Electrophotographic photoconductor, process cartridge, and image forming apparatus
An electrophotographic photoconductor includes a conductive substrate and an outermost surface layer formed on the conductive substrate and containing a binder resin and a copolymer derived from a reactive monomer having charge transport property and a reactive monomer having no charge transport property, the copolymer having a side chain with 4 or more carbon atoms in a constitutional unit derived from the reactive monomer having no charge transport property.
1. An electrophotographic photoconductor comprising:
a conductive substrate; and
an outermost surface layer formed on the conductive substrate and containing a binder resin and a copolymer derived from a reactive monomer having charge transport property and a reactive monomer having no charge transport property, the copolymer having a side chain with 4 or more carbon atoms in a constitutional unit derived from the reactive monomer having no charge transport property,
wherein the reactive monomer having no charge transport property has a bisphenol skeleton, and
the copolymer contains a constitutional unit represented by general formula (1-1) below and derived from the reactive monomer having charge transport property and a constitutional unit represented by general formula (1-2) below and derived from the reactive monomer having no charge transport property,
where in general formulas (1-1) and (1-2), R 1 and R 2 each independently represent hydrogen or an alkyl group having 1 to 4 carbon atoms, R 3 represents an organic group having 4 or more carbon atoms and no charge transport property, X represents a divalent organic group having 1 to 10 carbon atoms, a is 0 or 1, and CT represents an organic group having a charge transport skeleton.
2. The electrophotographic photoconductor according to claim 1 , wherein the side chain has 12 to 20 carbon atoms.
3. The electrophotographic photoconductor according to claim 1 , wherein the reactive monomer having no charge transport property has an alkylene oxide group.
4. The electrophotographic photoconductor according to claim 1 , wherein the reactive monomer having no charge transport property has a hydroxyl group.
5. The electrophotographic photoconductor according to claim 1 , wherein the reactive monomer having charge transport property is a compound represented by general formula (2) below,
where in general formula (2), Ar 1 to Ar 4 may be the same or different and each independently represent a substituted or unsubstituted aryl group, Ar 5 represents a substituted or unsubstituted aryl group or a substituted or unsubstituted arylene group, D represents a side chain having a reactive group, c1 to c5 are each independently an integer of 0 to 2, k is 0or 1, and the total number of D is 1 to 6.
6. The electrophotographic photoconductor according to claim 1 , wherein the blend ratio of the copolymer to the binder resin that constitute the outermost surface layer is about 10:1 to 1:5 by mass.
7. A process cartridge comprising:
an electrophotographic photoconductor according to claim 1 , wherein the process cartridge is detachably mountable to an image forming apparatus.
8. The process cartridge according to claim 7 , wherein the side chain in the electrophotographic photoconductor has 12 to 20 carbon atoms.
9. An image forming apparatus comprising:
an electrophotographic photoconductor according to claim 1 ;
a charging device that charges the electrophotographic photoconductor;
a latent image forming device that forms an electrostatic latent image on a surface of the charged electrophotographic photoconductor;
a developing device that develops, with a toner, the electrostatic latent image formed on the surface of the electrophotographic photoconductor to form a toner image; and
a transfer device that transfers the toner image formed on the surface of the electrophotographic photoconductor onto a recording medium.
10. The image forming apparatus according to claim 9 , wherein the side chain in the electrophotographic photoconductor has 12 to 20 carbon atoms.
11. The process cartridge according to claim 7 , wherein the reactive monomer having charge transport property is a compound represented by general formula (2) below,
where in general formula (2), Ar 1 to Ar 4 may be the same or different and each independently represent a substituted or unsubstituted aryl group, Ar 5 represents a substituted or unsubstituted aryl group or a substituted or unsubstituted arylene group, D represents a side chain having a reactive group, c1 to c5 are each independently an integer of 0 to 2, k is 0or 1, and the total number of D is 1 to 6.
12. The image forming apparatus according to claim 9 , wherein the reactive monomer having charge transport property is a compound represented by general formula (2) below,
where in general formula (2), Ar 1 to Ar 4 may be the same or different and each independently represent a substituted or unsubstituted aryl group, Ar 5 represents a substituted or unsubstituted aryl group or a substituted or unsubstituted arylene group, D represents a side chain having a reactive group, c1 to c5 are each independently an integer of 0 to 2, k is 0or 1, and the total number of D is 1 to 6.