• Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society
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• v.34 no.5
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• pp.1513-1520
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• 2013

Novel chitosan (CS) based membrane networks were developed by solution casting and followed by crosslinking with different crosslinkers such as glutaraldehyde, urea-formaldehyde, and thiourea-formaldehyde. The developed membrane networks were designated as CS-GA, CS-UF and CS-TF. Crosslinking reaction of CS membranes was confirmed by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. Membrane rigidity and compactness were studied by the differential scanning calorimetry. The surface morphology of CS membranes was characterized by scanning electron microscopy. The sorption behaviour with respect to contact time, initial pH and initial metal ion concentration were investigated. The maximum adsorption capacity of CS-GA, CS-UF and CS-TF sorbents was found to be 1.03, 1.2 and 1.18 mM/g for $Cu^{2+}$ and 1.48, 1.55 and 2.18 mM/g for $Ni^{2+}$ respectively. Swelling experiments have been performed on the membrane networks at $30^{\circ}C$. Desorption studies were performed in acid media and EDTA and it was found that the membranes are reusable for the metal ion removal for three cycles. The developed membranes could be successfully used for the separation of $Cu^{2+}$ and $Ni^{2+}$ metal ions from aqueous solutions.

• Journal of Hydrogen and New Energy
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• v.27 no.2
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• pp.135-143
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• 2016

Biogas is a renewable fuel from anaerobic digestion of organic matters such as sewage sludge, manure and food waste. Raw biogas consists mainly of methane, carbon dioxide, hydrogen sulfide, and water. Biogas may also contain other impurities such as siloxanes, halogenated hydrocarbons, aromatic hydrocarbons. Efficient power technologies such as fuel cell demand ultra-low concentration of containments in the biogas feed, imposing stringent requirements on fuel purification technology. Biogas is upgraded from pressure swing adsorption after biogas purification process which consists of water, $H_2S$ and siloxane removal. A polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cell power plant is designed to operate on reformate produced from upgraded biogas by steam reformer.

• Journal of Environmental Science International
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• v.16 no.6
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• pp.683-688
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• 2007

In this study, N doped $TiO_2$ (TiO-N) thin film was prepared by DC magnetron sputtering method to show the photocatalytic activity in a visible range. Various gases (Ar, $O_2\;and\;N_2$) were used and Ti target was impressed by 1.2 kW -5.8 kW power range. The hysteresis of TiO-N thin film as a function of discharge voltage wasn't observed in 1.2 and 2.9kW of applied power. Cross sections and surfaces of thin films by FE-SEM were tiny and dense particle sizes of both films with normal cylindrical structures. XRD pattern of $TiO_2$ and TiO-N thin films was appeared by only anatase peak. Red shift in UV-Vis adsorption spectra was investigated TiO-N thin film. Photoactivity was evaluated by removal rate measurement of suncion yellow among reactive dyes. The photodegradation rate of $TiO_2$ thin film on visible radiation was shown little efficiency but TiO-N was about 18%.

• Carbon letters
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• v.18
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• pp.24-29
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• 2016

High pollutant-loading capacities (up to 319 times its own weight) are achieved by three-dimensional (3D) macroporous, slightly reduced graphene oxide (srGO) sorbents, which are prepared through ice-templating and consecutive thermal reduction. The reduction of the srGO is readily controlled by heating time under a mild condition (at 1 10⁻² Torr and 200℃). The saturated sorption capacity of the hydrophilic srGO sorbent (thermally reduced for 1 h) could not be improved further even though the samples were reduced for 10 h to achieve the hydrophobic surface. The large meso- and macroporosity of the srGO sorbent, which is achieved by removing the residual water and the hydroxyl groups, is crucial for achieving the enhanced capacity. In particular, a systematic study on absorption parameters indicates that the open porosity of the 3D srGO sorbents significantly contributes to the physical loading of oils and organic solvents on the hydrophilic surface. Therefore, this study provides insight into the absorption behavior of highly macroporous graphene-based macrostructures and hence paves the way to development of promising next-generation sorbents for removal of oils and organic solvent pollutants.

• Journal of Korean Society on Water Environment
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• v.20 no.3
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• pp.296-300
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• 2004

The rejection properties of 6 aromatic pesticides were evaluated by a continuous flow system equipped with a hollow fiber NF membrane. Different from the separation experiment of batch cell, the rejection and the removal could be calculated exactly because the concentration of feed, permeate and retentate was separately obtained. The lowest and the highest rejection were found in carbaryl(54.8%) and methoxychlor(99.2%), respectively, and the removals were always shown higher than rejections. This may be caused by some reasons such as the solute adsorption on the membrane, the variation of feed concentration. Although molecular weight, molecular width regarded as solute characteristics and log P(n-octanol/water partition coefficient) as hydrophobicity could be applied to explain the rejection property, these factors should be considered together for better analysis. According to the higher relationship between log B(solute permeability) and molecular weight, it was revealed that the solute separation with this membrane was influenced more by molecular weight.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.53 no.9
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• pp.2926-2936
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• 2021

