택코트란 아스팔트 포장 공사 시 기존 아스팔트층과 신설 아스팔트 층 사이에 부착성을 증가시키기 위하여 사용되는 재료이다. 교통 하중으로 인해 포장 경계면에서 수평전단응력 및 수직인장응력이 발생하게 되는데 택코트의 유실, 양생 부족 등의 문제로 접착 성능 이 부족하면 포장층의 분리, 밀림과 같은 도로 파괴가 형상이 나타날 수 있다. 현재 국내에서는 국토교통부 아스팔트 콘크리트 포장 시공 지침에 택코트 살포량에 대한 기준은 존재하지만 기존 및 신설 아스팔트 포장층 사이에 택코트의 접착강도에 대한 기준은 존재 하지 않는 실정이다, 이는 접착강도 특성이 분석되지 않은 택코트를 사용함에 따라 아스팔트 포장의 공용성 측면에서 문제를 초래할 수 있다. 따라서 본 연구에서는 PG등급이 다른 택코트 4종류에 대한 인장 및 전단접착강도를 확인하기 위하여 인장접착강도 시험, 전 단접착강도 시험을 진행하였다. 택코트의 양생정도에 따른 접착강도 특성을 확인해보기 위하여 택코트의 수분이 증발됨에 따라 중량 변화가 없는 상태를 양생 100%로 하여 양생 0%, 50%, 100%로 진행하였으며, 살포량은 국토교통부 아스팔트 콘크리트 시공 지침에 따 라 0.5ℓ/m2로 진행하였다. 사용된 택코트 종류에 관계 없이 양생 정도가 증가함에 따라 접착강도는 증가하는 추세를 보였으며, 인장 및 전단접착강도 시험에 관계없이 초기 양생(양생 0%~50%)보다 양생 50% 이후에서의 더 높게 강도가 발현된 것을 확인하였다. 또한 PG등급이 높은 택코트가 인장 및 전단접착강도에 관계없이 접착강도 성능이 우수한 것을 확인할 수 있었다. 추후 택코트의 종류를 추 가하여 PG등급이 분류가 이루어진 후에 접착강도 시험을 진행하여 결과를 확인할 예정이다.

PURPOSES : To enhance the accuracy of predicting the compressive strength of practical concrete mixtures, this study aimed to develop a machine learning model by utilizing the most commonly employed curing age, specifically, the 28-day curing period. The training dataset consisted of concrete mixture sample data at this curing age, along with samples subjected to a total load not exceeding 2,350 kg. The objective was to train a machine learning model to create a more practical predictive model suitable for real-world applications. METHODS : Three machine learning models—random forest, gradient boosting, and AdaBoost—were selected. Subsequently, the prepared dataset was used to train the selected models. Model 1 was trained using concrete sample data from the 28th curing day, followed by a comprehensive analysis of the results. For Model 2, training was conducted using data from the 28th day of curing, focusing specifically on instances where the total load was 2,350 kg or less. The results were systematically analyzed to determine the most suitable machine learning model for predicting the compressive strength of concrete. RESULTS : The machine learning model trained on concrete sample data from the 28th day of curing with a total weight of 2,350 kg or less exhibited higher accuracy than the model trained on weight-unrestricted data from the 28th day of curing. The models were evaluated in terms of accuracy, with the gradient boosting, AdaBoost, and random forest models demonstrating high accuracy, in that order. CONCLUSIONS : Machine learning models trained using concrete mix data based on practical and real-world scenarios demonstrated a higher accuracy than models trained on impractical concrete mix data. This case illustrates the significance of not only the quantity but also the quality of the data during the machine learning training process. Excluding outliers from the data appears to result in better accuracy for machine learning models. This underscores the importance of using high-quality and practical mixed concrete data for reliable and accurate model training.

본 연구는 PEBAX/PVDF 복합막을 제조하고 에탄올/물 혼합액에 대한 투과증발 성능을 평가하였다. 또한 PVDF 지지체 표면에 ZIF-8 층을 형성하여 복합막의 투과증발 성능을 향상시키고자 하였고, PEBAX 선택층 두께에 따른 성능 비교 를 통해 최적의 막을 선정하였다. 제작된 복합막을 물과 에탄올이 95/5 중량비로 혼합된 공급액에 대하여 투과증발 실험을 수행하였다. 그 결과 ZIF-8 충이 형성된 PVDF 지지체를 사용한 복합막의 경우 플럭스 1.98 kg/m2h, 분리 계수 3.88로 일반 PVDF 지지체를 사용한 복합막보다 투과량과 선택도가 모두 높은 값을 나타내었다.

