Abstract: A toner for developing latent electrostatic images is provided which contains, in a binder resin, at least a coloring agent formed from a metal material. A saturation magnetization of the toner is 0.01 to 10 emu/g, and a true specific gravity thereof is 1.33 to 1.62 g/m3. Also provided are an electrostatic charge image developer containing the toner for developing latent electrostatic images, an image forming device, and an image forming method using the toner for developing latent electrostatic images.

Abstract: The present invention relates to a thermoplastic resin composition comprising a rubber-reinforced thermoplastic resin (A) obtained by graft polymerizing a monomeric mixture (b) comprising an aromatic vinyl compound, a vinyl cyanide compound and optionally other copolymerizable monomeric compound(s) in the presence of a rubber-like polymer (a),

Abstract: A method for producing a large quartz glass preform for optical fibers having a low ellipticity at a low cost is provided. The method comprises a heating and stretching of a large quartz glass cylinder or a preform in which a core rod is inserted in said quartz glass cylinder without being integrated with the cylinder in non-contact state, using a heating furnace equipped with a carbon-made heating element, whereby setting the ratio (d/D) of the outer diameter (D) of the large quartz glass cylinder and the inner diameter (d) of the heating element to a range of from 1.02 to 1.5, and blowing in an inert gas from the upper part of the heating furnace (FIG.

Abstract: A method for producing an optical fiber preform comprising inserting a core glass rod for use in the optical fiber preform into the quartz glass tube for the optical fiber preform and then welding them in a heating furnace to melt weld them together into a monolithic product, wherein the melting is started in such a state that the lower open edge of said quartz glass tube is placed inside the heating furnace and a gas is supplied from the upper edge of the tube, and after the lower edge portion of the quartz glass tube is drawn out from said heating furnace by melt deformation and stretching by the gravitational force, the gas supply is cut off and the pressure is reduced.

Abstract: This invention provides novel genes encoding enzymes which decompose difficult-to-decompose thiophene compounds. By using these genes, sulfur atoms can be released from the thiophene compounds in fossil fuel such as petroleum, and the diffusion of sulfur into the environment caused by the combustion of the fossil fuel can be prevented.

Abstract: A toner including mother toner particles including at least two resins A and B and a wax each of which is incompatible with the others; and an external additive including at least one of a particulate inorganic material and a particulate resin, wherein the resins and wax form a sea-island structure in which the resin B is present like islands in a sea of the resin A and the wax is substantially included in the resin B while dispersed therein, and wherein the resin A does not include a component insoluble in tetrahydrofuran and has a weight average molecular weight of from 10,000 to 90,000.

Abstract: A method for fixing full-color toner images on an image receiving member so that the fixed toner images selectively exhibit different glossinesses includes the step of bringing the transferred toner images into contact with a heater, with linear speeds being selectively switched in such a manner that the fixed toner images exhibit a mean surface roughness in a range of 9.5 to 16 &mgr;m at a linear speed (A), and the fixed toner images exhibit a mean surface roughness of less than 8 &mgr;m at a linear speed (B), wherein the linear speed (A) is in a range of 100 to 300 mm/sec, the linear speed (B) is lower than the linear speed (A) by 25 mm/sec or more, and the image fixing temperatures are equal at the linear speeds (A) and (B). A method for fixing full-color toner images with high glossiness on an image receiving member includes the step of bringing the transferred toner images into contact with a belt so that the fixed toner images exhibit a mean surface roughness of less than 8 &mgr;m.

Abstract: A two-component developer consists of a toner, which contains at least a resin and a colorant and to which an external additive is added, and a carrier.

Abstract: A toner for developing electrostatic latent images contains a coloring agent, a release agent, a binder resin including a non-linear polyester resin with a hydroxyl number of 30 to 70 mgKOH/g, and a metallic compound of an aromatic oxycarboxylic acid with a central metal having a valence of 3 or more. The toner is used in combination with a carrier to prepare a two-component developer. The toner or two-component developer is held in a container. The present invention further provides an image forming apparatus equipped with the container that holds therein the above-mentioned toner or two-component developer.

Abstract: An electrophotographic toner including at least a binder resin, a colorant, and a releasing agent, wherein the binder resin includes one or more components soluble in tetrahydrofuran, and wherein the one or more components has a molecular weight distribution such that at least one peak is present between 1,000 and 10,000, and the peak has a half width not greater than 15,000 when the molecular weight is measured by a gel permeation chromatography (GPC) method.

Abstract: A two-component developer includes a toner containing toner particles with a volume diameter of 8 &mgr;m or less, and a carrier containing carrier particles, each carrier particle including at least one core particle and a carrier core coating layer, the carrier core coating layer being made of a silicone resin and a silicone oil, the carrier having a fluidity of 45 seconds or less.

