• Journal of Nuclear Fuel Cycle and Waste Technology(JNFCWT)
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• v.14 no.1
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• pp.11-19
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• 2016

This paper focuses on the estimation of durability and service-life of reinforced concrete structures in Wolsong Low- and intermediate-level wastes Disposal Center (WLDC) in Korea. There are six disposal silos located in the saturated environment. The silo concrete is degraded due to reactions with groundwater and chemical attacks, and finally it will lose its properties as a transport barrier. The infiltration of sulfate and magnesium, leaching of potassium hydroxide, and chlorine induced corrosion are the most significant factors for degradation of reinforced concrete structure in underground environment. From the result of evaluation of the degradation time for each factor, the degradation rate of the reinforced concrete due to sulfate and magnesium is $1.308{\times}10^{-3}cm/yr$, and it is estimated to take 48,000 years for full degradation while potassium hydroxide is leached in depth of less than 1.5 cm at 1,000 years after the initiation of degradation. In case of chlorine induced corrosion, it takes 1,648 years to initiate corrosion in the main reinforced bar and 2,288 years to reach the lifetime limit of the structural integrity, and thus it is evaluated as the most significant factor.

• Journal of Korean Society on Water Environment
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• v.31 no.5
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• pp.476-481
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• 2015

Water permeable block was manufactured using waste sewage sludge, loess and clay for the purpose of recycling waste sludge due to the prohibition of waste sludge ocean dumping. Experiments for determining optimum mixing ratio was conducted by changing sludge content in water permeable block as 5~20%. In respect of compressive strength, $1,600N/cm^2$ ($163.3kg/cm^2$) was obtained when the mixing ratio of sludge : loess : clay were maintained by 5% : 65% : 30%, 10% : 65% : 25% and 15% : 65% : 20%, respectively. These mean that relatively high compressive strength can be obtained when the sludge content is maintained 5, 10, 15% at the 65% of loess content. In terms of water permeability and absorption rate, the higher values can be obtained as the sludge content increases. The optimum mixing ratio of sludge : loess : clay came out to be 15% : 65% : 20% when water permeability, absorption and strength were considered altogether, which matches the result observed by an electron microscope. The heavy metal leaching test result of the prepared permeable block appeared to satisfy the environmental standard in the content of Cd, Cu, Pb and As.

• Korean Journal of Soil Science and Fertilizer
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• v.44 no.4
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• pp.545-550
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• 2011

Urea intercalated into montmorillonite (MT) exhibits remarkably enhanced N use efficiency, maintaining its fast effectiveness. This study dealt with the release property of urea from metal-urea-clay hybrid with MT (MUCH) under continuous-flow conditions and the cumulative impacts of its successive application on physicochemical properties of soils. Releases of urea were completed within 4 hrs under continuous-flow condition regardless of the types and the leaching solutions. However, urea release property was significantly affected by both the form of fertilizer and the presence of electrolytes in solution. The fast release property of urea from MUCH in continuous-flow condition was not significantly affected by soil properties such as soil pH and soil texture. In addition, its successive application did not lead to any noticeable change in soil physicochemical properties, water stable aggregate rate, water holding capacity and cation exchange capacity in both sandy loam and clay loam soils. Therefore, this study strongly supported that urea intercalated into MT could be applied as fast-effective N fertilizer, in particular for additional N supply.

• Korean Journal of Chemical Engineering
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• v.35 no.12
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• pp.2421-2429
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• 2018

Thiol-based self-assembled anchor linked to glucose oxidase (GOx) and gold nanoparticle (GNP) cluster is suggested to enhance the performance of glucose biosensor. By the adoption of thiol-based anchors, the activity of biocatalyst consisting of GOx, GNP, polyethyleneimine (PEI) and carbon nanotube (CNT) is improved because they play a crucial role in preventing the leaching out of GOx. They also promote electron collection and transfer, and this is due to a strong hydrophobic interaction between the active site of GOx and the aromatic ring of anchor, while the effect is optimized with the use of thiophenol anchor due to its simple configuration. Based on that, it is quantified that by the adoption of thiophenol as anchor, the current density of flavin adenine dinucleotide (FAD) redox reaction increases about 42%, electron transfer rate constant ($k_s$) is $9.1{\pm}0.1s^{-1}$ and the value is 26% higher than that of catalyst that does not use the anchor structure.

• Environmental Engineering Research
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• v.24 no.1
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• pp.173-179
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• 2019

Prussian blue (PB) is known to be an effective material for radioactive cesium adsorption, but its nano-range size make it difficult to be applied for contaminated water remediation. In this study, a simple and versatile approach to immobilize PB in the supporting matrix via surface functionalization was investigated. The commercially available poly vinyl alcohol (PVA) sponge was functionalized by acrylic acid (AA) to change its major functional group from hydroxyl to carboxylic, which provides a stronger ionic bond with PB. The amount of AA added was optimized by evaluating the weight change rate and iron(III) ion adsorption test. The FTIR results revealed the surface functional group changing to a carboxyl group. The surface functionalization enhanced the attachment of PB, which minimized the leaching out of PB. The $Cs^+$ adsorption capacity significantly increased due to surface functionalization from 1.762 to 5.675 mg/g. These findings showed the excellent potential of the PB-PAA-PVA sponge as a cesium adsorbent as well as a versatile approach for various supporting materials containing the hydroxyl functional group.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.54 no.6
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• pp.1962-1971
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• 2022

