• Carbon letters
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• v.11 no.2
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• pp.96-101
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• 2010

Dispersion of the functionalized multiwalled nanotubes (MWNT) in the polyurethane (PU) matrix and DC conductivity of the MWNT/PU composites are investigated with the oxidation conditions, the kind of surfactants and their content. First, the most optimal surfactant type and its critical micelle concentration in the MWNT suspension are determined as a cationic surfactant, benzalkonium chloride (BKC) of 0.6 wt.% to the MWNT content from DEA and FESEM results. All the MWNT oxidized under several conditions are negatively charged and functionalized with carboxylic group, whereas the degree of damage is different from oxidation conditions. In addition, each MWNT/PU composite derived from several oxidation conditions shows different DC conductivity at a characteristic MWNT content. It is found that in order to enhance DC conductivity of the polymeric composites containing the oxidized MWNT the better dispersion of MWNT should be obtained by effective functionalities and surfactant adsorption with preserving the intrinsic geometry of pristine MWNT.

• Membrane and Water Treatment
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• v.1 no.2
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• pp.103-120
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• 2010

Surface modification of microfiltration and ultrafiltration membranes has been widely used to improve the protein adsorption resistance and permeation properties of hydrophobic membranes. Several surface modification methods for converting conventional membranes into low-protein-binding membranes are reviewed. They are categorized as either physical modification or chemical modification of the membrane surface. Physical modification of the membrane surface can be achieved by coating it with hydrophilic polymers, hydrophilic-hydrophobic copolymers, surfactants or proteins. Another method of physical modification is plasma treatment with gases. A hydrophilic membrane surface can be also generated during phase-inverted micro-separation during membrane formation, by blending hydrophilic or hydrophilic-hydrophobic polymers with a hydrophobic base membrane polymer. The most widely used method of chemical modification is surface grafting of a hydrophilic polymer by UV polymerization because it is the easiest method; the membranes are dipped into monomers with and without photo-initiators, then irradiated with UV. Plasma-induced polymerization of hydrophilic monomers on the surface is another popular method, and surface chemical reactions have also been developed by several researchers. Several important examples of physical and chemical modifications of membrane surfaces for low-protein-binding are summarized in this article.

• Journal of Adhesion and Interface
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• v.18 no.4
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• pp.171-178
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• 2017

Recently, layer-by-layer (LbL) assembly has emerged as a promising fabrication technique in controlling surface wetting properties. LbL assembly technique is eco-friendly versatile technique to control the hierarchical structure and surface properties in nano- and micro-scale by employing a variety of materials (e.g., polymers, surfactants, nanoparticles, etc.). This article reviews recent progress in controlling the surface wetting using LbL technique. In particular, technical trends and research findings on fabrication and the applications of superhydrophobic, superhydrophilc, and superoleophobic/superhydrophilic LbL surfaces are extensively explained. Additionally, basic principles and fabrication methods in emerging areas such as omniphobic, self-healing, intelligent and responsive LbL surfaces are discussed.

• Proceedings of the SAREK Conference
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• 2008.11a
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• pp.275-280
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• 2008

The effects of the surfactant type, i.e., CTAB(cationic), SDS(anionic), and GA(polymeric), on the stability of 0.1 vol.% $Al_2O_3$ nanofluids were investigated. The changes in size and zeta potential of nanoparticles in nanofluids with pH, surfactant concentration, and time were experimentally observed. The nanofluids adding CTAB, which ionizes of the same charge with the bare particle surface, was found to have the best stability regardless of the surfactant concentration, whereas those with SDS became unstable under low surfactant concentration conditions, i.e. lower than the critical micellel concentration(CMC), before the charge reversal occurred. With higher SDS concentration over CMC, they became stable. Gum Arabic, which had been used often to stabilize the nanofluids, was also tested. In result, it was found that the type and concentration of surfactants to add should be selected considering pH and the sign of the bare particle surface charge.

• Elastomers and Composites
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• v.56 no.3
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• pp.136-151
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• 2021

Biomass lignin, a waste produced during the paper and bio-ethanol production process, is a cheap material that is available in large quantities. Thus, the interest in the valorization of biomass lignin has been increasing in industrial and academic areas. Over the years, lignin has been predominantly burnt as fuel to run pulping plants. However, less than 2% of the available lignin has been utilized for producing specialty chemicals, such as dispersants, adhesives, surfactants, and other value-added products. The development of value-added lignin-derived co-products should help make second generation biorefineries and the paper industry more profitable by valorizing lignin. Another possible approach towards value-added applications is using lignin as a component in plastics. However, blending lignin with polymers is not simple because the polarity of lignin molecules results in strong self-interactions. Therefore, achieving in-depth insights on lignin characteristics and structure will help in accelerating the development of lignin-based products. Considering the multipurpose characteristics of lignin for producing value-added products, this review will shed light on the potential applications of lignin and lignin-based derivatives on polymeric composite production. Moreover, the challenges in lignin valorization will be addressed.

