• Membrane and Water Treatment
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• v.10 no.6
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• pp.461-469
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• 2019

In the present work, we present a new effective hydrophilicity modifier for polysulfone (PSf) membrane. Firstly, amphiphilic nanocellulose (ANC) with different substitution degrees (SD) was synthesized by esterification reaction with nanocellulose (NC) and dodecyl succinic anhydride (DDSA). The SD and morphology of ANC were characterized by titration method and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Then, the polysulfone (PSf)/ANC blend membranes were prepared via an immersion phase inversion method. The influence of SD on the morphology, structure and performances of PSf/ANC blend membrane were carefully investigated by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), scanning electron microscope (SEM), mechanical property test, contact angle measuring instrument and filtration experiment. The results showed that the mechanical property, hydrophilicity and anti-fouling property of all the PSf/ANC blend membranes were higher than those of pure PSf membrane and PSf/NC membrane, and the membrane properties were increased with the increasing of SD values. As ANC-4 has the highest SD value, PSf/ANC-4 membrane exhibited the optimal membrane properties. In conclusion, the prepared ANC can be used as an additive to improve the hydrophilicity and anti-fouling properties of polysulfone (PSf) membrane.

• Transactions on Electrical and Electronic Materials
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• v.18 no.3
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• pp.148-150
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• 2017

For the improvement of the anti-fouling features of porcelain electrical insulators, in this study, the surface of an insulator was coated with a functional material to expand the insulator's self-cleanness. The anti-fouling and mechanical features of the functional film coating of ceramic substrates made from components like an electrical insulator were analyzed. The coating methods that were used were spray coating, dip coating, and fabric coating. Following the coating, the contact angle of the coated surface was measured, revealing that the spray coating method offered the lowest angle ($13.7^{\circ}$) and a strong hydrophilic feature. The anti-fouling analysis showed that the anti-fouling features improved as the contact angle decreased. The mechanical properties - hardness and adhesion - were both excellent at 9H and 5B, respectively, regardless of the coating method that was used.

• The Transactions of the Korean Institute of Electrical Engineers P
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• v.66 no.2
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• pp.94-97
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• 2017

A method of improving the anti-fouling characteristics of porcelain insulators was proposed in this study. Functional coating was performed as a method of reducing the surface contamination of the porcelain insulators. The functional coating was applied on a ceramic substrate, which has the same material as the porcelain insulators. After coating the ceramic substrate 2, 3, 4, and 5 times alternately in the horizontal and vertical directions, the surface characteristics according to the thickness of the coating film were analyzed. The optimal process was selected to coat the surfaces of the post insulators and long rod insulators, which are the representative porcelain insulators. After coating, heat treatment was performed for 1 hour at $200^{\circ}C$ in a furnace to secure the durability of the coating film. Compared to the uncoated insulators, the insulators with the functional coating showed significantly improved anti-fouling characteristics as well as excellent adhesion to the coated insulator surface.

• Journal of Industrial and Engineering Chemistry
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• v.67
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• pp.199-209
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• 2018

Polyethersulfone (PES)/sulfonated $TiO_2$ ($STiO_2$) nanoparticles (NPs) UF blended membranes were fabricated with different loadings of $STiO_2$. The modified membranes exhibited significant improvement in surface roughness, porosity, and pore size when compared to the PES membrane. The $P-STiO_2$ 1 and $P-TiO_2$ 1 blended membranes exhibited higher water flux, approximately 102.4% and 62.6%, respectively, compared to PES. SPP-$STiO_2$ and $P-STiO_2$ showed lower Rir fouling resistance than the $P-TiO_2$ blended membrane. Overall, the $STiO_2$-blended membranes provide high hydrophilicity permeability, anti-fouling performance, and improved BSA rejection attributed to the hydrogen bonding force and more electrostatic repulsion properties of $STiO_2$.

• Membrane Journal
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• v.31 no.6
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• pp.434-442
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• 2021

Poly(vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF) membrane has a good membrane durability because of its high mechanical resistance, thermal and chemical stability. However, the strong hydrophobic property of PVDF membrane can induce a low water permeability and easy fouling by proteins and organic matters. In order to improve the anti-fouling properties of PVDF membrane, the PVDF mixed matrix asymmetric membranes impregnated with biofunctional material 𝛽-cyclodextrin (𝛽-CD) in the membrane structure were prepared by phase inversion method. The membrane filtration experiments of pure water and BSA solution were performed using the PVDF/𝛽-CD mixed matrix asymmetric membranes prepared according to the 𝛽-CD contents. The experiments showed that the introduction of 𝛽-CD into the PVDF polymer matrix contributed to increase in the hydrophilic property of the PVDF membranes, and this led to the reduction of contact angles and improvement of anti-fouling properties. The PVDF/𝛽-CD membrane which was prepared using the dope solution with a 2 wt% 𝛽-CD content represented 64 L/m²·h of pure water flux, 95% of BSA rejection and maximum 80% of flux enhancements compared to flux results of the pristine PVDF membrane.

