Fusing assembly with release agent donor member

A fusing assembly for fixing toner images to a substrate of the type wherein a polymeric release agent having functional groups is applied to the surface of a fuser member comprising:

• (A) a heated fuser roll;
• (B) a pressure roller engaging said fuser roller to provide a nip therebetween through which a copy sheet having an unfused toner image may be passed to fuse said toner image by contact with said heated fuser roll;
• (C) means to apply a polymeric release agent having functional groups to the surface of said fuser roll, said means including a release agent donor member comprising a base member, an intermediate conformable silicone elastomer layer and an elastomer release agent donor layer comprising poly(vinylidenefluoride-hexafluoropropylene-tetrafluoroethylene) where the vinylidenefluoride is present in an amount less than 40 mole percent, a metal oxide a present in an amount sufficient to interact with the polymeric release agent having functional groups to transport a sufficient amount of polymeric release agent to provide an interfacial barrier layer between the surface and the toner and being substantially unreactive with said elastomer, said elastomer release agent donor layer having been cured from a solvent solution thereof with a nucleophilic curing agent soluble in said solution and in the presence of less than 4 parts by weight of inorganic base per 100 parts of polymer, said inorganic base being effective to at least partially dehydrofluorinate the vinylidenefluoride.