WET ELECTROPHOTOGRAPHIC APPARATUS

摘要

A wet-type electrophotography apparatus using a non-volatile, high-viscosity, high-concentration liquid toner as a liquid developer and comprising a photoconductive medium 10, a prewetting device 13 for applying a film of prewetting solution to the surface of the photoconductive medium 10, a developing roller 26 for feeding the liquid developer to the photoconductive medium 10 while making contact with the photoconductive medium 10, and causing toner particles in the liquid developer to adhere to the photoconductive medium 10 in accordance with a electric field formed between the developing roller 26 and the photoconductive medium 10, so that a toner image formed on the photoconductive medium 10 is transferred directly to a printing medium, or to a printing media via an intermediate transfer medium 15 to obtain a printed image; the apparatus comprises oil removal means 30 or 20 making contact with the formed toner image surface to remove the excess prewetting solution and the excess carrier solution in the liquid toner from the toner image surface. With this arrangement, the excess prewetting solution and carrier solution are not caused to brought to the contact area between the photoconductive medium and the intermediate transfer medium, so that both the solutions could not accumulate and flow to the medium surfaces, preventing the solutions from disturbing images and affecting the heating and fusing of the toner layer during fixing process. <IMAGE>