• Journal of Nuclear Fuel Cycle and Waste Technology(JNFCWT)
• /
• v.2 no.4
• /
• pp.231-238
• /
• 2004

The conditions are obtained for the decomposition of solid radioactive wastes, including ion exchange resin, zeolite, charcoal, and sludge from nuclear power plant. In the process of decomposing the radioactive wastes was used the microwave acid digestion method with mixed acid. The solution after acid digestion by the following method was colorless and transparent. Each solution was analyzed with ICP-AES and AAS and the recovery yield for 5 different elements added into the simulated radioactive wastes were over $94{\%}$. The elemental analysis of destructive low and medium level radioactive wastes by the proposed microwave acid digestion conditions concerning the chemical characteristics of each radioactive waste are expected to be useful basic data for development of optimal glass formulation.

• Korean Journal of Soil Science and Fertilizer
• /
• v.45 no.1
• /
• pp.43-50
• /
• 2012

Two typical animal waste management practices, composting and stockpiling, were evaluated for their effect on the degradation of three veterinary antibiotics (VAs), chlortetracycline (CTC), tylosin (TYL), and monensin (MNS). The VAs were applied to horse manure plots subject to composting or stockpiling, and core samples were collected over a period of time. Selected buffer solutions were used to extract the VAs and analysis for concentration was conducted with solid phase extraction (SPE) followed by high performance liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC/MS/MS) technique. The VAs demonstrated rapid dissipation within ten days followed by a gradual decrease in concentration until the end of the experimental period (141 days). All three VAs degraded more rapidly in the composting samples than in the stockpiling samples, particularly between 20 and 60 days of the observation period. Degradation of the three VAs generally followed a first-order kinetic model, and a fitted model with a calculated rate constant was determined for each treatment. TYL in composting showed the fastest degradation, with a calculated rate constant of $0.91day^{-1}$; the slowest degradation was exhibited by MNS in stockpiling, with rate constant of $0.17day^{-1}$. Calculated correlation coefficients ranged from 0.89 to 0.96, indicating a strong correlation between measured concentrations and fitted values in this study. Although concentration of TYL in composting treatment showed below detection limit during the test period, this study suggests that composting can reduce animal waste contaminants prior to field application as fertilizer.

• Journal of Korea Society of Waste Management
• /
• v.35 no.8
• /
• pp.744-753
• /
• 2018

The Stockholm Convention, which was adopted in Sweden in 2001 to protect human health and the environment, includes regulations for Persistent Organic Pollutant Rotors such as toxic and bioaccumulatives. Currently, there are 28 types of materials. This prohibits and limits the production, use, and manufacture of products. Korea is a member of the Convention, and it is necessary to prepare management and treatment plans to address the POP trends. Thus, we experimentally investigate whether the environmentally stable incineration is achieved when the sample is thermally treated using the Lab-scale (1 kg/hr). The target samples is pesticides in liquid phase and solid phase. In this study, organic chlorinated pesticides and their thermal characteristics were analyzed. We calculated the theoretical air volume based on the element analysis results. Because the interior of the reactor is small, more than 10 times of the air ratio was injected. The retention time was set to at least 4 seconds using a margin. The incineration temperature was $850^{\circ}C$ and $1100^{\circ}C$. Thus, we experimentally investigated whether the environmentally stable incineration was achieved when the sample was thermally treated using the Lab-scale (1 kg/hr). We analyzed five types of exhaust gas; the 02 concentration was high, but the CO amount decreased. Complete combustion is difficult because of the small size of the furnace due to the nature of Lab-scale. The organic chlorine-containing pesticide had an average decomposition rate of 99.9935%. Considering the decomposition rates of organic chlorine-containing pesticide in this study, the incineration treatment at over 2 ton/hour, which is typical for a conventional incinerator, is possible. Considering the occurrence of dioxins and unintentional persistent organic pollutants, it can operate at more than $1,100^{\circ}C$.

