• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.55 no.4
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• pp.1540-1554
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• 2023

To use nuclear energy sustainably, spent nuclear fuel, classified as high-level radioactive waste and inevitably discharged after electricity generation by nuclear power plants, must be managed safely and isolated from the human environment. In Korea, the land area is limited and the amount of high-level radioactive waste, including spent nuclear fuels to be disposed, is relatively large. Thus, it is particularly necessary to maximize disposal efficiency. In this study, a high-efficiency deep geological repository concept was developed to enhance disposal efficiency. To this end, design strategies and requirements for a high-efficiency deep geological repository system were established, and engineered barrier modules with a disposal canister for pressurized water reactor (PWR)-type and pressurized heavy water reactor type Canada deuterium uranium (CANDU) plants were developed. Thermal and structural stability assessments were conducted for the repository system; it was confirmed that the system was suitable for the established strategies and requirements. In addition, the results of the nuclear safety assessment showed that the radiological safety of the new system met the Korean safety standards for disposal of high-level radioactive waste in terms of radiological dose. To evaluate disposal efficiency in terms of the disposal area, the layout of the developed disposal areas was assessed in terms of thermal limits. The estimated disposal areas were 2.51 km² and 1.82 km² (existing repository system: 4.57 km²) and the excavated host rock volumes were 2.7 Mm³ and 2.0 Mm³ (existing repository system: 4.5 Mm³) for thermal limits of 100 ℃ and 130 ℃, respectively. These results indicated that the area and the excavated volume of the new repository system were reduced by 40-60% compared to the existing repository system. In addition, methods to further improve the efficiency were derived for the disposal area for deep geological disposal of spent nuclear fuel. The results of this study are expected to be useful in establishing a national high-level radioactive waste management policy, and for the design of a commercial deep geological repository system for spent nuclear fuels.

• Applied Chemistry for Engineering
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• v.24 no.2
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• pp.165-170
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• 2013

An external gelation method in place of an internal gelation method applied to the fabrication process of an intermediated compound of Uranium Oxy-Carbide (UCO) kernel spheres for Very High Temperature Reactor (VHTR) fuel preparation is under development in Korea. For the preliminary experiments of the UCO kernel sphere preparation using an external gelation method, the carbon black dispersion experiments were carried out using a simulated broth solution. From the selection experiments of various kinds of carbon black through dispersion experiments in a viscous metal salt solution, Cabot G carbon black was selected owing to its dispersion stability, and the homogeneous dispersing state of carbon black particles in our system. For the effective dispersion of nano-size aggregated carbon black particles in a high viscous liquid, the carbon black particles in a metal salt solution were first de-aggregated with ultrasonic force. The mixed solution was then dispersed secondly by the use of the extremely high-speed agitation with a mechanical mixer of 6000 rpm after feeding the Poly Vinyl Alcohol (PVA) in the solution. This results in the broth solution with good stability and homogeneity alongside no further changes in physical properties.

• Applied Chemistry for Engineering
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• v.24 no.3
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• pp.279-284
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• 2013

In this study, the feasibility of a single-stage thermophilic aerobic process for the treatment of high-strength food wastewater produced from the recycling process of food wastes was examined to substitute anaerobic digestion process. Also, the removal and stability of thermophilic aerobic process were assessed according to the changes of hydraulic retention times (HRTs) and organic loading rates (OLRs). When the OLR increased from 9.2 to $37.2kgCOD/m^3d$, a pH value in R1 (HRT : 5 d) significantly decreased to 5.0, due to the organic acid accumulation. On the other hand, the pH value in R2 (HRT : 10 d) was stable and R2 showed the high removal of COD, organic acid and lipid, even though the OLR increased from 4.6 to $18.6kgCOD/m^3d$. In R1, the COD loading rates for COD removal was suddenly dropped, as the COD loading rate increased from 18.6 to $28.4kgCOD/m^3d$. In contrast, R2 showed that the COD loading rates for COD removal increased with regard to increment in the loading rates of 3.61, 7.05, 9.43 and $12.2kgCOD/m^3d$, indicative of the high COD removal efficiency. Therefore, the results demonstrated that over 10-d HRT, the high concentration of raw food wastewater was efficiently treated in the single-stage thermophilic aerobic process.

