IP Library Granted Patent US 10,613,450
Granted Patent B2
US 10,613,450 · App. 16/373,766 · Granted Apr 7, 2020

Crash cooling method to prepare toner

Inventors: Kasturi Rangan Srinivasan (Longmont, CO); Rahel Bekru Bogale (Firestone, CO); Trent Duane Peter (Johnstown, CO); Brian David Munson (Mead, CO)
Assignee: LEXMARK INTERNATIONAL, INC.
G03G9/08797G03G9/0802G03G9/0804G03G9/0806G03G9/08711G03G9/08755G03G9/09328G03G9/09364G03G9/09371G03G9/09378G03G9/09385G03G9/09392G03G9/08704G03G9/08775G03G15/104
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Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 10,613,450
App. No.
16/373,766
Granted
Apr 7, 2020
Kind
B2
Abstract

The present disclosure relates generally to a method to make a chemically prepared toner that employs a crash cooling process. In particular, the crash cooling process involves the addition of a toner slurry having a temperature between 70° C. and 90° C. to an equivalent amount of cold water having a temperature between 5° C. and 20° C. Polyester and styrene acrylic toners as well as polyester core shell toners having a borax coupling agent between the toner core and toner shell made from this cooling process results in an improvement to the amount of toner waste, thereby achieving a higher toner usage efficiency for an electrophotographic printing system.

Claims (14)

1. A method for producing a core shell toner, comprising:

combining and agglomerating a polymer emulsion with a colorant dispersion and a release agent dispersion to form toner cores;

adding a borax coupling agent to the toner cores once the toner cores reach a predetermined size;

combining and agglomerating a second polymer emulsion with the toner cores to form toner shells around the toner cores;

fusing the aggregated toner cores and toner shells to form toner particles;

forming a hot toner slurry by suspending the toner particles in an aqueous medium wherein the hot toner slurry has a temperature between 70° C. and 90° C.;

adding the hot toner slurry to cold water in an external container wherein the cold water has a temperature between 5° C. and 20° C. and the quantity of the hot toner slurry is equivalent to the quantity of the cold water;

filtering the toner particles out of the hot toner slurry;

washing the filtered toner particles with deionized water; and

repeating the filtering and washing steps until the conductivity of the filtered toner particles less than or equal to 5 μS/cm.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the hot toner slurry has a temperature between 80° C. and 84° C.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the cold water has a temperature between 7° C. and 14° C.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the first polymer emulsion and the second polymer emulsion each include a polyester resin.

5. A toner prepared by the process of claim 1 .

Assignments (5)
SECURITY INTEREST Recorded Jan 5, 2026
From: LEXMARK INTERNATIONAL, INC.
To: BANK TRUST COMPANY, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION
Reel/Frame 074202/0192 →
SECURITY INTEREST Recorded Jan 5, 2026
From: LEXMARK INTERNATIONAL, INC.
To: BANK TRUST COMPANY, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION
Reel/Frame 074202/0293 →
SECURITY INTEREST Recorded Sep 23, 2025
From: LEXMARK INTERNATIONAL, INC.
To: CITIBANK, N.A.
Reel/Frame 073007/0118 →
SECURITY INTEREST Recorded Sep 23, 2025
From: LEXMARK INTERNATIONAL, INC.
To: JEFFERIES FINANCE LLC
Reel/Frame 073007/0346 →
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Apr 3, 2019
From: SRINIVASAN, KASTURI RANGAN; BOGALE, RAHEL BEKRU; PETER, TRENT DUANE; MUNSON, BRIAN DAVID
To: LEXMARK INTERNATIONAL, INC.
Reel/Frame 048778/0128 →