• BMB Reports
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• v.40 no.4
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• pp.588-594
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• 2007

A novel hot spring thermophile, Anoxybacillus gonensis A4 (A. gonensis A4) was investigated in terms of capability of tributyrin degradation and characterization of its thermostable esterase activity by the hydrolysis of p-nitrophenyl butyrate (PNPB). It was observed that A. gonensis A4 has an esterase with a molecular weight of 62 kDa. The extracellular crude preparation was characterized in terms of substrate specificity, pH and temperature optima and stability, kinetic parameters and inhibition/activation behaviour towards some chemicals and metal ions. Tributyrin agar assay showed that A. gonensis A4 secreted an esterase and $V_{max}$ and $K_m$ values of its activity were found to be 800 U/L and 176.5 ${\mu}M$, respectively in the presence of PNPB substrate. The optimum temperature and pH, for A. gonensis A4 esterase was $60-80^{\circ}C$ and 5.5, respectively. Although the enzyme activity was not significantly changed by incubating crude extract solution at $30-70^{\circ}C$ for 1 h, the enzyme activity was fully lost at $80^{\circ}C$ for same incubation period. The pH-stability profile showed that original crude esterase activity increased nearly 2-fold at pH 6.0. The effect of some chemicals on crude esterase activity indicated that A. gonensis A4 produce an esterase having serine residue in active site and -SH groups were essential for its activity.

• Korean Journal of Environmental Biology
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• v.28 no.2
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• pp.101-107
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• 2010

Metal ions are essential to life. However, some metals such as mercury are harmful, even when present at trace amounts. Toxicity of mercury arises mainly from its oxidizing properties. Ionizing radiation (IR) is an active tool for destruction of cancer cells and diagnosis of diseases, etc. IR induces DNA double strand breaks in the nucleus, In addition, it causes lipid peroxidation, ceramide generation, and protein oxidation in the membrane, cytoplasm and nucleus. Yeasts have been a commonly used material in biological research. In yeasts, the physiological response to changing environmental conditions is controlled by the cell types. Growth rate, mutation and environmental conditions affect cell size and shape distributions. In this work, the effect of IR and mercury chloride (II) on the morphology of yeast cells were investigated. Saccharomyces cerevisiae cells were treated with IR, mercury chloride (II) and IR combined with mercury chloride (II). Non-treated cells were used as a control group. Morphological changes were observed by a scanning electron microscope (SEM). The half-lethal condition from the previous experimental results was used to the IR combined with mercury. Yeast cells were exposed to 400 and 800 Gy at dose rates of 400Gy $hr^{-1}$ or 800 Gy $hr^{-1}$, respectively. Yeast cells were treated with 0.05 to 0.15 mM mercury chloride (II). Oxidative stress can damage cellular membranes through a lipidic peroxidation. This effect was detected in this work, after treatment of IR and mercury chloride (II). The cell morphology was modified more at high doses of IR and high concentrations of mercury chloride(II). IR and mercury chloride (II) were of the oxidative stress. Cell morphology was modified differently according to the way of oxidative stress treatment. Moreover, morphological changes in the cell membrane were more observable in the frequently stress treated cells than the temporarily stress treated cells.

• Journal of Sensor Science and Technology
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• v.27 no.2
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• pp.93-98
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• 2018

In this paper, an energy-efficient 11.49-bit successive approximation register (SAR) capacitance-to-digital converter (CDC) for capacitive sensors with a figure of merit (FoM) of 31.6 pJ/conversion-step is presented. The CDC employs a SAR algorithm to obtain low power consumption and a simplified structure. The proposed circuit uses a capacitive sensing amplifier (CSA) and a dynamic latch comparator to achieve parasitic capacitance-insensitive operation. The CSA adopts a correlated double sampling (CDS) technique to reduce flicker (1/f) noise to achieve low-noise characteristics. The SAR algorithm is implemented in dual operating mode, using an 8-bit coarse programmable capacitor array in the capacitance-domain and an 8-bit R-2R digital-to-analog converter (DAC) in the charge-domain. The proposed CDC achieves a wide input capacitance range of 29.4 pF and a high resolution of 0.449 fF. The CDC is fabricated in a $0.18-{\mu}m$ 1P6M complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) process with an active area of 0.55 mm2. The total power consumption of the CDC is $86.4{\mu}W$ with a 1.8-V supply. The SAR CDC achieves a measured 11.49-bit resolution within a conversion time of 1.025 ms and an energy-efficiency FoM of 31.6 pJ/step.

