This paper explores the potential application of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) in the construction industry, as CNTs can effectively serve as nano-fillers, bridging the voids and holes in cement structures. However, the limited dispersibility of CNTs in water necessitates the use of dispersing agents for achieving uniform dispersion. In this study, two kinds of cement superplasticizers, polycarboxylate ether (PCE) and sulfonated naphthalene formaldehyde (SNF) were employed as dispersing agents to improve the interfacial affinity between CNTs and cement, and to enhance the strength of the cement nanocomposites. Contact angle experiments revealed that the utilization of PCE and SNF effectively addressed the interface issues between CNTs and cement. As a result, the cement nanocomposite with a CNT to PCE ratio of 1:2 exhibited an approximately 6.6% increase in compressive strength (73.05 MPa), while the CNT:SNF 1:2 cement composite showed a 4.7% increase (71.72 MPa) compared to plain cement (68.52 MPa). In addition, the rate of crack generation in cement nanocomposites with CNTs and dispersing agents was found to be slower than that of plain cement. The resulting cement nanocomposites, characterized by enhanced strength and durability, can be utilized as safer materials in the construction industry.

This study focused on improving the solubility of silodosin, a drug poorly soluble in water, by utilizing solid dispersions. Three types of dispersions were examined and compared against the drug powder: surface-attached (SA), solvent-wetted (SW), and solvent-evaporated (SE). Polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) was identified as the most effective polymer in enhancing solubility. These dispersions were prepared using spray-drying techniques with silodosin and PVA as the polymer, employing solvents such as water, ethanol, and a water-acetone mix. The physicochemical properties and solubility of the dispersions were evaluated. The surface-attached dispersions featured the polymer on a crystalline drug surface, the solvent-wetted dispersions had the amorphous drug on the polymer, and the solvent-evaporated dispersions produced nearly round particles with both components amorphous. Testing revealed that the order of improved solubility was: solvent-evaporated, solvent-wetted, and surface-attached. The results demonstrated that the preparation method of the solid dispersions significantly impacted their physicochemical properties and solubility enhancement.

Al2O3 has excellent sintering properties and is important in semiconductor manufacturing processes that require high-temperature resistance and chemical inertness in a plasma environment. In this study, a comprehensive analysis of the chemical characteristics, physical properties, crystal structure, and dispersion stability of three commercially available Al2O3 powders was conducted. The aim was to provide a technological foundation for selecting and utilizing appropriate Al2O3 powders in practical applications. All powders exhibited α-Al2O3 as the main phase, with the presence of beta-phase Na2O-11Al2O3 as the secondary phase. The highest Na+ ion leaching was observed in the aqueous slurry state due to the presence of the secondary phase. Although the average particle size difference among the three powders was not significant, distinct differences in particle size distribution were observed. ALG-1SH showed a broad particle size distribution, P162 exhibited a bimodal distribution, and AES-11 displayed a uniform unimodal distribution. Highconcentration Al2O3 slurries showed differences in viscosity due to ion release when no dispersant was added, affecting the electrical double-layer thickness. Polycarboxylate was found to effectively enhance the dispersion stability of all three powders. In the dispersion stability analysis, ALG-1SH exhibited the slowest sedimentation tendency, as evidenced by the low TSI value, while P162 showed faster precipitation, influenced by the particle size distribution.

Although many attempts have been made to solve the atmospheric diffusion equation, there are many limits that prevent both solving it and its application. The causes of these impediments are primarily due to both the partial differentiation term and the turbulence diffusion coefficient. In consideration of this dilemma, this study aims to discuss the methodology and cases of utilizing a passive air sampler to increase the applicability of atmospheric dispersion modeling. Passive air samplers do not require pumps or electric power, allowing us to achieve a high resolution of spatial distribution data at a low cost and with minimal effort. They are also used to validate and calibrate the results of dispersion modeling. Currently, passive air samplers are able to measure air pollutants, including SO2, NO2, O3, dust, asbestos, heavy metals, indoor HCHO, and CO2. Additionally, they can measure odorous substances such as NH3, H2S, and VOCs. In this paper, many cases for application were introduced for several purposes, such as classifying the VOCs’ emission characteristics, surveying spatial distribution, identifying sources of airborne or odorous pollutants, and so on. In conclusion, the validation and calibration cases for modeling results were discussed, which will be very beneficial for increasing the accuracy and reliability of modeling results.

Understanding the dispersion of xenon isotopes following a nuclear test is critical for global security and falls within the remit of both the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT) and the International Noble Gas Experiment (INGE). This paper aims to show if it is possible to discriminate the source of xenon releases based on the atmospheric dispersion of xenon isotopes using HYSPLIT. Using ORIGEN and SERPENT simulations, four released scenarios are defined with four different fractionation times (i.e., 1 hour, 1 day, 10 days, and 30 days) after a 1kt TNT equivalent 235U explosion event. These time-delayed release scenarios were selected to certify the possibility of mis-determining xenon release source. We use the Lagrangian dispersion model for atmospheric dispersion to predict the concentration distribution of xenon isotopes under each scenario. The model allows us to better understand how these isotopes would distribute over time and space, offering valuable data for real-world detection efforts. To our knowledge, there have been no researches on the analysis of xenon isotopic ratios considering atmospheric dispersion. In this work, we focused on the atmospheric dispersion using HYSPLIT to characterize the xenon isotopic ratios from nuclear tests. In addition, we compared the xenon isotopic ratios obtained from the atmospheric dispersion with those from ORIGEN calculations, which would be helpful to discriminate the source of the xenon releases.

