JP2000267320A - Endless belt type electrophotographic photoreceptor - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Problem] To provide an endless belt-shaped electrophotographic photoreceptor which is extremely excellent in durability and prevents peeling of a photosensitive layer at a joint portion. SOLUTION: In an endless belt-shaped electrophotographic photosensitive member in which a photosensitive layer is formed on a sheet-shaped conductor and both ends thereof are joined, a coating part 6 with an organic solvent is applied to a joined part after joining, and a resin is further applied to the joined part. An endless belt-shaped electrophotographic photosensitive member, wherein a protective layer 7 made of (preferably a polycarbonate resin) is formed.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an endless belt-shaped electrophotographic photosensitive member, and more particularly to an endless belt-shaped electrophotographic photosensitive member having excellent durability and capable of obtaining a high-quality image for a long period of time.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, with the miniaturization and weight reduction of copiers and printers using electrophotography, attention has been paid to a method of using a photosensitive member in a flexible belt shape. By making the photoconductor endless, it is possible to reduce the size and weight of high-speed copiers and printers that previously required extremely large-diameter metal drums, and color copiers and printers that required multiple development processes. Becomes In addition, the belt-like form has a higher degree of freedom in the printing process of the photoreceptor belt and its surroundings than the drum-like form, and is effective in efficiently arranging the respective printing processes.

When the photosensitive member is used in the form of a belt, a method of using the photosensitive member in an endless form is advantageous because it can be simplified in terms of mechanism. As one of endless forms, there is proposed a seamless base material using electroformed nickel. However, since the base material is a metal, the base material is poor in flexibility and cost. There are problems such as high. As a solution to this problem, a photoconductor using a resin belt base material has been proposed. As a method for manufacturing this photoconductor, conventionally, a method using a casting method, an inflation method, or the like has been proposed. However, a resin belt base material has problems such as adhesion to a photosensitive layer, dimensional stability, and strength. It is practical that it has not yet been put into practical use.

Under such circumstances, an endless belt-shaped photoconductor in which a sheet-shaped photoconductor is cut and the end surfaces thereof are joined is often used. This photoreceptor forms a conductive sheet by forming a conductive layer on a film such as PET by aluminum evaporation, and coating the photosensitive layer on it.
It is manufactured by cutting into appropriate lengths and connecting both ends by a method such as ultrasonic fusion. In the case of the endless belt-shaped photoconductor, the strength at the joint becomes a problem during the manufacturing process. In particular, when a blade cleaning method in which toner on a photoreceptor is scraped off by an elastic blade is used in the printing process, problems such as cracks at the joints, separation of the photosensitive layer from the cracks, and breakage of the belt occur.

In order to solve such a problem, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. Hei 1-288860 discloses a method in which ultrasonic welding is used, and the amount of protrusion from the joint is 1.2 mm or less. It has been proposed that the step of the part be specified to be 100 μm or less.
Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 3-99779 discloses a method of forming a protective film containing a solid lubricant at a joint (joint).
Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 5-4 discloses a method of performing an adhesive treatment between a photosensitive layer and a support at both ends of a belt prior to bonding.
No. 0355 discloses a method of performing a corona discharge treatment on the surface of a synthetic resin support.
A method of performing post-processing for correcting a shape after bonding, and a method of forming a specific resin at a bonding portion are proposed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. H10-111579.

All of these proposals have the effect of increasing the strength of the joined portion of the endless belt-shaped photoreceptor and improving the printing durability, but the printing durability has rapidly increased in recent years.
It is not enough technology to meet the demand for more than 10,000 sheets of highly durable endless belt-type photoreceptor because the photosensitive layer will peel off from the joints. And it was. However, in recent years, the technical progress of organic photoconductors has been remarkable, and as is clear from the example of drum-shaped photoconductors, printing durability of more than 300,000 sheets has been achieved in material technology and processing technology. In the belt-shaped photoreceptor, since the photosensitive layer peels from the joint,
At present, the printing durability is limited to 50,000 sheets.