• Journal of Soil and Groundwater Environment
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• v.13 no.3
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• pp.52-58
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• 2008

Mn-impregnated activated carbon (Mn-AC) prepared at different conditions was applied in the treatment of synthetic wastewater containing both organic and inorganic contaminants. Phenol and As(III) was used as the representative organic and inorganic contaminants, respectively. After evaluation of the physicochemical characteristic and stability of Mn-AC, oxidation of As(III) as well as adsorption of phenol by activated carbon(AC) and Mn-AC were investigated in a batch reactor. To investigate the stability of Mn-AC, dissolution of Mn from each Mn-AC was measured pH ranging from 2 to 4. Although Mn-AC was unstable at a strong acidic condition, the dissoluted Mn was below 3 ppm at pH 4. XRD analysis of Mn-AC indicated that the mineral type of the impregnated manganese was $Mn_2O_3$. From the simultaneous treatment of As(III) and phenol by AC and Mn-AC, As(III) oxidation by Mn-AC was greater than that by AC at lower pH, while the reverse order was observed at higher pH. After impregnation of Mn onto AC, 13% decrease of the surface area was observed, causing 8% reduction of phenol removal. Considering removal properties of As(III) and phenol, Mn-AC could be applied in the simultaneous treatment of wastewater contaminated with multi-contaminants.

• Clean Technology
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• v.25 no.1
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• pp.1-6
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• 2019

Effects of the Cu and K addition and the reduction condition of Fe-based catalysts for Fischer-Tropsch reaction are studied in a continuous flow reactor in this research. The catalysts for the reaction were prepared by homogeneous precipitation followed by incipient wetness impregnation. Physicochemical properties of the $Al_2O_3$ supported Fe-based catalysts are characterized by various methods including X-ray diffraction (XRD), temperature programmed reduction (TPR), and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Catalytic activities and stabilities of the Fe/Cu/K catalyst are investigated in time-on-stream for an extended reaction time over 216 h. It is found that a reduction of the catalysts using a mixture of CO and $H_2$ can promote their catalytic activities, attributed to the iron carbides formed on the catalysts surface by X-ray diffraction analysis. The addition of Cu induces a fast stabilization of the reaction reducing the time to reach at the steady state by enhancement of catalytic reduction. The addition of K to the catalysts increases the CO conversion, while the physical stability of catalyst decreases with potassium loading up to 5%. The Fe/Cu (5%)/K (1%) catalyst shows an enhanced long term stability for the Fischer-Tropsch reaction under the practical reaction condition, displaying about 15% decrease in the CO conversion after 120 h of the operation.

• Journal of Wetlands Research
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• v.23 no.1
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• pp.60-66
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• 2021

As the concentration of nitrogen in the sewage flowing into the sewage treatment plant increases due to urbanization and industrialization, the degree of adverse effects such as eutrophication and toxicity to the aquatic ecosystem is also increasing. In order to treat sewage containing high concentration of nitrogen, various studies on the biological nitrogen removal process are being conducted. Existing biological nitrogen removal processes require significant costs for supplying oxygen and supplementing external carbon sources. In this respect, as a high-level nitrogen removal process with economic improvement is required, an anaerobic ammonium oxidation process (ANAMMOX), which is more efficient and economical than the existing nitrification and denitrification processes, has been proposed. The purpose of this study is to confirm the stability of the ANAMMOX process in the water treatment process and to derive the ratio of ammonia nitrogen (NH4+) to nitrite nitrogen (NO2-) for the implementation of the mainstream ANAMMOX process. A laboratory-scale Mainstream ANAMMOX reactor was operated by applying the ratio calculated based on the substrate ratio suggested in the previous study. In the initial range, the removal efficiency of NH4+ was 58~86%, and the average removal efficiency was 70%. In the advanced range, the removal efficiency of NH4+ was 94~99%, and the average removal efficiency was 95%. As a result of the study, as the NH4+/NO2- ratio increased, the stability of the mainstream ANAMMOX process was secured, and it was confirmed that the NH4+ removal efficiency and the total nitrogen (TN) removal efficiency increased. As a result, the results of this study are expected to be used as basic data in the application of the ANAMMOX process in the mainstream.

