JPS63291065A - Method for processing toner image - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To obtain the sharp and clear image having excellent color reproducibility by applying the toner image formed on a light transmissive sheet with a coating solution contg. org. high polymer and alcohol, followed by drying it so as to be obtained the film thickness of >=7mum. CONSTITUTION:The toner image is formed on the light transmissive sheet, and then, is applied with the coating solution contg. org. high polymer and alcohol, followed by drying it so as to be obtained the film thickness of >=7mum. The light transmissive sheet is exemplified by polyethylene and polypropylene, etc., and the toner contains at least a coloring agent and a binding agent, and is suitable for a developing method or a fixing method, etc. The binding resin is exemplified by a styrene polymer, a petroleum resin, etc., a various kinds of polymers. And, the org. high polymer is composed of the org. high polymer which is soluble to alcohol, such as a nitrocellulose and an acrylic polymer, etc. Thus, the sharp and clear image having the excellent color reproducibility is obtd.

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] <Industrial Application Field> The present invention relates to a toner image processing method, and more specifically,
Overhead projector (hereinafter referred to as OHP)
The present invention relates to a toner image processing method suitable for creating a manuscript sheet.

<Prior Art> Conventionally, as OHP original sheets, sheets in which a toner image is formed on a translucent sheet using an electrostatic copying method have been used. On the other hand, the above-mentioned OHP original sheets usually have lower toner fixing efficiency due to heat, pressure, etc. than plain paper on which images are formed, so the formed toner images not only have uneven surfaces but also , is non-uniform with voids etc. inside. Therefore, when using an OHP and projecting the toner image of the OHP original sheet onto the projection surface, the transmitted light is scattered or diffusely reflected by the uneven parts of the toner image, which not only makes the projected image area dark. , the resolution is reduced and a projected image with good clarity and color reproducibility cannot be obtained.

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, a toner image formed on a transparent sheet is processed to improve color development, and a toner image is created in which a film-forming substance is dissolved in a solvent that does not substantially dissolve the toner composition. The toner image can be improved by applying a processing agent (Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 81-252559), a liquid transparent polymer such as acrylic lacquer on the toner image (Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 52861/1986), or by applying a transparent lacquer. A method for obtaining a predetermined surface roughness (Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 59-1841131)
Publication No.) etc. are known.

<Problems to be Solved by the Invention> However, when a toner image is processed with the above-mentioned toner image processing agent, a projected image having a certain degree of color reproducibility is obtained, but the solvent does not substantially dissolve the toner composition. Since the surface of the toner image area is smoothed, unevenness on the surface of the toner image area is smoothed.
It is difficult to infiltrate and homogenize the film-forming substance in the toner processing agent into the internal voids, and it is difficult to obtain a clear projected image with excellent color reproducibility.

In addition, in the method of applying acrylic lacquer, etc., the toner image area can be dissolved by the solvent in the acrylic lacquer, flattened, and homogenized, so it is easier to obtain a projected image that is clear and has good color reproducibility. The solvent in the acrylic lacquer is relative to the toner composition. Since it is a good solvent, the toner image area is eluted, causing blurring and reducing resolution.

Therefore, the OHP original obtained as described above is
When the image is enlarged and projected by P, there is a problem in that the image part, especially the thin line part, is disturbed and it is difficult to obtain a sharp projected image.

<Object of the Invention> The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned problems, and an object thereof is to provide a toner image processing method that does not cause the toner image area to elute and has excellent sharp and clear color reproducibility. do.

Means and Effects for Solving the Problems In order to achieve the above object, the toner image processing method of the present invention forms a toner image on a transparent sheet and uses a coating containing an organic polymer and alcohol. The method is characterized in that the toner image is coated with a liquid so that the film thickness after drying is 7 μm or more.

According to the toner image processing method having the above configuration, since the coating liquid contains alcohol which is a poor solvent for various resins, after forming a toner image on a translucent sheet, the coating liquid is used to form the toner image area. When applied, the toner image area will not be eluted. In addition, since the toner image is coated using the coating liquid so that the film thickness after drying is 7 μm or more, the coating liquid penetrates into the non-uniform interior, homogenizes the toner image area, and makes the surface of the toner image uniform. becomes smooth and increases translucency.

