• Macromolecular Research
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• v.17 no.11
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• pp.850-855
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• 2009

Keratin is an important protein used in wound healing and tissue recovery. In this study, keratin was modified chemically with iodoacetic acid (IAA) to enhance its solubility in organic solvent. Poly(hydroxybutylate-co-hydroxyvalerate) (PHBV) and modified keratin were dissolved in hexafluoroisopropanol (HFIP) and electrospun to produce nanofibrous mats. The resulting mats were surface-characterized by ATR-FTIR, field-emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM) and electron spectroscopy for chemical analysis (ESCA). The pure m-keratin mat was cross-linked with glutaraldehyde vapor to make it insoluble in water. The biodegradation test in vitro showed that the mats could be biodegraded by PHB depolymerase and trypsin aqueous solution. The results of the cell adhesion experiment showed that the NIH 3T3 cells adhered more to the PHBV/m-keratin nanofibrous mats than the PHBV film. The BrdU assay showed that the keratin and PHBV/m-keratin nanofibrous mats could accelerate the proliferation of fibroblast cells compared to the PHBV nanofibrous mats.

• Polymer(Korea)
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• v.32 no.5
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• pp.458-464
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• 2008

A successful scaffold should have a highly porous structure and good mechanical stability. High porosity and appropriate pore size provide structural matrix for initial cell attachment and proliferation enabling the exchange of nutrients between the scaffold and environment. In this paper the highly porous scaffold of poly(${\varepsilon}$-caprolactone) electrospun nanofibers could be manufactured with an auxiliary electrode and chemical blowing agent (BA) under several processing conditions, such as the concentration of PCL solution, weight percent of a chemical blowing agent, and decomposition time of a chemical blowing agent. To attain stable electrospinnability and blown nanofiber mats having high microporosity and large pore, a processing condition, 8wt% of PCL solution and 0.5wt% of a chemical blowing agent under $100^{\circ}C$ and decomposition time of $2{\sim}3\;s$, was used. The growth characteristic of human dermal fibroblasts cells cultured in the mats showed the good adhesion and proliferation on the blown mat compared to a normal electrospun mat.

• Carbon letters
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• v.9 no.2
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• pp.108-114
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• 2008

We have demonstrated the feasibility of using electrospinning method to fabricate long and continuous composite nanofiber sheets of polyacrylonitrile (PAN) incorporated with zinc oxide (ZnO). Such PAN/ZnO composite nanofiber sheets represent an important step toward utilizing carbon nanofibers (CNFs) as materials to achieve remarkably enhanced physico-chemical properties. In an attempt to derive these advantages, we have used a variety of techniques such as field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and high resolution X-ray diffraction (HR-XRD) to obtain quantitative data on the materials. The CNFs produced are in the diameter range of 100 to 350 nm after carbonization at $1000^{\circ}C$. Electrical conductivity of the random CNFs was increased by increasing the concentration of ZnO. A dramatic improvement in porosity and specific surface area of the CNFs was a clear evidence of the novelty of the method used. This study indicated that the optimal ZnO concentration of 3 wt% is enough to produce CNFs having enhanced electrical and physico-chemical properties.

• Journal of Biomedical Engineering Research
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• v.29 no.3
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• pp.173-178
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• 2008

Recent advancements in the electrospinning method enable the production of ultrafine solid and continuous fibers with diameters ranging from a few nanometers to a few hundred nanometers with controlled surface and morphological features. A wide range of biopolymers can be electrospun into mats with a specific fiber arrangement and structural integrity. These features of nanofiber mats are morphologically similar to the extracellular matrix of natural tissues, which are characterized by a wide pore diameter distribution, a high porosity, effective mechanical properties, and specific biochemical properties. This has resulted in various kinds of applications for polymer nanofibers in the field of biomedicine and biotechnology. The current emphasis of research is on exploiting these properties and focusing on determining the appropriate conditions for electrospinning various biopolymers for biomedical applications, including scaffolds used in tissue engineering, wound dressing, drug delivery, artificial organs, and vascular grafts, and for protective shields in specialty fabrics. This paper reviews the research on biomedical applications of electrospun nanofibers.

• Journal of Marine Bioscience and Biotechnology
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• v.13 no.1
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• pp.28-47
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• 2021

Pectin is a natural polysaccharide and biopolymer that serves as a structural component of plant tissues' primary cell walls. Pectin is primarily composed of D-galacturonic acid linked by α-1, 4-glycosidic linkage and is further classified by the ratio of esterified galacturonic acid groups known as degree of esterification (DE). Pectin that contains more than half of its carboxylate units as methyl esters is known as a high methyl (HM) ester. Conversely, pectin that has less than half of its carboxylate units as methyl esters is known as a low methyl (LM) ester. Pectin has various bioactive properties, including anticancer, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, antidiabetic, anticholesterol, antitumoral, and chemopreventive properties. Moreover, pectin is a useful biopolymer in biomedical applications. Biomedical engineering, which is founded on research aimed to improve the quality of life using new materials and technologies, is typically classified according to the use of hydrogels, nanofiber mats, and nanoparticles. This paper reviews the progress of recent research into pectin-based biomedical applications and the potential future biomedical applications of marine-derived pectin.

