JP3055119B2 - Fixing device - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a fixing device used in an image forming apparatus. The present invention relates to a fixing device in which a novel heat-resistant release layer is provided on the outermost surface of a heat fixing member, which can satisfactorily fix.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, electrophotography has been disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 2,297,691, Japanese Patent Publication No. 42-23910.
As described in Japanese Patent Application Publication No. JP-B-43-24748 and Japanese Patent Publication No. 43-24748, generally, a photoconductive substance is used to form an electric latent image on a photoreceptor by various means. Forming, then developing the latent image with toner, using a direct or indirect means as necessary, transferring the toner image to a transfer material such as paper, heating, pressing,
The copy is obtained by fixing by heating or pressurizing or a solvent vapor, and the toner remaining on the photoreceptor without being transferred is cleaned by various methods, and the above-described steps are repeated.

A general method of forming a full-color image will be described. The photosensitive member of a photosensitive drum is uniformly charged by a primary charger, and for example, a laser beam modulated by a magenta image signal of a document is first used. To form an electrostatic latent image on the photosensitive drum, and develop the electrostatic latent image with a magenta developing device having magenta toner to form a magenta toner image. Next, the magenta toner developed on the photosensitive drum by the transfer charger is transferred to the transferred material using direct or indirect means.

[0004] On the other hand, the photosensitive drum after the development of the electrostatic latent image is neutralized by a static eliminator, cleaned by a cleaning unit, and then charged again by a primary charger. Similarly, formation of a cyan toner image and transfer of the cyan toner image to a transfer-receiving material on which the magenta toner image has been transferred are performed. Further, similarly, the yellow and black toner images are sequentially transferred, and the four color toner images are transferred to the transfer material. Then, a transfer material having these four color toner images is fixed by a fixing roller by the action of heat and pressure to form a full-color image.

In recent years, such image forming apparatuses have been used not only as office work copying machines for simply copying original manuscripts, but also as printers as personal computer outputs or personal copies for individuals. Has begun. In addition to such fields represented by laser beam printers, the development of plain paper fax using a basic engine is also rapidly developing.

[0006] For this reason, smaller, lighter, faster, higher image quality, and higher reliability have been strictly pursued, and machines have been constructed with simpler elements in various respects. I have. As a result, the performance required of the toner becomes higher, and if the performance of the toner cannot be improved, a better machine cannot be realized.

In addition, demand for color copying has rapidly increased in response to various needs for copying in recent years, and in order to copy original color images more faithfully, higher image quality and higher resolution are desired. . From these viewpoints, the toner used in the color image forming method needs to have good meltability and color mixing when heat is applied to the toner, and has a low softening point and a low melt viscosity. It is preferable to use a toner having high property. That is, by using such a sharp melt toner, the color reproduction range of a copy can be widened, and a color copy faithful to a document image can be obtained.

However, such a color toner having a high sharp-melt property generally has a high affinity with a fixing roller as a pressing member, and tends to be easily offset to the fixing roller during fixing. In particular, in the case of a fixing device in a color image forming apparatus, magenta, cyan, yellow, and black toner layers are formed on a transfer material, so that an offset occurs due to an increase in toner layer thickness. It tends to be easy.

Conventionally, for the purpose of preventing toner from adhering to the surface of the fixing roller, the surface of the fixing roller is formed of, for example, silicone rubber or fluorine resin which is a material having excellent releasability from the toner. In order to prevent offset or prevent the surface of the fixing roller from being fatigued, the roller surface is coated with a thin film of a highly releasable liquid such as silicone oil and fluorine oil. However,
Although this method is extremely effective in preventing toner offset, it requires an apparatus for supplying an anti-offset liquid, and, of course, has a problem that the fixing device becomes complicated, and further has a problem. However, application of the offset preventing liquid causes peeling between the base tube constituting the fixing roller and the release layer, and consequently has a disadvantage that the life of the fixing roller is shortened. .

Further, as a transfer material on which a toner image is fixed by using these fixing devices, various papers, coated papers, plastic films and the like are generally used. In particular, attention has recently been focused on the necessity of forming an image on a so-called plastic film such as a transparency film using an overhead projector (OHP) for presentation. Among these, in particular, plastic films have a low oil absorption ability unlike paper and the like, and thus images obtained using the current apparatus in which a liquid having high releasability as described above is applied to the roller surface are used. , The greasy feeling due to oil application is inevitable,
A major problem remains in the quality of the obtained fixed image.

Further, the silicone oil or the like applied to the surface of the fixing roller evaporates due to heat and contaminates the inside of the apparatus,
Furthermore, there is a great possibility that problems such as the treatment of the recovered oil will occur. Therefore, instead of using an offset prevention liquid supply device or the like, instead of supplying the offset prevention liquid from the toner at the time of heating, a low molecular weight polyethylene, a low molecular weight propylene, etc. A method of adding a release agent has been proposed. However,
If a large amount of release agent is added to the toner in order to obtain a sufficient effect, filming on the photoreceptor and contamination of the surface of the toner carrier such as a carrier and a developing sleeve may cause image deterioration, resulting in practical use. Becomes a big problem. Therefore, a small amount of release agent is added to the toner so as not to deteriorate the image, and a small amount of release oil is supplied, or the offset toner is wound up, for example, an apparatus using a member such as a web, Alternatively, an apparatus that performs cleaning using a cleaning pad is also used.

However, particularly in the field of full color, the conventional means of including a release agent in the toner involves the use of a plastic film as a material to be transferred. Due to the difference in the refractive index and the like, there arises a problem that the transparency and haze of the image after fixing slightly decrease. It has been known that a toner contains a wax as a release agent. For example, Japanese Patent Publication No. 52-3304, Japanese Patent Publication No. 52-330
No. 5, JP-A-57-52574 and the like disclose the technology. Also, JP-A-3-50559,
JP-A-2-79860, JP-A-1-109359
JP-A-62-14166, JP-A-61-14166
273554, JP-A-61-94062,
JP-A-61-138259, JP-A-60-252
JP-A-361, JP-A-60-252360, JP-A-60-217366 and the like disclose a technique for incorporating waxes into a toner. These waxes are used as a release agent to improve the anti-offset properties of the toner at low and high temperatures and to improve the fixability at low temperatures. However, on the other hand, the presence of waxes, which are low-melting substances, degrades the blocking resistance, and deteriorates the developability when exposed to heat due to a rise in the temperature of a copying machine or the like. In this case, the wax may migrate to the surface of the toner to deteriorate the developing property.

As described above, none of the conventional toners satisfies all of the above-mentioned problems, and some problems have arisen. For example, it is excellent in high-temperature offset and developing property, but low-temperature fixing property is just one step away, or is excellent in low-temperature offset and low-temperature fixing property, but is slightly inferior in blocking resistance, and develops with increasing temperature in the machine. The offset resistance at low and high temperatures cannot be compatible, and the transparency of OHP has been extremely poor. In particular, regarding the transparency of OHP, proposals have been made to add a crystallization nucleating agent or the like to wax in an attempt to reduce the crystallization of the wax itself (for example, JP-A-4-149559, JP-A-4-107467, etc.). Or using a wax having a low crystallinity (for example, JP-A-3-091108, JP-A-3-242397).
And a method in which a substance having good compatibility with the binder resin in the toner and having a lower melt viscosity than the binder is added to the binder to improve the surface smoothness of the toner layer after fixing. (For example, JP-A-3-212652).

Among the waxes, one of the release agents having relatively good transparency and low-temperature fixing performance is montan wax, which is a mineral wax. As such a montan-based wax, use of a wax having a weight average molecular weight of about 800 represented by the following structural formula is disclosed in
JP-A-185660, JP-A-1-185661, JP-A-1-185662, JP-A-1-185
No. 663 and Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 1-238672. However, none of these was sufficiently satisfactory in terms of OHP transparency and haze (haze value).

[0015]

Embedded image (In the above formula, R represents a hydrocarbon group having 28 to 32 carbon atoms, and n represents an integer.)

On the other hand, in order to inhibit the crystallinity of the release agent itself, use of an ester wax in which the structure of the release agent itself is broken in symmetry has been disclosed in JP-A-5-1185.
No. 17, JP-A-5-126180, and JP-A-5-126181, and fairly good results have been obtained. However, even in recent full-color fixing devices, high durability and high reliability have been demanded, and without improving the fixing device, a high image quality can be obtained only by improving the binder resin and the release agent of the toner as described above. It is difficult to stably realize an image forming method that can be applied to an area image, a low image area image, and even a full-color OHP image over a long period of time, and further improvement of a fixing device is desired.

On the other hand, as a fixing method, the present applicant has disclosed in JP-A-63-313182 and JP-A-2-157.
There is a fixing method using a heat-resistant release layer other than the above-described heat roller fixing method proposed in US Pat. No. 878 or the like. In this method (hereinafter referred to as a SURF method), an unfixed toner image is provided via a heat-resistant release layer while a resistance heating layer is provided on a substrate made of a material having high thermal conductivity such as alumina and pressed by a pressure roller. Is applied to the toner to fuse and fix the toner on the recording material. The heat-resistant release layer used at this time uses, for example, a release layer having a thickness of 100 μm or less, preferably 40 μm or less in order to reduce the heat capacity, and has a two-layer release layer. That is common. For example, polyimide 3 is used as a base layer of the fixing release layer.
There is a fixing method in which 0 μm is used, and 10 μm of a fluororesin PTFE (polytetrafluoroethylene) is laminated thereon to form a two-layer structure, which functions as a release layer.

