• Biotechnology and Bioprocess Engineering:BBE
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• v.11 no.6
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• pp.530-537
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• 2006

Recently isolated, Pseudomonas putida SN1 grows on styrene as its sole carbon and energy source through successive oxidation of styrene by styrene monooxygenase (SMO), styrene oxide isomerase (SOI), and phenylacetaldehyde dehydrogenase. For the production of (S)-styrene oxide, two knockout mutants of SN1 were constructed, one lacking SOI and another lacking both SMO and SOI. These mutants were developed into whole-cell biocatalysts by transformation with a multicopy plasmid vector containing SMO genes (styAB) of the SN1. Neither of these self-cloned recombinants could grow on styrene, but both converted styrene into an enantiopure (S)-styrene oxide (e.e. > 99%). Whole-cell SMO activity was higher in the recombinant constructed from the SOI-deleted mutant (130 U/g cdw) than in the other one (35 U/g cdw). However, the SMO activity of the former was about the same as that of the SOI-deleted SN1 possessing a single copy of the styAB gene that was used as host. This indicates that the copy number of styAB genes is not rate-limiting on SMO catalysis by whole-cell SN1.

• Journal of Environmental Health Sciences
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• v.39 no.5
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• pp.391-407
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• 2013

Micropollutants emerge in surface water through untreated discharge from sewage and wastewater treatment plants (STPs and WWTPs). Most micropollutants resist the conventional systems in place at water treatment plants (WTPs) and survive the production of tap water. In particular, pharmaceuticals and endocrine disruptors (ECDs) are micropollutants frequently detected in drinking water. In this review, we summarized the distribution of micropollutants at WTPs and also scrutinized the effectiveness and mechanisms for their removal at each stage of drinking water production. Micropollutants demonstrated clear concentrations in the final effluents of WTPs. Although chronic exposure to micropollutants in drinking water has unclear adverse effects on humans, peer reviews have argued that continuous accumulation in water environments and inappropriate removal at WTPs has the potential to eventually affect human health. Among the available removal mechanisms for micropollutants at WTPs, coagulation alone is unlikely to eliminate the pollutants, but ionized compounds can be adsorbed to natural particles (e.g. clay and colloidal particles) and metal salts in coagulants. Hydrophobicities of micropollutants are a critical factor in adsorption removal using activated carbon. Disinfection can reduce contaminants through oxidation by disinfectants (e.g. ozone, chlorine and ultraviolet light), but unidentified toxic byproducts may result from such treatments. Overall, the persistence of micropollutants in a treatment system is based on the physico-chemical properties of chemicals and the operating conditions of the processes involved. Therefore, monitoring of WTPs and effective elimination process studies for pharmaceuticals and ECDs are required to control micropollutant contamination of drinking water.

• Microbiology and Biotechnology Letters
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• v.41 no.1
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• pp.60-69
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• 2013

Purified melanin pigment from Klebsiella sp. GSK was characterized by thermogravimetric, differential thermal, X-ray diffraction and elemental analysis. This melanin pigment is structurally amorphous in nature. It is thermally stable up to $300^{\circ}C$ and emits a strong exothermic peak at $700^{\circ}C$. Its carbon, hydrogen and nitrogen composition is 47.9%, 6.9% and 12.0%, respectively. It was used to scavenge metal ions and free radicals. After immobilizing the pigment and using it to adsorb copper and lead ions, the metal ion adsorption capacity was evaluated by atomic absorption spectroscopy (AAS) and the identity of melanin functional groups involved in the binding of metal ions was determined by Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy. Batch adsorption studies showed that 169 mg/g of copper and 280 mg/g of lead were adsorbed onto melanin-alginate beads. The metal ion adsorption capacity of the melanin-alginate beads was relatively significant compared to alginate beads. The metal ion desorption capacity of HCl was greater (81.5% and 99% for copper and lead, respectively) than that of EDTA (80% and 71% for copper and lead, respectively). The ability of the melanin pigment to scavenge free radicals was evaluated by inhibition of the oxidation of 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) and 2,2'-azino-bis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) (ABTS) and was shown to be about 74% and 98%, respectively, compared with standard antioxidants.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.22 no.10
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• pp.1446-1451
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• 2012

