Imaging members

• US 20040063011A1
• Filed: 09/24/2002
• Published: 04/01/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 09/24/2002
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Xerox Corporation (Xerox Holdings Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Xerox Corporation (Xerox Holdings Corp.)
• Inventors: Dinh, Kenny-Tuan T., Lin, Liang-Bih, Ioannidis, Andronique, Chen, Cindy C., Nealey, Richard H., Scharfe, Merlin E., Hammond, Harold F., Melnyk, Andrew R.
• Application Number:
  US10/253,826
• Publication Number:
  US 20040063011A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 430/57.3
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 5/047 characterised by the charge-generation layers or charge transport layers G03G5/0433 and G03G5/0436 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 5/0605 Carbocyclic compounds
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 5/0607 containing at least one non-six-membered ring
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 5/0609 containing oxygen
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 5/061443 benzidine
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 5/0637 containing one hetero atom
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 5/0648 containing two relevant rings
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 5/0651 containing four relevant rings

Abstract

A photoconductive imaging member comprised of a supporting substrate, and thereover a single layer comprised of a mixture of a photogenerator component, a charge transport component, an electron transport component, and a polymer binder, and wherein the photogenerating component is a pigment.

Claims

1. A photoconductive imaging member comprised of a supporting substrate, and thereover a first and a second layer comprising both charge generation and charge transport materials and wherein the first layer contains a greater concentration of photo-electrically active pigments than the second layer.

2. An imaging member in accordance with claim 1 wherein said first and second layers are of a thickness of from about 5 to about 60 microns.

3. An imaging member in accordance with claim 1 wherein the amounts for each of said components in said first and second layer is from about 0.05 weight percent to about 30 weight percent for the photogenerating component, from about 10 weight percent to about 75 weight percent for the charge transport component, and from about 10 weight percent to about 75 weight percent for the electron transport component, and wherein the total of said components is about 100 percent, and wherein said layer components are dispersed in from about 10 weight percent to about 75 weight percent of said polymer binder, and wherein said layer is of a thickness of from about 5 to about 15 microns.

4. An imaging member in accordance with claim 1 wherein the amounts for each of said components in the first and second layer mixture is from about 0.5 weight percent to about 5 weight percent for the photogenerating component;

from about 30 weight percent to about 50 weight percent for the charge transport component; and

from about 5 weight percent to about 30 weight percent for the electron transport component; and

which components are contained in from about 30 weight percent to about 50 weight percent of a polymer binder.

5. An imaging member in accordance with claim 1 wherein the thickness of said first and second layer is from about 5 to about 35 microns.

6. An imaging member in accordance with claim 1 wherein said first and second layer components are dispersed in said polymer binder, and wherein said charge transport is comprised of hole transport molecules.

7. An imaging member in accordance with claim 6 wherein said binder is present in an amount of from about 50 to about 90 percent by weight, and wherein the total of all components of said photogenerating component, said charge transport component, said binder, and said electron transport component is about 100 percent.

8. An imaging member in accordance with claim 1 wherein said photogenerating component absorbs light of a wavelength of from about 370 to about 950 nanometers.

9. An imaging member in accordance with claim 6 wherein the binder is selected from the group consisting of polyesters, polyvinyl butyrals, polycarbonates, polystyrene-b-polyvinyl pyridine, and polyvinyl formulas.

10. An imaging member in accordance with claim 1 wherein said charge transport component comprises aryl amine molecules.

11. An imaging member in accordance with claim 1 wherein said charge transporting component or components is comprised of molecules of the formula

12. An imaging member in accordance with claim 11 wherein alkyl contains from about 1 to about 10 carbon atoms, and wherein the charge transport is an aryl amine encompassed by said formula and which amine is optionally dispersed in a resinous binder.

