• Korea Trade Review
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• v.46 no.2
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• pp.121-140
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• 2021

The ship recycling or scrap is a phenomenon in the process of vessels life cycle has ended in the shipping industry. Scrap are greatly affected by freight rates due to ship demands. Not only that, environmental regulation and economic scale vessel demand are processes that must exist in the shipping industry as they obtain management for existing vessels. In the past, shipbreaking yard had tried to work without protection for poverty, without poor working conditions and facilities to prevent the emission of harmful substances. However, the issue of environmental pollution has been raised the Basel and Hong Kong Convention have been adopted, and a new replacement of the ship scrap that induces serious pollution is required. In this study, 165 countries were analyzed to confirm the importance of determining the ship solution. As a result of the analysis, it was found that the Environmental Performance Index, which is a measure of environmental regulation, is the most influential factor of ship scrapped volume. The determinant of whether lower labor cost can be secured is more correlated with population than GDP per capita. The implications of the results of the regression analysis mean that if environmental regulations for ship scrap of the future are strengthened, the status of Bangladesh and Pakistan, which currently account for half of the world's ship recycling, may change.

• Journal of fish pathology
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• v.36 no.2
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• pp.191-211
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• 2023

Rock bream iridovirus (RBIV) causes high mortality and economic losses in rock bream (Oplegnathus fasciatus) aquaculture industry in Korea. Although, the immune responses of rock bream under RBIV infection have been studied, there is not much information at the different stages of infection (initial, middle and recovery). Gene expression profiling of rock bream under different RBIV infection stages was investigated using a microarray approaches. In total, 5699 and 6557 genes were significantly up- or down-regulated over 2-fold, respectively, upon RBIV infection. These genes were grouped into categories such as innate immune responses, adaptive immune responses, complements, lectin, antibacterial molecule, stress responses, DNA/RNA binding, energy metabolism, transport and cell cycle. Interestingly, hemoglobins (α and β) appears to be important during pathogenesis; it is highly up-regulated at the initial stage and is gradually decreased when the pathogen most likely multiplying and fish begin to die at the middle or later stage. Expression levels were re-elevated at the recovery stage of infection. Among up-regulated genes, interferon-related genes were found to be responsive in most stages of RBIV infection. Moreover, X-linked inhibitor of apoptosis (XIAP)-associated factor 1 (XAF1) expression was high, whereas expression of apoptosis-relate genes were low. In addition, stress responses were highly induced in the virus infection. The cDNA microarray data were validated using quantative real-time PCR. Our results provide novel inslights into the broad immune responses triggered by RBIV at different infection stages.

• Journal of the Society of Naval Architects of Korea
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• v.61 no.2
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• pp.88-97
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• 2024

This study performed the analysis on an economic feasibility of each marine fuel, potential fuel pathways and the relevance of compliance measures to ensure compliance with the FuelEU Maritime regulation. Additionally, it identified certain regulatory gaps to encourage the use of alternative marine fuels. Regarding GHG emissions calculations, the existing GHG regulations for ships applies the Tank-to-Wake (TtW) method, whereas FuelEU Maritime applies the Well-to-Wake (WtW) method. The main results present that important information to establish response strategy for FuelEU Maritime including the costs and benefits of each marine fuel, the minimum blending ratio of alternative fules, and compliance impacts of measures. For the regulatory costs and benefits of marine fuels following the implementation of the FuelEU Maritime from 2025, our findings indicate that while most fossil fuels incur regulatory costs from 2025, most of biofuels and RFNBO fuels do not incur costs until 2050. This will play a role to narrow the price gap between fossil fuels and alternative fuels.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Safety
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• v.39 no.1
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• pp.27-32
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• 2024