• Korean Chemical Engineering Research
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• v.52 no.5
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• pp.678-687
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• 2014

The catalytic performance of silicon carbide supported nickel catalysts modified with or without second metal (Co, Cu and Zn) for the methanation of CO has been investigated in a fixed-bed reactor using a feed consisting of 25% CO and 75% $H_2$ without any diluent gas. It has been found that the introduction of Co species can clearly improve the catalytic activity of Ni/SiC catalyst, whereas the addition of Cu or Zn can result in a significant decrease in the catalytic activity. The characterizations by means of XRD, TEM, XPS, CO-TPD and $H_2$-TPR indicate that the addition of Co could decrease the particle size of active metal, increase active sites on the surface of methanation catalyst, improve the chemisorption of CO and enhance the reducibility of methanation catalysts. Additionally, the special interaction between Co species and Ni species is likely favorable for the dissociation of adsorbed CO on the surface of catalyst, and this may also contribute to the high activity of 5Co-Ni/SiC catalyst for CO methanation reaction. For 5Cu-Ni/SiC catalyst and 5Zn-Ni/SiC catalyst, Cu and Zn species could cover partial nickel particles and decrease the chemisorption amount of CO. These could be responsible for the low methanation activity. In addition, a 150h stability test under 2 MPa and $300^{\circ}C$ showed that 5Co-Ni/SiC catalyst was very stable for CO methanation reaction.

• Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society
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• v.31 no.2
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• pp.415-418
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• 2010

Highly ordered mesoporous silver material was successfully synthesized from a mesoporous silica template (KIT-6) with 3-D channel structure using the nano-replication method. The effects of $H_2$ or $O_2$ pretreatments on the catalytic performance of the mesoporous silver were investigated using a temperature programmed CO oxidation technique in a fixed bed reactor. The mesoporous silver material that was pretreated with $H_2$ exhibited an excellent catalytic activity compared to the as-prepared and $O_2$-pretreated catalysts. Moreover, this present mesoporous silver material showed good catalytic stability. For the CO oxidation, the apparent activation energy of the $H_2$-pretreated mesoporous silver catalyst was $61{\pm}0.5\;kJ\;mol^{-1}$, which was also much lower than the as-prepared ($132{\pm}1.5\;kJ\;mol^{-1}$) and $O_2$-pretreated ($124{\pm}1.4\;kJ\;mol^{-1}$) catalysts.

• KSBB Journal
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• v.23 no.3
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• pp.213-218
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• 2008

The present study was to investigate the continuous production of alcohol using immobilized carrier manufactured by polymeric materials. Fermentation runs with a crushed rice, with constituents recovered from batch culture and with ones from continuous culture were thus compared. The performances of immobilized carrier were governed by sandwitched synthetic polymers, the evolution of the continuous culture was steadily governed by the production of alcohol in the lag time of batch culture. The main focus was set on the enhancement of the alcohol production by an newly-developed polymeric forms. This polymeric form led to a drastic increase of the microorganism and the production cost in the continuous reactor was thereby reduced. The sandwitched polymeric-formed carrier, which was resistant to external environments, serves as an interesting alternative to maintain the stability of biological process. These whole results were discussed with the aim to better understand the continuous process implied in the microorganism's build-up during cultivation of fermentation broth.

• Applied Chemistry for Engineering
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• v.7 no.5
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• pp.832-842
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• 1996

TAME synthesis was studied in a fixed bed reactor with 3 different types of exchanged resins i.e, Amberlyst-15, Amberlyst-15(wet) and Amberlyst XN-1010. Amberlyst-15 has highest activity, presumably due to the higher reaction participation of the inner active sites of gel shape microparticular resin structure. The optimum reaction conditions for TAME synthesis were found as follows ; reaction temperature of $135^{\circ}C$, molar ratio(MeOH/I.A.A) of 1.0~4.0 and W/F of 2.0~4.0 gr.-cat. hr/gr.-mole. The cross-linking bond of styrene divinyl benzene was observed at $2{\theta}=20$ in XRD pattern. The DSC analysis showed that the thermal stability was in order of Amberlyst-15>Amberlyst-15(wet)>Amberlyst XN-1010. The apparent activation energies of TAME synthesis reaction with Amberlyst-15, Amberlyst-15(wet) and Amberlyst XN-1010 were 12.36, 12.46 and 14.72 kcal/mole, respectively.