[0007]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to improve the adhesive strength between a photosensitive layer and a conductive support at a belt joint and prevent the photosensitive layer from peeling off at the joint. An object of the present invention is to provide a belt-shaped electrophotographic photosensitive member.

[0008]

Means for Solving the Problems As a result of various studies to solve the above problems, the present inventors have found that when a protective layer is formed at the joint of an endless belt-shaped photosensitive member, the photosensitive layer below the protective layer is formed. The adhesion between the substrate and the conductive support is enhanced by forming a protective layer after the joint is treated with an organic solvent, thereby improving the adhesion strength and improving durability. Has been found to be able to be significantly increased, and the present invention has been completed.

That is, according to the present invention, first, in an endless belt-shaped electrophotographic photosensitive member in which a photosensitive layer is formed on a sheet-like conductor and both ends thereof are joined, an organic solvent is applied to the joined portion after joining. An endless belt-shaped electrophotographic photoreceptor characterized by performing a treatment and further forming a protective layer made of a resin on the joint. Secondly, in an endless belt-shaped electrophotographic photosensitive member in which a photosensitive layer is formed on a sheet-like conductor and both ends thereof are joined, only the sheet side in which the overlap at the time of joining is the upper side of the joined portion after joining. An endless belt-shaped electrophotographic photosensitive member is provided, in which a coating treatment with a solvent is performed, and a protective layer made of a resin is formed on the joint. Third, the endless belt-shaped electrophotographic photosensitive member is provided, wherein the resin forming the protective layer is a polycarbonate resin represented by the following general formula (I).

Embedded image Wherein R ¹ , R ² , R ³ , R ⁴ , R ⁵ , R ⁶ , R ⁷ and R ⁸
Each independently represents a hydrogen atom, a lower alkyl group, a halogen atom or an aromatic group which may have a substituent. R ⁹ and R ¹⁰ each independently represent a hydrogen atom, a lower alkyl group or an aromatic group which may have a substituent, and R ⁵ and R ⁶ may combine to form a ring,
A carbonyl group may be formed together with the connecting carbon atom. Fourthly, there is provided the endless belt-shaped electrophotographic photosensitive member according to any one of the above, wherein the protective layer is formed of the same layer as the uppermost layer of the photosensitive layer. Fifth, in the coating process using the organic solvent, the thickness of the photosensitive layer in the coating portion is 9 times the thickness of the photosensitive layer before the coating process.
The endless belt-shaped electrophotographic photoconductor according to any one of the above, wherein the electrophotographic photoconductor is processed so as to be / 10 or less. Sixth, the endless belt-shaped electrophotographic photosensitive member according to any one of the above, wherein the thickness of the protective layer is 3 to 10 μm.

In the endless belt-shaped electrophotographic photosensitive member of the present invention, the mechanism of eliminating the peeling at the joint and significantly improving the durability is considered as follows. First, by treating the joint with an organic solvent, the resin in the photosensitive layer dissolves in the organic solvent, soaks between the photosensitive layer and the support, and the resin and the organic solvent form an adhesive. And the adhesive strength is improved. This effect is sufficient even when the application with the organic solvent is performed only on the sheet side on which the overlap at the time of joining is on the upper side. Therefore, from the viewpoint of cost, it is more advantageous to treat only the upper side of the joint. By the way, the bonding portion is a portion where the sheet coated in the previous step is cut and the photosensitive layer is particularly easy to peel off, so that it is necessary to increase the bonding strength. However, if only the organic solvent in the joint is treated, the shape of the treated part varies, and a force is easily applied to the non-uniform part, and conversely, the part is easily peeled. Therefore, secondly, by forming a resin protective layer on the joint processing part, a uniform joint part can be formed while maintaining the bonding strength of the joint part.

In the present invention, in order to further improve the durability of the joint portion, a protective layer made of a resin covers a portion coated with the organic solvent in order to protect a variation in shape due to the organic solvent coating process. It is desirable to form it so as to hide it. Further, as the kind of the organic solvent, a halogenated hydrocarbon solvent and an ether solvent are preferable because a substance which easily dissolves the resin of the photosensitive layer can increase the adhesive strength.

