• Journal of Korean Society of Water and Wastewater
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• v.30 no.6
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• pp.645-652
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• 2016

A membrane module including grid was designed and introduced to MBR (membrane bio-reactor) for the purpose of better control of membrane fouling. It could be anticipated that the grid enhances the shear force of fluid-air mixture into the membrane surface by even-distributing the fluid-air to the membrane module. As MLSS concentration, packing density which is expressed in the ratio of the housing and the cross-sectional area of membrane fibers ($A_m/A_t$) and air-flow rate were changed, membrane foulings were checked by monitoring fouling resistances. The total fouling resistance ($R_c+R_f$) without grid installation (i.e., control) was $2.13{\times}10^{12}m^{-1}$, whereas it was reduced to $1.69{\times}10^{12}m^{-1}$ after the grid was installed. Regardless of the grid installation, the $R_c+R_f$ increased as the packing density increased from 0.09 to 0.28, however, the increment of resistance for the grid installation was less than that of the control. Increase in the air flow rate did not always guarantee the reduction of fouling resistance, indicating that the higher air flow rate can partially de-flocculate the activated sludge flocs, which led to severer membrane fouling. Consequently, installation of grids inside the housing have brought a beneficial effect on membrane fouling and optimum air flow rate is important to keep the membrane lowering fouling.

• Journal of Korean Society of Water and Wastewater
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• v.33 no.2
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• pp.111-119
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• 2019

Electro-coagulation process has been gained an attention recently because it could overcome the membrane fouling problems in MBR(Membrane bio-reactor). Effect of the key operational parameters in electro-coagulation, current density(${\rho}_i$) and contact time(t) on membrane fouling reduction was investigated in this study. A kinetic model for ${\rho}_i$ and t required to reduce the membrane fouling was suggested under different MLSS(mixed liquor suspended solids) concentration. Total 48 batch type experiments of electro-coagulations under different sets of current densities(2.5, 6, 12 and $24A/m^2$), contact times(0, 2, 6 and 12 hr) and MLSS concentration(4500, 6500 and 8500mg/L) were carried out. After each electro-coagulation under different conditions, a series of membrane filtration was performed to get information on how much of membrane fouling was reduced. The membrane fouling decreased as the ${\rho}_i$ and t increased but as MLSS decreased. Total fouling resistances, Rt (=Rc+Rf) were calculated and compared to those of the controls (Ro), which were obtained from the experiments without electro-coagulation. A kinetic approach for the fouling reduction rate (Rt/Ro) was carried out and three equations under different MLSS concentration were suggested: i) ${\rho}_i^{0.39}t=3.5$ (MLSS=4500 mg/L), ii) ${\rho}_i^{0.46}t=7.0$ (MLSS=6500 mg/L), iii) ${\rho}_i^{0.74}t=10.5$ (MLSS=8500 mg/L). These equations state that the product of ${\rho}_i$ and t needed to reduce the fouling in certain amounts (in this study, 10% of fouling reduction) is always constant.

• Korean Chemical Engineering Research
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• v.60 no.1
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• pp.70-79
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• 2022

Biodiesel production has attracted attention as a sustainable source of fuel and is a competitive alternate to diesel engines. The glycerol that is produced as a by-product is generally discarded as waste and can be converted to green chemicals such as acetins to increase bio-diesel profitability. Acetins find application in fuel, food, pharmaceutical and leather industries. Batch experiments and analysis have been previously conducted for synthesis of acetins using glycerol esterification reaction aided by sulfated metal oxide catalysts (SO₄^2-/CeO₂-ZrO₂). The aim of this study was to optimize process parameters: effects of mole ratio of reactants (glycerol and acetic acid), catalyst concentration and reaction temperature to maximize glycerol conversion/acetin selectivity. The optimum conditions for this reaction were determined using response surface methodology (RSM) designed as per a five-level-three-factor central composite design (CCD). Statistica software 10 was used to analyze the experimental data obtained. The optimized conditions obtained were molar ratio - 1:12, catalyst concentration - 6 wt.% and temperature -90 ℃. A packed bed reactor was fabricated and column studies were performed using the optimized conditions. The breakthrough curve was analyzed.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.54 no.10
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• pp.3604-3613
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• 2022

