• Current Photovoltaic Research
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• v.12 no.1
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• pp.1-5
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• 2024

Perovskite solar cells have exhibited a remarkable increase in efficiency from an initial 3.8% to 26.1%, marking a significant advancement. However, challenges persist in the commercialization of perovskite solar cells due to their low stability with respect to humidity, light exposure, and temperature. Moreover, the instability of the organic charge transport layer underscores the need for exploring inorganic alternatives. In the manufacturing process of the perovskite solar cells' oxide charge transport layer, ultraviolet-ozone (UVO) treatment is commonly applied to enhance the wettability of the perovskite solution. The UVO treatment on metal oxides has proven effective in suppressing surface oxygen vacancies and removing surface organic contaminants. This study focused on the characterization of nickel oxide as the hole transport material in perovskite solar cells, specifically investigating the impact of UVO treatment on film properties. Through this analysis, changes induced by the UVO treatment were observed, and consequent alterations in the device characteristics were identified.

• Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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• v.25 no.12
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• pp.626-636
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• 2022

Shellfish are exoskeleton-bearing aquatic invertebrates that consume various organic and inorganic substances floating in seawater through filter feeding. Heavy metals are known as absorbed and accumulated in seawater. Some of the toxic heavy metals are highly accumulated in seawater, and exposure to them can cause a variety of risks to the human body. Since Koreans like to eat seafood, they are more likely to be exposed to contaminated seafood with heavy metals. In this study, nine types of heavy metals were analyzed on ten different shellfish species in the coastal area of South Korea. The risk assessment was also done on shellfish in which heavy metals were detected. Zinc (Zn) and copper (Cu) were identified at an average of 56.7 mg/kg (6.70 to 466 mg/kg) and 13.2 mg/kg (0.064 to 143 mg/kg), respectively. Lead (Pb) average of 0.208 mg/kg (0.000750 to 1.02 mg/kg), cadmium (Cd) average of 0.454 mg/kg (0.0388 to 1.56 mg/kg) and mercury (Hg) average of 0.0266 mg/kg (0.00548 to 0.174 mg/kg) were identified. Additionally, arsenic (As), chromium (Cr), nickel (Ni), and silver (Ag) were also identified as average concentrations of 4.02 (0.460 to 15.0 mg/kg), 0.167 (< limit of quantification [LOQ] to 0.820 mg/kg), 0.281 (< LOQ to 1.46 mg/kg), and 0.158 mg/kg (< LOQ to 1.15 mg/kg). The result indicates that the monitoring results of heavy metals in most shellfish satisfied the Korean standard. However, Pb and Cd have exceeded some foreign standards, such as the United States and the EU. The permissible human exposure calculated using the heavy metal intake and detection amount was lower than the Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives human safety standard, and the risk of heavy metals from shellfish consumption was at an acceptable level.

• Restorative Dentistry and Endodontics
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• v.33 no.1
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• pp.54-65
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• 2008

The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of sodium hypochlorite and steam autoclaving on the cyclic fatigue of nickel-titanium endodontic files. Two types of files with a .06 taper and #30 were used, $K3^{(R)}$ (SybronEndo, Glendora, California, USA) and Hero $642^{(R)}$(Micro-Mega, BesanCon, France). The files were divided into 6 experimental groups containing 10 files each group depending the soaking time in 6% sodium hypochlorite solution and number of cycles of steam autoclave. After sterilization, a cyclic fatigue test was performed on each file, and the fracture time was recorded in seconds. The control group underwent the cyclic fatigue test only. After the test, the surface characteristics of the files were observed using scanning electron microscopy (SEM). All groups containing the Hero 64~ files showed a similar cyclic fatigue fracture time. However, the cyclic fatigue fracture time with the $K3^{(R)}$ files was significantly shorter in groups which were treated with sodium hypochlorite than in the control group (P < 0.05), SEM revealed both Hero $642^{(R)}$ and $K3^{(R)}$ files to have significant corrosion on the file surface in groups treated with sodium hypochlorite, compared with the sharp and regular blades of the control group. $K3^{(R)}$ files showed more corrosion than the Hero $642^{(R)}$ files. Bluntness of the blades of the $K3^{(R)}$ file was observed in groups treated with steam autoclave. Although there was no obvious destruction on the surface of steam autoclaved Hero $642^{(R)}$ files, slight bluntness was observed. Sterilizing with a steam autoclave is much less destructive to $K3^{(R)}$ files than sodium hypochlorite. The longer time exposed to sodium hypochlorite, the more destructive pattern was shown on the blades of the files. Therefore, when using sodium hypochlorite solution, the exposure time should be as short as possible in order to prevent corrosion and increase the cyclic fatigue fracture time.

• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
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• v.13 no.1
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• pp.3-12
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• 1980

Certain heavy metals which may lead peoples to poisonous status are widely used in industry and their uses have been increasing along with rapid industrialization of this country. Such an increasement of metal uses aggravates the status of environmental pollution affecting foodstuffs which are the most important life supporting factor of animal and humanbeing. Concerning the safety measures to minimize food-borne transmission of such hazardous metals, surveillance is the backbone of them and probably more so with a potential problem such as intoxication. Theoretically, this surveillance should include the determination of levels of heavy metal toxicants in foods, the determination of food consumption patterns and typical total diet, and the estimation of total load of the metal contaminant from all sources of exposure including air, water, and occupational sources. In recent year, actually, such estimates on the total daily intake of some heavy metals from foods have been made in several developed countries and a wide variation of date by season, locality, and research method was recognized. Also in this country, this kind of research data is vitally needed to make up for the serious shortage or lack of references to estimate the total amount of heavy metal intake of the people. In this study, a modification model for estimation of the total daily intake of cadmium copper, nickel, zinc, and lead through foods was applied and concentrations of the above metals in crops cultivated in this country were measured with atomic absorption spectro photometer to get the following results. 1. Level of heavy metal concentration in crops Generally, the levels of such metals in essential crops such as rice, cucumber, radish. chinese cabbage, apple, pear, grape, and orange are similar or lower than those in Japan and other developed countries. By the way, a striking result on cadmium concentration was increasement of its concentration in rice from $0{\sim}0.035ppm$ in 1970 to 0.11ppm in this study. However, the value is still far below the. Japanese Permissible Lebel of 1.0ppm. 2. Estimation of total daily intake per capita from foods A new model for estimation was devised utilizing levels of metal concentration in foods, amount of food consumed, and other food factors. Based on the above method, the daily intake of cadmium was estimated to be $70.53{\mu}g/man/day$ in average which was as high as the Limit Value of ILO/WHO(up to $71.4{\mu}g/man/day$). Also, 3.89mg of Zinc, 1.65mg of cuppor, 0.32mg of lead were given as the total daily intake per capita by this research. 3. Efficacy of washing or skinning to decrease the amount of metals in crops After washing the crops sufficiently with commercial linear alkylate sulfonate, the concentration of heavy metals could be reduced to $50{\sim}80%$ showing decreasement rate of $20{\sim}50%$. Also, after skinning the fruits, decreasement rate of the heavy metal concentration shelved $0{\sim}50%$.

• Korean Journal of Ichthyology
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• v.23 no.1
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• pp.61-69
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• 2011

Gene and promoter structures of metallothionein(MT) from Miho spine loach (Cobitis choii; Cypriniformes) were characterized, and the transcriptional responses to experimental exposures to heavy metals and heat stress were examined. The C. choii metallothionein displayed well-conserved features of teleostean metallothioneins at gDNA, mRNA and amino acid levels. Bioinformatic analysis predicted that the C. choii MT regulatory region potentially possessed various motifs or elements targeted by various transcription factors associated with metal-coordinating regulation (e.g., metal transcription factor-1), immune responses (e.g., nuclear factor kappa B), and thermal modulations (e.g., heat shock factor). Acute heavy-metal exposures to 0.5 or $1.0\;{\mu}M$ of cadmium (Cd), copper (Cu), manganese (Mn), nickel (Ni) or zinc (Zn) showed that MT transcription was significantly stimulated by Cd (9.6-fold relative to non-exposed control) and Cu (10.4-fold), only moderately by Mn (2.4-fold), but hardly by Ni and Zn. Elevation of water temperature from $25^{\circ}C$ to $31^{\circ}C$ caused a rapid modulation of MT mRNAs toward upregulation to 9.5-fold; however, afterward the elevated mRNA level slightly decreased during further incubation at $31^{\circ}C$ for 6 h. Results from this study suggest that MT-based expression assay could be a useful basis for better understanding the metal- and/or heat-caused stresses in this endangered fish species.

