Polyester Resin Toner for Low-Temperature Fixing
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current toner manufacturing methods face challenges in producing small-sized toner particles with uniform size distribution and low-temperature fixability while maintaining heat-resistant storage stability, as they often result in irregular shapes, hot offset issues, and contamination due to release agents.
Innovation Solution
A toner with a polyester resin binder having a glass transition temperature of 18 to 40°C, weight average molecular weight of 10,000 to 100,000, and flow beginning temperature of 70 to 120°C, manufactured through a process involving the reaction of polycarboxylic acid with a polyol to form a three-dimensional network structure and subsequent linear molecular chains, which enhances low-temperature fixability and hot offset resistance.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Volume of moving object
If typical kneading and pulverizing processes are used to produce small-sized toner particles, then toner particles can be obtained, but they have irregular shapes and a wide particle size distribution requiring a large amount of energy when being fixed on paper
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the manufacturing parameters by using polymerization processes instead of mechanical kneading and pulverizing. This allows production of small-sized toner particles (3-10 μm) with narrow particle size distribution and regular shapes, while reducing the energy required for fixing on paper.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces mechanical processing methods (kneading and pulverizing) with chemical polymerization processes. This substitution enables precise control over particle size and shape through chemical reactions rather than mechanical force, resulting in uniform particle size distribution and regular geometries.
2Temperature
If the softening point of binder resin is reduced to meet energy saving demands, then low-temperature fixability is improved, but hot offset and toner blocking occur
Solution Approach 1:
The patent optimizes the binder resin parameters by controlling the glass transition temperature (18-40°C) and flow beginning temperature (70-120°C). This parameter optimization allows toner to be fixed at low temperatures while maintaining sufficient heat resistance to prevent hot offset and toner blocking during storage and handling.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses composite binder resin systems that combine multiple resin components with complementary properties. This composite approach enables the binder to exhibit low-temperature fixability through one component while maintaining hot offset resistance through another component, achieving both low-temperature fixability and reliability.
3Ease of operation
If release agent is added to toner formulation, then toner particle release from fixing member is improved, but carrier particles, photoreceptor, or blade members are contaminated
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts or eliminates the release agent from the toner formulation entirely. Instead of relying on separate release agent additives that cause contamination, the patent achieves effective toner release through the optimized binder resin properties and surface treatment of toner particles, thereby preventing contamination of carrier particles, photoreceptor, or blade members.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent converts the potential harm of requiring release agents into a benefit by using the binder resin itself to provide release functionality. The optimized binder resin composition and toner surface properties work together to enable easy toner release without needing separate release agents, thus eliminating the contamination problem while maintaining ease of operation.
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 a good balance of low-temperature fixability, hot offset resistance, and heat-resistant storage stability, allowing for efficient image formation and reduced contamination, while maintaining adequate viscosity and cohesive force.
Implementation Method 1
reacting a polycarboxylic acid with a polyol, at least one of which having three or more valences, to form an intermediate polyester resin having a three-dimensional network molecular structure
Implementation Method 2
form an intermediate polyester resin having a three-dimensional network molecular structure, and reacting at least one of a dicarboxylic acid and a diol with the intermediate polyester, to form linear molecular chains at terminals of the three-dimensional network molecular structure
Implementation Method 3
emulsifying the toner components liquid in an aqueous medium to prepare an emulsion
Implementation Method 4
removing the organic solvent from the emulsion
Data Source
AI summary
A toner including a colorant and a binder resin is provided. The binder resin includes a polyester resin having a glass transition temperature of 18 to 40° C., a weight average molecular weight of 10,000 to 100,000, and a flow beginning temperature of 70 to 120° C. The toner has a volume average particle diameter of 3 to 10 μm.