The Physical Protection System (PPS) plays an important role and must effectively deal with various adversary attacks in nuclear security. In specific single adversary path scenarios, we can calculate the PPS effectiveness by EASI (Estimated Adversary Sequence Interruption) through Probability of Interruption (P_I) calculation. EASI uses a single value of the probability of detection (P_D) and the probability of alarm communications (P_C) in the PPS. In this study, we develop a multi-path analysis code based on EASI to evaluate the effectiveness of PPS. Our quantification method for P_I considers the variability and uncertainty of P_D and P_C value by Monte Carlo simulation. We converted the 2-D scheme of the nuclear facility into an Adversary Sequence Diagram (ASD). We used ASD to find the adversary path with the lowest probability of interruption as the most vulnerable paths (MVP). We examined a hypothetical facility (Hypothetical National Nuclear Research Facility - HNNRF) to confirm our code compared with EASI. The results show that implementing the variability extension can estimate the P_I value and its associated uncertainty. The multi-path analysis code allows the analyst to make it easier to assess PPS with more extensive facilities with more complex adversary paths. However, the variability of the P_D value in each protection element allows a significant decrease in the PI value. The possibility of this decrease needs to be an important concern for PPS designers to determine the P_D value correctly or set a higher standard for PPS performance that remains reliable.

• Clean Technology
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• v.15 no.1
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• pp.42-46
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• 2009

Solvent-free direct preparation of dichloropropanol (DCP) from glycerol (by-product of bio-diesel production) and hydrochloric acid gas was carried out over acetin catalyst in a gas-liquid batch reactor. For this purpose, acetin mixture and triacetin were used as a homogeneous acetin catalyst. Performance in the acetin-catalyzed reaction was compared to that in the non-catalytic reaction under the same reaction conditions ($110^{\circ}C$, 3 bar, 3 h). Conversion of glycerol in the acetin-catalyzed reactions was ca. 3% higher than that in the non-catalytic reaction, and selectivity for dichloropropanol in the acetin-catalyzed reactions was ca. 50% higher than that in the non-catalytic reaction. It was also revealed that the catalytic performance of triacetin was ca. 2% higher than that of acetic mixture.

• Clean Technology
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• v.29 no.1
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• pp.31-38
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• 2023

Due to water shortages caused by water pollution and climate change, total organic carbon (TOC) standards have been implemented for wastewater discharged from public sewage treatment facilities. Furthermore, there is a growing interest and body of research pertaining to the reuse of sewage treatment water as a secure alternative water resource. The membrane bio-reactor (MBR) method is commonly used for advanced wastewater treatment because it can remove organic and inorganic ions and it does not require or emit any chemicals. However, the MBR process uses a separation membrane (MF), which requires frequent film cleaning due to fouling caused by a high concentration of mixed liquor suspended solid (MLSS). In this study, process improvement and microbubble cleaning efficiency were evaluated to improve the differential pressure, water flow, and MF fouling, which are the biggest disadvantages of operating the MF. The existing MBR method was improved by installing a precipitation tank between the air tank and the MBR tank in which raw water was introduced. Microbubbles were injected into a separation membrane tank into which the supernatant water from the precipitation tank was introduced. The microbubble generator was operated with a 15 day on, 15 day off cycle for 5 months to collect discharged water samples (4L) and measure TOC. As the supernatant water from the precipitation tank flowed into the separation membrane tank, about 95% of the supernatant water MLSS was removed so the MF fouling from biological contamination was prevented. Due to the application of microbubbles to supernatant water from the precipitation tank, the differential pressure of the separation membrane tank decreased by 1.6 to 2.3 times and the water flow increased by 1.4 times. Applying microbubbles increased the TOC removal rate by more than 58%. This study showed that separately operating the air tank and the separation membrane tank can reduce fouling, and suggested that applying additional microbubbles could improve the differential pressure, water flow, and fouling to provide a more efficient advanced treatment method.

