• Proceedings of the Korean Vacuum Society Conference
• /
• 2010.02a
• /
• pp.320-320
• /
• 2010

The dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) have achieved so far the highest validated efficiency over 11%. However, the cells with the best performance utilize volatile solvent as a electrolyte, which can cause some practical limitations for the long-term operation. This is one of the most substantial problems to be resolved for the commercialization of DSSCs. In order to improve the long-term stability, many research groups have reported new electrolyte system, to replace the liquid type electrolyte by non-volatile ones. In this work, we studied long-term stability of the DSSCs with various types of electrolytes such as (PVDF HFP) based polymer, eutectic melts of ionic liquids, and liquid based solvent. The cells with various electrolytes have been exposed to the condition under thermal stress and illumination over 1000 hours. We will report the change of photovoltaic properties with time and investigate the degradation mechanism with the impedance spectroscopic analysis.

• Korean Journal of Materials Research
• /
• v.10 no.7
• /
• pp.489-492
• /
• 2000

Three different white cast irons alloyed with Cr and Si were prepared in order to study their distribution be-havior in matrices and carbides. The specimens were produced using a 15kg-capacity high frequency induction fur-nace. Melts were super-heated to $1600^{\circ}C$, and poured at $1550^{\circ}C$ into a pepset mold. Three combinations of the alloys were selected so as to observe the distribution behavior of Cr and Si : 0.5%C-25.0%Cr-1.0%Si(alloy No. 1), 0.5%C-5.0%Cr-1.0%Si(alloy No. 2) and 2.0%C-5.0%Cr-1.0%Si(alloy No. 3). Cellular $M_7C_3$ carbides-$\delta$ferrite eutectic were developed at $\delta$ferrite liquid interfaces in the alloy No. 1 while only traces of $M_7C_3$ carbides-$\delta$ferrite eutectic were precipitated in the alloy No. 2. With the addition of 2.0% C and 5.0% Cr, ledeburitic $M_3C$ carbides instead of cellular $M_7C_3$ carbides were precipitated in the alloy No. 3. Cr was distributed preferentially to the $M_7C_3$ carbides rather than to the matrix structure while more Si was partitioned in the matrix structure rather than the $M_7C_3$ carbides. $K^m$ for Cr was ranged from 0.56 to 0.68 while that for Si was from 1.12 to 1.28. $K^m$ for Cr had a lower value with increased carbon contents. The mass percent of Cr was higher in the $M_7C_3$ carbides with increased Cr contents.

• Journal of Korea Foundry Society
• /
• v.20 no.2
• /
• pp.104-109
• /
• 2000

Three different white cast irons alloyed with Cr, V, Mo and W were prepared in order to study their abrasion wear behavior in as-cast and heat-treated conditions. The specimens were produced using a 15㎏-capacity high frequency induction furnace. Melts were super-heated to $1600^{\circ}C$, and poured at $1550^{\circ}C$ into Y-block pepset molds. Three combinations of the alloying elements were selected so as to obtain the different types of carbides : 3%C-10%Cr-5%Mo-5%W(alloy No. 1: $M_7C_3$ and $M_6C$), 3%C -10%V-5%Mo-5%W(alloy No. 2: MC and $M_2C$) and 3%C-17%Cr-3%V(alloy No. 3: $M_7C_3$ only). A scratching type abrasion test was carried out in the states of as-cast(AS), homogenizing(AH), air-hardening(AHF) and tempering(AHFT). First of all, the as-cast specimens were homogenized at $950^{\circ}C$ for 5h under the vacuum atmosphere. Then, they were austenitized at $1050^{\circ}C$ for 2h and followed by air-hardening in air. The air-hardened specimens were tempered at $300^{\circ}C$ for 3h. 1 ㎏ load was applied in order to contact the specimen with abrading wheel which was wound by 120 mesh SiC paper. The wear loss of the test piece(dimension: $50{\times}50{\times}5$ mm) was measured after one cycle of wear test and this procedure was repeated up to 8 cycles. In all the specimens, the abrasion wear loss was found to decrease in the order of AH, AS, AHFT and AHF states. Abrasion wear loss was lowest in the alloy No.2 and highest in the alloy No.1 except for the as-cast and homogenized condition in which the alloy No.3 showed the highest abrasion wear loss. The lowest abrasion wear loss of the alloy No.2 could be attributed to the fact that it contained primary and eutectic MC carbides, and eutectic $M_2C$ carbide with extremely high hardness. The matrix of each specimen was fully pearlitic in the as-cast state but it was transformed to martensite, tempered martensite and austenite depending upon the type of heat-treatment. From these results, it becomes clear that MC carbide is a significant phase to improve the abrasion wear resistance.

