• Korean Journal of Environmental Agriculture
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• v.22 no.3
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• pp.177-184
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• 2003

Although clay can sorb significant amounts of inorganic contaminants from soils and wastewater, the hydration of exchangeable cations in clay minerals makes it hydrophilic at the clay mineral surfaces and interlayers. Thus, natural clays are often ineffective in complexing and stabilizing toxic organic contaminants in soils and groundwater environment. But, substituting these hydrated cations with cationic surfactant such as QAC(Quaternary ammonium Compound) can change the natural clay from hydrophilic to hydropobic. Furthermore functionalized organoclay can act as a powerful dual function sorbent for both toxic metals and organic compounds. It also can be used as landfill clay liners, slurry walls, nano-composite materials, petroleum tank farms, waste treatment, and filter systems. To use this modified clay minerals effectively, it is required to understand the fundamental chemistry of organoclay, synthetic procedures, its engineering application, bioavailability of sorbed ion-clay complex, and potential risk of organoclay. In this review, we investigate the use, application and historical background of the organoclay in remediation technology. The state-of-the-art of organoclay research is also discussed. Finally, we suggest some future implications of organoclay in environmental research.

• Elastomers and Composites
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• v.34 no.4
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• pp.315-320
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• 1999

Surface modification of silicone rubber by low temperature plasma process was investigated to improve quality of silicone EVD tube by reducing tackiness and hydrophobicity. Treatment with nonpolymer-forming plasmas and thin film deposition with polymer-forming plasmas were tried. Tackiness could significantly be reduced, especially by thin film deposition. As a result, the tube became slippery and less vulnerable to contamination in laboratory environment. Inner as well as outer surface of the tube could be changed to be hydrophilic if the plasma contained oxygen. As a result, initial hydrodynamic resistance was reduced. The surface modification did not give any bad influence on mechanical properties of the silicone tube in most cases. Rather, some properties such as Young's modulus, ultimate tensile strength and elongation at break were improved.

• Proceedings of the Korean Vacuum Society Conference
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• 1999.07a
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• pp.202-202
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• 1999

The Polyethylene (PE), Polystyrene (PS) and Polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) surface modification was investigated by hydrogen io assisted reaction (H-IAR) in oxygen environment. The IAR is a kind of surface modification techniques using ion beam irradiation in reactive gas environment. The energy of hydrogen ion beam was fixed at 1keV, io dose was varied from 5$\times$1014 to 1$\times$1017 ions/$\textrm{cm}^2$, and amount of oxygen blowing gas was fixed 4ml/min. Wettability was measured by water contact angles measurement, and the surface functionality was analyzed by x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. The contact angle of water on PE modified by argon ion beam only decrease from 95$^{\circ}$ to 52$^{\circ}$, and surface energy was not changed significantly. But, the contact angle using hydrogen ion beam with flowing 4ml/min oxygen stiffly decreased to 8$^{\circ}$ and surface energy to 65 ergs/cm. In case of PS, the contact angle and surface energy changes were similar results of PE, but the contact angle of PTEE samples decreased with ion dose up to 1$\times$1015 ions/$\textrm{cm}^2$, increased at higher dose, and finally increased to the extent that no wetting was appeared at 1$\times$1017 ions/$\textrm{cm}^2$. These results must be due to the hydrogen ion beam that cleans the surface removing the impurities on polymer surfaces, then hydrogen ion beam was activated with C-H bonding to make some functional groups in order to react with the oxygen gases. Finally, unstable polymer surface can be changed from hydrophobic to hydrophilic formation such as C-O and C=O that were confirmed by the XPS analysis, conclusionally, the ion assisted reaction is very effective tools to attach reactive ion species to form functional groups on C-C bond chains of PE, PS and PTFE.

• Journal of Korean Society for Atmospheric Environment
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• v.6 no.1
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• pp.85-96
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• 1990