This study analyzed cases of hydrogen (H₂) and natural gas (CH₄) leakage from a hydrogen-blended natural gas pipeline to determine a range of leakage characteristics, including leakage type, pipe material, pipe diameter, pressure, and damage size. Based on the results of this analysis, five hydrogen-blended natural gas leakage scenarios were selected. The national vision for a carbon-neutral society by 2050 is a very important strategic objective and promotes environmentally sustainable economic development in the age of the climate crisis. Accordingly, zero-carbon and low-carbon policies are being promoted in various fields, including energy production, consumption, and industrial processes. Hydrogen-blended natural gas is eco-friendly and is considered an important step towards carbon neutrality, with various countries including the United States and several European countries conducting empirical research to further investigate its potential. In Korea, a national research project commenced in April 2023 to verify and demonstrate the life cycle safety of blending hydrogen into the natural gas network. The results of this study will provide important data for the analysis of the damage impacts caused by the leakage of hydrogen-blended natural gas, such as the diffusion of gas clouds, fires, and gas explosions.

• Resources Recycling
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• v.33 no.2
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• pp.16-23
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• 2024

The electrolysis for extracting magnesium from seawater or brine primarily involves recovery of magnesium via precipitation as the form of magnesium hydroxide. The technology is classified into cation-exchange membranes (CEM), anion-exchange (AEM) membranes, electrodialysis, and membraneless methods. Recent research has focused on enhancing the efficiency and selectivity of magnesium recovery from seawater or brine containing magnesium, with expectations of effective magnesium recovery even with normal seawater. In a future, the optimization of the selective and efficient recovery of magnesium and various valuable substances through long-term operation of scaled-up systems is crucial with enhancing economic and environmental viability. It is essential to realistically estimate operational costs considering the membrane's lifespan and replacement cycle. Also, detailed and practical process models should be developed based on monitoring data on various factors.

• Journal of Wind Energy
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• v.13 no.2
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• pp.5-12
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• 2022

Operations and maintenance (O&M) in offshore wind farms accounts for a substantial portion of the life cycle cost due to harsh weather conditions and vessel dispatching. In this regard, it is crucial to expedite O&M technologies in South Korea, which is in the early stage of harnessing wind resources from the ocean. This contribution investigates an O&M planning and scheduling model for floating offshore wind farms with a literature review and use case study. We introduce the development of a long- and short-term maintenance planning framework as part of an integrated O&M platform. This contains a single vessel and fleets routing composition along with technicians and a maintenance job list based on numerical algorithms. Additionally, the routing search presents the basis of decision support for economic trade-offs regarding smooth operation corresponding to ever-changing wind farm situations. The maintenance planning simulator will ultimately contribute to support yearly and day-to-day power-related decisions in a cost-effective manner.

• Environmental and Resource Economics Review
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• v.27 no.2
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• pp.261-286
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• 2018

This paper evaluated the economic feasibility of the life extension of Kori unit 1 and Wolsong unit 1 according to the types of the nuclear power plants (NPPs) and the life extension period comparing to the levelized costs of energy (LCOE) of the new NPPs, coal-fired plants (CFPs), and combined cycle gas turbine (CCGTs) which proposed in the $7^{th}$ Basic Plan for Electricity Supply and Demand. The economic feasibility of the life extension of NPPs using LCOE method is affected by the types of NPPs, lifetime extension periods, discount rate, and capacity factor. According to the analysis results, the pressurized light water reactor (PWR) is more economical than the pressurized heavy water reactor (PHWR). Comparing the economical efficiency between the life extension of NPPs and other alternatives, the operation of the PWR for 20 years is more economical than the one of new NPPs and CFPs. However, 20 years of life extension of PHWR is more economical than the CCGTs, but less economical than new NPPs and CFPs. In summary, the 20 years of life extension of the NPPs seems to be more, especially for the PWR, which is more cost effective than other generation alternatives. Therefore, the government policy of the life extension of NPPs need to be a selective approach that simultaneously considers both safety and economics rather than closing all NPPs.

