet can alleviate the impact caused by the collision or strong pressing of the toner, and has the effect of suppressing toner adhesion due to its smooth surface properties. Further, since it has electrical conductivity, toner adhesion is also suppressed electrostatically. For this reason, by forming the contact surface of the toner with this conductive polyethylene sheet, an effect of satisfactorily suppressing the adhesion and fixation of the toner can be obtained. As such a conductive polyethylene sheet, for example, trade name: Conductive Newlite (manufactured by Sakushin Kogyo), thickness: 0.13 mm, volume resistivity: 10 ⁻³ [Ω · cm], hardness (durometer hardness) ): 67, friction coefficient: 0.15 can be used.

  Here, since the conductive neurite as the conductive polyethylene sheet contains carbon, which is a conductive substance, it has been found that it is difficult to bond the end portions with a conventional general adhesive. . For example, an attempt was made to bond the opposing surface of the conductive neurite with a PP (polypropylene) adhesive, but the adhesive force was weak and it was not possible to bond well. In addition, even PVC (polyvinyl chloride) adhesives that are widely used generally cannot be bonded well. Furthermore, PS (polystyrene) adhesives used as plastic model adhesives are brittle after being cured by adhesion, and peeled off over time or peeled off due to environmental changes such as vibration, temperature and humidity. Thus, although it tried trying adhere | attaching the opposing surfaces of electroconductive polyethylene sheet edge parts with a general adhesive agent, all were difficult. If the opposing surfaces could not be bonded together, a step or a gap was formed in the joint, and the joint 2 could not be smoothed as shown in FIG. For this reason, the toner is likely to adhere to the joint.

  On the other hand, in this embodiment, even if it is an electroconductive polyethylene sheet, end parts can be adhere | attached by using the polyethylene-type adhesive agent (PE-type adhesive agent) which has a softness | flexibility as an adhesive agent. The joint can be smoothed. The PE-based adhesive was capable of good adhesion by using a thermoplastic resin polyethylene as a binder and welding at a temperature of 80 to 120 ° C. for 2 to 3 seconds.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 4, the ends of the conductive polyethylene sheet 1 are cut obliquely so as to face each other in a V shape from the contact surface with the toner toward the back surface, and the cut facing surfaces are polyethylene-based. It is preferable to join with an adhesive. By bonding in this way, the PE adhesive 3 can be satisfactorily adhered so that the toner contact surface becomes smooth without exposing the PE adhesive 3 to the toner contact surface.

Also, in powder manufacturing equipment, there are some parts that can be formed only by laminating polymer sheets without providing a base such as SUS for lining in a relatively simple powder storage part or piping. Yes, it can be expected as a simple configuration. If a conductive polyethylene sheet is used as such a polymer sheet, an inexpensive apparatus that can satisfactorily suppress toner adhesion and sticking can be provided. Conventionally, since the joining surface of the conductive polyethylene sheet cannot be bonded, such a powder reservoir and piping cannot be formed. However, as in the present embodiment, the powder storage part and the pipe can be formed by laminating the conductive polyethylene sheet with a polyethylene adhesive (PE adhesive), and the toner contact surface is the toner contact surface. Adhesion and adhesion can be satisfactorily suppressed.
Of course, a configuration in which a conductive polyethylene sheet is lined on a substrate such as SUS as in the prior art, and a joining portion between sheet end portions is bonded with a polyethylene adhesive (PE adhesive) is also possible.

Next, it demonstrates still more concretely using an Example and a comparative example.
First, specific examples of toner produced by the pulverization method used in Examples and Comparative Examples will be shown.
For the toner, a mixture having the following composition was melted and kneaded, cooled, and then coarsely pulverized to obtain a coarsely pulverized product having an average particle size of about 400 [μm]. The coarsely pulverized product was pulverized at a supply rate of 20 kg / hr by a single-stage pulverization using a mechanical pulverizer to obtain toner resin particles.
[Comminuted mixture composition]
Styrene-acrylic copolymer 100 parts by weight Carbon black 10 parts by weight Polypropylene 5 parts by weight Zinc salicylate 2 parts by weight

