Polyester Toner with Diol and Crosslinking for Low-Temp Fixing
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current toner production methods, such as kneading and pulverizing, fail to achieve high low temperature fixing ability, hot offset resistance, and heat resistant storage stability while maintaining image gloss and coloring ability, as they result in uneven particle sizes and excessive energy consumption.
Innovation Solution
A toner comprising a polyester resin with a diol component containing an aliphatic diol and a crosslink component, such as a trihydric aliphatic alcohol, which lowers the glass transition temperature and melt viscosity, enabling low temperature fixing while retaining heat resistant storage stability and hot offset resistance.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If a toner is produced by a kneading and pulverizing method, then the production process is simple, but the particle size cannot be reduced and the particle diameter distribution is broad, resulting in unsatisfactory image quality and high energy consumption for fixing
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the chemical composition parameters of the toner binder by using a polyester resin with specific glass transition temperature (20-50°C) and incorporating crosslinking components. This chemical parameter modification enables the resin to provide both low-temperature fixing ability and hot offset resistance while allowing for narrower particle size distribution through controlled polymerization processes.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent creates a composite toner system combining polyester resin with crosslinking components (trihydric or higher aliphatic alcohol) and releasing agents. This composite material approach allows the toner to achieve multiple performance characteristics simultaneously: low temperature fixing ability from the polyester, hot offset resistance from the crosslinked structure, and improved particle uniformity from the controlled composition.
2Temperature
If wax is added to the toner for improving fixing ability, then low temperature fixing ability is improved, but the toner causes toner deposition on carrier, photoconductor, and blade
Solution Approach 1:
The patent modifies the chemical parameters of the releasing agent by using a polyester resin with specific glass transition temperature (20-50°C) and incorporating crosslinking components. This parameter change allows the releasing agent to provide low-temperature fixing ability while maintaining stability that prevents unwanted toner deposition on various components.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies local quality by incorporating crosslinking components that create localized crosslinked structures within the polyester resin matrix. These crosslinked regions provide hot offset resistance and prevent toner deposition, while the overall polyester matrix maintains low-temperature fixing ability through its controlled glass transition temperature.
3Temperature
If crystalline polyester resin is used to achieve low temperature fixing, then fixing temperature is reduced, but the non-crystalline polyester resin is not yet melted, preventing high level of low temperature fixing ability
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the glass transition temperature parameter of the polyester resin to fall within the specific range of 20-50°C. This parameter modification ensures that both the crystalline and non-crystalline polyester components melt within a narrow temperature range, enabling high-level low-temperature fixing ability while maintaining fixing reliability.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies local quality by incorporating crosslinking components that create localized crosslinked structures within the polyester resin matrix. These crosslinked regions provide hot offset resistance and prevent toner deposition, while the overall polyester matrix maintains low-temperature fixing ability through its controlled glass transition temperature.
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 excellent low temperature fixing ability, hot offset resistance, heat resistant storage stability, and improved image gloss and coloring, addressing the limitations of existing methods by optimizing particle size and energy consumption.
Implementation Method 1
a toner containing a resin including a crystalline polyester resin, and a releasing agent, and having a phase separation structure, where the resin and the releasing agent (e.g., wax) are incompatible to each other in the form of sea-islands
Implementation Method 2
the crystalline polyester resin is rapidly melted, compared to a non-crystalline polyester resin. Even when the crystalline polyester resin, which forms islands in the sea-island phase separation structure, is melted, however, the non-crystalline polyester resin, which forms sea occupying the majority of the structure, is not yet melted
Implementation Method 3
the diol component contains an aliphatic diol having 3 to 10 carbon atoms in an amount of 50 mol % or more, wherein the crosslink component contains a trihydric or higher aliphatic alcohol, which lowers the glass transition temperature and melt viscosity
Data Source
AI summary
A toner, including: a polyester resin, wherein the polyester resin includes a diol component and a crosslink component as constituent components thereof, wherein the diol component contains an aliphatic diol having 3 to 10 carbon atoms in an amount of 50 mol % or more, wherein the crosslink component contains a trihydric or higher aliphatic alcohol, and wherein the toner has a glass transition temperature (Tg1st) of 20° C. to 50° C., where the glass transition temperature (Tg1st) is measured in first heating in differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) of the toner.