• Atmosphere
• /
• v.31 no.2
• /
• pp.143-156
• /
• 2021

This study investigates the impacts of land cover change due to urbanization on the Urban Heat Island Intensity (UHII) and the Heat Index (HI) over the Seoul metropolitan area using the Unified Model (UM) with the Met Office Reading Urban Surface Exchange Scheme (MORUSES) during the heat wave from 16, July to 5, August 2018. Two simulations are performed with the late 1980s land-use (EXP1980) and the late 2000s land-use (EXP2000). EXP2000 is verified using Automatic Weather Station (AWS) data from 85 points in the study area, and observation sites are classified into two categories according to the urban fraction change over 20 years; Category A is 0.2 or less increase, and Category B is 0.2 or more increase. The 1.5-m temperature and relative humidity in Category B increase by up to 1.1℃ and decreased by 7% at 1900 LST and 2000 LST, respectively. This means that the effect of the urban fraction changes is higher at night. UHII increases by up to 0.3℃ in Category A and 1.3℃ in Category B at 1900 LST. Analysis of the surface energy balance shows that the heat store for a short time during the daytime and release at nighttime with upward sensible heat flux. As a result of the HI, there is no significant difference between the two experiments during the daytime, but it increases 1.6℃ in category B during the nighttime (2200 LST). The results indicate that the urbanization increase both UHII, and HI, but the times of maximum difference between EXP1980 and EXP2000 are different.

• Resources Recycling
• /
• v.30 no.3
• /
• pp.63-69
• /
• 2021

Supply deficit of lead commodities and environmental pollution can be simultaneously resolved through the recovery and recycling of waste lead. The recent recovery of lead through recycling of the lead battery waste is a positive development. To maximize the effect of lead recovery and recycling in the future, the updated status of the lead material flow should be recognized. However, such an analysis at the preliminary stages may be cumbersome owing to the complexity and diversity of emission sources and material streams. At this stage, a preliminary screening by domestic lead flow using public information should be feasible. Therefore, in this study, using the data from the UN Comtrade and domestic PRTR (Pollutant Release and Transfer Register) databases, the amounts of lead import, emission, and transfer were identified and cross-checked with the domestic lead flow described in the National Material Flow Analysis database. The lead flow for major categories such as waste lead-acid batteries showed a rough consistency between the databases.

• Journal of Ceramic Processing Research
• /
• v.19 no.5
• /
• pp.378-382
• /
• 2018

It is a known fact that the cement production is responsible for almost 5% of total worldwide $CO_2$ emission, the primary factor affecting global warming. Geopolymers are valuable as ordinary Portland cement (OPC) substitutes because geopolymers release 80% less $CO_2$ than OPC and have mechanical properties sufficiently similar to those of OPC. Therefore, geopolymers have proven attractive to eco-friendly construction industries. Geopolymers can be fabricated from aluminum silicate materials with alkali activators such as fly ash, blast furnace slag, and so on. Integrated gasification combined cycle (IGCC) slag has been used for fabricating geopolymers. In general, IGCC slag geopolymers are fabricated with finely ground and sieved (<128 mesh) IGCC slag. The grinding process of as-received IGCC slag is one of the main costs in geopolymer production. Therefore, the idea of using as-received IGCC slag (before grinding the IGCC slag) as aggregates in the geopolymer matrix was introduced to reduce production cost as well as to enhance compressive strength. As-received IGCC slag (0, 10, 20, 30, 40 wt%) was added in the geopolymer mixing process and the mixtures were compared. The compressive strength of geopolymers with an addition of 10 wt% as-received IGCC slag increased by 19.84% compared to that with no additional as-received IGCC slag and reached up to 41.20 MPa. The enhancement of compressive strength is caused by as-received IGCC slag acting as aggregates in the geopolymer matrix like aggregates in concrete. The density of geopolymers slightly increased to $2.1-2.2g/cm^3$ with increasing slag addition. Therefore, it is concluded that a small addition of as-received IGCC slag into the geopolymer can increase compressive strength and decrease the total cost of the product. Moreover, the direct use of as-received IGCC slag may contribute to environment protection by reducing process time and $CO_2$ emission.

