• Journal of Applied Biological Chemistry
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• v.54 no.1
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• pp.1-6
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• 2011

${\gamma}$-PGA(poly-${\gamma}$-glutamic acid) is an unusual anionic polypeptide that is made of D- and L-glutamic acid units connected by amide linkages between ${\alpha}$-amino and ${\gamma}$-carboxylic acid groups. ${\gamma}$-PGA has been isolated from many kinds of organisms. Many Bacillus strains produce ${\gamma}$-PGA as a capsular material of an extracellular viscous material. It is safe for eating as a viscosity element of fermented soybean products such as Chungkookjang and Natto. It is biodegradable, edible and nontoxic toward humans and the environment and its molecular weight varies from ten thousand to several hundred thousand depending on the kinds of strains used. Therefore, potential applications of ${\gamma}$-PGA and its derivatives have been of interest in the past few years in a broad range of industrial fields such as food, cosmetics, medicine, water-treatment, etc. In this study, a bacterium, Bacillus subtilis GS-2 isolated from the Korean traditional seasoning food, Chungkookjang could produce a large amount of ${\gamma}$-PGA with high productivity and had a simple nutrient requirement. Based on carbon utilization pattern and partial 16S rRNA sequence analysis, the GS-2 strain was identified as B. subtilis. The determination of purified ${\gamma}$-PGA was confirmed with thin layer chromatography (TLC), high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectra, and $^1H$-nuclear magnetic resonance ($^1H$-NMR) spectroscopy.

• Journal of the Korean Recycled Construction Resources Institute
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• v.9 no.3
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• pp.295-302
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• 2021

Surface modification of recycled plastic film-based aggregates is demonstrated to enhance the interaction between aggregates and cement paste. It is shown that the oxygen(O₂) atmospheric pressure plasma(APP) treatment leads to a drastic increase in hydrophilicity. In case of the plasma treatment at 100W of RF power, 15/4sccm of O₂/Ar flow rate and 30sec of discharging time, the water contact angle on the aggregates surface decreased from 104.5° to 44.0°. In addition, the contact angle of surface modified aggregates kept in air increased with time elapse. Improvement of hydrophilicity can be explained by the formation of new hydrophilic oxygen functional groups which is identified as C-OH, C-O-C, C=O, -COOH by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy(XPS) analysis and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy(FT-IR). Therefore, it can be concluded that the plasma treatment process is an effective method to improve adhesion of the recycled plastic film-based aggregates and cement paste.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.20 no.4
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• pp.86-92
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• 2019

Polymers with various compositions of azobenzene and hexamethylene groups in the main chain were synthesized by a Schotten-Baumann reaction and their properties were investigated. The chemical structures and physical properties of the synthesized polymers were investigated by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, proton nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, differential scanning calorimetry, thermogravimetric analysis, polarized optical microscopy, and x-ray diffraction. The polymers showed an inherent viscosity of 1.28-1.36 dl/g and were relatively insoluble in most organic solvents. The melt transition temperature increased rapidly with increasing number of azobenzene groups in the polymer. When the azobenzene monomer content was more than 50 mol%, no melting transition occurred below the decomposition temperature. Among the polymers with a melt transition temperature, the MP-A3C7 and MP-A5C5 polymers were liquid crystalline materials and exhibited a nematic phase with weak liquid crystallinity over a wide liquid crystal temperature range. This difference in the properties of the synthesized polymers is likely due to the changes in intermolecular forces resulting from the linearity and polarity of the trans-form of azobenzene.

• Applied Chemistry for Engineering
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• v.18 no.3
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• pp.205-212
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• 2007

In this work, polyacrylonitrile (PAN) fiber was prepared by electrospinning methods from dimethyl formamide solutions with various conditions, such as 8~20 kV applied voltage, 5~15 wt% PAN concentration, and 15 cm tip-to-collector distance (TCD). The nanofibers were stabilized by oxidation at $250^{\circ}C$ for 1 h, and then subsequently carbonized at $800{\sim}1000^{\circ}C$ for 1 h. The structured characteristics of the nanofibers before and after carbonization were studied by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. The resulting diameter distribution and morphologies of the nanofiber were evaluated by scanning electron microscope analysis. The electrochemical behaviors of the nanofiber were observed by cyclic voltammetry tests. From the results, the diameter of electrospinning nanofibers was predominantly influenced by the concentration of polymer solution and the applied voltage. The average diameter of the fibers was decreased with increasing the polymer concentration up to 10wt%. It was also found that the nanofibers with uniform diameter distribution and fine diameter could be achieved at 15kV input voltage and 15 cm TCD.