• Membrane Journal
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• v.27 no.2
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• pp.154-166
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• 2017

Polymeric films for gas barrier applications such as food packaging and electronic devices have attracted great interest due to their cheap, light and easy processability among gas barrier materials. Especially in electronic devices, extremely low gas permeance is necessary for maintaining the device performance. However, current polymeric barrier films still suffer from relatively high gas permeance than other materials. Therefore, there have been strong needs to enhance the gas barrier performance of polymeric barrier films while keep their own advantages. Recently, graphene is highlighted as a 2D-layered material for gas barrier applications. However, owing to the poor workability and difficulty to produce in engineering scale, graphene oxide (GO) is on the rise. GO consists of oxygen-containing functional groups on surface with intrinsic 2D-layered structure and high aspect ratio, and it can be well-dispersed in aqueous polar solvents like water, resulting in scalable mass production. Here, we prepared GO incorporated polyimide (PI) nanocomposites. PI is widely used barrier polymer with high mechanical strength and thermal and chemical stability. We demonstrated that PI/GO nanocomposites could perform as a gas barrier. Furthermore, surfactants (Triton X-100 (TX) and Sodium deoxycholate (SDC)) are introduced to enhance the gas barrier performance by improving the degree of dispersion of GO in PI matrix. As a result, TX enhanced the gas barrier performance of PI/GO nanocomposites which is similar to predicted value. This finding will provide new insight to polymer nanocomposites for gas barrier applications.

• Composites Research
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• v.30 no.1
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• pp.41-45
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• 2017

Magnetite nanoparticles were synthesized by adding an ammonium hydroxide to a mixed solution of iron (II) and (III) chlorides. A silicon surfactant of ${\alpha},{\omega}$-(3-aminopropyl)polydimethylsiloxane was adsorbed on the particles as dispersant and a polydimethylsiloxane polymer was used to prepare ferrofluids of silicone oil base. Fluorinated surfactants of anionic ammoniated perfluoroalkyl sulfonamide and nonionic fluoroaliphatic polymeric esters were applied to the particles and a perfluoropolyether was used to prepare ferrofluids of fluorine oil base. The experimental conditions were used for preparing the ferrofluids with concentrations of 200, 300 and 400 mg/mL, and density, magnetization and viscosity of the products were characterized. The density values increased in proportion to the concentration, indicating 1.11-1.27 g/mL for silicone-oil-based fluids and 1.95-2.10 g/mL for fluorine-oil-based fluids in the range of 200-400 mg/mL. The saturation magnetization of the silicone-oil-based and fluorine-oil-based fluids indicated 14.7, 24.4, and 30.7 mT and 15.8, 23.3, and 33.7 mT for 200, 300, and 400 mg/mL, respectively, depending on the content of magnetic particles in the fluid. The viscosity of the silicone-oil-based ferrofluids was highly stable compared to that of the fluorine-oil-based with increasing temperatures. The ferrofluids are usually applied to seals and speakers with the silicone base and to seals with the fluorine base.

• Applied Chemistry for Engineering
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• v.4 no.2
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• pp.381-392
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• 1993

Anionic oligomer surfactants, dodecyl polyoxyethylene ${\alpha}-sulfa$ alkanoates, had been synthesized through the esterification of dodecyl polyoxyethylene glycol and ${\alpha}-sulfa$ alkanoic acid with straight chain alkyl group having from 10 to 18 carbon atoms to good yield. ${\alpha}-sulfa$ alkanoic acids were obtained by reaction with long chain alkanoic acids and sulfur trioxide-dioxane complex, and dodecyl polyoxyethylene glycols, by addition reaction with dodecyl alcohol and ethylene oxide(addition, 5, 10, 20mol) respectively. All the synthetic products could be separated by means of the thin layer and column chromatography, and their structure has characterized with IR, $^1HNMR$ and elemental analysis, respectively.

• Korean Chemical Engineering Research
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• v.50 no.4
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• pp.684-689
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• 2012

Poly(acrylic acid) (PAA) microspheres is one of the widely-used polymeric materials for the bio-field application and the electric materials. For the synthesis of PAA microspheres, the polymerization technique using surfactants is applied. After the synthesis, the purification and separation processes are required for the removal of surfactant. When general organic solvents were used, many problems, such as huge amount of waste solvent, additional separation processes, and the possibility of residual media, were occurred. Thus, High-pressure Soxhlet extraction using liquid $CO_2$ was developed to solve these problems. In this study, High-pressure Soxhlet extraction of the synthesized PAA microspheres using liquid $CO_2$ was conducted for the removal of Monasil PCA which is used for the dispersion polymerization of acrylic acid in compressed liquid Dimethyl ether (DME). The morphology of the extracted PAA particles was checked by field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM) and the residual concentration of Monasil PCA was analyzed by inductively coupled plasma - Optical Emission Spectrometer (ICP-OES). For studying the effect of the solvent effect, Soxhlet extraction was conducted using n-hexane, liquid DME, and liquid $CO_2$. In case of n-hexane, some extracted PAA microspheres were produced. However, deformation was also occurred due to the high thermal energy of n-hexane vapor. Liquid DME could not remove Monasil PCA. When using liquid $CO_2$, the extracted PAA microspheres which were free for the residual solvent were produced without deformation. For finding the optimum operating condition, high-pressure Soxhlet extraction was conducted for 8 hours with changing the temperature of reboiler and condenser. When the extractor temperature is $19.6{\pm}0.2^{\circ}C$ and the pressure is $51.5{\pm}0.5$ bar, the best removal efficiency was obtained.