The liquid lead-lithium (Pb-17Li) blanket has many applications in fusion reactors due to its good tritium breeding performance, high heat transfer efficiency and safety. The compatibility of liquid Pb-17Li alloy with the structural material of blanket under magnetic field is one of the concerns. In this study, corrosion experiments China low activation martensitic (CLAM) steel and 316L steel were carried out in a forced convection Pb-17Li loop under 1.0 T magnetic field at 480 ℃ for 1000 h. The corrosion results on 316L steel showed the characteristic with a superficial porous layer resulted from selective leaching of high-soluble alloy elements and subsequent phase transformation from austenitic matrix to ferritic phase. Then the porous layers were eroded by high-velocity jet fluid. The main corrosion mechanism of CLAM steel was selective dissolution-base corrosion attack on the microstructure boundary regions and exclusively on high residual stress areas. CLAM steel performed a better corrosion resistance than that of 316L steel. The high Ni dissolution rate and the erosion of corroded layers are the main causes for the severe corrosion of 316L steel.

• Journal of Soil and Groundwater Environment
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• v.27 no.4
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• pp.22-36
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• 2022

Cadmium is a class 1 carcinogen classified by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) and has a high potential for leaching into groundwater. Therefore, it is necessary to address cadmium contamination by employing adequate treatment methodologies. Although various methods have been suggested to reduce cadmium in groundwater, their applications often suffer from various limitation arising from heterogeneous field conditions and technical difficulties. In this work, several in-situ technologies to treat cadmium contaminated groundwater were reviewed and discussed by separately addressing physicochemical, chemical and biological methods. In particular, the optimum cadmium remediation strategies that involve physical removal of source area → physicochemical and chemical remediation → biological remediation were proposed by considering reduction efficiency, adsorption rate, economic feasibility and ease of field application in groundwater.

• Journal of The Geomorphological Association of Korea
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• v.18 no.1
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• pp.57-71
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• 2011

Granitic regolith profile in Goseong, southern Korea, reveals various types of corestones from unweathered round fresh rocks to decomposed rock cores with unweathered spheroidal rock-layers on outer surface, deep weathering profile with 10m in depth, and red saprolite usually cited as related to high temperature climatic environment. In respect of this optical features such as the depth and the color of the profile, Goseong granitic profile may be regarded as products of paleoclimate with more high temperature and humidity than the present. But it is revealed that halloysite is a predominant clay mineral in upper part as well as lower part by XRD analysis. Halloysite is dominant mineral in hydrothermal alteration milieu. The leaching rate of chemical components is up to 97%, very high compared to common granite profiles with 60~70% in Korean peninsula. So, it is assumed that granitic red regolith in Goseong is a product of hydrothermal alteration, not meteoric weathering.

• Food Science and Preservation
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• v.31 no.1
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• pp.46-63
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• 2024

This study evaluated the impact of storage temperature on the quality characteristics of texturized vegetable protein (TVP). TVP was prepared by mixing defatted Daewon soybean flour at 80℃, gluten, and corn starch in a 5:3:2 ratio, which was then extruded at a screw speed of 250 rpm and a barrel temperature of 190℃ with moisture addition at 9 rpm. Subsequently, the extruded TVP was vacuum-sealed in polyethylene packaging and stored at -20℃, 0℃, and 4℃ for 9 days. Texture analysis revealed that the curing rate followed 4℃ > 0℃ > -20℃ sequence. No significant color variation was observed across the storage conditions, although water content increased at all temperatures. Notable changes were detected in moisture absorption capacity (%) and solid leaching (%), following the order of -20℃ > 0℃ > 4℃. The turbidity of the solution released during cooking varied, with the highest to the lowest sequence being -20℃ > 4℃ > 0℃, while pH levels remained neutral. Regarding free amino acids, sweetness and textural quality improved with storage across all temperatures, whereas bitterness components diminished at 4℃. The study suggests that refrigerated storage at 4℃ is a viable method for distributing TVP, which was previously distributed only in a frozen and dry state.

• Journal of Nuclear Fuel Cycle and Waste Technology(JNFCWT)
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• v.3 no.4
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• pp.329-333
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• 2005

To identify the effect of engineered barriers on the leach rate of cesium from spent PWR fuel under a synthetic granitic groundwater, the related leach tests with and without bentonite or metals have been performed up to about 6 years. The leach rates were decreased as a function of leaching time and then became a constant after a certain period. The period in a bare spent fuel was much longer than that with bentonite or metal sheets. The cumulative fraction of cesium released from the spent fuel with bentonite or with copper and stainless steel sheets was steadily increased, but the fraction from bare fuel was rapidly and then sluggishly increased. However, the values deducted its gap inventory from the cumulative fraction of cesium released from the bare fuel was almost very close to the others. These suggest that the initial release of cesium from bare fuel might be dependant on its gap inventory and the effect of engineered barriers on the long-term leach rate of cesium would be insignificant but the rate with engineered barriers could be reduced in the initial transient period due to their retardation effect. And the long-term leach rate of cesium from spent fuel in a repository would be approached to a constant rate of $2\times10^{-2}g/m^2-day$.