High-strength low-alloy steel is one of the widely used materials in onshore and offshore plant engineering. We investigated the alloying effect of solute atoms in α-Fe based alloy using ab initio calculations. Empirical equations were used to establish the effect of alloying on the Vicker’s hardness, screw energy coefficient, and edge dislocation energy coefficient of the steel. Screw and edge energy coefficients were improved by the addition of V and Cr solute atoms. In addition, the addition of trace quantities of V, Cr, and Mn enhanced abrasion resistance. Solute atoms and contents with excellent mechanical properties were selected and their thermal conductivity and thermal expansion behavior were investigated. The addition of Cr atom is expected to form alloys with low thermal conductivity and thermal expansion coefficient. This study provides a better understanding of the state-of-the-art research in low-alloy steel and can be used to guide researchers to explore and develop α-Fe based alloys with improved properties, that can be fabricated in smart and cost-effective manners.

Ethyl formate (EF) is a naturally occurring insecticidal compound and is used to control pests introduced from abroad, in quarantine, by a fumigation method. In particular, it is mainly used as a substitute for methyl bromide and is less toxic to humans and less harmful to plants. This study aimed to investigate the possible acute toxicity of EF to useful organisms, and how to reduce phytotoxicity in watermelon, zucchini, and oriental melon. After fumigation with EF for 2 h, the LC50 values for earthworms, honey bees, and silkworms were 39.9, 7.09, and 17.9 g m-3, respectively. The degree of susceptibility to EF was in the order of earthworms, silkworms, and honey bees based on the LC50 value, and EF fumigation induced stronger acute toxicity to honey bees. Phytotoxicity was observed in watermelon leaves treated with a concentration of 7.5 g m-3 EF, and when treated with a concentration of 10.0 g m-3, it was confirmed that the edges of watermelon leaves were charred and seemed to be damaged by acids. Zucchini and melon, and other cucurbits, showed strong damage to the leaves when treated with a concentration of 10 g m-3, and sodium silicate, at concentrations of 10% and 20%, was used to reduce phytotoxicity. Therefore, acute toxicity towards nontarget organisms and phytotoxicity during the fumigation of EF should be reduced for efficient agricultural pest control.

PURPOSES : Owing to industrial development, the occurrence of continuous environmental damage such as abnormal weather is accelerating because of a rapid increase in carbon emissions. Therefore, various efforts are expended worldwide to realize a low-carbon ecofriendly society. In the construction industry, various efforts have been realized to reduce environmental pollution such as greenhouse gas emissions, for example by introducing eco-friendly materials and reducing industrial waste. In this study, an asphalt pavement technology that can reduce production and construction temperatures by more than 60 °C is developed to reduce the amount of carbon generated in the asphalt industry. METHODS : The performance of a half-warm asphalt binder developed using thermoplastic elastomers and low-temperature additives was assessed. In addition, the change in the quality of a mixture due to the use of the half-warm asphalt binder was evaluated. RESULTS : As the amount of thermoplastic elastomer used increases, the performance grade of the asphalt binder increases as well. When 3% or more of the elastomer is incorporated, the target performance grade of the asphalt binder is satisfied. In addition, by incorporating the thermoplastic elastomer and a low-temperature additive, the overall moisture and rutting resistance increased even at relatively low production and compaction temperatures. CONCLUSIONS : Additional measures to stabilize quality and improve economic feasibility will present a new paradigm for investigations into eco-friendly asphalt concrete pavements.