해상공사에서 발생하는 부유사는 해수의 탁도를 증가시키고 광량을 감소시켜 해양생물에 악영향을 미치므로 해양환경영향평 가에서 중요한 요소이다. 하지만 평가에 적용되는 인자에 대한 공식적인 자료의 부족과 평가자의 능력에 따라 그 영향이 달리 평가되고 있다. 따라서 본 연구에서는 해역이용영향평가센터에서 검토한 3년간(2012–2014)의 매립, 준설, 외곽시설물 설치 등 총 58건 사업에 대한 부유사 확산 평가에 대한 실태를 진단하고 개선방안을 제시하였다. 개선방안 제시를 위해 4가지의 평가지표(격자체계의 적정성, 원단위의 적정성, 대표입경 및 침강속도의 적정성)를 적용하였다. 각 항목별 신뢰도에 평균점수 분석결과, 격자체계는 25점, 원단위는 60점, 대표입 경은 34점 그리고 침강속도는 17점으로 평가항목에 대한 개선방안이 필요한 것으로 나타났다. 본 연구에서는 부유사 확산 평가상태에 대 한 진단 및 신뢰도 평가 결과를 활용하여 부유사 확산예측에 대한 개선방안을 제안하였다. 먼저, 부유사 발생원단위 및 대표입경별 침강 속도에 대한 공신력 있는 값이 가이드라인을 통해 제공해야 한다. 그리고 실무에선 신뢰성 향상을 위해 격자체계의 적정성과 결과의 검 증을 철저히 해야 한다.

The transport of radionuclides at oceanic scales can be assessed using a Lagrangian model. In this review an application of such a model to the Atlantic, Indian and Pacific oceans is described. The transport model, which is fed with water currents provided by global ocean circulation models, includes advection by three–dimensional currents, turbulent mixing, radioactive decay and adsorption/release of radionuclides between water and bed sediments. Adsorption/release processes are described by means of a dynamic model based upon kinetic transfer coefficients. A stochastic method is used to solve turbulent mixing, decay and water/sediment interactions. The main results of these oceanic radionuclide transport studies are summarized in this paper. Particularly, the potential leakage of 137Cs from dumped nuclear wastes in the north Atlantic region was studied. Furthermore, hypothetical accidents, similar in magnitude to the Fukushima accident, were simulated for nuclear power plants located around the Indian Ocean coastlines. Finally, the transport of radionuclides resulting from the release of stored water, which was used to cool reactors after the Fukushima accident, was analyzed in the Pacific Ocean.

In a nuclear facility, the base metal can be radiologically contaminated during the operation. They must be decontaminated to reduce the radiation exposure to workers before decommissioning of the nuclear facility. In order to decontaminate the nuclear facility, it is possible to apply a perfluorocarbon (PFC) based emulsion consisted of surfactant and decontamination reagent. The PFC has high resistance for the radiation decomposition, and PFC based emulsion can be easily stabilized using the ultrasonication method. During decontamination process, a dispersion stability of the emulsion affects to the decontamination performance because the decontamination reagents dispersed in the emulsion contact contaminated surface. In this study, the dispersion stability the PFC based emulsion was evaluated following the composition of the emulsion and dispersion condition such as temperature, ultrasonication time. It was confirmed that the concentration of surfactant is highly related to the dispersion stability from the result of Turbiscan analysis using the multiple light scattering method. It was also verified that the droplet size of the decontamination reagent in the stable emulsion was smaller than that in the unstable emulsion. This phenomena can be explained by the relationship between the interfacial tension and droplet size. Finally, the recovering test of the PFC from the spent PFC-based decontamination emulsion was conducted using distillation method. The distillation test was performed using vacuum distillation unit, and the distillation temperature was 80°C. From the distillation test, about 95 % of PFC was recovered by distillation. From this result, it is considered that PFC-based decontamination emulsion reduces the volume of the secondary waste.

Silver/graphene core/shell nanocomposites were synthesized through a one-step electric explosion of wire method using only silver wires and ethanol. The morphology of the graphene shell structures can be easily formed by alternating the solvent from deionized water to ethanol. Transmission electron microscopy revealed that the size of the prepared silver/graphene core/ shell nanocomposites was in the 10–110 nm range. The Raman spectra showed the formation of graphene shells on silver. A possible formation mechanism of the silver/graphene core/shell nanocomposites is proposed in this study. The crystallinity of the nanoparticles was investigated via X-ray diffraction. The graphene on the surfaces of the nanocomposites containing functional groups was analyzed through Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy analyses. Zeta potential and dynamic light scattering analyses were performed to determine the dispersion characteristics of the nanocomposites when redispersed in other solvents.