• Transactions of the Korean Society of Mechanical Engineers A
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• v.41 no.1
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• pp.41-48
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• 2017

Fine polymeric fibers have been gaining interest from the energy harvesting/storage, tissue, and bioengineering industries because of advantages such as the small diameter, high porosity, permeability, and similarities to a natural extracellular matrix. Electrospinning is one of the most popular methods used to fabricate polymeric fibers because it is not as limited in regards to the materials selection, and it does not require expensive or complex equipment. However, electrospun fibers have a severe aerodynamic instability because the small diameter fibers are able to pass through the atmospheric layer when there is a high electric field. As a result, electrospun fibrous mats have serious difficulties with controlling its shape and geometric properties. In this study, a hybrid nano/microfibrous mat is presented that is fabricated using electrospinning with two different solvent-based PCL solutions. This provides control of the fiber diameter, mat porosity, and mechanical properties. Various hybrid fibrous mats were fabricated after an experimental investigation of the effects of solvent on fiber diameter. It was then demonstrated that the mechanical properties and porosity of the fabricated various hybrid mats could be successfully controlled.

• Journal of Sensor Science and Technology
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• v.17 no.4
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• pp.281-288
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• 2008

Polyacrylonitrile(PAN)/metal oxide(MO) nanocomposite mats with a thickness of 0.12 mm were electrospun by adding 0 to 10 wt% of MO nanoparticles ($Fe_2O_3$, ZnO, $SnO_2$, $Sb_2O_3-SnO_2$) into PAN. Pt electrode was patterned on $Al_2O_3$ substrate by DC sputtering and then the PAN(/MO) mats on the Pt patterned $Al_2O_3$ were electrically wired to investigate the $CO_2$ gas sensing properties. As the MO content rose, the fiber diameter decreased due to the presence of lumps caused by the presence of MOs in the fiber. The PAN/2% ZnO mat revealed a faster response time of 93 s and a relatively short recovery of 54 s with a ${\Delta}R$ of 0.031 M${\Omega}$ at a $CO_2$ concentration of 200 ppm. The difference in sensitivity was not observed significantly for the PAN/MO fiber mats in the $CO_2$ concentration range of 100 to 500 ppm. It can be concluded that an appropriate amount of MO nanoparticles in the PAN backbone leads to improvement of the $CO_2$ gas sensing properties.

• Composites Research
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• v.26 no.2
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• pp.129-134
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• 2013

The strength of adhesive joints employed in composite structures under cryogenic environments, such as LNG tanks, is affected by thermal residual stress generated from the large temperature difference between the bonding process and the operating temperature. Aramid fibers are noted for their low coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE) and have been used to control the CTE of thermosetting resins. However, aramid composites exhibit poor adhesion between the fibers and the resin because the aramid fibers are chemically inert and contain insufficient functional groups. In this work, electrospun meta-aramid nanofiber-reinforced epoxy adhesive was fabricated to improve the interfacial bonding between the adhesive and the fibers under cryogenic temperatures. The CTE of the nanofiber-reinforced adhesives were measured, and the effect on the adhesion strength was investigated at single-lap joints under cryogenic temperatures. The fracture toughness of the adhesive joints was measured using a Double Cantilever Beam (DCB) test.

• Clean Technology
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• v.28 no.3
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• pp.210-217
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• 2022

Boron(B) is a rare resource used for various purposes such as glass, semiconductor materials, gunpowder, rocket fuel, etc. However, Korea depends entirely on imports for boron. Considering the global boron reserves and its current production rate, boron will be depleted on earth in 50 years. Thus, a process including proper adsorbent materials recovering boron from seawater is demanded. This research proposed carbonized nanofibers prepared from electrospun PAN(polyacrylonitrile) mats as promising materials to adsorb boron in aqueous solution. First, the mechanism of boron adsorption on carbonized nanofibers was investigated by DFT(density functional method)-based molecular modeling and the calculated energetics demonstrated that the boron chemisorption on the nitrogen-doped graphene surface by a two-step dehydration is possible with viable activation energies. Then, the electrospun PAN mats were stabilized in air and then carbonized in an argon atmosphere before being immersed in the boric acid aqueous solution. Analytically, SEM(scanning electron microscopy) and Raman measurements were employed to confirm whether the electrospinning and carbonization of PAN mats proceeded successfully. Then, XPS(X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy) peak analysis showed whether the intended nitrogen-doped carbon nanofiber surface was formed and boron was properly adsorbed on nanofibers. Those results demonstrated that the carbonized nanofibers prepared from electrospun PAN mats could be feasible adsorbents for boron recovery in seawater.

• Proceedings of the Polymer Society of Korea Conference
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• 2006.10a
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• pp.50-51
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• 2006

The nanofibrous scaffolds were obtained by co-electrospinning PHBV and collagen Type I in HIFP. The resulting fiber diameters were in the range between 300 and 600 nm. The nanofiber surfaces were characterized by ATR-FTIR, ESCA and AFM. The PHBV and collagen components of the PHBV-Col nanofibrous scaffold were biodegraded by PHB depolymerase and a collagenase Type I aqueous solution, respectively. It was found, from the cell-culture experiment, that the PHBV-Col nanofibrous scaffold accelerated the adhesion of the NIH 3T3 cell compared to the PHBV nanofibrous scaffold, thus showing a good tissue engineering scaffold.