• Title/Summary/Keyword: environmental actions

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Mixing Analysis of Oil Spilled into the River by GPS-equipped Drifter Experiment and Numerical Modeling (GPS 부자 실험과 수치모델링에 의한 하천에 유입된 유류오염물질의 거동 해석)

  • Jang, Juhyoung;Jong, Jaehun;Mun, Hyunsaing;Kim, Kyunghyun;Seo, Ilwon
    • Journal of Korean Society on Water Environment
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    • v.32 no.3
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    • pp.243-252
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    • 2016
  • In cases of water pollution accidents, accurate prediction for arrival time and concentration of contaminants in a river is essential to take proper measures and minimize their impact on downstream water intake facilities. It is critical to fully understand the behavior characteristics of contaminants on river surface, especially in case of oil spill accidents. Therefore, in this study, the effects of main parameters of advection and diffusion of contaminants were analyzed and validated by comparing the results of Lagrangian particle tracking (LPT) simulation of Environmental Fluid Dynamic Code (EFDC) model with those of Global Position System (GPS)-equipped drifter experiment. Prevention scenario modeling was accomplished by taking cases of movable weir operation into account. The simulated water level and flow velocity fluctuations agreed well with observations. There was no significant difference in the speed of surface particle movement between 5 and 10 layer modeling. Therefore, 5 layer modeling could be chosen to reduce computational time. It was found that full three dimensional modeling simulated wind effects on surface particle movements more sensitively than depth-averaged two dimensional modeling. The diffusion range of particles was linearly proportional to horizontal diffusivity by sensitivity analysis. Horizontal diffusivity estimated from the results of GPS-equipped drifter experiment was 0.096 m2/sec, which was considered to be valid for applying the LPT module in this area. Finally, the scenario analysis results showed that particle movements could be stagnant when discharge from the upstream weir was reduced, implying the possibility of securing time for mitigation actions such as oil boom installation and wiping oil contaminants. The outcomes of this study can help improve the prediction accuracy of particle tracking simulation to establish the most suitable mitigation plan considering the combination of movable weir operation.

Spatial-temporal Variations of Nitrate Levels in Groundwater of Jeju Island, Korea: Evaluation of Long-term (1993-2015) Monitoring Data (제주도 지하수질산염 농도의 시·공간적변화 특성: 장기(1993-2015) 모니터링 자료의 평가)

  • Kim, Ho-Rim;Oh, Junseop;Do, Hyun-Kwon;Lee, Kyung-Jin;Hyun, Ik-Hyun;Oh, Sang-Sil;Kam, Sang-Kyu;Yun, Seong-Taek
    • Economic and Environmental Geology
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    • v.51 no.1
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    • pp.15-26
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    • 2018
  • The spatio-temporal variations of nitrate concentrations in groundwater of Jeju Island were evaluated by an analysis of time series groundwater quality data (N = 21,568) that were collected from regional groundwater monitoring (number of wells = 4,835) for up to 20 years between 1993 and 2015. The median concentration of $NO_3-N$ is 2.5 mg/L, which is slightly higher than those reported from regional surveys in other countries. Nitrate concentrations of groundwater in wells tend to significantly vary according to different water usage (of the well), administrative districts, and topographic elevations: nitrate level is higher in low-lying agricultural and residential areas than those in high mountainous areas. The Mann-Kendall trend test and Sen's slope analysis show that nitrate concentration in mid-mountainous areas tends to increase, possibly due to the expansion of agricultural areas toward highland. On the other hand, nitrate concentrations in the Specially Designated Groundwater Quality Protection Zones show the temporally decreasing trend, which implies the efficiency of groundwater management actions in Jeju. Proper measures for sustainable groundwater quality management are suggested in this study.

