• Journal of Korea Soil Environment Society
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• v.4 no.1
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• pp.85-96
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• 1999

Biofiltration is an attractive technique for elimination of VOCs and odorous compounds from low-concentration, high-volume waste gas streams because of its simplicity and cost-effectiveness. The objective of this study was to estimate the removal characteristics of Odorous Compounds including $H_2$S, $NH_3$End BTEX in MSW landfill gases. This Study was conducted at Nanjido landfill site. A compost from the Nanjido composting facility was used as a filling material for biofiltration. Extracted landfill gases were injected into biofilter reactors after mixing with air. Experiments were performed in an incubator being set to $20^{\circ}C$ $H_2$S concentrations were monitored at the depths of 25, 50, 75 and 100cm from the bottom Of the biofilter reactors. 98% of $H_2$S was removed at the filling depth of only 25cm. NH$_3$removal rate was about 85%. Toluene removal rate was the highest among BTEX. Significant pH drop of a filling material was not observed during the biofilter operation of 1 month. Without mixing the landfill gas stream with all, the removal rate of $H_2$S decreased down to 30%.

• Clean Technology
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• v.12 no.3
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• pp.175-181
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• 2006

The feasibility of the use of porous fossil diatoms for indoor air pollution control was investigated via the characterization of physical and chemical properties. The fossil diatoms were observed by SEM(Scanning Electron Microscope). Diatomite had well-distributed pores below 5 nm and relatively large surface area compare to sericite. However, no porosity in sericite was found. Results showed that diatomite had better performance than sericite in respect to porosity and large surface area. But diatomite which is thermally treated at $950^{\circ}C$ has no porosity and low surface area because of combustion of fossil diatoms or calcination of inorganic oxide at high temperature, and has poor adsorption capability of ammonia gas. In conclusion, porous diatomite has relatively high performance to adsorb noxious chemical compounds, such as ammonia gas and VOCs.

• Journal of Korean Society for Atmospheric Environment
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• v.32 no.2
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• pp.131-157
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• 2016

A smog chamber has been an effective tool to study air quality, particularly secondary organic aerosol (SOA), which is typically formed by atmospheric oxidation of volatile organic compounds (VOCs). In controlled environments, smog chamber studies have validated atmospheric oxidation by identifying, quantifying and monitoring products with state-of-art instruments (e.g., aerosol mass spectrometer, scanning mobility particle sizer) and provided chemical insights of SOA formation by elucidating reaction mechanisms. This paper reviews types of smog chambers and the current state of smog chamber studies that have accomplished to find pathways of SOA formation, focusing on gas-particle partitioning of semivolatile products of VOC oxidation, heterogeneous reactions on aerosol surface, and aqueous chemistry in aerosol waters (e.g., cloud/fog droplets and wet aerosols). For future chamber studies, then, this paper discusses potential formation pathways of fine particles that East Asia countries (e.g., Korea and China) currently suffer from due to massive formation that gives rise to fatal health problems.

• Journal of Korea Port Economic Association
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• v.36 no.3
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• pp.21-38
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• 2020

Currently, in-port emissions are a serious problem in port cities. However, emissions, especially non-greenhouse gases, from the operation of cargo handling equipment (CHE) have received significant attention from scientific circles. This study estimates the amount of emissions from on-land port diesel-powered CHE in the Port of Incheon. With real-time activity data provided by handling equipment operating companies, this research applies an activity-based approach to capture an up-to-date and reliable diesel-powered CHE emissions inventory during 2017. As a result, 105.6 tons of carbon monoxide (CO), 243.2 tons of nitrogen oxide (NOx), 0.005 tons of sulfur oxide (Sox), 22.8 tons of particulate matter (PM), 26.0 tons of volatile organic compounds (VOCs), and 0.2 tons of ammonia (NH3) were released from the landside CHE operation. CO and NOx emissions are the two primary air pollutants from the CHE operation in the Port of Incheon, contributing 87.71% of the total amount of emissions. Cranes, forklifts, tractors, and loaders are the four major sources of pollution in the Port of Incheon, contributing 84.79% of the total in-port CHE emissions. Backward diesel-powered machines equipped in these CHE are identified as a key cause of pollution. Therefore, this estimation emphasizes the significant contribution of diesel CHE to port air pollution and suggests the following green policies should be applied: (1) replacement of old diesel powered CHE by new liquefied natural gas and electric equipment; (2) the use of NOx reduction after-treatment technologies, such as selective catalytic reduction in local ports. In addition, a systematic official national emission inventory preparation method and consecutive annual in-port CHE emission inventories are recommended to compare and evaluate the effectiveness of green policies conducted in the future.

