Method to make a photoconductor having an overcoat with tetrafunctional radical polymerizable charge transport molecule

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9927727-B2
Application number	US-201514983928-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 30, 2015
Priority date	Dec 30, 2015
Publication date	Mar 27, 2018
Grant date	Mar 27, 2018

Abstract

A method to make an improved organic photoconductor drum of an electrophotographic image forming device is provided. The improved organic photoconductor drum is prepared using a curable composition including a charge transport molecule containing four radical polymerizable functional groups of the general structure exemplified below:

where R 1 and R 2 contain a spacer group and a radical polymerizable functional group, R 3 and R 4 are selected from the group consisting of a radical polymerizable functional group, a non-radical polymerizable functional group, and one each of a radical polymerizable functional group and a non-radial polymerizable functional group, and R 5 and R 6 contain a spacer group and a radical polymerizable functional group.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A method of preparing a photoconductor comprising:
providing an electrically conductive substrate;
preparing a charge generation layer dispersion;
coating the charge generation layer dispersion onto the electrically conductive substrate to form a charge generation layer;
preparing a charge transport layer dispersion;
coating the charge transport layer dispersion over the charge generation layer to form a charge transport layer;
preparing an overcoat layer including:
an organic solvent;
about 20 to about 80 percent by weight of a charge transport molecule containing four radical polymerizable functional groups as shown below:

where R 1 and R 2 contain a spacer group and a radical polymerizable functional group, R 3 and R 4 are a non-radical polymerizable functional group, and R 5 and R 6 contain a spacer group and a radical polymerizable functional group, wherein the spacer group of R 1 , R 2 , R 5 and R 6 is an ethyl group and the radical polymerizable functional group of R 1 , R 2 , R 5 and R 6 is an acrylate group; and
about 20 to about 80 percent by weight of a curing agent having a urethane containing six radical polymerizable functional groups,
coating the overcoat layer formulation over the charge transport layer; and
curing the overcoat layer formulation to form a photoconductor having an overcoat layer over the charge transport layer and the charge generation layers.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the urethane having six radical polymerizable functional groups is a hexa-functional aliphatic urethane acrylate having the following structure:

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the overcoat layer is cured by an electron beam.

4. The method of claim 3 wherein the cured overcoat layer has a thickness of about 0.1 μm to about 10 μm.

5. A method of preparing a photoconductor comprising:
providing an electrically conductive substrate;
preparing a charge generation layer dispersion;
coating the charge generation layer dispersion onto the electrically conductive substrate to form a charge generation layer;
preparing a charge transport layer dispersion;
coating the charge transport layer dispersion over the charge generation layer to form a charge transport layer;
preparing an overcoat layer including:
an organic solvent;
a curable composition including a charge transport molecule containing four radical polymerizable functional groups as shown below:

where R 1 and R 2 contain a spacer group and a radical polymerizable functional group, R 3 and R 4 are a non-radical polymerizable functional group, and R 5 and R 6 contain a spacer group and a radical polymerizable functional group wherein the spacer group of R 1 , R 2 , R 5 and R 6 is an ethyl group and the radical polymerizable functional group of R 1 , R 2 , R 5 and R 6 is an acrylate group;
coating the overcoat layer formulation over the charge transport layer; and
curing the overcoat layer formulation to form a photoconductor having an overcoat layer over the charge transport layer and the charge generation layers.

6. The method of claim 5 wherein the overcoat layer is cured by electron beam.

7. The method of claim 6 wherein the cured overcoat layer has a thickness of about 0.1 μm to about 10 μm.

Assignees

• Lexmark Int Inc

Inventors

• Luo Weimei
• Black David Glenn
• Bellino Mark Thomas

Classifications

• G03G5/14734

  Polymers comprising at least one carboxyl radical, e.g. polyacrylic acid, polycrotonic acid, polymaleic acid; Derivatives thereof, e.g. their esters, salts, anhydrides, nitriles, amides · CPC title

• G03G7/0006

  Cover layers for image-receiving members; Strippable coversheets · CPC title

• G03G5/0525 Primary

  Coating methods · CPC title

• G03G5/0614

  Amines · CPC title

• G03G5/071

  obtained by reactions only involving carbon-to-carbon unsaturated bonds (G03G5/078 takes precedence) · CPC title