• Advances in nano research
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• v.1 no.2
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• pp.71-82
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• 2013

A simple chemical precipitation technique is reported for the synthesis of a hybrid nanostructure of single-wall carbon nanotubes (SWCNT) and titania ($TiO_2$) nanocrystals of average size 5 nm, which may be useful as a prominent photocatalytic material with improved functionality. The synthesized hybrid structure has been characterized by transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM), energy-dispersive X-ray analysis (EDAX), powder X-ray diffractometry (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and Raman spectroscopy. It is clearly revealed that nearly monodispersed titania nanocrystals (anatase phase) of average size 5 nm decorate the surfaces of SWCNT bundles. The UV-vis absorption study shows a blue shift of 16 nm in the absorbance peak position of the composite material compared to the unmodified SWCNTs. The photoluminescence study shows a violet-blue emission in the range of 325-500 nm with a peak emission at 400 nm. The low temperature electrical transport property of the synthesized nanomaterial has been studied between 77-300 K. The DC conductivity shows semiconductor-like characteristics with conductivity increasing sharply with temperature in the range of 175-300 K. Such nanocomposites may find wide applications as improved photocatalyst due to transfer of photo-ejected electrons from $TiO_2$ to SWCNT, thus reducing recombination, with the SWCNT scaffold providing a firm and better positioning of the catalytic material.

• Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society
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• v.33 no.10
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• pp.3177-3183
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• 2012

The carbon nanofibers (CNFs) used in this study were synthesized with an iron catalyst and ethylene as a carbon source. A concentration of 30 wt % iron(III) acetylacetonate was dissolved in resol type phenol resin and polyurethane foam was put into the solution. The sample was calendered after being cured at $80^{\circ}C$ in air for 24 h. Stabilization and carbonization of the resol type phenol resin and reduction of the $Fe^{3+}$ were completed in a high-temperature furnace by the following steps: 1) heating to $600^{\circ}C$ at a rate of $10^{\circ}C/min$ with a mixture of $H_2/N_2$ for 4 h to reduce the $Fe^{3+}$ to Fe; 2) heating to $1000^{\circ}C$ in $N_2$ at a rate $10^{\circ}C/min$ for 30 minutes for pyrolysis; 3) synthesizing CNFs in a mixture of 20.1% ethylene and $H_2/N_2$ at $700^{\circ}C$ for 2 h using a CVD process. Finally, the structural characterization of the CNFs was performed by scanning electron microscopy and a synthesis analysis was carried out using energy dispersive spectroscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. Specific surface area analysis of the CNFs was also performed by $N_2$-sorption.

• Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society
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• v.31 no.2
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• pp.309-314
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• 2010

The surface modified $LiMn_2O_4$ materials with Li-Fe composites were prepared by a sol-gel method to improve the electrochemical performance of $LiMn_2O_4$ and were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), scanning electron microscopy-energy dispersive spectroscopy (SEM-EDS), and transmission electron microscopy (TEM)-EDS. XRD results indicate that all the samples (modified and pristine samples) have cubic spinel structures, and XRD, XPS, and TEM-EDS data reveal the formation of $Li(Li_xFe_xMn_{2-2x})O_4$ solid solution on the surface of particles. For the electrochemical properties, the modified material demonstrated dramatically enhanced reversibility and stability even at elevated temperature. These improvements are attributed to the formation of the solid solution, and thus-formed solid solution phase on the surface of $LiMn_2O_4$ particle reduces the dissolution of Mn ion and suppresses the Jahn-Teller effect.

• Proceedings of the Korean Vacuum Society Conference
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• 2016.02a
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• pp.272.2-272.2
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• 2016

Copper-Tin (CuSn) thin films were synthsized by rf magnetron co-sputtering method with pure Cu and Sn metal targets with various rf powers and sputtering times. The obtained CuSn thin films were characterized by a surface profiler (alpha step), X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), X-ray induced Auger electron spectroscopy (XAES), and contact angle measurement. The deposition rates were calculated by the thickness of CuSn thin films and sputtering times. We observed hexagonal Cu20Sn6 and cubic Cu39Sn11 phases from the films by XRD measurement. From the survey XPS spectra, the Cu and Sn main peaks were observed. Therefore, we could conclude CuSn thin films were successfully fabricated on the substrate in this study. The changes of oxidation states and chemical environment of the films were investigated with high resolution XPS spectra in the regions of Cu 2p, Cu LMM, and Sn 3d. Surface free energy (SFE) and wettability of the CuSn thin films were studied with distilled water (DW) and ethylene glycol (EG) using the contact angle measurement. The total SFE of CuSn thin films decreased as rf power on Cu target increased. The contribution to the total SFE of dispersive SFE was relatively superior to polar SFE.

• Journal of electromagnetic engineering and science
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• v.16 no.3
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• pp.150-158
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• 2016

This paper reports on a study of LiNiZn-ferrite composite as a radiation absorbent material (RAM). The electromagnetic (EM) wave absorbers are composed of an EM wave absorbing material and a polymeric binder. The surface morphology, chemical composition, weight percent of the ferrite composite of the toroid sample, magnetic properties, and return loss are investigated using field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), vibrating sample magnetometer (VSM), and network analyzer. For preparing the absorbing sheet, chlorinated polyethylene (CPE) is used as a polymeric binder. The EM wave absorption properties of the prepared samples were studied at 4 - 8 GHz. We can confirm the effects of the thickness of the samples for absorption properties. An absorption bandwidth of more than a 10-dB return loss shifts toward a lower frequency range along with an increase in the thickness of the absorber.

• Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society
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• v.25 no.2
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• pp.167-171
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• 2004

The electroless deposition of copper on the hydrogen-terminated Si(111) surface was investigated by means of attenuated total reflection Fourier transform infrared (ATR-FTIR) spectroscopy, scanning tunneling microscopy (STM), and energy-dispersive spectroscopy (EDS). The hydrogen-terminated Si(111) surface prepared was stable under air atmosphere for a day or more. It was found from ATR-FTIR that two bands centered at 2000 and 2260 $cm^{-1}$ appeared after the H-Si(111) surface was immersed in 40% $NH_4F$ solution containing 10 mM $Cu^{2+}$. On the other hand, STM image included the copper islands with a height of 5 nm and a diameter of 10-20 nm. The EDS data displayed the presence of copper, silicon and oxygen species. The results were rationalized in terms of the redox reaction of surface Si atoms and $Cu^{2+}$ ions in solutions, which are changed into $Si(OH)_x(F)_y$ containing $SiF_6^{2-}$ ions and neutral copper islands.

• Transactions on Electrical and Electronic Materials
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• v.15 no.6
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• pp.320-323
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• 2014

Ga-doped $LiFePO_4$ cathode materials were synthesized using a hydrothermal method. The microstructural characteristics and electrochemical performances were systematically investigated using field emission scanning electron microscopy, high-resolution X-ray diffraction, energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, charge-discharge cycling, cyclic voltammetry, and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy. Among the as-prepared samples, $LiFe_{0.96}Ga_{0.04}PO_4$ demonstrates the best electrochemical properties in terms of discharge capacity, electrochemical reversibility, and cycling performance with an initial discharge capacity of $125mAh\;g^{-1}$ and high lithium ion diffusion coefficient of $1.38{\times}10^{-14}cm^2s^{-1}$ (whereas for $LiFePO_4$, these were $113mAh\;g^{-1}$ and $8.09{\times}10^{-15}cm^2\;s^{-1}$, respectively). The improved electrochemical performance can be attributed to the facilitation of Li+ ion effective diffusion induced by $Ga^{3+}$ substitution.

• Proceedings of the KIEE Conference
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• 2009.07a
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• pp.1244_1245
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• 2009

Coating of amorphous nitride thin layers, such as boron nitride (BN) and carbon nitride (CN), has been performed on carbon nanotubes (CNTs) for the purpose of enhancing their electron-emission performances because those nitride films have relatively low work functions and commonly exhibit negative electron affinity behavior. The CNTs were directly grown on metal-tip (tungsten, approximately 500 nm in diameter at the summit part) substrates by inductively coupled plasma-chemical vapor deposition (ICP-CVD). Sharpening of the tungsten tips were carried out by electrochemical etching. Morphologies and microstructures of BN and CN films were analyzed by field-emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), energy dispersive x-ray (EDX) spectroscopy, and Raman spectroscopy. The electron-emission properties (such as maximum emission currents and turn-on fields) of the BN-coated and CN-coated CNT-emitters were characterized in terms of the thickness of BN and CN layers.

• Environmental Engineering Research
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• v.23 no.2
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• pp.164-174
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• 2018

Corrosion of copper alloys (copper, bronze and brass) in soil was evaluated at ambient temperature using various methods such as electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS), polarization curves and Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) coupled with Energy Dispersive Spectroscopy microanalysis measurements. Three equivalent circuits were separately used to interpret the obtained impedance spectra. The EIS measurements indicated that the polarization resistance of all electrodes increases with increasing the immersion time. SEM showed a presence of three layers of corrosion products with various composition and morphology covering each electrode. In addition, it was found that at 20% of moisture content the $R_p$ values and the current density of all electrodes in the studied soil give the following order: copper > bronze > brass. Good consistency between the data obtained from EIS and PP measurements was observed.

• Membrane and Water Treatment
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• v.11 no.2
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• pp.131-139
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• 2020

The current study focused on the preparation of low-cost PVC-based adsorbing membrane. Metakaolin, as available adsorbent, was embedded into the PVC matrix via solution blending method. The as-prepared PVC/metakaolin mixed matrix membranes were characterized using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS), attenuated total reflectance-Fourier transform infrared (ATR-FTIR) spectroscopy, atomic force microscopy (AFM), pure water permeability and contact angle measurements. The results confirmed the improvement of PWP and hydrophilicity due to the presence of metakaolin in the PVC matrix. Additionally the structure of PVC membrane was changed due to the incorporation of metakaolin in the polymer matrix. The static adsorption capacity of all samples was determined through dye removal. The effect of metakaolin dosage (0-7%) and pH (4, 8, 12) on dye adsorption capacity was investigated. The results depicted that the highest adsorption capacity was achieved at pH of 4 for all samples. Additionally, adsorption data were fitted on Langmuir, Freundlich, and Temkin models to determine the appropriate governing isotherm model. Finally, the dynamic adsorption capacity of the optimum PVC/metakaolin membrane was studied using dead-end filtration cell. The dye removal efficiency was determined for pure PVC and PVC/metakaolin membrane. The results demonstrated that PVC/metakaolin mixed matrix membrane had a high adsorption capacity for dye removal from aqueous solution.