• Fashion & Textile Research Journal
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• v.26 no.2
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• pp.190-197
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• 2024

With increasing global interest in environmentally friendly materials and the consequent rise in demand, there is a growing need for alternatives to synthetic fibers, which can cause skin diseases and other side effects. The fashion industry is emphasizing material sustainability owing to concerns about increasing carbon emissions. Moreover, consumers express a strong desire for ecofriendly and sustainable materials. Therefore, clothing brand companies are developing eco-friendly products to enhance their corporate image. Hemp fibers are recognized for their functionality and are utilized as crucial materials in the development of eco-friendly products by global fashion companies. In this study, we produced socks that effectively improve foot health using hemp stem bark extract fibers and demonstrated the positive efficacy of natural fibers through functional and wearability evaluations. Hemp stem bark extract fibers showed 99.9% antimicrobial effectiveness against bacteria responsible for sweat-induced bacterial proliferation and odor, when blended with lyocell fibers and woven into fabric to manufacture socks. Wearability evaluations of these terry cloth socks confirmed a reduction in foot odor and fatigue among the participants with a consumer satisfaction of 4.63/5. These findings confirm the effectiveness and positive impact of the natural antimicrobial properties of hemp fibers and terry cloth structure in improving foot health.

• Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine
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• v.15 no.6
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• pp.673-697
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• 2018

BACKGROUND: Cartilage tissue engineering (CTE) aims to obtain a structure mimicking native cartilage tissue through the combination of relevant cells, three-dimensional scaffolds, and extraneous signals. Implantation of 'matured' constructs is thus expected to provide solution for treating large injury of articular cartilage. Type I collagen is widely used as scaffolds for CTE products undergoing clinical trial, owing to its ubiquitous biocompatibility and vast clinical approval. However, the long-term performance of pure type I collagen scaffolds would suffer from its limited chondrogenic capacity and inferior mechanical properties. This paper aims to provide insights necessary for advancing type I collagen scaffolds in the CTE applications. METHODS: Initially, the interactions of type I/II collagen with CTE-relevant cells [i.e., articular chondrocytes (ACs) and mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs)] are discussed. Next, the physical features and chemical composition of the scaffolds crucial to support chondrogenic activities of AC and MSC are highlighted. Attempts to optimize the collagen scaffolds by blending with natural/synthetic polymers are described. Hybrid strategy in which collagen and structural polymers are combined in non-blending manner is detailed. RESULTS: Type I collagen is sufficient to support cellular activities of ACs and MSCs; however it shows limited chondrogenic performance than type II collagen. Nonetheless, type I collagen is the clinically feasible option since type II collagen shows arthritogenic potency. Physical features of scaffolds such as internal structure, pore size, stiffness, etc. are shown to be crucial in influencing the differentiation fate and secreting extracellular matrixes from ACs and MSCs. Collagen can be blended with native or synthetic polymer to improve the mechanical and bioactivities of final composites. However, the versatility of blending strategy is limited due to denaturation of type I collagen at harsh processing condition. Hybrid strategy is successful in maximizing bioactivity of collagen scaffolds and mechanical robustness of structural polymer. CONCLUSION: Considering the previous improvements of physical and compositional properties of collagen scaffolds and recent manufacturing developments of structural polymer, it is concluded that hybrid strategy is a promising approach to advance further collagen-based scaffolds in CTE.

• KSCE Journal of Civil and Environmental Engineering Research
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• v.28 no.1A
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• pp.155-163
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• 2008

On the construction site with trends of large scale, high rise and specialization, testing construction of high performance concrete, superior to conventional concrete, is continued to increase. For bridge construction, application of full staging method is gradually decreasing due to noise, dust, and prolonged construction period. Recently, precast construction, which is optimized to urban environment and shorter work period, gains popularity significantly. In bridge structure, overcrowding arrangement of bar is used to ensure its safety. For the manufacturing of overcrowding arrangement of bar, High flowing self-compacting concrete, which is superior to conventional concrete in flowability and compacting property, should be implemented. In this study, the application of blast-furnace slag and fly ash to binary and ternary blended system on the High flowing self-compacting concrete for bridge structure with overcrowding arrangement of bar is evaluated by flowability in accordance with the first class regulations of Japan Society of Civil Engineering (JSCE).