본 연구에서는 에너지 소모가 큰 기존 진공 증류 공정의 대안으로 친환경이면서 에너지 효율적인 투과증발 분리 공정을 이용하여 1,2 hexane diol/water (1,2 HDO/water) 혼합물에서 물을 분리하는 데 적용되었다. 사용한 분리막은 glutaraldehyde (GA)로 가교된 PVA를 알루미나 중공사 막(Al-HF) 내부에 코팅하여 사용하였다. 1,2 HDO/water 투과증발 분리공 정에서는 PVA/GA 비율, 경화 온도 및 투과증발 분리공정 운전 조건에 대한 막의 최적화를 연구하였다. 장기 안정성 시험에 서 PVA/GA (몰 비율 = 0.08, 경화 온도 = 80°C) 로 코팅된 Al-HF 막이 공정온도 40°C에서 1.90~2.16 kg/m2h 범위의 투과 도를 보였으며, 투과용액의 수분 함량은 99.5% (separation factor = 68) 이상이었다.

청정 연료인 수소를 생산하기 위해 현재 가장 널리 사용되는 기술인 증기 개질이다. 이 방법으로 생산된 수소는 일산화탄소와 같은 불순물을 함유하고 있어, 이를 연료전지와 같은 응용분야에 사용하기 위해서는 적절한 정제 과정을 반드 시 거쳐야 한다. 최근 효과적인 정제 방법으로 분리막 기술이 각광받고 있다. 본 연구에서는 수소와 일산화탄소 혼합가스에서 수소 분리 및 회수를 위해 바이오가스 고질화용(biogas upgrading) 상용 폴리설폰(polysulfone) 고분자막의 활용 가능성에 대 해서 평가하였다. 먼저, 사용한 상용막의 물리화학적 특성에 대해서 평가하였고, H2/CO를 이용하여 stage-cut, 운전압력과 같 은 다양한 조건에서의 상용막 모듈의 성능 평가를 진행하였다. 마지막으로, 평가 결과를 바탕으로 공정설계를 위한 시뮬레이 션을 진행하였다. 본 연구에서의 상용 분리막 공정의 최대 H2 투과도와 H2/CO 분리계수는 각각 361 GPU와 20.6을 기록하였 다. 또한, CO 제거 효율은 최대 94%를 나타내었으며, 생산 수소 농도는 최대 99.1%를 달성하였다.

The bentonite buffer material is a crucial component for disposing of high-level radioactive waste (HLW). Several additives have been proposed to enhance the performance of bentonite buffer materials. In this study, unconfined compression tests were conducted on bentonite mixtures as well as pure bentonite buffer material. Joomunjin and silica sands were added at a 30% ratio, and graphite was added at 3% along with bentonite. The unconfined compression strength (UCS) and elastic modulus of pure bentonite were found to be 20% to 50% higher than those of bentonite mixtures under similar dry density and water content conditions. This decrease in strength can be attributed to the reduced cross-sectional area available for bearing the applied load in the bentonitemixture. Furthermore, the 3% graphite-bentonite mixture exhibited a 10% to 30% higher UCS and elastic modulus compared to the 30% sand-bentonite mixtures. However, since the strength properties of additive-bentonite mixtures are lower than those of pure bentonite, it is essential to evaluate thermohydraulic-mechanical functional criteria when considering the use of bentonite mixtures as buffer materials.

PURPOSES : In this study, energy-consuming processes in asphalt plants were evaluated, and the drying and mixing processes were characterized using a thermal equilibrium equation-based model to quantitatively estimate the amount of energy consumed during the production of mixtures in asphalt concrete plants. METHODS : An energy consumption model based on the thermal equilibrium equation was used to estimate the energy consumption of the aggregate drying process that consumes the maximum energy; the energy consumed for material transportation, storage, and operation of other facilities was cited from the literature. The results were compared with the actual results obtained for recycled hot asphalt mixtures and recycled warm mix asphalt mixtures, and a sensitivity analysis was performed by varying the conditions. RESULTS : An analysis of the main processes required to produce asphalt mixtures showed that the water content had the largest impact on energy consumption (approximately 80%). This quantitatively supports the opinion of field practitioners that maximum energy is consumed during aggregate drying. Although some discrepancies were observed, the results were found to be reasonable and within the range of typical measurements. CONCLUSIONS : The thermal energy consumption estimation model provides consistent results that reflect the characteristics of the mixture and can be used to derive the thermal energy consumption rates for individual materials, such as aggregates and binders. This can be used to identify the priorities for process optimization within a plant.

