• Transactions of the Korean hydrogen and new energy society
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• v.28 no.2
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• pp.156-165
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• 2017

This study quantitatively assessed the environmental impacts of fuel cell (FC) systems by performing life cycle assessment (LCA) and analyzed their energy efficiencies based on energy return on investment (EROI) and electrical energy stored on investment (ESOI). Molten carbonate fuel cell (MCFC) system and polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cell (PEMFC) system were selected as the fuel cell systems. Five different paths to produce hydrogen ($H_2$) as fuel such as natural gas steam reforming (NGSR), centralized naptha SR (NSR(C)), NSR station (NSR(S)), liquified petroleum gas SR (LPGSR), water electrolysis (WE) were each applied to the FCs. The environmental impacts and the energy efficiencies of the FCs were compared with rechargeable batteries such as $LiFePO_4$ (LFP) and Nickel-metal hydride (Ni-MH). The LCA results show that MCFC_NSR(C) and PEMFC_NSR(C) have the lowest global warming potential (GWP) with 6.23E-02 kg $CO_2$ eq./MJ electricity and 6.84E-02 kg $CO_2$ eq./MJ electricity, respectively. For the impact category of abiotic resource depletion potential (ADP), MCFC_NGSR(S) and PEMFC_NGSR(S) show the lowest impacts of 7.42E-01 g Sb eq./MJ electricity and 7.19E-01 g Sb eq./MJ electricity, respectively. And, the energy efficiencies of the FCs are higher than those of the rechargeable batteries except for the case of hydrogen produced by WE.

• Proceedings of the KAIS Fall Conference
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• 2010.11a
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• pp.482-482
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• 2010

하수처리장에서 발생하는 유기성 슬러지는 대부분 해양투기에 의해 처분되고 나머지는 매립, 소각, 퇴비화 등으로 처분된다. 그러나 런던협약 '96 의정서' 발효에 의해 2012년부터 해양투기가 금지되고, 매립장 및 소각장의 신규건설은 님비(NIMBY) 현상에 의해 제한받기 때문에 효과적인 슬러지 처분 및 가용화 방법이 요구되고 있다. 현재 초음파[1]나 열처리[2], 오존[3,4], 미생물 처리[5,6] 등 물리, 화학, 생물학적 처리방안이 연구되고 있으나 이러한 방법들은 에너지 과소비, 2차 오염물질 발생에 따른 처리비용 증가 등의 단점을 가지고 있다. 따라서 본 연구에서는 기존의 연구 방법을 보안하고자 전기분해를 활용하여 슬러지 가용화를 시도함으로써 슬러지 발생을 저감시킬 수 있는 방법을 연구하였다. 본 실험에서는 전기분해를 위해 제작된 불용성 전극은 Titanium에 Iridium을 코팅하여 제작하였고, 최대 20V까지 전압을 고정시키고 시간에 따라 변화되는 전류와 전기전도도, pH 값을 관찰하였다. 실험에 사용된 활성슬러지는 3개월간 합성폐수로 순응화 시킨 후에 시료로 사용하였다. 전기분해에 의해 처리된 활성슬러지의 여액을 분석한 결과 SCOD, TN, TP 농도가 각각 510%, 9%, 106% 증가하였다. 이는 전기분해에 의해 미생물의 세포벽이 파괴되어 세포 내 물질들이 세포 외부로 용출되어 미생물들의 이용이 가능한 상태로 되었음을 알 수 있었다. 이는 국내 하 폐수의 낮은 C/N비 때문에 무산소조에 메탄올 같은 외부 탄소원을 공급하는 대신에 별도의 탄소원 공급 없이 가용화 된 슬러지를 반송시킴으로써 슬러지 저감에 따른 폐기 비용과 운전비용의 절감을 기대할 수 있어, 근본적인 슬러지 발생을 저감시킬 수 있는 해결책이라 할 수 있다.

