• Korean Chemical Engineering Research
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• v.56 no.6
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• pp.901-908
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• 2018

Graphite is used as a sample anode active material. However, since the maximum theoretical capacity is limited to $372mA\;h\;g^{-1}$, a new anode active material is required for the development of a high capacity lithium ion battery. The maximum theoretical capacity of Si is $4200mA\;h\;g^{-1}$, which is higher than that of graphite. However, it is not suitable for direct application to the anode active material because it has a volume expansion of 400%. In order to minimize the decrease of the discharge capacity due to the volume expansion, the Si was pulverized by the dry method to reduce the mechanical stress and the volume change of the reaction phase, and the change of the volume was suppressed by coating the carbon layers to the particle size controlled Si particles. And carbon fiber is grown like a thread on the particle surface to control secondary volume expansion and improve electrical conductivity. The physical and chemical properties of the materials were measured by XRD, SEM and TEM, and their electrochemical properties were evaluated. In this study, we have investigated the synthesis method that can be used as anode active material by improving cycle characteristics of Si.

• 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 Nuclear Fuel Cycle and Waste Technology(JNFCWT)
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• v.17 no.1
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• pp.59-73
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• 2019

A decontamination technology for radioactive liquid wastes was newly developed and hypothetically applied to the liquid waste management system (LWMS) of the nuclear power plant (NPP) to evaluate its decontamination efficacy for the purpose of the fundamental reduction of spent resins. The basic principle of the developed technology is to convert major radionuclide ions in the liquid wastes into inorganic crystal minerals via chemical or biological techniques. In a laboratory batch experiment, the biological method selectively removed more than 80% of cesium within 24 hours, and the chemical method removed more than 95% of cesium. Other major nuclides (Co, Ni, Fe, Cr, Mn, Eu), which are commonly present in nuclear radioactive liquid wastes, were effectively scavenged by more than 99%. We have designed a module including the new technology that could be hypothetically installed between the reverse osmosis (R/O) package and the organic ion-exchange resin in the LWMS of the APR1400 reactor. From a technical evaluation for the virtual installation, we found that more than 90% of major radionuclides in the radioactive liquid wastes were selectively removed, resulting in a large volume reduction of spent resins. This means that if the new technology is commercialized in the future, it could possibly provide drastic cost reduction and significant extension of the life of resins in the management of spent resins, consequently leading to delay the saturation time of the Wolsong repository.

• Journal of the Computational Structural Engineering Institute of Korea
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• v.34 no.3
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• pp.167-174
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• 2021

Recent investigation into the integrity of nuclear containment buildings has highlighted the importance of developing an elaborate diagnostic method to evaluate the distribution and size of cavities inside concrete walls. As part of developing such a method, this paper presents a finite element approach to modeling elastic waves propagating in the containment building walls of a nuclear power plant. We introduce a perfectly matched layer (PML) wave-absorbing boundary to limit the large-scale nuclear containment wall to the region of interest. The formulation results in a semi-discrete form with symmetric damping and stiffness matrices. The transient elastic wave equations for a mixed unsplit-field PML were solved for displacement and stresses in the time domain. Numerical results show that the sensitivity of displacement, velocity, acceleration, and stresses is large depending on the size and location of the cavity. The dynamic response of the wall slightly differs depending on the existence of the containment liner plate. The results of this study can be applied to a full-waveform inversion approach for characterizing cavities inside a containment wall.

• 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.

• Journal of Adhesion and Interface
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• v.24 no.3
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• pp.77-85
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• 2023

In this research, polymeric anionic surfactants having various molecular weights and acid values were synthesized using a continuous stirred tank reactor (CSTR). The CSTR has an advantage of higher production rate and more constant product properties compared to batch and semi-batch reactors. The polymeric surfactants were made using butyl acrylate as a hydrophobic group and acrylic acid as a hydrophilic group. The synthesized polymeric surfactants were ionized with alkali solution and were used as an anionic surfactant. To investigate the properties as a surfactant, the properties of the synthesized surfactant, such as acid value, critical micelle concentration (CMC) and molecular weight, were measured. The results showed that the acid values of the polymeric surfactants were 60 to 380 and a number average molecular weight were 8,000 to 13,000 g/mol. Also, it was found that the CMC was around 0.01 g/ml, which showed similar level values with ordinary surfactant. To prove the performance of the polymeric surfactant, acrylic emulsion PSAs were synthesized using the acquired polymeric surfactant. The results showed that the maximum peel strength of 21.24 N/25mm when acid value was 150 and molecular weight was 8,500 g/mol. The values of peel strength and initial tack of acrylic emulsion PSAs using polymeric surfactant synthesized in this study showed much higher than those of reference PSAs synthesized using ordinary anionic surfactant, SDS (Sodium Dodecyl Sulfate) and SDS/TRX (Triton X-100).

• Journal of the Korea Organic Resources Recycling Association
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• v.32 no.2
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• pp.37-48
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• 2024

Wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) are obligated to reduce carbon emissions as a part of public sector greenhouse gas (GHG) emission reduction targets. However, Sewage Statistics(2022) shows that CO₂ emissions per wastewater treatment volumes have decreased by only 3.03 % compared to 2020, which is far from enough to meet the Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) targets. This study aimed to find operational conditions of biological reactors that minimize total carbon footprint (CFP). Total CFP considers both direct emissions from biological processes and indirect emissions from energy consumption. A study was conducted using a computer simulation program which is called as EQPS for a 4-stage BNR WWTP. The results showed that total CFP was reduced by 10.97% compared to the design condition when the mixed liquor recirculation (MLR) was set to 100 % of the influent flow. The N₂O emission factor (EF) of the target WWTP was calculated to be 0.138-0.199 %, which is significantly lower than the IPCC default value of 1.6 %. This study proposes a method to minimize total CFP in WWTPs by optimizing biological reactor operation and emphasizes the need for further research on N₂O emission reduction.

