• Journal of Sensor Science and Technology
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• v.24 no.5
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• pp.311-318
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• 2015

The excess use and generation of various toxic gases from many industrial complexes and plant facilities have increased the possibility of leakage or explosion accidents, which can cause fatal damage to human beings in the wide range of neighboring area. To prevent the exposure to the fatal toxic gases, it is very important to monitor the leakage of toxic gases using gas sensors in real time. Various types of gas sensors, which can be classified as semiconductor, electrochemical, optical, and catalytic combustion types according to the operating principles, have been developed. In this review, the operation principles of gas sensors are explained and the performance of those sensors is compared. The state-of-the-art gas sensor technologies developed by research institutes or companies are reviewed also.

• Journal of the Korean Institute of Gas
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• v.27 no.4
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• pp.12-18
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• 2023

The effective evacuation strategy according to the accident scenario is crucial to minimize human casualties in the event of toxic gas leak accidents. In this study, the effect of the direction of a building and the location of an industrial complex on the increase in indoor concentration and outdoor diffusion was examined under the same leakage conditions, and effective evacuation criteria were established. In addition, the guidelines for building directions were suggested when constructing buildings that would mitigate human damage caused by chemical accidents. Three scenarios where buildings faced the front, side, and rear of the leakage direction were investigated through CFD simulations. The results revealed that when the building faced the industrial complex, both indoor and outdoor average gas concentrations increased significantly, reaching up to 120 times higher than the other two orientations. Moreover, the indoor space was filled with toxic gas substances more than twice in the same time due to the rapid increase of indoor concentration rate. In cases where the building's windows were positioned at the front, toxic gas stagnation occurred around the building due to pressure differences and reduced flow velocities. Based on our findings, the implementation of these guidelines will contribute to safeguarding residents by minimizing exposure to toxic gas during chemical accidents.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Safety
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• v.34 no.6
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• pp.13-21
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• 2019

Leakage accidents in businesses dealing with hazardous chemicals can have a great impact on the workers inside the workplace, as well as residents outside the workplace. In fact, there were cases where hazardous chemicals leaked from many businesses. As a result, the Chemicals Control Act(CCA) was enacted in 2015, the Ministry of Environment introduced an Off-site Risk Assessment(ORA). The purpose of the ORA is to secure safety from the installation of the design of the workplace facilities so that chemical accidents of hazardous chemical handling facilities do not cause human or physical damage outside the workplace. In general, the ORA qualitatively determines where a protected facility is within the scope of the accident scenario. However, elderly who belong to the sensitive group is more sensitive than the general group under the same chemical accident effect, and the extent of the damage is serious. According to data from the Korea National Statistic Office, the number of elderly people is expected to increase steadily. Therefore, a quantitative risk analysis considering the elderly is necessary as a result of a chemical accident. In this study, accident scenarios for 14 locations were set up to perform emergency evacuation due to toxic gas leakage of Cl₂(Chlorine) and HF(Hydrogen Fluoride), and the effects of exposure were analyzed based on the evacuation velocity difference of age 20s and 60s. The ALOHA(Areal Locations of Hazardous Atmospheres) program was used to calculate the concentration for assessing the effects. The time of exposure to toxic gas was calculated based on the time it took for the evacuation to run from the start point to the desired point and a methodology was devised that could be applied to the risk calculation. As a result of the study, the relative risk of the elderly, the sensitive group, needs to be determined.

• Applied Chemistry for Engineering
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• v.32 no.1
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• pp.102-109
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• 2021

Recently, an interest in risk calculation methods has been increasing in Korea due to the establishment of classification code for explosive hazardous area on gas facility (KGS CODE GC101), which is based on the international standard of classification of areas - explosive gas atmospheres (IEC 60079-10-1). However, experiments to check for leaks of combustible or toxic gases are very difficult. These experiments can lead to fire, explosion, and toxic poisoning. Therefore, even if someone tries to provide a laboratory for this experiment, it is difficult to install a gas leakage equipment. In this study we find out differences among actual experiments, CFD by using FLACS and calculation based on classification code for explosive hazardous area on gas facility (KGS CODE GC101) by comparing to each other. We develpoed KGS HAC (hazardous area classification) program which based on KGS GC101 for convenience and popularization. As a result, actual gas leak, CFD and KGS HAC are showing slightly different results. The results of dispersion of 1.8 to 2.7 m were shown in the actual experiment, and the CFD and KGS HAC showed a linear increase of about 0.4 to 1 m depending on the increase in a flow rate. In the actual experiment, the application of 3/8" tubes and orifice to take into account the momentum drop resulted in an increase in the hazardous distance of about 1.95 m. Comparing three methods was able to identify similarities between real and CFD, and also similarities and limitations of CFD and KGS HAC. We hope these results will provide a good basis for future experiments and risk calculations.

• Tunnel and Underground Space
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• v.28 no.4
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• pp.372-386
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• 2018

The air quality near the backfilled site area is significantly deteriorated during and even after the curing period of the backfill materials. Hazardous gases such as NH3 and CO2 may leak out prolongedly from the mined-out sites backfilled with the composite carbonate-based material; leakage can be observed at the underground working sites as well as on the surface. At operating mines, underground gas leakage will severely aggravate the workplace environment. The ventilation schemes should supply sufficient air to dilute the contaminated air, and control the toxic gas leakage and dispersion. This study shows the applicability of pressurization ventilation system to control gas leakage and dispersion at the backfilled underground mine site.