The weight average particle diameter of the pulverized toner resin particles was measured with a Coulter counter, and the circularity was measured with FPIA. Examples of the measurement device for the particle size distribution of the toner resin particles by the Coulter counter method include Coulter counter TA-II and Coulter Multisizer II (both manufactured by Coulter). The measurement method is described below.
First, 0.1 to 5 ml of a surfactant (preferably alkylbenzene sulfonate) is added as a dispersant to 100 to 150 ml of an aqueous electrolytic solution. Here, the electrolytic solution is a solution prepared by preparing a 1% NaCl aqueous solution using first grade sodium chloride. For example, ISOTON-II (manufactured by Coulter) can be used. Here, 2 to 20 mg of a measurement sample is further added. The electrolyte in which the sample is suspended is subjected to a dispersion treatment with an ultrasonic disperser for about 1 to 3 minutes, and the number distribution of channels of each particle diameter is measured by using the measurement apparatus with a 100 μm aperture as the aperture. From the obtained distribution, the weight average particle diameter (D4) and the number average particle diameter of the toner can be obtained.
As channels, 2.00 to less than 2.52 μm; 2.52 to less than 3.17 μm; 3.17 to less than 4.00 μm; 4.00 to less than 5.04 μm; 5.04 to less than 6.35 μm; 6 Less than 35 to 8.00 μm; less than 8.00 to less than 10.08 μm; less than 10.08 to less than 12.70 μm; less than 12.70 to less than 16.00 μm; less than 16.00 to less than 20.20 μm; Uses 13 channels of less than 40 μm; 25.40 to less than 32.00 μm; 32.00 to less than 40.30 μm, and targets particles having a particle size of 2.00 μm to less than 40.30 μm.

The circularity of the toner resin particles is measured using a flow type particle image analyzer “FPIA-1000” manufactured by Toa Medical Electronics Co., Ltd. The measurement is performed by removing fine dust through a filter, and as a result, in ^10-3 water of 10 ⁻³ cm ³ of water having a measurement range (for example, an equivalent circle diameter of 0.60 μm or more and less than 159.21 μm) of 20 particles or less. Add a few drops of nonionic surfactant (preferably Contaminone N manufactured by Wako Pure Chemical Industries, Ltd.), add 5 mg of the sample to be measured, and use ultrasonic wave disperser STM UH-50 at 20 kHz, 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 (for particles in the diameter range corresponding 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, the strobe and the 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 2. Taken as a dimensional image. The diameter of a circle having the same area is calculated as the equivalent circle diameter from the area of the two-dimensional image of each particle.
In about 1 minute, the equivalent circle diameter of 1200 or more particles can be measured, 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.

  Further, the pulverized toner resin particles were conveyed to an airflow classifier with a stable supply amount using compressed air, classified into a desired particle size distribution by a classifier, and a fluidizing agent was added to obtain a toner. The toner obtained here has a volume average particle size of 5 μm, an average circularity of 0.94, a true specific gravity of 1.20, and contains 3% of an external additive with respect to 100% of such a toner base, The bulk density was 0.4 g / cc.

<Example 1>
Based on Experiments 1 and 2, the adhesion and adhesion of the toner were evaluated using conductive Newlite (conductive polyethylene sheet) in which the joint was bonded with a PE-based adhesive.

(Experiment 1)
The powder adhesiveness was examined using three types of powders of toner resin particles (R-1 resin powder), additive powder (A-1 powder), and (A-2 powder). Specifically, a sample in which a conductive neurite having a joint portion bonded with a PE adhesive and having no step is provided on the surface of a cold rolled steel sheet of low carbon steel having a thickness of 2 cm × 10 cmm and a thickness of 2 mm is used. It was. In addition, conductive new light (manufacturer: Sakushin Kogyo) has a thickness of 0.13 mm, a molecular weight of 5.5 million, a density of 950 kg / m ³ , a melting point of 135 ° C., a durometer hardness of 67, a friction coefficient of 0.15, Thermal deformation temperature: 77 ° C., volume resistivity: 10 ⁻³ Ω · cm) were used. Table 2 shows the results of measuring the surface roughness and surface hardness of this sample.