PURPOSES : This study was conducted to compare and evaluate the compaction performance and physical properties of recycled asphalt mixtures by utilizing the characteristics of hot-mix asphalt mixtures and foamed asphalt. METHODS : A wearing-course mixture was used for performance evaluations. Subsequently, dynamic shear rheometry (DSR), compaction performance, general physical properties, tensile strength ratio, and Hamburg wheel tracking were tested. RESULTS : As a result of performance comparisons, compaction, and general physical properties satisfied the quality standards. In the Hamburg wheel tracking test, the mixture with the antistripping agent improved performance by approximately 40% compared with the general mixture. As the foamed asphalt binder was produced at a relatively low temperature compared with the general hot-mix asphalt binder, the penetration, viscosity, and DSR test results of the aged foamed asphalt binder showed that the aging of the asphalt binder was suppressed, and the flexibility increased. Therefore, the resistance to fatigue cracks is expected to be enhanced. CONCLUSIONS : Even though the foamed warm-mix recycled asphalt mixture was produced at a temperature that was 20~30°C lower than the hot-mix asphalt mixture, its physical properties were similar to those of the hot-mix asphalt mixture; its use is expected to reduce the production of fuel and air pollutants.

In order to reduce the area of the high-level radioactive waste (HLW) repository, a buffer material with high thermal conductivity is required. This is because if the thermal conductivity of the buffer material is high, the distance between the disposal tunnels and the deposition holes can be reduced. Sand, which is a natural material and has higher thermal conductivity than bentonite, is added to bentonite to develop an enhanced buffer material. For the sand-bentonite mixture, it is important which sand to use and how much to add because an enhanced buffer material should satisfy both hydraulic (H) and mechanical (M) performance criteria while improving thermal conductivity (T). In this study, we would like to show what type of sand and how much sand should be added to develop an enhanced buffer material by adding sand to Gyeongju bentonite, a representative bentonite in Korea. For this purpose, the thermal conductivity, hydraulic conductivity, and swelling pressure of the sand-Gyeongju bentonite mixture according to the sand addition rate were measured. It is more efficient to use silica sand with smaller particles than Jumunjin sand which is a representative sand in Korea as an additive for an enhanced buffer material than using the Jumunjin sand. In order for the sand-Gyeongju bentonite buffer material to satisfy both the hydraulic and mechanical performance criteria as a buffer material while increasing the thermal conductivity, it is judged that the optimum dry density is 1.7 g/cm3 at least and the optimum sand addition rate is 10% at most.

Micro-electronic gas sensor devices were developed for the detection of carbon monoxide (CO), nitrogen oxides (NOx), ammonia (NH3), and formaldehyde (HCHO), as well as binary mixed-gas systems. Four gas sensing materials for different target gases, Pd-SnO2 for CO, In2O3 for NOx, Ru-WO3 for NH3, and SnO2-ZnO for HCHO, were synthesized using a sol-gel method, and sensor devices were then fabricated using a micro sensor platform. The gas sensing behavior and sensor response to the gas mixture were examined for six mixed gas systems using the experimental data in MEMS gas sensor arrays in sole gases and their mixtures. The gas sensing behavior with the mixed gas system suggests that specific adsorption and selective activation of the adsorption sites might occur in gas mixtures, and allow selectivity for the adsorption of a particular gas. The careful pattern recognition of sensing data obtained by the sensor array made it possible to distinguish a gas species from a gas mixture and to measure its concentration.

To test a flameproof enclosure for the safety certificate, a reference pressure of explosion needs to be determined. However, the explosion pressure may be changed according to relative humidity of explosive gases. Therefore, the guideline on relative humidity should be recommended for measuring the explosion pressure for accurate and reproducible testings. This study examined the relationship of explosion pressure with relative humidity of hydrogen (31 vol %)-air and acetylene (14 vol %)-air mixture gases. The explosion pressures were measured by increasing the relative humidity of the gases by 10 % from dry state to 80 % in a cylindrical explosion enclosure of 2.3 L. on ambient temperature and atmospheric pressure (1 atm). The maximum explosive pressures were remained almost constant until the relative humidity reached 10 % for the hydrogen-air mixture and 20 % for the acetylene-air mixture. However, the maximum explosive pressures linearly decreased as the relative humidity increased. Based on the results of the study, it would be recommended to use 10 % relative humidity for the hydrogen-air mixture and 20 % for the acetylene-air mixture as the critical value in testing a flameproof enclosure.

