• KEPCO Journal on Electric Power and Energy
• /
• 제1권1호
• /
• pp.175-180
• /
• 2015

A facile soft chemical synthesis route is used to grow nano-buds of copper hydroxide [$Cu(OH)_2$] thin films on stainless steel substrate[SS]. Besides different chemical methods for synthesis of $Cu(OH)_2$ nanostructure, the chemical bath deposition (CBD) is attractive for its simplicity and environment friendly condition. The structural, morphological, and electro-chemical properties of $Cu(OH)_2$ thin films are studied by means of X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), cyclic voltammetry (CV) and galvanostatic charge-discharge (GCD) measurement techniques. The results showed that, facile chemical synthesis route allows to form the polycrystalline, granular nano-buds of $Cu(OH)_2$ thin films. The electrochemical properties of $Cu(OH)_2$ thin films are studied in an aqueous 1 M KOH electrolyte using cyclic voltammetry. The sample exhibited supercapacitive behavior with $340Fg^{-1}$ specific capacitance. Moreover, electrochemical capacitive measurements of $Cu(OH)_2/SS$ electrode exhibit a high specific energy and power density about ${\sim}83Wh\;kg^{-1}$ and ${\sim}3.1kW\;kg^{-1}$, respectively, at $1mA\;cm^{-2}$ current density. The superior electrochemical properties of copper hydroxide ($Cu(OH)_2/SS$) electrode with nano-buds like structure mutually improves pseudocapacitive performance. This work evokes scalable chemical synthesis with the enhanced supercapacitive performance of $Cu(OH)_2/SS$ electrode in energy storage devices.

• Journal of the Microelectronics and Packaging Society
• /
• 제25권4호
• /
• pp.143-148
• /
• 2018

Sodium silicate based silica aerogels are lower in cost than silica alkoxide based silica aerogels, but the demand is decreasing as their physical properties are lowered. In this research, acetonitrile as a drying control chemical additive (DCCA) is added in the sol state to improve the pore-structural properties of sodium silicate based silica aerogel by preventing the agglomeration of particles and cross-linked bond. The sodium silicate based silica aerogel by ambient pressure drying were prepared by sol-gel process. Acetonitrile/$Na_2SiO_3$ molar ratio of 0, 0.05, 0.1, 0.15, and 0.2 was added to the sol state. The physical properties of the final product were analyzed using Fourier transform infrared, contact angle measurement, Brunauer-Emmett-Teller and Barrett-Joyner-Halenda measurements and field emission scanning electron microscopy. It was confirmed that the sample with adding 0.15 molar ratio of acetonitrile and sodium silicate showed a high specific surface area ($577m^2/g$), a high pore volume (3.29 cc/g), and a high porosity (93%) comparable to the pore-structural properties of silica alkoxide based silica aerogels.

• Journal of Life Science
• /
• 제34권8호
• /
• pp.540-547
• /
• 2024

The continuous use of polymer materials has exacerbated waste and environmental challenges, spurring a growing interest in eco-friendly polymers, especially biodegradable polymers. These polymers are gaining attention for their potential as antimicrobial agents, particularly in fields like food packaging a need further underscored by the recent COVID-19 pandemic. This study focuses on the development of an antibacterial polymer by combining poly-butylene adipate terephthalate (PBAT) with zinc pyrithione (ZnPt). The antibacterial properties were assessed through turbidity analysis, the shaking flask method, and the film adhesion method. The antibacterial activities of the composites with varying ZnPt% (w/w) contents (0, 0.1, 0.3, and 0.5) were evaluated against Escherichia coli (E. coli) and Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus). Results revealed that even at a low concentration of 0.1% (w/w), the composites demonstrated significant antibacterial activity against both Gram-positive bacteria (S. aureus) and Gram-negative bacteria (E. coli). Composites with ZnPt concentrations of 0.3% (w/w) or higher achieved over 99.999% antibacterial efficacy. Field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM) analysis of the fracture surfaces of the composites confirmed the uniform distribution of ZnPt particles, ranging from 1-4 ㎛. Further FE-SEM analysis of bacterial suspensions exposed to the composite surfaces showed clear evidence of cell wall destruction in both E. coli and S. aureus. As an antimicrobial biodegradable polymer, PBAT-ZnPt composites show great promise for applications in various sectors, including food packaging.

