• Journal of the Korea Concrete Institute
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• v.24 no.2
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• pp.165-172
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• 2012

In this study, the physical, mechanical, structural, and environmental performances based on field measured data were evaluated to check the suitability of concrete for ecological preservation and cultivation of a hydrophilic environment. More specifically, the study is focused on developing an environmentally friendly functional concrete with river ecology restoration and natural river early formation capabilities. The mechanical performance evaluation results showed that the increase in mix rate of the PVA (Poly Vinyl Alcohol) reinforcement fibers and silica fume caused an increase in the strength. The optimal mix rate was found to be 0.05 volume % PVA fiber and approximately 10% silica fume. The frost resistance evaluation showed that superior performance was gained when 0.05 volume % PVA fiber and 15% silica fume was mixed simultaneously. In the structural performance evaluation, the bending strength was improved by 47.7% compared to plain concrete when mixed with 0.05 volume % PVA fiber. The flexural toughness also saw significant improvement. The environmental monitoring of field performance showed that grasses germinated most rapidly, but the growth of red poppies, a plant that germinates in the spring, was most active with passing of time. Coverage measurements in all of the monitoring locations found favorable coverage of over 95% after 12 weeks. The study results showed that the environmentally friendly functional concrete had outstanding environmental performance.

• Polymer(Korea)
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• v.39 no.3
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• pp.370-381
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• 2015

In the system of poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA)/dimethyl sulfoxide, the refractive index of polymer was very well matched to that of solvent and thus its scattered intensity could be minimized. After adding small amount of polystyrene latex particle (nominal diameter 200 nm), diffusion behavior of only probe particle was investigated against the concentration of polymer matrix by means of dynamic light scattering. The polymer concentration dependence of its reduced diffusion coefficient was able to be analysed with the stretched exponential function of the reduced concentration $C[{\eta}]$. In very dilute concentration regime, the depletion layer kept constant but at the early semi-dilute regime of $1{\leq}C[{\eta}]{\leq}2.5$, the concentration-dependent exponent of depletion layer ${\delta}$ was appeared to be -0.8 which was very close to theoretical one of -0.85. However it was also observed at the higher concentration that its layer thickness decreased more abruptly than theoretical expectation and this phenomenon was ascribed to Oosawa type attractive interaction between adjacent latex particles.

• Korean Journal of Materials Research
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• v.22 no.11
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• pp.609-614
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• 2012

We report on the NO gas sensing properties of non-directional ZnO nanofibers synthesized using a typical electrospinning technique. These non-directional ZnO nanofibers were electrospun on an $SiO_2$/Si substrate from a solution containing poly vinyl alcohol (PVA) and zinc nitrate hexahydrate dissolved in distilled water. Calcination processing of the ZnO/PVA composite nanofibers resulted in a random network of polycrystalline ZnO nanofibers of 50 nm to 100 nm in diameter. The diameter of the nanofibers was found to depend primarily on the solution viscosity; a proper viscosity was maintained by adding PVA to fabricate uniform ZnO nanofibers. Microstructural measurements using scanning electron microscopy revealed that our synthesized ZnO nanofibers after calcination had coarser surface morphology than those before calcination, indicating that the calcination processing was sufficient to remove organic contents. From the gas sensing response measurements for various NO gas concentrations in dry air at several working temperatures, it was found that gas sensors based on electrospun ZnO nanofibers showed quite good responses, exhibiting a maximum sensitivity to NO gas in dry air at an operating temperature of $200^{\circ}C$. In particular, the non-directional electrospun ZnO nanofiber gas sensors were found to have a good NO gas detection limit of sub-ppm levels in dry air. These results illustrate that non-directional electrospun ZnO nanofibers are promising for use in low-cost, high-performance practical NO gas sensors.

