Thermal characteristics of fire extinguishing agents in compartment fire suppression.

Water and foam have different fire-extinguishing mechanisms. Traditional foam and compressed air foam (CAF) have different bubble structures. These differences result in different thermal characteristics, which affect the extinguishing abilities during a fire.

Sand-Dust Image Enhancement Using Chromatic Variance Consistency and Gamma Correction-Based Dehazing.

In sand-dust environments, the low quality of images captured outdoors adversely affects many remote-based image processing and computer vision systems, because of severe color casts, low contrast, and poor visibility of sand-dust images. In such cases, conventional color correction methods do not guarantee appropriate performance in outdoor computer vision applications. In this paper, we present a novel color correction and dehazing algorithm for sand-dust image enhancement.

Substantial Improvement of Color-Rendering Properties of Conventional White LEDs Using Remote-Type Red Quantum-Dot Caps.

A new type of remote red quantum-dot (QD) component was designed and fabricated to improve the color-rendering properties of conventional white LED (light-emitting diode) lightings. Based on an optical simulation, the rectangular cavity-type QD cap was designed with an opening window on the top surface. Red QD caps were fabricated using a typical injection molding technique and CdSe/ZnS QDs with a core/shell structure whose average size was ~6 nm.

A Study of the Wettability of Single-Walled Carbon Nanotube Films on Flat and Textured Si Substrates.

Contact angle measurements are investigated on the surface of single-walled carbon nanotube (SWNT) films directly formed on flat and textured Si substrates using a thermal chemical vapor deposition method. The SWNT films on the textured Si consist of a multiscale structure composed of nanoscale SWNTs and a microscale textured Si. They show superhydrophobic properties in which the water contact angle was around 161°.

Factors affecting treatment compliance in new hypertensive patients in Korea.

This study aims to analyze continuity of care according to complications and examine the relationship between the continuity of care and health outcomes (hospitalization, emergency department visits, and complications) using data of new hypertensive patients from Korea's National Health Insurance Claims database. There were a total of 715,053 new hypertensive patients followed up for three years until 2011. Indices of continuity of care were Continuity of Care Index (COC), Modified, Modified Continuity Index (MMCI), and Most Frequent Provider Continuity (MFPC).

Performance Enhancement of 3-Mercaptopropionic Acid-Capped CdSe Quantum-Dot Sensitized Solar Cells Incorporating Single-Walled Carbon Nanotubes.

We fabricated a series of linker-assisted quantum-dot-sensitized solar cells based on the ex situ self-assembly of CdSe quantum dots (QDs) onto TiO2 electrode using sulfide/polysulfide (S(2-)/Sn(2-)) as an electrolyte and Au cathode. Our cell were combined with single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) by two techniques; One was mixing SWNTs with TiO2 electrode and the other was spraying SWNTs onto Au electrode. Absorption spectra were used to confirm the adsorption of QDs onto TiO2 electrode.

Structure and Hydrogen Adsorption Properties of SBA-15 Doped with Pd Nanoparticles.

Hydrogen adsorption properties of Pd-doped Santa Barbara amorphous No. 15 (Pd-SBA-15) were investigated and the results were compared with pure SBA-15 ones in terms of change of its structure and Pd concentration. Pd-SBA-15 samples were prepared by a hydrothermal reaction, using mixture of PEO20PPO70PEO20 (P123) and tetraethyl orthosilicate (TEOS).

Enhancement of Photo-Current Conversion Efficiency in a CdS/CdSe Quantum-Dot-Sensitized Solar Cell Incorporated with Single-Walled Carbon Nanotubes.

Cadmium sulfide (CdS) and cadmium selenide (CdSe) are sequentially assembled onto a nanocrystalline TiO2 film to create a quantum-dot (QD)-sensitized solar cell application by a successive ionic layer adsorption and reaction (SILAR) method. The results show that CdS and CdSe QDs have a complementary effect in the performance of light harvest of solar cell. Single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) are incorporated with a CdS/CdSe QDs solar cell by mixing them with TiC2 film to enhance electron transfer.

Field emission properties of a three-dimensional network of single-walled carbon nanotubes inside pores of porous silicon.

We report characteristic field emission (FE) properties of single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) synthesized inside the pores as well as on the top surface of a porous silicon (PS) substrate. Turn-on fields and emission current densities were measured and compared with those of other types of SWCNTs in similar environments. Investigation of the FE properties of SWCNTs synthesized inside the pores of a PS substrate revealed a low turn-on field of approximately 2.

Measurement of contact resistance in CdSe-single-walled carbon nanotube hybrids.

The CdSe-single-walled carbon nanotube (SWNT) hybrids are synthesized for measuring contact resistance between CdSe quantum dots and SWNTs in two hybrid samples, i.e., spray-deposited CdSe on SWNTs, and pyrene-self assembled CdSe on SWNTs.

Current flow of single-walled carbon nanotubes upon the encapsulation of beta-carotene by using conducting probe atomic force microscopy.

Beta-carotene was inserted into single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) by using the encapsulation method in a solution phase, and the energy transfer process was studied under irradiation of visible light. The encapsulation of beta-carotene inside SWCNTs was confirmed by ultraviolet (UV)/visible (Vis) and near-IR (N-IR) spectroscopy, and the stability of encapsulated beta-carotene was also confirmed by a UV irradiation experiment. The N-IR absorption spectrum revealed that the beta-carotene donated electrons to the SWCNTs upon encapsulation.

Formation of ZnO nanostructures grown on Si and SiO2 substrates.

ZnO nanorods are grown on Si-based substrate by chemical bath deposition method in aqueous solution using zinc nitrate hexahydrate. Various substrates having different surface morphology are used to evaluate their effect on growing ZnO nanorods, such as flat Si(100) wafer, small and large textured-Si wafer, porous silicon, flat SiO2 wafer, small and large textured-SiO2 wafer. The length, diameter, geometry, and coverage density of ZnO nanorods are investigated by field-emission scanning electron microscopy and summarized.

Electron transfer properties of iodine-doped single-walled carbon nanotubes using field effect transistor.

Single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) are known to have a p-type charge transfer character in the atmosphere. The energy state of SWNTs can be modulated by doping with either an electron donor or an acceptor. In this study, iodine molecules are chosen for intercalation to SWNTs to predict the charge transfer tendency between them.

Photoluminescence study of encapsulated dye inside single-walled carbon nanotubes dispersed in solvents.

Photo-luminescent dye, 1-(2-amino-phenyl) naphthalene-2-ylamine (APNA) molecules were synthesized and encapsulated inside single-walled carbon nanotubes (APNA@SWNTs) in vacuum. Here we measured X-ray diffraction (XRD) pattern and attenuated total reflectance (ATR) spectrum to confirm the encapsulation of APNA molecules inside SWNTs. Strong photoluminescence (PL) spectrum was observed around 400 nm at an excitation of 326 nm.

Large scale synthesis and enhanced field emission properties from hybrid CuO/ZnO nanorod.

Upper-directionally grown nanorods were synthesized on a large scale by a simple method of direct heating of Cu foil in air. Hybrid CuO/ZnO nanorods were fabricated by ZnO thin film coating using magnetron sputtering. Field emission (FE) measurements of CuO and hybrid CuO/ZnO nanorod films show that they have turn-on field of 3.