• Journal of Yeungnam Medical Science
• /
• v.38 no.3
• /
• pp.225-230
• /
• 2021

Background: We aimed to analyze the effectiveness of albumin to globulin ratio (AGR) in predicting postoperative febrile urinary tract infection (fUTI) after ureteroscopic lithotripsy (URS) and retrograde intrarenal surgery (RIRS). Methods: From January 2013 to May 2018, 332 patients underwent URS and RIRS. The rate of postoperative fUTI and risk factors for postoperative fUTI were analyzed using logistic regression. Patients were divided into postoperative fUTI and non-postoperative fUTI (non-fUTI) groups. AGR with other demographic and perioperative data were compared between the two groups to predict the development of fUTI after URS. Results: Of the 332 patients, postoperative fUTI occurred in 41 (12.3%). Preoperative pyuria, microscopic hematuria, diabetes mellitus, hypoalbuminemia, and hyperglobulinemia were more prevalent in the fUTI group. Patients in the fUTI group had larger stone size, lower preoperative AGR, longer operation time, and longer preoperative antibiotic coverage period. In a multivariable logistic analysis, preoperative pyuria, AGR, and stone size were independently correlated with postoperative fUTI (p<0.001, p=0.008, and p=0.041, respectively). Receiver operating curve analysis showed that the cutoff value of AGR that could predict a high risk of fUTI after URS was 1.437 (sensitivity, 77.3%; specificity, 76.9%), while the cutoff value of stone size was 8.5 mm (sensitivity, 55.3%; specificity, 44.7%). Conclusion: This study demonstrated that preoperative pyuria, AGR, and stone size can serve as prognostic factors for predicting fUTI after URS.

• Journal of Medicine and Life Science
• /
• v.16 no.1
• /
• pp.1-5
• /
• 2019

Our purpose was to evaluate usefulness of the contrast-enhanced 3 dimensional fluid attenuated inversion recovery (3D-FLAIR) technique of half brain volume to diagnose the patients with facial neuritis based on segment-based analysis. We assessed retrospectively 17 consecutive patients who underwent brain MR imaging at 3 tesla for facial neuritis: 11 patients with idiopathic facial neuritis and 6 with herpes zoster oticus. Contrast enhanced 3D-FLAIR sequences of the half brain volume were analyzed and 3D T1-weighted sequence of the full brain volume were used as the base-line exam. Enhancement of the facial nerve was determined in each segment of 5 facial nerve segments by two radiologists. Sensitivity, specificity and accuracy of enhancement of each segment were assessed. The authors experienced a prompt fuzzy CSF enhancement in the fundus of the internal auditory canal in patients with enhancement of the canalicular segment. Interobserver agreement of CE 3D-FLAIR was excellent(${\kappa}$-value 0.885). Sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy of each segment are 1.0, 0.823, 0.912 in the canalicular segment; 0.118, 1.0, 0.559 in the labyrinthine segment; 0.823, 0.294, 0.559 in the anterior genu; 0.823, 0.529, 0.676 in the tympanic segment; 0.823, 0.235, 0.529 in the mastoid segment, respectively. In addition, those of prompt fuzzy enhancement were 0.647, 1.0, and 0.824, respectively. Incidence of prompt fuzzy enhancement with enhancement of the canalicular segment was 11 sites(55%): 6 (54.5%) in idiopathic facial neuritis and 5 (83.3%) in herpes zoster. Enhancement of the canalicular segment and prompt fuzzy enhancement on CE 3D-FLAIR was significantly correlated with occurrence of facial neuritis (p<0.001). CE 3D-FLAIR technique of the half brain volume is useful to evaluate the patients with facial neuritis as an adjunct sequence in addition to contrast-enhanced 3D T1-weighted sequence. On segment-based analysis, contrast enhancement of the canalicular segment is the most reliable. Prompt fuzzy enhancement is seen in not only herpes zoster, but in idiopathic facial neuritis.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
• /
• v.30 no.1
• /
• pp.11-26
• /
• 2022

One of the most important issues in tunneling, is the squeezing phenomenon. Squeezing can occur during excavation or after the construction of tunnels, which in both cases could lead to significant damages. Therefore, it is important to predict the squeezing and consider it in the early design stage of tunnel construction. Different empirical, semi-empirical and theoretical-analytical methods have been presented to determine the squeezing. Therefore, it is necessary to examine the ability of each of these methods and identify the best method among them. In this study, squeezing in a part of the Alborz service tunnel in Iran was estimated through a number of empirical, semi- empirical and theoretical-analytical methods. Among these methods, the most robust model was used to obtain a database including 300 data for training and 33 data for testing in order to develop a machine learning (ML) method. To this end, three ML models of Gaussian process regression (GPR), artificial neural network (ANN) and support vector regression (SVR) were trained and tested to propose a robust model to predict the squeezing phenomenon. A comparative analysis between the conventional and the ML methods utilized in this study showed that, the GPR model is the most robust model in the prediction of squeezing phenomenon. The sensitivity analysis of the input parameters using the mutual information test (MIT) method showed that, the most sensitive parameter on the squeezing phenomenon is the tangential strain (ε_θ^α) parameter with a sensitivity score of 2.18. Finally, the GPR model was recommended to predict the squeezing phenomenon in tunneling projects. This work's significance is that it can provide a good estimation of the squeezing phenomenon in tunneling projects, based on which geotechnical engineers can take the necessary actions to deal with it in the pre-construction designs.