Levodopa or L-3,4-dihydroxyphenylalanine (L-DOPA) is the precursor of the neurotransmitter dopamine. L-DOPA is a famous treatment for Parkinson's disease symptoms. In this study, electroenzymatic synthesis of L-DOPA was performed in a three-electrode cell, comprising a Ag/AgCl reference electrode, a platinum wire auxiliary electrode, and a glassy carbon working electrode. L-DOPA had an oxidation peak at 376 mV and a reduction peak at -550 mV. The optimum conditions of pH, temperature, and amount of free tyrosinase enzyme were pH 7, $30^{\circ}C$, and 250 IU, respectively. The kinetic constant of the free tyrosinase enzyme was found for both cresolase and catacholase activity to be 0.25 and 0.4 mM, respectively. A cyclic voltammogram was used to investigate the electron transfer rate constant. The mean heterogeneous electron transfer rate ($k_e$) was $5.8{\times}10^{-4}$ cm/s. The results suggest that the electroenzymatic method could be an alternative way to produce L-DOPA without the use of a reducing agent such as ascorbic acid.

• Advances in environmental research
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• v.7 no.3
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• pp.213-223
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• 2018

Continuous input into the aquatic ecosystem and persistent structures have created concern of antibiotics, primarily due to the potential for the development of antimicrobial resistance. Degradation kinetics and mineralization of vancomycin B (VAN-B) by photocatalysis using $TiO_2$ and ZnO nanoparticles was monitored at natural pH conditions. Photocatalysis (PC) efficiency was followed by means of UV absorbance, total organic carbon (TOC), and HPLC results to better monitor degradation of VAN-B itself. Experiments were run for two initial VAN-B concentrations ($20-50mgL^{-1}$) and using two catalysts $TiO_2$ and ZnO at different concentrations (0.1 and $0.5gL^{-1}$) in a multi-lamp batch reactor system (200 mL water volume). Furthermore, a set of toxicity tests with Daphnia magna was performed to evaluate the potential toxicity of oxidation by-products of VAN-B. Formation of intermediates such as chlorides and nitrates were monitored. A rapid VAN-B degradation was observed in ZnO-PC system (85% to 70% at 10 min), while total mineralization was observed to be relatively slower than $TiO_2-PC$ system (59% to 73% at 90 min). Treatment efficiency and mechanism of degradation directly affected the rate of transformation and by-products formation that gave rise to toxicity in the treated samples.

• Journal of Environmental Impact Assessment
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• v.8 no.2
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• pp.31-44
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• 1999

Atmospheric dry deposition flux and ambient particle mass size distribution were measured to evaluate the impact of atmospheric deposition around the Nanjido landfill sites. Wind direction affects greatly on the variation of mass flux and mass size distribution and made two times higher when the wind was blown from the road side. The effect of Nanjido landfill on the mass size distribution was significant comparing to simultaneously measured mass size distribution at the other sampling site. The results showed that the particle diameter bigger than $10{\mu}m$ explained the majority of atmospheric dry deposition flux. A survey was also carried out to investigate the contamination of soils in a completed Nanjido landfill. The chemical properties of the soil analyzed in the present study include pH, oxidation-reduction potential (ORP), anion and cation concentration, total organic carbon(TOC), and some-metal elements concentrations were analyzed. Microbial activity in the soils was also evaluated by measuring dehydrogenase activities. TOC in the soil contaminated with leachate was $467.0{\mu}g/g-dry$ soil, and the TOC in the soil, where Nanjido landfill gases were emitted from, was $675{\mu}g/g-dry$ soil. The highest microbial activity of $968.0{\sim}2147{\mu}g-TPF/g-dry$ soil day was found in the soil spouting Nanjido landfill gases. Compared with those in the uncontaminated soil, the concentrations of Cr, Cu and Ph in the contaminated soil were higher.