As a resin suitable for forming the protective layer, a polycarbonate resin is most preferable because it is effective in improving adhesiveness and durability is improved. A more effective protective layer is a layer formed by the same coating liquid as the uppermost layer of the photosensitive layer. This uses the same organic solvent as the photosensitive layer, and since it is the same material, it has good compatibility, so not only increases the adhesive strength between the photosensitive layer and the support but also the shape of the protective layer protects the other layers. It is considered that the step is smaller than that of the layer.

In the present invention, the thickness of the photosensitive layer after the coating treatment with an organic solvent is smaller than the thickness before the treatment, but when the degree is 9/10 or less before the treatment, the adhesive strength is increased. If the thickness of the protective layer is too large, the adhesive strength is reduced. If the thickness is too small, the protective layer is gradually scraped off when the photoreceptor is used, and the durability is reduced. Therefore, 3 to 10 μm is appropriate as the thickness of the protective layer.

[0014]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in more detail. FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an endless belt-shaped electrophotographic photoreceptor of the present invention, wherein 1 is a support, 4 is a charge transport layer,
Is a conductive layer for grounding. Next, a joint portion of an endless belt-shaped photoconductor in which a photosensitive layer is formed on a sheet-shaped conductor and bonded will be described. FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the endless belt-shaped electrophotographic photosensitive member shown in FIG. 1 taken along line II, and 12 is a conductive support (support 1).
, A photosensitive layer (single-layer photosensitive layer, or a charge generation layer 3 with a charge transport layer 4 laminated thereon), and 6 an organic solvent treatment section provided at the joint. And 7 are protective layers provided at the junction. As described above, in the present invention, the organic solvent treatment section 6 and / or the protective layer 7
Thereby, the adhesive strength between the photosensitive layer 34 and the conductive support 12 can be arbitrarily changed.

In the present invention, examples of the organic solvent applied to the joint include alcohols such as methanol, ethanol and isopropanol, ketones such as acetone, methyl ethyl ketone and cyclohexanone, N, N-dimethylformamide, N, N-dimethyl. Amides such as acetamide, sulfoxides such as dimethyl sulfoxide, ethers such as tetrahydrofuran, dioxane, ethylene glycol monomethyl ether, esters such as methyl acetate, halogenated hydrocarbons such as chloroform, methylene chloride and dichloroethylene, or benzene And aromatics such as toluene and xylene. Among them, particularly effective organic solvents include ethers and halogenated hydrocarbon solvents.

The thickness of the coating after the photosensitive layer in the coating treatment with an organic solvent on the joint is preferably 9/10 or less of the thickness of the photosensitive layer itself before the treatment. When the thickness is more than 9/10, the dissolution by the organic solvent and the resin is not sufficient, and the adhesive strength between the photosensitive layer and the support cannot be sufficiently obtained, so that the durability of the photoconductor becomes insufficient. The method of applying the organic solvent to the joint and forming the protective layer is performed by nozzle coating, brush coating, or the like.

The resin forming the protective layer includes polyamide, polyurethane, polyester, epoxy resin, polyketone, polycarbonate, silicone resin, acrylic resin, polyvinyl butyral, polyvinyl formal, polyvinyl ketone, polystyrene, poly-N-vinyl carbazole. And polyacrylamide. Among them, a particularly effective resin is a polycarbonate resin having a repeating unit represented by the following general formula (I).