A resin which is conventionally used as a constituent material of a release layer and has a water contact angle of 80 °
The material adjusted to ３103 ° is only PVF (polyvinyl fluoride).
No material above 50 ° C. was found. Since the release layer made of a fluororesin-based material that is a heat-resistant resin has a large contact angle of 104 ° with respect to water, when a toner containing a wax is used, the wax in the toner is fixed when the toner is fixed. Is interposed between the release layer of the fixing device and the resin of the toner, and is partially applied as a release agent on the silicone rubber in such a manner as to adhere to the release layer side and the resin of the toner. Can perform the same function as conventional silicone oil,
Most of the wax adhering to the release layer is repelled, so the binder resin etc., which constitutes the toner, directly touches the release layer, causing offset or functioning like a hot melt adhesive. Therefore, there is a problem that the recording material is wound around the fixing roller or the like.

[0019]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to solve the above-mentioned problems of the prior art, and to use a wax-containing toner in a fixing device provided with a release layer. The wax adhered to the mold layer side effectively functions as a release agent without being repelled, causing an offset or functioning like a hot melt adhesive, causing the recording material to wind around the fixing roller etc. It is an object of the present invention to provide a fixing device capable of forming an excellent image without causing a problem.

[0020]

The above object is achieved by the present invention described below. That is, the present invention provides a toner image formed by a toner carried on a recording material,
After being brought into contact with the release layer on the outermost surface of the heat-fixing member and melted by heating and / or pressing, the release layer and the recording material are separated from each other, and a toner image is formed on the recording material. The toner forming the toner image contains at least a binder resin, a colorant and a wax, and the wax has a weight average molecular weight (Mw) of 400 or more and 4,000 or less. And the number-average molecular weight (Mn) is 200 or more and 4,000 or less, and the release layer provided on the outermost surface of the heat fixing member is made of a fluoro rubber, a tetrafluoroethylene-perfluoroalkyl Formed by a mixture with a vinyl ether copolymer,
Further, the fixing device is characterized in that the contact angle of the release layer with water is adjusted within the range of 80 ° to 103 °.

[0021]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS A fixing device according to the present invention fixes an unfixed toner image carried on a recording material on the recording material by heating and / or pressurizing the toner image with a heating and fixing member. And is characterized by the following two points. First, the toner for forming the toner image is
At least, containing a binder resin, a colorant and a wax,
The wax has a weight average molecular weight (Mw) of 400 or more,
000 or less and a number average molecular weight (Mn) of 20
Second, the outermost release layer provided on the heat-fixing member is brought into contact with the toner image on the recording material to be heated and / or heated. After being pressed and melted, the release layer on the heat fixing member constituting the fixing device that separates the release layer and the recording material and fixes the toner image on the recording material is a fluororubber, It is formed of a mixture with a tetrafluoroethylene-perfluoroalkylvinyl ether copolymer, and the contact angle of the release layer with water is adjusted within a range of 80 ° to 103 °.

By using the fixing device having the above configuration, the wax supplied from the toner and adhered to the release layer side of the heat fixing member does not repel.
In the fixing device of the present invention, the wax adhered to the release layer side of the heat-fixing member is repelled and the release agent does not function well, and the resin or the like of the toner directly contacts the release layer as in the related art. The recording material does not become offset and function as a hot melt adhesive, and the recording material does not wrap around the heat fixing member. Further, the fixing device of the present invention can be used even if the continuous use temperature exceeds 150 ° C. because the heat resistance temperature of the constituent material of the release layer is high. Incidentally, the contact angle of the release layer in the present invention was measured by forming a flake of the release layer on the surface of the heat-fixing member (about 5 mm thick) by a drop method using CA-X manufactured by Kyowa Interface Science. Value.

The heat-fixing member according to the present invention is used for contacting an unfixed toner image on a recording material and applying heat for melting the toner image and fixing the toner image on the recording material. In the present invention, the heat fixing members include the following heat fixing members (i) to (iii). (I) ~
As for (iii), which will be described later, (i) a roller in the heating roller fixing system, which is configured to contact the toner image and apply heat of a heating means provided inside to the toner image. (Ii) a heating roller which is a shaped member
A film configured to apply heat of a heating unit provided on a film-like member surface opposite to a surface in contact with the toner image and on a side in contact with the toner image in the film heating and fixing method, to the toner image. A fixing film that is a film-shaped member, and (iii) a structure in which, in the film heating and fixing system, heat generated by electromagnetic induction heating of the film-shaped member itself due to the action of a magnetic field is applied to the toner image. And a fixing film that is a film-shaped member.

Next, the present invention will be described in more detail with reference to preferred embodiments of the present invention. The wax contained in the toner used in the present invention has a suitable affinity with the binder resin in the toner, has a high hydrophobicity, and further has a low melting point, in order to develop good fixing properties and offset resistance. And those having low crystallinity are preferred. In the present invention, the wax has a weight average molecular weight (Mw) of 400 to 4,000 and a number average molecular weight (Mn) of 200.
The wax used in the present invention has at least two peaks or at least one peak and at least one peak when its molecular weight distribution is measured. It is preferable to have at least one shoulder (shoulder). Such a molecular weight distribution may be achieved by a single material or a plurality of materials. The present inventors have found that the use of a wax having such a molecular weight distribution can inhibit the crystallinity of the wax, thereby further improving the OHP transparency.

The method of blending two or more kinds of waxes is not particularly limited. For example, a media type dispersing machine (for example, a ball mill, a sand mill, an attritor, an apex mill) may be used at a temperature higher than the melting point of the wax to be blended. , Koball Mill, Handy Mill, etc.)
And the like, and a method in which a wax to be blended is melted in a polymerizable monomer and blended by a media type disperser or the like. At this time, for example, a pigment, a charge control agent, a polymerization initiator, or the like may be used as an additive.

In the present invention, the molecular weight distribution of the wax is determined by gel permeation chromatography (GP).
C) was measured under the following conditions.・ Apparatus: GPC-150C (manufactured by Waters) ・ Column: GMH-HT 30 cm 2 columns (manufactured by Tohso) ・ Temperature: 135 ° C. ・ Solvent: o-dichlorobenzene (0.1% ionol added) ・ Flow rate: 1.0 ml / Min ・ Sample: 0.4 ml of 0.15% sample is injected. In calculating the molecular weight of the sample, a molecular weight calibration curve prepared from a monodisperse polystyrene standard sample is used.
It was calculated by converting to polyethylene using a conversion formula derived from the rk-Houwink viscosity formula.

The weight average molecular weight (Mw) of the wax used in the present invention is 400
Not less than 4,000 and the number average molecular weight (Mn) is 200
The range is 4,000 or more. Further, Mw is preferably in the range of 450 to 3,500, more preferably 500 to 3,000, and Mn is preferably 200 to 3,500, more preferably 250 to 3,000.
It is desirable to set the range to 0 or less. When Mw is less than 400 and Mn is less than 200, the blocking resistance of the toner is remarkably deteriorated.
If it exceeds 3, the wax itself will exhibit crystallinity and the transparency will be significantly deteriorated, so that good OHP transparency cannot be obtained.

The above-mentioned wax is preferably used in an amount of 1 to 40 parts by weight, based on 100 parts by weight of the binder resin of the toner.
More preferably, the amount of the wax added is in the range of 2 to 30 parts by weight, but the range of the added amount of the wax is slightly different depending on the method of producing the toner. That is, if the method for producing the toner is at least a dry toner production method in which a mixture having a binder resin, a colorant, and a wax is melt-kneaded, then cooled, pulverized and classified to obtain toner particles, Is preferably in the range of 1 to 10 parts by weight, more preferably 2 to 7 parts by weight, based on 100 parts by weight of the binder resin. On the other hand, when a toner is produced by a polymerization method of directly obtaining toner particles by polymerizing a mixture having at least a polymerizable monomer, a colorant and a wax, the polymerizable monomer 100
It is desirable to use 2 to 40 parts by weight, more preferably 5 to 30 parts by weight, and still more preferably 10 to 20 parts by weight with respect to parts by weight.

If the amount of the wax contained in the toner is less than the lower limit of the above range, the effect of preventing offset tends to decrease, and if it exceeds the upper limit, the anti-blocking effect tends to decrease, The anti-offset effect is easily adversely affected, and the fusion of the photosensitive drum and the development sleeve is easily caused. Further, in the case of the polymerization toner, a toner having a wide particle size distribution tends to be generated.

Furthermore, in the case of the polymerization toner production method as compared with the above-mentioned dry toner production method, since the polarity of the release agent used is usually lower than the polarity of the binder resin, the polymerization method in an aqueous medium is used. For example, a large amount of the release agent is easily included in the toner particles, and generally a large amount of the release agent can be used. As a result, the toner obtained by the polymerization toner production method is particularly effective for the effect of preventing offset during fixing.

OH that is sufficiently transparent with a low heat capacity of the fixing device
In order to obtain a P image, it is usually most important to lower the crystallinity of the release agent contained in the toner. Further, as a secondary effect, the existence of partially undissolved toner grain boundaries that did not dissolve even after fixing, and the crystallinity of the release agent layer may increase the effective light transmittance due to irregular reflection of light. In some cases, resulting in a reduction in haze. Therefore, it is necessary to prevent these in order to impart more sufficient transparency.

Further, the components mixed in the toner are as follows:
Even if it can be sufficiently dissolved at the time of fixing, if the refractive index between the melted toner layer and the release agent layer formed between the heating and fixing members by the wax contained in the toner is large, this will also cause light reflection. Cause. The increase in the irregular reflection of light leads to a decrease in the brightness of the projected image and a decrease in the sharpness of the color. In particular, when a transmission type overhead projector is used,
This adverse effect is further increased as compared with the case where a reflective overhead projector is used.