• Membrane and Water Treatment
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• v.6 no.3
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• pp.205-224
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• 2015

A novel hydrophilic poly (vinylidene fluoride)/poly (p-phenylene terephthalamide) (PVDF/PPTA) blend membrane was prepared by in situ polycondensation of p-phenylene diamine (PPD) and terephthaloyl chloride (TPC) in PVDF solution with subsequent nonsolvent induced phase separation (NIPS) process. For comparison, conventional solution blend membrane was prepared directly by adding PVDF powder into PPTA polycondensation solution. Blend membranes were characterized by means of viscometry, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscopy (FESEM). The effects of different blending methods on membrane performance including water contact angle (WCA), mechanical strength, anti-fouling and anti-compression properties were investigated and compared. Stronger interactions between PVDF and PPTA in in situ blend membranes were verified by viscosity and XPS analysis. The incorporation of PPTA accelerated the demixing rate and caused the formation of a more porous structure in blend membranes. In situ blend membranes exhibited better hydrophilicity and higher tensile strength. The optimal values of WCA and tensile strength were $65^{\circ}$ and 34.1 MPa, which were reduced by 26.1% and increased by 26.3% compared with pure PVDF membrane. Additionally, antifouling properties of in situ blend membranes were greatly improved than pure PVDF membrane with an increasing of flux recovery ratio by 25%. Excellent anti-compression properties were obtained in in situ blend membranes with a stable pore morphology. The correlations among membrane formation mechanism, structure and performance were also discussed.

• Journal of the Korean Institute of Electrical and Electronic Material Engineers
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• v.23 no.11
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• pp.886-890
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• 2010

The polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) films are deposited on glass using conventional rf-magnetron sputtering method. Their hydrophobic properties are investigated for application as an anti-fouling coating layer on the screen of displays. It is found that the hydrophobicity of PTFE films largely depends on the sputtering conditions, such as Ar gas flow and deposition time during sputtering process. These conditions are closely related to the deposition rate or thickness of PTFE film. Thus, it is also found that the deposition rate or the film thickness affects sensitively the geometrical morphology formed on surface of the rf-spluttered PTFE films. In particular, the PTFE film with 1950 nm thickness deposited for 30 minute at rf-power 50 W shows a very excellent optical transmittance of over 90% and a good anti-fouling property and a good durability.

• Membrane and Water Treatment
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• v.9 no.6
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• pp.393-403
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• 2018

In this research commercial polyethersulfone (PES) membrane was modified using $TiO_2$ nanoparticles (P-25 Degussa) and further irradiated using UV light to overcome the hydrophobicity and fouling nature of the membrane. Further the membranes were characterized using SEM and FTIR. Contact angle measurements study confirmed the hydrophilic tendency of the modified membrane by decreasing the contact angle from $73^{\circ}$ to $20.28^{\circ}$. The modified membranes showed higher flux and better anti-fouling properties as compared to the unmodified counterparts. The optimum conditions were found to be 0.5 wt% $TiO_2$ loading with 60 min membrane immersion and 10 min UV light illumination. The effect of different pH conditions of feed was analysed. Real wastewater filtration experiments also indicated better performance of modified membranes as opposed to neat PES membranes.

• Corrosion Science and Technology
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• v.17 no.3
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• pp.123-128
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• 2018

The fabrication of a controlled surface is of great interest because it can be applied to various engineering facilities due to the various properties of the surface, such as self-cleaning, anti-bio-fouling, anti-icing, anti-corrosion, and anti-sticking. Controlled surfaces with micro/nano structures were fabricated using an ion beam focused onto a polypropylene (PP) surface with a fluoridation process. We developed a facile method of fabricating hydrophobic surfaces through ion beam treatment with argon and oxygen ions. The fabrication of low surface energy materials can replace the current expensive and complex manufacturing process. The contact angles (CAs) of the sample surface were $106^{\circ}$ and $108^{\circ}$ degrees using argon and oxygen ions, respectively. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy were used to determine the chemical composition of the surface. The morphology change of the surfaces was observed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The change of the surface morphology using the ion beam was shown to be very effective and provide enhanced optical properties. It is therefore expected that the prepared surface with wear and corrosion resistance might have a considerable potential in large scale industrial applications.

• Proceedings of the Membrane Society of Korea Conference
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• 2005.11a
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• pp.240-244
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• 2005