Magnetic toner and image-forming method

An image-forming method, comprising:

• a charging step of charging an electrostatic latent image bearing member with a charging member to which a voltage is applied;
• an electrostatic latent image-forming step of writing image information as an electrostatic latent image on the charged electrostatic latent image bearing member;
• a developing step involving
• forming a toner layer on a toner carrying member carrying magnetic toner and having an outer diameter in a range from 8.0 mm to less than 12.0 mm with a toner layer thickness control member brought into abutment with the toner carrying member, and
• dislocating the magnetic toner to the electrostatic latent image in a developing portion which is formed by placing the electrostatic latent image bearing member and the toner carrying member with a gap between the electrostatic latent image bearing member and the toner carrying member and to which an alternating electric field is applied to form a toner image;
• a transferring step of transferring the formed toner image onto a recording medium;
• and
• a fixing step of fixing the transferred toner image,
• the electrostatic latent image bearing member repeatedly undergoing image formation on itself,
• wherein:
• the magnetic toner has a weight average particle diameter (D4) in a range from 8.0 μm to 14.0 μm;
• the magnetic toner has an intensity of magnetization in a magnetic field of 79.6 kA/m (1,000 Oe) in a range from 16.0 Am2/kg to 25.0 Am2/kg;
• the toner carrying member has a surface roughness in terms of a JIS center line average roughness (Ra) in a range from 0.60 μm to 1.20 μm;
• and
• when a surface free energy of a surface of the magnetic toner is represented by A (mJ/m2) and a surface free energy of a surface of the toner carrying member is represented by X (mJ/m2), A and X satisfy the following expressions (1), (2) and (3):
• 1.00≦X/A≦4.00;
• (1)
• 10.0mJ/m2≦A≦55.0mJ/m2;
• and (2)
• 35.0mJ/m2≦X≦60.0mJ/m2. (3)