• Journal of Welding and Joining
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• v.32 no.3
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• pp.27-33
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• 2014

This paper presents a brief summary on a relatively new plasma aided electrolytic surface treatment process for light metals. A brief discussion regarding the advantages, principle, process parameters and applications of this process is discussed. The process owes its origin to Sluginov who discovered an arc discharge phenomenon in electrolysis in 1880. A similar process was studied and developed by Markov and coworkers in 1970s who successfully deposited an oxide film on aluminium. Several investigation thereafter lead to the establishment of suitable process parameters for deposition of a crystalline oxide film of more than $100{\mu}m$ thickness on the surface of light metals such as aluminium, titanium and magnesium. This process nowadays goes by several names such as plasma electrolytic oxidation (PEO), micro-arc oxidation (MOA), anodic spark deposition (ASD) etc. Several startups and surface treatment companies have taken up the process and deployed it successfully in a range of products, from military grade rifles to common off road sprockets. However, there are certain limitations to this technology such as the formation of an outer porous oxide layer, especially in case of magnesium which displays a Piling Bedworth ratio of less than one and thus an inherent non protective oxide. This can be treated further but adds to the cost of the process. Overall, it can be said the PEO process offers a better solution than the conventional coating processes. It offers advantages considering the fact that he electrolyte used in PEO process is environmental friendly and the temperature control is not as strict as in case of other surface treatment processes.

• Proceedings of the KIEE Conference
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• 2002.11a
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• pp.82-84
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• 2002

Dimensionally stable anode(DSA) can be used for the electrowinning of non-ferrous metal like as a Zn, and electrolysis of sea water. $MnO_2$ electrode satisfies the requirements of DSA, and has a good cycle life and a low overpotential for oxygen evolution. $MnO_2$ electrodes coated with DMF and PVDF based on Pb alloy produced at several compositions and dry temperatures. The viscosity of solvent used as a binder of $MnO_2$ powder increased with the increasing PVDF contents. When the ratio of PVDF to BMF with the 5 times dipping at the solution mixed with PVDF and DMF was 1/9, the coating thickness was $150{\mu}m$. When the ratio of PVDF to $MnO_2$ was lower than 1/6, the electrode didn't show any reaction irrespective of the concentrations of DMF. However, When the ratio of PVDF to $MnO_2$ was higher than 1/6, the electrode showed a constant current reactions and homogeneous cyclic voltammetry even though at a high cycle. The reason for the high current and homogeneous cyclic voltammetry is the good catalytic reactions of $MnO_2$ powder in electrode. The reactions of Pb electrode coated with $MnO_2$ and PVDF based on the pure Pb electrode.

• Applied Chemistry for Engineering
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• v.34 no.2
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• pp.180-185
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• 2023

To improve the efficiency of water electrolysis, it is essential to develop an oxygen evolution reaction (OER) electrocatalyst with high performance and long-term stability, accelerating the reaction rate of OER. In this study, a hollow metal-organic framework (MOF)-derived ruthenium-cobalt oxide catalyst was developed to synthesize an efficient OER electrocatalyst. As the synthesized catalyst increases the surface exposure of ruthenium, a low overpotential (386 mV) was observed at a current density of 10 mA/cm² with a low Tafel slope. It is expected to be able to replace noble metal catalysts by showing higher mass activity and stability than commercial RuO₂ catalysts.

• Korean Chemical Engineering Research
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• v.52 no.3
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• pp.347-354
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• 2014

Economic evaluation of the manufacturing technology of high-value chemicals through the carbonation reaction of carbon dioxide contained in the flue gas was performed, and analysis of the IRR (Internal Rate of Return) and whole profit along the production plan of the final product was conducted. Through a carbonation reaction with sodium hydroxide that is generated from electrolysis and by using carbon dioxide in the combustion gas that is generated in the power plant, it is possible to get a high value products such as sodium bicarbonate compound and also to reduce the carbon dioxide emission simultaneously. The IRR (Internal Rate of Return) and NPV (Net Present Value) methods were used for the economic evaluation of the process which could handle carbon dioxide of 100 tons per day in the period of the 20 years of plant operation. The results of economic evaluation showed that the IRR of baseline case of technology was 67.2% and the profit that obtained during the whole operation period (20 years) was 346,922 million won based on NPV value. When considering ETS due to the emissions trading enforcement that will be activated in 2015, the NPV was improved to a 6,000 million won. Based on this results, it could be concluded that this $CO_2$ carbonation technology is an cost-effective technology option for the reduction of greenhouse gas.

