1. A process for preparing 2,6-diamino-3,5-dinitrotoluene (Formula I),
comprising, under exclusion of oxygen, providing a reaction mixture comprising a suspension of 2,6-dihalo-3,5-dinitrotoluene (Formula III)
in glycol in the presence of ammonia and about 2 to about 25 wt % water, and heating the reaction mixture in the range of about 100\xb0 C. to about 160\xb0 C. to convert the 2,6-dichloro-3,5-dinitrotoluene to 2,6-diamino-3,5-dinitrotoluene.
2. The process of claim 1 wherein the reaction mixture is provided by forming a suspension containing about 10 to about 25 wt % 2,6-dichloro-3,5-dinitrotoluene in a mixture of glycol and about 2 to about 25 wt % water; and the suspension is contacted with gaseous NH3 to convert the 2,6-dichloro-3,5-dinitrotoluene to 2,6-diamino-3,5-dinitrotoluene.
3. The process of claim 1 wherein the reaction mixture is provided by forming a suspension containing about 10 to about 25 wt % 2,6-dichloro-3,5-dinitrotoluene in glycol and contacting the suspension with an aqueous ammonia solution to form a reaction mixture wherein water is present at about 2 to about 25 wt %; and the reaction mixture is heated to a temperature in the range of about 100\xb0 C. to about 160\xb0 C. to convert the 2,6-dichloro-3,5-dinitrotoluene to 2,6-diamino-3,5-dinitrotoluene.
4. The process of claim 1 wherein the reaction mixture is provided by contacting the 2,6-dichloro-3,5-dinitrotoluene with a feed that contains glycol, NH3, and about 2 to about 25 wt % water, to form a reaction mixture which is a suspension containing about 10 to about 25 wt % 2,6-dichloro-3,5-dinitrotoluene; and the reaction mixture is heated to a temperature in the range of about 100\xb0 C. to about 160\xb0 C. to convert the 2,6-dichloro-3,5-dinitrotoluene to 2,6-diamino-3,5-dinitrotoluene.
5. The process of claim 1 further comprising the step of hydrogenating the 2,6-diamino-3,5-dinitrotoluene by (i) forming a slurry of the 2,6-diamino-3,5-dinitrotoluene with water, and (ii) contacting the slurry with a hydrogenation catalyst and hydrogen at a pressure in the range of about 0.31 to about 3.45 MPa and a temperature in the range of about 20\xb0 C. to about 100\xb0 C., to hydrogenate the 2,6-diamino-3,5-dinitrotoluene, thereby producing 2,3,5,6-tetraaminotoluene.
The claims below are in addition to those above.
All refrences to claim(s) which appear below refer to the numbering after this setence.
1. A transfer unit used with an image forming apparatus having a main body and a photoconductive unit mounted therein, comprising:
an upper housing including a transfer belt of an endless track structure to transfer an image from the photoconductive unit of the main body of the image forming apparatus, and a plurality of rollers to support the transfer belt and move therein; and
a lower housing removably connected to the upper housing, and having a cleaning unit to clean the transfer belt,
wherein the transfer unit is removably mounted to the main body of the image forming apparatus in a vertical direction to be positioned above the photoconductive unit in the main body.
2. The transfer unit of claim 1, wherein the upper housing and the lower housing are connected to each other when being mounted in a mounting portion of the main body of the image forming apparatus.
3. The transfer unit of claim 1, wherein the plurality of rollers comprises:
a transfer roller disposed to correspond to the photoconductive unit;
a drive roller disposed to correspond to a transfer medium to which the image is transferred from the transfer belt;
a tension roller to control a tension of the transfer belt;
a nip roller to rotate idle according to a rotation of the drive roller; and
at least one support roller to support the transfer belt.
4. The transfer unit of claim 3, wherein the upper housing comprises an upper housing body having:
a first and a second vertical walls to rotatably support the respective rollers; and
a cover wall to connect the first and second vertical walls, and to enclose a side of the transfer belt for protection.
5. The transfer unit of clam 4, wherein the first and second vertical walls comprise a guide slot to guide a movement of the tension roller.