• Applied Chemistry for Engineering
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• v.4 no.3
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• pp.616-626
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• 1993

Polyurethane(PU) have an excellent flexibility and toughness so that it has been widely used as an elastomer. PMMA was blended with PU to improve the impact property. Five types of PU, having different molecular weight and different polyol types, were prepared and blended with PMMA in order to investigate the effect of molecular weight and polyol type of PU on property of PU-PMMA blend. Tensile strength of PU-PMMA blend was determined by Inston. Differential Scanning Calorymetry(DSC) and Scanning. Elctron Microscopy(SEM) were used to observe morphology change and glass transition temperature changes of PU-PMMA blends. Transparency of PU-PMMA blends was determined by haze meter. But, owing to intrinsic incompatability of PU-PMMA, Low impact strength of PMMA wasn't improved through PU-PMMA blend. therefore, polyurethane dimethacrylate(PUD), having similiar chemical structure to PU and two vinyl group at both ends, was prepared and reacted with methyl methacrylate(MMA) to form crosslinked copolymer Mechanical property of this crosslinked polymer, such as impact strength and transparency, was investigated by Instron, Izod type (Cantilever beam) impact tester and haze meter. Results of these measurements showed that crosslinked copolymer of PUD-MMA was better impact resistance than PMMA and maintained similar transparency to PMMA.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.19 no.8
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• pp.562-570
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• 2018

New physical properties of polymer materials were obtained by blending two or three different type of polymers. TPE is used widely in the display, automotive and electronics industries. Consumers have sought emotionally more sensitive and advanced interior automotive parts. A polymer with high foamibility (Ed note: Please check this.) and flowability would be more plausible. TPE composed of foam is a good polymer material to satisfy these trends. In this research, two different TPE were tested, focusing on foamibility and flowability. Two type of TPE were prepared. The first was blended Homo-PP, oil and SEBS. The second was Co-PP, oil and SEBS. The blending temperatures were $180^{\circ}C$, $190^{\circ}C$, and $260^{\circ}C$(second one). The blending speed was 50rpm and blending time was 5 min. The MI of the blended material was affected by the MI of PP and not affected by the blending temperature. The hardness and tensile elasticity were less affected by the MI of PP and blending temperature. The hardness and tensile elasticity were lower at a higher SEBS/Oil content ratio. The soft touch feel was higher with high SEBS/Oil contents. The IPN (Interpenentration polymer network) structure was observed by dissolving the SEBS/Oil layer in xylene. Strain-hardening phenomena also was observed. TPE behaves in a rubber and foamed closed-cell improved its stability.

• Journal of the Korea institute for structural maintenance and inspection
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• v.15 no.1
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• pp.159-168
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• 2011

In this study, we find out the feasibility of self-consolidating concrete with EP nylon fiber. Three kinds of method were used; when length of nylon fiber is differed for the experiment to investigate usability of nylon fiber with enhanced performance by dispersing-agent coating in self-consolidating concrete, when mixing in other organic fibers (polypropylene, cellulose) and in case of Binary Blended and Ternary Blended concrete mixed with different types of mineral admixtures (blast-furnace slag and fly ash). Based on the results of the experiment described above, comparison was made on the basic properties and dynamic characteristics of general fiber reinforced concrete mixed with enhanced performance nylon fiber and SCC mixed with enhanced performance nylon fiber as a Mock-up test prior to the experiment of application to the actual structure. Considering characteristics and durability of the fresh and hardened self-compacting concrete, dynamic characteristics and durability were found to be more outstanding when using nylon fiber for the mineral admixtures used, dynamic characteristics and durability were found to be more outstanding when using blast-furnace slag.

• Applied Chemistry for Engineering
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• v.24 no.5
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• pp.537-543
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• 2013

In this study, the push-pull structure polymer for organic photo voHaics (OPVs) was synthesized and characterized. The poly{4,8-didodecyloxybenzo[1,2-b;3,4-b]dithiophene-alt-5,6-bis(octyloxy)-4,7-di(thiophen-2-yl)benzo[c][1,2,5]-thiadiazole} (PDBDT-TBTD) was synthesized by Stille coupling reaction using the benzothiadiazole (BTD) derivative as an electron acceptor and benzodithiophene (BDT) derivative as an electron donor. The structure of monomers and polymers was identified by $^1H-NMR$ and GC-MS. The optical, physical and electrochemical properties of the conjugated polymer were identified by GPC, TGA, UV-Vis and cyclic voltammetry. The number average molecular weight ($M_n$) and initial decomposition temperature (5% weight loss temperature, $T_d$) of PDBDT-TBTD were 6200 and $323^{\circ}C$, respectively. The absorption maxima on the film was about 599 nm and the optical band gap was about 1.70 eV. The structure of device was ITO/PEDOT : PSS/PDBDT-TBTD : $PC_{71}BM/BaF_2/Ba/Al$. PDBDT-TBTD and $PC_{71}BM$ were blended with the weight ratio of 1:2 which were then used as an optical active layer. The power conversion efficiency (PCE) of fabricated device was measured by solar simulator and the best PCE was 2.1%.