• Membrane Journal
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• v.28 no.2
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• pp.121-128
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• 2018

Terpolymers, which are chemical compounds composed of three different chemical compounds, have rarely been utilized for gas separation membranes. In this study, we demonstrate a simple process to fabricate a composite membrane for $CO_2/N_2$ separation based on a terpolymer synthesized from poly(2-[3-(2H-benzotriazol-2-yl)-4-hydroxyphenyl] ethylmethacrylate)(PBEM), poly(oxyethylene methacrylate)(POEM), and methyl methacrylate (MMA) via free radical polymerization. A solution of the as-synthesized PBEM-PMMA-POEM was coated onto a microporous polysulfone (PSf) support to form a composite membrane. The successful polymerization and the characteristics and morphology of the membrane were characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis, thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), and field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM). The gas permeance and $CO_2/N_2$ selectivity of the PBEM-PMMA-POEM terpolymer membrane were measured at $25^{\circ}C$. A maximum $CO_2/N_2$ selectivity of 30.2 was obtained at a $CO_2$ permeance of 57.4 GPU ($1GPU=10^{-6}cm^3$(STP)/($s\;cm^2\;cmHg$)).

• Proceedings of the Materials Research Society of Korea Conference
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• 2009.11a
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• pp.24.1-24.1
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• 2009

Tantalum carbo-nitride($T_aC_xN_y$) films were deposited with chemical vapor deposition(CVD) using tert-butylimido tris-diethylamido tantalum (TBTDET, $^tBu-N=Ta-(NEt_2)_3$, $Et=C_2H_5$, $^tBu=C(CH_3)_3$) between $350^{\circ}C$ and $600^{\circ}C$ with argon as a carrier gas. Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR)spectroscopy was used to study the thermal decomposition behavior of TBTDET in the gas phase. When the temperature was increased, C-H and C-N bonding of TBTDET disappeared and the peaks of ethylene appeared above $450^{\circ}C$ in the gas phase. The growth rate and film density of $T_aC_xN_y$ film were in the range of 0.1nm/min to 1.30nm/min and of $8.92g/cm^3$ to $10.6g/cm^3$ depending on the deposition temperature. $T_aC_xN_y$ films deposited below $400^{\circ}C$ were amorphous and became polycrystal line above $500^{\circ}C$. It was confirmed that the $T_aC_xN_y$ film was a mixture of TaC, graphite, $Ta_3N_5$, TaN, and $Ta_2O_5$ phases and the oxide phase was formed from the post deposition oxygen uptake. With the increase of the deposition temperature, the TaN phase was increased over TaC and $Ta_3N_5$ and crystallinity, work function, conductivity and density of the film were increased. Also the oxygen uptake was decreased due to the increase of the film density. With the increase of the TaC phase in $T_aC_xN_y$ film, the work function was decreased to 4.25eV and with the increase of the TaN phase in $T_aC_xN_y$ film,it was increased to 4.48eV.

• Proceedings of the Materials Research Society of Korea Conference
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• 2009.11a
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• pp.41.1-41.1
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• 2009

Aerosol Deposition (AD) is anovel way to fabricate bioactive ceramic coatings in biomedical implants and prostheses applications. In the present work, silicon-substituted hydroxyapatite (HA) coatings on commercially pure titanium were prepared by aerosol deposition using Si-HA powders. The incorporation of silicon in the HA lattice is known to improve the bioactivity of the HA, makingsilicon-substitute HA an attractive alternative to pure HA in biomedical applications. Si-HA powders with the chemical formula $Ca_{10}(PO_4)_6-x(SiO_4)x(OH)_2-x$, having silicon contents up to x=0.5 (1.4 wt%), were synthesized by solid-state reaction of $Ca_2P_2O_7$, $CaCO_3$, and $SiO_2$. The Si-HA powders were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray fluorescence spectrometry (XRF), and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy(FT-IR). The corresponding coatings were also analyzed by XRD, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and electron probe microanalyzer (EPMA). The results revealed that a single-phase Si-HA was obtained without any secondary phases such as $\alpha$- or $\beta$-tricalcium phosphate (TCP) for both the powders and the coatings.The Si-HA coating was about $5\;{\mu}m$ thick, had a densemicrostructure with no cracks or pores. In addition, the proliferation and alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity of MC3T3-E1 preosteoblast cells grown on the Si-HA coatings were significantly higher than those on the bare Ti and pure HA coating. These results revealed the stimulatory effects induced by siliconsubstitution on the cellular response to the HA coating.

