• Smart Structures and Systems
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• v.9 no.4
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• pp.373-392
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• 2012

Tracking control of systems with variable stiffness hysteresis using a gain-scheduled (GS) controller is developed in this paper. Variable stiffness hysteretic system is represented as quasi linear parameter dependent system with known bounds on parameters. Assuming that the parameters can be measured or estimated in real-time, a GS controller that ensures the performance and the stability of the closed-loop system over the entire range of parameter variation is designed. The proposed method is implemented on a spring-mass system which consists of a semi-active independently variable stiffness (SAIVS) device that exhibits hysteresis and precisely controllable stiffness change in real-time. The SAIVS system with variable stiffness hysteresis is represented as quasi linear parameter varying (LPV) system with two parameters: linear time-varying stiffness (parameter with slow variation rate) and stiffness of the friction-hysteresis (parameter with high variation rate). The proposed LPV-GS controller can accommodate both slow and fast varying parameter, which was not possible with the controllers proposed in the prior studies. Effectiveness of the proposed controller is demonstrated by comparing the results with a fixed robust $\mathcal{H}_{\infty}$ controller that assumes the parameter variation as an uncertainty. Superior performance of the LPV-GS over the robust $\mathcal{H}_{\infty}$ controller is demonstrated for varying stiffness hysteresis of SAIVS device and for different ranges of tracking displacements. The LPV-GS controller is capable of adapting to any parameter changes whereas the $\mathcal{H}_{\infty}$ controller is effective only when the system parameters are in the vicinity of the nominal plant parameters for which the controller is designed. The robust $\mathcal{H}_{\infty}$ controller becomes unstable under large parameter variations but the LPV-GS will ensure stability and guarantee the desired closed-loop performance.

• Journal of the Institute of Convergence Signal Processing
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• v.2 no.1
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• pp.101-107
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• 2001

The objective of this paper is to present a method for designing robust positioning control systems of a flexible arm using mixed $H_2/H_{\infty}$ and $\mu$ theory. We begin with a description of the flexible arm based on the model identification method and discuss the derivation of the model uncertainty. The validity of the obtained model is confirmed experimentally. Next, a robust controller is designed based on the mixed $H_2/H_{\infty}$ and $\mu$ theory by which we can improve robustness of the entire system. On this occasion, we also propose a general plant formation suitable to mixed $H_2/H_{\infty}$ control and $\mu$-theory. Finally, the effectiveness of the proposed design method is verified through experimentation.

• Journal of the Korean Physical Society
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• v.73 no.9
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• pp.1263-1268
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• 2018

Three different ice core samples from Antarctica were analyzed to identify activity concentrations of radioactive isotopes. Tracking migration of radioactive isotopes to Antarctica can provide a key clue to understand global environmental changes caused by radiation exposures because the Antarctic ice cores can preserve unique characteristics of various environmental conditions. We are particularly interested in the $^{137}Cs$ nucleus, because it is closely related to radiation exposure from nuclear power plant accidents and nuclear bomb tests. With its half life of $30.17{\pm}0.03$ years, $^{137}Cs$ can also be used to assess the age of sedimentation occurring after around the year 1945. We selected three ice core samples, called Tarn8, Styx27, and H25, from different time periods; the Tarn8 sample is known to be from earlier than ~ 1000 AD, the Styx27 sample is approximately from the year 1945, and the H25 sample is from the year 2012. Radioactive isotope measurements of the ice core samples were performed using a 100% HPGe detector at Cheongpyeong Underground Radiation Laboratory (CURL). We measured the activity of $^{137}Cs$ in the H25 sample to be $0.98{\pm}0.82mBq/kg$. Although the activity has a large uncertainty mainly due to the limited sample quantity, the $^{137}Cs$ isotopes in the Antarctic ice core were measured for the first time in Korea.