• Journal of the Korea Concrete Institute
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• v.29 no.1
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• pp.101-107
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• 2017

This study aimed to conduct the basic analysis on the fractal characteristics of cementitious materials. The pore structure of cement paste incorporating ground granulated blast furnace slag (GGBFS) was measured using mercury intrusion porosimetry (MIP) and the fractal characteristics were investigated using different models. Because the pore structure of GGBFS-blended cement paste is an irregular system in the various range from nanometer to millimeter, the characteristics of pore region in the different scale may not be adequately described when the fractal dimension was calculated over the whole scale range. While Zhang and Li model enabled analyzing the fraction dimension of pore structure over the three divided scale ranges of micro, small capillary and macro regions, Ji el al. model refined analysis on the fractal characteristics of micro pore region consisting of micro I region corresponding to gel pores and micro II region corresponding to small capillary pores. As the pore size decreased, both models suggested that the pore surface of micro region became more irregular than macro region and the complexity of pores increased.

• Membrane and Water Treatment
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• v.10 no.3
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• pp.207-212
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• 2019

Non-aqueous solvents (NASs) are generally known to be barely miscible, and reactive with polar compounds, such as water. However, water can interact with some NASs, which can be used as a new means for water recovery from saline water. This study explored the fate of water and salt in NAS, when saline water is mixed with NAS. Three amine solvents were selected as NAS. They had the same molecular formula, but were differentiated by their molecular structures, as follows: 1) NAS 'A' having the hydrophilic group ($NH_2$) at the end of the straight carbon chain, 2) NAS 'B' with symmetrical structure and having the hydrophilic group (NH) at the middle of the straight carbon chain, 3) NAS 'C' having the hydrophilic group ($NH_2$) at the end of the straight carbon chain but possessing a hydrophobic ethyl branch in the middle of the structure. In batch experiments, 0.5 M NaCl water was blended with NASs, and then water and salt content in the NAS were individually measured. Water absorption efficiencies by NAS 'B' and 'C' were 3.8 and 10.7%, respectively. However, salt rejection efficiency was 98.9% and 58.2%, respectively. NAS 'A' exhibited a higher water absorption efficiency of 35.6%, despite a worse salt rejection efficiency of 24.7%. Molecular dynamic (MD) simulation showed the different interactions of water and salts with each NAS. NAS 'A' formed lattice structured clusters, with the hydrophilic group located outside, and captured a large numbers of water molecules, together with salt ions, inside the cluster pockets. NAS 'B' formed a planar-shaped cluster, where only some water molecules, but no salt ions, migrated to the NAS cluster. NAS 'C', with an ethyl group branch, formed a cluster shaped similarly to that of 'B'; however, the boundary surface of the cluster looked higher than that of 'C', due to the branch structure in solvent. The MD simulation was helpful for understanding the experimental results for water absorption and salt rejection, by demonstrating the various interactions between water molecules and the salts, with the different NAS types.

• Applied Chemistry for Engineering
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• v.25 no.5
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• pp.487-496
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• 2014

In this study, three kinds of polymers based on phenothiazine-benzothiadiazole were synthesized by a Suzuki coupling reaction, and the various side-chains were substituted at the nitrogen of phenothiazine. The optical and electrochemical properties of synthesized polymers were analyzed. The results indicate that their absorption ranged from 300 to 700 nm, and also confirmed the ideal highest occupied molecular orbital (HOMO) energy level was about -5.4 eV with low band-gap energy. Photovoltaic devices were fabricated using a photoactive layer composed of a blended solution of the polymer and $PC_{71}BM$ in ortho-dichlorobenzene The device with P2HDPZ-bTP-OBT containing the branched side-chain and long chain showed the best performance; the maximum power conversion efficiency of this device was 2.4% (with $V_{OC}$ : 0.74 V, $J_{SC}$ : $6.9mA/cm^2$, FF : 48.0%).