  This sample is installed at an angle of 35 °, and from a height of 20 cm, three types of toner resin particles (R-1 resin powder), additive powder (A-1 powder), and additive powder (A-2 powder) are used. A certain amount of each was dropped, and the remaining rate of each powder was measured. The results are shown in Table 1. The residual rate was 12% for the R-1 resin powder, 33% for the additive A-1 powder, and 27% for the A-2 powder, and the residual powder rate was the smallest compared to the comparative examples described later. .

(Experiment 2)
The toner resin particles were classified into a desired particle size distribution by a classifier, and the toner obtained by adding a fluidizing agent was pneumatically transported using a transportation pipe and stored in a toner storage container capable of measuring the weight. The inner surface of the transport pipe is formed in a state in which a conductive neurite is used and the joint portion is bonded with a PE-based adhesive and there is no step. In addition, the toner is transported pneumatically by the ejector effect so that the powder is drawn into the air flow generated by the compressed air (0.5 Mpa) from the protruding portion of the nozzle and sent out through the filter to the storage container in the next process. Then, it is quantitatively supplied by blower suction, and the suction gas is used as compressed air for transporting by the ejector effect and conveyed. The adhesion of the toner to the inside of the transportation pipe by air transportation and the presence or absence of the generation of aggregates were evaluated. The results are shown in Table 1. It can be said that there is no adhesion in the transportation pipe, quick toner transportation capability is obtained, no aggregates are generated, and adhesion and adhesion of the toner in the piping can be satisfactorily suppressed.

  From the results of Experiments 1 and 2, when the effect of suppressing the adhesion and sticking of toner is comprehensively evaluated, the contact portion with the toner is determined using conductive Newlite (conductive polyethylene sheet) in which the bonding portion is bonded with a PE adhesive. By forming, it can be said that it is ◎ (best) as compared with the comparative examples described later.

<Comparative example>
As Comparative Examples 1 to 8, evaluation was performed using the following surface treatments on the surface of the cold-rolled rolled steel sheet instead of the conductive Newlite in which the joint portion was bonded with a PE-based adhesive.
Comparative Example 1: SPCC
Comparative Example 2: New Light Comparative Example 3: Brasstron # 40
Comparative Example 4: Brasstron # 400
Comparative Example 5: Brasstron # 1000
Comparative Example 6: Buffing # 300
Comparative Example 7: Dycron plating Comparative Example 8: Die shot

  In Experiment 1 described in Example 1 above, the toner resin particles (R−) were prepared by using the surface treatment samples of Comparative Examples 1 to 8 instead of the conductive neurite samples in which the joints were bonded with PE adhesive. 1 resin powder), additive powder (A-1 powder), additive powder (A-2 powder), and the remaining rate of each powder was measured. The results are shown in Table 1 together with Example 1. The results of measuring the surface roughness and surface hardness of the samples of Comparative Examples 1 to 8 are shown in Table 2 together with Example 1.

In Experiment 2 described in Example 1 above, the inner surface was formed by the surface treatment of Comparative Examples 1 to 8 instead of the transport pipe in which the inner surface was formed with the conductive new light in which the joint portion was bonded with the PE-based adhesive. Using the transported pipe, the toner adhesion to the transport pipe and the presence or absence of aggregates were evaluated. The results are shown in Table 1 together with Example 1.

  When SPCC, which is a general surface treatment of Comparative Example 1, was performed, the results of Experiment 1 were 43% for the R-1 resin powder, 50% for the additive A-1 powder, and 43 for the A-2 powder. %. In addition, although the result of Experiment 2 was somewhat adhered, it could be transported normally and aggregates were generated. From this, it can be said that the overall evaluation of the effect of suppressing the adhesion and fixing of the toner is Δ (normal).