Note that, as described above, since the toner image area exhibits unevenness and is non-uniform, it is difficult to measure the thickness of the film covering the toner image area. Therefore, hereinafter, the film thickness refers to the film thickness of the film formed on the light-transmitting sheet.

The present invention will be explained in detail below.

The toner image processing method of the present invention includes an image forming step of forming a toner image on a transparent sheet, and a coating step of coating the toner image with a coating liquid containing an organic polymer and alcohol.

Various materials can be used as the light-transmitting sheet, such as polyethylene, polypropylene, polyethylene terephthalate, nylon, polyvinyl chloride, polycarbonate, and the like.

The above-mentioned toner contains at least a colorant and a binder resin, and various toners suitable for developing methods, fixing methods, etc. can be used. Note that as the binder resin, one that is not eluted by the alcohol in the coating liquid is used.

As the above-mentioned coloring agent, various colors conventionally used in toners can be used, such as Hansa Yellow, Benzidine Yellow, Suren Yellow, Quinoline Yellow, Permanent Orange, Pyrazolone Orange, Palkan Orange, Watch Young Red, and Permanent Red. , Brilliant Carmiso 6B, Pyrazolone Red, Lysol Red, Rhodamine B Lake, Lake Red 010-Svengali, Aniline Blue, Ultramarine Blue, Phthalocyanine Blue, Phthalocyanine Green, and various other pigments and various dyes. These colorants may be used alone or in combination of two or more, and used in an amount that provides sufficient image density, for example, 1 to 30% by weight, preferably 2 to 20% by weight.

Further, when the toner is a magnetic toner, a magnetic material is used together with or in place of the colorant. The above-mentioned magnetic material may be any material that exhibits magnetism or can be magnetized, and examples thereof include metals and alloys that exhibit ferromagnetism such as iron, cobalt, nickel, and manganese, including ferrite and magnetite. These magnetic materials have an average particle size of about 0.1 to 1 μm, and are used singly or in combination of two or more in an amount of usually 20 to 75% by weight, preferably 40 to 70% by weight.

Examples of the binder resin include styrene polymers, acrylic polymers, styrene-acrylic copolymers, polyethylene, chlorinated polyethylene, polypropylene, olefin polymers such as ionomers, polyvinyl chloride, polyester, polyamide, and polyurethane. , epoxy resin, diallyl phthalate resin, silicone resin, ketone resin, polyvinyl butyral resin, phenol resin, rosin-modified phenol resin, xylene resin, rosin-modified maleic acid resin, rosin ester, petroleum resin and the like.

The unsaturated monomers used in the above polymer include styrene, α-methylstyrene, 0-methylstyrene, p-
Styrenic monomers such as methylstyrene, p-methoxystyrene, p-chlorostyrene; acrylic acid, methyl acrylate, ethyl acrylate, -butyl acrylate,
Isobutyl acrylate, 〇-octyl acrylate, 2-ethylhexyl acrylate, dodecyl acrylate,
Stearyl acrylate, cyclohexyl acrylate, phenyl acrylate, 2-hydroxyethyl acrylate, 2-hydroxypropyl acrylate, glycidyl acrylate, diethylaminoethyl acrylate, acrylamide, acrylonitrile, methacrylic acid, methyl methacrylate, methacrylic acid Ethyl, 〇-butyl methacrylate, isobutyl methacrylate, 〇-octyl methacrylate, 2-ethylhexyl methacrylate, dodecyl methacrylate, stearyl methacrylate, cyclohexyl methacrylate, phenyl methacrylate, glycidyl methacrylate, methacrylate Acrylic or methacrylic monomers such as 2-hydroxyethyl, 2-hydroxypropyl methacrylate, and diethylaminoethyl methacrylate; unsaturated double bonds such as maleic acid, fumaric acid, crotonic acid, itaconic acid, or their alkyl esters Carboxylic acid or alkyl ester thereof; Olefinic monomers such as ethylene, propylene, butadiene;
Examples include vinyl acetate, vinyl chloride, vinylidene chloride, vinylpyrrolidone, and vinylnaphthalene. The above monomers may be used singly or in a mixture of two or more.

Among the above polymers, those whose main component is an acrylic polymer, a styrene-acrylic copolymer, or a polyester are preferred. These polymers have a weight average molecular weight of 3000
-100,000, particularly preferably in the range of 5,000-75,000.

Further, the binder resin may be used alone or in combination of two or more kinds.

