• Journal of Biomedical Engineering Research
• /
• v.40 no.1
• /
• pp.7-14
• /
• 2019

The microencapsulation of nifedipine (NF) with 4 wt% of poly(${\varepsilon}-caprolactone$) (PCL)/polyvinylpyrollidone (PVP) or PCL/polyethylene glycol (PEG) was carried out by solvent evaporation method in oil in water emulsion system to investigate the effect of PVP and PEG addition on drug release behavior of the microcapsules. The PVA (emulsifier) concentration of 1.0 wt% was chosen for the formation of PCL capsule having an average size of $154{\pm}25{\mu}m$ due to nearly spherical shape with a narrow size distribution. As PCL/PVP and PCL/PEG ratios were raised from 10/0 to 6/4, the capsule size increased gradually from $154{\pm}25{\mu}m$ to $236{\pm}32{\mu}m$ and $248{\pm}56{\mu}m$, respectively. The drug release rate of PCL/PVP and PCL/PEG capsules increased dramatically from 0 to 4 h at the beginning and then reached the plateau region from 20 h. As the concentration of PVP or PEG increased, the amount of drug release increased, suggesting that the larger capsule size was attributed to the higher drug content. However, the drug release behavior remained almost constant. The PCL capsules exhibited no evidence of causing cell lysis or toxicity regardless of NF loading, implying that the microcapsules are clinically suitable for use as drug delivery systems.

• Journal of Hydrogen and New Energy
• /
• v.34 no.5
• /
• pp.535-548
• /
• 2023

The intermittent nature of renewable energy is a challenge to overcome for safety and stable performance in water electrolysis systems linked to renewable energy. Oxygen removal using the catalyst is suitable for maintaining the oxygen concentration in hydrogen below the explosive level (4%) even in intermittent power supply. Metals such as Pd, Pt, and Ni are expected to be effective materials due to their hydrogen affinity. The oxygen removal performance was compared under high hydrogen concentration conditions by loading on γ-Al₂O₃ with high reactivity and large surface area. The characteristics of the catalyst before and after the reaction were analyzed through X-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscope, H₂-temperature programmed reduction, X-ray photoelectron spectroscope, etc. The Pd catalyst that showed the best performance was able to lower 2% oxygen to less than 5 ppm. Changes in catalyst characteristics after the reaction indicate that oxygen vacancies are related to oxygen removal performance and catalyst deactivation.

• Journal of the Korea institute for structural maintenance and inspection
• /
• v.11 no.5
• /
• pp.135-143
• /
• 2007

This paper presents results of an experimental study designed to investigate the effect of sustained load on the flexural performance of reinforced recycled aggregate concrete beams. In this experimental program, three beams with recycled aggregate replacement percentages(natural 100%, recycled coarse aggregate 100%, recycled fine aggregate 50%) were tested up to failure after sustained loading($0.5M_n$) for one year. The experimental results showed that reinforced concrete beams using recycled aggregate(water absorption : 1.86~3.64%) concrete showed the same flexural performance as that of natural aggregate concrete beam. Current the ACI code underestimated experimental obtained ultimate flexural strength of beams irrespective of usage of recycled aggregates.

• Journal of the Society of Cosmetic Scientists of Korea
• /
• v.35 no.2
• /
• pp.79-89
• /
• 2009

The objective of this study was to find out the stable formulation of nano-emulsion containing high concentration of quercetin and to investigate the effect of an ethanol on the nano-emulsion prepared by POE (30) hydrogenated castor oil (HCO-30)/oil/quercetin/ethanol/water system. Nano-emulsion was prepared using emulsion inversion point (EIP) method as low-energy method plus homogenizer as high-energy method. To evaluate effect of ethanol and other components on the nano-emulsion, physical properties such as droplet size, morphology, and size distribution were determined. The optimal quercetin concentration was 0.2 % on the nano-emulsion. The droplet diameter was below 300 nm at the HCO-30 concentration below 2.00 %. Nano-emmulsion containing 4.75 % HCO-30 was the most stable and its mean droplet size was 172.40 nm. Finally, the size of nano-emulsion containing 4.00 % ethanol was 128.15 nm and size distribution was also narrow. The results showed that the breakdown process of this nano-emulsion could be attributed to Ostwald ripening. This study about effect of ethanol on the nano-emulsion showed that loading capacity of drug could be increased by using a small amount of ethanol. As prepared stable nano-emulsion, this study showed that these results could be applied to pharmaceutics, cosmetic including skin-care products, perfume and etc.