The buffer block, which is one of the main components of the engineering barrier system, plays an essential role in mitigating groundwater infiltration and radionuclide transport in a high-level nuclear waste repository. To achieve those purposes, the compacted buffer block must satisfy the functional safety criteria for dry density, water content, and many other components. In this study, the compation curves of the compacted bentonite-sand mixtures were evaluated to identify the relationship between the dry density and the water content of the buffer material. The floating die press at 10 MPa and the cold isostatic press at 40 MPa were applied to compaction of a buffer block with a diameter of 100 mm and a thickness of 10 mm. The condition of a bentonite-sand mixing ratio was 6:4, 7:3, 8:2, and 9:1 with 9 to 21% water content. As a result, the maximum dry density increases, the optimum moisture content decreases as the sand content of buffer material increases. This study can provide the conditions for manufacturing the compacted bentonite-sand buffer block.

The buffer material plays a role in preventing the excessive rise in temperature generated from the high-level radioactive waste by dissipating the decay heat to the rock. For this reason, the buffer material must have thermal properties to ensure the performance of the deep geological repository. This study measured the thermal conductivity of sand-bentonite according to the mixing ratio to improve the thermal properties. The compacted buffer was manufactured with a sand-bentonite mixing ratio of 6:4, 7:3, and 8:2 with 9 to 12% water content. As a result, the thermal conductivity increases as the ratio of sand increases. As a further study, it is necessary to experiment on whether sand-bentonite’s hydraulic, mechanical, and chemical performance is suitable for the stable operation of a repository.

Increasing thermal conductivity of buffer materials makes the disposal tunnel and hole spacings in high-level radioactive waste (HLW) repositories decrease, so that the area of the HLW repository decreases, which gives more choices to choose the HLW repository site and economical cost savings to construct HLW repositories. Thus, developing enhanced buffer materials with improved thermal conductivity is needed. One of the methods to develop enhanced buffer materials is to add additives to the bentonite which is main material for buffer materials. Most additives have high thermal conductivity, but most additives do not swell or less swell than bentonite, so that the swelling pressure of the enhanced buffer materials by additives decreases compared to the swelling pressure of pure bentonite buffer materials. Swelling pressure is an important performance criterion to design buffer materials. Thus, it is important to confirm the swelling pressure of the enhanced bentonite. However, it is not simple to measure the swelling pressure of the buffer materials and furthermore, it takes several days to measure the swelling pressure of the buffer materials. For these reasons, swelling index can be considered to predict the swelling pressure of the enhanced buffer materials relatively. In this study, it was investigated through tests how the swelling index of bentonite-sand mixtures change according to the amount of sand and it was found that the linear relationship between swelling index and sand amount in the bentonite-sand mixtures.

알코올의 탈수를 위하여 에너지 다소비 공정인 증류 공정을 투과증발 막 공정으로 대체하려는 연구가 많이 진행 되어져 왔다. 대표적인 투과증발 막인 PDMS 분리막에 대한 시간의존적 분리 거동은 분리 메카니즘의 이해에 매우 중요하다. 따라서 본 연구에서는 50 wt% 에탄올-물 혼합용액에 대하여 50°C에서 막면적 1194 cm2인 PDMS/PSF 분리막 모듈의 시간의 존적인 투과증발 분리 거동을 고찰하였다. 총 유속과 에탄올/물 분리계수는 투과증발 시간이 증가함에 따라서 초기에 증가하 다가 다시 감소하였다. 초기 분리성능의 증가는 건조한 PDMS 분리막에 에탄올이 용해되는데 시간이 걸리기 때문이며, 후기 분리성능의 감소는 주입 탱크의 에탄올 농도가 시간에 따라서 감소하기 때문에 나타나는 현상이었다. 따라서 본 연구로부터 PDMS 분리막을 통한 에탄올의 투과는 용해-확산 메카니즘에 의해 발생된다는 것이 재확인되었다.