• Microbiology and Biotechnology Letters
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• v.37 no.4
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• pp.377-382
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• 2009

Viral safety is an important prerequisite for clinical preparations of all biopharmaceuticals derived from plasma, cell lines, or tissues of human or animal origin. To ensure the safety, implementation of multiple viral clearance (inactivation and/or removal) steps has been highly recommended for manufacturing of biopharmaceuticals. Of the possible viral clearance strategies, Ultraviolet-C (UVC) irradiation has been known as an effective viral inactivating method. However it has been dismissed by biopharmaceutical industry as a result of the potential for protein damage and the difficulty in delivering uniform doses. Recently a continuous flow UVC reactor (UVivatec) was developed to provide highly efficient mixing and maximize virus exposure to the UV light. In order to investigate the effectiveness of UVivatec to inactivate viruses without causing significant protein damage, the feasibility of the UVC irradiation process was studied with a commercial therapeutic protein. Recovery yield in the optimized condition of $3,000\;J/m^2$ irradiation was more than 98%. The efficacy and robustness of the UVC reactor was evaluated with regard to the inactivation of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), hepatitis A virus (HAV), bovine herpes virus (BHV), bovine viral diarrhea virus (BVDV), porcine parvovirus (PPV), bovine parvovirus (BPV), minute virus of mice (MVM), reovirus type 3 (REO), and bovine parainfluenza virus type 3 (BPIV). Non enveloped viruses (HAV, PPV, BPV, MVM, and REO) were completely inactivated to undetectable levels by $3,000\;J/m^2$ irradiation. Enveloped viruses such as HIV, BVDV, and BPIV were completely inactivated to undetectable levels. However BHV was incompletely inactivated with slight residual infectivity remaining even after $3,000\;J/m^2$ irradiation. The log reduction factors achieved by UVC irradiation were ${\geq}3.89$ for HIV, ${\geq}5.27$ for HAV, 5.29 for BHV, ${\geq}5.96$ for BVDV, ${\geq}4.37$ for PPV, ${\geq}3.55$ for BPV, ${\geq}3.51$ for MVM, ${\geq}4.20$ for REO, and ${\geq}4.15$ for BPIV. These results indicate that UVC irradiation using UVivatec was very effective and robust in inactivating all the viruses tested.

• Journal of Korean Society of Environmental Engineers
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• v.28 no.11
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• pp.1213-1221
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• 2006

In this study, granular sludge used in an anaerobic process treating brewery waste was inoculated in a laboratory scale of reactor to induce anaerobic ammonium oxidation(ANAMMOX). The reactor was operated with synthetic wastewater, which prepared at 1:1 ratio of $NH_4^+-N$ over $NO_2^--N$. Changes in nitrogen concentration, COD, alkalinity and gas production were analyzed. There are 3 phases of spanning in experimental period according to influent nitrogen concentration. In the Phase 1, each of the concentration of $NH_4^+-N$ and $NO_2^--N$ were increased from 1.91 $gN/m^3{\cdot}d$ to 14.29 $gN/m^3{\cdot}d$. Ammonium nitrogen loading(same as nitrite nitrogen) was 23.81 $gN/m^3{\cdot}d$ in the Phase 2 and 19.05 $gN/m^3{\cdot}d$ in the Phase 3, respectively $NO_2^--N$ has been removed up to 99% during whole period while the removal efficiency of $NH_4^+-N$ was significantly varied. In Phase 2, $NH_4^+-N$ was removed up to 75%. Microorganisms varied temporally through three phases were characterized by 16s rDNA analysis methods. ANAMMOX bacteria were dominantly found in phase 2 when the removal rate of $NO_2^--N$and $NH_4^+-N$ was the highest up to 99% and 75%, respectively. Due to erroneous exposed to air, the removal efficiency of $NH_4^+-N$ was unexpectedly lowered, but ANAMMOX bacteria still existed.

