Patent ID: 7594722

Claim:
An image forming apparatus, comprising: a treatment liquid application device which applies treatment liquid onto a recording medium, the treatment liquid containing cationic polymer and a coloring material aggregating agent; an ink liquid ejection device which ejects droplets of ink liquid toward the treatment liquid on the recording medium so as to form a polymer film at a liquid interface between the treatment liquid and the ink liquid, the ink liquid having anionic properties and containing a solvent and a coloring material which aggregates due to reaction with the coloring material aggregating agent; and a solvent absorbing device which absorbs the solvent on the recording medium in a state where an aggregate of the coloring material and the solvent are separated after a first reaction in which the polymer film is formed at the liquid interface between the treatment liquid and the ink liquid on the recording medium by mixing the treatment liquid and the ink liquid and a second reaction in which the aggregate of the coloring material in the ink liquid is formed after formation of the polymer film, wherein; the polymer film which is formed in the first reaction isolates the droplets on the ink liquid on the recording medium from each other and thereby prevents unification of mutually adjacent dots formed by the droplets of the ink liquid on the recording medium; and the second reaction progresses within each of the droplets of the ink liquid having been isolated from each other by the polymer film.