Rare-earth (RE) industries generate a massive amount of radioactive residue containing high thorium concentrations. Due to the fact that thorium is considered a non-economic element, large volume of these RE processed residues are commonly disposed of without treatment. It is essential to study an appropriate treatment that could reduce the volume of waste for final disposition. To this end, this research investigates the applicability of carbon-based adsorbent in separating thorium from aqueous phase sulphate is obtained from the cracking and leaching process of solid rare-earth by-product residue. Adsorption of thorium from the aqueous phase sulphate by carbon-based electrodes was investigated through electrosorption experiments conducted at a duration of 180 minutes with a positive potential variable range of +0.2V to +0.6V (vs. Ag/AgCl). Through this research, the specific capacity obtained was equivalent to 1.0 to 5.14 mg-Th/g-Carbon. Furthermore, electrosorption of thorium ions from aqueous phase sulphate is found to be most favorable at a higher positive potential of +0.6V (vs. Ag/AgCl). This study's findings elucidate the removal of thorium from the rare-earth residue by carbon-based electrodes and simultaneously its potential to reduce disposal waste of untreated residue.

• Korean Journal of Chemical Engineering
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• v.35 no.11
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• pp.2191-2197
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• 2018

To remove tar and produce environment-friendly $H_2$, one of the promising routes is the sorption-enhanced steam reforming (SESR) process, in which the $CO_2$ sorbent is a key element. We prepared the $CO_2$ sorbents with $Ca_{12}Al_{14}O_{33}$ as carrier with various methods. Their characterizations were examined, and the sample prepared by solgel (SG) method showed the strongest CaO and $Ca_{12}Al_{14}O_{33}$ phases and the most excellent pore structure among all the samples. Then, a thermogravimetric experiment was conducted, and the results showed that the sample prepared by sol-gel (SG) method had the best $CO_2$ adsorption capacity and excellent long-term cyclic stability. Finally, the sorbent was used into the steam reforming experiments of tar. Under the action of the sorbent, the reforming reaction was enhanced in-situ, with the $H_2$ yield and concentration improved obviously, and especially, $H_2$ concentration can reach over 98.85%.

• Journal of Electrochemical Science and Technology
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• v.12 no.1
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• pp.92-100
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• 2021

In this study, the use of waste food grade aluminium foil and mild steel as a sacrificial electrode in an electrocoagulation system was developed to remove reactive red 111 from wastewater. The effect of different parameters like pH, current density, electrode material, and different electrode configurations was investigated. Optimum operating conditions for maximum COD removal were determined as, 6 mA/㎠ current density and 30 min at 5 pH for aluminium foil and 7 pH for mild steel. Maximum COD reduction obtained at optimum conditions using monopolar 4 electrodes, monopolar 2 electrodes and bipolar electrode configuration were 96.5%, 89.3%, and 90.2% for Mild steel as a sacrificial electrode and 92.1%, 84.2%, and 88.6% for aluminium foil as a sacrificial electrode. The consumption of electrode and energy for both the electrodes of different configurations were calculated and compared. Using batch experimental data, a continuous-flow reactor was developed. Sludge analysis using Fourier Transform Infra-Red Spectroscopy (FTIR) analysis was done. Different adsorption kinetic models and isotherms were developed and it was found that pseudo second-order model and Langmuir isotherm fit best with the experimental data obtained.

• Korean Chemical Engineering Research
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• v.60 no.1
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• pp.80-85
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• 2022

In wastewater treatment processes huge quantities of sludge are produced continuously each year. This work investigated the reuse of two types of sludge as biosorbents of a toxic dye. The potential of granular and filamentous fungus dried sludge for the elimination of eosin from aqueous solution was studied in batch system. The effect of initial concentration and temperature was examined. Maximum uptake was observed at 100 mg l^-1 and 30 ℃. The maximum removal rate was 92% for the granular sludge and 90% for the filamentous one. Equilibrium was attained after 30 min for the studied dye concentrations. The equilibrium uptake increased with the initial eosin concentration. The Freundlich and Langmuir adsorption models were also investigated. The reuse of disposed sludge as adsorbent could be a solution for the valorization of such dangerous waste to resolve two environmental problems at the same time.

• Journal of Soil and Groundwater Environment
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• v.27 no.4
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• pp.22-36
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• 2022

Cadmium is a class 1 carcinogen classified by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) and has a high potential for leaching into groundwater. Therefore, it is necessary to address cadmium contamination by employing adequate treatment methodologies. Although various methods have been suggested to reduce cadmium in groundwater, their applications often suffer from various limitation arising from heterogeneous field conditions and technical difficulties. In this work, several in-situ technologies to treat cadmium contaminated groundwater were reviewed and discussed by separately addressing physicochemical, chemical and biological methods. In particular, the optimum cadmium remediation strategies that involve physical removal of source area → physicochemical and chemical remediation → biological remediation were proposed by considering reduction efficiency, adsorption rate, economic feasibility and ease of field application in groundwater.