Simultaneous removal efficiencies of hydrophilic and hydrophobic gaseous pollutants are experimentally determined, and the macroscopic removal mechanism of pollutants in a dry scrubber is analyzed using the extended model of three phase equilibrium distribution of pollutant at high temperatures that can describe the different morphological conditions of adsorbent and water at varying relative humidities. For the simplicity, the inside of spray dryer is divided into three regions of ; (1) absorption, (2) three-phase equilibrium, and (3) adsorption, and the removal efficiencies of each pollutants at three regions are observed at different experimental conditions to estimate the effects of important parameters of dry scrubber. The laboratory experiments simulate the three regions of spray dryer with the temperature control and thus evaporation rate of water from the slurry particle. $SO_2$ as a hydrophilic gaseous pollutant and vinyl chloride as a hydrophobic toxic gas are selected for the future field application to soid waste incineration, and the two types of slurry are made of the two sorbents ; 10 wt.% $Ca(OH)_2$, and 10 wt.% NaOH. Result of temperature effect shows the height of absorption plus three-phase region is decreased as the operation temperature is increased, which results in the lower removal efficiency of $SO_2$ but higher removal for vinyl chloride in the adsorption region of dry scrubber. The removal efficiency of $SO_2$ is higher by NaOH slurry than by $Ca(OH)_2$ slurry due to the hygroscopic nature of NaOH, while the removal of vinyl chloride is higher in $Ca(OH)_2$ case. From the analysis of redults using three-phase equilibrium distribution model, the effective two-phase partition coefficients can be obtained, and the possible extention in the application of the three-phase equilibrium model in a dry scrubber design has been demonstrated.

• Journal of Korean Society on Water Environment
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• v.21 no.2
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• pp.125-131
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• 2005

Natural organic matter(NOM) is defined as the complex matrix of organic material and abundant in natural waters. It affects the performance of unit operations for water purification. Several kinds of analytical indicators such as DOC, specific ultraviolet absorbance(SUVA), apparent molecular weight (AMW), fractionation and high performance size exclusive chromatography(HPSEC) have been used to understand characteristics and variations of NOM. This study aims to evaluate the characteristics of NOM in the Geum River system comprising with stream flows and reservoirs. It was identified that SUVA denoting the portion of humic substance in water ranged within 1.60~3.36. Using resin adsorbents, dissolved organic carbon(DOC) was fractionated into three classes: hydrophobic bases(HOB), hydrophobic acids(HOA) and hydrophilic substances(HI). HI dominates in all samples, collectively accounting for more than 62% of the DOC. HOA was the second dominated fraction and it varied considerably but accounted for about 30% of the DOC. The distribution of high molecular weight(HMW) measured by HPSEC being used to determine the molecular weight distribution of aquatic humic substances was 40.1% and 38.7% in reservoir and stream flow, respectively. The distribution of low molecular weight(LMW) in stream flow was 13.2% higher than that in reservoir. And apparent molecular weight less than 1KDa, which include the molecular weight of hydrophilic organic matter, occupied with 69.2% and 68.2% in stream flow and reservoir, respectively. While the molecular weight of 1 to 100 KDa including humic substances ranged with 18.6% and 21.6% in stream flow and reservoir, respectively. Seasonal variation of refractory dissolved organic carbon was similar to that of SUVA.

• 한국태양에너지학회:학술대회논문집
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• 2011.11a
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• pp.291-296
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• 2011

This paper presents energy self-sufficiency simulated in municipal wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) by adopting solar energy production systems that vary with installation conditions. Relative to the national average energy consumption in WWTPs, the employment of 100 kW photovoltaics (PVs) was simulated to achieve 2.75% of energy self-sufficiency. The simulated results suggested that the installation of PVs toward South or South west would produce the highest energy self-sufficiency in WWTPs. When super-hydrophilic coating was employed in the conventional PVs, 5% of additional solar energy production was achievable as compared to uncoated conventional PVs. When 100 kW of PVs were installed in a future test-bed site, Kihyeung Respida located in Yougin, Sourth Korea, the energy self-sufficiency by solar energy was simulated to be 1.77% (2010). The simulated energy self-sufficiency by azimuth(direction) will be useful reference for practitioners in designing the solar PV systems in the WWTPs.

• Journal of Korean Society of Environmental Engineers
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• v.22 no.12
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• pp.2215-2226
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• 2000

Adsorption characteristics for homologous xanthates on quartz surface has been investigated by FT-IR spectroscopy to understand the adsorption mechanism in relation with verification of the influence of surfactants on the stability of hydrophilic suspended solids in aqueous system. Contact angle measurement for water droplets on quartz surface treated with xanthate was also conducted as a supplementary study for spectroscopic investigation to grant a reliability to the interpretation of experimental results. It has been observed that monolayer of ethyl xanthate was formed on quartz surface as the adsorption progressed and double layer of ethyl xanthate was formed eventually through the reverse oriented adsorption of xanthate molecules on the monolayer. Similar trend of adsorption to the case of ethyl xanthate was found for propyl and butyl xanthates and adsorption was observed to occur more rapidly as the number of carbon atom in alkyl group of xanthate homologs increased. Thermodynamic aspect of adsorption was discussed using Young's equation and the variation in adsorption rate was examined according to the concentration of ethyl xanthate. Based on the result, it has been concluded that the adsorption features of surfactant on substrate in aquatic system is governed by molecular structure and concentration of surfactant and its residual time in aqueous environment as dissolved state also influences greatly the stability of hydrophilic suspended particles.

