• Journal of Environmental Health Sciences
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• v.13 no.2
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• pp.25-33
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• 1987

This study was carried out to evaluate student exposures to dust in classroom of middle schools. A total of four schools, such as two in an urban and two in a rural area, were selected for this study. In this study, airborne dust concentrations were measured during a period from July 8 to July 18, 1986. Additional measurements of dust concentrations were conducted from November 4 to 7, 1986 to compare the results by seasonal variation. The results of this study were as follows. 1. Respirable dust concentrations were measured by both filtration method (C mg/m$^3$) and Digital Aerosol Monitor (cpm) to calculate anexchange factor K. K- value was 0.159 as follows. $K=\frac{c}{cpm} = \frac{2.71}{17.09} = 0.159$ 2. In summer when windows were opened, the concentrations of airborne respirable dusts measured by filter sampling method were 0.54-1.37 mg/m$^3$ in the morning and 0.79-1.75 mg/m$^3$ in the afternoon. Thus, higher levels were indicated in the afternoon. Meanwhile, the concentrations of airborne respirable dusts measured in winter were approximately twice as high as those in summer. 3. The highest dust concentrations were determined in School D which is a coeducational school with classroom of concrete floor. Walking roads in School D were not paved and students did not wear indoor-shoes. Dust levels in School D were approximately twice as high as levels in School B. All of the measured dust levels in four schools exceeded Korean Standard for outdoor air, 0.3 mg/m$^3$ for 24 hours. Results by Digital Aerosol Monitor indicated that there was no significant difference in dust levels among grades. The concentration of airborne dusts in the classroom was 1.5-3.0 times higher than that in the hall way. The concentration of airborne dusts during recess was 1.3-1.6 times higher than that during class. In winter, the dust concentrations during clean-up exceeded the permissible exposure limit, 10 mg/m$^3$ (as total dusts), for occupational exposures. 4. The concentrations of total dusts measured in winter were 1.5-2.4 times higher than those of respirable dusts measured simultaneously.

• Journal of The Korean Society of Agricultural Engineers
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• v.51 no.2
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• pp.59-67
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• 2009

A study on fugitive dusts was conducted at Saemangeum reclaimed land located in Gim-je area. The monitoring result on the fugitive and suspended dust was significantly affected by the farming activities (harvesting and land cultivation) and vehicles passing nearby the measuring points. The concentration of the fugitive dust generated from the reclaimed land was reduced remarkably by the effect of halophyte present on the ground and the tide embankment. Comparing the data collected in 2006 and 2007, the concentrations of TSP and PM10 decreased by 47.4% and 29.5%, respectively. After harvesting operations at paddy field, TSP increased by 22% while PM10 increased by 54%. The concentration of a Cl- which is a representative ion of sea-salt decreased to about 35% in 2007 compared with 2006. This represents that the inside area change and plant covering rate affected on the decrease of fugitive dust. The correlation analysis for the compounds of topsoil at each measuring point shows that near the coastline is more comparable. The canopy of halophyte in the source area also increased which reduced the fugitive dust remarkably. The dust distribution measured by dust spectrometer at the same point shows that most particles are $0.5{\mu}m$ to 2um size but not greater than $5{\mu}m$.

• Journal of Korean Society for Atmospheric Environment
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• v.17 no.6
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• pp.487-492
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• 2001

In this technical information, the springtime TSP measurement data between 1993 and 1996 at Kosan are presented. Based on the data, it was found that the concentrations of crustal species increase when Yellow Dust phenomenon occurs. Among anthropogenic species, the concentration of Pb and NO$_3$$^{[-10]}$ increase when Yellow Dust phenomenon occurs. Further research agenda are discussed to study the effects of Yellow Dust.