As a countermeasure against the above, first, in order to lower the crystallinity of the release agent, it is important to lower the crystallinity of the release agent alone. Further, in order to prevent unmelted toner grain boundaries from being present in the fixed toner layer, the glass transition temperature (Tg) of the binder resin in the toner and the melting point (mp) of the wax used as the release agent should be minimized. It is particularly preferable to use a material having a small melting enthalpy (ΔH), which is the latent heat of the release agent, in order to improve the matching and to quickly dissolve with a low energy amount. Also, the molten release agent is
In order to quickly move between the binder resin layer and the heat fixing member and form an anti-offset layer (release agent layer) in this portion, the difference in solubility parameter (SP) between the binder resin and the release agent must be determined. It is preferable to adjust it appropriately.

From the above viewpoints, preferred specific examples of the wax which is a constituent material of the toner used in the present invention will be described below. Usually, for example, polyester resins, styrene-acrylic resins, epoxy resins, styrene-butadiene resins, and the like are often used as the binder resin constituting the toner. Because of this,
First, it is preferable to use a wax having a refractive index close to those of these resins as the wax used in the present invention. Here, as a method of measuring the refractive index, for example, a vertical (20 to 30 m
m) × width (8 mm) × thickness (3 to 10 mm) to prepare a solid sample. There is a method of measuring a refractive index by putting a small amount on a solid sample. As the measuring instrument at this time, for example, an Appe refractometer 2T manufactured by Atago Co., Ltd. is exemplified. It is particularly effective that the difference in the refractive index between the binder resin and the wax in the toner measured as described above is preferably 0.18 or less, more preferably 0.10 or less at a temperature of 25 ° C. When the refractive index difference exceeds 0.18,
The transparency of the OHP image is easily reduced, and the brightness of the halftone projected image is particularly low, which is not preferable.

The wax used in the present invention preferably has a melting point of 30 to 150 ° C., more preferably 50 to 120 ° C. Melting point 30
When the temperature is lower than 0 ° C., the blocking resistance of the toner, the control of contamination of the developing sleeve and the prevention of contamination of the photoreceptor at the time of copying a large number of sheets are likely to deteriorate. If the melting point exceeds 150 ° C,
In the production method of the toner by the pulverization method, excessive energy is required for uniform mixing with the binder resin. For up,
The size of the equipment is increased, or the amount of compatibility is limited,
It becomes difficult to contain a large amount in the toner.

As a method for calculating the solubility parameter (SP) value of the wax contained in the toner used in the present invention, the method of Fedors utilizing the additivity of atomic groups [Polym. Eng. Sci. , 14 (2) 147
(1974)]. The SP value of the wax used in the present invention calculated as described above is preferably in the range of 7.5 to 9.7. That is, a wax having an SP value of less than 7.5 has poor compatibility with the binder resin for toner, and as a result, it is difficult to obtain good dispersion in the binder resin. The wax tends to adhere to the developing sleeve, and the charge amount of the toner tends to change. Further, the density fluctuates easily at the time of ground fog and toner supply. When a wax having an SP value of more than 9.7 is used, blocking between toners is likely to occur when the toner is stored for a long period of time. Further, since the compatibility with the binder resin is too good, it is difficult to form a sufficient release agent layer between the heat fixing member and the toner binder resin layer during fixing,
Offset phenomenon easily occurs.

As a method for measuring the melt viscosity of the wax,
A method of measuring with a VT-500 manufactured by HAAKE using a cone plate type rotor (PK-1) is exemplified. In the present invention, the melt viscosity of the wax at 100 ° C. is 1 to 50 mPas. sec, more preferably 3 to 30 mPas. It is particularly preferable to use a wax compound having a sec. 1m
Pas. When a wax having a melt viscosity lower than 2 sec is used, when the toner layer is thinly coated on the developing sleeve by a developing blade or the like in a non-magnetic one-component developing method, contamination of the developing sleeve is caused by mechanical shearing force. Easy to invite. Also in the two-component developing method, when a toner is developed using a carrier, damage is apt to occur due to a shear force between the toner and the carrier, and burying of an external additive and crushing of the toner are liable to occur. Also, 50 mPas. If the melt viscosity exceeds sec, the viscosity of the dispersoid becomes too high when producing the toner using the polymerization method, and it is not easy to obtain a toner having a fine particle diameter having a uniform particle diameter. , The toner tends to have a wide particle size distribution.

As a method of measuring the hardness of the wax,
For example, there is a measurement method using a Shimadzu Dynamic Ultra Micro Hardness Tester (DUH-200) manufactured by Shimadzu Corporation. The measurement conditions were as follows: a Vickers indenter was used to displace 10 μm at a load speed of 9.67 mg / sec under a load of 0.5 g at a load speed of 9.67 mg / sec, and then held for 15 seconds to analyze the dents formed on the sample. Find the hardness. sample,
A sample previously melted using a mold having a diameter of 20 mm
It is molded into a column with a thickness of mm and used. It is particularly effective that the hardness of the wax used in the present invention is preferably in the range of 0.3 to 5.0, more preferably 0.5 to 3.0. A toner containing a wax having a hardness of less than 0.3 is easily crushed at a cleaning portion of a copying machine in multi-sheet copying, and toner is easily fused on the surface of a photosensitive drum, resulting in black streaks on an image. It is easy to occur. In addition, when a large number of image samples are stacked and stored, so-called show-through in which toner is transferred to the back surface is likely to occur. In the case of a toner containing a wax having a hardness of more than 5.0,
The fixing device used at the time of heat-fixing requires more pressing force than necessary, and the fixing device needs more strength design than necessary. In this case, if a fixing device with a normal pressing force is used, the offset resistance tends to decrease, which is not preferable.

The wax used in the present invention has a crystallinity of preferably 10 to 50%, more preferably 20 to 35%. When the crystallinity of the wax is less than 10%, the storage stability and fluidity of the toner are likely to deteriorate, and
If it exceeds 50%, the transparency of the OHP image tends to deteriorate. In the present invention, the measurement of the crystallinity of the wax,
Without using a calibration curve, it is measured by the following formula from the area ratio between the amorphous scattering peak and the crystal scattering peak.

[0040]

(Equation 1)

As an apparatus for measuring the crystallinity of wax,
For example, Rotorflex RU300 manufactured by Rigaku Corporation
(Cu target, point focus, output 50kV
/ 250 mA). The measurement method is a transmission method-rotation method, and the measurement angle is 2θ = 5 to 35 °.

The wax having various physical properties as described above and which can be suitably used in the present invention, specifically, has a weight average molecular weight (Mw) of 400 to 4,000 and a number average molecular weight. (Mn) 200 or more and 4,000
Examples thereof include, for example, ester waxes, modified products thereof (for example, oxides and grafted products), higher fatty acids, and metal salts thereof.

The ester wax suitably used in the present invention can be obtained by a production method such as a synthesis method by an oxidation reaction, a synthesis from a carboxylic acid or a derivative thereof, and an ester group introduction reaction represented by a Michael addition reaction. In the present invention, a particularly preferable method for producing an ester wax is a method using a dehydration condensation reaction from a carboxylic acid compound and an alcohol compound or a reaction from an acid halide and an alcohol compound, because of the variety of raw materials and ease of reaction. It is.

[0044]

Embedded image

In order to transfer the above ester equilibrium reaction to the production system, a large excess of alcohol is used, or Dean-Sta is used in an aromatic organic solvent capable of azeotropic distillation with water.
The reaction is performed using an rk water separator. Also, a method of synthesizing a polyester by adding a base as an acceptor of an acid by-produced in an aromatic organic solvent using an acid halide compound can be used.

Next, other components constituting the toner used in the present invention will be described. The toner used in the present invention comprises at least the above-mentioned wax, a binder resin and a colorant. First, as the binder resin contained in the toner, the following binder resins can be used. For example, polystyrene, poly-p-
Homopolymers of styrene such as chlorostyrene and polyvinyltoluene and substituted products thereof; styrene-p-chlorostyrene copolymer, styrene-vinyltoluene copolymer, styrene-vinylnaphthalene copolymer, styrene-acrylate copolymer Styrene-methacrylic acid ester copolymer, styrene-α-chloromethyl methacrylate copolymer, styrene-acrylonitrile copolymer, styrene-vinyl methyl ether copolymer, styrene-vinyl ethyl ether copolymer, styrene- Vinyl methyl ketone copolymer, styrene-butadiene copolymer, styrene-
Styrene copolymers such as isoprene copolymer and styrene-acrylonitrile-indene copolymer; polyvinyl chloride, phenolic resin, natural modified phenolic resin, natural resin modified maleic acid resin, acrylic resin, methacrylic resin, polyvinyl acetate, Examples include silicone resin, polyester resin, polyurethane, polyamide resin, furan resin, epoxy resin, xylene resin, polyvinyl butyral, terpene resin, coumarone indene resin, and petroleum resin. Among these, a particularly preferred binder resin is a styrene copolymer or a polyester resin.

Examples of the comonomer for the styrene monomer of the styrene copolymer include acrylic acid, methyl acrylate, ethyl acrylate, butyl acrylate, and the like.
Duplex such as dodecyl acrylate, octyl acrylate, 2-ethylhexyl acrylate, phenyl acrylate, methacrylic acid, methyl methacrylate, ethyl methacrylate, butyl methacrylate, octyl methacrylate, acrylonitrile, methacrylonitrile, acrylamide, etc. Monocarboxylic acid having a bond or a substituted product thereof; dicarboxylic acid having a double bond such as maleic acid, butyl maleate, methyl maleate, dimethyl maleate and the like, and substituted products thereof; vinyl chloride, vinyl acetate, vinyl benzoate Vinyl esters such as ethylene, propylene, butylene, etc .; vinyl ketones such as vinyl methyl ketone, vinyl hexyl ketone, etc .; vinyl methyl ether, vinyl ethyl ether, vinyl ether Vinyl ethers such as butyl ether; vinyl monomers are mentioned, these may be used alone or two or more.

