An electrophotographic photosensitive member includes a conductive substrate and a photosensitive layer of a single layer. The photosensitive layer contains a charge generating material, a binder resin, a hole transport material, and an electron transport material. The binder resin includes a polyester resin. The polyester resin includes a first repeating unit represented by general formula (1) shown below and a second repeating unit represented by general formula (2) shown below. ##STR00001##
A content percentage of the polyester resin in the photosensitive layer is at least 0.3% by mass and no greater than 7.0% by mass.

An electrophotographic photoreceptor includes a conductive substrate, an organic photosensitive layer on the conductive substrate, and an inorganic protective layer on the organic photosensitive layer. A layer that constitutes a surface of the organic photosensitive layer contains a charge transport material, a binder resin, silica particles, and a silicone compound.

Provided is an electrophotographic apparatus, including an electrophotographic photosensitive member, a charging unit arranged in a non-abutment manner with respect to the electrophotographic photosensitive member, a cleaning unit or a developing unit arranged in abutment against the electrophotographic photosensitive member, and a transferring unit.

An image forming apparatus includes: a photosensitive drum; a process frame from which the photosensitive drum is detachable; an apparatus body from which the process frame is removable; a drum shaft including one end constituting a free end, and another end supported by the apparatus body, and transmitting rotational driving force to the photosensitive drum; and a fixing member configured to stop movement of the photosensitive drum, wherein the one end of the drum shaft is configured to penetrate through and protrude from the photosensitive drum, the photosensitive drum includes a first annular protruding portion, the process frame includes a bearing part, the fixing member includes a second annular protruding portion, the one end of the drum shaft is pivotally supported by the fixing member, and the first annular protruding portion of the photosensitive drum is pivotally supported by the second annular protruding portion of the fixing member.

A method for producing a recycled carrier includes: performing classification, the classification including separating a carrier having a coating layer from a collected developer by a centrifugal air classifier, the collected developer containing the carrier and being obtained by collecting an electrostatic charge image developer remaining after image formation; and performing recoating, the recoating including dissolving or thermally melting a coating resin of the separated and classified carrier and then coating the resulting carrier again to produce a recycled carrier.

An electrophotographic photosensitive member, a process cartridge and an electrophotographic apparatus wherein a streak-like image defect otherwise occurring in output in a low printing mode performed under a H/H environment can be reduced are provided. A surface of the photosensitive member has a convex and concave portions continuously in a peripheral direction of the photosensitive member, and alternately in an axial direction of the photosensitive member, a width w of the concave portion is 30 to 100 μm, a depth d of the concave portion is 1 to 5 μm, the convex portion has a rising slope and a descending slope in the peripheral direction of the photosensitive member, and a distance from a starting point of the rising slope to an end point of the descending slope and a distance from a starting point of the descending slope to an end point of the rising slope are 300 μm or less.

An electrophotographic photoreceptor includes at least a photosensitive layer and a protective layer sequentially layered on a conductive support, wherein the protective layer contains a cured product of a curable composition containing p-type semiconductor fine particles, an n-type organic semiconductor, and a polymerizable compound.

In an image forming apparatus in which an electrostatic image is formed on an electrophotographic photosensitive member using at least a process of a pseudo halftone formed by dots as a method of representing gradation, the electrophotographic photosensitive member is provided on a surface thereof with a plurality of recessed portions of 0.5 μm more and 5 μm or less in depth and 20 μm or more and 80 μm or less in longest diameter of an opening, when a square region of 500 μm×500 μm is arbitrarily extracted on the surface of the electrophotographic photosensitive member, in the square region, a total area of the recessed portions is 10000 μm.sup.2 or more and 90000 μm.sup.2 or less and a total area of a flat portion contained in a portion other than the recessed portion is 80000 μm.sup.2 or more and 240000 μm.sup.2 or less, and an arrangement (A) of the plurality of recessed portions is such an arrangement that an image quality lowering index (f) calculated by specific processing is 14% or less.

An undercoat layer of an electrophotographic photosensitive member includes a binder resin, and a complex particle composed of a core particle coated with tin oxide doped with zinc.

A compound has a structure represented by the following formula (C1): ##STR00001##
wherein R.sub.a1, R.sub.a2, R.sub.a3, R.sub.a41, R.sub.a42, R.sub.a43, R.sub.a44, R.sub.a45, R.sub.a5, R.sub.a6, R.sub.a7, R.sub.a8, R.sub.a9, R.sub.a10, and R.sub.a11 each independently represent a hydrogen atom, an alkyl group, an alkenyl group, an alkynyl group, an alkoxy group, an aralkyl group, an aryl group, a cyano group, a halogen atom, or a group obtained by combining two or more of the above groups, and a combination of R.sub.a1 and R.sub.a2, R.sub.a41 and R.sub.a42, R.sub.a42 and R.sub.a43, R.sub.a43 and R.sub.a44, R.sub.a44 and R.sub.a45, R.sub.a5 and R.sub.a6, R.sub.a8 and R.sub.a9, or R.sub.a10 and R.sub.a11 each independently may form a ring.