• Environmental Engineering Research
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• v.25 no.4
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• pp.506-514
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• 2020

The current study stresses on the reuse of waste lignocellulose biomass (rice husk and sugarcane bagasse) for the synthesis of carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC) and further conversion of this CMC into a biodegradable film. Addition of commercial starch was done to form biodegradable film due to its capacity to form a continuous matrix. Plasticizers such as Glycerol and citric acid were used to provide flexibility and strength to the film. Biopolymer film obtained from sugarcane bagasse CMC showed maximum tensile strength and elongation in comparison to the film synthesized from commercial CMC and CMC obtained from rice husk. It has been observed that an increase in sodium glycolate/NaCl content in CMC imposed an adverse effect on tensile strength. Opacity, moisture content, and solubility of the film increased with a rise in the degree of substitution of CMC. Therefore, CMC obtained from sugarcane bagasse was better candidate in preparing biopolymer/biocomposite film.

• Journal of the Microelectronics and Packaging Society
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• v.27 no.4
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• pp.83-89
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• 2020

For the past few decades, as part of efforts to protect the environment where fossil fuels, which have been a key energy resource for mankind, are becoming increasingly depleted and pollution due to industrial development, ecofriendly secondary batteries, hydrogen generating energy devices, energy storage systems, and many other new energy technologies are being developed. Among them, the lithium-ion battery (LIB) is considered to be a next-generation energy device suitable for application as a large-capacity battery and capable of industrial application due to its high energy density and long lifespan. However, considering the growing battery market such as eco-friendly electric vehicles and drones, it is expected that a large amount of battery waste will spill out from some point due to the end of life. In order to prepare for this situation, development of a process for recovering lithium and various valuable metals from waste batteries is required, and at the same time, a plan to recycle them is socially required. In this study, we introduce a nanoscale pattern transfer printing (NTP) process of Li2CO3, a representative anode material for lithium ion batteries, one of the strategic materials for recycling waste batteries. First, Li2CO3 powder was formed by pressing in a vacuum, and a 3-inch sputter target for very pure Li2CO3 thin film deposition was successfully produced through high-temperature sintering. The target was mounted on a sputtering device, and a well-ordered Li2CO3 line pattern with a width of 250 nm was successfully obtained on the Si substrate using the NTP process. In addition, based on the nTP method, the periodic Li2CO3 line patterns were formed on the surfaces of metal, glass, flexible polymer substrates, and even curved goggles. These results are expected to be applied to the thin films of various functional materials used in battery devices in the future, and is also expected to be particularly helpful in improving the performance of lithium-ion battery devices on various substrates.

• Resources Recycling
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• v.16 no.1 s.75
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• pp.15-27
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• 2007

The Korean Auto industry has developed remarkably over the past 30 years. In 2005 alone, Korea produced 3.7 million vehicles, and the number of vehicles registered surpassed the 15 million marks. The rapid growth in registration, however, has given increasing problems to the traffic congestion and the environmental pollution. The system for handling of ELV in Korea is governed by the 'Motor management law'. The law places the responsibility for vehicle scrapping directly on the vehicle owners. The take-back rate of ELV reaches nearly 100% in Korea since 1987. To further entourage recycling, the government introduced the extended producer responsibility system(EPRS) starting January 1, 2003, which imposes waste recycling obligations on producers or importers. According to the system, producers must recycle home appliances and packaging materials. This system, however, did not involve the automobiles. In 2006, the automobiles recycling law is under preparing now by the government. This article is concerning current status for End-of-Life vehicle's recycling and the recycling system model for advanced ELV industries in Korea.

• Journal of Korea Technical Association of The Pulp and Paper Industry
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• v.46 no.5
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• pp.69-78
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• 2014

The paper recycling becomes more important technology in terms of the reduction of the municipal waste and of saving natural resource such as wood. However the more utilization of recycled fiber would result in the higher contaminants in the papermaking processes and in the deterioration of the paper quality. The oil marks in the paper products becomes one of the major defects of paper products originated from paper recycling. The coagulation of various stickies in recycled fiber stock led to the oil marks. In this work, we applied functional polymer additives such as the dispersing agents, the fixing agents and the hydrophobic talc powder for the control of those stickies in order to remove the oil marks. The addition of the talc powder showed the great reduction in the oil marks of the packaging paper products. The hydrophobic surface of the talc particles collected the individual sticky materials and prevented their aggregation in the recycled fiber stock, which resulted in the great reduction of the oil marks on the paper products.