• Journal of Industrial and Engineering Chemistry
• /
• v.67
• /
• pp.365-372
• /
• 2018

Wounds that heal with excessive scar formation result in poor functional and aesthetic outcomes. To address this, in our study, visible light cured glycol chitosan (GCH) hydrogels containing endothelial growth factor (EGF) and basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) were prepared (GCH-EGF, GCH-FGF and GCH-EGF/FGF) and evaluated their efficacies on the improvement of wound healing in vivo. In vitro release test showed that the growth factors were released in a sustained manner along with initial burst for 24 h. In vitro cell proliferation assay of L-929 mouse fibroblast cell line resulted in the superior ability of GCH-EGF/FGF on the rate. In vivo results demonstrated that the growth factor loaded GCHs further enhanced wound healing compared with GCH. In particular, GCH-EGF/EFG showed the most remarkable wound healing effect among the samples.

• Korean Journal of Metals and Materials
• /
• v.47 no.1
• /
• pp.13-20
• /
• 2009

This work presents functionally graded coatings (FGC) of hydroxyapatite (HA) and metallic powders on Ti-6Al-4V implants using plasma spray coating method. HA has been the most frequently used coating material due to its excellent compatibility with human bones. However, because of the abrupt changes in thermomechanical properties between HA and the metallic implant across an interface, and residual stress induced on cooling from coating temperture to room temperature, debonding at the interface occurs in use sometimes. In this work, FGC of HA and Ti or Ti-alloy powders is made to mitigate the abrupt property changes at the interface and the effect of FGC on residual stress release is investigated by evaluating the mechanical bond strength between the implant and the HA coating layers. Thermal annealing is done after coating in order to crystallize the HA coating layer which tends to have amorphous structure during thermal spray coating. The effects of types and compositional ratio of metallic powders in FGC and annealing conditions on the bond strength are also evaluated by strength tests and the microstructure analysis of coating layers and interfaces. Finally, biocompatibility of the coating layers are tested under ISO 10993-5.

• Journal of The Korean Society of Agricultural Engineers
• /
• v.63 no.1
• /
• pp.89-102
• /
• 2021

Soils in agricultural lands contain large amount of organic matter and nutrients due to the injected fertilizers and manure. During heavy rain, surface water and base runoff pollutants flows into a nearby stream or lake with eroded soil from agricultural lands. On the other hands, agricultural lands near the lake are inundated due to the increase of the water level in the lake, leading to organic matter and nutrient release from the inundated soil. In this study, releasing rates of nutrient salts and organic substances were analyzed for the soil in the agricultural land, where cultivation activities has been carried out and periodically flooded, to account for the possibility of contamination from the inundated agricultural land in reservoir areas The experiment results have shown that COD was released from the soil in anaerobic conditions, and T-P was released in both anaerobic and aerobic conditions. However, in the case of T-N, it was found that the runoff by soil was not made before the rainfall occurred, and when the soil was impound due to rainfall, the elution occurred under the aerobic conditions. Through the results of this study, it was possible to account for the effect of flooded agricultural lands on the water quality in the lake, and this could be reflected in an efficient agricultural non-point pollution management policy. In order to determine the precise releasing rate for each agricultural land, it is believed that the leaching experiment for paddy fields and grasslands are needed.

• The Korean Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology
• /
• v.26 no.1
• /
• pp.15-24
• /
• 2022

The development of selective targeting of drug molecules towards the mitochondria is an important issue related to therapy efficacy. In this study, we report that gallic acid (GA)-mitochondria targeting sequence (MTS)-H₃R₉ exhibits a dual role as a mitochondria-targeting vehicle with antioxidant activity for disease therapy. In viability assays, GA-MTS-H₃R₉ showed a better rescue action compared to that of MTS-H₃R₉. GA-MTS-H₃R₉ dramatically exhibited cell penetration and intercellular uptake compared to MTS and fit escape from lysosome release to the cytosol. We demonstrated the useful targeting of GA-MTS-H₃R₉ towards mitochondria in AC16 cells. Also, we observed that the antioxidant properties of mitochondrial-accrued GA-MTS-H₃R₉ alleviated cell damage by reactive oxygen species production and disrupted mitochondrial membrane potential. GA-MTS-H₃R₉ showed a very increased cytoprotective effect against anticancer activity compared to that of MTS-H₃R₉. We showed that GA-MTS-H₃R₉ can act as a vehicle for mitochondria-targeting and as a reagent for therapeutic applications intended for cardiovascular disease treatment.

