• The Journal of the Korea Contents Association
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• v.21 no.2
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• pp.85-99
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• 2021

Graphene, called the "dream material" is drawing attention as a groundbreaking new material that will lead the era of the 4th Industrial Revolution. Graphene has high strength, excellent electrical and thermal conductivity, excellent optical permeability, and excellent gas barrier properties. In this paper, as the South Korean government recently announced Green New Deal and Digital New Deal policy, we analyze graphene technology, which is also attracting attention for its application to Corona 19 biosensor, to understand its national R&D trend and knowledge structure, and to explore the possibility of its application. Firstly, 4,054 cases of national R&D project information for the last 10 years are collected from the National Science & Technology Information Service(NTIS) to analyze the trend of graphene-related R&D. Besides, projects classified as green technology are analyzed concerning the government's Green New Deal policy. Secondly, text mining analysis is conducted by collecting 500 recent graphene-related articles from e-newspapers. According to the analysis, the field with the largest number of projects was found to be high-efficiency secondary battery technology, and the proportion of total research funds was also the highest. It is expected that South Korea will lead the development of graphene technology in the future to become a world leader in diverse industries including electric vehicles, cellular phone batteries, next-generation semiconductors, 5G, and biosensors.

• Economic and Environmental Geology
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• v.56 no.6
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• pp.729-744
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• 2023

The value of lithium has significantly increased due to the rising demand for electric cars and batteries. Lithium is primarily found in pegmatites, hydrothermally altered tuffaceous clays, and continental brines. Globally, groundwater-fed salt lakes and oil field brines are attracting attention as major sources of lithium in continental brines, accounting for about 70% of global lithium production. Recently, deep groundwater, especially geothermal water, is also studied for a potential source of lithium. Lithium concentrations in deep groundwater can increase through substantial water-rock reaction and mixing with brines. For the exploration of lithim in deep groundwater, it is important to understand its origin and behavior. Therefore, based on a nationwide preliminary study on the hydrogeochemical characteristics and evolution of thermal groundwater in South Korea, this study aims to investigate the distribution of lithium in the deep groundwater environment and understand the geochemical factors that affect its concentration. A total of 555 thermal groundwater samples were classified into five hydrochemical types showing distinct hydrogeochemical evolution. To investigate the enrichment mechanism, samples (n = 56) with lithium concentrations exceeding the 90th percentile (0.94 mg/L) were studied in detail. Lithium concentrations varied depending upon the type, with Na(Ca)-Cl type being the highest, followed by Ca(Na)-SO₄ type and low-pH Ca(Na)-HCO₃ type. In the Ca(Na)-Cl type, lithium enrichment is due to reverse cation exchange due to seawater intrusion. The enrichment of dissolved lithium in the Ca(Na)-SO₄ type groundwater occurring in Cretaceous volcanic sedimentary basins is related to the occurrence of hydrothermally altered clay minerals and volcanic activities, while enriched lithium in the low-pH Ca(Na)-HCO₃ type groundwater is due to enhanced weathering of basement rocks by ascending deep CO₂. This reconnaissance geochemical study provides valuable insights into hydrogeochemical evolution and economic lithium exploration in deep geologic environments.