An image forming apparatus is provided. The image forming apparatus includes an image bearer and a cleaning blade configured to remove toner particles remaining on the image bearer. The cleaning blade includes an elastic member in contact with a surface of the image bearer to remove the toner particles. The elastic member has a Martens hardness of from 3 to 8 N/mm.sup.2 when measured by a nanoindentation method with a load of 1 μN. The toner particles comprise toner base particles and an external additive, and the external additive comprise silica particles. A liberation ratio (Xs) of the silica particles liberated from the toner particles is from 40% to 75% when measured by an ultrasonic vibration method. A proportion (R70) of the silica particles having a volume-based particle diameter of 70 nm or more in the silica particles liberated from the toner particles is from 70% to 90% by number.

A toner for electrophotography includes a toner particle including a binder resin, a colorant, and a releasing agent, and an additive material including a quantum dot-inorganic particle composite. The additive material is attached to an external surface of the toner particle. The quantum dot-inorganic particle composite includes quantum dot particles and inorganic particles present between the quantum dot particles.

Provided are a magnetic core material for electrophotographic developer and a carrier for electrophotographic developer, which are excellent in charge characteristics and strength and with which a satisfactory image free from defects can be obtained, and a developer containing the carrier. A magnetic core material for electrophotographic developer, having a sulfur component content of from 50 to 700 ppm in terms of a sulfate ion and a BET specific surface area of from 0.06 to 0.25 m.sup.2/g.

A developing device includes a latent image carrier to form an electrostatic latent image is formed on a surface of the latent image carrier, a developing agent carrier to carry a developing agent including toner on a surface of the developing agent carrier, the developing agent carrier facing the latent image carrier, and a roll-shaped member facing the developing agent carrier to form a first gap and facing the latent image carrier to form a second gap, to form a suction air flow through the first gap and the second gap, to suction toner particles scattered to the first gap between the roll-shaped member and the developing agent carrier and the second gap between the roll-shaped member and the latent image carrier.

An electrophotographic developer is provided. The electrophotographic developer comprises a toner and a carrier. The toner contains alumina particles. The carrier comprises a core particle and a resin layer coating a surface of the core particle. The carrier has a volume average particle diameter (Dv) of from 45 to 70 m and a bulk density of from 2.1 to 2.5 g/cm.sup.3.

An image forming apparatus includes an image carrier; a charging unit that charges a surface of the image carrier; an electrostatic image forming unit that forms an electrostatic image on the charged surface of the image carrier; a developing unit that includes a container and a supply member and develops the electrostatic image formed on the surface of the image carrier to form a toner image, the container containing an electrostatic image developer that contains an electrostatic image developing toner and a carrier, the supply member having in a circumferential surface thereof plural grooves extending in a direction intersecting a direction of rotation of the supply member, the electrostatic image being developed with the electrostatic image developer; a transfer unit that transfers the toner image formed on the surface of the image carrier to a recording medium; and a fixing unit that fixes the toner image transferred to the recording medium. The electrostatic image developing toner satisfies the following inequalities: (ln (T1)ln (T2))/(T1T2)0.14, (ln (T2)ln (T3))/(T2T3)0.15, and (ln (T1)ln (T2))/(T1T2)<(ln (T2)ln (T3))/(T2T3), wherein (T1) represents a viscosity of the electrostatic image developing toner at 60 C., (T2) represents a viscosity of the electrostatic image developing toner at 90 C., and (T3) represents a viscosity of the electrostatic image developing toner at 130 C.

A toner comprising: a toner particle; and an external additive, wherein the external additive includes spherical silica particles and hydrotalcite particles, a number average particle diameter Da of the spherical silica particles is from 10 nm to 40 nm, a circularity of the spherical silica particles is at least 0.80, and the toner satisfies formula (1) below:

{Ga(1Ka/100)}/{Gb(1Kb/100)}0.050(1) wherein Ga: a content of the spherical silica particles with respect to 100 parts by mass of the toner particle; Gb: a content of the hydrotalcite particles with respect to 100 parts by mass of the toner particle; Ka: a fixing ratio (%) of the spherical silica particles on a surface of the toner particle; and Kb: a fixing ratio (%) of the hydrotalcite particles on the surface of the toner particle.

A toner comprising: a toner particle; and an external additive, wherein the external additive includes spherical silica particles and hydrotalcite particles, a number average particle diameter Da of the spherical silica particles is from 10 nm to 40 nm, a circularity of the spherical silica particles is at least 0.80, and the toner satisfies formula (1) below:

{Ga(1Ka/100)}/{Gb(1Kb/100)}0.050(1) wherein Ga: a content of the spherical silica particles with respect to 100 parts by mass of the toner particle; Gb: a content of the hydrotalcite particles with respect to 100 parts by mass of the toner particle; Ka: a fixing ratio (%) of the spherical silica particles on a surface of the toner particle; and Kb: a fixing ratio (%) of the hydrotalcite particles on the surface of the toner particle.

A toner for electrophotography includes a toner particle including a binder resin, a colorant, and a releasing agent, and an additive material including a quantum dot-inorganic particle composite. The additive material is attached to an external surface of the toner particle. The quantum dot-inorganic particle composite includes quantum dot particles and inorganic particles present between the quantum dot particles.

An electrostatic charge image developer contains a carrier including a core and, on the core, a silicone resin-containing layer serving as a lower layer, and an acrylic resin-containing layer serving as an upper layer, or a carrier including a silicone resin-containing core and an acrylic resin-containing layer on the silicone resin-containing core; strontium titanate particles having an average primary particle size of 20 nm or more and 100 nm or less; and a toner. The percentage of a silicone resin exposed on a surface of the carrier is 0.5 area % or more and 20 area % or less.