In the present invention, among the binder resins mentioned above, the number average molecular weight of the THF-soluble component is from 3,000 to 3,000.
It is preferable to use one in the range of 1,000,000. When a styrene-based polymer or a styrene-based copolymer is used as the binder resin, these may be cross-linked or a mixed resin thereof.

As the crosslinking agent for the binder resin used at this time, a compound having two or more polymerizable double bonds can be mainly used. For example, aromatic divinyl compounds such as divinylbenzene and divinylnaphthalene; carboxylic acid esters having two double bonds such as ethylene glycol diacrylate, ethylene glycol dimethacrylate, and 1,3-butanediol dimethacrylate; divinyl Divinyl compounds such as aniline, divinyl ether, divinyl sulfide, and divinyl sulfone; compounds having three or more vinyl groups; and the like, used alone or as a mixture.
The amount of the crosslinking agent added to the binder resin is 100 polymerizable monomers.
It is preferable that the content be in the range of 0.001 to 10 parts by weight with respect to parts by weight.

The toner used in the present invention may contain a charge control agent. Among the charge control agents, those that are controlled to be negatively charged include, for example,
Organic metal compounds and chelate compounds are effective, and specific examples include monoazo metal compounds, acetylacetone metal compounds, aromatic hydroxycarboxylic acids, and aromatic dicarboxylic acid-based metal compounds. Others
Aromatic hydroxycarboxylic acids, aromatic mono- and polycarboxylic acids and their metal salts, anhydrides, esters, and phenol derivatives such as bisphenol can also be mentioned. Also, urea derivatives, metal-containing salicylic acid-based compounds, metal-containing naphthoic acid-based compounds, boron compounds, quaternary ammonium salts, calixarenes, silicon compounds, styrene-acrylic acid copolymers, styrene-methacrylic acid copolymers,
Styrene-acryl-sulfonic acid copolymers, nonmetal carboxylic acid compounds and the like can also be mentioned.

Examples of the charge controlling agent for controlling to positive charge include denatured products such as nigrosine and fatty acid metal salts, guanidine compounds, imidazole compounds, tributylbenzylammonium-1-hydroxy-4-naphthosulfonate, Quaternary ammonium salts such as tetrabutylammonium tetrafluoroborate and the like, onium salts such as phosphonium salts which are analogs thereof, and lake pigments thereof, triphenylmethane dyes and these lake pigments (phosphor tungsten oxide is used as a lake-forming agent) Acid, phosphomolybdic acid, phosphotungsten molybdic acid, tannic acid,
Lauric acid, gallic acid, ferricyanide, ferrocyanide, etc.), metal salts of higher fatty acids, etc . ; diorganotin oxides such as dibutyltin oxide, dioctyltin oxide, dicyclohexyltin oxide; dibutyltin borate, dioctyltin borate, dicyclohexyltin Diorganotin borates such as borate;
And the like, and these can be used alone or in combination of two or more. Among these, a charge control agent such as a nigrosine-based or quaternary ammonium salt is particularly preferably used. These charge control agents are preferably used in an amount of 0.01 to 20 parts by weight based on 100 parts by weight of the binder resin component.
It is good to use in a range of 0.5 parts by weight, more preferably 0.5 to 10 parts by weight.

Next, the colorant contained in the toner used in the present invention will be described. The colorant used in the present invention includes, for example, carbon black, a magnetic material, and yellow / magenta /
Those toned to black using a cyan coloring agent can be used. As the yellow colorant suitably used in the present invention, for example, a condensed azo compound, an isoindolinone compound, an anthraquinone compound, an azo metal complex,
Examples thereof include compounds represented by methine compounds. Specifically, for example, C.I. I. Pigment Yellow 12, 1
3, 14, 15, 17, 62, 74, 83, 93, 9
4, 95, 109, 110, 111, 128, 129,
147, 168, 180 and the like.

The magenta colorant preferably used in the present invention includes, for example, condensed azo compounds, diketopyrrolopyrrole compounds, anthraquinones, quinacridone compounds, basic dye lake compounds, naphthol compounds, benzimidazolone compounds, thioindigo compounds, perylene And the like. Specifically, for example, C.I. I. Pigment Red 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 23, 48: 2,
48: 3, 48: 4, 57: 1, 81: 1, 144, 1
46, 166, 169, 177, 184, 185, 20
2, 206, 220, 221, 254.

As the cyan coloring agent suitably used in the present invention, for example, a copper phthalocyanine compound and its derivative, an anthraquinone compound, a basic dye lake compound and the like can be mentioned. Specifically, for example, C.I. I. Pigment Blue 1, 7, 15, 15: 1, 15: 2, 1
5: 3, 15: 4, 60, 62, 66 and the like.
These colorants can be used alone or as a mixture, and further, can be used in the form of a solid solution.
It is appropriately selected from the viewpoints of saturation, lightness, light resistance, OHP transparency, dispersibility in toner, and the like. The amount of these colorants added is 1 to 100 parts by weight of the binder resin.
It is preferable to add in the range of 20 parts by weight.

In the present invention, in the toner used,
Further, a magnetic material may be contained and used as a magnetic toner. In this case, the magnetic material can also serve as a colorant. Examples of the magnetic material used at this time include, for example, iron oxides such as magnetite, hematite, and ferrite; metals such as iron, cobalt, and nickel; or these metals and aluminum, cobalt, copper, lead, magnesium, tin, and the like. Examples include alloys with metals such as zinc, antimony, beryllium, bismuth, cadmium, calcium, manganese, selenium, titanium, tungsten, and vanadium, and mixtures thereof.

In the present invention, it is more preferable that these magnetic materials are surface-modified magnetic materials. It is preferable that the material is subjected to a hydrophobic treatment with a modifier. Such a surface modifier is not particularly limited, and examples thereof include a silane coupling agent and a titanium coupling agent.

These magnetic materials have an average particle diameter of preferably 2 μm or less, more preferably 0.1 to 0.5 μm.
A range of about m is desirable. The content of the magnetic material is preferably from 40 to 100 parts by weight of the resin component.
The range is preferably 150 parts by weight. Moreover, the magnetic properties at 10k oersted applied, the coercive force (H _c). 20 to
300 Oersted, saturation magnetization (σ _s ) 50-200e
mu / g and a residual magnetization (σ _r ) of 2 to 20 emu / g are preferable.

The toner used in the present invention includes:
Various additives for the purpose of imparting toner characteristics can be added, but the particle size of the additive is determined from the viewpoint of the durability when added externally to the toner or inside the toner. It is preferable that the particle size is not more than 1/5 of the particle size.
The particle size of the additive means an average particle size of the toner particles obtained by observing the surface of the toner particles with an electron microscope.
Further, in the present invention, various additives used for the purpose of imparting toner properties include, for example, a fluidity imparting agent,
Examples include abrasives, lubricants, and charge control particles.

Examples of the fluidity-imparting agent include metal oxides (silicon oxide, aluminum oxide, titanium oxide, etc.), carbon black, carbon fluoride and the like.
Those subjected to a hydrophobic treatment are more preferable. or,
Examples of the abrasive include metal oxides (strontium titanate, cerium oxide, aluminum oxide, magnesium oxide, chromium oxide, etc.), nitrides (silicon nitride, etc.),
Examples include carbides (such as silicon carbide) and metal salts (such as calcium sulfate, barium sulfate, and calcium carbonate).

Examples of the lubricant include fluororesin powder (vinylidene fluoride, polytetrafluoroethylene, etc.) and fatty acid metal salts (zinc stearate, calcium stearate, etc.). Further, as the charge control particles, for example, metal oxides (tin oxide, titanium oxide,
Particles such as zinc oxide, silicon oxide, and aluminum oxide), and carbon black. These additives are
0.1 to 100 parts by weight of toner particles
It is desirable to use 10 parts by weight, more preferably 0.1 to 5 parts by weight. These additives may be used alone or in combination of two or more.

In the present invention, the toner having the above-mentioned material can be used as a one-component developer or a two-component developer. For example,
When used as a one-component developer, a magnetic material is used as a magnetic toner contained in the toner, and the magnetic toner is transported and charged using a magnet built in a developing sleeve to perform development. When a non-magnetic toner that does not contain a magnetic material is used, a developing blade and a fur brush are used to forcibly triboelectrically charge the toner with a developing sleeve, and the toner is adhered onto the developing sleeve to be transported and developed. I do.

On the other hand, when used as a generally used two-component developer, a carrier is used together with the toner used in the present invention and used as a developer. The carrier used in the present invention is not particularly limited, for example, mainly iron, copper, zinc, nickel,
Examples thereof include those composed of elements such as cobalt, manganese, and chromium, which are in a single or composite ferrite state.
In addition, the carrier shape is also important because saturation magnetization and electric resistance can be controlled in a wide range.For example, a spherical shape, a flat shape, an irregular shape, and the like are selected. It is preferable to control. In general, by calcining and granulating the inorganic oxide, in advance, after generating carrier core particles,
A method of coating the resin is used, but from the viewpoint of reducing the load on the toner of the carrier, after kneading the inorganic oxide and the resin, performing pulverization and classification to obtain a low-density dispersed carrier. Further, it is also possible to use a method of producing a polymerized carrier by directly subjecting a kneaded product of an inorganic oxide and a monomer to suspension polymerization in an aqueous medium to obtain a spherically dispersed carrier.