• Journal of Powder Materials
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• v.29 no.5
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• pp.411-417
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• 2022

Environmental issues such as global warming due to fossil fuel use are now major worldwide concerns, and interest in renewable and clean energy is growing. Of the various types of renewable energy, green hydrogen energy has recently attracted attention because of its eco-friendly and high-energy density. Electrochemical water splitting is considered a pollution-free means of producing clean hydrogen and oxygen and in large quantities. The development of non-noble electrocatalysts with low cost and high performance in water splitting has also attracted considerable attention. In this study, we successfully synthesized a NiCo₂O₄/NF electrode for an oxygen evolution reaction in alkaline water splitting using a hydrothermal method, which was followed by post-heat treatment. The effects of heat treatment on the electrochemical performance of the electrodes were evaluated under different heat-treatment conditions. The optimized NCO/NF-300 electrode showed an overpotential of 416 mV at a high current density of 50 mA/cm² and a low Tafel slope (49.06 mV dec^-1). It also showed excellent stability (due to the large surface area) and the lowest charge transfer resistance (12.59 Ω). The results suggested that our noble-metal free electrodes have great potential for use in developing alkaline electrolysis systems.

• Korean Chemical Engineering Research
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• v.52 no.2
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• pp.247-255
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• 2014

$La_{0.8}Sr_{0.2}CuO_3$ powder with the perovskite structure was prepared as electrode catalyst using citrate method. Porous electrode was made with as-prepared catalyst, carbon as supporter and polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) as hydrophobic binder. As results of potentiostatic electrolysis with potential of -1.5~-2.5 V vs. Ag/AgCl in 0.1, 0.5 and 1.0 M KOH at 5 and $10^{\circ}C$ on the porous electrode, liquid products were methanol, ethanol, 2-propanol and 1, 2-butanol regardless reaction temperature, while gas products were methane, ethane and ethylene at $5^{\circ}C$, and methane, ethane and propane at $10^{\circ}C$ respectively. Optimal potentials for $CO_2$ reduction in the view of over all faradic efficiency were high values (-2.0 and -2.2 V) for gas products whereas low potential (-1.5 V) for liquid products regardless of concentration and temperature.

• Clean Technology
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• v.7 no.3
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• pp.215-223
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• 2001

A present semiconductor cleaning technology is based upon RCA cleaning technology which consumes vast amounts of chemicals and ultra pure water(UPW) and is the high temperature process. Therefore, this technology gives rise to the many environmental issues, and some alternatives such as electrolyzed water(EW) are being studied. In this work, intentionally contaminated Si wafers were cleaned using the electrolyzed water. The electrolyzed water was generated by an electrolysis system which consists of three anode, cathode, and middle chambers. Oxidative water and reductive water were obtained in anode and cathode chambers, respectively. In case of NH4Cl electrolyte, the oxidation-reduction potential and pH for anode water(AW) and cathode water(CW) were measured to be +1050mV and 4.8, and -750mV and 10.0, respectively. AW and CW were deteriorated after electrolyzed, but maintained their characteristics for more than 40 minutes sufficiently enough for cleaning. Their deterioration was correlated with CO2 concentration changes dissolved from air. Contact angles of UPW, AW, and CW on DHF treated Si wafer surfaces were measured to be $65.9^{\circ}$, $66.5^{\circ}$ and $56.8^{\circ}$, respectively, which characterizes clearly the eletrolyzed water. To analyze the amount of metallic impurities on Si wafer surface, ICP-MS was introduced. It was known that AW was effective for Cu removal, while CW was more effective for Fe removal. To analyze the number of particles on Si wafer surfaces, Tencor 6220 were introduced. The particle distributions after various particle removal processes maintained the same pattern. In this work, RCA consumed about $9{\ell}$ chemicals, while EW did only $400m{\ell}$ HCl electrolyte or $600m{\ell}$ NH4Cl electrolyte. It was hence concluded that EW cleaning technology would be very effective for promoting environment, safety, and health(ESH) issues in the next generation semiconductor manufacturing.

• Transactions of the Korean hydrogen and new energy society
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• v.26 no.6
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• pp.524-531
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• 2015

To improve the electrochemical and mechanical characteristics, engineering plastic of the sulfonated polyether ether ketone (SPEEK) as polymer matrix was prepared in the sulfonation reaction of polyether ether ketone (PEEK). The SPEEK organic-inorganic blended composite membranes were prepared by sol-gel casting method. It was loaded with the highly dispersed ceria and cesium-substituted molybdosilicic acid (Cs-MoSiA) and 1,4-diiodobutane which was cross-linking agent contents of $10{\mu}L$. Cs-MoSiA was added to increase proton conductivity. Ceria ($CeO_2$) was used as a free radical scavenger which degrade the membrane in polymer electrolyte membrane water elctrolysis (PEMWE). In conclusion, CL-SPEEK/Cs-MoSiA/Ceria 1% composite membrane showed high proton conductivity 0.2104 S/cm at $25^{\circ}C$ which was better than Nafion 117 membrane.