• Progress in Superconductivity and Cryogenics
• /
• 제22권3호
• /
• pp.7-12
• /
• 2020

Electromechanical properties of REBCO CC tapes are known to be limited by defects (cracks) that form in the brittle REBCO layer. These defects could be inherently acquired during the CC tapes' manufacturing process, such as slitting, and which can be initiated at the CC tapes' edges. If propagated and long enough, they are believed to cause critical current degradation and can substantially decrease the delamination strength of CC tapes. Currently, commercially available CC tapes from various manufacturers utilize different growth techniques for depositing the REBCO layers on the substrates in their CC tapes preparation. Their epitaxial techniques, unfortunately, cannot perfectly avoid the formation of particles, in which sometimes acts as current blocking defects, known as outgrowths. Collective research regarding the composition, size, and formation of these particles for various CC tapes with different deposition techniques are particularly uncommon in a single study. Most importantly, these particles might interact in one way or another to the existing cracks. Therefore, systematic investigation on the interactions between the cracks' development mechanism and particles on the REBCO superconducting layers of practical CC tapes are of great importance, especially in the design of superconducting devices. Here, a proper etching process was employed for the CC tapes to expose and observe the REBCO layers, clearly. The scanning electron microscope, field emission scanning microscope, and energy-dispersive x-ray spectroscopy were utilized to observe the interactions between cracks and particles in various practical CC tapes. Particle compositions were identified whether as non-superconducting or superconducting and in what manner it interacts with the cracks were studied.

• Korean Journal of Materials Research
• /
• 제24권10호
• /
• pp.565-571
• /
• 2014

Nitrogen-doped ZnO nanoparticle-carbon nanofiber composites were prepared using electrospinning. As the relative amounts of N-doped ZnO nanoparticles in the composites were controlled to levels of 3.4, 9.6, and 13.8 wt%, the morphological, structural, and chemical properties of the composites were characterized by means of field-emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). In particular, the carbon nanofiber composites containing 13.8 wt% N-doped ZnO nanoparticles exhibited superior catalytic properties, making them suitable for use as counter electrodes in dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs). This result can be attributed to the enhanced surface roughness of the composites, which offers sites for $I_3{^-}$ ion reductions and the formation of Zn3N2 phases that facilitate electron transfer. Therefore, DSSCs fabricated with 13.8 wt% N-doped ZnO nanoparticle-carbon nanofiber composites showed high current density ($16.3mA/cm^2$), high fill factor (57.8%), and excellent power-conversion efficiency (6.69%); at the same time, these DSSCs displayed power-conversion efficiency almost identical to that of DSSCs fabricated with a pure Pt counter electrode (6.57%).

• Korean Journal of Materials Research
• /
• 제24권9호
• /
• pp.469-473
• /
• 2014

$SrSnO_3$ phosphor powders were synthesized with two different contents of activator ions $Eu^{3+}$ and $Tb^{3+}$ using the solid-state reaction method. The structural, morphological, and optical properties of the phosphors were investigated using X-ray diffractometry, field-emission scanning electron microscopy, and fluorescence spectrophotometry, respectively. All the phosphors showed a cubic structure, irrespective of the type and the content ratio of activator ions. For $Eu^{3+}$-doped $SrSnO_3$ phosphors, the intensity of the 620 nm red emission spectrum resulting from the $^5D_0{\rightarrow}^7F_2$ transition of $Eu^{3+}$ was stronger than that of the 595 nm orange emission signal due to the $^5D_0{\rightarrow}^7F_1$ transition in the range 0.01-0.05 mol of $Eu^{3+}$, but the ratio of the intensity was reversed in the range 0.10-0.20 mol of $Eu^{3+}$. The variation in the emission intensity indicates that the site symmetry of the $Eu^{3+}$ ions around the host crystal was changed from non-inversion symmetry to inversion. For the $Tb^{3+}$-doped $SrSnO_3$ phosphors under excitation at 281 nm, one strong green emission band at 550 nm and several weak bands were observed. These results suggest that the optimum red and green emission signals can be realized when the activator ion content for $Eu^{3+}$- or $Tb^{3+}$-doped $SrSnO_3$ phosphors is 0.20 mol and 0.15 mol, respectively.