• Proceedings of the Materials Research Society of Korea Conference
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• 2011.10a
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• pp.7-7
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• 2011

Quantum beam technology has been expected to develop breakthroughs for nanotechnology during the third basic plan of science and technology (2006~2010). Recently, Green- or Life Innovations has taken over the national interests in the fourth basic science and technology plan (2011~2015). The NIMS (National Institute for Materials Science) has been conducting the corresponding mid-term research plans, as well as other national projects, such as nano-Green project (Global Research for Environment and Energy based on Nanomaterials science). In this lecture, the research trends in Japan and NIMS are firstly reviewed, and the typical achievements are highlighted over key nanotechnology fields. As one of the key nanotechnologies, the quantum beam research in NIMS focused on synchrotron radiation, neutron beams and ion/atom beams, having complementary attributes. The facilities used are SPring-8, nuclear reactor JRR-3, pulsed neutron source J-PARC and ion-laser-combined beams as well as excited atomic beams. Materials studied are typically fuel cell materials, superconducting/magnetic/multi-ferroic materials, quasicrystals, thermoelectric materials, precipitation-hardened steels, nanoparticle-dispersed materials. Here, we introduce a few topics of neutron scattering and ion beam nanofabrication. For neutron powder diffraction, the NIMS has developed multi-purpose pattern fitting software, post RIETAN2000. An ionic conductor, doped Pr2NiO4, which is a candidate for fuel-cell material, was analyzed by neutron powder diffraction with the software developed. The nuclear-density distribution derived revealed the two-dimensional network of the diffusion paths of oxygen ions at high temperatures. Using the high sensitivity of neutron beams for light elements, hydrogen states in a precipitation-strengthened steel were successfully evaluated. The small-angle neutron scattering (SANS) demonstrated the sensitive detection of hydrogen atoms trapped at the interfaces of nano-sized NbC. This result provides evidence for hydrogen embrittlement due to trapped hydrogen at precipitates. The ion beam technology can give novel functionality on a nano-scale and is targeting applications in plasmonics, ultra-fast optical communications, high-density recording and bio-patterning. The technologies developed are an ion-and-laser combined irradiation method for spatial control of nanoparticles, and a nano-masked ion irradiation method for patterning. Furthermore, we succeeded in implanting a wide-area nanopattern using nano-masks of anodic porous alumina. The patterning of ion implantation will be further applied for controlling protein adhesivity of biopolymers. It has thus been demonstrated that the quantum beam-based nanotechnology will lead the innovations both for nano-characterization and nano-fabrication.

• Journal of Korean Society for Atmospheric Environment
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• v.29 no.1
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• pp.97-104
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• 2013

Methyl alcohol is one of the basic intermediates in the chemical industry and is also being used as a fuel additive and as a clean burning fuel. In this study, conversion of carbon dioxide to methyl alcohol was investigated using catalytic chemical methods. Ceramic monoliths (M) with $400cell/in^2$ were used as catalyst supports. Monolith-supported CuO-ZnO catalysts were prepared by wash-coat method. The prepared catalysts were characterized by using ICP analysis, TEM images and XRD patterns. The catalytic activity for carbon dioxide hydrogenation to methyl alcohol was investigated using a flow-type reactor under various reaction temperature, pressure and contact time. In the preparation of monolith-supported CuO-ZnO catalysts by wash-coat method, proper concentration of precursors solution was 25.7% (w/v). The mixed crystal of CuO and ZnO was well supported on monolith. And it was known that more CuO component may be supported than ZnO component. Conversion of carbon dioxide was increased with increasing reaction temperature, but methyl alcohol selectivity was decreased. Optimum reaction temperature was about $250^{\circ}C$ under 20 atm because of the reverse water gas shift reaction. Maximum yield of methyl alcohol over CuO-ZnO/M catalyst was 5.1 mol% at $250^{\circ}C$ and 20 atm.