• Korean Journal of Environment and Ecology
• /
• v.33 no.2
• /
• pp.187-201
• /
• 2019

This study examined the physicochemical water quality and evaluated the ecological health in 14 sites of Geum River (upstream, mid-stream, and downstream) using the fish community distribution and guilds and eight multi-variable matrices of FAI (Fish Assessment Index) during June 2008-May 2009. The analysis of the water quality variables showed no significant variation in the upstream and mid-stream but a sharp variation due to the accumulation of organic matter from the point where the treated water of Gap and Miho streams flew. The analysis of physicochemical water properties showed that BOD, COD, TN, TP, Cond, and Chl-a tended to increase while DO decreased to cause eutrophication and algae development from the downstream where Miho and Gap stream merged. The analysis of fish community showed that the species richness index and species diversity index increased in the mid-stream area but decreased in the downstream area, indicating the stable ecosystem in the upper stream and the relatively unstable ecosystem in the downstream. The analysis of the species distribution showed that the dominant species were Zacco platypus that accounted for 20.9% of all fish species and Zacco koreanus that accounted for 13.1%. The analysis of the fish tolerance and feeding guild characteristics showed that the sensitive species, the insectivore species, and the aquatic species were dominant in the mid-stream point. On the other hand, contaminants from the sewage water treatment plant of Miho stream had a profound effect in the downstream to show the dominance of tolerant species, omnivorous species, and lentic species. Therefore, it is necessary to improve water quality by reducing the load of urban pollutants and to pay attention to the conservation and restoration of aquatic ecosystems.

• Journal of the Korean Geotechnical Society
• /
• v.21 no.6
• /
• pp.41-52
• /
• 2005

Because the allowable current loading of buried electrical transmission cables is frequently limited by the maximum permissible temperature of the cable or of the surrounding ground, there is a need fur cable backfill materials that can maintain a low thermal resistivity even while subjected to high temperatures for prolonged periods. Temperatures greater than $50^{\circ}C\;to\;60^{\circ}C$ may lead to breakdown of cable insulation and thermal runaway if the surrounding backfill material is unable to dissipate the heat as rapidly as it is generated. This paper describes the results of studies aimed at the development of backfill material to reduce the thermal resistivity. A large number of different additive materials were tested to determine their applicability as a substitute material. Tests were carried out for Dongrim river sand, a relatively uniform sand of very high thermal resistivity, $50^{\circ}C-cm/watt\;at\;10\%$ water content, $260^{\circ}C-cnuwatt$ when dry, and Jinsan granite screenings, and D-2 (sand and granite screenings mixture), E-1 (rubble and granite screenings mixture), a well-graded materials with low thermal resistivity, about $35^{\circ}C-cm/watt$ when at 10 percent water content, $100^{\circ}C-cm/watt$ when dry. Based on this research, 3 types of backfill materials were suggested for improved materials with low thermal resistivity and the applicability was assessed through field tests.

• Korean Journal of Ecology and Environment
• /
• v.45 no.2
• /
• pp.210-217
• /
• 2012

This study investigated the water quality of effluents from the wastewater treatment plants, located at the Gumi Complex 4, Gumi, and Wonpyong, in Gumi. DOC accounted for higher than 70% of TOC, and oxidation efficiencies, calculated from carbon, were 13~43% for BOD and 37~73% for CODMn, respectively. Based on the biological decomposition experiments, R-DOC account for higher than 70% of DOC, mostly being occupied by refractory organic matters. This indicated that the biodegradable organics occupied more proportions of organic loadings than the refractory organics. The effect of the organics from a discharge of a sewage treatment plant on rivers, Gumi industrial Complex 4, Gumi, and Wonpyong on lower streams of the Nakdong River were found to be 15%, 6% and 16% respectively. The ratio of 15% suggests that comparatively, no large portions of TOC loadings are occupied, but the problem is that the biodegradable organic matters occupy a lot more proportions than that of the refractory organic matters. Thus, it is highly estimated that the refractory organics can gradually increase the pollution level of organics and precursors of disinfection by-products to the down-stream water treatment plants.

