• Polymer(Korea)
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• v.30 no.1
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• pp.85-89
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• 2006

The effect of vapor grown carbon fiber (VGCF) contents on electrical and rheological properties of VGCF filled polyphenylene sulfide (PPS) composites prepared through melt mixing using a twin screw exruder was studied. This method was proved to be quite effective to produce good dispersion of VGCF in the matrix even for highly filled PPS. From the dependence of the electrical conductivity on VGCF content, the percolation phenomena began to occur above $10\;wt\%$. While there is only a marginal increase of viscosity for 1 and $5\;wt\%$ VGCF filled PPS, the composites containing $10\;wt\%$. While VGCF showed abrupt increase in viscosity as well as flattening of frequency vs modulus curve, indicating a transition from a liquid-like to a solid-like behavior due to the creation of VGCF network. This result agrees well to the fact that the network formation in the composite can be composite by rheological property dependence on filler content as well as by electrical conductivity measurement.

• Journal of the korean academy of Pediatric Dentistry
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• v.32 no.3
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• pp.427-436
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• 2005

Topical application of APF gel can increase the surface roughness of resin composites and the roughened surfaces may allow increased bacterial accumulation and surface staining. Resin specimens of two proprietary resin composites, Filtek Z250(FZ) and Filtek Supreme Universal(FS), and experimental resin composites containing 0%, 3%, 6% nanofillers(E0, E3, E6) were fabricated and divided into two groups of the same number; APF treatment group and no treatment group. The amount of S. mutans adhered to specimens and the mean surface roughness(Ra) were measured. The results were as follows; 1. In no treatment group, the amount of S. mutans adhered to FS was the smallest. It was significantly different from those of FZ, E3, E6(p<0.05) although it was not significantly different from that of E0(p>0.05). 2. For all resin composites used, the amount of S. mutans adhesion in APF treatment group was significantly greater than that in no treatment group(p<0.05). 3. In APF treatment group, the amount of S. mutans adhesion was significantly different between materials(p<0.05), and increased in order of FS, FZ, E0, E3 and E6. 4. Difference of the surface roughness(Ra) between materials was not statistically significant in both no treatment group and APF treatment group(p>0.05)

• Membrane Journal
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• v.25 no.6
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• pp.530-537
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• 2015

Photovoltaic (PV) modules are environmentally energy conversion devices to generate electricity via photovoltaic effect of semiconductors from solar energy. One of key elements in PV modules is "Backsheet," a multilayered barrier film, which determines their lifetime and energy conversion efficiency. The representative Backsheet is composed of chemically resistant poly(vinyl fluoride) (PVF) and cheap poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) films used as core and skin materials, respectively. PVF film is too expensive to satisfy the market requirements to Backsheet materials with production cost as low as possible. The promising alternatives to PVF-based Backsheet are hydrocarbon Backsheets employing semi-crystalline PET films instead of PVF film. It is, however, necessary to provide improved barrier property to water vapor to the PET films, since PET films are suffering from hydrolytic decomposition. In this study, a polyurethane adhesive with reduced water vapor permeation behavior is developed via a homogeneous distribution of hydrophobic silica nanoparticles. The modified adhesive is expected to retard the hydrolysis of PET films located in the core and inner skin. To clarify the efficacy of the proposed concept, the mechanical properties and electrochemical PV performances of the Backsheet are compared with those of a Backsheet employing the polyurethane adhesive without the silica nanoparticles, after the exposure under standard temperature and humidity conditions.

• Journal of the Speleological Society of Korea
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• no.63
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• pp.1-8
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• 2004

The non-magnetic materials with non-conductive showing high structure dispersity were developed on the base of natural quartz and lava-scoria which was collected from Je-ju island in Korea, and treated by methane-chemical technology those were obtained novel properties of magnetization through the analyzing. Depending on the processing conditions and subsequent applications the materials produced by strong methane-chemical reaction (MCR) in alcohol solution showed concurrently magnetic, dielectric and electrical properties. The obtained magnetic-electrical powders classified by aggregate complex of their features as segnetomagnetics, containing a dielectric material as a carrying nucleus, particularly the quartz on that surface one or more layers of different compounds were synthesized having thickness up to 10～50 nm and showing magnetic, electrical and other properties. It was confirmed in magnetizing process that powders of quartz and lava-scoria produced by MCR were better oil adsorbent as of oleophilic and floating matter on water surface although their specific gravities are comparably more than 1 in quartz or less than unity, as that of water, in lava-scoira. Therefore, it will be Possible and very useful to remove low density and light gravity oil spillage in difficult recovery from sea and inland water contamination spread on water surface, by marine accident and ship sinking accident occurring frequently in recent years, by way of magnetic adsorbent conveyer system in continuous, if it could be built up the mass Production system of water-floating magnetizable oleophilic adsorbent materials with use of iow cost and good Qualify lava-scoria spread on volcano district in Je-ju island. And, there will also be urgent advent of necessity with strong possibility to develop useful applications of various magnetic functional materials include oleophilic adsorbent for removal of sea oil-contaminants and maritime pollutants, and other kinds of various utilities in industrial applications and practical uses of novel functional materials in the fields of environments and health care applications with in deep expectation.