• Journal of Navigation and Port Research
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• v.43 no.6
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• pp.475-482
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• 2019

The increase in human use and activity in the oceans is leading to marine pollution and habitat destruction. As a result, in particular, marine animals with a long life cycle and small population are threatened with extinction. Thus, the Korean government designated 11 artificial habitats, such as aquariums and marine museums, as Ex-situ conservation institutions to preserve endangered marine life in 2010. However, studies on the significance and economic value of Ex-situ conservation institutions providing marine life conservation services have not been conducted. Thus, the purpose of this study was to estimate the public's quantitative support for the operation policy of Ex-situ conservation institutions, which is a management method for the protection and propagation of marine animals in Korea. To achieve this, the economic value of the marine animal conservation role of the National Maritime Museum was estimated, operated as an Ex-situ conservation institution for the preservation of green turtles in Korea. By using the representative non-market valuation method for public goods known as the contingent valuation method (CVM), the economic value of the Ex-situ conservation institution (National Maritime Museum) was estimated at approximately 41.8 billion won to a maximum of 78.1 billion won. The results of this study can be applied as basic data for marine animal management policymakers in establishing efficient management plans for endangered marine animals in Korea's coastal waters.

• Journal of Korea Port Economic Association
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• v.36 no.2
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• pp.109-124
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• 2020

Using panel data on freight rates and ship prices in the dry freighter market from January 2015 to December 2019, this study investigates the characteristics of shipping industry fluctuations. The analysis aims at two aspects of academic contribution. First, this study analyzes the relationship between shipping indicators and ship price based on separate dry-bulk ships, while the previous research considered the overall shipping index and weighted average ship prices. Second, the VAR model for the causality test is extended to a heterogeneous mixed panel model capable of limiting coefficients. There is a peak estimated by removing the cross-correlation problem, which is mainly raised in panel data analysis, using bootstrap estimation and solving the problem of information loss due to differences in non-stationary data. An empirical investigation of the causal relationship between economic fluctuations and ship price shows that the effect on the ship price from the freight is significant at the 1% level. This implies that there is a one-way relationship with demand in the shipping industry rather than a bilateral relationship.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.45 no.6
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• pp.731-744
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• 2013

Energy security is a topic of high importance to many countries throughout the world. Countries with access to vast energy supplies enjoy all of the economic and political benefits that come with controlling a highly sought after commodity. Given the desire to diversify away from fossil fuels due to rising environmental and economic concerns, there are limited technology options available for baseload electricity generation. Further complicating this issue is the desire for energy sources to be sustainable and globally scalable in addition to being economic and environmentally benign. Nuclear energy in its current form meets many but not all of these attributes. In order to address these limitations, TerraPower, LLC has developed the Traveling Wave Reactor (TWR) which is a near-term deployable and truly sustainable energy solution that is globally scalable for the indefinite future. The fast neutron spectrum allows up to a ~30-fold gain in fuel utilization efficiency when compared to conventional light water reactors utilizing enriched fuel. When compared to other fast reactors, TWRs represent the lowest cost alternative to enjoy the energy security benefits of an advanced nuclear fuel cycle without the associated proliferation concerns of chemical reprocessing. On a country level, this represents a significant savings in the energy generation infrastructure for several reasons 1) no reprocessing plants need to be built, 2) a reduced number of enrichment plants need to be built, 3) reduced waste production results in a lower repository capacity requirement and reduced waste transportation costs and 4) less uranium ore needs to be mined or purchased since natural or depleted uranium can be used directly as fuel. With advanced technological development and added cost, TWRs are also capable of reusing both their own used fuel and used fuel from LWRs, thereby eliminating the need for enrichment in the longer term and reducing the overall societal waste burden. This paper describes the origins and current status of the TWR development program at TerraPower, LLC. Some of the areas covered include the key TWR design challenges and brief descriptions of TWR-Prototype (TWR-P) reactor. Selected information on the TWR-P core designs are also provided in the areas of neutronic, thermal hydraulic and fuel performance. The TWR-P plant design is also described in such areas as; system design descriptions, mechanical design, and safety performance.