Embedded image Wherein R ¹ , R ² , R ³ , R ⁴ , R ⁵ , R ⁶ , R ⁷ and R ⁸
Each independently represents a hydrogen atom, a lower alkyl group, a halogen atom or an aromatic group which may have a substituent. R ⁹ and R ¹⁰ each independently represent a hydrogen atom, a lower alkyl group or an aromatic group which may have a substituent, and R ⁵ and R ⁶ may combine to form a ring,
A carbonyl group may be formed together with the connecting carbon atom. )

Tables 1 to 4 show specific examples of the polycarbonate resin having a repeating structural unit represented by the general formula (I). In addition, specific examples (P-13) to (P-2)
3) is a polycarbonate resin having two types of repeating structural units, and shows that the molar ratio of the two types of repeating structural units is p: q. Specific examples (P-24) to (P-25) are polycarbonate resins having three types of repeating structural units, and show that the molar ratio of the three types of repeating structural units is p: q: r. ing.

[0019]

[Table 1]

[0020]

[Table 2]

[0021]

[Table 3]

[0022]

[Table 4]

Also, as described above, the protective layer
Those formed with the same coating liquid as the uppermost layer of the photosensitive layer are most suitable. Here, the type of the photosensitive layer is not particularly limited, and may be any of those described in detail later. On the other hand, if the thickness of the protective layer is too large, the adhesive strength decreases. On the other hand, if the thickness is too small, the photoreceptor is gradually scraped off and the durability is reduced. Therefore, 3 to 10 μm is appropriate as the thickness of the protective layer.

In the endless belt-type electrophotographic photosensitive member of the present invention, known techniques can be used other than the protective layer. That is, the photosensitive layer may have a single-layer structure or a stacked structure of a charge generation layer and a charge transport layer, but preferably has a stacked structure. The charge generation layer is composed of a charge generation material or a charge generation material and a binder resin, and preferably has a thickness of 0.05 to 3 μm. As the charge generating substance, for example, C.I. Pigment Blue 25 (color index CI 21180), C.I. Pigment Red 41 (CI. 21200), C.I. Red 52 (CI. 45100), C.I. Basic Red 3 (CI. 45210), and azo having a carbazole skeleton Pigments (described in JP-A-53-95033) and azo pigments having a distyrylbenzene skeleton (JP-A-53-1)
No. 33445), azo pigments having a triphenylamine skeleton (described in JP-A-53-132347), azo pigments having a dibenzothiophene skeleton (described in JP-A-54-21728), oxadi Azo pigments having an azole skeleton (described in JP-A-54-12742), azo pigments having a fluorenone skeleton (described in JP-A-54-22834), and azo pigments having a bisstilbene skeleton (described in JP-A-54-22834) -17733), an azo pigment having a distyryloxadiazole skeleton (described in JP-A-54-2129), and an azo pigment having a distyrylcarbazole skeleton (described in JP-A-54-14)
Azo pigments such as C.I. Pigment Blue 16 (CI 74100); C.I.
I 73410), sea butt dies (CI 730)
Indigo-based pigments such as 30); perylene-based pigments such as Argall scarlet 5 (manufactured by Bayer), Indulens scarlet R (manufactured by Bayer), squirik dyes, and hexagonal Se powder.

These charge generating substances are pulverized and dispersed together with a solvent such as tetrahydrofuran, cyclohexanone, dioxane or dichloroethane by a method such as a ball mill, an attritor or a sand mill. At this time, for example, polyamide, polyurethane, polyester, epoxy resin,
Resins such as polyketone, polycarbonate, silicone resin, acrylic resin, polyvinyl butyral, polyvinyl formal, polyvinyl ketone, polystyrene, poly-N-vinyl carbazole, and polyacrylamide may be added as a binder. The charge generation layer forming solution thus prepared is applied and dried by a method such as a bead coating method, a nozzle coating method, a blade coating method, a spraying method, etc. to form a charge generation layer. Further, the ratio of the charge generation material to the binder resin in the charge generation layer is preferably such that the content of the binder resin is 40% by weight or less of the charge generation material.

Examples of the charge transporting substance include polycyclic aromatic compounds such as anthracene, pyrene, phenanthrene and coronene, or indole, carbazole, oxazole, isoxazole, thiazole, imidazole, pyrazole, oxadiazole, pyrazoline in the main chain or side chain. , Compounds having a nitrogen-containing cyclic compound such as thiadiazole and triazole, triphenylamine compounds, hydrazone compounds (JP-A-55-46760), α-phenylstilbene compounds (JP-A-58-198143)
Are used.

