• Journal of Hydrogen and New Energy
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• v.30 no.6
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• pp.523-530
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• 2019

For the low-Pt electrodes for polymer electrolyte fuel cells (PEMFCs), the optimization of ionomer content for anode catalyst layers was carried out. A commercial catalyst of 20 wt.% Pt/C was used instead of 50 wt.% Pt/C which is commonly used for PEMFCs. The ionomer content varies from 0.6 to 1.2 based on ionomer to carbon ratio (I/C) and the catalyst layer is formed over the electrolyte by the ultrasonic spray process. Evaluation of the prepared MEA in the unit cell showed that the optimal ionomer content of the air electrode was 0.8 on the I/C basis, while the hydrogen electrode was optimal at the relatively high ionomer content of 1.0. In addition, a large difference in cell performance was observed when the ionomer content of the hydrogen electrode was changed. Increasing the ionomer content from 0.6 to 1.0 by I/C in a hydrogen electrode with 0.05 mg/㎠ platinum loading resulted in more than double cell performance improvements on a 0.6 V. Through the analysis of various electrochemical properties in the single cell, it was assumed that the change in ionomer content of the hydrogen electrode affects the water flow between the hydrogen and air electrodes bounded by the membrane in the cell, which affects the overall performance of the cell. A more specific study will be carried out to understand the water flow mechanism in the future, and this study will show that the optimization process of hydrogen electrode can also be a very important cell design variable for the low-Pt and high-performance MEA.

• Korean Journal of Materials Research
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• v.30 no.7
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• pp.350-358
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• 2020

A variety of composite powders having different aluminum and carbon contents are prepared using various organic solvents having different amounts of carbon atoms in unit volume as ball milling agents for titanium and aluminum ball milling. The effects of substrate temperature and post-heat treatment on the texture and hardness of the coating are investigated by spraying with this reduced pressure plasma spray. The aluminum part of the composite powder evaporates during spraying, so that the film aluminum content is 30.9 mass%~37.4 mass% and the carbon content is 0.64 mass%~1.69 mass%. The main constituent phase of the coating formed on the water-cooled substrate is a non-planar α₂ phase, obtained by supersaturated carbon regardless of the alloy composition. When these films are heat-treated at 1123 K, the main constituent phase becomes γ phase, and fine Ti₂AlC precipitates to increase the film hardness. However, when heat treatment is performed at a higher temperature, the hardness is lowered. The main constitutional phase of the coating formed on the preheated substrate is an equilibrium gamma phase, and fine Ti₂AlC precipitates. The hardness of this coating is much higher than the hardness of the coating in the sprayed state formed on the water-cooled substrate. When hot pressing is applied to the coating, the porosity decreases but hardness also decreases because Ti₂AlC grows. The amount of Ti₂AlC in the hot-pressed film is 4.9 vol% to 15.3 vol%, depending on the carbon content of the film.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Food Culture
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• v.36 no.5
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• pp.512-521
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• 2021

This study investigated the quality characteristics of sweet pumpkin after blanching. Sweet pumpkins were blanched in distilled water, 2% citric acid and 2% NaCl water at 100℃ for 3 min. The cooking loss of sweet pumpkin in the blanching groups was lower than that in the control group, and greenness and yellowness in the blanching groups were higher than those in the control group (p<0.001). Total polyphenol content (TPC) of sweet pumpkin increased after blanching (p<0.05), and TPC true retention (TR) was measured with the highest NB. CON and NB were significantly higher in ?-carotene content (p<0.001). Lutein content in the blanching treatment groups was lower than that in the control group, but NB was the highest between the blanching groups (p<0.001). DPPH and ABTS⁺ radical scavenging activity assays revealed higher antioxidant activity in the NB groups among the blanching groups (p<0.001). The CON was 2.44 log colony-forming unit (CFU)/ g in the total bacterial count, but there were no microorganisms in the blanching groups. In conclusion, blanching with the addition of 2% NaCl can inhibit the growth of microorganisms and improve TR and antioxidant activities in sweet pumpkin.