6. The transfer unit of claim 5, wherein the plurality of rollers are mounted in the guide slot, and the upper housing comprises a tension member to control the tension of the transfer belt.
7. The transfer unit of claim 6, further comprising:
a piece disposed between the tension member and the guide slot to control the tension of the transfer belt.
8. The transfer unit of claim 7, wherein the tension of the transfer belt is smaller when the piece is mounted in the transfer unit, than when the piece is removed from the transfer unit.
9. The transfer unit of claim 4, wherein the upper housing comprises a guide slot formed on the first and second vertical walls to support the plurality of rollers and a tension member to control the tension of the transfer belt.
10. The transfer unit of claim 9, further comprising a piece disposed between the tension member and the guide slot to control the tension of the transfer belt.
11. The transfer unit of claim 10, wherein the tension of the transfer belt is smaller when the piece is mounted in the transfer unit, than when the piece is removed from the transfer unit.
12. The transfer unit of claim 3, wherein the upper housing comprises a guide slot formed on the first and second vertical walls and a tension member to control the tension of the transfer belt.
13. The transfer unit of claim 12, further comprising:
a piece disposed between the tension member and the guide slot to control the tension of the transfer belt.
14. The transfer unit of claim 13, wherein the tension of the transfer belt is smaller when the piece is mounted in the transfer unit, than when the piece is removed from the transfer unit.
15. The transfer unit of claim 3, wherein the upper housing further comprises a tension member to press the transfer roller toward the photoconductive unit.
16. The transfer unit of claim 3, wherein the upper housing comprises a gap ring formed at both ends of the transfer roller to maintain a contacting distance between the transfer belt and the photoconductive unit.
17. The transfer unit of claim 1, wherein the upper housing further comprises a guide member to guide the transfer unit to a mounting position of the main body when being mounted in the main body of the image forming apparatus.
18. The transfer unit of claim 17, wherein the guide member comprises:
a first guide member connected to both ends of one of the rollers; and
a second guide member connected to both ends of another one of the rollers.
19. The transfer unit of claim 1, wherein the upper housing has a rotatable handle member rotatably connected to an upper part thereof.
20. The transfer unit of claim 1, wherein the upper housing further comprises a sensor to sense a running position of the transfer belt.
21. The transfer unit of claim 1, wherein the lower housing comprises:
a lower housing body connected to a lower part of the upper housing, and supporting the cleaning unit;
a collecting unit mounted in the lower housing body to collect a cleaned waste toner; and
an image density sensor mounted at a lower part of the lower housing body, and sensing to sense density of the image of the photoconductive unit.
22. The transfer unit of claim 21, wherein the cleaning unit is movably mounted in the lower housing body to be selectively in contact with or separated from the transfer belt, and
the lower housing body comprises a pivot member to drive the cleaning unit.
23. The transfer unit of claim 21, wherein the lower housing further comprises a driving force transmitting unit having a plurality of rotatable gears to operate in association with one another at a side of the lower housing body and to transmit a driving force from one of the rollers of the upper housing to the collecting unit.
24. The transfer unit of claim 1, wherein the cleaning unit is movably mounted in the lower housing.
25. A transfer unit used with an image forming apparatus, comprising:
an upper housing having an upper housing body, first and second walls extended from first and second positions of the upper housing body, respectively, to form an opening with the upper housing body, and a plurality of guide slots formed on the first and second walls;
a transfer belt having an endless tack structure and disposed in the opening;
a plurality of rollers each having ends disposed in corresponding ones of the guide slots to support the transfer belt;
a plurality of guide members connected to ends of the plurality of rollers; and
a lower housing detachably connected to the upper housing and having a cleaning unit to clean the transfer belt, the cleaning unit including an auger rotatably disposed inside the lower housing to move waste toner away from the transfer belt according to the rotation thereof,
wherein:
at least one of the plurality of rollers comprises a tension roller having ends disposed in the corresponding guide slot, and the corresponding guide slot guides the movement of the tension roller, and
the guide members serve to guide the transfer unit to be removably mounted along a vertical direction with respect to a main body of the image forming apparatus to a position that is above the photoconductive unit.
