• Journal of Surface Science and Engineering
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• v.25 no.5
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• pp.271-281
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• 1992

Amorphous hydrogenated silicon carbide(a-Si1-xCx : H) films have been prepared by the rf sputtering using a silicon target in a gas mixture of Argon and methane with varying methane gas flow rate(fCH) in the range of 1.5 to 3.5 sccm at constant Argon flow rate of 30sccm and rf power in the range of 3 to 6 W/$\textrm{cm}^2$. The effects of methane flow rate and rf power on the structure and optical properties of a-Si1-xCx : H films have been analysed by measuring both the IR absorption spectrum and the UV transmittance for the films. With increasing the methane flow rate, the optical band gap(Eg) of a-Si1-xCx : H films increases gradually from 1.6eV to the maximum value of 2.42eV at rf power of 4 W/$\textrm{cm}^2$, which is due to an increases in C/Si ratio in the films by an significant increase in the number of C-Hn bonds. As the rf power increases, the number of Si-C and Si-Hn bonds increases rapidly with simultaneous reduction in the number of C-Hn bonds, which is associated with an increase in both degree of methane decomposition and sputtering of silicon. The effects of rf power on the Eg of films are considerably influenced by the methane flow rate. At low methane flow rate, the Eg of films decreased from 2.3eV to 1.8eV with the rf power. On the other hand, at high methane flow rate, that of films increased slowly to 2.4eV.

• Journal of Environmental Science International
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• v.28 no.11
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• pp.983-991
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• 2019

This study investigated the use of a hydroxyl-radicals-generated microbubble/catalyst (MB/Cat) system for removing organic pollutants, nitrogen, and phosphorous from liquid fertilizer produced by livestock wastewater treatment. Use of the MB/Cat system aims to improve the quality of liquid fertilizer by removing pollutants originally found in the wastewater. In addition, a reduction effect has been reported for antibiotics classified as representative non-biodegradable matter. Samples of liquid fertilizer produced by an aerobic biological reactor for swine wastewater treatment were first analyzed for initial concentrations of pollutants and antibiotics. When the MB/Cat system was applied to the liquid fertilizer, TCOD, TOC, $BOD_5$, and $NH_3-N$, and $PO_4-P$ removal efficiencies were found to be approximately 52%, 51%, 30%, 21%, and 66%, respectively. Additionally, Amoxicillin hydrate was removed by 10%, and Chlortetracycline HCl and Florfenicol were not present at detectable levels These findings confirm that the MB/Cat system can be used with livestock wastewater treatment to improve liquid fertilizer quality and to process wastewater that is safe for agricultural re-use.

• Journal of the Korean Solar Energy Society
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• v.37 no.4
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• pp.23-33
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• 2017

A great deal of study for loss reduction of photovoltaic system is conducted currently. It is hard to distinct the fault of photovoltaic system with the naked eye. For that reason, it is essential to repair and maintain the PV system by monitoring the system. The fault of individual modules can cause the huge loss of the entire system because of the mismatch. Therefore, the method of diagnosing the PV array is necessary by measuring the multi-channel arrays simultaneously. In this paper, it is presented the method of measuring I-V curve of multi-channel arrays simultaneously by using the charge and discharge characteristics of capacitor. Generated DC power at PV arrays is charged and discharged at the capacitors in a moment. By measuring the charged voltage and current, it is possible to diagnose of performance of PV arrays.

• Explosives and Blasting
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• v.39 no.3
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• pp.24-34
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• 2021

Electronic detonators are widely used in various construction sites due to accurate delay time. Including the cases with exceeded noise and vibration from site using electric/non-electric detonator, electronic detonators are used to improve blast fragmentation or to reduce the cost of secondary partial blasting. Furthermore, the number of cases using electronic detonators are increased for reduction of the cost and construction period by maximizing operations efficiency. This case study is about applying electronic detonators on large section station, tunnel construction site which is the part of urban area GTX A project. Although it was initially planned to utilize non-electric detonators, damage was inflicted on safety-thing. We have considered blasting method using electronic detonators as solution of this problem. By applying electronic detonators, we not only satisfied environmental regulations but also prevented nearby safety-thing from getting damaged. In addition, we were able to shorten the construction period than the initial plan by conducting single simultaneous blasting on large section station, in order to ensure safe and efficient construction.

