• Korean Chemical Engineering Research
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• v.44 no.1
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• pp.1-9
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• 2006

Biodevices composed of biomolecular layer by mimicking the natural functions of cells and the interaction mechanisms of the constituted biomolecules have been developed in various industrial fields such as medical diagnosis, drug screening, electronic device, bioprocess, and environmental pollution detection. To construct biodevices such as bioelectronic devices (biomolecular diode, bio-information storage device and bioelectroluminescence device), protein chip, DNA chip, and cell chip, biomolecules including DNA, protein, and cells have been used. Fusion technology consisting of immobilization technology of biomolecules, micro/nano-scale patterning, detection technology, and MEMs technology has been used to construct the biodevices. Recently, nanotechnology has been applied to construct nano-biodevices. In this paper, the current technology status of biodevice including its fabrication technology and applications is described and the future development direction is proposed.

• Applied Chemistry for Engineering
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• v.34 no.4
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• pp.347-356
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• 2023

Liquid crystal elastomer (LCE) fibers have been widely applied in various fields, such as soft robots and biomimetic actuators, in a one-dimensional form. LCEs possess the characteristics of both fluidity and solid order, as well as the elasticity of rubber, and exhibit stimulus-response based on these properties. In particular, by programming the responsiveness to various stimuli such as heat, light, electric fields, and magnetic fields in terms of shape-changing, various movements such as lifting, twisting, and rotating can be realized with high degrees of freedom. Therefore, LCE fibers have the potential for application in various fields such as artificial muscles, soft robots, wearable technologies, and sensing technologies. The research on liquid crystal elastomer fibers is evaluated to have high applicability in various fields in the Fourth Industrial Revolution as a smart material that can include various functionalities beyond simple fibers. In this review, we introduce the structure and basic characteristics of liquid crystal elastomer fibers, the latest research trends on orientation-based fabrication methods, and various applications such as artificial muscles, smart fabrics, and soft robots.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society for Noise and Vibration Engineering Conference
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• 2005.11a
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• pp.723-726
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• 2005

The two major obstacles in the application of IPMC to flapping actuators operated in the air are solvent loss and actuation force. In this paper, solvent loss of various IPMCs made of Nafion$^{TM}$117(183$\mu$m thickness) has been experimentally investigated to find out the best combination of cation and solvent for minimal solvent loss in IPMCs and higher actuation force. For this purpose. experiments for the internal solvent loss measurement of IMPCs have been conducted for various combinations of cation and solvent. From the experiments, it was found that heavy water showed improvement in the operating time up to more than two minutes. in the tip force measurement of IPMCs, it was found that smaller and thicker IPMCs produced larger tip forces. However, the shorter IPMCs generated reduced actuation displacements and created flapping motion with decreased natural frequency. For the design of flapping device actuated by 5mm wide, 10mm long, 0.2mm thick IPMCs were used in the stacked form. Since the actuation force is a few gram-force, we stacked five IPMCs to improve actuation force. To amply the actuation force, rack-and-pin ion type hinge was used for the flapping device and insect (Cicadidae) wing was attached to the stacked IPMC actuator. In the flapping test, the device could generate flapping angle of 15$^{\circ}$ at 6Hz excitation by 2.5 voltage square wave input.

• The Journal of the Convergence on Culture Technology
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• v.8 no.5
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• pp.685-690
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• 2022

Recent research on soft adhesives has sought to understand in depth how their chemical or mechanical structures interact strongly with living tissues. The aim is to optimally address the unmet needs of patients with acute or chronic diseases. Synergy adhesion, which includes both electrostatic (hydrogen bonds) and mechanical interactions (capillary stress), appears to be effective in overcoming challenges related to long-term unstable bonds to wet surfaces. Here, we report electrostatic and mechanically synergistic mechanisms of adhesion without chemical residues. To infer the mechanism, a thermodynamic model based on custom combination adhesives has been proposed. The model supported experimental results that thermodynamically controlled swelling of hydrogels embedded in elastomeric structures improves biofluidic insensitive on-site adhesion to wet surfaces and improves detachment without chemical residues in the direction of peeling.

• Composites Research
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• v.20 no.3
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• pp.50-54
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• 2007

The Ionic Polymer Metal Composite (IPMC), an electro-active polymer, has many advantages including bending actuation, low weight, low power consumption, and flexibility. These advantages coincide with the requirements of a bio-related application. Thus, IPMC is promising materials for bio-mimetic actuator and sensor applications. Before applying IPMC to actual application, basic mechanical properties of IPMC should be studied in order to utilize IPMC for practical uses. Therefore, IPMCs are fabricated to investigate the mechanical characteristics. Nafion is used as a base ionic polymer. Mason samples cast with various thicknesses are used to test the thickness effects of IPMC. Subsequently, IPMC is fabricated using the chemical reduction method. The deformation, blocking force and frequency response of the IPMC actuator are important properties. In this present study, the performances of the IPMC actuators, including the deformation, blocking force and natural frequency, are then obtained according to only the input voltage and IPMC dimensions. Finally, the empirical performance model and the equivalent stiffness model of the IPMC actuator are established using experiments results.