• Journal of Surface Science and Engineering
• /
• 제48권3호
• /
• pp.82-86
• /
• 2015

$Dy^{3+}$- and $Eu^{3+}$-codoped $CaMoO_4$ Phosphors were synthesized by using the solid-state reaction method. The crystal structure, morphology, and optical properties of the resulting phosphor particles were investigated by using the X-ray diffraction, field-emission scanning electron microscopy, and photoluminescence spectroscopy. XRD patterns exhibited that all the synthesized phosphors showed a tetragonal system with a main (112) diffraction peak, irrespective of the content of $Eu^{3+}$ ions. As the content of $Eu^{3+}$ ions increased, the grains showed a tendency to agglomerate. The excitation spectra of the synthesized powders were composed of one strong broad band centered at 305 nm in the range of 220 - 350 nm and several weak peaks in the range of 350 - 500 nm resulting from the 4f transitions of activator ions. Upon ultraviolet excitation at 305 nm, the yellow emission line due to the $^4F_{9/2}{\rightarrow}^6H_{13/2}$ transition of $Dy^{3+}$ ions and the main red emission spectrum resulting from the $^5D_0{\rightarrow}^7F_2$ transition of $Eu^{3+}$ ions were observed. With the increase of the content of $Eu^{3+}$, the intensity of the yellow emission band gradually decreased while that of the red emission increased. These results indicated that the emission intensities of yellow and red emissions could be modulated by changing the content of the $Dy^{3+}$ and $Eu^{3+}$ ions incorporated into the host crystal.

• Korean Journal of Materials Research
• /
• 제27권4호
• /
• pp.221-228
• /
• 2017

Various morphologies of copper oxide (CuO) have been considered to be of both fundamental and practical importance in the field of electronic materials. In this study, using Cu ($0.1{\mu}m$ and $7{\mu}m$) particles, flake-type CuO particles were grown via a wet oxidation method for 5min and 60min at $75^{\circ}C$. Using the prepared CuO, AlN, and silicone base as reagents, thermal interface material (TIM) compounds were synthesized using a high speed paste mixer. The properties of the thermal compounds prepared using the CuO particles were observed by thermal conductivity and breakdown voltage measurement. Most importantly, the volume of thermal compounds created using CuO particles grown from $0.1{\mu}m$ Cu particles increased by 192.5 % and 125 % depending on the growth time. The composition of CuO was confirmed by X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis; cross sections of the grown CuO particles were observed using focused ion beam (FIB), field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), and energy dispersive analysis by X-ray (EDAX). In addition, the thermal compound dispersion of the Cu and Al elements were observed by X-ray elemental mapping.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
• /
• 제22권3호
• /
• pp.385-389
• /
• 2012

The application of microorganisms in the field of construction material is rapidly increasing worldwide; however, almost all studies that were investigated were bacterial sources with mineral-producing activity and not with organic substances. The difference in the efficiency of using bacteria as an organic agent is that it could improve the durability of cement material. This study aimed to assess the use of biofilm-forming microorganisms as binding agents to increase the compressive strength of cement-sand material. We isolated 13 alkaliphilic biofilmforming bacteria (ABB) from a cement tetrapod block in the West Sea, Korea. Using 16S RNA sequence analysis, the ABB were partially identified as Bacillus algicola KNUC501 and Exiguobacterium marinum KNUC513. KNUC513 was selected for further study following analysis of pH and biofilm formation. Cement-sand mortar cubes containing KNUC513 exhibited greater compressive strength than mineral-forming bacteria (Sporosarcina pasteurii and Arthrobacter crystallopoietes KNUC403). To determine the biofilm effect, Dnase I was used to suppress the biofilm formation of KNUC513. Field emission scanning electron microscopy image revealed the direct involvement of organic-inorganic substance in cement-sand mortar.

• Proceedings of the Korean Vacuum Society Conference
• /
• 한국진공학회 2012년도 제42회 동계 정기 학술대회 초록집
• /
• pp.420-420
• /
• 2012

ZnO seed layer were deposited on quartz substrate by sol-gel method and prism-like Al-doped ZnO nanorods (AZO nanorods) were grown on ZnO seed layer by hydrothermal method with various Al concentration ranging from 0 to 2.0 at.%. Structural and optical properties of the AZO nanorods were investigated by field-emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), photoluminescence (PL). The diameter of the AZO nanorods was smaller than undoped ZnO nanorods and its diameter of the AZO nanorods decreased with increasing Al concentration. In XRD spectrum, it was observed that stress and full width at half maximum (FWHM) of the AZO nanorods decreased and the 'c' lattice constant increased as the Al concentration increased. From undoped ZnO nanorods, it was observed that the green-red emission peak of deep-level emission (DLE) in PL spectra. However, after Al doping, not only a broad green emission peak but also a blue emission peak of DLE were observed.