• Macromolecular Research
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• v.17 no.12
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• pp.969-975
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• 2009

This article describes the topical delivery and localization of budesonide through the hairless mouse skin. Two poly(ethylene oxide)-block-poly($\varepsilon$-caprolactone)-block-poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO-PCL-PEO) triblock copolymers (T 222 and T 252) having different CL:EO ratios were added in the preparation of budesonide particles stabilized with poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) and Tween 80 under ultrasonication. For comparison, a commercial PEO-PPO-PEO triblock copolymer (F68) was studied under the same condition. To demonstrate the effects of the triblock copolymer, the particle size of budesonide emulsion, entrapment efficiency, and in vitro release were measured and compared. The budesonide particles stabilized by the triblock copolymers had a diameter of ca. 350 nm with entrapment efficiencies of 66-76%. The In vitro release profiles of all samples showed an initial burst followed by sustained release. The skin penetration and permeation of budesonide were analyzed by using a Frantz diffusion cell. T 222 and T 252 exhibited higher total permeation amounts, but lower budesonide penetration amounts, than F68. The results suggest that the partitioning of budesonide in each skin layer can be adjusted in order to avoid skin thinning and negative immune response arising from the penetration of budesonide in blood vessels.

• Clean Technology
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• v.28 no.1
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• pp.24-31
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• 2022

Petroleum-based plastics are used for various purposes and pose a significant threat to the earth's environment and ecosystem. Many efforts have been taken globally in different areas to find alternatives. As part of these efforts, this study manufactured alginate-based polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) blended films by casting from an aqueous solution prepared by mixing 10 wt% petroleum-based PVA with biodegradable, marine biomass-derived alginate. Glutaraldehyde was used as a cross-linking agent, and cardanol, an alkyl phenol-based bio-oil extracted from cashew nut shell, was added in the range of 0.1 to 2.0 wt% to grant antibacterial activity to the films. FTIR and TGA were performed to characterize the manufactured blended films, and the tensile strength, degree of swelling, and antibacterial activity were measured. Results obtained from the FTIR, TGA, and tensile strength test showed that alginate, the main component, was well distributed in the PVA by forming a matrix phase. The brittleness of alginate, a known weakness as a single component, and the low thermal durability of PVA were improved by cross-linking and hydrogen bonding of the functional groups between alginate and PVA. Addition of cardanol to the alginate-based PVA blend significantly improved the antibacterial activity against S. aureus and E. coli. The antibacterial performance was excellent with a death rate of 98% or higher for S. aureus and about 70% for E. coli at a contact time of 60 minutes. The optimal antibacterial activity of the alginate-PVA blended films was found with a cardanol content range between 0.1 to 0.5 wt%. These results show that cardanol-containing alginate-PVA blended films are suitable for use as various antibacterial materials, including as food packaging.

• Textile Coloration and Finishing
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• v.28 no.2
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• pp.101-108
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• 2016

Polypropylene(PP)/multiwalled carbon nanotubes(MWCNT) nanocomposites films and PP/poly(vinyl alcohol)/CNT nanocomposites films were prepared through melt mixing method by the extruder. The PP/CNT nanocomposites films, which contain CNT of a variable content, were prepared for the first time and research on a appropriate content of the CNT on the PP/CNT nanocomposites films was conducted. The effects of take-up speed of the extruder on the mechanical and chemical properties of the PP/CNT and PP/PVA/CNT nanocomposites film were studied. Field emission scanning electron microscope(FE-SEM) was used to examine the surface morphology and the DSC measurement and tensile test were conducted. It was found that the properties decreased when take-up speed was increased.