26. The transfer unit of claim 25, wherein the rollers comprises a support roller and a drive roller to support the transfer belt in a first direction, and a transfer roller and a tension roller disposed between the support roller and the drive roller to support the transfer belt in a second direction, and the upper housing comprises a handle rotatably coupled to the upper housing body at a position disposed between rotating axes of the support roller and the drive roller.
27. The transfer unit of claim 26, wherein the upper housing comprises a handle rotatably coupled to the upper housing body at a position disposed between the support roller and the drive roller.
28. The transfer unit of claim 25, wherein the rollers comprises a transfer roller, a support roller, a drive roller, the tension roller, and a nip roller, and the guide slots comprises first and second guide slots formed on a middle portion of the first and second walls to receive the transfer roller and the tension roller, respectively, and third, fourth, and fifth guide slots formed on an outer circumferential portion of the first and second walls to receive the support roller, the drive roller, and the nip roller, respectively.
29. The transfer unit of claim 28, wherein the third, fourth, and fifth guide slots have an open structure.
30. The transfer unit of claim 28, wherein the first and second guide slots have an area larger than that of ends of the transfer roller and the tension roller, respectively, so that the ends of the transfer roller and the tension roller are movably disposed in the first and second guide slots, respectively.
31. The transfer unit of claim 28, further comprising:
a first ring disposed in the first guide slot to connect the transfer roller to the upper housing;
a second ring disposed in the second guide slot to connect the tension roller to the upper housing;
a first tension member to bias the transfer roller in a first direction; and
a second tension member to bias the tension roller in a second direction different from the first direction.
32. The transfer unit of claim 31, wherein the transfer belt has a tension varying according to variation of an elastic force of one of the first and second tension members.
33. The transfer unit of claim 31, further comprising:
a piece disposed to control the second tension member to change a position of the tension roller with respect to the transfer roller,
wherein the transfer belt has one of first and second tension values according to existence of the piece.
34. The transfer unit of claim 25, wherein the guide slots comprises a first group of slots formed in a middle portion of the first and second walls to have a closed shape, and a second group of slots formed in an outer circumferential portion of the first and second walls to have an open shape, and the ends of the rollers are disposed in one of the first and second groups of slots.
35. The transfer unit of claim 25, wherein the lower housing comprises a collecting unit to communicate with the cleaning unit to collect a toner removed from the transfer belt by the cleaning unit and discharge the collected toner into an outside of the transfer unit, and the first and second walls comprise a collecting unit coupling slot to receive a portion of the collecting unit, and a coupling element to couple a portion of the lower housing to at least one of the first and second walls.
36. The transfer unit of claim 35, wherein the portion of the collecting unit comprises a toner discharging member through which the collected toner is discharged.
37. The transfer unit of claim 25, wherein one of the rollers comprises a transfer roller, and the upper housing comprises a sensor disposed opposite to the cleaning unit with respect to the transfer roller to sense a portion of the transfer unit.
38. The transfer unit of claim 25, wherein:
the rollers comprises a drive roller and a support roller; and
the upper housing comprises a first guide member and a second guide member to couple the drive roller and the support roller to first and second walls, respectively, and to guide the transfer unit within the image forming apparatus when the transfer unit is installed to or removed from the image forming apparatus.
39. The transfer unit of claim 25, wherein the image forming apparatus comprises a photoconductive unit to generate a developed image to be transferred to a portion of the transfer belt, and the transfer unit is installed to the image forming apparatus in a direction having an angle with a line passing through a center of the photoconductive unit and the portion of the transfer unit.
40. The transfer unit of claim 39, wherein the angle is less than 90\xb0.
41. The transfer unit of claim 39, wherein the direction is not parallel to longitudinal axes of the rollers about which the respective rollers rotate.