• Plant Journal
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• v.17 no.1
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• pp.50-57
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• 2021

It is very difficult to accurately calculate efficiency of each accessory device constituting the pump system and pump efficiency by the Conventional efficiency measurement method only. Therefore, this study introduced the lastest Thermodynamic pump efficiency measurement method in the district heating pump system for the first time in Korea. As a result, data uncertainty was high by the Conventional method, but the pump and Hydraulic Coupling efficiency values applied the Thermodynamic and Conventional method parallel measurement data were able to derive meaningful results that verified the reliability and adequancy of the pump performance measurement method by performing complementary roles. In additon, as a result of applying the Thermodynamic method to the distirct heating pump system, despite the high temperature environment of up to 120 ℃, it was possible to verify the reliability of the Thermodynamic method, such as high stable data mesurement, and durability of the measurement equipment.

• Journal of the Korean Society for Nondestructive Testing
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• v.33 no.4
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• pp.368-375
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• 2013

Failure of small bore piping welds is a recurring problem at nuclear power plants. And the socket weld cracking in small bore piping has caused unplanned plant shutdowns for repair and high economic impact on the plants. Consequently, early crack detection, including the detection of manufacturing defects, is of the utmost importance. Until now, the surface inspection methods has been applied according to ASME Section XI requirements. But the ultrasonic inspection as a volumetric method is also applying to enforce the inspection requirement. However, the conventional manual ultrasonic inspection techniques are used to detect service induced fatigue cracks. And there was uncertainty on manual ultrasonic inspection because of limited access to the welds and difficulties with contact between the ultrasonic probe and the OD(outer diameter) surface of small bore piping. In this study, phased array ultrasonic inspection technique is applied to increase inspection speed and reliability. To achieve this object, the 3.5 MHz phased array ultrasonic transducer are designed and fabricated. The manually encoded scanner was also developed to enhance contact conditions and maintain constant signal quality. Additionally inspection system is configured and inspection procedure is developed.

• Korean Journal of Agricultural and Forest Meteorology
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• v.16 no.3
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• pp.227-232
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• 2014

Ageratina altissima is an invasive plant species known to threaten native plant communities in Korea. A. altissima is thought to invade shady forests from disturbed open areas; however, uncertainty remains as to how shade and litter depth might affect establishment. A study of A. altissima distribution characteristics in areas adjacent to trails was undertaken at Mt. Umyeon in Seoul, Korea. Increasing densities of A. altissima were found to correlate with greater light availability and decreasing litter depth (p < 0.001) within 10 m distance from trail locations and on ridges rather than further within forests and valleys. The effects of soil moisture content, soil gravel content and soil pH on distribution were not found to be significant, suggesting that A. altissima is adaptable to a broad range of soil conditions. Results indicate that forest areas close to trails may be particularly susceptible place to A. altissima invasion, demonstrating the need to carefully consider implications for A. altissima expansion in trail management.

• Journal of Environmental Health Sciences
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• v.44 no.1
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• pp.63-75
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• 2018

Objectives: The aim of this research is to explore the total heavy metals from a coal-fired power plant burning bituminous coal with wood pellets due to the implementation of the Renewable Portfolio Standard policy (RPS, 10% of electricity from renewable energy resources by 2023). Methods: The research was carried out by collecting archival data and using the USEPA's AP-42 & EMEP/EEA compilation of emission factors for use in calculating emissions. The Monte Carlo method was also applied for carrying out the calculations of measurement uncertainty. Results: In this paper, the results are listed as follows. Sb was measured at 110 kg (2015) and calculated as 165 kg (2019) and 201 kg (2023). Cr was measured at 1,597 kg (2015) and calculated as 1,687 kg (2019) and 1,728 kg (2023). Cu was measured at 2,888 kg (2015) and calculated as 3,133 kg (2019) and 3,264 kg (2023). Pb was measured at 2,580 kg (2015) and calculated as 2,831 kg (2019) and 2,969 kg (2023). Mn was measured at 3,011 kg (2015) and calculated as 15,034 kg (2019) and 23,014 kg (2023). Hg was measured at 510 kg (2015) and calculated as 513 kg (2019) and 537 kg (2023). Ni was measured at 1,720 kg (2015) and calculated as 1,895 kg (2019) and 1,991 kg (2023). Zn was measured at 7,054 kg (2015) and calculated as 9,938 kg (2019) and 11,778 kg (2023). Se was measured at 7,988 kg (2015) and calculated as 7,663 kg (2019) and 7,351 kg (2023). Conclusion: This shows that most heavy metals would increase steadily from 2015 to 2023. However, Se would decrease by 7.9%. This analysis was conducted with EMEP/EEA's emission factors due to the limited emission factors in South Korea. Co-firewood pellets in coal-fired power plants cause the emission of heavy metals. For this reason, emission factors at air pollution control facilities would be presented and the replacement of wood pellets would be needed.