• Journal of the Korean Crystal Growth and Crystal Technology
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• v.25 no.6
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• pp.245-251
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• 2015

We have applied mechanical alloying (MA) to produce soft magnetic composite material using a mixture of elemental $Fe_2O_3$-Mg powders. An optimal milling and heat treatment conditions to obtain soft magnetic ${\alpha}$-Fe/MgO composite with fine microstructure were investigated by X-ray diffraction, differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and vibrating sample magnetometer (VSM) measurement. It is found that ${\alpha}$-Fe/MgO composite powders in which MgO is dispersed in ${\alpha}$-Fe matrix are obtained by MA of $Fe_2O_3$ with Mg for 30 min. The saturation magnetization of ball-milled powders increases with increasing milling time and reaches to a maximum value of 69.5 emu/g after 5 h MA. The magnetic hardening due to the reduction of the ${\alpha}$-Fe grain size by MA was also observed. Densification of the MA powders was performed in a spark plasma sintering (SPS) machine at $800{\sim}1000^{\circ}C$ under 60 MPa. X-ray diffraction result shows that the average grain size of ${\alpha}$-Fe in ${\alpha}$-Fe/MgO nanocomposite sintered at $800^{\circ}C$ is in the range of 110 nm.

• Journal of Korean Society of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene
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• v.30 no.1
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• pp.1-9
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• 2020

Objectives: The purpose of this case study is to assess workers' exposure to carbon nanotubes(CNTs) and characterize particles aerosolized during the process of producing CNT-enabled polytetrafuoroethylene(PTFE) composites at a worksite in Korea. Methods: Personal breathing zone and area samples were collected for determining respirable concentrations of elemental carbon(EC) using NIOSH(National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health) Method 5040. Personal exposure to nano-sized particles was measured as the number concentration and mean diameter using personal ultrafine particle monitors. The number concentration by particle size was measured using optical particle sizers(OPS) and scanning mobility particle sizers(SMPS). Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) area samples were collected on TEM grids and analyzed to characterize the size, morphology, and chemistry of the particles. Results: Respirable EC concentrations ranged from 0.04 to 0.24 ㎍/㎥, which were below 23% of the exposure limit recommended by NIOSH and lower than background concentrations. Number concentrations by particle size measured using OPS and SMPS were not noticeably elevated during CNT-PTFE composite work. Instant increase of number concentrations of nano-sized particles was observed during manual sanding of CNT-PTFE composites. Both number concentrations and mean diameters did not show a statistically significant difference between workers handing CNT-added and not-added materials. TEM analyses revealed the emission of free-standing CNTs and CNT-PTFE aggregate particles from the powder supply task and composite particles embedded with CNTs from the computer numerical control(CNC) machining task with more than tens of micrometers in diameter. No free-standing CNT particles were observed from the CNC machining task. Conclusions: Significant worker exposure to respirable CNTs was not found, but the aerosolization of CNTs and CNT-embedded composite particles were observed during handing of CNT-PTFE powders and CNC machining of CNT-PTFE composites. Considering the limited knowledge on the toxicity of CNTs and CNT composite particles to date, it seems prudent to take a precautionary approach for the protection of workers' health.

• Journal of the Korean Applied Science and Technology
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• v.35 no.3
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• pp.595-605
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• 2018

In recent years, researches on organic-inorganic coating films have conducted a nanocomposite system composed of organic resin matrices having excellent flexibility and chemical stability and inorganic materials having excellent mechanical properties. The o-phenylphenoxyethyl acrylate (OPPEA) used as the acrylate monomer has a high refractive index of 1.58, and the bisphenol A ethoxylate diacrylate (BAEDA) has a low refractive index but improves the chemical stability of the organic resin. In addition, zirconia used as an inorganic material exhibits excellent durability and optical properties. In this study, the BAEDA contents in acrylate monomer were controlled to produce a film with suitable optical transparency. And optimum conditions were established by comparing the changes in surface properties of PET films detected with pencil hardness tester, Abbe's refractometer, and UV-vis spectrophotometer. The hydrophobicity and the dispersibility of zirconia in acrylate monomer were much improved after modification with ${\gamma}$-methacryloxypropyltrimethoxysilane (MPS), which is a silane coupling agent. And the existence of ester C=O bond peak at $1716cm^{-1}$ introduced by MPS through FT-IR ATR spectrophotometer confirmed the completion of surface modification of zirconia with MPS. In addition, the presence of silicon atom on the surface modified zirconia was also proved using X-ray fluorescence spectrometer. When the photocurable hybrid coating was prepared by introducing chemically modified zirconia into acrylate monomer, the refractive index of this coated PET film was improved by 1.2%, compared to the only acrylate coated PET film. The homogeneous distribution of zirconia in acrylate coating layer on PET film was also identified through SEM/EDS mapping analysis technique.