• Proceedings of the Korea Concrete Institute Conference
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• 2005.05b
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• pp.321-324
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• 2005

This paper presents a preliminary study on the influence of material ductility on diagonal tension behavior of shear-wall panels. There have been a number of previous studies, which suggest that the use of high ductile material such as ECC (Engineered Cementitious Composite) significantly enhanced shear capacity of structural elements even without shear reinforcements involved. The present study emphasizes increased shear capacity of shear-wall panels by employing a unique strain-hardening ECC reinforced with poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) short random fibers. Normal concrete was adopted as the reference material. Experimental investigation was performed to assess the failure mode of shear-wall panels subjected to knife-edge loading. The results from experiments show that ECC panels exhibit a more ductile failure mode and higher shear capacity when compared to ordinary concrete panels. The superior ductility of ECC was clearly reflected by micro-crack development, suppressing the localized drastic fracture typically observed in concrete specimen. This enhanced structural performance indicates that the application of ECC for a in-filled frame panel can be effective in enhancing seismic resistance of an existing frame in service.

• Textile Coloration and Finishing
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• v.16 no.5
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• pp.28-34
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• 2004

The polarizing film application exploits the unique physicochemical properties between PVA(Poly vinyl alcohol) film and CTA(Cellulose triacetate) film. However, hardly any research was aimed at improving the adhesion characteristics of the CTA film by radio frequency(RF) plasma treatment at argon(Ar) gaseous state. In this report, we deal with surface treatment technology for protective CTA film developed specifically for high adhesion applications. After Ar plasma, surface of the films is analyzed by atomic force microscopy(AFM), roughness parameter and peel strength. Furthermore, the wetting properties of the CTA film were studied by contact angle analysis. Results obtained for CTA films treated with a glow discharge showed that this technique is sensitive to newly created physical functions. The roughness and peel strength value increased with an increase in treatment time for initial treatment, but showed decreasing trend for continuous treatment time. The result of contact angle measurement refer that the hydrophilicity of surface was increased. AFM studies indicated that no considerable change of surface morphology occurred up to 3 minutes of treatment time, but a considerable uneven of surface structure resulted from treating time after 5 minutes.

• Journal of Soil and Groundwater Environment
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• v.23 no.6
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• pp.82-89
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• 2018

The objective of this study is to evaluate efficiencies of chemical suppressants for control of fugitive dust in ash pond of thermal power plant. In this study, $MgCl_2$, PAM (polyacrylamide), and PVA (poly vinyl alcohol) that are generally applied to suppression of fugitive dust generated from unpaved road, coal mining, storage piles and etc, were employed as chemical dust suppressants. The coal ash (coal combustion residuals) were sampled from the ash pond of Yeongheung power division in Incheon, South Korea. The characterization of the sample including particle size distribution, pH, $pH_{PZC}$ and pore volume as well as XRF analysis were carried out. The suppressant treated-samples were investigated with the wind tunnel experiments to estimate and compare the effect of suppressants on stabilization of the surface of coal ash samples. According to the results, the stability of suppressant-treated samples were significantly improved compared to water-treated samples. Among the three kinds of suppressants, PAM and PVA showed higher efficiencies and cost saving than $MgCl_2$.

• Analytical Science and Technology
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• v.19 no.6
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• pp.482-489
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• 2006

Two electrode-based lactate biosensor was prepared by immobilizing lactate oxidase (LOD) obtained from pediococcus species in a poly(vinyl alcohol). Hydrogen peroxide ($H_2O_2$) produced by the reaction of lactate and LOD was detected on the Pt-black that was electrochemically deposited on the Au electrode. Sensors fabricated with Pt-black deposited Au electrode provided a high current of $H_2O_2$ oxidation at a substantially lowered applied potential (+300 mV vs. Ag/AgCl), resulting in reduced interferences from easily oxidizable species such as ascorbic acid, acetaminophen, and uric acid. An outer membrane is formulated by adjusting water uptake of hydrophilic polyurethane (HPU). The sensor performance was evaluated in vitro with both flow-through arrangement and static mode. The sensor showed a linear range from 0.1 mM to about 9.0 mM in 0.05 M phosphate buffer (pH 7.6) containing 0.05 M NaCl. Storing the sensors prepared in this work at $4^{\circ}C$ buffer solution while not in use, they provided same electrochemical performance for more than 25 days.