Review on the Regional Cooperative Activities for Marine Environmental Conservation in Northeast Asia: with Special Reference to the Northwest Pacific Action Plan (NOWPAP) (동북아시아 해양환경보전을 위한 국제협력활동의 현황과 발전방향: 북서태평양보전실천계획(NOWPAP)을 중심으로)

  • Kang Chang-Gu;Kang Seong-Gil
    • Journal of the Korean Society for Marine Environment & Energy
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    • v.6 no.1
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    • pp.30-43
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    • 2003
  • The geography, circulation pattern, and ecology show that the semi-closed seas of Northwest Pacific be managed as one complete system. Ongoing multilateral cooperative efforts relevant to marine environmental protection in the Northwest Pacific area, include the Working Group for the Western Pacific (WESTPAC) established under the auspices of WNESCO's Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commissions, the UNDP/GEF Programme on Prevention and Management of Marine Pollution in East Asian Seas (PEMSEA), the North Pacific Marine Science Organization(PICES), and the United Nations Environment Programme(WNEP)'s Northwest Pacific Action Plan(NOWPAP). The present report firstly describes the current situations on the existing regional cooperative regimes for marine environmental conservation in the Northwest Pacific region, with a special respect to the Northwest Pacific Action Plan(NOWPAP) which was adopted in 1994 by Japan, People's Republic of China, Republic of Korea and Russian Federation. Then, problems of the existing regimes are also discussed, together with the suggestion of the possible solutions, focusing on NOWPAP. Suggestions include: 1) the Northeast Asian countries should understand the importance of legally-binding regional convention, and should build up any legally-binding instrument which can function as a big umbrella for real regional cooperation without prejudice to the rights of the States, 2) At present stage, it will be possible to make a regional convention flexible without prejudice to the sovereign right of the States or territorial issues; 3) taking into account that the region often faces many generic political problems that often inhibit the effective collective actions on environmental issues, the leadership from UNEP or other international organizations is required; 4) strong institutional and financial framework should be made, and 5) multilateral efforts to respond to the new marine environmental threats should be taken at the regional level in order to protect the coastal and marine environments in the Northwest Pacific.

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Regulation of Tumor Neceosis Factor-${\alpha}$ Receptors and Signal Transduction Pathways

  • Han, Hyung-Mee
    • Toxicological Research
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    • v.8 no.2
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    • pp.343-357
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    • 1992
  • Tumor necrosis factor-${\alpha}$(TNF), a polypeptide hormone secreted primarily by activated macrophages, was originally identified on the basis of its ability to cause hemorrhagic necrosis and tumor regression in vivo. Subsequently, TNF has been shown to be an important component of the host responses to infection and cancer and may mediate the wasting syndrome known as cachexia. These systemic actions of TNF are reflected in its diverse effects on target cells in vitro. TNF initiates its diverse cellular actions by binding to specific cell surface receptors. Although TNF receptors have been identified on most of animal cells, regulation of these receptors and the mechanisms which transduce TNF receptor binding into cellular responses are not well understood. Therefore, in the present study, the mechanisms how TNF receptors are being regulated and how TNF receptor binding is being transduced into cellular responses were investigated in rat liver plasma membranes (PM) and ME-180 human cervical carcinoma cell lines. $^{125}I$-TNF bound to high ($K_d=1.51{\pm}0.35nM$)affinity receptors in rat liver PM. Solubilization of PM with 1% Triton X-100 increased both high affinity (from $0.33{\pm}0.04\;to\;1.67{\pm}0.05$ pmoles/mg protein) and low affinity (from $1.92{\pm}0.16\;to\;7.57{\pm}0.50$ pmoles/mg protein) TNF binding without affecting the affinities for TNF, suggesting the presence of a large latent pool of TNF receptors. Affinity labeling of receptors whether from PM or solubilized PM resulted in cross-linking of $^{125}I$-TNF into $M_r$ 130 kDa, 90 kDa and 66kDa complexes. Thus, the properties of the latent TNF receptors were similar to those initially accessible to TNF. To determine if exposure of latent receptors is regulated by TNF, $^{125}I$-TNF binding to control and TNF-pretreated membranes were assayed. Specific binding was increased by pretreatment with TNF (P<0.05), demonstrating that hepatic PM contains latent TNF receptors whose exposure is promoted by TNF. Homologous up-regulation of TNF receptors may, in part, be responsible for sustained hepatic responsiveness during chronic exposure to TNF. As a next step, the post-receptor events induced by TNF were examined. Although the signal transduction pathways for TNF have not been delineated clearly, the actions of many other hormones are mediated by the reversible phosphorylation of specific enzymes or target proteins. The present study demonstrated that TNF induces phosphorylation of 28 kDa protein (p28). Two dimensional soidum dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis(SDS-PAGE) resolved the 28kDa phosphoprotein into two isoforms having pIs of 6.2 and 6.1. The pIs and relative molecular weight of p28 were consistent with those of a previously characterized mRNA cap binding protein. mRNA cap binding proteins are a class of translation initiation factors that recognize the 7-methylguanosine cap structure found on the 5' end of eukaryotic mRNAs. In vitro, these proteins are defined by their specific elution from affinity columns composed of 7-methylguanosine 5'-triphosphate($m^7$GTP)-Sepharose. Affinity purification of mRNA cap binding proteins from control and TNF treated ME-180 cells proved that TNF rapidly stimulates phosphorylation of an mRNA cap binding protein. Phosphorylation occurred in several cell types that are important in vitro models of TNF action. The mRNA cap binding protein phosphorylated in response to TNF treatment was purifice, sequenced, and identified as the proto-oncogene product eukaryotic initiation factor-4E(eIF-4E). These data show that phosphorylation of a key component of the cellular translational machinery is a common early event in the diverse cellular actions of TNF.