Note that when the toner is a heat fixable toner, the upper power distribution combination has a softening point of 50 to 180°C, preferably a softening point of 120°C.
Those having a temperature of ~160°C are preferred. Furthermore, when the toner is a pressure-fixable toner, polymers that are easily plastically deformed such as olefinic polymers such as polyethylene and polypropylene, and polyamides are mainly used.

Further, the above-mentioned toner may contain various additives such as a charge control material. Examples of the charge control agent include metal soaps such as fatty acids such as naphthenic acid and octylic acid, and metal salts of resin acids such as cobalt, lead, zinc, cerium, calcium, and nickel. Further, as other additives, conventionally used additives such as anti-offset agents such as low molecular weight polypropylene and silicone oil can be used.

The above-mentioned toner is preferably made of a material that is not eluted by the alcohol in the coating liquid, and the toner can be prepared by a conventionally known method, for example, by mixing, melt-kneading the above-mentioned materials,
It can be manufactured by crushing and classifying, and is used by mixing with a carrier such as ferrite, etc., depending on the development method.

Using the above-mentioned toner, a toner image is formed on the above-mentioned translucent sheet by an electrostatic copying method, ie, charging of a photoreceptor, exposure, development with the toner, transfer, and fixing steps. The toner image formed as described above is usually
Since the surface is not smooth and is non-uniform with voids etc. inside, the projected image has a dark color as described above, lacks clarity, and does not have sufficient color reproducibility.

Therefore, in order to obtain a projected image that is clear and has excellent color reproducibility,
The toner image is coated using a coating liquid containing an organic polymer and alcohol so that the film thickness after drying is 7 μm or more.

As the organic polymer, any alcohol-soluble organic polymer can be used, such as nitrocellulose, acetylcellulose, ethylcellulose, polyvinyl butyral, polyvinyl acetate, polyvinylpyrrolidone, polyamide containing dimer acid as the acid component, Examples include polyamides such as 8-nylon, acrylic polymers, and the like. As the above-mentioned acrylic polymer, alcohol-soluble monopolymers or copolymers of the various acrylic and methacrylic monomers mentioned above can be used.

Among the above acrylic polymers, copolymers with acid components such as acrylic acid and methacrylic acid have good alcohol solubility, and those having an acid value of 10 to 1001, particularly 25 to 75, are preferred. The above organic polymers may be used alone or in combination of two or more.

Note that the organic polymer may have various molecular weights, but the weight average molecular weight (Mw) is 2500 to 30.
A value of about 000 is preferable. If the molecular weight is less than 2,500, the film properties will not be sufficient, and if it exceeds 30,000, it will be difficult to smooth and homogenize the toner image area, and it will be difficult to obtain a clear projected image with excellent color reproducibility.

Among the above-mentioned organic polymers, polyamides, particularly 8-nylon, and acrylic polymers, which are excellent in film-forming properties, mechanical strength of films, quality of projected images, etc., are preferred. Further, in terms of film-forming properties, etc., the acrylic polymer preferably has a glass transition temperature of 10 to 50°C. In addition, above 8
- Nylon and acrylic polymers have excellent adhesion to commonly used translucent sheets such as polyethylene terephthalate, and they do not cause cracks or other problems in the film, providing excellent film strength, and the film does not become cloudy after application. Excellent transparency. Therefore, the OHP manuscript sheet obtained by coating and drying the coating liquid containing the above-mentioned organic polymer is
In particular, it is excellent in clarity, color reproducibility, etc.

The coating liquid containing the organic polymer contains alcohol as a solvent in order to smooth the toner image area and suppress elution of the toner image area. Various alcohols can be used as the alcohol, for example,
Examples include methanol, ethanol, propatool, isoproptool, butanol, isobutanol, tert-butanol, hexanol, ethylene glycol monomethyl ether, ethylene glycol monoethyl ether, diethylene glycol monomethyl ether, diethylene glycol monoethyl ether, etc. One or two types A mixture of the above is used. Among the above-mentioned alcohols, those with a solubility parameter of 10 to 15 are preferred, such as methanol, ethanol, propatool, isopropanol, and the like.

The above organic polymer and alcohol can be used in various ratios depending on the viscosity and workability of the coating solution, but usually 50 to 50 parts by weight of alcohol per 100 parts by weight of the organic polymer.
1000 parts by weight are used.