• Journal of Korean Society of Water and Wastewater
• /
• v.10 no.4
• /
• pp.45-54
• /
• 1996

Effects of temperature on the efficiency of the Upflow Anaerobic Sludge Blanket(UASB) process for treatment of wastewater from a starch and related products manufacturing industry were investigated using laboratory scale reactors equipped with two types of Gas-Solid Separator(GSS). Both fresh digested sludge and granular sludge stored nearly for one year at room temperature were good as a seeding material. The reactors seeded with aged granular sludge showed slow start-up, however, lowered activity at the initial period was recovered gradually. The GSS with an inner cylinder was proved to be effective in liquid-solid separation compared to the conventional type. Although the rate of organic removal and gas production per unit volatile suspended solids in the reactor reduced significantly as the temperature varied from 35 to $20^{\circ}C$, possibility of operation at low temperatures was shown as a result of gradual buildup of volatile suspended solids in the bed. Stable operation with a reduced efficiency was possible at a COD loading of $5-8kg/m^3/day$ at a temperature as low as $20^{\circ}C$.

• Journal of the Korea Organic Resources Recycling Association
• /
• v.12 no.3
• /
• pp.76-85
• /
• 2004

Anaerobic decomposition of municipal solid waste (MSW) had potential adverse impacts such as the production of methane and long-term post closure on human health and the environment. It was demonstrated that aerobic degradation of MSW resulted in the reduction of a methane yield and the enhancement of stabilization of MSW. Excavated solid wastes were both aerobically and anaerobically treated in order to evaluate the effects of air injection on the stabilization of landfill site. The municipal solid waste (MSW) samples were excavated from a 10-year old landfill (operation period: 1991. 11~1994. 11), Jeonju, Korea. Excavated municipal solid wastes are primarily composed of soils and vinyl/plastics. For the two aerobic simulated lysimeters, the levels of $O_2$ ranged 1.6~23.1% and the levels of $CO_2$ ranged 1.5~15.1%, which confirmed the aerobic decomposition. Aeration did prevent methane formation. For the anaerobic simulated lysimeter, the $CO_2$ rose as $O_2$ was consumed and low levels of CH4 were produced. The pH levels ranged from 7.7 to 8.9 for anaerobic lysimeter and from 7.3 to 8.5 for aerobic lysimeters. As expected, aerobic treatment proved to enhance the removal of biodegradable materials in the excavated solid wastes when monitoring the concentration of BOD, COD, $NH_4-N$, and $NO_3-N$ in the leachate.

• Journal of Korean Society of Environmental Engineers
• /
• v.32 no.3
• /
• pp.264-270
• /
• 2010

Waste activated sludge from sewage treatment plants mainly consisted of flocs of bacterial cell, and thus hard to be stabilized anaerobically due to rigid cell walls. One of the pretreatment methods to overcome this barrier is the venturi cavitation system (VCS) adopting hydrodynamic cavitation. This research was conducted to investigate the effects of the pretreatment of waste activated sludge by VCS on the anaerobic digestibility. Depending on the pretreatment period with the VCS, methane production, COD removal and VS removal efficiency increased 41%~45%, 36.5%~43.1% and 18.4~24.1%, respectively, compared to the control case. The increase in methane production from digester was 3.3~4.2 times higher than the theoretical methane potential of the increased SCOD after the VCS pre-treatment. This suggests that the VCS pre-treatment not only increases SCOD but also improves the digestibility of solid fractions. The energy mass balance indicated that the energy consumed for sludge pre-treatment could be recovered by the increased methane production after pre-treatment, suggesting the high potential for field application.

• Journal of Korean Society of Water and Wastewater
• /
• v.32 no.3
• /
• pp.269-277
• /
• 2018

Burials for the rapid disposal of carcasses have diverse and profound effects on the rural living condition, natural environment, and local economy throughout construction, management and final destruction of burials. In this study, possible residue excavated from standard burials, storage using FRP (Fiberglass Reinforced Plastic) tanks, and microbial-treated burials are characterized as carcasses, contaminated soil by leachate, and wasted plastic film. Treatment technologies for volume reduction of the residue including composting, rendering, and thermal hydrolysis were investigated. If the solid and liquid residues generated during volume reduction treatment are directly transferred to the environmental facilities, it may cause disorder due to high concentrations of organics, antibiotics, and lipid. Benefits and drawbacks of composting as a volume reduction techniques are extensively investigated. We also discussed that proper treatment of excavated soils and the reusing the treated soil as agricultural purpose. For the protection of public health and worker's hygiene, treatment criteria including produced residue qualities, and quality standards for the treated soil as agricultural use are required. In addition, Scientific manual for the proper treatment of residues is required. It is necessary to consider the establishment of a pretreatment facility to the occurrence of large-scale residue treatment.