These charge transporting materials include polystyrene, styrene-acrylonitrile copolymer, styrene-butadiene copolymer, styrene-maleic anhydride copolymer, polyester, polyvinyl chloride, vinyl chloride-vinyl acetate copolymer, and polyacetic acid. Vinyl, polyvinylidene chloride, polyarylate resin, phenoxy resin, polycarbonate, cellulose acetate resin, ethyl cellulose resin, polyvinyl butyral, polyvinyl formal, polyvinyl toluene, poly-N-vinyl carbazole, acrylic resin, silicone resin, epoxy resin, melamine resin, A charge transport layer dissolved in a solvent such as tetrahydrofuran, cyclohexanone, dioxane, or dichloroethane, together with a thermoplastic or thermosetting resin such as urethane resin, phenol resin, and alkyd resin. The Narueki prepared, bead coating this liquid, a nozzle coating method, applied by a method such as spraying and dried to form a charge transport layer.

In the above, the photosensitive layer has been described as a laminated type of a charge generating layer and a charge transporting layer, but the photosensitive layer may of course be a single layer.

As the conductive support, a flexible conductor or a flexible insulator subjected to a conductive treatment is used. For example, in addition to metals or alloys such as Al, Ni, Fe, Cu, Au, etc., metals such as Al, Ag, Au, etc., or In ₂ O ₃ , SnO _2, etc. on an insulating substrate such as polyester, polycarbonate, polyimide, glass, etc. And a thin film of a conductive material of the above.

If necessary, an undercoat layer may be provided between the conductive support and the adjacent charge transport layer or charge generation layer. In that case, a material selected from the resins listed as the binder resin of the charge generation layer can be used, and further, a white pigment such as titanium oxide or an anion such as sulfonic acid or an alkali metal salt of sulfonic acid or an ammonium salt. A system conductive polymer can also be added. At this time, it is preferable to select a material that does not dissolve in the solvent used for the formation liquid of the layer laminated on the undercoat layer.

[0031]

Next, the present invention will be described in more detail with reference to examples. Here, “parts” are based on weight.

EXAMPLE 1 Al was vacuum-deposited on polyethylene terephthalate having a thickness of 75 μm, a width of 500 mm and a length of 200 m to a thickness of 1000 ° to obtain a conductive support, and the following charge generating layer forming solution was roll-coated thereon. And dried by heating.
A charge generation layer having a thickness of 2 μm was provided. Next, the following charge transport layer forming liquid and the conductive layer forming liquid for grounding are applied on each of them by different nozzle coats, and the arrangement at the time of application is as shown in FIG. Thus, a sheet-like photoreceptor having a conductive layer 5 for grounding formed on both ends of the charge transport layer 4 was obtained. The thickness of the charge transport layer was 20 μm, and the thickness of the conductive layer for grounding was 20 μm. 400 mm ×
The sheet was cut into a size of 300 mm, and two sides having a length of 300 mm were joined by an ultrasonic fusion method to obtain an endless belt-shaped electrophotographic photosensitive member having the shape shown in FIG. (Charge generating layer forming liquid)

Embedded image Polyvinyl butyral 5 parts Tetrahydrofuran 400 parts Ethyl cellosolve 580 parts (Charge transport layer forming liquid)

Embedded image The above-mentioned (P-1) polycarbonate 10 parts Tetrahydrofuran 80 parts Silicon oil 0.0001 parts Toluene was spouted from a nozzle to the end of the endless belt-shaped photoreceptor, and a treatment with a width of 5 mm was performed. The treatment at this time was applied so that the joined overlapped portions of the joined sheets were made up and down. The thickness of the photosensitive layer in the portion treated by this treatment was 19 μm. Further, a 2 μm protective layer having a width of 4 mm was formed on the treated portion by nozzle coating a polyester resin using a toluene solvent having a solid content of 16%.