A system in which the surface of the carrier is coated with a resin or the like as described above is particularly preferable as the carrier used in the present invention. Conventionally known methods include a method of dissolving or suspending a coating material such as a resin in a solvent, applying the coating material to a carrier surface, and a method of simply mixing the coating material such as a resin with a powder. Can be applied. The substance to be adhered to the carrier surface used at this time varies depending on the toner material, and includes, for example, polytetrafluoroethylene, monochlorotrifluoroethylene polymer, polyvinylidene fluoride, silicone resin, polyester resin, and metal Compound,
Styrene resin, acrylic resin, polyamide, polyvinyl butyral, nigrosine, amino acrylate resin, basic dyes and lakes thereof, silica fine powder, alumina fine powder, etc., and these are preferably used alone or in combination. However, it is not necessarily limited to this.

The treatment amount of the above-mentioned compounds is generally in the total amount to the carrier, preferably 0.1%.
The content is preferably in the range of 1 to 30% by weight, more preferably 0.5 to 20% by weight. The carrier preferably has an average particle size of 10 to 100 μm, more preferably 20 to 50 μm.

A particularly preferred embodiment of the carrier used in the present invention is a carrier in which the surface of ferrite particles is coated with a combination of a resin such as a fluororesin and a styrene resin. For example, polyvinylidene fluoride and styrene-methyl methacrylate resin, polytetrafluoroethylene and styrene-methyl methacrylate resin,
A fluorine-based copolymer and a styrene-based copolymer are preferably used in an amount of 90:10 to 20:80, more preferably 70:30.
And a coated ferrite carrier coated with a silicone resin or the like, preferably 0.01 to 5% by weight, more preferably 0.1 to 1% by weight. Examples of the fluorine-based copolymer include vinylidene fluoride-tetrafluoroethylene copolymer (10:90 to 90:10), and examples of the styrene-based copolymer include styrene-acrylic acid 2- Ethylhexyl (20: 80-80: 20),
Styrene-2-ethylhexyl acrylate-methyl methacrylate (20-60: 5-30: 10-50) is exemplified. Such a coated ferrite carrier has a sharp particle size distribution, can impart favorable triboelectrification to the toner used in the present invention, has an effect of further improving electrophotographic properties, and is preferable. .

When the above-described carrier is mixed with the toner used in the present invention to prepare a two-component developer, the mixing ratio is preferably 2 to 2 as the toner concentration in the developer. 15% by weight, more preferably 4-1
In the range of 3% by weight, good results are usually obtained. If the toner density is less than 2%, the image density becomes low and becomes impractical. Further, the magnetic properties of the carrier used in the present invention are preferably as follows. First, the saturation magnetization is 20
It is preferably in the range of 90 to 90 Am ² / kg, and more preferably 30 to 70 Am ² / kg.
It is preferably in the range of ² / kg. If it is larger than 90 Am ² / kg, it becomes difficult to obtain a high quality toner image. On the other hand, if it is less than 20 Am ² / kg, the magnetic binding force is reduced, so that the carrier is likely to adhere.

Hereinafter, a method for producing a toner having the above-described configuration used in the present invention will be described. The method for producing the pulverized toner used in the present invention includes at least a binder resin, a wax, a pigment or a dye as a colorant, and if necessary, a material such as a magnetic substance, a charge control agent, and other additives. Use First, the resins are sufficiently mixed by a mixer such as a Henschel mixer or a ball mill, and then melt-kneaded using a heat kneader such as a heating roll, a kneader or an extruder to make the resins compatible with each other. Then, materials such as a metal compound, a pigment or a dye, and a magnetic material are dispersed or dissolved and solidified by cooling, and then pulverized and classified to obtain a pulverized toner. Furthermore,
If necessary, the desired additive is externally added to the obtained toner and sufficiently mixed by a mixer such as a Henschel mixer to obtain a toner for developing an electrostatic image.

A method for producing a polymerized toner preferably used in the fixing device of the present invention will be described. Tokiko 56
No. 13945, a method of obtaining a spherical toner by atomizing a melt-kneaded product into air using a disk or a multi-fluid nozzle, and Japanese Patent Publication No. 36-10231 and Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 59-53856. Gazette, JP-A-59-61
No. 842, a method for directly producing a toner using a suspension polymerization method, and a method for directly producing a toner using an aqueous organic solvent which is soluble in a monomer and insoluble in a polymer obtained. An emulsion polymerization method such as a dispersion polymerization method to be formed, or a soap-free polymerization method in which a toner is formed by directly polymerizing in the presence of a water-soluble polar polymerization initiator, or a method in which primary polar emulsion polymerization particles are prepared in advance. It is possible to produce a toner by using a hetero-aggregation method or the like in which polar particles having opposite charges are added and associated.

However, among the above-mentioned methods, in the dispersion polymerization method, the obtained toner shows an extremely sharp particle size distribution. There is a problem that the manufacturing apparatus is complicated and easily complicated from the viewpoints of waste solvent treatment and solvent flammability. Emulsion polymerization represented by soap-free polymerization is effective because the particle size distribution of the toner is relatively uniform. There is a problem that it is easily deteriorated. Accordingly, in the present invention, a fine particle toner having a sharp particle size distribution can be obtained relatively easily, and it is particularly preferable to produce the toner by a suspension polymerization method under normal pressure or under pressure. Further, a toner which can be suitably used in the present invention can also be obtained by a so-called seed polymerization method in which a monomer is further adsorbed onto the obtained polymer particles and then polymerized using a polymerization initiator.

A more preferable toner used in the fixing device of the present invention is an ester wax, particularly when measured by a tomographic plane measurement method of a toner produced by a direct polymerization method using a transmission electron microscope (TEM). One having a so-called core-shell structure encapsulated by a shell resin layer is exemplified. Since the toner used in the present invention needs to contain a large amount of ester wax in the toner from the viewpoint of fixability, it is necessary to include the ester wax in the outer shell resin. That is, in a toner containing a large amount of wax without encapsulating the wax,
In the pulverization step, unless a special freeze-pulverization is used, sufficient pulverization cannot be performed, and as a result, only a material having a wide particle size distribution can be obtained. In addition, in the freeze-pulverization, in order to prevent dew condensation on the device, the device becomes complicated, or if the toner absorbs moisture, the workability of the toner is reduced. There are also manufacturing problems. As a specific method of encapsulating the ester wax, for example, the polarity of the material in the aqueous medium, the ester wax is set smaller than the main monomer, and a small amount of a large polar resin or monomer Is added to coat the ester wax with a shell resin to obtain a toner having a core-shell structure.

The particle size distribution and the particle size of the obtained toner can be controlled by changing the type and amount of a poorly water-soluble inorganic salt or a dispersing agent acting as a protective colloid, or by mechanical device conditions. It is performed by controlling the stirring conditions such as the peripheral speed of the rotor, the number of passes, the shape of the stirring blades, the shape of the container, and the solid content concentration in the aqueous solution, and has the predetermined particle size distribution and particle size used in the present invention. Toner is obtained.

As a specific method for measuring the tomographic plane of the toner, for example, the toner is obtained by sufficiently dispersing the toner in an epoxy resin curable at room temperature and then curing it in an atmosphere at a temperature of 40 ° C. for 2 days. The cured product is dyed using ruthenium tetroxide and, if necessary, osmium tetroxide, and then a flaky sample is cut out using a microtome equipped with diamond teeth. There is a method to measure the fault morphology. At this time, when measuring the toner having the core-shell structure used in the present invention, the difference in crystallinity between the ester wax to be used and the resin constituting the outer shell is used to measure the difference between the materials. It is preferable to use a ruthenium tetroxide staining method in order to provide contrast.

In the case where the toner used in the present invention is produced by a direct polymerization method to obtain a toner having a core-shell structure as described above, it is possible to produce the toner by the following specific production method. It is possible. First, an ester wax, a colorant, a charge control agent, a polymerization initiator, and other additives are added to the monomer, and a homogenizer is added.
The monomer system uniformly dissolved or dispersed by an ultrasonic disperser or the like is dispersed in an aqueous phase containing a dispersion stabilizer by a conventional stirrer, homomixer, homogenizer, or the like. Preferably, the granulation is performed by adjusting the stirring speed and time so that the monomer droplets have the desired size of the toner particles. Thereafter, stirring may be performed to such an extent that the particle state is maintained and the sedimentation of the particles is prevented by the action of the dispersion stabilizer. The polymerization temperature is 40 ° C. or higher, generally 50 to 9
The polymerization is carried out at a temperature of 0 ° C. Further, the temperature may be raised in the latter half of the polymerization reaction, and further, after the reaction is completed in the latter half of the reaction or after the end of the reaction, in order to remove unreacted polymerizable monomers and by-products which cause odor at the time of fixing the toner. Alternatively, a part of the aqueous medium may be distilled off. After the reaction is completed, the generated toner particles are washed and
Collect by filtration and dry. In the above suspension polymerization method, usually, water 3
It is preferable to use 00 to 3,000 parts by weight as a dispersion medium.

When a toner is directly obtained by using the above polymerization method, examples of the polymerizable monomer include styrene, o- (m-, p-) methylstyrene, and m- (p −)
Styrene monomers such as ethylstyrene; methyl (meth) acrylate, ethyl (meth) acrylate, propyl (meth) acrylate, butyl (meth) acrylate, octyl (meth) acrylate, (meth) acrylic acid Dodecyl, (meta)
Stearyl acrylate, behenyl (meth) acrylate,
(Meth) acrylate monomers such as 2-ethylhexyl (meth) acrylate, dimethylaminoethyl (meth) acrylate, and diethylaminoethyl (meth) acrylate; butadiene, isoprene, cyclohexene, (meth) acrylonitrile, and acrylic Ene-based monomers such as acid amides; and the like are preferably used.

