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Figure 6.3 Two basic types of toner production

Chemical toners were introduced later to overcome those limitations and are in common use today. Each
manufacturer has its own process for creating this type of toner and unique names as well. Xerox’s EA
toner, Ricoh’s PxP toner, and Konica Minolta’s Simitri toner are all examples of chemical toners. As
the name suggests, chemical toners are created through a process of building or ‘growing’ the particle
chemically. This process allows for the precise control of the shape and size of the toner particle (under
5 microns in some cases), resulting in higher definition and resolution capabilities. Resolutions of 1,200
dpi and 2,400 dpi are possible largely due to the use of this type of toner. Other benefits include much
lower energy consumption, both in the manufacturing process and printing process, as well as narrower
particle size and charge distributions.

Here is a YouTube video of how chemical toner is made: https://youtu.be/852TWDP61T4

Dry toner comes in two forms: mono component and dual component. Both rely on magnetic iron or
iron oxide particles to ‘hold’ the charged toner on a magnetic roller. Mono component toners incorporate
the magnetic material in the composition of the toner particle itself where dual component toners have
the magnetic material mixed together with the toner but as separate components. This mixture is called
developer.

ElectroInk

ElectroInk is a unique form of toner used in HP Indigo digital presses. The toner comes in the form
of a paste and is mixed internally in the press with imaging oil, a lightweight petroleum distillate. This
type of toner is considered a liquid toner as the particles are suspended in the liquid imaging oil, but
still uses an electrophotographic process for imaging. One of the important advantages of this type of
toner is its particle size. ElectroInk toner particles are 1 to 2 microns, significantly smaller than the
smallest dry toner particle. At this size, a dry toner would become airborne and would be very difficult
to control. The toner and oil suspension achieves higher resolutions, uniform gloss, sharp image edges,
and very thin image layers. A thin image layer allows the toner to conform to the surface of the substrate,
producing a consistent look between imaged and non-imaged areas. A drawback of this toner, however,