Ethyl formate (EF) is a potent fumigant replacing methyl bromide. The use of EF is limited to a quarantine process. Appling EF to agricultural field as a safe insecticide in greenhouse give us valuable benefits including less residual concern. In this regard, residual pattern after EF fumigation in greenhouse should be undertaken. In the previous study, we have established agricultural control concentration of EF to control pests in a greenhouse. EF was fumigated at 5 g m-3 level for 2 h. The concentration of EF inside a greenhouse was analyzed to be 4.1-4.3 g m-3 at 30 min after fumigation. To prepare an analytical method for residues in cucumber crops and soil in the greenhouse, the limit of detection (LOD) of the method was 100 ng g-1 and the limit of quantitation (LOQ) of this method was 300 ng g-1. R2 values of calibration curves for crops and soil were 0.991-0.997. In samples collected immediately after ventilation, EF concentration was determined to be below LOQ level. In addition, EF level was below LOQ in samples collected at 3 h after ventilation except that leaf samples of melon during the flowering period showed a level of 1,068.9 ng g-1. Taken together, these results indicate that EF used in quarantine can be applied to agricultural fields without residual issue as an effective fumigant for insect pest control.

In this study, an Co/Fe coated porcelain using a cobalt and ferrous sulfate was sintered at 1,250 oC. The specimens were investigated by HR-XRD, FE-SEM (EDS), Dilatometer, and UV-vis spectrophotometer. The surface of the porcelain was uniformly fused with the pigment, and white ware and celadon body specimens were densely fused to a certain thickness from the surface. Other new compounds were produced by the chemical reaction of cobalt/ferrous sulfate with the porcelain body during the sintering process. These compounds were identified as cobalt ferrite spinel phases for white ware and white mixed ware, and an andradite phase for the celadon body, and the amorphous phase, respectively. As for the color of the specimens coated with cobalt and ferrous mixed pigments, it was found that the L* value was greatly affected by the white ware, and the a* and b* values were significantly changed in the celadon body. The L* values of the specimens fired with pure white ware, celadon body, and white mix ware were 72.1, 60.92, 82.34, respectively. The C7F3 pigment coated porcelain fired at 1,250 oC had L* values of 39.91, 50.17, and 40.53 for the white ware, celadon body, and white mixed ware, respectively; with a* values of -1.07, -2.04, and -0.19, and at b* values of 0.46 and 6.01, it was found to be 4.03. As a new cobalt ferrite spinel phase was formed, it seemed to have had a great influence on the color change of the ceramic surface.

PURPOSES : Preventive pavement maintenance is an economical and efficient method of infrastructure management. This study aims to improve the performance of cold thin-layer asphalt pavement, which is mainly used in earthwork pavement, and for bridge overlays and structures. METHODS : A cold asphalt mixture of modified emulsified asphalt and RAP was prepared for cold recycled thin-layer asphalt pavement. The performance of the mixture as a function of fiber reinforcement to improve flexural strength and crack resistance was evaluated. RESULTS : The use of RAP aggregate in cold asphalt mixture was found to increase the cohesive strength of the mixture and improve the wet abrasion resistance due to the effect of the residual binder. As a result of the loaded wheel test and flexural tension test with the addition of fiber reinforcement, it was found that the crack resistance of 0.4 % glass fiber was the best, and especially, the flexibility at low temperature was excellent. CONCLUSIONS : The cold recycled thin-layer asphalt pavement mixture has improved cohesive strength, flexural strength, and crack resistance compared to existing cold asphalt pavement materials, so it will contribute to economical and effective maintenance in preventive maintenance of bridge overlays and structural pavements.

NbC, HfC, TaC, and their solid solution ceramics have been identified as the best materials for ultrahigh-temperature ceramics. However, their structural stability and elastic properties are mostly unclear. Thus, we investigated structure and elastic properties of (Nb1-xTax)C and (Nb1-xHfx)C solid solutions via ab initio calculations. Our calculated results show that the stability of (Nb1-xTax)C and (Nb1-xHfx)C increases with the increase of Hf and Ta content, and (Nb1-xHfx)C is more stable than (Nb1-xTax)C at the same content of Hf and Ta. The lattice constants decrease with increasing of Hf and Ta content. (Nb1-xTax)C and (Nb1-xHfx)C carbides are mechanically stable and brittle. Bulk modulus of (Nb1-xTax)C increases with increasing Ta content. In contrast, bulk modulus of (Nb1-xHfx)C decreases with increasing Hf content. Hardness of solid solutions shows the highest values at the (Nb0.25Ta0.75)C and (Nb0.75Hf0.25)C. In particular, (Nb0.75Hf0.25)C shows the highest hardness for the current system. The results indicate that the overall mechanical properties of (Nb1-xHfx)C solid solutions are superior to those of (Nb1-xTax)C solid solutions. Therefore, controlling the Hf and Ta element and content of the (Nb1-xTax)C and (Nb1-xHfx)C Solid solution is crucial for optimizing the material properties.