Example 2 An endless belt-shaped electrophotographic photosensitive member was formed in the same manner as in Example 1, except that the thickness of the protective layer was changed to 11 μm.

Example 3 An endless belt-shaped electrophotographic photosensitive member was obtained in the same manner as in Example 1, except that the nozzle jetting with toluene was performed above the bonded portion of the sheets.

Example 4 An endless belt-shaped electrophotographic photosensitive member was obtained in the same manner as in Example 1 except that the width of the protective layer was 6 mm and the protective layer was formed so as to completely cover the portion coated with toluene. Was.

Example 5 An endless belt-shaped electrophotographic photosensitive member was obtained in the same manner as in Example 3 except that the width of the protective layer was 6 mm and the protective layer was formed so as to completely cover the portion coated with toluene. Was.

Example 6 An endless belt-shaped electrophotographic photosensitive member was obtained in the same manner as in Example 1 except that the nozzle spray application of toluene was changed to methylene chloride, and the solvent of the polyester resin was changed to methylene chloride.

Example 7 An endless belt-shaped electrophotographic photosensitive member was obtained in the same manner as in Example 1, except that the nozzle spray coating with toluene was changed to tetrahydrofuran and the solvent for the polyester resin was changed to tetrahydrofuran.

Example 8 An endless belt-shaped electrophotographic photosensitive member was obtained in the same manner as in Example 1 except that the polyester resin was changed to the polycarbonate (P-1).

Example 9 An endless belt-shaped electrophotographic photoreceptor was obtained in the same manner as in Example 1, except that the charge transport layer forming liquid was changed from a polyester resin using a toluene solvent having a solid content of 16%.

Example 10 The photosensitive layer thickness of the portion treated with toluene was 15 μm.
An endless belt-shaped electrophotographic photosensitive member was obtained in the same manner as in Example 1, except that

Example 11 An endless belt-shaped electrophotographic photosensitive member was obtained in the same manner as in Example 1 except that the thickness of the protective layer was changed to 6 μm.

Comparative Example 1 An endless belt-shaped electrophotographic photosensitive member was obtained in the same manner as in Example 1, except that the jetting treatment with toluene was not performed on the joint.

Examples 1 to 1 obtained as described above
1. The endless belt photoreceptor of Comparative Example 1 was evaluated for printing durability and adhesive strength. Table 5 shows the results.
The evaluation method is described below. <Adhesive strength> A sample for adhesive strength evaluation was cut into a 2.5 cm × 20 cm strip in the image area of the photosensitive layer.
Using a universal tension tester, the conductive support and photosensitive layer
The peel strength was measured by pulling in the ゜ direction. FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of the sample at the time of tensile evaluation. In FIG.
The region A indicates a region where the organic solvent treatment and the formation of the protective layer 7 have not been performed, and the region B indicates a region where the organic solvent treatment and the formation of the protective layer 7 have been performed (corresponding to a joint). The peel strength of the photosensitive layer in the region A was determined by measuring the adhesive strength between the photosensitive layer and the support in the region where the organic solvent was not treated and the protective layer was not formed, and the peel strength of the photosensitive layer in the region B was determined in the region treated with the organic solvent and the protective layer. The adhesive strength between the photosensitive layer and the support was evaluated. <Printing Durability> The endless belt photoreceptor was incorporated into an electrophotographic apparatus having a cleaning blade, and a repetition test of 100,000 sheets was carried out, and the external shape near the joint (protective layer coated portion) after the test was evaluated.

[0045]

[Table 5]

As can be seen from the examples and comparative examples of the present invention, the adhesive strength between the support having only the photosensitive layer and the photosensitive layer is about 45.
g / cm. On the other hand, Comparative Example 1 which is an existing technology
It can be seen that the adhesive strength between the photosensitive layer and the support is 600 g / cm, which is dramatically increased. However, even in the case of this comparative example, the printing durability is about 50,000, which cannot be said to be sufficient for the printing durability currently required. on the other hand,
In the endless belt-shaped electrophotographic photoreceptors of Examples 1 to 11 of the present invention, the adhesive strength between the photosensitive layer and the support was significantly increased, and the photosensitive layer was partially peeled off from the joint portion.
It was confirmed that up to 100,000 sheets could be used.

