• Microbiology and Biotechnology Letters
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• v.38 no.4
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• pp.362-372
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• 2010

Although different disposal routes of waste-activated sludge are possible, anaerobic digestion plays an important role for its abilities to further transform organic matter into methane. The potential of using methane as energy source has long been widely recognised and the present paper extensively reviews the principles of anaerobic digestion, the process parameters and hydrolysis. Hydrolysis is recognised as rate-limiting step in the complex digestion process. To accelerate the digestion and enhance the production of biogas, various pre-treatments can be used to improve the rate-limiting hydrolysis. These treatments include mechanical, thermal, chemical and biological interventions to the feedstock. All pre-treatments result in a lysis or disintegration of sludge cells, thus releasing and solubilizing intracellular material into the water phase and transforming refractory organic material into biodegradable species. The reader will finally be guided to extensive discussion for anaerobic digestion processes.

• The Korean Journal of Applied Statistics
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• v.28 no.2
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• pp.289-294
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• 2015

Linear mixed models are commonly used in the clinical pharmaceutical studies to analyze repeated measures such as the crossover study data of bioequivalence studies. In these models, random effects describe the correlation between repeated outcomes and variance-covariance matrix explain within-subject variabilities. Bioequivalence analysis verifies whether a 90% confidence interval for geometric mean ratio of Cmax and AUC between reference drug and test drug is included in the bioequivalence margin [0.8, 1.25] performed using linear mixed models with period, sequence and treatment effects as fixed and sequence nested subject effects as random. A Levofloxacin study is referred to for an example of real data analysis.

• Journal of Korean Society of Water and Wastewater
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• v.19 no.2
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• pp.149-154
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• 2005

Conventionally used flocculation tanks require large space and high energy requirement for mixing. Static flocculators using gravel bed filter operate at a lower flow rate ($5-10m^3/m^2{\cdot}h$). Further, the cleaning of this system is difficult. A novel high rate static flocculator/filter developed at UTS packed with buoyant media such as polystyrene, polypropylene has been found to operate at higher filtration rates (30-45 $5-10m^3/m^2{\cdot}h$). They can easily be cleaned with minimal energy. Detailed experiments conducted with an artificial kaolin clay solution show that buoyant media is an excellent static flocculator in producing uniform filterable microflocs (12-15 m) even when it is operated at a high rate of 30-40 m/h. Detailed filtration experiments were conducted in a wastewater treatment plant to treat the biologically treated effluent with a floating media of depth of 120 cm. This filter was able to remove majority of phosphorus and remaining solids. It reduced significantly the fecal coliforms and fecal streptoccoci, thus requiring less amount of chlorine for disinfection. The advantage of this system is the low energy and water requirement for cleaning of filter bed. The periodic backwash adopted 30 seconds air and water and 30 seconds water cleaning every 90 minutes filter operation. Thisis equivalent to 1-2% of filtered water production. Mechanical cleaning system on the other hand, requires very low energy requirement (<1% of filtered water production).

• Journal of Pharmaceutical Investigation
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• v.38 no.4
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• pp.269-275
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• 2008

The purpose of the present study was to evaluate the bioequivalence of two levofloxacin tablets, Jeil $Cravit^{TM}$ tablet (Jeil Pharm. Co., Ltd., Korea, reference drug) and $Lesacin^{TM}$ tablet (Ilhwa. Co., Ltd., Korea, test drug), according to the guidelines of Korea Food and Drug Administration (KFDA). Twenty-four healthy male Korean volunteers received two tablets containing levofloxacin 200 mg in a $2{\times}2$ crossover study. There was a one-week washout period between the doses. Plasma concentrations of levofloxacin were monitored for over a period of 24 hr after administration by using a high performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). The area under the plasma concentration-time curve from time zero to 24 hr ($AUC_t$), maximum plasma drug concentration ($C_{max}$) and time to reach $C_{max}\;(T_{max})$ were complied from the plasma concentration-time data. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) test was utilized for the statistical analysis of the parameters using logarithmically transformed $AUC_t$ and $C_{max}$. The 90% confidence intervals of the $AUC_t$ ratio and the $C_{max}$ ratio for $Lesacin^{TM}$/Jeil $Cravit^{TM}$ were $\log\;0.9527{\sim}\log\;0.9981$ and $\log\;0.8712{\sim}\log\;1.0556$, respectively. These values were within the acceptable bioequivalence intervals of $\log\;0.80{\sim}\log\;1.25$, recommended by KFDA. In all of these results, we concluded that $Lesacin^{TM}$ tablet was bioequivalent to Jeil $Cravit^{TM}$ tablet, in terms of rate and extent of absorption.