The coating liquid may contain conventionally used plasticizers, surfactants, antifoaming agents such as silicone, leveling agents, and the like.

The above-mentioned coating liquid can be applied by various conventional coating methods such as a doctor blade, knife coater, roll coater, spray, etc., as well as by a felt-tip pen made by impregnating felt with the above-mentioned coating liquid. It is necessary to apply the coating so that the thickness is 7μ or more. If the film thickness is less than 7 μm, the degree of homogenization and surface smoothness of the toner image area will be insufficient, and clear color development corresponding to the toner image will not be obtained, resulting in a projected image with sufficient color reproducibility. is difficult to obtain. The film formed by the above coating solution has a thickness of 7 μm-14
= or more, but as the film thickness increases, the drying speed during film formation decreases, and pinholes are more likely to occur, and the periphery of the toner image becomes fringed, causing problems in the projected image. Disturbances are more likely to occur.

Therefore, the above film has a thickness of 7 to 25 μm, especially 7 to 20 μm.
Preferably, it is formed in μm.

According to the toner image processing method described above, since the coating liquid contains alcohol, even if the toner image area is coated with the coating liquid after forming the toner image on the translucent sheet, the toner image area is Not only is there no elution of the toner image, but the coating liquid permeates into the non-uniform interior and the toner image area becomes homogeneous. In addition, the film thickness after drying using the above coating solution was 7 μ■
Since the toner image is coated as described above, the surface becomes smooth and the light transmittance increases. Therefore, when an OHP original sheet obtained through the above-described toner image processing method is projected by OHP, a projected image that is free from bleeding, has excellent resolution, and is sharp and clear and has excellent color reproducibility can be obtained.

<Examples> The present invention will be described in more detail below based on Examples.

Example 1 Styrene-acrylic copolymer (trade name PA manufactured by Mitsui Toatsu Co., Ltd.)
-525) 900 parts by weight, 2.5 parts by weight of low molecular weight polypropylene (trade name: Viscol 550P manufactured by Sanyo Chemical Co., Ltd.),
A toner with a particle size of 5 to 20 μm containing 7 parts by weight of a phthalocyanine pigment and 0.5 parts by weight of a charge control agent was prepared by a conventional method, and mixed with a ferrite carrier to form a toner of 4 parts by weight.
．． A developer containing 5% by weight was prepared.

Next, using the developer described above, a toner image corresponding to a predetermined document is formed on a polyethylene terephthalate sheet as a translucent sheet using a dry copying machine (model DC-111 manufactured by Sanda Kogyo Co., Ltd.) equipped with a heat roll. did. Note that the heat fixing using the heat roll was performed at a temperature of about 185°C.

In addition, 10 parts by weight of methanol was added to 100 parts by weight of 8-nylon (trade name Torezin M-20A manufactured by Teikoku Kagaku Sangyo Co., Ltd.).
The organic polymer was added in an amount of 0 to 800 parts by weight to prepare coating solutions having different concentrations of -16= organic polymer.

Then, each of the above coating liquids is applied to the transparent sheet on which the toner image has been formed, and the transparent sheet is coated with films having various thicknesses to produce an OHP original sheet. When we investigated the relationship between the light transmittance and the film thickness, we obtained the results shown in the figure.

As is clear from the figure, sufficient transmittance cannot be obtained even if the film is coated with a film up to about 7 μm thick, and the transmittance is large and almost constant for OHP original sheets coated with a film with a film thickness of 7 μm or more. It turned out that. In addition, when the above OHP original sheet was projected using an OHP, it was found that the OHP original sheet coated with a film of less than 7 μm was unclear and a sharp projected image could not be obtained. With the OHP original sheet coated with the film, a sharp, clear projected image with excellent color reproducibility was obtained. Note that O coated with a film of approximately 20 μm or more
In the HP original sheet, the projected image area corresponding to the peripheral edge of the toner image area was slightly disordered.

Example 2 17 Instead of the coating liquid consisting of 8-nylon and methanol in Example 1, 300 parts by weight of methyl alcohol and 100 parts by weight of acrylic polymer (trade name S-4035, manufactured by Toagosei Kagaku Co., Ltd.) were used. A coating liquid consisting of is prepared, applied to the sheet on which the above toner image is formed, dried, and the film thickness is 20%.
An OHP manuscript sheet coated with a μm film was prepared.