• Food Science and Biotechnology
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• v.16 no.3
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• pp.367-373
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• 2007

Livers of skipjack tuna (Katsuwonus pelamis) and yellowfin tuna (Thunnus albacares) were investigated on the food compositional characteristics and also compared to that of Alaska pollack (Theragra chalcogramma). The proximate compositions of skipjack tuna and yellowfin tuna livers were high in crude protein, carbohydrate, and crude ash, while were low in crude lipid when compared to that of Alaska pollack liver. The results of heavy metal suggested that tuna livers appeared safe as a food resource. The total amino acid contents of skipjack tuna and yellowfin tuna livers were 17.7 and 17.1 g/100 g, respectively, and the major amino acids in both livers were aspartic acid, glutamic acid, alanine, valine, leucine, and lysine. Tuna livers were good sources of iron and zinc, while have low lipid content. The extractive nitrogen contents of skipjack tuna and yellowfin tuna livers were 526.5 and 468.2 mg/100 g, respectively, and their major free amino acids were taurine, glutamic acid, and alanine. From the results of taste value, the major taste active compounds among free amino acids were glutamic acid and aspartic acid.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Precision Engineering Conference
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• 2005.06a
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• pp.485-488
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• 2005

Most metals are polycrystalline material whose deformation is dominated by the slip system. During the deformation process, orientation of slip systems is rearranged with preferred orientations, leading to deformation-induced crystallographic texture which is called deformation texture. Depending on the texture development, the property of material can be changed. The rate-independent crystal plasticity which is based on the Schmid law as a yield function causes a non-uniqueness in the choice of active slip systems. In this work, to avoid the slip system ambiguity problem, rate-independent crystal plasticity model based on the smooth yield surface with rounded-off corners is adopted. In order to simulate the polycrystalline material under plastic deformation, we employ the Taylor model of polycrystal behavior that all the grains are assumed to be subjected to the macroscopic velocity gradient. Rigid-plastic finite element program based on this rate-independent crystal plasticity is developed to predict the grain-level deformation behavior of FCC metals during metal forming processes. In the finite element calculation, one integration point is considered as a crystalline aggregate which has a number of crystals. Macroscopic behavior of material can be deduced from the behavior of aggregates. As applications, the extrusion processes are simulated and the changes of mechanical properties are predicted.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Precision Engineering Conference
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• 2005.06a
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• pp.1507-1510
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• 2005

This study was carried out as a part of the research on the development of a maskless and electroless process for fabricating metal micro/nanostructures by using a nanoindenter and an electroless deposition technique. $2-\mu{m}-deep$ indentation tests on Ni and Cu samples were performed. The elastic recovery of the Ni and Cu was 9.30% and 9.53% of the maximum penetration depth, respectively. The hardness and the elastic modulus were 1.56 GPa and 120 GPa for Ni and 1.49 GPa and 100 GPa for Cu. The effect of single-point diamond machining conditions such as the Berkovich tip orientation (0, 45, and $90^{\circ}$) and the normal load (0.1, 0.3, 0.5, 1, 3, and 5 mN), on both the deformation behavior and the morphology of cutting traces (such as width and depth) was investigated by constant-load scratch tests. The tip orientation had a significant influence on the coefficient of friction, which varied from 0.52-0.66 for Ni and from 0.46-0.61 for Cu. The crisscross-pattern sample showed that the tip orientation strongly affects the surface quality of the machined area during scratching. A selective deposition of Cu at the pit-like defect on a p-type Si(111) surface was also investigated. Preferential deposition of the Cu occurred at the surface defect sites of silicon wafers, indicating that those defect sites act as active sites for the deposition reaction. The shape of the Cu-deposited area was almost the same as that of the residual stress field.