• The Journal of the Korea Contents Association
• /
• v.21 no.12
• /
• pp.363-374
• /
• 2021

The purpose of this study is to analyze how much the mining industry contributes to the Mongolian national economy using the 2019 input-output table released by Asian development bank/ERCD in 2021 to understand the characteristics of the Mongolian economy and to use it as a reference. For this study, the Mongolian economy was classified into 35 industries and the contribution of the national economy was analyzed. As a result of the analysis, the total production inducement amount of the Mongolian mining industry was $38,418 million, the total production inducement coefficient was 1.473, the index of sensitivity of dispersion was 1.696, the value added inducement coefficient was 0.707, and the production inducement coefficient was 1.473. It can be seen that the Mongolian mining industry has a higher production inducement effect than other industries, and has great potential for development as a strategic industry leading other industries.

• Clean Technology
• /
• v.28 no.2
• /
• pp.182-192
• /
• 2022

This study provides an overview of the production costs of methane and hydrogen via water electrolysis-based hydrogen production followed by a methanation based methane production technology utilizing CO₂ from external sources. The study shows a comparative way for economic optimization of green methane generation using excess free electricity from renewable sources. The study initially developed the overall process on the Aspen Plus simulation tool. Aspen Plus estimated the capital expenditure for most of the equipment except for the methanation reactor and electrolyzer. The capital expenditure, the operating expenditure and the feed cost were used in a discounted cash flow based economic model for the methane production cost estimation. The study compared different reactor configurations as well. The same model was also used for a hydrogen production cost estimation. The optimized economic model estimated a methane production cost of $11.22/mcf when the plant is operating for 4000 hr/year and electricity is available for zero cost. Furthermore, a hydrogen production cost of $2.45/GJ was obtained. A sensitivity analysis was performed for the methane production cost as the electrolyzer cost varies across different electrolyzer types. A sensitivity study was also performed for the changing electricity cost, the number of operation hours per year and the plant capacity. The estimated levelized cost of methane (LCOM) in this study was less than or comparable with the existing studies available in the literature.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
• /
• v.55 no.8
• /
• pp.3017-3029
• /
• 2023

In the late in-vessel phase of a nuclear reactor severe accident, the internal heat transfer and crust evolution during the debris bed melting process have important effects on the thermal load distribution along the vessel wall, and further affect the reactor pressure vessel (RPV) failure mode and the state of melt during leakage. This study coupled the phase change model and large eddy simulation to investigate the variations of the temperature, melt liquid fraction, crust and heat flux distributions during the debris bed melting process in the hypothetical severe accident of HPR1000. The results indicated that the heat flow towards the vessel wall and upper surface were similar at the beginning stage of debris melting, but the upward heat flow increased significantly as the development of the molten pool. The maximum heat flux towards the vessel wall reached 0.4 MW/m². The thickness of lower crust decreased as the debris melting. It was much thicker at the bottom region with the azimuthal angle below 20° and decreased rapidly at the azimuthal angle around 20-50°. The maximum and minimum thicknesses were 2 and 90 mm, respectively. By contrast, the distribution of upper crust was uniform and reached stable state much earlier than the lower crust, with the thickness of about 10 mm. Moreover, the sensitivity analysis of initial condition indicated that as the decrease of time interval from reactor scram to debris bed dried-out, the maximum debris temperature and melt fraction became larger, the lower crust thickness became thinner, but the upper crust had no significant change. The sensitivity analysis of in-vessel retention (IVR) strategies indicated that the passive and active external reactor vessel cooling (ERVC) had little effect on the internal heat transfer and crust evolution. In the case not considering the internal reactor vessel cooling (IRVC), the upper crust was not obvious.