Example 3 An acrylic polymer (
Manufactured by Hitachi Chemical Polymer Co., Ltd. Product name Tesroid 931) 100
Using a coating solution consisting of 600 parts by weight and 600 parts by weight of isopropyl alcohol, a film thickness of about 15% was prepared in the same manner as in Example 1 above.
An OHP original sheet coated with a μ-can film was prepared.

Example 4 In place of the coating solution of Example 1 above, a coating solution consisting of 100 parts by weight of acrylic acid-butyl methacrylate copolymer (trade name: Tisan Resin M-1, manufactured by Teikoku Kagaku Sangyo Co., Ltd.) and 1000 parts by weight of isopropyl alcohol was used. Using the above Example 1
In the same manner as above, an OHP original sheet coated with a film having a film thickness of 18 = 15 μm was prepared.

Example 5 A toner and developer were prepared using polymethyl methacrylate (manufactured by Mitsui Toatsu Co., Ltd.) in place of the styrene-acrylic copolymer used as the toner binder resin in Example 1 above, and the experiment was carried out. A toner image was formed on a transparent sheet in the same manner as in Example 1.

Then, the coating liquid prepared in Example 2 above was applied to the sheet on which the toner image was formed in the same manner as in Example 1, and dried to produce an OHP original sheet coated with a film having a thickness of 15 μm. .

Example 6 A toner and a developer were prepared by using polyester (trade name Lunapeel 1421, manufactured by Arayo Kagaku Co., Ltd.) in place of the styrene-acrylic copolymer as the toner binder resin used in Example 1 above, and A toner image was formed on a transparent sheet in the same manner as in Example 1. Further, the coating solution prepared in Example 2 above was applied to a sheet on which a toner image was formed in the same manner as in Example 1, and dried to obtain an OHP original sheet coated with a film having a thickness of 10 μm. Created.

Comparative Examples 1 and 2 Using the toner and coating liquid used in Example 6 above, a film thickness of 3 μm (Comparative Example 1) and a film thickness of 5 μm (Comparative Example 2)
An OHP original sheet coated with the film was prepared.

Comparative Example 3 In place of the coating solution of Example 2, a coating solution consisting of 300 parts by weight of methyl methacrylate-butyl acrylate and 700 parts by weight of ethyl acetate was prepared in the same manner as in Example 2.
An OHP original sheet coated with a film having a film thickness of 20 μm was prepared.

And OHP of Examples 2 to 6 and Comparative Examples 1 to 3 above
The degree of elution of the toner image area of the OHP original sheet was evaluated, and the sharpness and color reproducibility of the projected image were examined using the OHP original sheet, and the results shown in the table were obtained.

The degree of elution of the toner image area was evaluated by visual inspection, with no elution of the toner image area being evaluated as 01, and cases with a large degree of elution of -20- being evaluated as ×.

Further, the sharpness of the projected image was evaluated as o1 when the fine line portion of the toner image appeared sharp, and as poor when the fine line portion was crushed as o1.

The color reproducibility was evaluated as 01 for a clear color corresponding to the color of the toner image, Δ for a dark color, and x for a case where the degree of darkening was extremely unclear.

(Hereinafter, blank space) As is clear from the table, in Examples 2 to 6, there was no elution of the toner image area, and sharp and clear projected images with excellent color reproducibility were obtained. On the other hand, Comparative Examples 1 and 2 lacked sharpness and had insufficient color reproducibility. In addition, in Comparative Example 3, elution occurred in the toner image area and lacked sharpness.

<Effects of the Invention> As described above, according to the toner image processing method of the present invention,
Since the toner image formed on the transparent sheet is coated with a coating solution containing an organic polymer and alcohol, not only will the toner image area not be eluted, but also the coating solution can be used to coat the toner image after drying. Since the toner image is coated with a film thickness of 7 μm or more, the toner image area becomes homogeneous and a unique effect is achieved in that a sharp, clear projected image with excellent color reproducibility can be obtained.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

The figure shows the results of Example 1.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. Form a toner image on a translucent sheet, and apply the toner image using a coating liquid containing an organic polymer and alcohol so that the film thickness after drying is 7 μm or more. A toner image processing method characterized by coating. 2. The toner image processing method according to claim 1, wherein the organic polymer is an acrylic polymer. 3. The toner image processing method according to claim 1, wherein the organic polymer is 8-nylon.