13. An imaging member in accordance with claim 11 wherein alkyl contains from 1 to about 5 carbon atoms.

14. An imaging member in accordance with claim 11 wherein alkyl is methyl, and wherein halogen is chloride.

15. An imaging member in accordance with claim 11 wherein said charge transport is comprised of N,N′

bis(1,2-dimethyl propyl)-1,4,5,8-naphthalenetetracarboxylic diimide, N,N′

-diphenyl-N,N-bis(3-methyl phenyl)-1,1′

-biphenyl-4,4′

-diamine, 9-9-bis(2-cyanoethyl)-2, 7-bis(phenyl-m-tolylamino)fluorene, tritolylamine, hydrazone, or N,N′

-bis(3,4 dimethylphenyl)-N″

(1-biphenyl) amine

16. An imaging member in accordance with claim 11 wherein said charge transport is comprised of molecules of N,N′

-diphenyl-N,N-bis(3-methyl phenyl)-1,1′

-biphenyl-4,4′

-diamine.

17. An imaging member in accordance with claim 1 wherein said electron transport component is (4-n-butoxycarbonyl-9-fluorenylidene) malononitrile, 2-methylthioethyl 9-dicyanomethylenefluorene-4-carboxylate, 2-(3-thienyl)ethyl 9-dicyanomethylene fluorene-4-carboxylate, 2-phenylthioethyl 9-dicyanomethylenefluorene-4-carboxylate, 11,11,12,12-tetracyano anthraquinodimethane or 1,3-dimethyl-10-(dicyanomethylene)-anthrone.

18. An imaging member in accordance with claim 1 wherein said electron transport component is (4-n-butoxycarbonyl-9-fluorenylidene)malononitrile.

19. An imaging member in accordance with claim 11 wherein said electron transport component is (4-n-butoxycarbonyl-9-fluorenylidene)malononitrile, 2-methylthioethyl 9-dicyanomethylenefluorene-4-carboxylate, 2-(3-thienyl)ethyl 9-dicyanomethylenefluorene-4-carboxylate, 2-phenylthioethyl 9-dicyanomethylenefluorene-4-carboxylate, 11,11,12,12-tetracyano anthraquinodimethane or 1,3-dimethyl-10-(dicyanomethylene)-anthrone.

20. An imaging member in accordance with claim 1 wherein said electron transport is (4-n-butoxy carbonyl-9-fluorenylidene)malononitrile, and the charge transport is a hole transport of N,N′

-diphenyl-N,N-bis(3-methyl phenyl)-1,1′

-biphenyl-4,4″

-diamine molecules.

22. A method of imaging which comprises generating an electrostatic latent image on the imaging member of claim 1, developing the latent image, and transferring the developed electrostatic image to a suitable substrate.

23. An imaging member in accordance with claim 1 wherein said member comprises, in sequence, a supporting layer, and a first and second layer, the electrophotographic photoconductive insulating layer comprising particles comprising a photogenerating pigment dispersed in a matrix comprising an arylamine hole transporter, and an electron transporter selected from the group consisting of a carboxlfluorenone malonitrile (CFM) derivatives represented by:

24. An imaging member in accordance with claim 23 wherein the arylamine is N,N′

-diphenyl-N,N′

-bis(3-methylphenyl)-[1,1′

-biphenyl]-4,4′

-diamine.

25. An imaging member in accordance with claim 23 wherein the film forming binder is a polycarbonate.

26. An imaging member in accordance with claim 1 wherein the first and second layer components are dispersed in a binder selected from the group consisting of polycarbonates, polystyrene-b-polyvinyl pyridine, N,N′

-diphenyl-N,N′

-bis(alkylphenyl)-1,1-biphenyl-4,4′

-diamine;

TTA, tri-p-tolylamine;

AE-18, N,N′

-bis-(3,4,-dimethylphenyl)-4-biphenyl amine;

AB-16, N,N′

-bis-(4-methylphenyl)-N, N″

-bis(4-ethylphenyl)-1,1′

-3,3′

-dimethylbiphenyl)-4,4′

-diamine; and

PHN, phenanthrene diamine; and

21. A photoconductive imaging member comprised of a mixture containing a photogenerating component, hole transport molecules and an electron transport component, and thereover in contact with said first layer a second layer comprised of hole transport molecules dispersed in a resin binder and wherein the first layer has a greater photo-electrically active pigment concentration than the second layer.

27. A photoconductive imaging member comprised of a supporting substrate, and thereover a first and a second layer comprised of a mixture of a photogenerator component, a charge transport component, an electron transport component, and a polymer binder, and wherein the first layer has a higher pigment concentration than that of the second layer.