• Journal of Ginseng Research
• /
• v.46 no.6
• /
• pp.771-779
• /
• 2022

Background: As a kind of common complication of the surgery of perianal diseases, perianal ulcer is known as a nuisance. This study aims to develop a kind of 20(S)-ginsenoside Rg3 (Rg3)-loaded hydrogel to treat perianal ulcers in a rat model. Methods: The copolymers PLGA₁₆₀₀-PEG₁₀₀₀-PLGA₁₆₀₀ were synthesized by ring-opening polymerization process and Rg3-loaded hydrogel was then developed. The perianal ulcer rat model was established to analyze the treatment efficacy of Rg3-loaded hydrogel for ulceration healing for 15 days. The animals were divided into control group, hydrogel group, free Rg3 group, Rg3-loaded hydrogel group, and Lidocaine Gel® group. The residual wound area rate was calculated and the blood concentrations of interleukin-1 (IL-1), interleukin-6 (IL-6), and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) were recorded. Hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) staining, Masson's Trichrome (MT) staining, and tumor necrosis factor α (TNF-α), Ki-67, CD31, ERK1/2, and NF-κB immunohistochemical staining were performed. Results: The biodegradable and biocompatible hydrogel carries a homogenous interactive porous structure with 10 ㎛ pore size and five weeks in vivo degradation time. The loaded Rg3 can be released sustainably. The in vitro cytotoxicity study showed that the hydrogel had no effect on survival rate of murine skin fibroblasts L929. The Rg3-loaded hydrogel can facilitate perianal ulcer healing by inhibiting local and systematic inflammatory responses, swelling the proliferation of nuclear cells, collagen deposition, and vascularization, and activating ERK signal pathway. Conclusion: The Rg3-loaded hydrogel shows the best treatment efficacy of perianal ulcer and may be a candidate for perianal ulcer treatment.

• Journal of the Korean Recycled Construction Resources Institute
• /
• v.10 no.3
• /
• pp.343-350
• /
• 2022

In recent years, nanomaterials, such as nano-silica, carbon nanotubes, and graphene oxide (GO), have been suggested to improve the properties of the interfacial transition zone (ITZ) between aggregates and cement pastes, which has most adversely affected the strength of quasi-brittle concrete. Among the nanomaterials, GO with superior dispersibility has been reported to be effective in improving the properties of ITZ of normal-strength concrete by forming interfacial chemical bonds with Ca²⁺ ions abundant in ITZ. In this study, the effect of GO on the properties of ITZ in the high-strength mortar was elucidated by calculating the change in hydration heat release, ITZ thickness, and the porosity around ISO sand, which was obtained with isothermal calorimetry tests and scanning electron microscope image analysis, respectively.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
• /
• v.54 no.9
• /
• pp.3440-3447
• /
• 2022

The accuracy of the photoatomic cross-section data is of great importance in the field of radiation protection, particularly in the characterization of radiation shielding materials. With the release of the latest and probably the most accurate photoatomic data library, EPDL2017, the need to re-evaluate all the existing and already established mass attenuation coefficients (MACs) of all radiation shielding materials arises. The MACs of several polymers, alloy-based, glasses, and building materials used in a nuclear medicine facility were investigated using the EPDL2017 library embedded in EpiXS software and were compared to MACs available in the literature. The relative differences between MAC_EpiXS and MACXCOM were negligible, ranging from 0.02% to 0.36% for most materials. However, for material like a glass comprising of elements Te and La evaluated near their corresponding K-edge energies, the relative differences in MACs increased up to 1.46%. On the other hand, a comparison with MACs calculated based on EPDL97 (a predecessor of EPDL2017) revealed as much as a 6.61% difference. Also, it would seem that the changes in MACs were more evident in the materials composed of high atomic number elements evaluated at x-ray energies compared to materials composed of low atomic number elements evaluated at gamma-ray energies.