Toner Formulation with Volatile Organic Compound for Low-Temperature Fixability
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Solution Overview
Problem
Toner softening temperature needs to be lowered to reduce environmental impact, but this compromises fluidity and fixability, especially under high-temperature and high-humidity conditions, and existing low-temperature-fixable toners have high residual volatile contents.
Innovation Solution
A toner formulation with a softening index Ct between 70° C and 100° C, incorporating a volatile organic compound in the range of 1 to 200 μg/g, a polyester resin, and rice husk or its derivatives to maintain fluidity and fixability while minimizing volatile content.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Temperature
If the softening temperature of toner is lowered to reduce environmental impact, then the toner becomes fixable at lower temperatures, but the fluidity, developability and transferability of the toner are degraded under high-temperature and high-humidity conditions
Solution Approach 1:
The invention changes the chemical composition parameters of the binder resin by specifying functional group content (carboxyl, hydroxyl, amine groups) and using specific resin types (polyester, polyamide, polyurethane) with controlled molecular weights and compositions. This allows achieving low softening temperature while maintaining stability under high-temperature and high-humidity conditions through precise parameter optimization.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention uses composite binder resin systems combining multiple resin types (polyester resin, polyamide resin, polyurethane resin) with specific functional groups. This composite approach allows the toner to achieve both low-temperature fixability and stable performance under varying environmental conditions by leveraging the complementary properties of different resin materials.
2Temperature
If processes using water and/or organic solvents are used to produce low-temperature-fixable toners, then the softening temperature is reduced, but the residual volatile contents increase
Solution Approach 1:
The invention extracts and eliminates volatile organic solvents from the toner composition by using a solvent-free or water-based binder resin system. The binder resin is applied directly without requiring organic solvents for dissolution, thereby removing the source of residual volatile contents while maintaining low-temperature fixability through the inherent properties of the resin composition.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention changes the formulation parameters by specifying binder resin with controlled functional group content (0.1-10 mmol/g carboxyl, 0.1-10 mmol/g hydroxyl, 0.1-5 mmol/g amine groups) and molecular weight, enabling the resin to achieve low-temperature softening without requiring volatile organic solvents, thus reducing harmful residual volatiles.
Data Source
AI summary
A toner including a colorant, a resin, and a volatile organic compound in an amount from 1 to 200 μg/g is provided. The toner has a softening index Ct within a range from 70 to 100° C.