This study investigated the reaction between clay and Mn. Mn was coated using a manganese sulfate on porcelain plate and sintered from 1,100 oC to 1,250 oC. The body begin to shrink around 950 oC with the increase in temperature and rapidly progressed after 1,100 oC. Shrinkage of celadon body was performed at a lower temperature than for other substrates. Quartz, kaolin, and feldspar were the main crystalline phases of the starting materials, but they became mullite and crystobalite during the firing process, and some formed amorphous glass. When manganese sulfate was applied and fired, manganese oxide was fused, and some manganese oxide reacted with the substrate to show a dense microstructure different from that of the substrate; the substrate had pores. The manganese coated porcelain fired at 1,200 oC had L* values of 55.25, 36.87, and 37.13 for the white ware, celadon body, and white mixed ware, respectively; with a* values of 4.63, 3.07, and 2.15, and b* values of 7.93 and 3.98, it was found to be 3.42. This result indicated that the color of the surface was affected during firing by the chemical reaction between the substrate and manganese.

PURPOSES : Recently, interest in maintaining aged concrete pavements has been increasing. An asphalt overlay is generally used for pavement maintenance, and a tack coat is used to secure interlayer adhesion. Particularly, aged concrete pavements are required for higher adhesion performance of tack coats for attaching interlayers to materials with different properties. Insufficient interlayer adhesion could cause pavement damage, such as slippage, rutting, shoving, corrugation, and pothole. In this study, we examined the performance of interface adhesion by applying a tack coat material developed for maintaining aged concrete pavement. METHODS : In this study, we examined the effect of adhesion performance at the pavement interface, using a tack coat material developed for the maintenance of aged concrete pavement. RESULTS : The developed tack coat not only accomplished the performance objectives but also improved the results by more than 12 to 43%, compared to commonly used materials. CONCLUSIONS : The use of developed tack coat is expected to improve the interlayer adhesion and reduce the delay of the maintenance process in aged concrete pavement.

본 연구는 식물검역 분야에서 주요하게 사용되고 있는 메틸브로마이드 훈증제로 인해 발생하는 약해를 저감하기 위한 물질을 모델식물인 애기장대를 이용하여 스크리닝하였다. 사전연구를 통하여 메틸브로마이드 훈증제의 식물 독성 메커니즘으로 활성산소발생와 식물 성장 호르몬인 옥신의 식물체 내 분배억제효과가 발생하는 것을 바탕으로 하여, 약해 저감물질후보군으로 활성산소를 제거하는 역할을 하는 ROS scavenger 2종 (NAC, GSH)과 옥신을 훈증제 처리 전 애기장대에 처리한 후 약해의 저감 정도를 육안평가와 더불어 관련 유전자의 발현을 확인하였다. 연구 결과 메틸브로마이드에 의해 유도된 약해는 옥신보다는 활성산소를 저감시키는 물질후보군들에서 약해 저감효과가 나타났다. 이 중 GSH을 이용하여 농도구배하여 전처리하였을 때, 5 mM GSH 전처리 후 메틸브로마이드 훈증 시 약해 저감효과가 두드러졌다. GSH 전처리 시 식물체 내에 MBF1c와 HSP70 유전자 발현이 증가하는 것을 확인하였으며, 이는 메틸브로마이드 훈증으로 유도되는 약해를 방어하는 역할을 담당하였을 것이라고 평가된다. 따라서, 식물검역 훈증제 메틸브로마이드에 의해 발생하는 약해를 저감하는 데 GSH의 사용가능성을 평가하였으며, 이를 기반으로 다양한 식물체에 적용하여 수출입 시 약해로 인한 경제적 손실을 감소시킬 수 있기를 기대한다.