• 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.

• Journal of Korean Society of Environmental Engineers
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• v.31 no.7
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• pp.491-498
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• 2009

We studied to develop high-efficiency removal system of odor and VOCs(Volatile Organic Compounds) from environmental infrastructure facilities and oil refineries, painting facilities and so on. It can replace RTO and RCO. We tried an removal experiment for VOCs (toluene, xylene, benzene, MEK(methyl ethyl ketone), ethanol, formalin etc. and odor compounds (hydrogen sulfide, etc.). In process, as pre-treatment we used the scrubber with vortex flow (Multi-scrone) to remove the hydrophilic VOCs and as post-treatment, used fibrous bio-filter to remove the hydrophobic VOCs. This hybrid system remove with high efficiency both the hydrophilic VOCs and hydrophobic VOCs. And we tried to make this system to be compact. In experiment using Multi-scrone, contact time is 2~3 seconds and absorption scrubbing water is diaphragm-type electrolysis water. hydrophilic VOCs like ethanol and relatively hydrophilic odor compounds like hydrogen sulfide is excellent, these substances has been removed almost completely, respectively 95~99%, 93~97%. And for MEK, formalin also Showed a high removal efficiency, respectively 78~90%, 72~85%. But in experiment using Multi-scrone, the hydrophobic VOCs like BTX showed a low removal efficiency, respectively 16~22%, 12~18%, 8~16%. In hydrophobic VOCs, toluene removal experiment using fibrous bio-filter, early efficiency was low but after 10days, adaptation period showed high efficiency 85~95%. but in the mixed phase, toluene and MEK efficiency reduced 5~10%. this show microorganism treat first MEK easy to remove. The removal efficiency for MEK using the fibrous biofilter was stable, 80~92%. This hybrid system is also high economical efficiency for RTO. This system reduce more than 50% the cost of equipment and maintenance. As a result, we expect this technology is in the limelight as high efficiency treatment of VOCs in mid-low price.

• Journal of Korean Society for Atmospheric Environment
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• v.25 no.6
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• pp.523-538
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• 2009

Recently, there has been a keen demand for real-time automatic monitoring of VOCs not only in Korea but other developed countries. We carried out this study to evaluate and to optimize the performance of a continuous automatic monitoring system for hazardous VOCs (HVOCs) in the ambient atmosphere, using an on-line GC system. The online system normally consisted of a Nafion dryer prior to a cold trap of an automatic thermal desorption apparatus and a GC system equipped with two detectors, i.e. PID and ECD. Preliminary tests conducted to check out any contamination of the system revealed an evidence of significant artifact formation of benzene, and it was found that the Nafion dryer (even brand new one) is the source of the benzene artifact. Thus, all the subsequent experiments in this study was carried out inevitably by removing the Nafion dryer. The on-line GC method was investigated with a variety of QC/QA performance criteria such as repeatability, linearity, lower detection limits, and accuracy. In order to find out the best operating condition for the on-line GC system, three different types (in terms of adsorption strength) of cold trap combinations were tested, i.e. (i) Tenax-TA and Carbopack-B combination (weak and hydrophobic); (ii) Tenax-TA, Carbopack-X and Carboxen-1000 combination (strong and hydrophilic); and (iii) Tenax-TA and Carbopack-X combination (medium and hydrophobic/hydrophilic). The USEPA TO-17 manual method was selected as a reference method to evaluate the performance of the on-line method. A series of experiments revealed that the system performance was superior to others when a cold trap packed with hydrophilic adsorbents (Tenax-TA/Carbopack-X/Carboxen-1000 combination) was used and operated at $25^{\circ}C$. However, the system with a cold trap packed with a combination of Tenax-TA and Carbopack-X is more recommended for field applications since the carboxen-1000 adsorbent is too sensitive to water vapor, and hence the performance of the system might be very unstable to humid samples or during rainy days. Furthermore, the precision and accuracy criteria of the Tenax-TA/ Carbopack-X combination were generally compatible with the triple adsorbents cold trap. The continuous automatic monitoring method is, thus, considered very useful to real-time monitoring to understand the variations of VOCs concentrations in ambient air, as it adopts much simpler procedures in sampling, analysis, and data integration steps than manual monitoring methods. However, it should be noted that there is a high possibility of benzene artifacts formation through the Nafion dryer, which is often installed to remove water vapor in air samples before being adsorbed onto the cold trap. Therefore, if a Nafion dryer is used in any studies of monitoring VOCs, the benzene contamination should be carefully examined before carrying out obtaining the data.