• Journal of the Korean institute of surface engineering
• /
• v.56 no.4
• /
• pp.259-264
• /
• 2023

As the demand for lithium-ion batteries, a key power source in electric vehicles and energy storage systems, continues to increase for achieving global carbon neutrality, there is a growing concern about the environmental impact of disposing of spent batteries. Extensive research is underway to develop efficient recycling methods. While hydrometallurgy and pyrometallurgy methods are commonly used to recover valuable metals from spent cathode materials, they have drawbacks including hazardous waste and complex processes. Hence, alternative recycling methods that are environmentally friendly are being explored. However, recycling spent cathode materials still remains complex and energy-intensive. This study focuses on a novel approach called solid-state synthesis, which aims at regenerating the performance of spent cathode materials. The method offers a simpler process and reduces energy consumption. Optimal heat treatment conditions were identified based on experimental results, contributing to the development of sustainable recycling technologies for lithium-ion batteries.

• Journal of the Korean Applied Science and Technology
• /
• v.34 no.3
• /
• pp.683-693
• /
• 2017

Transport biofuels have been recognized as a promising means to resolve the following issues like global warming, oil depletion and environmental pollutions. Among various biofuels, biodiesel has several advantages such as less emission of air pollutants and higher cetane values compared to diesel oil. Demand for biodiesel in Korea is increasing that leads to higher dependence on the imported feedstocks. Therefore, it is important to utilize the waste materials collected domestically for biodiesel production. Food waste oil collected in waste treatment facility has not been used for biodiesel production due to high free fatty contents in the oil. In this work, biodiesel conversion of food waste oil by Amberlyst 15 was studied. Synthetic and actual food waste oils have been used in the study. First, the effects of the major operating parameters including reaction temperature, methanol to oil molar ratio and catalyst loading on the conversion rates and yields were determined with synthetic waste oil. Kinetic modelling work was also done to determine the activation energy of the reaction. From the work, optimization reaction conditions were determined to be 383K, 1: 26.1 for methanol molar ratio to oil, 10 wt.% for catalyst loading and 360 min for reaction time. Activation energy of the reaction is determined to be 29.75 kJ/mol, lower than those reported in the previous works. So the solid catalyst, Amberlyst 15, was more efficient for esterification than the solid catalysts employed in the other works. Agitation rates have the negligible effects on the conversion rates and yields. With the identified optimization conditions, conversion of the actual food waste oil was also carried out. The esterification yield of actual food waste oil in 60 min was 13% lower than that of synthetic waste oil but the final yields in 240 min were similar each other, 98.12% for synthetic oil and 97.62% for actual waste oil.

• Journal of Korea Soil Environment Society
• /
• v.4 no.3
• /
• pp.95-104
• /
• 1999

Comparative biodegradation studies of liquid and solid alkanes and of two different solid alkanes were conducted by an isolated Acinetobacter sp., which degraded crude oil alkanes simultaneously. for the determination of degradation mechanism of hydrophobic crude oil constituents. Also a model oil experimental system composed of a solid alkane. heneicosane, as a substrate and a non-degradable non-aqueous phase liquid. pristane, as an oil matrix was established and studied. It was proposed that the Acinefobacter sp. utilized hydrophobic substrates directly on the surface of them with no difference in the degradation rates between the liquid and solid alkanes. On the basis of the results from the heneicosane/pristane system which imitates crude oil matrix containing solid constituents. the crude oil matrix was considered to reduce the bioavailability of contained substrates by reducing the specific surface area of substrates to contact with microorganisms.