  When the surface was formed with Newlite (manufacturer: Sakushin Kogyo Co., Ltd.), a non-conductive polyethylene sheet containing no carbon in Comparative Example 2, the result of Experiment 1 was 37% for the R-1 resin powder, 47% for A-1 powder and 40% for A-2 powder. Moreover, the result of Experiment 2 shows that there is no adhesion, it can be transported quickly, and aggregates are hardly generated. From this, it can be said that the overall evaluation of the effect of suppressing the adhesion and fixing of the toner is ○ (good).

  In the case of surface treatment with Brasstron # 40 of Comparative Example 3, the result of Experiment 1 was 30% for the R-1 resin powder, 70% for the additive A-1 powder, and 67% for the A-2 powder. I have. In addition, the result of Experiment 2 was that there was very much adhesion, and it was blocked and could not be transported, and a large number of aggregates were generated. From this, the overall evaluation of the toner adhesion and sticking suppression effect was x (poor).

  When the surface treatment was performed with Brasstron # 400 of Comparative Example 4, the result of Experiment 1 was 29% for the R-1 resin powder, 63% for the additive A-1 powder, and 60% for the A-2 powder. I have. In addition, the result of Experiment 2 was that there was very much adhesion, and it was blocked and could not be transported, and a large number of aggregates were generated. From this, the overall evaluation of the toner adhesion and sticking suppression effect was x (poor).

  In the case of surface treatment with Brasstron # 1000 of Comparative Example 5, the results of Experiment 1 were 29% for R-1 resin powder, 60% for additive A-1 powder, and 57% for A-2 powder. I have. In addition, although the result of Experiment 2 was somewhat adhered, it could be transported normally and aggregates were generated. From this, it can be said that the overall evaluation of the effect of suppressing the adhesion and fixing of the toner is Δ (normal).

  In the case of surface treatment with buffing # 300 of Comparative Example 6, the results of Experiment 1 were 26% for R-1 resin powder, 50% for additive A-1 powder, and 50% for A-2 powder. I have. Moreover, the result of Experiment 2 shows that there is no adhesion, it can be transported quickly, and aggregates are hardly generated. From this, it can be said that the overall evaluation of the effect of suppressing the adhesion and fixing of the toner is ○ (good).

  In the case of surface treatment by the dicron plating of Comparative Example 7, the result of Experiment 1 was 21% for the R-1 resin powder, 53% for the additive A-1 powder, and 47% for the A-2 powder. Oops. Moreover, the result of Experiment 2 shows that there is no adhesion, it can be transported quickly, and aggregates are hardly generated. From this, it can be said that the overall evaluation of the effect of suppressing the adhesion and fixing of the toner is ○ (good).

  For the surface treated with the die shot of Comparative Example 8, the result of Experiment 1 was 18% for the R-1 resin powder, 50% for the additive A-1 powder, and 43% for the A-2 powder. It was. Moreover, the result of Experiment 2 shows that there is no adhesion, it can be transported quickly, and aggregates are hardly generated. From this, it can be said that the overall evaluation of the effect of suppressing the adhesion and fixing of the toner is ○ (good).

  From the results of Example 1 and Comparative Examples 1 to 8, toner adhesion was achieved by forming a contact portion with toner using conductive Newlite (conductive polyethylene sheet) whose bonding portion was bonded with a PE-based adhesive. And sticking can be best suppressed.

Next, as an example of a powder container to which the present invention is applied, a second embodiment using a toner hopper that stores toner used in an image forming apparatus will be described. However, the present invention is not limited to the following embodiments.
Note that the toner, conductive polyethylene sheet, and PE-based adhesive used in the second embodiment are the same as those used in the first embodiment.

  FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram of toner discharge from the toner hopper according to the second embodiment. The toner hopper 30 is employed in an image forming apparatus such as a copying machine, a facsimile machine, or a printer. The toner hopper 30 discharges stored toner from the lowermost part and supplies it to a developing device (not shown). . The toner hopper 30 has a cylindrical wall surface and a funnel-shaped slope at the bottom. The inner surface of such a toner hopper 30 is formed with the conductive new light 1 in which the joint portion is bonded with a PE-based adhesive. As a result, the toner accommodated as shown in FIG. 5A is discharged well as shown in FIG. 5B without adhering to the wall surface.