• Journal of Korean Society for Atmospheric Environment
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• v.34 no.3
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• pp.457-468
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• 2018

To improve understanding of the physico-chemical characteristics of aerosols in the national park and comparing the air pollution between national park and the urban area nearby national park, the aerosol characterization study was conducted in Bukhansan National Park, Seoul, from July through September 2017. Semi-continuous measurements of $PM_{2.5}$ using PILS (Particle Into Liquid System) coupled with IC (Ion Chromatography) and TOC (Total Organic Carbon) analyzer allowed quantification of concentrations of major ionic species($Cl^-$, $SO_4{^{2-}}$, $NO_3{^-}$, $Na^+$, $NH_4{^+}$, $K^+$, $Mg{^{2+}}$ and $Ca{^{2+}}$) and water soluble organic carbon (WSOC) with 30-minute time resolution. The total mass concentration of $PM_{2.5}$ was measured by T640 (Teledyne) with 5-minute time resolution. The black carbon (BC) and ozone were measured with a minute time resolution. The timeline of aerosol chemical compositions reveals a strong influence from urban area (Seoul) at the site in Bukhansan National Park. Inorganic aerosol composition was observed to be dominated by ammoniated sulfate at most times with ranging from $0.1{\sim}32.6{\mu}g/m^3$ (6.5~76.1% of total mass of $PM_{2.5}$). The concentration of ammonium nitrate, a potential indicator of the presence of local source, ranged from below detection limits to $20{\mu}g/m^3$ and was observed to be highest during times of maximum local urban (Seoul) impact. The total mass of $PM_{2.5}$ in Bukhansan National Park was observed to be 10~23% lower than the total mass of $PM_{2.5}$ in urban area (Gireum-dong and Bulgwang-dong, Seoul). In general, ozone concentration in Bukhansan National Park was observed to be similar or higher than urban sites in Seoul, suggesting additional biogenic VOCs with $NO_x$ from vehicle emission were to be precursors for ozone formation in Bukhansan National Park.

• Toxicological Research
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• v.26 no.4
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• pp.293-300
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• 2010

tert-Butyl acetate (TBAc) is an organic solvent, which is commonly used in architectural coatings and industrial solvents. It has recently been exempted from the definition of a volatile organic compound (VOC) by the Air Resources Board (ARB). Since the use of TBAc as a substitute for other VOCs has increased, thus its potential risk in humans has also increased. However, its inhalation toxicity data in the literature are very limited. Hence, inhalation exposure to TBAc was carried out to investigate its toxic effects in this study. Adult male rats were exposed to TBAc for 4 h for 1 day by using a nose-only inhalation exposure chamber (low dose, $2370\;mg/m^3$ (500 ppm); high dose, $9482\;mg/m^3$ (2000 ppm)). Shamtreated control rats were exposed to clean air in the inhalation chamber for the same period. The animals were killed at 2, 7, and 15 days after exposure. At each time point, body weight measurement, bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) analysis, histopathological examination, and biochemical assay were performed. No treatment-related abnormal effects were observed in any group according to time course. Based on those findings, the median lethal concentration ($LC_{50}$) of TBAc was over $9482\;mg/m^3$ in this study. According to the MSDS, the 4 h $LC_{50}$ for TBAc for rats is over $2230\;mg/m^3$. We suggested that this value is changed and these findings may be applied in the risk assessment of TBAc which could be beneficial in a sub-acute study.

• Journal of Adhesion and Interface
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• v.12 no.4
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• pp.125-132
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• 2011

As the enhancement of indoor air quality is increasingly compelling the use of natural materials without any emission, this study reports the preparation and performance of natural garlic adhesives for wallpaper. The natural garlic adhesives were successfully prepared by the extraction of the clove of raw garlic with water to isolate carbohydrates and proteins. Properties of the prepared garlic adhesives such as the non volatile solids content, viscosity, density, and pH were 62%, 2,789 mPa.s, $1.3g/cm^3$, and 6.6, respectively. The non-volatile solids content has a great impact on the adhesion performance of the prepared garlic adhesives, which was adequate about 60%. Bonding strength of prepared garlic adhesives was greater than the requirement of a Korean standard for wallpaper. In addition, the garlic adhesives showed antibacterial activity inheriting from the garlic. It is expected that the prepared garlic adhesives could be used as safe and natural adhesives without emitting any volatile organic compounds and formaldehyde gas.