• Journal of Information Technology Applications and Management
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• v.31 no.1
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• pp.123-138
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• 2024

With the increase in online shopping and delivery food consumption since the pandemic, solving environmental problems caused by single-use packaging has become an important issue. 'Upcycling' is a combination of 'Upgrade' and 'Recycle', and it is the rebirth of obsolete or discarded objects by adding new value to them, and there are currently various upcycled products on the market. In order to activate upcycling, consumers' awareness of the environment and their values for consumption are very important. This study aims to investigate the influence of students' environmental concern, environmental experience, and consumption value on their purchase intention of upcycled products. Based on the results of previous studies on environmental concern, environmental experience, and consumption value, hypotheses were set, and a survey was conducted among university students nationwide to test the hypotheses. The results of this study are as follows First, environmental concern has a significant positive effect on purchase intention of upcycled products. It can be seen that the more environmental concerns such as global warming and waste disposal problems increase, the more positive attitudes toward upcycled products increase. Second, the research hypothesis that environmental knowledge will have a positive effect on the purchase intention of upcycled products is rejected. It was found that environmental knowledge is acquired through environmental education and many SNS, but it does not have a direct effect on the purchase intention of upcycled products. Third, it was found that the consumption value of college students has a positive effect on the purchase intention of upcycled products by increasing their positive perception of upcycled products. Fourth, college students' purchase intention of upcycled products has a positive effect on their behavioral intention to purchase upcycled products. The results of the study provide implications for relevant organizations such as universities and companies to effectively design upcycling-related education. It is also expected to have a positive impact on the use of upcycled products by providing basic information on the characteristics of consumers who purchase upcycled products.

• Clean Technology
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• v.21 no.3
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• pp.141-152
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• 2015

As environmental issues are emerging, bio-plastic suppliers in leading countries have been foreseeing the strong needs for environment-friendly materials such as eco-packing materials due to increased attention and regulation on recycle. To catch up with the demand, various types of bio-plastics based on natural feedstocks were developed and released on a market. These bio-plastic products drew the great attention even in domestic industries. At present, international oil price fluctuation and heavy charge on waste raise the unit cost of production and disposal expense of conventional plastic materials. These conditions make bio-plastic an alternative, because it is not restrained by oil prices and problem in the disposal. It is also expected that bio-plastic will be applied to various types of products including containers, industrial supplies, disposables, and medical supplies. However, the bio-plastic is still in its infancy, thus more research and understanding should be followed to put it to application. Bio-plastic is considered as environment-friendly material with high potential which has the advantages of production and disposal.

• Journal of Food Hygiene and Safety
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• v.33 no.1
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• pp.12-22
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• 2018

The US government has enacted the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) in 2011, which is being phased in and planned. The final Rules of Produce Safety focus on biological hazards related to agricultural production, harvesting, packaging and storage, which are being phased in since 2017 depending on farm scale. As a result of comparison with the Korean-GAP (Good Agricultural Practices) standards, it is difficult to compare the two standards to be compared with each other by 1:1. However, many of the Korean-GAP standards are similar to FSMA Produce Safety rules. However, the Korean-GAP standards can be judged differently according to the evaluator as a comprehensive standard, so the details of the standards need to be reinforced. In terms of the provisions, the Korean-GAP standards are the most appropriate for the safety of workers (FSMA Subpart D), followed by livestock and wild animals (FSMA Subpart I), buildings, equipment and tools (FSMA Subpart L) and harvesting activities (FSMA Sub-part K). However, there are some weaknesses in the field of agricultural water management (FSMA Subpart E) and farm manager's qualifications and training (FSMA Subpart C), and the response to the biological soil amendments of animal origin and human waste (FSMA Subpart F) is weak. The FSMA regulation is not a certification standard, but it is expected that the marbling effect, which is the standard laid down by the United States leading the world food safety standards, is expected to be considerable. Therefore, we hope that the review of the Korean-GAP standards will help improve the quality of agricultural products and expand our exports, since the standard for responding to microbiological safety emphasized in the FSMA regulations is the Korean-GAP standard.

• Journal of Food Hygiene and Safety
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• v.38 no.6
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• pp.528-536
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• 2023

In Korea, from January 2023, the Act on Labeling and Advertising of Food was revised to reflect the use-by-date rather than the sell-by-date. Hence, the purpose of this study was to establish a system for calculating the safety factor and determining the recommended use-by-date for each food type, thereby providing a scientific basis for the recommended use-by-date labels. A safety factor calculation technique based on scientific principles was designed through literature review and simulation, and opinions were collected by conducting surveys and discussions including industry and academia, among others. The main considerations in this study were pH, Aw, sterilization, preservatives, packaging for storage improvement, storage temperature, and other external factors. A safety factor of 0.97 was exceptionally applied for frozen products and 1.0 for sterilized products. In addition, a between-sample error value of 0.08 was applied to factors related to product and experimental design. This study suggests that clearly providing a safe use-by-date will help reduce food waste and contribute to carbon neutrality.