• Korean Journal of Soil Science and Fertilizer
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• v.46 no.3
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• pp.193-202
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• 2013

The concentrations of heavy metals such as cadmium (Cd), chromium (Cr), copper (Cu), lead (Pb), zinc (Zn), nickel (Ni), and arsenic (As) in sand samples collected from selected children's playground and their correlation with environmental parameters, such as concentration of particulate matter in the atmosphere ($PM_{10}$), apartment age (> 5 years), clay and organic matter contents in sand samples, were analyzed. The average heavy metal concentration in samples was 0.040 mg $kg^{-1}$ for Cd, 0.200 mg $kg^{-1}$ for Cr, 1.75 mg $kg^{-1}$ for Cu, 15.1 mg $kg^{-1}$ for Ni, 3.42 mg $kg^{-1}$ for Pb, 66.7 mg $kg^{-1}$ for Zn and 0.750 mg $kg^{-1}$ for As, all of which were below the environmental regulatory level established by Korea Ministry of Environment. However, in the consideration of direct and oral exposure by children to playground sand, the risk of the concentration range in the samples might be greatly enhanced. Heavy metal concentration in samples collected from high $PM_{10}$ (> $70{\mu}gm^{-3}$) area was slightly greater than in samples from low $PM_{10}$ (< $70{\mu}gm^{-3}$), indicating the contribution of particulate matter in air phase to heavy metal concentration in playground sand samples. The concentrations of both Cd and Pb were the highest in apartments older than 21 years (0.050 mg $kg^{-1}$ and 5.28 mg $kg^{-1}$ for Cd and Pb respectively) and showed positive correlation with apartment age (p<0.01 and p<0.001 for Cd and Pb, respectively). Clay content in playground sands ranged 3.8~11.2% and was positively correlated with heavy metal concentration. Organic matter content was negligible (mostly < 0.1%) and showed poor correlation with heavy metal concentration. In conclusion, concentration of heavy metals in playground sand was found to be predominantly influenced by the apartment age and clay content in sand samples and supplemented by dust deposition of particulate matter ($PM_{10}$) from atmosphere.

• Safety and Health at Work
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• v.1 no.2
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• pp.134-139
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• 2010

Objectives: The lung cancer mortality in Korea has increased remarkably during the last 20 years, and has been the first leading cause of cancer-related deaths since 2000. The aim of the current study was to examine the time trends of occupational lung cancer and carcinogens exposure during the period 2006-2009 in South Korea, by assessing the proportion of occupational burden. Methods: We defined occupational lung cancer for surveillance, and developed a reporting protocol and reporting website for the surveillance of occupational lung cancer. The study patients were chosen from 9 participating university hospitals in the following 7 areas: Seoul, Incheon, Wonju, Daejeon, Daegu, Busan, and Gwangju. Results: The combined proportion of definite and probable occupational lung cancer among all lung cancers investigated in this study was 10.0%, 8.6%, 10.7%, and 15.8% in the years 2006 to 2009, respectively, with an average of 11.7% over the four-year study period. The main carcinogens were asbestos, crystalline silica, radon, polyaromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), diesel exhaust particles, chromium, and nickel. Conclusion: We estimated that about 11.7% of the incident lung cancer was preventable. This reveals the potential to considerably reduce lung cancer by intervention in occupational fields.