• Journal of Korean Society of Environmental Engineers
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• v.33 no.6
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• pp.447-452
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• 2011

In this study, the polymeric membrane module is used as a diffuser and an image analysis technique based on visual information is applied to get bubble characteristics. The bubble size generated passed through polymeric membrane module was smaller from 30 to 64% than that of air stone, and bubble volume over 70% was ranged from 0.2 to 0.82 mm. But over 80% the bubbles from air stone diffuser ranged from 0.77 to 1.08 mm. The air stone and polymeric membrane module used as diffuser for a flotation system. The floc size inside the flotation reactor using air stone diffuser was bigger than that of the polymeric membrane module, which means that the micro-bubbles generated from polymeric membrane module could provide better opportunities for collisions between colloidal particles than those from air stone diffuser. Therefore, there is a possibility to apply the polymeric membrane module as a diffuser to increase the removal efficiency in the flotation process. Also, the image analysis technique used in this study could be applied as a useful analytical tool for acquisition of an information about the bubble characteristic.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.15 no.7
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• pp.4665-4674
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• 2014

The aim of this study was to confirm the feasibility of the electro-coagulation process as a pre-treatment for the membrane separation of anaerobic digestion effluents to minimize membrane fouling. The reduction of membrane fouling was evaluated according to the number of electrodes (immersed surface area of electrodes), current density and contact time. In the case of the small surface area of electrodes, the increased electric field strength resulted in a soluble COD increase due to the destruction of the microbial flocs and/or cells, whereas large changes in the soluble COD were not observed in the case of the high surface area of electrodes. On the other hand, the T-P concentration decreased as a result of the precipitation of aluminum ions and phosphates. The membrane permeation flux increased and the fouling resistance (Rc+Rf) decreased with increasing electric current density. Although the particle size of the anaerobic digestion effluent increased slightly, it was not related directly to the reduced fouling phenomena. The main mechanism for the enhanced flux was attributed to the inorganic particulate produced during electrocoagulation, such as $AlPO_4$, which acted as a dynamic membrane deposited on the membrane surface.

• Journal of the Korean Institute of Traditional Landscape Architecture
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• v.31 no.3
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• pp.38-44
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• 2013

Karl Foerster had the most significant influence on the establishment of the German garden culture. From the viewpoint of planting design, in particular, he greatly contributed to the selection of new materials and the distribution of gardens. Therefore it is worth re-exploring his garden in that he triggered the use of natural planting that is widely used these days and already used ornamental grasses in his garden designs. This study aimed to review Foerster's garden to understand his planting design methods and their historical significance. The results suggest: Firstly, in spatial structure he designed sunken gardens influenced by the climate and triggered the use of natural planting by applying naturally open meadow, ferns and grasses. Secondly, in terms of the use of materials, he pointed out the necessity to use perennial plants. He bred perennial plants that the general public could easily grow and that were resistant against cold and created show gardens to demonstrate the characteristics of the plants and possible combination methods to the public. Thirdly, in terms of the aesthetical principles of his planting design, he focuses on colors and seasons and was interested in blue, yellow and white colors. In doing so, he developed new varieties such as Delphinium, Rudbeckia and Phlox. He emphasized the necessity of seven seasons, which served as the ancestor of contemporary winter gardens.

• Journal of Korean Society of Environmental Engineers
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• v.30 no.2
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• pp.175-180
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• 2008

The objective of this study was to investigate biosorption of organic matter on EPS(Extracellular Polymeric Substances) at different SRT(Sludge Retention Time) in a SBR(Sequencing Batch Reactor) process, which was operated with the following operation steps : Fill-React-Settle-Decant-Idle. The hydraulic retention time was set to be 24 hours. The results obtained from this study showed that the organic removal efficiency per unit microbial biomass decreased with increasing SRT, and the corresponding EPS amount also did. The percent removal of organic by biosorption increased with SRT, and it reached to 53.2% at SRT of 30 days. However, the highest biosorption per microbial biomass(48.6 mgCOD/gVSS) was found at SRT of 2 days. The EPS analysis was performed by measuring TSS, TCOD$_{Cr}$, and TKN. The EPS production per unit microbial biomass was observed to be high at a low SRT. Due to the above result, the floc formation was hindered and therefore poor settlement of sludge resulted in decreasing the COD removal efficiency. It was therefore concluded that the consideration of the system design should include the characteristic of EPS as well as other factors such as SRT, MLSS, and organic loading.

• Korean Journal of Microbiology
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• v.49 no.3
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• pp.245-252
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• 2013

Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Acinetobacter baumannii are significant opportunistic pathogens in hospitals and are resistant to most antibiotics. Multidrug-resistant P. aeruginosa (MDRPA) and A. baumannii (MDRAB) cause severe human nosocomial infections and are more difficult to treat than methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). Bifidobacteria are among of the most beneficial probiotics and have been widely studied for their antimicrobial activities. The present study explored the antimicrobial activity of Bifidobacterium sp. isolated from healthy Koreans against MDRPA and MDRAB. The antimicrobial activity of the isolates against MDRPA and MDRAB, which are resistant to ciprofloxacin, tobramycin, gentamicin, meropenem, and ceftazidime, was determined by modified broth microdilution methods using absorbance. Among all tested bifidobacteria isolates (nine B. adolescentis, three B. longum, and two B. pseudocatenulatum), the culture supernatant of B. pseudocatenulatum SPM1309 showed a strong growth inhibitory effect against MDRPA and MDRAB. No change in the turbidity of the mixture was observed during incubation, and its inhibitory effect occurred through bacteriostastic action. Moreover, the antibacterial activity was observed in the fraction with molecular weights <10 kDa of bifidobacteria culture supernatant, and the active fraction was heat-stable because it maintained its activity when heated at $70^{\circ}C$ for 10 min. The results suggest that this Bifidobacterium strain could have potential applications for alternative therapy in MDRPA and MDRAB infections.