42. The transfer unit of claim 25, wherein the cleaning unit is movably mounted in the lower housing.
43. An image forming apparatus comprising:
a main body enclosing an inner space and having first and second guide rails;
a photoconductive unit disposed inside the enclosed inner space of the main body; and
a transfer unit comprising,
an upper housing including a transfer belt of an endless track structure to transfer an image from the photoconductive unit of the main body, and a plurality of rollers to support the transfer belt to move therein, and
a lower housing removably connected to the upper housing, and having a cleaning unit to clean the transfer belt,
wherein the transfer unit is removably mounted along a vertical direction to the enclosed inner space of the main body along the first and second guide rails to a position that is above the photoconductive unit.
44. The image forming apparatus of claim 43, wherein the cleaning unit is movably mounted in the lower housing.
45. An image forming apparatus, comprising:
a main body having first and second guide rails; and
a transfer unit comprising,
an upper housing having an upper housing body, first and second walls extended from first and second positions of the upper housing body in a mounting direction , respectively, to form an opening with the upper housing body, and a plurality of guide slots formed on the first and second walls,
a transfer belt having an endless tack structure, disposed in the opening,
a plurality of rollers each having ends disposed in corresponding ones of the guide slots to support the transfer belt, and
a lower housing detachably connected to the upper housing, and having a cleaning unit to clean the transfer belt,
wherein the transfer unit is removably mounted to the main body along the first and second guide rails in the mounting direction and the transfer unit comprises a portion to receive an image from the photoconductive unit, and the transfer unit is installed to the image forming apparatus in a direction passing through a center of the photoconductive unit and the portion of the transfer unit.
46. The image forming apparatus of claim 45, wherein one of the rollers comprises a transfer roller to transfer an image from the photoconductive unit to the transfer belt, and the upper housing comprises a sensor disposed opposite to the cleaning unit with respect to the a portion of the transfer unit.
47. The image forming apparatus of claim 45, wherein:
the rollers comprise a drive roller and a support roller; and
the upper housing comprises a first guide member and a second guide member to couple the drive roller and the support roller to first and second walls, respectively, and to guide the transfer unit within the image forming apparatus when the transfer unit is installed to or removed from the image forming apparatus.
48. The image forming apparatus of claim 47, wherein the photoconductive unit generates a developed image to be transferred to a portion of the transfer belt, and the transfer unit is installed to the image forming apparatus in a direction having an angle with a line passing through a center of the photoconductive unit and the portion of the transfer unit.
49. The image forming apparatus of claim 45, wherein the roller comprises a drive roller and a support roller, the transfer unit comprises a first guide member and a second guide member to connect the drive roller and the support roller to corresponding ones of the first and second walls through corresponding ones of the guide slots to be disposed in the first and second guide rails, respectively, when the transfer unit is installed to the image forming apparatus.
50. The image forming apparatus of claim 45, wherein the first and second guide rails comprises a common entrance disposed on a portion of the main body in the mounting direction from the photoconductive unit.
51. The image forming apparatus of claim 45, wherein the cleaning unit is movably mounted in the lower housing.
52. A transfer unit usable with an image forming apparatus, the transfer unit comprising:
an endless transfer belt to be rotated by one or more rollers, the transfer belt including an upper portion and a lower portion;
an upper housing to enclose the upper portion of the transfer belt;
a plurality of guide members connected to ends of the one or more rollers; and
a lower housing removably connected to the upper housing to enclose less than half of the lower portion adjacent to the upper housing such that more than half of the lower portion of the transfer belt remains exposed,
wherein the guide members serve to guide the transfer unit to be mounted to a main body of the image forming apparatus in a vertical direction to be positioned above a photoconductive unit in the main body.
53. An image forming apparatus, comprising:
a frame defining a space;
a photoconductive unit mounted in the defined space and on which an electrostatic latent image is formed;
a transfer unit removably mounted above the photoconductive unit in the defined space along a vertical direction; and
an image density sensor mounted at a lower part of the defined space to sense a density of the image of the photoconductive unit,
wherein the transfer unit comprises:
a lower housing removably connected to an upper housing to house a transfer belt therebetween,
a plurality of rollers to support the transfer belt, and
a plurality of guide members connected to ends of the plurality of rollers to guide a vertical mounting of the transfer unit to a main body of the image forming apparatus to a position that is above the photoconductive unit.