• Journal of Environmental Health Sciences
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• v.48 no.6
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• pp.306-314
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• 2022

Background: Due to the rapid aging of the South Korean population, neurological diseases such as dementia are increasing. Many studies have reported that the incidence of dementia is associated with environmental factors along with age. Objectives: This study analyzed the association between cognitive function and ten heavy metals in the body: arsenic, aluminum, chromium, manganese, cobalt, nickel, iron, copper, zinc, and lead. Methods: From 2018 to 2019, a total of 120 participants who suffered from cognitive impairment were recruited for this study. Blood and urine samples were collected and analyzed for heavy metal concentrations using an inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometer. Demographic information was obtained through face-to-face questionnaires completed by a trained investigator. Cognitive function was evaluated with the Korean version of the Mini-Mental State Examination and the Korean version of the Boston Name Waiting Test. The associations between cognitive function scores and heavy metal concentrations were analyzed using multiple logistic regression analysis. Results: The average age of the 120 participants was 72.7 years, and 69.2% were female. The mean of the MMSE-K and K-BNT scores were 22.9 and 37.9, respectively. The geometric mean of aluminum (Al) was 8.42 ㎍/L. MMSE-K was associated with iron (Fe), but the significance was removed in the logistic regression based on 24 points. K-BNT was significantly associated with aluminum and the odds ratio for K-BNT above 38 decreased by 45% as the aluminum concentration increased. Conclusions: The association between aluminum and the K-BNT score indicated that aluminum is associated with language-related cognitive decline. Based on this result, further study will be conducted by considering co-exposure effects of heavy metals including aluminum.

• Journal of the Microelectronics and Packaging Society
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• v.11 no.2 s.31
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• pp.59-66
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• 2004

This paper presents a novel fabrication process for a tapered hollow metallic microneedle array using backside exposure of SU-8, and analytic solutions of critical buckling of a tapered hollow microneedle. An SU-8 meta was formed on a Pyrex glass substrate and another SU-8 layer, which was spun on top of the SU-8 mesa, was exposed through the backside of the glass substrate. An array of SU-8 tapered pillar structures. with angles in the range of $3.1^{\circ}{\sim}5^{\circ}$ was formed on top of the SU-8 mesa. Conformal electrodeposition of metal was carried out followed by a mechanical polishing using a pianarizing polymeric layer. All organic layers were then removed to create a metallic hollow microneedle array with a fluidic reservoir on the backside. Both $200{\mu}m\;and\;400{\mu}m$ tall, 10 by 10 arrays of metallic microneedles with inner diameters of the tip in the range of $33.6{\sim}101\;{\mu}m$ and wall thickness of $10{\mu}m\;-\;20{\mu}m$ were fabricated. Analytic solutions of the critical buckling of arbitrary-angled truncated cone-shaped columns are also presented. It was found that a single $400{\mu}m$ tall hollow cylindrical microneedle made of electroplated nickel with a wall thickness of $20{\mu}m$, a tapered angle of $3.08^{\circ}$ and a tip inner diameter of $33.6{\mu}m$ has a critical buckling force of 1.8 N. This analytic solution can be used for square or rectangular cross-sectioned column structures with proper modifications.

• KOREAN JOURNAL OF PACKAGING SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
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• v.28 no.3
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• pp.175-182
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• 2022

Heavy metals can be intentionally or unintentionally introduced into plastic food utensils, containers, and packaging (PFUCP) as additives or contaminants, which can be ingested with food by humans. Here, seven-heavy metals (lead, cadmium, nickel, chromium, antimony, copper, and manganese) with toxicity concerns were selected, and risk assessment was done by establishing their migration from 137 PFUCP products made of 16 materials distributed in Korea. Migration of heavy metals was examined by applying 4% acetic acid as a food simulant (70℃, 30 minutes) to the PFUCP products. Inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) was employed for the analysis of migrated heavy metals, and the reliability of quantitative results was confirmed by checking linearity, LOD, LOQ, recovery, precision, and expanded uncertainty. As a result of monitoring, heavy metals were detected at a level of non-detection to 8.76 ± 11.87 ㎍/L and most of the heavy metals investigated were only detected at trace amounts of less than 1 ㎍/L on average. However, antimony migrated from PET products was significantly higher than other groups. Risk assessment revealed that all the heavy metals investigated were safe with a margin of exposure above 311. Collectively, we demonstrated that heavy metals migrated from PFUCP products distributed in Korea appear to be within the safe range.