In the present invention, it is preferable to polymerize a monomer system having a polymerizable monomer by including a polar resin such as a polar polymer or a polar copolymer. The polar polymer or polar copolymer that can be used at this time is exemplified below. For example, dimethylaminoethyl methacrylate, a polymer of a nitrogen-containing monomer such as diethylaminoethyl methacrylate or a copolymer with a styrene-unsaturated carboxylic acid ester, a nitrile monomer such as acrylonitrile, a vinyl chloride or the like Halogen-containing monomers,
Unsaturated carboxylic acids such as acrylic acid and methacrylic acid, and other polymers such as unsaturated dibasic acids, unsaturated dibasic acid anhydrides, nitro monomers, and copolymers with styrene monomers , Polyester, epoxy resin monomers and the like. More preferred are styrene and (meth)
Acrylic acid copolymer, maleic acid copolymer, saturated polyester resin and epoxy resin are exemplified.

Examples of the polymerization initiator used in the production by the direct polymerization method include 2,2′-azobis- (2,4-dimethylvaleronitrile) and 2,2′-azobisisobutyric acid. Lonitrile, 1,1'-azobis (cyclohexane-1-carbonitrile), 2,2'-azobis-
Azo or diazo polymerization initiators such as 4-methoxy-2,4-dimethylvaleronitrile and azobisisobutyronitrile, benzoyl peroxide, methyl ethyl ketone peroxide, diisopropyloxy carbonate, cumene hydroperoxide, t-butyl hydroperoxide, -T-butyl peroxide, dicumyl peroxide, 2,4-dichlorobenzoyl peroxide, lauroyl peroxide, 2,2-bis (4,4-t-butylperoxycyclohexyl) propane, tris- (t-
Examples include peroxide-based polymerization initiators such as butylperoxy) triazine, high-molecular-weight polymerization initiators having a peroxide in a side chain, persulfates such as potassium persulfate and ammonium persulfate, and hydrogen peroxide.

The amount of the polymerization initiator to be added is preferably in the range of 0.5 to 20 parts by weight with respect to the polymerizable monomer, and the polymerization initiator may be used alone or in combination. You may. In order to control the molecular weight, known crosslinking agents and chain transfer agents may be added, and the addition amount is preferably in the range of 0.001 to 15 parts by weight.

The polymerization toner used in the present invention is
In the case of production by emulsion polymerization, dispersion polymerization, suspension polymerization, seed polymerization, polymerization using a heteroaggregation method, or the like, any suitable stabilizer is used in the dispersion medium used. Examples of such a stabilizer include, as inorganic compounds, calcium phosphate, magnesium phosphate, aluminum phosphate, zinc phosphate, calcium carbonate, magnesium carbonate, calcium hydroxide, magnesium hydroxide, aluminum hydroxide, and calcium metasilicate. , Calcium sulfate,
Barium sulfate, bentonite, silica, alumina and the like, and as organic compounds, polyvinyl alcohol, gelatin, methyl cellulose, methyl hydroxypropyl cellulose, ethyl cellulose, sodium salt of carboxymethyl cellulose, polyacrylic acid and salts thereof, starch, polyacrylamide , Polyethylene oxide, poly (hydroxystearic acid-g-methyl methacrylate-eu-methacrylic acid) copolymer, and nonionic or ionic surfactants.

In the case of the emulsion polymerization method and the hetero-aggregation method, anionic surfactants, cationic surfactants, amphoteric surfactants and nonionic surfactants are used as stabilizers. These stabilizers are preferably used in the range of 0.2 to 30 parts by weight based on 100 parts by weight of the polymerizable monomer. When an inorganic compound is used as a stabilizer, a commercially available one may be used as it is, but the inorganic compound may be generated in a dispersion medium in order to obtain fine particles.

In order to finely disperse these stabilizers, a surfactant may be used in the range of 0.001 to 0.1 parts by weight. This promotes the initial action of the dispersion stabilizer, and specific examples thereof include sodium dodecylbenzene sulfate, sodium tetradecyl sulfate, sodium pentadecyl sulfate, sodium octyl sulfate, sodium oleate, sodium laurate,
Potassium stearate, calcium oleate and the like can be mentioned.

As for the colorant to be contained in the polymerization toner used in the present invention, it is necessary to pay attention to the polymerization inhibitory property and the water phase migration property of the colorant. It is preferable to perform a modification, for example, a hydrophobic treatment without inhibiting polymerization. In particular, when a dye system or carbon black is used, it often has polymerization inhibitory properties, so care must be taken when using it. As a preferable method of surface-treating the dye system, for example, a method of pre-polymerizing a polymerizable monomer in the presence of these dyes and the like is mentioned, and the obtained colored polymer is added to the monomer system. The carbon black may be treated with a substance that reacts with the surface functional group of the carbon black, such as polyorganosiloxane, in addition to the same treatment as the above dye.

Hereinafter, a description will be given of the structure of the fixing device of the present invention which can perform satisfactory fixing when the toner containing the wax as described above is used. That is, in the fixing device of the present invention, a specific heat-resistant release layer as described below is provided on the outermost surface of a heat fixing member such as a fixing roller (hereinafter, simply referred to as a fixing roller). Even when a toner having such a wax is used, the wax in the toner adhered to the fixing roller functions effectively as a release material without being repelled on the fixing roller, and the binder resin of the toner is fixed to the fixing roller. There is no offset upward or the recording material wraps around the fixing roller. Hereinafter, a specific heat-resistant release layer provided on the fixing roller (hereinafter, simply referred to as a “release layer”) will be described.

First, in the fixing device of the present invention, a release layer provided on the outermost surface of a heat-fixing member such as a fixing roller is made of a mixture of a fluoro rubber and a tetrafluoroethylene-perfluoroalkylvinyl ether copolymer. And the contact angle of the release layer with water is 80 ° to 103 °.
It is characterized in that it is adjusted so as to be within the range. That is,
In the present invention, since the release layer is formed on the surface of the heat-fixing member by a mixture of a fluororubber and a tetrafluoroethylene-perfluoroalkylvinyl ether copolymer, the release layer is excellent in heat resistance and continuous. Operating temperature is 1
It can be used even if it exceeds 50 ° C. Further, since the contact angle of the release layer with water is adjusted to be 80 ° to 103 °, the wax coming out of the toner and adhering to the release layer side is repelled on the release layer. As a result, there is no possibility that the toner resin or the like directly touches the release layer, and the recording material is not offset or functions as a hot melt adhesive and winds around the fixing roller.

When the contact angle with water is less than 80 °, the toner becomes too wet, so that the adhesive force of the toner resin itself sharply increases and exceeds the adhesion preventing effect of the wax, and the whole toner moves to the release layer side. Poor fixing results. Also, 10
When the contact angle is larger than 3 °, when the wax-containing toner is used, the wax partially adheres to the silicone rubber in a form in which the wax adheres to the release layer side and the resin of the toner. Exhibits the same function as the conventional silicone oil provided as a release agent, but most of the wax adhering to the release layer is repelled, preventing the wax from functioning and achieving good fixing. Disappears. The measurement of the contact angle in the present invention was carried out by forming a thin piece (about 5 mm thick) of the surface layer material of the heat-fixing member and measuring it by a drop method using a CA-X type manufactured by Kyowa Interface Science Co., Ltd.

The material for forming the release layer on the surface of the fixing roller used in the fixing device of the present invention will be described below. The release layer is formed of a mixture of a fluororubber and a tetrafluoroethylene-perfluoroalkylvinyl ether copolymer (hereinafter abbreviated as PFA). A mixture of fluororubber and PFA is prepared by individually preparing raw material powders called molding powders and mixing these. As a method of forming a release layer on the surface of a heat-fixing member such as a fixing roller constituting the fixing device of the present invention, ram extrusion molding is performed by using the obtained mixed powder, or extrusion is performed by mixing an organic solvent with an extrusion aid. There is a method of molding into a tube shape by paste extrusion molding. At this time, the thickness of the tube is preferably in the range of 10 to 150 μm. When the release layer is formed by these molding methods, a powder of a mixed powder having a particle diameter of 100 to 300 μm is used, and the molding temperature is appropriately set within a range of 300 to 400 ° C. depending on the heat resistant temperature of the fluororubber to be used. Set.
The molding pressure is 100 to 350 kgf / cm ^2.
Range. In addition, when molding distortion is large, 120-
Annealing may be performed at 250 ° C. Further, as the organic solvent used for the paste extrusion molding, for example, an organic solvent such as solvent naphtha or white oil, 15 to 15
It is preferable to use it in the range of 25 wt%.

The fluororubber used in the present invention includes, for example, compounds 1 to 6 shown in Table 1.

[0087]

[Table 1] Table 1: List of fluororubbers usable in the present invention

The method for adjusting the contact angle of the release layer formed on the fixing roller to water within the range of 80 ° to 103 ° as described above includes PFA, which is a material for forming the release layer, There is a method of controlling a contact angle with water by changing a mixing ratio with fluororubber. In the present invention, as a specific method of adjusting the contact angle within the range of 80 ° to 103 °, the mixing ratio of PFA and fluororubber is preferably set to PFA: fluororubber = 6: 4, more preferably. Is P
FA: fluororubber = 7: 3, and a release layer may be formed using these mixed powders.

Next, a preferred example of the fixing device of the present invention will be described. FIG. 1 shows a schematic diagram of an example of a heating roller type fixing device. The apparatus has a cylindrical heating roller 101 having a heating means such as a heater 101e inside as shown in FIG. The heating roller 101 rotates clockwise during fixing. Reference numeral 102 denotes a pressure roller as a pressure rotating body, which is a cylindrical pressure contact member, and rotates counterclockwise while being pressed against the heating roller 101 during fixing. A recording material P as a heating material to which the unfixed toner T adheres as a toner image to the surface is conveyed from the right side of the drawing by a conveyance belt 103, and is moved between the heating roller 101 and the pressure roller 102. By being pressed and heated, the unfixed toner T
Is fixed on the recording material P and discharged to the left.