• Clean Technology
• /
• v.29 no.1
• /
• pp.53-58
• /
• 2023

This study shows the summary of the economic performance of excess electricity conversion to hydrogen as well as methane and returned conversion to electricity using a fuel cell. The methane production process has been examined in a previous study. Here, this study focuses on the conversion of methane to electricity. As a part of this study, capital expenditure (CAPEX) is estimated under various sized plants (0.3, 3, 9, and 30 MW). The study shows a method for economic optimization of electricity generation using a fuel cell. The CAPEX and operating expenditure (OPEX) as well as the feed cost are used to calculate the discounted cash flow. Then the levelized cost of returned electricity (LCORE) is estimated from the discounted cash flow. This study found the LCORE value was ¢10.2/kWh electricity when a 9 MW electricity generating fuel cell was used. A methane production plant size of 1,500 Nm³/hr, a methane production cost of $11.47/mcf, a storage cost of $1/mcf, and a fuel cell efficiency of 54% were used as a baseline. A sensitivity analysis was performed by varying the storage cost, fuel cell efficiency, and excess electricity cost by ±20%, and fuel cell efficiency was found as the most dominating parameter in terms of the LCORE sensitivity. Therefore, for the best cost-performance, fuel cell manufacturing and efficiency need to be carefully evaluated. This study provides a general guideline for cost performance comparison with LCORE.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
• /
• v.29 no.4
• /
• pp.377-390
• /
• 2022

The stability of the roof rock-coal pillar-floor rock composite structure is of great significance to coal mine safety production. The cracks existing in the composite structure seriously affect the stability of the roof rock-coal pillar-floor rock composite structure. The numerical simulation tests of rock-coal-rock composite structures with different crack characteristics were carried out to reveal the composite structures' mechanical properties and failure mechanisms. The test results show that the rock-coal-rock composite structure's peak stress and elastic modulus are directly proportional to the crack angle and inversely proportional to the crack length. The smaller the crack angle, the more branch cracks produced near the main control crack in the rock-coal-rock composite structure, and the larger the angle between the main control crack and the crack. The smaller the crack length, the larger the width of the crack zone. The impact energy index of the rock-coal-rock composite structure decreases first and then increases with the increase of crack length and increases with the increase of crack angle. The functional relationships between the different crack characteristics, peak stress, and impact energy index are determined based on the sensitivity analysis. The determination of the functional relationship can fully grasp the influence of the crack angle and the crack length on the peak stress and impact energy index of the coal-rock composite structure. The research results can provide a theoretical basis and guidance for preventing the instability and failure of the coal pillar-roof composite structure.

• Nutrition Research and Practice
• /
• v.17 no.4
• /
• pp.789-802
• /
• 2023

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: Habitual coffee consumption was inversely associated with type 2 diabetes (T2D) and hyperglycemia in observational studies, but the causality of the association remains uncertain. This study tested a causal association of genetically predicted coffee consumption with T2D using the Mendelian randomization (MR) method. SUBJECTS/METHODS: We used five single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) as instrumental variables (IVs) associated with habitual coffee consumption in a previous genome-wide association study among Koreans. We analyzed the associations between IVs and T2D, fasting blood glucose (FBG), 2h-postprandial glucose (2h-PG), and glycated haemoglobin (HbA1C) levels. The MR results were further evaluated by standard sensitivity tests for possible pleiotropism. RESULTS: MR analysis revealed that increased genetically predicted coffee consumption was associated with a reduced prevalence of T2D; ORs per one-unit increment of log-transformed cup per day of coffee consumption ranged from 0.75 (0.62-0.90) for the weighted mode-based method to 0.79 (0.62-0.99) for Wald ratio estimator. We also used the inverse-variance-weighted method, weighted median-based method, MR-Egger method, and MR-PRESSO method. Similarly, genetically predicted coffee consumption was inversely associated with FBG and 2h-PG levels but not with HbA1c. Sensitivity measures gave similar results without evidence of pleiotropy. CONCLUSIONS: A genetic predisposition to habitual coffee consumption was inversely associated with T2D prevalence and lower levels of FBG and 2h-PG profiles. Our study warrants further exploration.

• KSCE Journal of Civil and Environmental Engineering Research
• /
• v.28 no.1B
• /
• pp.21-32
• /
• 2008

Flood forecasting is a very important tool as one of nonstructural measures for reduction of flood damages in life and property and its accuracy is also an important factor. However, when we apply the Storage Function Model(SFM) which is mainly used for the flood forecasting system in Korea, the determination of the parameters is very important but it is difficult. So, the parameters have been calibrated by using an empirical formulas and judgement of hydrologist. Hence, in this study we perform the sensitivity analysis to understand the parameter characteristics and establish the ranges of parameters of the SFM. Also we do the parameter calibration by using the optimization techniques and objective functions, and evaluate their performances. Especially, we suggest a method to determine proper parameters by using a objective function which can be obtained from flood events. So, we use the suggested method for parameter estimation and compare the estimated parameters with the previously reported parameters. As a result of the application, the estimated parameters by the suggested method showed better than them from the previously reported parameters.