• Journal of Environmental Health Sciences
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• v.46 no.5
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• pp.548-554
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• 2020

Objectives: This study is to examine the polyvinyl chloride (PVC) materials in elementary school classrooms and libraries in Seoul, and to investigate phthalate contamination in indoor dust. Methods: PVC material was identified for building materials and furniture using portable x-ray fluorescence (XRF). Phthalates in dust samples (n=19) were extracted by ultrasonic extraction using cyclohexane and analyzed by GC-MS. Results: Diethyl phthalate (DEP), di-n-butyl phthalate (DBP), and Bis (2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP) were found in all collected dust samples (n=19), and diisonyl phthalate (DINP) was detected in all except for one sample (n=18). The concentration of DEHP (median: 2190 mg/kg) and DINP (2960 mg/kg) were higher than other compounds, suggesting that there are many products in the school that used these compounds. When comparing the phthalate concentration in the classroom (n=11) and library dust (n=8), the total concentration in the classroom (median: 10000 mg/kg) was higher than that in the library (8030 mg/kg). DEHP was the dominant compound in the library. The library is relatively more equipped with PVC furniture (n=83) and most floors are also identified as PVC material, suggesting that floors and furniture made of PVC materials are main sources of DEHP contamination. Conclusions: This study is a pilot survey for investigating phthalate contamination in elementary schools. As a result of the survey, phthalate contamination in elementary school was confirmed. However, further study requires risk assessment of children through analysis of phthalate metabolites in children based on sufficient number of samples and information about the site.

• Atmosphere
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• v.21 no.4
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• pp.447-454
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• 2011

As dust storms originated in Neimongu Plateau and Manchuria became more frequent in Korea, there was a growing need for Asian Dust (Hwangsa) monitoring stations in North Korea, which is a pathway of Asian Dust to South Korea. The South Korean and the North Korean Governments agreed to build the Automatic Weather System and the PM10 measurement instruments in the Gaeseong Industrial Zone and the Keumgangsan Tourist Region, North Korea in 2007. PM10 mass concentration data in the Keumgangsan Tourist Region could be collected only during the period from September 2007 to May 2008. In this study, daily, monthly and diurnal variations of PM10 mass concentration of the Keumgangsan are analyzed and compared with those of Sokcho and Gwangdeoksan. Three sites show similar variations in daily and monthly means. Correlation coefficients (r) between Sokcho and Keumgangsan, and between Gwangdeoksan and Keumgangsan are 0.89 and 0.67, respectively. But diurnal variation at Keumgangsan has a distinct feature compared to the other sites. Diurnal PM10 variation shows two peaks around 8 AM and 4-5 PM and very low at night. The difference between the daily maximum and minimum is $20{\sim}60{\mu}g\;m^{-3}$ during September to November 2007. Temperature, relative humidity and wind speed from the Keumgangsan AWS data were compared with those from the Changjon station, and showed good correlation each other except wind speed.

• Journal of The Korean Society of Agricultural Engineers
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• v.62 no.1
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• pp.105-115
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• 2020

With the decrease of the agricultural population in Korea, the workers who is vulnerable to labor are increasing in agricultural industry because of aging, feminization of population. They are exposed in poor working environment with higher temperature and concentrations of dust, gas. Higher concentration of harmful gas and dust can cause chronic and acute disease to workers depending on exposure intensity and frequency. In order to improve the working environment in the livestock facilities, It is important to secure monitoring data of the thermal environment and the concentration of harmful gases and fine dust. Multi-point measurement was performed to analyze the regional environmental conditions in the pig rooms. When analyzing the working environment, video monitoring was conducted to analyze the concentration changes of ammonia, hydrogen sulfide and fine dust according to worker movement and work type. Ammonia and hydrogen sulfide monitoring result showed 1.5~2 times higher concentrations than other work when working in the pigs living zone, and 2~4 times higher than other work when working to increase the activity of pigs. In the case of fine dust, the result was 1.3 times higher than the worker's exposure standard in a specific work. The concentrations of gases and dusts from pig farms are not of concern for acute poisoning in normal work, but there is a risk of chronic respiratory disease if they are continuously exposed. Accordingly, there is a need for development of work environment monitoring device tailored to workers and preparation of alternatives.