• Journal of Environmental Impact Assessment
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• v.31 no.5
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• pp.321-333
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• 2022

In this study, the concentration and distribution characteristics of BTEX (benzene toluene, ethylbenzene, and xylene) emitted from Daesan Petrochemical Industrial Complex were examined to determine their potential hazards to local residents. Residents living nearby the complex areas may be exposed to the chemicals through various media (air, water, and soil), especially by air. This study evaluated human health risks by inhalation using both deterministic and probabilistic risk assessment approaches. As a result of the deterministic risk assessment, the non-cancer risk was much lower than the regulation limit of hazard index (HI 1.0) for all the points. However, in case of cancer risk evaluation, it was found that the risk of excess cancer for benzene at point A located in the industrial complex was 2.28×10^-6, which slightly exceeded the standard regulatory limit of 1.0×10^-6. In addition, the probabilistic risk assessment revealed that the percentile exceeding the standard of 1.0×10^-6was found to be 45.3%. The sensitivity analysis showed that exposure time (ET) had the greatest impact on the results. Based on the risk assessment study, it implied that ethylbenzene, toluene, and xylene had little adverse effects on potential human exposure, but benzene often exceeded the cancer risk standard (1.0×10^-6). Further studies on extensive VOCs monitoring are needed to evaluate the potential risks of industrial complex areas.

• Analytical Science and Technology
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• v.26 no.4
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• pp.268-275
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• 2013

Many kinds of liquid spray products are used in livelihood activities these days. Spray products can be distinguished by the target to be sprayed (like into the air or on human skin (body)). Because human can be exposed to volatile organic compounds (VOC) emitted from spray products, some considerations on safety or hazard of spray products should be needed. In this study, emission characteristics of VOCs were investigated against 10 types of liquid spray products (6 skin spray and 4 air spray products). The concentrations of benzene and toluene were determined by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS) equipped with a thermal desorber (TD). Their average concentrations from 6 skin spray products exhibited$ 5.64{\pm}1.95$ ($mean{\pm}S.D$) and $8.52{\pm}2.89$ ppb(w), respectively. In contrast, those of 4 air spray samples had $7.30{\pm}1.31$ and $7.19{\pm}1.78$ ppb(w), respectively. If liquid contents in spray samples are completely vaporized in one cubic meter (1 m3) after spraying for 10 seconds, their mean concentrations of skin spray products are $31.7{\pm}8.80$ (benzene) and $50.5{\pm}17.1{\mu}g/Sm^3$ (toluene). In contrast, those of air spray products are $24.0{\pm}4.30$ (benzene) and $23.6{\pm}5.83{\mu}g/Sm^3$ (toluene). The estimated concentration levels of benzene from two types of products (31.7 and $24.0{\mu}/Sm^3$) exceeded the Korean atmospheric environmental guideline ($5{\mu}g/Sm^3$). The results of this study thus suggest that some measures should be made to reduce or suppress the contents of VOC in spray products.

• Proceedings of the Korean Environmental Health Society Conference
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• 2003.06a
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• pp.187-191
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• 2003

In this study, biomonitoring methods were developed to measure BTEXs exposure level in the air, metabolites of benzene and toluene in human urine, individual susceptibility markers in human blood for evaluation of the health effects about environmental pollution. We have also performed a small-scaled molecular epidemiology study on residents in Chuncheon and workers in workplace for these method applications. The workers in workplace were surveyed as study areas, and the residents in Chuncheon which is in the suburban area were surveyed as comparative areas in this study. Actually, 31 workers in as target group and 33 residences in as control group this epidemiological study. The results obtained from this study were as follows: 1. Benzene is a well-known carcinogen, it's median concentrations were 0.00024∼0.02057ppm at suburban area and 0.002∼00.654ppm at work place, These benzene concentrations were not exceed the OSHA(Occupational Safety and Health Administration) threshold benzene level of 1ppm in the states. 2. Metabolites product of benzene(t,t-Muconic Acid) and toluene(Hippuric Acid) were not significant both in suburban and workplace area. The median concentration of t,t-MA and HA were 0.0122, 1.44277g/g creatinine, respectively. 3. In the case of individual susceptibility markers as CYPlAl, 41.8% of them has homozygous wild type(W) and who has heterozygous variant type(H) was 35.4% and 22.8% of homozygous variant type(M) genetic type. In the case of CYP2E1, 62.82% of them has homozygous wild type(D) type, 34.62% of each has heterozygous variant type (DC) and 2.56% of them has homozygous variant type (CC). Who doesn't have GSTM1 gene was 46.25% and who has GSTM1 gene was 53.75％. Who doesn't have GSTT1 gene was 40.0％ in study groups and who has GSTT1 gene was 60.0%. Who has W genetic type, which is homozygous wild type of GSTP1, was 69.18% and H genetic type, which is heterozygous variant type was 28.4%. M genetic type which is homozygous variant type was 2.4%. 4. Concentration differences of metabolites such as t,t-MA and HA in urine, which is generated by individual susceptibility marker of GSTM1, GSTT1, GSTP1 gene of Phase I and CYP1A1, CYP2E1 gene of Phase II, was examined. As a result, GSTP1 and GSTM1 indicate slight differences depend on the amount of metabolites in urine, it was not statistically significant.