• Journal of the Korean Geotechnical Society
• /
• v.28 no.11
• /
• pp.41-52
• /
• 2012

Suction drain method can directly apply vacuum pressure to the soft ground through vertical drains so it can make hardening zones around them. These hardening zones make steeply lower the discharge efficiency of the pore water with decreasing permeability. This paper considered a stepped vacuum pressure to minimize a hardening zone which is one of the important parameters that can decrease discharge efficiency. A series of laboratory tests were conducted in order to examine the effect of the hardening zones and to evaluate their effects to the ground improvements with varying durations which applied stepped vacuum pressures(-20kPa, -40kPa, -60kPa and -80kPa) with Busan marine clay. According to strength(CPT), water content test and theoretical investigation indicate a size of the hardening zone within 7cm and the decreasing ratio of permeability about 2.0~4.0. Also, the total settlements are larger for the stepped vacuum pressure than the instant vacuum loading. The application time with vacuum pressure is determined considering the geotechnical properties of the interested clays. Results of numerical analysis show that consolidation behavior is appropriate to measurement for considering hardening zones.

• Journal of Hydrogen and New Energy
• /
• v.30 no.6
• /
• pp.523-530
• /
• 2019

For the low-Pt electrodes for polymer electrolyte fuel cells (PEMFCs), the optimization of ionomer content for anode catalyst layers was carried out. A commercial catalyst of 20 wt.% Pt/C was used instead of 50 wt.% Pt/C which is commonly used for PEMFCs. The ionomer content varies from 0.6 to 1.2 based on ionomer to carbon ratio (I/C) and the catalyst layer is formed over the electrolyte by the ultrasonic spray process. Evaluation of the prepared MEA in the unit cell showed that the optimal ionomer content of the air electrode was 0.8 on the I/C basis, while the hydrogen electrode was optimal at the relatively high ionomer content of 1.0. In addition, a large difference in cell performance was observed when the ionomer content of the hydrogen electrode was changed. Increasing the ionomer content from 0.6 to 1.0 by I/C in a hydrogen electrode with 0.05 mg/㎠ platinum loading resulted in more than double cell performance improvements on a 0.6 V. Through the analysis of various electrochemical properties in the single cell, it was assumed that the change in ionomer content of the hydrogen electrode affects the water flow between the hydrogen and air electrodes bounded by the membrane in the cell, which affects the overall performance of the cell. A more specific study will be carried out to understand the water flow mechanism in the future, and this study will show that the optimization process of hydrogen electrode can also be a very important cell design variable for the low-Pt and high-performance MEA.

• Journal of Korean Society on Water Environment
• /
• v.35 no.2
• /
• pp.105-114
• /
• 2019

The objective of this study was to investigate the pollution assessment of organic matters, nutrients, and metals in sediment in major lakes (5 lakes and 17 sites) of Buk-han river using various sediment pollution assessment guidelines and indices. The concentrations of organic matters and nutrients were lower than class IV (Sediment pollution assessment guidelines of Korea) and Severe Effect Level (SEL, Sediment pollution assessment guidelines of Ontario). This results indicated that the lakes sediments were unpolluted and tolerable level for sediment dwelling organisms by organic matters and nutrients. However, several sites of Chuncheon and Soyang lakes were evaluated "heavily polluted" level by organic index (Org-index). The order of lakes by metals concentrations from the one with the highest concentration was Hwacheon, Chuncheon, Cheongpyeong, Uiam, Soyang. All lakes except Hwacheon were assessed unpolluted to marginally and tolerable level for sediment dwelling organisms by metals based on sediment pollution assessment guidelines (Korean and Ontario), indices of geoaccumulation ($I_{geo}$), pollution loading (PLI) and ecological risk (RI). In Lake Hwacheon, every investigated sites were polluted with metals, especially Hg, based on sediment pollution assessment guideline of Korea and indices ($I_{geo}$, PLI and RI). The dwelling organisms in sediment of Hwacheon Lake were likely to be severed by metals.