• Korean Journal of Metals and Materials
• /
• v.48 no.12
• /
• pp.1056-1063
• /
• 2010

We present a new joining method for Pd-Cu membrane foils used as permeation tubes to collect $CO_2$. Since foils have poor mechanical strength, joining should be done at low temperatures to reduce residual stresses and without joining pressure. This contradicts the well known conditions for good contact between base materials that determines joint qualities. We selected Sn-Ag-Cu alloys that are highly reactive with Pd and Cu as a filler metal. As the filler melts at joining temperatures as low as $220{\sim}280^{\circ}C$, Pd and Cu are dissolved into the melt and react with the filler elements, which raises the melting temperature of the filler based on eutectic structures among the elements. Then, isothermal solidification progresses for the rest of the joining time. Intermetallic compounds (IMC) in the joints, one of the main factors for brittle joints, are inevitably formed. However, by optimizing both joining time and temperature, we balanced the wettability with IMC. Sealing test results confirmed that the joints are mechanically reliable during operation.

• Journal of the Korean Institute of Electrical and Electronic Material Engineers
• /
• v.35 no.4
• /
• pp.377-385
• /
• 2022

Thermal batteries are specialized as primary reserve batteries that operate when the internal heat source is ignited and the produced heat (450~550℃) melts the initially insulating salt into highly conductive eutectic electrolyte. The heat source is composed of Fe powder and KClO₄ with different mass ratios and is inserted in-between the cells (stacks) to allow homogeneous heat transfer and ensure complete melting of the electrolyte. An ideal heat source has following criteria to satisfy: sufficient mechanical durability for stacking, appropriate heat calories, ease of combustion by an igniter, stable combustion rate, and modest peak temperature. To satisfy the aforementioned requirements, Fe powder must have high surface area and porosity to increase the reaction rate. Herein, the hydrothermal and spray drying synthesis techniques for Fe powder samples are employed to investigate the physicochemical properties of Fe powder samples and their applicability as a heat source constituent. The direct comparison with the state-of-the-art Fe powder is made to confirm the validity of synthesized products. Finally, the actual batteries were made with the synthesized iron powder samples to examine their performances during the battery operation.

• Journal of the Mineralogical Society of Korea
• /
• v.28 no.1
• /
• pp.61-69
• /
• 2015

While the macroscopic properties and eruption style of basaltic and phonolitic melts are different, the microscopic origins including atomic structures are not well understood. Here we report the atomic structure differences of glass in diopside-anorthite eutectic composition (basaltic glass) and phonolitic glass using high-resolution 1D and 2D solid-state Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR). The $^{27}Al$ MAS NMR spectra for basaltic glass and phonolitic glass show that the full width at half maximum (FWHM) of Al for basaltic glass is about twice than phonolitic glass, suggesting the topological disorder of basaltic magma is larger than that of phonolitic magma. The $^{27}Al$ 3QMAS NMR spectra for basaltic glass and phonolite glass show much improved resolution than the 1D MAS NMR, resolving Al and Al. Approximately 3.3% of Al is observed for basaltic glass, demonstrating the configurational disorder of basaltic magma is larger than phonolitic magma. This result confirms that the topological disorder of Al in basaltic glass is larger than that of phonolitic glass. The observed structural differences between basaltic glass and phonolitic glass can provide an atomistic origin for change of the macroscopic properties with composition including viscosity.

• Journal of the Korean Electrochemical Society
• /
• v.12 no.3
• /
• pp.276-281
• /
• 2009

Electrochemical behaviors of $U^{3+}$ and $Gd^{3+}$ were investigated in LiCl-KCl eutectic molten salt by using various electrochemical techniques. The electrodeposition and dissolution currents for uranium show the maximum at -1.51V and -1.35V, respectively while, for gadolinium,at -2.15V and -1.9V, respectively. In case of LiCl-KCl molten salt containing both of $U^{3+}$ and $Gd^{3+}$, the peak potential of electrodeposition of gadolinium shifts to more positive potential than in the solution without $U^{3+}$. The potentials in chronopotentiometric data suddenly dropped to negative value as soon as the reduction currents were applied and became constant at the potential around which the $U^{3+}$ and $Gd^{3+}$ are electrodeposited. The results of normal pulse voltammetry (NPV) and square wave voltammetry show that those methods can be used to qualitatively analyze the elements in the melts. Especially, the differentiation of NPV result was found to be useful for the separation of the peaks of which potentials are close each other.