The purpose of this study is to prepare WO3 nanopowders by high-energy milling in mixture gas (7 % H2+Ar) with various milling times (10, 30, and 60 min). The phase transformation, particle size and light absorption properties of WO3 nanopowders during reduction via high-energy milling are studied. It is found that the particle size of the WO3 decreases from about 30 μm to 20 nm, and the grain size of WO3 decreases rapidly with increasing milling time. Furthermore, the surface of the particles due to the pulverization process is observed to change to an amorphous structure. UV/Vis spectrophotometry shows that WO3 powder with increasing milling times (10, 30, 60 min) effectively extends the light absorption properties to the visible region. WO3 powder changes from yellow to gray and can be seen as a phenomenon in which the progress of the color changes to blue. The characterization of WO3 is performed by high resolution X-ray diffractometry, Field emission scanning electron microscopy, Transmission electron microscopy, UV/Vis spectrophotometry and Particle size analysis.

PURPOSES: This paper presents the noise reduction effect of asphalt concrete pavement using steel slag aggregate. METHODS: Steel slag aggregates induce various mechanical effects because of their high stiffness and specific gravity. It is also known that the noise reduction effect is due to its high specific gravity and porous nature. In this study, the noise reduction in a steel slag asphalt concrete pavement section was measured and analyzed. RESULTS : On average, an asphalt concrete pavement with steel slag reduces road traffic noise by about 2 dB(A). In addition, the analysis of sound pressure levels by frequency showed lower sound pressure levels in steel slag asphalt concrete pavement than general HMA in all frequency ranges (from low to high frequencies). An analysis of the benefits with regard to noise, by assuming a road-traffic noise reduction of 2 dB(A) with asphalt concrete pavement using steel slag, shows that the noise abatement cost approach can save 1.6 million won a year over soundproof wall costs. In addition, the noise damage cost approach results in cost savings (with regard to noise) of between 19 and 60 million won per year depending on the population density. CONCLUSIONS: The use of steel slag aggregate as an asphalt concrete mixture material not only improves the mechanical performance but also has a noise reduction effect. It is expected that the steel slag asphalt concrete pavement can reduce the environmental burden by utilizing resources and provide a safer and more comfortable pavement condition to the road users.

길초근 및 양강근정유를 유제 및 입제로 제형화한 후 이들의 급성어독성을 측정하였다. 잉어를 이용한 급성독성에 사용된 길초근 및 양강근 정유는 수증기증류법, 핵산을 이용한 용매추출법 및 초임계추출법을 이용하여 추출하였고 이들의 유제 및 입제의 급성어독성은 반수치사농도 (LC50)를 구하여 평가하였다. 길초근 및 양강근 원제 중 용매추출법으로 추출한 정유만이 어독성을 나타내었다. 길초근 및 양강근 추출법별 정유 이용한 유제의 급성어독성 평가한 결과 길초근의 경우 모든 추출법 대하여 독성을 나타내지 않은 반면에 양강근 정유는 추출법에 관계없이 모두 잉어에 대한 어독성이 관측되었다. 입제의 경우 길초근은 용매로 추출한 정유에서 독성이 나타났고, 양강근 정유의 경우 초임계추출법으로 추출한 정유 입제에서만 어독성이 관측되었다. 이러한 결과는 3급 어독성에 해당되는 것으로 환경 중 사용에는 문제가 없다고 사료된다. 살충효과가 뛰어난 양강근 정유의 경우 수증기증류법 및 초임계추출법으로 추출한 정유의 10 mg L-1 수준에서 노출된 잉어의 분자적 반응을 확인하여 cytochrome P450 1A 효소 및 glutathione S-transferase의 발현이 급격히 증가하였음을 확인하였고 이들은 수계환경 중 양강근 정유의 동태를 관찰하는 바이오마커로서 사용 가능하다고 사료된다.