Understanding the interactive effects of material parameters governing the printer toner properties: a response surface study

Abstract

Abstract Toner is a fine powder composed of a resin and a coloring agent, which has been massively used in digital printing. The successfulness of digital printing can be measured in terms of the degree to which the properties of toner are finely controlled. In this work, we applied response surface methodology (RSM) to synthesize printing toners with appropriate physical and color properties. Based on a systematic experimental pattern proposed by RSM, styrene and butyl acrylate monomers are copolymerized through suspension polymerization to determine the individual and interactive effects of foregoing material parameters on the particle size, particle size distribution, and thermal and color properties of the resulting toner composites. Different analyses are carried out through which the optimum criterion for manufacturing well-controlled toner particles is established. Particularly, the results show that fine-tuning of toner properties depends on the careful regulation of material parameters, which we have learned from interactive effect identification.