• Journal of the Korean Crystal Growth and Crystal Technology
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• v.10 no.3
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• pp.226-232
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• 2000

Corrosion mechanisms by molten steel and slag were investigated in the zirconia/graphite composite as a material of submerged entry nozzle (SEN) using for producing high quality steel. Most of corrosions were started by the dissolution of zirconia particles into molten steel and oxidation of graphite, but subsequently three modes of corrosion were observed. Firstly, the penetration of slag into zirconia matrix was induced to the diffusion of stabilizing agent outward cubic zirconia grains, and the destabilization of cubic to fine monoclinic zirconia particles, which is enhanced to the decomposition and dissolution of them into slag. Secondly, molten slag penetrates into large cubic zirconia particles along grain boundary and decomposed them to fine cubic grains, which is also enhanced to the dissolution of zirconia grains into slag. Lastly, reaction between carbon and cubic zirconia was formed porous ZrC and enhanced the dissolution of it into slag.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Industry Convergence
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• v.27 no.3
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• pp.685-692
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• 2024

Currently used heating elements are metal and non-metal heating elements, including various types of heaters, and resistance line heating elements have a problem of decreasing thermal efficiency over time, so to solve this problem, a planar heating element using high-purity carbon materials and oxidation-resistant inorganic compounds was applied. Through the manufacture of planar heating elements using CNT, ruthenium composite materials, and ruthenium oxide, physicochemical performance and capacity were increased, and instantaneous responsiveness was increased. Through thick film technology applicable to various base bodies, fine patterns were formed by the screening method in consideration of the fact that the performance of the heat source depends on the viscosity and pattern shape. The heating element was manufactured by thick film printing technology by mixing ruthenium oxide, CNT, Ag, etc. The characteristics of each paste were analyzed through viscosity measurement, and STS 430 was used as a base. Surface temperature and efficiency were measured by testing heaters manufactured for small wind tunnels and real-vehicle experiments. The surface temperature decreased as the air volume increased, and the optimal system boundary was found to be about 200 mm. Among the currently used heating elements, this paper manufactured a planar heating element using thick film technology to find out the relationship between air volume and temperature, and to study the surface temperature.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.20 no.8
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• pp.1159-1165
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• 2010

Indirect calorimetry is the measurement of the amount of heat generated in an oxidation reaction by determining the intake or consumption of oxygen or by measuring the amount of carbon dioxide or nitrogen released and translating these quantities into a heat equivalent. In the last 20 years there has been significant development in both laboratory and computerized metabolic systems used in indirect calorimetry. In addition, there has been increased use of breath-by-breath EGAIC. Several researchers have suggested that breath-by-breath analysis, because of their practicality, could fulfill this need for a valid and reliable expired gas analysis indirect calorimetry instrument. It was hoped this investigation would determine the best validation for a precise measurement of breath-by-breath expired gas analysis indirect calorimetry. The problem with the available research is that few studies have examined the validity and reliability of all these different systems for breath-by-breath expired gas analysis indirect calorimetry. Therefore, there is a need to find out the most valid, reliable, and precise measurement of the breath-by-breath expired gas analysis indirect calorimetry.

• Tribology and Lubricants
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• v.40 no.3
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• pp.103-110
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• 2024

Gas foil thrust bearings (GFTBs) are oil-free self-acting hydrodynamic bearings that support axial loads with a low friction during airborne operation. They need solid lubricants to reduce dry-friction between the runner and top foil and minimize local wears on their surfaces during start-up and shutdown processes. In this study, we evaluate the lift-off speeds and load capacity performance of a GFTB with Polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) surface coating by measuring drag torques during a series of experimental tests at increasing ambient temperatures of 25, 75 and 110℃. An electric heat gun provides hot air to the test GFTB operating in the closed booth to increase the ambient temperature. Test results show that the increasing ambient temperature delays the lift-off speed and decreases the load capacity of the test GFTB. An early developed prediction tool well predicts the measured drag torques at 60 krpm. After all tests, post inspections of the surface coating of the top foil are conducted. Scanning electron microscope (SEM) images imply that abrasive wear and oxidation wear are dominant during the tests at 25℃ and 110℃, respectively. A quantitative energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) microanalysis reveals that the weight percentages of carbon, oxygen, and nitrogen decrease, while that of fluorine increases significantly during the highest-temperature tests. The study demonstrates that the increasing ambient temperature noticeably deteriorates the static performances and degrades the surface coating of the test GFTB.