• Journal of Biosystems Engineering
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• v.11 no.2
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• pp.14-22
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• 1986

This study was carried out to find a method which can be used to measure the soil moisture content of the soil bin exactly and quickly. And gypsum block is used as an instrument in measuring soil moisture content in the field of green house farming, etc.. However the characteristics of gypsum block, or the guide line of making gypsum block is not well introduced in Korea. So the information about gypsum block such as the density of gypsum, type of electrode, dimension of electrode, distance between electrodes, density of surrounding soil were included in this study and their effects on the relationship between soil moisture content and electrical resistance were investigated. The results of this study are as follows; 1. The grid type electrode was quicker in accessing the equilibrium condition and showed more sensitive response to the change of soil moisture content than the plate type electrode. 2. The longer the distance between the electrodes, the larger the electrical resistance, and the distance of 3 to 5 mm was recommended. 3. The larger the width of the electrode, the smaller the electrical resistance. However, there was no significance between the levels designed in this study. Considering the size of the gypsum block itself, the adaptible range of width may be 4 to 8 mm. 4. The higher the density of gypsum, the smaller the electrical resistance. And the block of lower density was broken down in the soil of higy moisture content. The optimum ratio of gypsum to water was 7:5. 5. The measuring system used in this study allowed simultaneous, multi-data acquisition. So this system using A/D converter can be applied to the measurement of soil moisture content of soil bin.

• Magazine of the Korea Concrete Institute
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• v.4 no.1
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• pp.89-96
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• 1992

It is generally known that the frost-resistance of concrete is much affected by the air content in concrete and by the air void system or air distribution. And also the frost-resistance is believed to vary with the stre¬ngth of concrete. This article is prepared to describe, based on experiment, the effect of the air content and the air void system, particularly the effect of the spacing factor, on the freeze-thaw resistance of the high strength conc¬rete. For this purpose, I first worked on Non-AE concrete to make its compressive strength set about 400 to 500 kg/em'. However, the freeze-thaw test on the Non-AE concrete resulted in low durability factor, I.e., 10-2~0%. Thus to enhance the durability, another supplementary step was needed. I used AE admixture. which enhanced durability by changing the air content from 2% to 12%. The frost-thaw test was then performed 500 cycles on the 20 kind of concrete mixtures which differ in unit cement content and in water-cement ratio. Keywords : frost -resistance, air content, air void system, air distribution, spacing factor, freeze-thaw test, dur ability factor. capillary cavity, Linear Traverse Method.

• Journal of the Korea Institute of Building Construction
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• v.24 no.4
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• pp.393-402
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• 2024

The Korean Industrial Standard(KS) KS F 2527("Aggregates for Concrete") does not explicitly define criteria for clay mineral content in aggregates. This lack of clear quality standards and testing methodologies is further compounded by a scarcity of relevant research within both academic and industrial spheres. Consequently, the construction industry, encompassing both aggregate production and utilization, often overlooks the management of clay mineral content due to its perceived economic implications. This study addresses this gap by investigating the current state of regulations concerning clay mineral content in aggregates, exploring the causes of its occurrence, and evaluating its impact on concrete performance. The chemical composition of the clay minerals was determined to primarily consist of Al₂O₃, Fe₂O₃, and SiO₂, which are commonly found in clay. X-ray diffraction(XRD) analysis revealed that the predominant clay minerals were montmorillonite and illite, both known for their high absorption capacity. An examination of domestic and international standards for clay mineral content in aggregates demonstrated that the density and absorption rate specifications outlined in KS F 2527("Aggregates for Concrete") only offer indirect estimations of clay mineral levels. Furthermore, the investigation into the influence of clay mineral content on concrete performance suggests that a higher clay mineral content necessitates a corresponding increase in the unit quantity of aggregates to maintain adequate workability. This, however, has a detrimental effect on the compressive strength of the concrete.

• Journal of the Korea Concrete Institute
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• v.13 no.5
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• pp.476-483
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• 2001