[0047]

The endless belt type electrophotographic photoreceptor of the present invention has a photosensitive layer in which a photosensitive layer is formed on a sheet-like conductor and both ends of which are joined. In addition, by forming a protective layer of a resin on the joint, the adhesive strength between the support and the photosensitive layer was increased, and as a result, printing durability up to 100,000 sheets was made possible. This effect is even more effective when the protective layer is formed so as to completely cover the portion to be treated with the organic solvent. Further, as the type of the organic solvent, a halogenated hydrocarbon solvent,
Ethers are effective. Further, the type of resin forming the protective layer has the greatest effect in the case of polycarbonate resin. The effect is even greater when the protective layer is formed of the same layer as the uppermost layer of the photosensitive layer, as compared to the case where the protective layer is formed of only a resin. As described above, according to the present invention, there is provided a long-life endless belt-shaped electrophotographic photosensitive member having the same durability as a drum without peeling of the photosensitive layer from the joining portion, as compared with the conventional endless belt-shaped electrophotographic photosensitive member. can do.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an example of an endless belt-shaped electrophotographic photosensitive member provided with grounding conductivity.

FIG. 2 is an example of a joining portion of an endless belt-shaped electrophotographic photosensitive member.

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of an example of an endless belt-shaped electrophotographic photosensitive member provided with a conductive property for grounding.

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of a sample during tensile evaluation.

[Explanation of symbols]

 REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 1 support 2 conductive layer 3 charge generation layer 4 charge transport layer 5 conductive layer for grounding 6 organic solvent treatment section 7 protective layer 12 conductive support 34 photosensitive layer

Claims (6)

[Claims] An endless belt-shaped electrophotographic photosensitive member in which a photosensitive layer is formed on a sheet-like conductor and both ends of the photosensitive layer are joined to each other, a joining process after the joining is performed with an organic solvent, and a resin is applied to the joining portion. An endless belt-shaped electrophotographic photosensitive member, comprising a protective layer comprising: 2. An endless belt-shaped electrophotographic photosensitive member in which a photosensitive layer is formed on a sheet-like conductor and both ends of which are joined, only the sheet side of the joined portion where the overlap at the time of joining is on the upper side. An endless belt-shaped electrophotographic photosensitive member, wherein a coating treatment with an organic solvent is performed and a protective layer made of a resin is formed on the joint. 3. The endless belt-shaped electrophotographic photosensitive member according to claim 1, wherein the resin forming the protective layer is a polycarbonate resin represented by the following general formula (I). Embedded image Wherein R ¹ , R ² , R ³ , R ⁴ , R ⁵ , R ⁶ , R ⁷ and R ⁸
Each independently represents a hydrogen atom, a lower alkyl group, a halogen atom or an aromatic group which may have a substituent. R ⁹ and R ¹⁰ each independently represent a hydrogen atom, a lower alkyl group or an aromatic group which may have a substituent, and R ⁵ and R ⁶ may combine to form a ring,
A carbonyl group may be formed together with the connecting carbon atom. ) 4. The protective layer according to claim 1, wherein the protective layer is formed of the same layer as the uppermost layer of the photosensitive layer.
An endless belt-shaped electrophotographic photosensitive member according to any one of the above. 5. In the coating treatment with the organic solvent,
5. The method according to claim 1, wherein the processing is performed such that the thickness of the photosensitive layer in the coated portion is 9/10 or less of the thickness of the photosensitive layer before the coating process. Endless belt-shaped electrophotographic photoreceptor. 6. The endless belt-shaped electrophotographic photosensitive member according to claim 1, wherein the thickness of the protective layer is 3 to 10 μm.