• The Journal of Korean Medicine
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• v.33 no.1
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• pp.42-51
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• 2012

Objectives: We measured the density of smoke and harmful gases emitted from burning adhesive indirect moxa. Through the test we aimed to find out if there was an excessive amount of smoke emitted and if it included harmful gases. Methods: 9 types of adhesive indirect moxa were chosen. The buffer layers which do not burn during treatment were removed and 10g of each moxa were made into powder and put into a holder. A smoke density chamber (Smoke Density Chamber FTT. U.K) and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR I 4001. MIDAC U.S.A.) were used to measure the density of smoke and harmful gases emitted from burning moxa by ISO 5659-2 test. Results: The result of measuring maximum smoke density showed that the regular indirect adhesive moxa (A-F) emitted high density smoke of 172.1-291.4Ds. The smokeless moxas, Seoam moxas, emitted the least amount of 3.4-5.5Ds. Concentrations of 7 typical harmful gases (CO, HCl, HCN, HBr, HF, SO2, NOx) were measured and all of the moxas emitted CO due to incomplete combustion. 4 types of moxa emitted NOx and all smokless moxas emitted NOx. HBr, HCN, HCl, HF, SO2 were not found in any of the moxas. Conclusions: The amount of harmful gases emitted from burning moxa was much lower than short-term exposure standards of chemical and physical factors (Ministry of Labor 2010-44). Further experiments measuring gases from moxa combustion should be done in larger environments similar to normal medical clinics.

• Microbiology and Biotechnology Letters
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• v.46 no.2
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• pp.120-126
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• 2018

As a basic study for environment-friendly production of bacterial cellulose (BC) dressing with antimicrobial activity, we isolated and identified acetic acid bacteria which are resistant to silver ions and can biosynthesize silver nanoparticles. Furthermore, conditions of BC production by selected strain were also investigated. Strain G7 isolated from decayed grape skin was able to grow in the presence of 0.1 mM $AgNO_3$ which was identified as Acetobacter intermedius based on 16S rRNA gene analysis. BC production was the highest in a medium containing 2% glucose as a carbon source, 2% yeast extract as a nitrogen source, and 0.115% acetic acid as a cosubstrate. Structural properties of BC produced in optimal medium were studied using Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy and X-ray diffractometer, and it was found that BC produced was cellulose type I that was the same as a typical native cellulose. When strain G7 was cultured in an optimal medium containing 0.1 mM $AgNO_3$, the color of the culture broth turned into reddish brown, indicating that silver nanoparticles were formed. As a result of UV-Vis spectral analysis of the culture, it was found that a unique absorption spectrum of silver nanoparticles at 425 nm was also observed. Scanning electron microscopic observations showed that silver nanoparticles were formed on the surface and pores of BC membrane.

• Korean Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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• v.49 no.3
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• pp.301-309
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• 2016

To facilitate the effective use of butter clam shell as a natural calcium resource, we determined the optimal conditions for calcium lactate (BCCL) preparation with high solubility using response surface methodology (RSM). The polynomial models developed by RSM for pH, solubility and yield were highly effective in describing the relationships between factors (P<0.05). Increased molar ratios of calcined powder (BCCP) from butter clam shell led to reduced solubility, yield, color values and overall quality. The critical values of multiple response optimization to independent variables were 1.75 M and 0.94 M for lactic acid and BCCP, respectively. The actual values (pH 7.23, 97.42% for solubility and 423.22% for yield) under optimization conditions were similar to the predicted values. White indices of BCCLs were in the range of 86.70–90.86. Therefore, organic acid treatment improved color value. The buffering capacity of BCCLs was strong, at pH 2.82 to 3.80, upon the addition of less than 2 mL of 1 N HCl. The calcium content and solubility of BCCLs were 6.2–16.7 g/100 g and 93.6-98.5%, respectively. Fourier transform analysis of infrared spectroscopy data identified BCCL as calcium lactate pentahydrate, and the analysis of microstructure by field emission scanning electron microscopy revealed an irregular form.