• Transactions on Electrical and Electronic Materials
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• v.11 no.6
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• pp.261-265
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• 2010

In this paper, we attempt to improve the electrical characteristics of epoxy resin at high temperature (above $80^{\circ}C$) by adding magnesium oxide (MgO), which has high thermal conductivity. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) of the dispersion of specimens with added MgO reveals that they are evenly dispersed without concentration. The dielectric breakdown characteristics of $SiO_2$ and MgO nanocomposites are tested by measurements at different temperatures to investigate the filler's effect on the dielectric breakdown characteristics. The dielectric breakdown strength of specimens with added $SiO_2$ decreases slowly below $80^{\circ}C$ (low temperature) but decreases rapidly above $80^{\circ}C$ (high temperature). However, the gradient of the dielectric breakdown strength of specimens with added MgO is slow at both low and high temperatures. The dielectric breakdown strength of specimens with 0.4 wt% $SiO_2$ is the best among the specimens with added $SiO_2$, and that of specimens with 3.0 wt% and 5.0 wt% MgO is the best among those with added MgO. Moreover, the dielectric strength of specimens with 3.0 wt% MgO at high temperatures is approximately 53.3% higher than that of specimens with added $SiO_2$ at $100^{\circ}C$, and that of specimens with 5.0 wt% of MgO is approximately 59.34% higher under the same conditions. The dielectric strength of MgO is believed to be superior to that of $SiO_2$ owing to enhanced thermal radiation because the thermal conductivity rate of MgO (approximately 42 $W/m{\cdot}K$) is approximately 32 times higher than that of $SiO_2$ (approximately 1.3 $W/m{\cdot}K$). We also confirmed that the allowable breakdown strength of specimens with added MgO at $100^{\circ}C$ is within the error range when the breakdown probability of all specimens is 40%. A breakdown probability of up to 40% represents a stable dielectric strength in machinery and apparatus design.

• Membrane Journal
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• v.30 no.3
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• pp.158-172
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• 2020

In the aspect of saving energy and water, facilitating the separation membrane for the water treatment has been rising recently as one of the possible solutions. However, microbial biofouling effect is the biggest obstacle that hinders reaching higher permeability over a prolonged period of nanofiltration operation. To solve this problem and fully utilize the filtration membranes with enhanced performance, largely two kinds of solutions are studied and the first and the most commonly mentioned type is the one using the silver nanoparticles. Since silver nanoparticles are important to be well tailored on membrane surface, various methods have been applied and suggested. Using silver nanoparticles however also has the drawbacks or possible toxicity risks, raising the need for other types of utilizing non silver particles to functionalize the membrane, such as copper, graphene or zinc oxides, and amine moieties. Each attempt included in either kind has produced some notable results in killing, preventing, or repelling the bacteria while at the same time, left some unsolved points to be evaluated. In this review, the effects of metal nanoparticles and other materials on the antifouling properties of water treatment membranes are summarized.

• Applied Chemistry for Engineering
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• v.27 no.5
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• pp.502-507
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• 2016

This study was conducted to develop novel antimicrobial nano-composites, with the aim of fully utilizing antimicrobial properties of multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs), nickel (Ni) and zinc oxide (ZnO). Ni coated-MWCNTs (Ni-CNT) were prepared and evaluated for their potential application as an antimicrobial material for inactivating bacteria. Field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), and X-ray energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) were used to characterize the Ni coating and morphology of Ni-CNT. Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) and Escherichia coil (E. coil) were employed as the target bacterium on antimicrobial activities. Comparing with the nitric acid treated MWCNTs and Ni-CNT which have been previously reported to possess antimicrobial activity towards S. aureus and E. coil, Ni-CNT/ZnO exhibited a stronger antimicrobial ability. The nickel coating was confirmed to play an important role in the bactericidal action of Ni-CNTs/ZnO composites. Also, the addition of ZnO to the developed nanocomposite is suggested to improve the antimicrobial property.