Abstract: An image forming method including a new toner fixing method and toner therefor, wherein the method includes two rollers in which a toner image on an image supporting material is fixed by heating at a nipped section of the rollers, wherein one of the rollers which is a fixing roller contacting the toner image includes a metal cylinder having a thickness of not more than 1.0 mm, and the fixing pressure of the two rollers is not more than 1.4×105 Pa, and wherein the toner contains resins including two polyester resins, (A) and (B), and the polyester resin (B) includes discrete domains of the polyester resin (A) which has higher glass transition Tg and higher molecular weight than those of the polyester resin (B) and includes a component insoluble in tetrahydrofuran, and wherein the developed image can be fixed at relative low temperature and in wide temperature range, and the fixed image has excellent image quality and preserving property.

Abstract: The present invention relates to a method of degrading organic sulfur compounds, in which organic sulfur compounds are decomposed by a microorganism belonging to the genus Paenibacillus and having the ability to decompose organic sulfur compounds. Heterocyclic sulfur compounds can be decomposed by specifically cleaving their C--S bonds under high-temperature conditions.

Abstract: A filter comprises an inductor, a first variable capacitance diode, a second variable capacitance diode having nearly identical characteristic as the first variable capacitance diode, a control terminal for applying voltage to the first and the second variable capacitance diodes, an input terminal, an output terminal and a signal line between the input terminal and the output terminal. A cutoff frequency is controllable with the voltage applied to the control terminal. The variable frequency filter which can receive a large signal has reduced size due to a structure in which the first and the second variable capacitance diodes having nearly identical characteristics are connected either in series or in parallel with their polarities reversed against each other.

Abstract: An electrophotographic toner composition is disclosed, including toner particles containing a coloring agent, a binder resin and at least two kinds of additives, wherein these additives satisfy the relationship, 4<((.di-elect cons..sub.H -.di-elect cons..sub.L)/0.75+log(f))<16, in which f in Hz corresponds to a 1 kHz frequency used for the present dielectric constant measurements, and .di-elect cons..sub.H and .di-elect cons..sub.L are respectively highest and lowest values of dielectric constants obtained at 1 kHz for the additives.

Abstract: A toner for developing an electrostatic latent image, which includes ground toner particles having physical properties meeting with at least one of the following conditions (a) and (b):(a) the toner particles have an average surface roughness of at least 0.89, the average suface roughness being an average of SF1 of respective toner particles, where SF1 is defined as follows:SF1=Le/Lpwherein Le and Lp represent the length of the minimum envelope line and the peripheral length of each toner particle, respectively;(b) the toner particles have an average shape index SF3 of at least 0.63, the average shape index being a product of the average of SF1 and an average of SF2, where SF1 is as defined above and SF2 is defined as follows:SF2=4S/(P.sup.2 .times..pi.)wherein S and P represent the area and the maximum diameter of each toner particle, respectively.

Abstract: The present invention relates to a method of degrading organic sulfur compounds, in which organic sulfur compounds are decomposed by a microorganism belonging to the genus Paenibacillus and having the ability to decompose organic sulfur compounds. Heterocyclic sulfur compounds can be decomposed by specifically cleaving their C--S bonds under high-temperature conditions.

Abstract: A toner for developing an electrostatic latent image, including toner particles having an average surface roughness of at least 0.86, wherein the average surface roughness is an average of SF1 of respective toner particles, where SF1 is defined as follows:SF1=Le/Ipwherein Le and Lp represent the length of the minimum envelope line and the peripheral length of each toner particle, respectively.

Abstract: In an air ionizing apparatus of a type utilizing a sheath gas not containing water (hydrogen) or impurities to sheathe corona electrodes, sufficient amount of ions are generated to fully eliminate static electricity from the interior of a production environment such as a clean room and to prevent the impurities from depositing on the corona electrodes. The tips of corona electrodes 21a and 21b are positioned inwardly of the tips of sheath gas nozzles 4a and 4b, respectively, by a certain distance. The distance is so determined that for a sheath gas containing no negative gaseous molecules, electrons emitted by corona discharge can reach air existing outside the sheath gas nozzle 4b and that for a sheath gas containing the negative gaseous molecules, negative ions emitted by corona discharge can rapidly disperse into the air outside the sheath gas nozzle 4b without remaining in the interior of the nozzle 4b.

Abstract: A process for the production of human serum albumin A (HSA) characterized by culturing host cells transformed with the plasmids containing a leader DNA sequence and a cDNA coding for mature HSA to produce and secrete mature HSA, and recovering the mature HSA. As the leader HSA sequence, a cDNA coding for the prepro sequence of HSA, a synthetic DNA coding for the prepro sequence of HSA, by the codons frequently used in a selected host, a DNA coding for a chimeric leader peptide, a DNA coding for MF.alpha.1 prepro sequence, or a DNA coding for PH05 signal peptide, is used.