Reference numerals 104a and 104b denote separation claws used for separation in order to prevent the recording material P from being wound around the heating roller 101 or the pressure roller 102 and causing a conveyance failure of the recording material P. Reference numeral 106 denotes a felt-like oil pad impregnated with a release agent such as silicone oil having appropriate viscosity, and reference numeral 105 denotes a cleaning roller in which brush-like fibers are implanted in a cylindrical shape.
The cleaning roller 105 rotates to rotate the heating roller 1.
In addition to removing the toner residue adhered to the peripheral surface of the heating roller 101, the release agent is appropriately supplied to the surface of the heating roller 101. The fixing device of the present invention may be a fixing unit that separately supplies oil as described above, or may be a fixing unit that does not separately supply oil. In this case, the oil pad 106 and the cleaning roller 105 are not necessary.

In the fixing device of the present invention, in addition to the heating roller 101 as the above-mentioned heating fixing member, a specific release layer is also formed on the surface of the pressure roller 102 when performing double-side fixing. Preferred. In the fixing device described above, as shown in FIG. 1, a heating roller 101 and a pressure roller 102 are composed of metal cores 101a and 102a, and elastic layers 101 formed on the metal cores 101a and 102a, respectively.
b and 102b, fluoro rubber layers 101c and 102c formed on the elastic layers 101b and 102b, and a specific adhesion angle formed on the fluoro rubber layers 101c and 102c as the outermost surface layer, and Release layer 1 formed of rubber and a mixture of a tetrafluoroethylene-perfluoroalkylvinyl ether copolymer
01d and 102d. As a constituent material of the cores 101a and 102a, conventionally known materials can be used, and there is no particular limitation. For example, aluminum, copper, or an alloy thereof may be used.

Next, another preferred example of the fixing device of the present invention will be described. The example shown in FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of a film heating type heating device (image heating fixing device). The heating device of the film heating system has the following advantages and is effective in comparison with the above-described fixing device of the heat roller system and the like. (1) In the heating apparatus of the film heating type, since a heating element having a low heat capacity in which a linear heating element having a low heat capacity is formed into a film-shaped thin film can be used, power saving and shortening of a wait time (quick time) are performed. Startability) is possible, and the temperature rise in the machine can be suppressed. (2) In a film heating type heating device, since the fixing point and the separation point can be set separately, offset can be effectively prevented. In addition, various disadvantages of other system devices can be solved.

In FIG. 2, reference numeral 6 denotes a heater (ceramic heater) fixedly supported by a support. In the apparatus shown in FIG. 2, a heat-resistant film (fixing film) 1 is provided on the heater 6.
Are brought into close contact with a pressure roller 2 as a pressure rotating body and slid and transported. Then, as a material to be heated, between the heat-resistant film 1 and the pressure roller 2 in the press-contact nip portion (fixing nip portion) N formed by the heating element 6 and the pressure roller 2 with the heat-resistant film 1 interposed therebetween. The recording material P on which the image is to be fixed is introduced, and is conveyed while sandwiching the press-contact nip N with the heat-resistant film 1, so that the heat of the heating body 6 is transferred to the recording material P via the heat-resistant film 1. On the surface,
The unfixed visible image (toner image) T on the recording material P is heated and fixed on the surface of the recording material P. That is, the unfixed toner image carried on the recording material P is fixed on the recording material P by the fixing film 1 as a heat fixing member that is in pressure contact with the toner image. The recording material P that has passed through the pressure nip N is separated from the surface of the film 1 and transported to the left in the drawing. Reference numeral 6 in contact with the heat-resistant film 1 denotes a felt-like pad. In the apparatus shown in FIG. 2, oil is separately supplied to the heat-resistant film 1 by the pad 6.

In the fixing device having the above configuration, it is preferable not to separately supply a release agent such as silicone oil from the viewpoint of preventing the recording material from sticking after fixing. If the amount of the release agent is such that stickiness does not become a problem, as shown in FIG. 2, the release agent is applied to the fixing portion between the fixing means and the unfixed toner image on the recording material. And fixing while heating.

The heating element 6 of the fixing device shown in FIG. 2 is an elongated heat-resistant / insulating material whose longitudinal direction is perpendicular to the transport direction a of the heat-resistant film 1 or the recording material P as the material to be heated. Substrate 7 having good thermal conductivity, a resistance heating element 5 formed along the longitudinal direction of the substrate at the center in the short side of the surface of the substrate 7, and power supply electrodes at both longitudinal ends of the resistance heating element 5 ( (Not shown), a heat-resistant overcoat layer 8 that protects the surface of the heating element on which the resistance heating element is formed, a temperature detecting element 4 such as a thermistor provided on the back side of the substrate for detecting the temperature of the heating element, and the like. Is a linear heating element.

In the apparatus shown in FIG. 2, this heating element 6 is
The surface side on which the resistance heating element 5 is formed is exposed downward, and is fixedly disposed by being adhered and held to a rigid and heat insulating heater support (not shown). The heating element 6 is heated by the power supply to both end electrodes of the resistance heating element 5 and the resistance heating element 5 generates heat over the entire length thereof. The temperature is fed back to a temperature control circuit (not shown), and the energization of the resistance heating element 5 is controlled so that the temperature of the heating element is maintained at a predetermined temperature. That is, at the time of fixing, the resistance heating element 5 is controlled so that the detection output of the temperature detecting element (thermistor) 4 becomes constant.
Is controlled. Note that, instead of the ceramic heater described above, a heating device using alternating magnetic field injection may be used as the heating element 6.

[0097] In the apparatus shown in FIG.
Is made into an endless belt shape, and one of the rollers stretched around the endless belt is used as a driving roller, and the film is rotated and conveyed by a frictional force between the driving roller and the inner peripheral surface of the film. Other methods of transporting the heat-resistant film 1 include:
For example, a configuration in which the pressure roller 2 is a drive roller, a configuration in which a roller other than the pressure roller 2 is rotated and conveyed by a frictional force between a drive roller brought into contact with the outer surface of the film, and the heat-resistant film 1, There is also a configuration in which a roll-wound long film is formed and fed out and conveyed.

Further, in the apparatus shown in FIG. 2, the outermost surface layer of the heat-resistant film 1 has a release layer formed of a mixture of fluororubber and a tetrafluoroethylene-perfluoroalkylvinyl ether copolymer. Is provided. Further, the pressure roller 2 as a pressure rotating body of the device shown in FIG. 2 has the same configuration as the pressure roller 102 of the device shown in FIG. 1, and separates the metal core 2a from the silicone rubber or the like. Although it is a solid (solid flesh) elastic roller composed of the heat-resistant rubber layer 2b having good moldability, the outermost surface layer on the heat-resistant rubber layer 2b includes a fluorine-based resin layer having a specific adhesion angle,
A release layer formed of a mixture of a fluororubber and a tetrafluoroethylene-perfluoroalkylvinyl ether copolymer is provided. The pressure roller 2 having such a configuration is arranged such that the film 1 is narrowed with a predetermined pressing force by bearing means and biasing means (not shown) and is brought into pressure contact with the surface of the heating element 6 described above. It is set up. When the pressure roller 2 is a film driving roller, a rotational force is transmitted to the pressure roller 2 from a driving unit (not shown), and the pressure roller 2 is driven to rotate counterclockwise as indicated by an arrow.

In another preferred embodiment of the fixing device of the present invention, a toner to be heated is held and conveyed to a press-contact nip portion where a self-heating heat-resistant film or a belt member and a pressing member face each other. There is a fixing device that heats and fixes an image. For example, as such a fixing device, a release mold formed by a mixture of a fluororubber and a tetrafluoroethylene-perfluoroalkylvinyl ether copolymer on a fluororesin layer having a specific adhesion angle having a conductive layer. The layer has a heat-resistant film or belt member provided as an outermost surface layer, and an alternating magnetic field for generating an eddy current by applying a magnetic field to the conductive layer to generate heat in the heat-resistant film or belt member. And a fixing device having the following means.

The heating roller 10 shown in FIG.
1, pressure roller 102, and pressure roller 2 shown in FIG.
Will be described in more detail by taking the heating roller 101 shown in FIG. 1 as an example. a) Elastic layer 10 as base layer provided on cored bar 101a
1b plays a role of making a sufficient nip under a low pressure, and is preferably formed of, for example, silicone rubber. The elastic layer 101b is a JIS-A test piece.
The material hardness is preferably 30 degrees or less as measured by a rubber hardness tester. That is, when the thickness of the elastic layer 101b is increased to decrease the hardness, the change in the outer diameter due to heat becomes large, and in particular, when the pressure roller is driven, there is a problem that the image is stretched. In addition, it is necessary to apply high pressure, which increases the torque of the device, leading to an increase in the cost of the motor and the like,
Not preferred.

B) As shown in FIG. 1, the above base layer 101b
And a fluorine rubber layer 101 between the outermost surface layer 101d.
Usually, c is provided. The fluoro rubber layer 101c
Has a role of an adhesive for coating the surface of the base layer and bonding the fluorine-based copolymer layer, which is the outermost surface layer provided thereon, on the base layer, and the fluorine rubber layer is The hardness is higher than that of the elastic layer serving as the base layer. This is because fluorine is in close contact with each other and thus has excellent coating properties. The thickness of the fluoro rubber layer is
It is preferable to set the range to about 5 to 10 μm. 5 μm
If it is thinner, cracks will occur when the outermost layer is formed thereon, and the fluorine-based copolymer layer as the surface layer will not become a film. On the other hand, if the thickness is more than 10 μm, the hardness of the roller as a whole increases, and a sufficient nip may not be obtained at a low pressure, which is not preferable.