  As a comparative example, FIG. 6 is an explanatory view of the state of toner discharge from a conventional toner hopper. The accommodated toner remains attached to the wall surface and cannot be discharged well.

  The toner hopper 30 is formed by adhering a conductive neurite sheet on a substrate and bonding the joint portion of the sheet end with a PE-based adhesive. Moreover, even if it does not provide a base | substrate, it can form also by bonding only a conductive neurite sheet | seat with PE type adhesives.

As mentioned above, according to 1st embodiment, in the powder manufacturing apparatus which formed the part which contacts powder with an electroconductive polymer sheet, electroconductive polymer sheet edge parts are joined with a polyethylene-type adhesive agent. By using a polyethylene-based adhesive, it becomes possible to bond the ends of the conductive polymer sheet to each other, and the surface in contact with the powder at the sheet joint can be made smooth, and the powder to the joint can be Adhesion or sticking can be suppressed. Therefore, the stable performance of the powder manufacturing apparatus can be maintained.
The polyethylene-based adhesive uses thermoplastic resin polyethylene as a binder and is bonded by bonding at a temperature of 80 to 120 ° C. for 2 to 3 seconds. Thereby, it becomes possible to adhere | attach the electroconductive polymer sheet edge parts favorably.
Moreover, the conductive polymer sheet can suppress toner adhesion electrostatically when the volume resistivity is 10 ⁻⁶ [Ω · cm] or less.
Further, the contact surface of the conductive polymer sheet with the powder has an arithmetic average roughness Ra of 0.06 [μm] ≦ Ra ≦ 0.10 [μm], and a maximum height Ry of 0.30 [μm] ≦ Ry. ≦ 0.80 [μm], 10-point average roughness Rz is 0.20 [μm] ≦ Rz ≦ 0.50 [μm], and root mean square roughness Rq is 0.08 [μm] ≦ Rq ≦ 0.12 [ μm]. By using such a smooth sheet, it is possible to suppress the adhesion of toner due to the surface production.
Further, by using a polyethylene sheet containing carbon as the conductive polymer sheet, toner adhesion can be suppressed.
The powder has a volume average particle diameter of 2 to 15 [μm], an average circularity of 0.93 to 0.96, a true specific gravity of 1.02 to 1.45, and a bulk density of 0.2 to 0.00. 6 [g / cc], toner having an outflow start temperature of 70 ° C. or less, toner raw material, or toner external additive. The toner having such characteristics is a low-temperature fixing toner having a small particle diameter, and a high-quality image can be obtained and energy saving of the image forming apparatus can be achieved.
Moreover, when the part which contacts powder is the storage part 10 inner surface, adhesion and adhesion of the powder to the storage part 10 can be suppressed, and the residence to a storage part can be suppressed.
In addition, since the portion in contact with the powder is the inner surface of the fluid tank 20 that is a low-speed rotating unit, the adhesion and sticking of the powder to the fluid tank 20 can be suppressed, and the residence in the fluid tank 20 can be suppressed. .
Further, since the portion that comes into contact with the powder is a non-rotating portion of the pulverizer or classifier, the adhesion and sticking of the powder to the pulverizer or classifier can be suppressed.
In addition, since the portion in contact with the powder is the exhaust pipe or the exhaust duct of the pulverizer or classifier, the adhesion and adhesion of the powder to the pulverizer or classifier can be suppressed.
In addition, according to the second embodiment, in the toner hopper 30 that is a powder container in which a portion in contact with the powder is formed of a conductive polymer sheet, the polymer sheet ends are joined with a polyethylene-based adhesive. It is characterized by. Thereby, the joining part of the polymer sheet end parts on the inner surface of the toner hopper 30 can be made smooth, and adhesion or fixing of the toner to the joining part can be suppressed. For this reason, the stored toner can be discharged well.
In addition, the polyethylene-based adhesive is made of thermoplastic resin polyethylene as a binder, and is bonded by bonding at a temperature of 80 to 120 ° C. for 2 to 3 seconds. Thereby, it becomes possible to adhere | attach the electroconductive polymer sheet edge parts favorably.
Further, by using a polyethylene sheet containing carbon as the conductive polymer sheet, adhesion of toner can be suppressed.
The powder has a volume average particle diameter of 2 to 15 [μm], an average circularity of 0.93 to 0.96, a true specific gravity of 1.02 to 1.45, and a bulk density of 0.2 to 0.00. 6 [g / cc], a toner having an outflow start temperature of 70 ° C. or less, or a developer containing this toner. The toner having such characteristics is a low-temperature fixing toner having a small particle diameter, and a high-quality image can be obtained and energy saving of the image forming apparatus can be achieved.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Polyethylene sheet 2 Joining part 3 PE adhesive 9 Toner manufacturing apparatus 10 Storage part 11 Feeder part 13 Transport piping 20 Fluid tank 21 Pump 22, 23 Transport piping 30 Toner hopper