초유동콘크리트는 유동성 증진 및 충전성 향상을 위해 단위분체량을 크게하기 때문에 콘크리트의 고강도화와 수화발열량을 증가시키는 문제점을 가지고 있다. 이에 본 연구는 초유동콘크리트의 강도조절과 수화열 저감을 위해 쇄석분을 이용하여 초유동콘크리트의 강도, 유동성, 내구성능 및 건조수축 특성을 검토하였다. 실험결과 쇄석분은 치환율 10% 증가시마다 무치환시의 압축강도를 약 10~15%씩 감소시키며, 변형계수와 물구속비를 감소시켜 초유동콘크리트의 유동성 향상에 효과적이다. 또한 초유동콘크리트에서 쇄석분 10%치환시 마다 단위시멘트량 감소에 따른 최고 단열온도상승량을 약 4$^{\circ}C$씩 감소시켰다. 반면 건조수축량은 10%치환시 마다 약 5%증가시켰다. 한편 초유동콘크리트의 내구성능은 단위분체량과 유동성향상에 따른 조직의 치밀화로 쇄석분 치환에 관계없이 상대동탄성계수 90%이상으로 우수하게 나타났다. 이와 같이 분체로서 쇄석분 사용은 치환량에 따른 초유동콘크리트의 강도조절이 가능하며 수화발열량을 저감시킬 수 있다. ^ x Super flowing concrete causes high strength and the increase of heat of hydration because of the big unit powder content of concrete to increase flowability and to improve compact of concrete. Therefore, this study investigates the characteristic properties of strength, flowability, durability and drying shrinkage to control strength and to reduce heat of hydration of super flowing concrete using crushed stone fines. According to the experimental results, when crushed stone fines are increased every 10%, 10~15% of compressive strength is decreased and flowability of super flowing concrete is effectively improved due to the decrease of modulus of deformation and confined water ratio. When crushed stone fines are replaced every 10%, 4$^{\circ}C$ of the highest adiabatic temperature rise is decreased by reducing the unit cement. However, 5% of drying shrinkage is increased in the same condition. In the meantime, durability of super flowing concrete is excellent, having over 90 % of good relative dynamic modulus of elasticity due to fineness of formation caused by the increase of the unit powder content and the improvement of flowability, without regard to the replacement of crushed stone fines. Therefore, it can be said that the usage of crushed stone fines can control the strength of super flowing concrete by replacement and reduce heat of hydration.

• International Journal of Concrete Structures and Materials
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• v.6 no.3
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• pp.177-186
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• 2012

The temperature distributions of concrete structures strongly depend on the value of thermal conductivity of concrete. However, the thermal conductivity of concrete varies according to the composition of the constituents and the temperature and moisture conditions of concrete, which cause difficulty in accurately predicting the thermal conductivity value in concrete. For this reason, in this study, back-propagation neural network models on the basis of experimental values carried out by previous researchers have been utilized to effectively account for the influence of these variables. The neural networks were trained by 124 data sets with eleven parameters: nine concrete composition parameters (the ratio of water-cement, the percentage of fine and coarse aggregate, and the unit weight of water, cement, fine aggregate, coarse aggregate, fly ash and silica fume) and two concrete state parameters (the temperature and water content of concrete). Finally, the trained neural network models were evaluated by applying to other 28 measured values not included in the training of the neural networks. The result indicated that the proposed method using a back-propagation neural algorithm was effective at predicting the thermal conductivity of concrete.

• Proceedings of the Korea Water Resources Association Conference
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• 2008.05a
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• pp.805-809
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• 2008

Measurement of leaf area index (LAI) is useful for understanding rice growth, water use, and canopy light interception. The top nitrogen content(TNC) per unit area is an important quantitative index of the condition of nitrogen nutrition in rice production. The rapid and simple method of estimation of TNC, with the use of the existing nondestructive analyzing instruments chlorophyll meter SPAD-502 and plant canopy analyzer (PCA) LAI-2000, was scrutinized. Destructive measurement is time consuming and labor intensive. Our objective was to evaluate sampling procedures using the Li-Cor LI-1800, LAI 2000 plant canopy analyzer (PCA) for nondestructive estimation of rice LAI, and SPAD-502 on the Northern Plains of Cheongju. The LAI estimated by PCA tended to underestimate the LAI determined by actual measurement by about 20%. The estimation of LAI by PCA was judged to have a sufficient accuracy as a practical technique. A high positive correlation was obtained between the values of the SPAD reading and LAI. NDVI and LAI also showed a very high correlation. The values of the SPAD reading and LAI, and NDVI gave a high positive correlation. These results indicated that the method described in this study was effective as a simple and rapid method for the estimation of rice growth.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.3 no.2
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• pp.131-151
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• 2011

The electrical conductivity of a soil-water system is related to its engineering properties. By measuring the soil electrical conductivity, one may obtain quantitative, semi-quantitative, or qualitative information to estimate the in-situ soil behavior for site characterization. This paper presents the results of electrical conductivity measured on compacted kaolin clay samples using a circular two-electrode cell in conjunction with a specially designed compaction apparatus, which has the advantage of reducing errors due to sample handling and increasing measurement accuracy. The experimental results are analyzed to observe the effects of various parameters on soil electrical conductivity, i.e. porosity, unit weight, water content and pore water salinity. The performance of existing analytical models for predicting the electrical conductivity of saturated and unsaturated soils is evaluated by calculating empirical constants in these models. It is found that the Rhoades model gives the best fit for the kaolin clay investigated. Two general relationships between the formation factor and soil porosity are established based on the experimental data reported in the literature and measured from this study for saturated soils, which may provide insight for understanding electrical conduction characteristics of soils over a wide range of porosity.