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Key Methodologies to Effective Site-specific Accessment in Contaminated Soils : A Review (오염토양의 효과적 현장조사에 대한 주요 방법론의 검토)

  • Chung, Doug-Young
    • Korean Journal of Soil Science and Fertilizer
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    • v.32 no.4
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    • pp.383-397
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    • 1999
  • For sites to be investigated, the results of such an investigation can be used in determining foals for cleanup, quantifying risks, determining acceptable and unacceptable risk, and developing cleanup plans t hat do not cause unnecessary delays in the redevelopment and reuse of the property. To do this, it is essential that an appropriately detailed study of the site be performed to identify the cause, nature, and extent of contamination and the possible threats to the environment or to any people living or working nearby through the analysis of samples of soil and soil gas, groundwater, surface water, and sediment. The migration pathways of contaminants also are examined during this phase. Key aspects of cost-effective site assessment to help standardize and accelerate the evaluation of contaminated soils at sites are to provide a simple step-by-step methodology for environmental science/engineering professionals to calculate risk-based, site-specific soil levels for contaminants in soil. Its use may significantly reduce the time it takes to complete soil investigations and cleanup actions at some sites, as well as improve the consistency of these actions across the nation. To achieve the effective site assessment, it requires the criteria for choosing the type of standard and setting the magnitude of the standard come from different sources, depending on many factors including the nature of the contamination. A general scheme for site-specific assessment consists of sequential Phase I, II, and III, which is defined by workplan and soil screening levels. Phase I are conducted to identify and confirm a site's recognized environmental conditions resulting from past actions. If a Phase 1 identifies potential hazardous substances, a Phase II is usually conducted to confirm the absence, or presence and extent, of contamination. Phase II involve the collection and analysis of samples. And Phase III is to remediate the contaminated soils determined by Phase I and Phase II. However, important factors in determining whether a assessment standard is site-specific and suitable are (1) the spatial extent of the sampling and the size of the sample area; (2) the number of samples taken: (3) the strategy of taking samples: and (4) the way the data are analyzed. Although selected methods are recommended, application of quantitative methods is directed by users having prior training or experience for the dynamic site investigation process.

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Psychological Make-up of Korean Green Consumerism: A Path Model Analysis (한국록색소비심리구성(韩国绿色消费心理构成):일개로경분석모형(一个路径分析模型))