• Journal of Korean Society of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene
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• v.29 no.2
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• pp.259-269
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• 2019

Objective: This study was conducted to prepare fundamental data and assess the relationship between level of exposure to airborne respirable dust, chest radiation findings, and the results of pulmonary function tests among workers in a cloth manufacturing factory. Methods: The number of total subjects was 144 (124 female and 20 male) workers in a cloth manufacturing factory in the city of Busan. This study measured the concentration of airborne respirable dust by gravimetric analysis and performed pulmonary function testing, and got chest radiation findings from December 1, 2016 to March 31, 2017. Collected data was analyzed using the IBM SPSS statistical package program (ver. 24.0). Results: The mean concentration of respirable dust was the highest in the cutting process. The effecting factors on $FEV_1/FVC$ were age, sex, and working process. The effecting factors on chest radiation findings were doing no exercise and concentration of respirable dust. Conclusions: Based on the above results, the authors consider there to be a need to secure sufficient working space and improve the engineering systems, for example the overall or local ventilation, in order to minimize the exposure to respirable dust. Health education and health promotion activities should also be improved in order to maintain optimal health status. The authors expect further studies to be performed on pulmonary function testing, chest radiation findings, and symptoms related to pulmonary function, including continuous observation, among workers in a cloth manufacturing factory.

• Journal of Korean Society for Atmospheric Environment
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• v.34 no.5
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• pp.668-676
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• 2018

This study has developed a technique to divide the aerosol optical depth of the entire aerosol (${\tau}_{total}$) into the dust optical depth (${\tau}_D$) and the pollution particle optical depth (${\tau}_P$) using the AERONET sun/sky radiometer data provided in Version 3. This method was applied to the analysis of AERONET data observed from 2006 to 2016 in Beijing, China, Seoul and Gosan, Korea and Osaka, Japan and the aerosol optical depth trends of different types of atmospheric aerosols in Northeast Asia were analyzed. The annual variation of ${\tau}_{total}$ showed a tendency to decrease except for Seoul where observation data were limited. However, ${\tau}_D$ tended to decrease when ${\tau}_{total}$ were separated as ${\tau}_D$ and ${\tau}_P$, but ${\tau}_P$ tended to increase except for Osaka. This is because the concentration of airborne aerosols, represented by Asian dust in Northeast Asia, is decreased in both mass concentration and optical concentration. However, even though the mass concentration of pollution particles generated by human activity tends to decrease, Which means that the optical concentration represented as aerosol optical depth is increasing in Northeast Asia.

• Journal of Korean Society of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene
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• v.27 no.4
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• pp.390-397
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• 2017

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to evaluate concentrations in airborne total and respirable dusts in the cement manufacturing and handling industries. Methods: Fifty-three total dust and 42 respirable dustsamples were collected from 24 work places. Total dust samples were collected using a three-stage cassette. Respirable dust samples were collected using a cyclone equipped with a 37 mm, $5{\mu}m$ pore size PVC filter. Results: The geometric means of the dust concentrations were $0.10mg/m^3$ and $0.08mg/m^3$ in total dust and respirable dust, respectively. The Korean Occupational Exposure Limit($10mg/m^3$) was not exceeded, but the rate of exceeding the American Conference of Governmental Industrial Hygienist(ACGIH) Threshold Limit Value($1mg/m^3$) was 16.7%. Conclusion: When measuring the level of dust at cement manufacturers, the airborne concentration of respirable dust should be evaluated. In order to protect the health of workers exposed to cement dust, it is necessary to actively consider strengthening the Korean Occupational Exposure Limit.

• Proceedings of the Korean Institute of Building Construction Conference
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• 2019.11a
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• pp.172-173
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• 2019

As the damage to fine dust increased, the Republic of Korea designated fine dust as a social disaster. The composition of the fine dust is composed of carbon, sulfate, nitrate, ammonium and minerals. The cause of fine dust is naturally generated by dirt, pollen, etc. In addition, there are artificial causes such as gaseous vehicle exhaust gas emitted from the use of fossil fuel. When fine dust enters the human body through breathing, it causes various respiratory diseases and skin diseases. In IARC, fine dust was designated as a carcinogen group 1. In this research, we tried to adsorb fine dust by physical adsorption using powdered activate carbon. Powdered activate carbon is a powdered activated carbon activated in a carbonized state. Porous material with high specific surface area and low density. Experimental items were tested for density, water absorption, and fine dust concentration according to the PAC addition ratio. Basic experiments were carried out to fabricate the fine dust adsorption matrix.