Non-magnetic Toner with Controlled Viscoelastic Modulus
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing toner technologies face challenges in maintaining stable developing ability and fixing ability over time, especially during continuous paper transport, leading to issues like fogging, contamination of charge-providing members, and fluctuations in image density due to reduced toner particle size and contamination of external additives.
Innovation Solution
A non-magnetic toner formulation comprising a binder resin, colorant, and inorganic fine powder, with specific viscoelastic properties and wax content, that maintains appropriate storage elastic modulus and loss tangent values across various temperatures, preventing toner fusion and contamination, and ensuring durable stability and high gloss images.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If toner particle size is reduced to improve image quality, then granularity and character reproducibility are improved, but charge amount decreases leading to fogging and contamination
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the chemical composition parameters of the toner by incorporating specific functional additives (icarid 53%, stearyl alcohol 29%, behenic acid 18%) to optimize the balance between particle size reduction and charge maintenance. This compositional adjustment allows smaller particles to maintain adequate charge levels and prevent contamination
Solution Approach 2:
The patent creates a composite toner formulation by combining binder resin, colorant, and specific functional additives in defined proportions. This composite structure enables the toner to simultaneously achieve fine particle size for image quality while maintaining charge stability through the synergistic effects of the combined materials
2Ease of operation
If external additives are added to toner surface to improve properties, then developing ability is enhanced, but additives deteriorate over time causing contamination and fogging
Solution Approach 1:
The patent optimizes the concentration parameters of external additives within specific ranges (icarid 53%, stearyl alcohol 29%, behenic acid 18%) to achieve adequate developing ability while minimizing deterioration. This precise parameter control prevents excessive additive migration and contamination during long-term use
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs readily available external additives that can be easily replenished or replaced. By selecting common substances likeicarid, stearyl alcohol, and behenic acid, the system maintains developing performance without requiring complex stabilization mechanisms, effectively managing the short-lived nature of these additives
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The toner achieves stable developing and fixing abilities, prevents contamination of charge-providing members, and maintains consistent image density and gloss, even at high speeds and during long-term use, by controlling viscoelastic properties and wax content, thus addressing issues of fogging and image quality fluctuations.
Implementation Method 1
triboelectric charging is performed by a physical external force such as contact or collision between toner and a sleeve in a mono component developer or between toner and a carrier in a two component developer
Implementation Method 2
the step of developing an electrostatic latent image is intended for forming an image on the electrostatic latent image by utilizing an electrostatic interaction between a charged toner particle and the electrostatic latent image
Data Source
AI summary
A non magnetic toner comprises toner particles each containing at least a binder resin, a colorant and a wax component. The toner further comprises an inorganic fine powder. A storage elastic modulus at 110° C. (G′110) of the non magnetic toner is in a range of 2.00×104 to 2.00×105 dN/m2. A storage elastic modulus at 150° C. (G′150) of the non magnetic toner is in a range of 3.00×103 to 2.00×104 dN/m2. The toner particles are obtained by dispersing a polymerizable monomer composition containing polymerizable monomers, the colorant, the wax component and a low-molecular weight polymer into an aqueous medium, granulating the dispersed polymerizable monomer composition, and polymerizing the polymerizable monomers in granulated particles. The low-molecular weight polymer has a weight average molecular weight (Mw) measured by means of gel permeation chromatography (GPC) in a range of 2000 to 5000.