C) The outermost surface layer 101d of the fixing roller 101 provided on the above-mentioned fluoro rubber layer 101c has a role of ensuring toner releasability for a long period of time.
It is formed using a mixture of a fluoro rubber and a tetrafluoroethylene-perfluoroalkyl vinyl ether copolymer. The thickness of the outermost layer 101d is 30 to 100 μm.
It is preferable to set it in the range. If it is thinner than 30 μm, 1
When printing is performed on 100,000 sheets or more, wrinkles are generated on the surface. If the thickness is more than 100 μm, the roller hardness increases, and there is a possibility that a sufficient nip cannot be obtained at a low pressure, which is not preferable. The outermost surface layer 101d (release layer) formed of the above-described mixture is formed by changing the ratio of the mixture so that the wax in the toner is supplied well without being repelled by the fixing roller. Is adjusted so that the contact angle with water is in the range of 80 ° to 103 °.

Next, the fixing film 1 constituting the apparatus shown in FIG. 2 will be described in detail with reference to FIG. The fixing film 1 includes a base layer 1a formed of a heat-resistant resin such as a polyamide resin, an elastic layer 1b formed of an elastic resin such as fluoro rubber provided on the base layer 1a, and provided on the elastic layer 1b. And a release layer 1c formed using a mixture of a fluororubber and a tetrafluoroethylene-perfluoroalkylvinyl ether copolymer and having a contact angle with water in the range of 80 to 103 °. The thickness of the base layer 1a is preferably in the range of 10 to 50 μm,
The thickness of the elastic layer 1b is preferably in the range of 30 to 70 μm. The thickness of the release layer 1c is 10 to
It is preferably within 50 μm.
Is preferably in the range of 80 to 130 μm.

[0104]

The present invention will now be described more specifically with reference to examples and comparative examples. Example 1 450 g of a 0.1 M Na ₃ PO ₄ aqueous solution was charged into 710 g of ion-exchanged water, heated to 60 ° C., and then subjected to 13,000 rpm using a TK homomixer (manufactured by Tokushu Kika Kogyo).
m. A 1.0 M CaCl ₂ aqueous solution 6
8 g was gradually added to obtain an aqueous medium containing Ca ₃ (PO ₄ ) ₂ . Styrene 166 g n-butyl acrylate 34 g copper phthalocyanine pigment 15 g ditertiary butyl salicylic acid metal compound 3 g saturated polyester (acid value 11, peak molecular weight 8,500) 10 g monoester wax 1 (Mw 500, Mn 400, viscosity 6. 5mPas, SP value 8-6) 40g

On the other hand, the above formulation was heated to 60 ° C., and the mixture was mixed at 12,000 with a TK homomixer (manufactured by Tokushu Kika Kogyo Co., Ltd.).
It was uniformly dissolved and dispersed at 0 rpm. Into this, 10 g of a polymerization initiator 2,2'-azobis (2,4-dimethylvaleronitrile) was dissolved to prepare a polymerizable monomer composition.
The above, the polymerizable monomer composition is charged into the aqueous medium,
Under a N ₂ atmosphere at 60 ° C., the mixture was stirred with a TK homomixer at 10,000 rpm for 20 minutes to granulate a polymerizable monomer composition. Thereafter, while stirring with a paddle stirring blade, the temperature was raised to 80 ° C., and the reaction was performed for 10 hours. After the polymerization reaction was completed, the mixture was cooled, hydrochloric acid was added to dissolve calcium phosphate, and then filtered, washed with water and dried to obtain polymer particles.

To 100 parts by mass of the obtained polymer particles, 2.0 parts by mass of a hydrophobic titanium oxide having a specific surface area of 100 m ² / g by the BET method was externally added, and the average particle size was 6.2.
A μm toner was obtained. To 7 parts by mass of this toner, 93 parts by mass of a silicone-coated chlorite carrier having an average particle diameter of 35 μm were mixed to prepare Developer 1.

Using the developer 1 obtained above,
Commercially available full-color copying machine CLC800 as shown in FIG.
(Canon). The outermost surface layer (release layer) of the heat roller and the pressure roller of the fixing device of the copying machine used at this time were both fluororubber (compound example 2 in Table 1) and tetrafluoroethylene-perfluoroalkyl vinyl ether. Mixture of copolymers (PFA) (fluoro rubber: PFA)
= 1: 9), and was formed using a 50 μm tube roller such that the contact angle of water on the surface layer was 102 °.
In addition, the elastic layer under the tube is heated with a heating roller.
It was made of silicone rubber having a rubber hardness of 40 degrees (JIS-A rubber hardness tester) so as to have a thickness of 1 mm with a pressure roller. In this embodiment, the oil application mechanisms 105 and 106 shown in FIG.

In the above configuration, the resolution image area is 20% and 50%.
% Using two types of original manuscripts
A paper passing test was performed on zero sheets. Fixing speed is 133mm / sec
c, the nip was 6 mm. As a result, in any case, even in the case of a single color or a plurality of colors, fixing was performed up to the 10,000th sheet by setting the fixing temperature to 200 ° C., and satisfactory fixing was possible without causing an offset phenomenon.

Example 2 The outermost surface layers (release layers) of the heat roller and pressure roller of the fixing device used in Example 1 were made of fluororubber (compound example 1 in Table 1) and tetrafluoroethylene A mixture of a fluoroalkyl vinyl ether copolymer (fluorine rubber: copolymer = 4: 6) and a contact angle with water of 8
An image was formed in the same manner as in Example 1 except that the tube was adjusted to 0 °. As a result, similar to Example 1, good results were obtained.

Example 3 Using the same toner as in Example 1, the film heating and fixing method shown in FIG. 2 was used in the fixing section of a commercially available full-color copying machine CLC800 (manufactured by Canon) similar to that used in Example 1. And the same image output as in Example 1 was performed. At this time, as shown in FIG. 3, the fixing film 1 is made of a base
And an elastic layer 1b having a thickness of 50 μm formed on the base layer 1a with a fluororubber, and a fluororubber (a mixture of Compound Example 3 and a tetrafluoroethylene-perfluoroalkylvinylether copolymer formed on the elastic layer 1b. Release layer 1 formed of (fluororubber: copolymer = 3: 7) and adjusted so that the contact angle with water becomes 100 °
c. At the same time, the release layer, which is the outermost surface layer 2d of the pressure roller 2 of the fixing device, is replaced with fluororubber and tetrafluoroethylene-perfluoroethylene in the same manner as the release layer 1c constituting the fixing film 1. The tube was formed using a mixture of an alkyl vinyl ether copolymer and adjusted so that the contact angle with water was 100 °. As a result of performing an image output test using such an apparatus, good fixing results were obtained as in Example 1.

Comparative Example 1 In Example 1, the outermost surface layers (release layers) of the heating roller and the pressure roller were formed using only the fluororubber (Compound Example 2), and the release layer was exposed to water. When an image-drawing test was performed in the same manner as in Example 1 except that a tube whose contact angle was adjusted to 60 ° was used, a slight offset occurred in a single color or a plurality of colors.

Comparative Example 2 In Example 2, the outermost surface layers (release layers) of the heating roller and the pressure roller were formed using only the tetrafluoroethylene-perfluoroalkylvinyl ether copolymer, and When an image-drawing test was performed in the same manner as in Example 1 except that a tube in which the contact angle of the layer with water was adjusted to 60 ° was used, a slight offset occurred in a single color or a plurality of colors.

[0113]

As described above, according to the present invention,
When fixing a toner image carried on a recording material onto the recording material, even when using a toner containing a wax having a specific molecular weight, the outermost surface layer of the heat fixing member of the fixing device is used. By using a fixing device in which the (release layer) is formed of a mixture of a fluororubber and a tetrafluoroethylene-perfluoroalkylvinylether copolymer, and the contact angle with water is adjusted within a range of 80 ° to 103 °. As a result, the wax in the toner adhering to the release layer side of the heat fixing member functions effectively as a release agent without being repelled. There is provided a fixing device which functions like an agent and can perform satisfactory fixing without the recording material being wound around the pressure contact member. Further, according to the present invention, since the release layer which is the outermost surface layer of the above-mentioned heat fixing member has excellent heat resistance and the function of the release layer is maintained, the continuous use temperature exceeds 150 ° C. Thus, a fixing device capable of performing satisfactory fixing can be provided.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of a heating roller type fixing device.

FIG. 2 is a schematic view showing an example of a film heating type apparatus.

FIG. 3 is an enlarged schematic diagram illustrating a configuration of a fixing film.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1: fixing film 101: heating roller 2, 102: pressure roller T: unfixed toner image P: recording material (paper)

Continuation of the front page (56) References JP-A-3-80277 (JP, A) JP-A-8-194327 (JP, A) JP-A-4-356057 (JP, A) JP-A-1-155378 (JP) , A) (58) Field surveyed (Int. Cl. ⁷ , DB name) G03G 15/20-15/20 103 G03G 13/20 G03G 9/08-9/097

Claims (1)

(57) [Claims] After a toner image formed by toner carried on a recording material is brought into contact with a release layer on the outermost surface of a heat-fixing member and melted by heating and / or pressing. A fixing device that separates the release layer and the recording material to fix a toner image on the recording material, wherein the toner forming the toner image includes at least a binder resin, a colorant, A wax having a weight average molecular weight (Mw) of 400 to 4,000 and a number average molecular weight (Mn) of 200 to 4,000.
And a release layer provided on the outermost surface of the heat-fixing member is formed of a mixture of a fluororubber and a tetrafluoroethylene-perfluoroalkylvinyl ether copolymer, and A fixing device, wherein a contact angle of the mold layer with water is adjusted within a range of 80 ° to 103 °.