• Journal of the Korea Safety Management & Science
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• v.17 no.2
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• pp.129-137
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• 2015

This study is in regard to the gas detection system and gas detection method utilizing smart phone. This study includes; 1) the sensor module attached to the smart phone to detect and measure flammable gas or toxic gas; and 2) gas detection APP which is installed inside the smart phone and recognizes the user information and location information automatically by reading RFID tag indicating the user or the location to detect gas through the contact area where RFID and blue tooth reader is installed inside of the above mentioned smart phone, and then measures the combustible gas or toxic gas by operating above mentioned sensor module and obtains the data thus measured, and above mentioned smart phone is characterized by its transmission of the above mentioned user information, location information and measured data which are obtained by above mentioned gas detecting APP to operation server via communication network. With this, reliability for the location detecting gas by the user, the result of the measurement, etc. can be secured. Furthermore, this provides the effect of preventing artificial manipulation at the time of input which is associated with the identification of the user to be measured by utilizing removable sensor module and application or the mistake resulted from wrong input by the user. In addition, by transmitting the measured data from the sensor module carrying out gas detection to operation server, this provides the effect of making it possible to process the data thus collected to a specialized data for combustible gas or toxic gas.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.33 no.1
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• pp.83-92
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• 2001

The properties of off-gas generated from vitrification process of ion-exchange resin were characterized. Theoretical composition and flow rate of the off-gas were calculated based on chemical composition of resin and it＇s burning condition inside CCM. The calculated off-gas flow rate was 67.9Nm$^3$/h at the burning rate of 40kg/h. And the composition of off-gas was avaluated as $CO_2$(41.4%), steam(40.0%), $O_2$(13.3%), NO(3.6%), and SO$_2$(1.6%) in order. Then, actual flow rate and composition of off-gas were measured during pilot-scale demonstration tests and the results were compared with theoretical values. The actual flow rate of off-gas was about 1.6 times higher than theoretical one. The difference between theoretical and actual flow rates was caused by the in-leakage of air to the system, and the in-leakage rate was evaluated as 36.3Nm$^3$/h. Because of continuous change in the combustion parameters inside CCM, during demonstration tests, the concentration of toxic gases showed wide fluctuation. However, the concentration of CO, a barometer of incompleteness of combustion inside CCM, was stabilized soon. The result showed quasi-equilibrium state was achieved two hours after feeding of resin.

• Journal of the Korea Safety Management & Science
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• v.17 no.4
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• pp.297-304
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• 2015

This study concerns the integrated gas sensor system of wire and wireless communication by using IoT(Internet of Things) technology. First, communication part is that it delivers the detection information, which transferred by wire or wireless communication and required control procedure based on a wireless module that receives the gas leakage information from wired or wireless detector, to administrator or user's terminal. Second, receiver part is that it shows the location and information, which received from the wired detector formed by a detecting sensor's node as linking with the communication part, and transfers these to the communication part. Third, wireless detector formed as a communication module of a detecting sensor node is that it detects gas leakage and transfers the information through wireless as a packet.Fourth, wired detector communicated with the receiver part and formed as a communication module of a detecting sensor node is that it detects gas leakage, transfers and shows the information as a packet. Fifth, administrator's terminal is that it receives gas leakage information by the communication part, transfers the signal by remote-control, and shut off a gas valve as responding the information. Sixth, database is that it is connected with the communication part; it sets and stores the default values for detecting smoke, CO., and temperature; it transfers this information to the communication part or sends a gas detecting signal to user's terminal. Seventh, user's terminal is that it receives each location's default value which stored and set at the database; it manages emergency situation as shutting off a gas valve through remote control by corresponding each location's gas leakage information, which transferred from the detector to the communication part by wireless.It is possible to process a high quality data regarding flammable or toxic gas by transferring the data, which measured by a sensor module of detector, to the communication part through wire and wireless. And, it allows a user to find the location by a smart phone where gas leaks. Eventually, it minimizes human life or property loss by having stability on gas leakage as well as corresponding each location's information quickly.

• Journal of the Korean Institute of Gas
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• v.18 no.5
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• pp.1-5
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• 2014

As high-tech science has developed, the need of semiconductor is required constantly. However, there are many processes which use a great deal of poisonous gas in the semiconductor process, so the dangerousness by a gas leak is latent in these processes. Especially, the accident of toxic gas is almost made by ammonia and chlorine. Therefore this report estimates the damage by the leak of ammonia and chlorine used in LPCVD system.

• Journal of the Korean Institute of Gas
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• v.27 no.2
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• pp.79-85
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• 2023

Recently, in the semiconductor process, large companies are seeking process changes from memory semiconductors to the foundry due to the increase in demand due to the 4th industry. industry is expanding. The characteristics of special gases and precursors, which are raw materials used to produce these semiconductor chips, are toxic, pyrophoric, inflammable, and corrosive. These semiconductor raw materials are operated in a closed system and do not leak to the outside during normal times, but when leaked, they spread to the inside of the gas box, and when proper ventilation is not provided inside the gas box, they spread to the outside, causing fires, explosions, or toxic substances. It can lead to major accidents such as leakage. Recently, there have been cases of accidents in which hazardous materials leaked from the closed system of the semi conductor process and spread to the inside and outside of the gas box. . In this study, we propose preventive measures based on the case of an accident in which raw material leaked from the VCR fitting, which is the connection part of the semiconductor raw material transfer pipe, and spread to the outside of the gas box.