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 05-080588 JP 2006-293268 A JP 2000-033991 A Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2004-279672

Claims (14)

In the powder manufacturing apparatus in which the part that comes into contact with the powder is formed of a conductive polymer sheet,
A powder production apparatus, wherein the conductive polymer sheet end portions are joined together with a polyethylene-based adhesive.   2. The powder manufacturing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the polyethylene-based adhesive uses thermoplastic polyethylene as a binder and is bonded by bonding at a temperature of 80 to 120 ° C. for 2 to 3 seconds. A powder production apparatus. 3. The powder production apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the conductive polymer sheet has a volume resistivity of 10 ⁻⁶ [Ω · cm] or less.   4. The powder production apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the contact surface of the conductive polymer sheet with the powder has an arithmetic average roughness Ra of 0.06 [μm] ≦ Ra ≦ 0.10 [ μm], maximum height Ry is 0.30 [μm] ≦ Ry ≦ 0.80 [μm], ten-point average roughness Rz is 0.20 [μm] ≦ Rz ≦ 0.50 [μm], root mean square roughness Rq is in the range of 0.08 [μm] ≦ Rq ≦ 0.12 [μm].   5. The powder production apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the conductive polymer sheet is a polyethylene sheet containing carbon.   6. The powder production apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the powder has a volume average particle size of 2 to 15 μm, an average circularity of 0.93 to 0.96, A toner having a true specific gravity of 1.02 to 1.45, a bulk density of 0.2 to 0.6 [g / cc], an outflow start temperature of 70 ° C. or less, a raw material of the toner, or an external additive of the toner. There is a powder manufacturing apparatus.   The powder manufacturing apparatus according to any one of claims 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 or 6, wherein the portion in contact with the powder is an inner surface of a storage unit.   The powder manufacturing apparatus according to any one of claims 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 or 6, wherein the portion in contact with the powder is an inner surface of a low-speed rotating part.   The powder production apparatus according to any one of claims 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 or 6, wherein the portion in contact with the powder is a non-rotating portion of a pulverizer or a classifier. apparatus.   The powder manufacturing apparatus according to any one of claims 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 or 6, wherein the portion in contact with the powder is a transport pipe or an exhaust duct. In the powder container in which the part that comes into contact with the powder is formed of a conductive polymer sheet,
A powder container, wherein the conductive polymer sheet ends are joined together with a polyethylene-based adhesive.   12. The powder container according to claim 11, wherein the polyethylene-based adhesive is made of thermoplastic resin polyethylene as a binder, and is bonded by bonding at a temperature of 80 to 120 ° C. for 2 to 3 seconds. Characteristic powder container.   13. The powder container according to claim 11 or 12, wherein the conductive polymer sheet is a polyethylene sheet containing carbon.   14. The powder container according to claim 11, wherein the powder to be stored has a volume average particle diameter of 2 to 15 [μm], an average circularity of 0.93 to 0.96, and a true specific gravity. Is a toner having a bulk density of 0.22 to 0.6 [g / cc], an outflow start temperature of 70 ° C. or less, or a developer containing the toner. Body container.

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