• Journal of the Korean Recycled Construction Resources Institute
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• v.8 no.2
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• pp.167-174
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• 2020

Many researches have been conducted to utilize recycled aggregates in Korea, but since most sources of recycled aggregates are not clear, there is a lot of uncertainty in applying the existing research results on recycle of aggregates generated from nuclear power plants. In this study, therefore, in order to investigate the possibility of recycling coarse aggregates generated through dismantling of nuclear power plants in Korea, recycled coarse aggregates were produced from concrete simulating nuclear power plants in Korea. Using the recycled coarse aggregates, concrete was mixed in consideration of the mixing ratio of the recycled coarse aggregates, and the mechanical properties were experimentally investigated. From the test results, as the mixing ratio of recycled coarse aggregates increased. concrete compressive strength, tensile strength, and elastic modulus generally decreased up to 36, 37, and 27% from the mechanical properties of normal concrete, respectively. Therefore, it can be concluded that limitation on the mixing ratio of recycled coarse aggregates is necessary when coarse aggregates are recycled through dismantling of nuclear power plants.

• Journal of the Korean Institute of Gas
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• v.22 no.6
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• pp.136-143
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• 2018

Cellular automata have been applied to simulations in many fields such as astrophysics, social phenomena, fire spread, and evacuation. Using cellular automata, this study develops a model for consequence analysis of the dispersion of hazardous chemicals, which is required for risk assessments of and emergency responses for frequent chemical accidents. Unlike in cases of detailed plant safety design, real-time accident responses require fast and iterative calculations to reduce the uncertainty of the distribution of damage within the affected area. EPA ALOHA and KORA of National Institute of Chemical Safety have been popular choices for these analyses. However, this study proposes an initiative to supplement the model and code continuously and is different in its development of free software, specialized for small and medium enterprises. Compared to the full-scale computational fluid dynamics (CFD), which requires large amounts of computation time, the relative accuracy loss is compromised, and the convenience of the general user is improved. Using Python open-source libraries as well as meteorological information linkage, it is made possible to expand and update the functions continuously. Users can easily obtain the results by simply inputting the layout of the plant and the materials used. Accuracy is verified against full-scale CFD simulations, and it will be distributed as open source software, supporting GPU-accelerated computing for fast computation.

• Korean Journal of Agricultural and Forest Meteorology
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• v.24 no.1
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• pp.35-47
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• 2022

Expansion of potato production areas can improve the food security in North Korea because the given crop has less requirements for agricultural materials and facilities. The Global Agro-Ecological Zones (GAEZ) model, which was developed to evaluate climate suitability under different cultivation conditions, was used to identify potential areas for the potato production. The spatial estimates of crop suitability under low and high input management conditions were downloaded from the GAEZ data portal. The values of suitability were obtained at the potato occurrence sites retrieved from the Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF) database. The suitable areas for the potato production were identified using a threshold value derived from the suitability estimates at the occurrence sites. It was found that 90% of the occurrence sites had the suitability index value >3,333, which was set to be the threshold value. The suitable areas in North Korea were summarized by province and county. Rice cultivation areas were excluded from the analysis. The reported relative acreage of potato production was better represented by the suitable areas under the low input management options than the high input conditions. The suitable areas also had a similar distribution to the reported acreage of potato production by county. These results indicated that the GAEZ model would be useful to identify the candidate production areas, which would facilitate the increases in potato production especially under future climate conditions. Furthermore, monthly maps of crop suitability can be used to design cropping systems that would improve crop production under the limited use of agricultural materials and facilities.