  • Kim, Joo-Ho;Kim, Yeon-Shin
    • Journal of Global Scholars of Marketing Science
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    • v.20 no.3
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    • pp.249-261
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    • 2010
  • As consumers' concern for the environment has continued to increase, many firms have actively engaged in environmental marketing to achieve their objectives. However, consumers' high concerns about the environment are not always reflected in their purchasing behavior. This indicates the need for an in-depth understanding of the development of green consumption within the individual's belief system. In consideration of psychological approaches, a large body of research has examined the factors underlying ecologically conscious "green" consumer behavior and the interrelationships of these factors. However, most previous studies have concentrated on Western countries. Using a sample of Korean consumers, this study attempts to understand the basis of Korean green consumerism and find universal values that are cross-culturally important in guiding consumers' environmental attitudes and behaviors. To this end, this study relates Schwartz's 10 universal values (Schwartz 1992) to environmental behaviors in a hierarchical model of value-attitude-behavior. With reference to the value-attitude-behavior framework, the conceptual model developed for the study explains what motivations can be manifested in Korean consumers' environmental attitudes, and subsequently how the attitudes affect their green choices. Using the pattern of relationships among values that can be related to environmentalism, the first hypothesis holds that there would be particular relationships between motivational value types and environmental attitudes. Hypothesis 2 assumes that environmental attitudes predict environmental behaviors. On the basis of the claim that favorable attitudes toward the environment may be expressed in many different behaviors, the assumption is that consumers' favorable attitudes toward the environment would be linked to a variety of environmental behaviors because people with high environmental attitudes can be more interested in and knowledgeable about environmental actions. Consistent with H2, H3 hypothesizes that there would be a positive relationship between different types of environmental behavior. A total of 564 university students participated in the study. The sample included 308 men, 254 women, and two participants who did not indicate their gender. The average age of the participants was 22.5 years, with a range of 19 to 39. Regarding majors, special efforts were made to draw the participants from different departments of the university. Data were collected by a survey administered via self-completion questionnaires., which assessed the participants' value priorities, environmental attitudes, and behaviors. Path analysis conducted to test the proposed model found the overall fit to be ${\chi}^2$=72.01 (p=0.00), GFI=0.983, CFI=0.982, NFI=0.970, RMR=0.070, and REMSEA=0.050. Thus, most of the fit measures indicated a good fit of the model with the data, and a hierarchical relationship from values to environmental attitudes to environmental non-purchasing behavior to environmental purchasing behavior was confirmed. An assessment of all the predicted paths by path coefficients led to several major hypothesized effects being confirmed. Out of the ten value types, universalism and power were significantly but conversely related to environmental attitudes. In line with the other studies, these findings confirm that environmental attitudes are an important factor in leading to a variety of green behaviors. Finally, significant relationships were found between environmental purchasing and non-purchasing behaviors. The path analysis supported the idea that universalism values provide a motivation for Korean consumers' greenness and indirectly promote environmental acts through favorable attitudes toward the environment. Participants with high environmental attitudes were found to actively engage in diverse forms of green consumer behavior. This research provides an opportunity to examine cross-cultural differences with respect to values leading to environmentalism, and, further, to verify previous findings. The study also examined the attitude-behavior relationship with respect to three distinct types of environmental behaviors. The different strengths of paths between green attitudes and behaviors suggest that researchers should consider the specificity of behavior explained as an effort to improve the low attitude-behavior correlation. Finally, the findings here illustrate that with increased environmental concerns among people, they come to include more such behaviors in their green portfolios.

Enhanced mass balance Tafel slope model for computer based FEM computation of corrosion rate of steel reinforced concrete coupled with CO2 transport

  • Hussain, Raja Rizwan
    • Computers and Concrete
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    • v.8 no.2
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    • pp.177-192
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    • 2011
  • This research paper aims at computer based modeling of carbonation induced corrosion under extreme conditions and its experimental verification by incorporating enhanced electrochemical and mass balance equations based on thermo-hygro physics with strong coupling of mass transport and equilibrium in micro-pore structure of carbonated concrete for which the previous research data is limited. In this paper the carbonation induced electrochemical corrosion model is developed and coupled with carbon dioxide transport computational model by the use of a concrete durability computer based model DuCOM developed by our research group at concrete laboratory in the University of Tokyo and its reliability is checked in the light of experiment results of carbonation induced corrosion mass loss obtained in this research. The comparison of model analysis and experiment results shows a fair agreement. The carbonation induced corrosion model computation reasonably predicts the quantitative behavior of corrosion rate for normal air dry relative humidity conditions. The computational model developed also shows fair qualitative corrosion rate simulation and analysis for various pH levels and coupled environmental actions of chloride and carbonation. Detailed verification of the model for the quantitative carbonation induced corrosion rate computation under varying relative conditions, different pH levels and combined effects of carbonation and chloride attack remain as scope for future research.