• Proceedings of the Korea Water Resources Association Conference
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• 2008.05a
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• pp.859-863
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• 2008

축산폐수, 침출수 등의 고농도 폐수를 생물학적으로 처리할 경우 최종 방류수는 강한 색도를 띠며 고분자량의 유기물질을 다량 함유한다. 이는 생물학적으로 분해하기 어려운 유기성 복합체와 생화학적 반응에 의한 중간생성물로 색도를 띠는 천연유기물질(NOM)을 포함한다. 생물학적 처리수의 색도는 심미적인 불안감, 방류수역의 수질오염 및 공중보건상의 잠재적 위해성을 갖는다. 또한, 수자원 이용측면에서 정수처리공정에서의 약품투입량 증가와 특히, 소독부산물 생성이라는 잠재적 문제점이 뒤따른다. 따라서 이러한 문제점을 해소하기 위한 생물학적 2차 처리수의 후속처리가 요구되며, 실제로 난분해성 유기물과 색도를 제거하기 위한 흡착, 막 분리, 고급산화(AOP) 및 화학적 응집 등의 물리-화학적 공정에 대한 연구가 수행되어왔다. 특히, 화학적 응집은 무기응집제 또는 고분자중합체(Polymer)를 이용하여 콜로이드성 입자와 색도를 띠는 난분해성 유기물을 전기적 불안정화를 유도함으로서 흡착 및 응집과정을 통해 제거하는 공정으로 많은 연구자들에 의해 연구되어왔다. 그러나 난분해성 유기물과 색도제거는 대상원수의 성상과 화학적 특성 등에 따라 각각의 제거효율과 최적 운전조건이 상이하게 나타난다. 화학적 응집공정은 비교적 높은 제거효율을 보이지만, 운전 및 유지관리의 기술적 어려움, 경제적 비효율성 등으로 인하여 적용에 어려움을 겪고 있는 실정이다. 본 논문에서는 생물학적 혐기-호기성 공정에서 방류되는 축산폐수의 2차 처리수를 대상으로 화학적 응집에 의한 색도 및 난분해성 유기물의 제거거동을 고찰하였다. 대상 처리수의 $TCOD_{Cr}$ 농도는 평균 410 mg/L인 반면, $BOD_5$는 7-15 mg/L 범위로 난분해성 유기물을 다량 함유하고 있음을 알 수 있었다. 이에 황산알루미늄(Aluminium sulfate; $Al_2(SO_4){\cdot}14H_2O$)과 염화철(ferric chloride)의 무기응집제를 이용하여 자 테스트(jar test)를 수행한 결과, 동일한 응집제 주입량에서 염화철의 유기물 제거 효율이 높은 것으로 나타났다. 황산알루미늄과 염화철의 경우 각각의 응집제 주입율 5.85mM에서 89%, 7.03mM에서 97.5%의 최대 유기물 제거효율을 보여주었으며, 이 때 최종 pH는 4.0-5.6 범위이었다. 한편, 대상 원수 내의 콜로이드성 입자 또는 용존성 유기물의 작용기(functional group)는 일반적으로 음으로 하전 되어 있어 응집에 의해 잘 제거되지 않는 특성을 가지고 있다. 따라서 과량의 응집제를 주입하여 다가의 양이온성 금속염을 흡착시켜 전기적으로 중화시키고, 생성된 침전성 수화물 내에 포획 또는 여과시켜 제거하게 된다. 이 때, 금속염 수화종의 전하밀도가 응집효율에 영향을 주는 것으로 알려져 있는데, 다가의 양이온은 전기적 이중층(Double layer) 압축에 의한 불안정화를 향상시킬 수 있기 때문에다. 또한, 2가 금속염은 색도유발물질과 흡착하여 humate 또는 fulvate 등의 착화합물(complex)을 형성시켜 응집효율을 향상시킬 수 있다. 따라서 본 연구에서는 생물학적 2차 처리수의 화학적 응집처리에 있어서 알루미늄염 등의 다가이온 첨가가 응집에 미치는 영향을 관찰하고, 후속되는 플록형성 및 침전공정에 의한 제거효율을 비교, 평가함으로써 2차 처리수로부터 난분해성 유기물과 색도를 보다 효과적이고 경제적으로 제거할 수 있는 최적인자를 도출하고자 하였다.