• The Sea:JOURNAL OF THE KOREAN SOCIETY OF OCEANOGRAPHY
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• v.11 no.4
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• pp.165-171
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• 2006

This is the research to prepare a purification program for relatively less polluted stream by using phytoremediation. We calculated a treatment amount of nutrients followed by growth of Helianthus annuus (a kind of sunflower), setting up the plant reactor in the hothouse. Moreover, to investigate a field applicability, we could find increased contents of nitrogen, carbon and hydrogen in plants by setting up a H. annuus planted artificial floating island in an irrigation canal. When we changed the dissolved inorganic nitrogen(DIN) concentration of the influent from 28.5 to 199.2 mg/l and the dissolved inorganic phosphorus(DIP) concentration of the influent from 13.3 to 25.4 mg/l, growth disorder has not appeared though it is much higher than the criterion of water for irrigation. In this case, the removal rate of DIN was $81.7\sim98.6%$, and that of DIP was $81.9\sim98.4%$ in 3 days stay on average. It has appeared that the efficient hydraulic retention time(HRT) was 48 hours. The following contents of nitrogen, carbon and hydrogen of H. annuus appeared in the artificial floating island: nitrogen was $3.2\sim7.8%$ in the trunk and $3.0\sim6.3%$ in the root. Carbon was $40.1\sim57.7%$ in the trunk and $43.4\sim53.8%$ in the root.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.56 no.1
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• pp.106-113
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• 2024

Understanding the tritium release and retention behavior of candidate tritium breeder materials is crucial for breeder blanket design. Recently, a melt spraying process was developed to prepare Li₄SiO₄ pebbles, which were subsequently subjected to the in-pile tritium production and extraction platform in China Mianyang Research Reactor (CMRR) to investigate their in-situ tritium release behavior and irradiation performance. The results demonstrate that HT is the main tritium release form, and adding hydrogen to the purge gas reduces tritium retention while increasing the HT percent in the purge gas. Post-irradiation experiments reveal that the irradiated pebbles darken in color and their grains swell, but the mechanical properties remain largely unchanged. It is concluded that the tritium residence time of Li₄SiO₄ made by melt spraying method at 467 ℃ is approximately 23.34 h. High-density Li₄SiO₄ pebbles exhibit tritium release at relatively low temperatures (<600 ℃) that is mainly controlled by bulk diffusion. The diffusion coefficient at 525 ℃ and 550 ℃ is 1.19 × 10^-11 cm²/s and 5.34 × 10^-11 cm²/s, respectively, with corresponding tritium residence times of 21.3 hours and 4.7 hours.

• Journal of Radiation Protection and Research
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• v.15 no.2
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• pp.27-39
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• 1990

Appreciable radiation exposures certainly were occurred in the reactor burn-up, the nuelear fall-out and the surroundings of nuclear installations with radioactive effluents. Therefore, radioactive nuclides is not only potentially hazardous to workers of nuclear power plants and related industrials, but also the wokers who handle radioactive nuclides in biochemical research and nuclear medicine diagnostics. And in the case of occurring the nuclear accidents, the early medical treatment of radiation injury should be necessary but little is established medical procedures to decontaminate the victims of internal contamination of radioactive nuclides in korea. Accordingly, to achieve the basic data for protective roles and medical treatment of radiation injury, the present studies were carrid out to evaluate the decontamination of uranium by the chemical drugs. The results observed were summarized as follows: 1. The combined treatmet group of sodium bicarbonate and saline with uranyl nitrate injection simultaneously and the dithiothreitol group that was administered 30 minutes after uranyl nitrate injection were increased significantly in the change of body weight than uranyl nitrate-only group (P<0.005). 2. All the experimental groups were increased the fluid intake and urine volume on the uranyl nitrate-induced acute renal failure. but the combined treatment group of sodium bicarbonate and saline with uranyl nitrate injection simultaneously and the dithiothreitol group that was administered 30 minutes after uranyl nitrate injection have the higher increment of fluid intake and urine volume (P<0.05). 3. When sodium bicarbonate and saline was treated with uranyl nitrate injection simultaneously. and dithiothreitol was administered 30 minutes after uranyl nitrate injection. there was significantly reduced in BUN concentration (P<0.01). 4. When dithiothreitol was administered 30 minutes after uranyl nitrate injection. there was reduced more significantly on the increment of serum creatinine concentration than that observed in uranyl nitrate-only group(P<0.01). but when the combined treatment of sodium bicarbonate and saline with uranyl nitrate simultaneously, there was still. albeit much less marked. decrease in serum creatinine concentration. 5. The sodium bicarbonate and saline was treated with uranyl nitrate simultaneously and dithiothreitol was administered at 30 minutes after uranyl nitrate were excreted markedly higher urine creatinine concentration than the uranyl nitrate-only group. 6. Uranyl nitrate has been used in experimental animals to produce hydropic degeneration and swelling of proximal tubules, disappearance of microvilli and brush border or necrosis in the kidney and centrilobular necrosis, congestion, and telangiectasia of the liver. When the sodium bicarbonate and saline was treated with uranyl nitrate simultaneously, and dithiothreitol was administered. 30 minutes after uranyl nitrate, there was more marked the protective effect than uranyl nitrate-only group. Finally, if the sodium bicarbonate and saline may administered as quickly as possible each time that some risk for internal contamination, with uranium, and dithiothreitol is administered 30 minutes after uranium contamination, there ameliorates the course of uranyl nitrate-induced acute renal failure.and this effect is assocciated with prevention of uranium (heavy metal)-induced alterations in BUN, serum creatinine, urine creatinine, fluid intake, urine volume and body weight.