• Asian Journal of Innovation and Policy
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• v.10 no.2
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• pp.195-211
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• 2021

This paper measures the economic impacts of the U.S. port investment strategies coping with the Panama Canal expansion. Using secondary import data, negative and positive estimates of the impacts were presented in this study. Reduced port activities into the West Coast Customs Districts negatively affect transportation and warehousing industries, among other effects. Still, they have simultaneous positive effects in other states from increased imports resulting from modal shifts and changes in the entry port located in the South and East coasts. This study applied the supply-driven National Interstate Economic Model that measures all interstate trade among the U.S. states to divert foreign imports from 15 Pacific Rim countries. For this purpose, the following assumption was adopted: larger ships using the canal will lead to a redirection of seaborne trade among U.S. (and other) ports and result in secondary effects, e.g., using different freight modes and regional growth spillovers. This study also accounted for the entry point change and significant port investments for foreign trade under alternative scenarios. The choice of ports for international trade depends on decisions about how to minimize multimodal delivery costs. The total direct reduction of transportation and warehousing activities associated with foreign imports in the West Coast ports was estimated at $3.3 billion, leading to total negative effects of $5.8 billion. Total positive impacts from the shift of transportation modes with the choice of an entry port and new warehousing activities for foreign imports in the selected 12 states varied. As expected, states that involved an entry port had the most prominent benefits, but Texas, New York, and New Jersey may be benefited through all the port enhancement projects in the U.S. Also, except for Transportation and Postal, and Warehousing industries, Construction is another dominant positive affected industry of the Canal expansion in the U.S.

• Journal of Electrochemical Science and Technology
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• v.10 no.3
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• pp.302-312
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• 2019

The voltage produced from the salinity gradient in reverse electrodialysis (RED) increases proportionally with the number of cell pairs of alternating cation and anion exchange membranes. Large-scale RED systems consisting of hundreds of cell pairs exhibit high voltage of more than 10 V, which is sufficient to utilize water electrolysis as the electrode reaction even though there is no specific strategy for minimizing the overpotential of water electrolysis. Moreover, hydrogen gas can be simultaneously obtained as surplus energy from the electrochemical reduction of water at the cathode if the RED system is equipped with proper venting and collecting facilities. Therefore, RED-driven water electrolysis system can be a promising solution not only for sustainable electric power but also for eco-friendly hydrogen production with high purity without $CO_2$ emission. The RED system in this study includes a high membrane voltage from more than 50 cells, neutral-pH water as the electrolyte, and an artificial NaCl solution as the feed water, which are more universal, economical, and eco-friendly conditions than previous studies on RED with hydrogen production. We measure the amount of hydrogen produced at maximum power of the RED system using a batch-type electrode chamber with a gas bag and evaluate the interrelation between the electric power and hydrogen energy with varied cell pairs. A hydrogen production rate of $1.1{\times}10^{-4}mol\;cm^{-2}h^{-1}$ is obtained, which is larger than previously reported values for RED system with simultaneous hydrogen production.

• Journal of Embryo Transfer
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• v.33 no.4
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• pp.245-254
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• 2018

Pigs are considered as optimal donor animal for the successful xenotransplantation. To increase the possibility of clinical application, genetic modification to increase compatibility with human is an important and essential process. Genetic modification technique has been developed and improved to produce genetically modified pigs rapidly. CRISPR/Cas9 system is widely used in various fields including the production of transgenic animals and also can be enable multiple gene modifications. In this study, we developed new gene targeting vector and enrichment system for the rapid and efficient selection of genetically modified cells. We conducted co-transfection with two targeting vectors for simultaneous inactivation of two genes and enrichment of the genetically modified cells using MACS. After this efficient enrichment, genotypic analysis of each colony showed that colonies which have genetic modifications on both genes were confirmed with high efficiency. Somatic cell nuclear transfer was conducted with established donor cells and genetically modified pigs were successfully produced. Genotypic and phenotypic analysis of generated pigs showed identical genotypes with donor cells and no surface expression of ${\alpha}$-Gal and HD antigens. Furthermore, functional analysis using pooled human serum revealed dramatically reduction of human natural antibody (IgG and IgM) binding level and natural antibody-mediated cytotoxicity. In conclusion, the constructed vector and enrichment system using MACS used in this study is efficient and useful to generate genetically modified donor cells with multiple genetic alterations and lead to an efficient production of genetically modified pigs.

• Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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• v.24 no.12
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• pp.415-427
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• 2021

Wetland ecosystems act as natural freshwater purification systems, but their rich biodiversity is being threatened with the introduction of the non-native freshwater snail, Pomacea canaliculata. This study was conducted to measure the herbivory effects and growth rate of P. canaliculata on common macrophytes: Ipomoea aquatica, Ipomoea batatas, Pandanus amaryllifolius and Cucurma longa. In separate experiments, the macrophyte species were served as the snails' food as individual species and simultaneously. In the individual treatment, the growth pattern and rate were based on the snails' weight (mg/snail/day; n = 9) while the individual feeding consumption (mg/snail/day) was calculated from the leftover food. In the simultaneous treatment, the herbivory effects were evaluated as the feeding preference (%) from observations every two hours, while the total feeding consumption (mg) was calculated based on the food remaining after a 12-hour experiment (3 replicates: total n = 27). The results indicated that the growth pattern was significant for snails grazing on I. aquatica but not when other macrophyte species were eaten. The individual feeding consumption was higher when using I. aquatica than P. amaryllifolius but the growth rate for snails grazing on I. aquatica and P. amaryllifolius did not differ significantly. Meanwhile, the consumption of C. longa deterred the snails' growth rate. Although the snails consumed all the macrophytes in the individual experiment, when given the species simultaneously, the feeding preference and total feeding consumption were directed significantly more toward I. aquatica than P. amaryfollius and C. longa. We conclude that P. canaliculata is a generalist feeder given a limited choice of food but tends to show a strong feeding preference after being introduced to more food choices. These findings indicate that the introduction of P. canaliculata into wetland ecosystems may increase the herbivory effects on macrophytes, making these ecosystems vulnerable to the impact of eutrophication and biodiversity reduction.

• Journal of Ginseng Research
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• v.46 no.6
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• pp.790-800
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• 2022

Background: Panax ginseng Meyer is one of the most valuable medicinal plants which is enriched in anti-microbe secondary metabolites and widely used in traditional medicine. Botrytis cinerea is a necrotrophic fungus that causes gray mold disease in a broad range of hosts. B. cinerea could overcome the ginseng defense and cause serious leaf and root diseases with unknown mechanism. Methods: We conducted simultaneous transcriptomic and metabolomic analysis of the host to investigate the defense response of ginseng affected by B. cinerea. The gene deletion and replacement were then performed to study the pathogenic gene in B. cinerea during ginseng - fungi interaction. Results: Upon B. cinerea infection, ginseng defense responses were switched from the activation to repression, thus the expression of many defense genes decreased and the biosynthesis of antifungal metabolites were reduced. Particularly, ginseng metabolites like kaempferol, quercetin and luteolin which could inhibit fungi growth were decreased after B. cinerea infection. B. cinerea quercetin dioxygenase (Qdo) involved in catalyzing flavonoids degradation and ∆BcQdo mutants showed increased substrates accumulation and reduced disease development. Conclusion: This work indicates the flavonoids play a role in ginseng defense and BcQdo involves in B. cinerea virulence towards the P. ginseng. B. cinerea promotes disease development in ginseng by suppressing of defense related genes expression and reduction of antifungal metabolites biosynthesis.

• The Korean Journal of Applied Statistics
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• v.35 no.5
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• pp.667-684
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• 2022

Gene expression data present the level of mRNA abundance of each gene, and analyses of gene expressions have provided key ideas for understanding the mechanism of diseases and developing new drugs and therapies. Nowadays high-throughput technologies such as DNA microarray and RNA-sequencing enabled the simultaneous measurement of thousands of gene expressions, giving rise to a characteristic of gene expression data known as high dimensionality. Due to the high-dimensionality, learning models to analyze gene expression data are prone to overfitting problems, and to solve this issue, dimension reduction or feature selection techniques are commonly used as a preprocessing step. In particular, we can remove irrelevant and redundant genes and identify important genes using gene selection methods in the preprocessing step. Various gene selection methods have been developed in the context of machine learning so far. In this paper, we intensively review recent works on gene selection methods using machine learning approaches. In addition, the underlying difficulties with current gene selection methods as well as future research directions are discussed.