Sub-micron size spherical wax beads using a t-junction microfluidic device

Abstract

Waxes are employed in toner to improve its anti-offset characteristic at low or high temperature and fixability at a low temperature. Addition of monodisperse wax nano particles can enhance the toner performance by precise control of composition, which enables finer printing. This study aims the production of spherical sub-micron size wax beads in a microfluidic system for the first time. T-junction microfluidic device was fabricated using standard photolithography techniques for wax particles formation just above the melting temperature of wax. The size of the particles could be tuned by controlling the flow conditions and temperature of the microfluidic device.