• Korean Journal of Materials Research
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• v.20 no.11
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• pp.611-616
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• 2010

A cobalt oxide - tin oxide nanocomposite based gas sensor on an $SiO_2$ substrate was fabricated. Granular thin film of tin oxide was formed by a rheotaxial growth and thermal oxidation method using dc magnetron sputtering of Sn. Nano particles of cobalt oxide were spin-coated on the tin oxide. The cobalt oxide nanoparticles were synthesized by polymer-assisted deposition method, which is a simple cost-effective versatile synthesis method for various metal oxides. The thickness of the film can be controlled over a wide range of thicknesses. The composite structures thus formed were characterized in terms of morphology and gas sensing properties for reduction gas of $H_2$. The composites showed a highest response of 240% at $250^{\circ}C$ upon exposure to 4% $H_2$. This response is higher than those observed in pure $SnO_2$ (90%) and $Co_3O_4$ (70%) thin films. The improved response with the composite structure may be related to the additional formation of electrically active defects at the interfaces. The composite sensor shows a very fast response and good reproducibility.

• Resources Recycling
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• v.19 no.4
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• pp.51-57
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• 2010

As a recycling of Si sludge from Si wafer process, a Si-SiC-CuO-C composite material was synthesized and investigated as an anode material for lithium batteries. The Si sludge consisted of Si, SiC, machine oil, and metallic impurities. The oil and metal impurities was removed by organic washing, magnetic separation, and acid washing. The Si-SiC-CuO-C composite from the recovered Si-SiC mixture was prepared by high-energy mechanical milling. According to the electrochemical tests such as charge-discharge capacity and cycling behavior, it showed the improved cycle performance. The SiC and CuO-related phases were presumed to restrain the volume expansion of the anode and Fe, however, should be removed below 10 ppm prior to synthesis of the composite because it caused the capacity loss of the active material itself.

• Journal of the Korea Fashion and Costume Design Association
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• v.9 no.2
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• pp.85-92
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• 2007

This study focused on bean-juice treatment method which have dyeing property to indigo, yellow soil, sappan wood, cochineal and also on the possibility of applying to mordanting. This is different from the active mordanting using chemicals. Natural mordants with development of dyeing are not harmful, also are the medicines for disease. Limestone and ash neutralize the acidic soil. bean-juice protein adhere to cellulose surface and change the physical properties of protein so that coloring of dye is better than before and film non-soluble in water is made. Therefore the color made from bean-juice process lasts after washing. This study try to show one of the ways to improve the current method using the heavy metal which can have bad effects for environment and human being. Bean-juice(raw bean, heated bean) treatment method can be the way to fix the natural dyeing problem of bad dyeing. Bean-juice had been treated under various condition with pre-treatment, post-treatment and raw bean, heated bean. Following results are obtained in this study. In the case of Indigo dyeing, pre-treatment of heated bean shows the biggest difference of color. In the case of yellow soil dyeing, pre-treatment of raw bean-juice shows the biggest gap of color. Pre-treatment of heated bean in sappan wood dyeing case and post-treatment of raw bean show bigger color difference than pre-treatment of raw bean. In cochineal dyeing, raw bean pre-treatment shows the biggest color difference.

• Proceedings of the Korean Institute of Navigation and Port Research Conference
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• 2000.11a
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• pp.73.2-77
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• 2000

A possibility of the implementation of a quartz crystal sensor to the detennination of chemical oxygen demand is examined by checking the electrochemical behavior of the sensor in a glucose solution. Since the surface of a quartz crystal has to be oxidized, a relatively active metal is coated on the surface of a usual 9 MHz AT-cut crystal. The electrochemical behavior is investigated by measuring the changes of current, resonant frequency and resonant resistance while a constant potential is applied. The crystal is installed in a specially designed container, and a QUartz crystal analyzer is utilized to measure the frequency and resistance simultaneously. The variations of the measurements are examined at different concentrations of glucose solution and the effect of the concentration is analyzed to find a proper relation between the concentration and the measurements. It is fOlmd that a linear relation between the concentration of less than 900 Dpm and the peak current when a constant potential of -180 m V vs. Ag/ AgCI reference is applied.