A Study on the Mitigation Policies for Urban Heat Island (도시열섬 완화를 위한 제도개선)

  • Suh, Eung Chul
    • KIEAE Journal
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    • v.7 no.2
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    • pp.17-23
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    • 2007
  • While heat island has been recognized as an unique environmental nuisance in cities, the phenomenon tends to be regarded as an inevitable side effect on urbanization. Recently the nature of the heat island has been disclosed and efforts for the remedy have been discussed in many ways. Some pioneering actions have been taken to mitigate the strength of the heat island's intensity in several countries. After studies for the heat island and speculations on current pilot policies of 3 different countries has been done, mitigation policies for heat island has been suggested as followings. 1. Preservation of natural topography is essential because latent energy consumption(evapotranspiration) from the site is the single most important factor to mitigate the energy surplus caused by urban heat island. 2. Because current national zoning ordinance or building law can not effectively control the site specific local environment, heat island policy should be established or employed at local level. 3. Incentives for the mitigation should be adopted on the process of implementation because environment is public concern. 4. Wind can easily dissipate energy surplus which is the major driving force for heat island. Therefore local wind, the direction and intensity should be sustained and sometimes facilitated fully through policies.

Understanding and Application of Stoffenmanager Nano Tool into Synthesis and Packing Process of Nanomaterials (Stoffenmanager nano 컨트롤 밴딩 도구 이해와 나노물질 합성 및 포장 공정 적용 연구)

  • Lee, Naroo;Ahn, Jungho
    • Journal of Korean Society of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene
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    • v.25 no.1
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    • pp.95-103
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    • 2015
  • Objectives: This study was conducted in order to better understand the conceptual model and Stoffenmanager nano module and apply it to the synthesis and packing processes of nanomaterials. Methods: Site visits were conducted to five nanomaterial production processes. Product and exposure variables were investigated in these workplaces. Hazard banding and exposure classification of the synthesis and packing processes of nanomaterials were conducted using documents and the website of Stoffenmanager Nano. Results: The five sites featured different products, packing tasks, ventilation and local exhaust, and others. The hazards for nano-nickel and copper were classified as E. The hazards for both fumed silica and indium tin oxide were classified as D. The hazard for spherical silica was classified as C. The exposure classes in the synthesis process of nanomaterials ranged from 2 through 4. The exposure classes in the packing process of nanomaterials ranged from 1 through 4. Conclusions: Application of Stoffenmanager nano to the synthesis and packing processes of nanomaterials helped to better understand the control level of the work environment and to suggest appropriate actions. The comparison of each process showed the effect of the production process and handling of solids and ventilation on exposure class.

A Homing and Obstacle Avoidance Algorithm for Nonholonomic Mobile Robots (Nonholonomic 이동로봇의 호밍과 장애물 회피 알고리즘)

  • Kong, Sung-Hak;Suh, Il-Hong
    • The Transactions of the Korean Institute of Electrical Engineers D
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    • v.51 no.12
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    • pp.583-595
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    • 2002
  • Homing operation can be defined as a series of actions which are necessary for a mobile robot to move from the current position with any arbitrary orientation to a desired position with a specified orientation, while avoiding possible obstacles. In this paper, a homing and obstacle avoidance algorithm for nonholonomic mobile robots is proposed. The proposed algorithm consists of a local goal generator, a discrete state controller, and local path tracking controller based on Aicardi's path following algorithm. In the discrete state controller, 4 states are defined according to the environmental conditions and 4 desired high-level command for the states are given as follows: avoid, wander, home and homing zones. The proposed local goal generator is designed to generate the desired local path by using weighted distance transforms which are newly made to satisfy the nonholonomic constraints of mobile robots. Here, subgoals are also found as vertices of the desired local path. To demonstrate result effectiveness and applicability of the proposed algorithm, computer simulations are illustrated and experimental results for a real mobile robot system are also provided.