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In Vitro Evaluation of Shear Bond Strengths of Zirconia Cerami with Various Types of Cement after Thermocycling on Bovine Dentin Surface (지르코니아 표면 처리와 시멘트 종류에 따른 치면과의 전단 결합 강도 비교 연구)

  • Cho, Soo-Hyun;Cho, In-Ho;Lee, Jong-Hyuk;Nam, Ki-Young;Kim, Jong-Bae;Hwang, Sang-Hee
    • Journal of Dental Rehabilitation and Applied Science
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    • v.23 no.3
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    • pp.249-257
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    • 2007
  • State of problem : The use of zirconium oxide all-ceramic material provides several advantages, including a high flexural strength(>1000MPa) and desirable optical properties, such as shading adaptation to the basic shades and a reduction in the layer thickness. Along with the strength of the materials, the cementation technique is also important to the clinical success of a restoration. Nevertheless, little information is available on the effect of different surface treatments on the bonding of zirconium high-crystalline ceramics and resin luting agents. Purpose : The aim of this study was to test the effects of surface treatments of zirconium on shear bond strengths between bovine teeth and a zirconia ceramic and evaluate differences among cements Material and methods : 54 sound bovine teeth extracted within a 1 months, were used. They were frozen in distilled water. These were rinsed by tap water to confirm that no granulation tissues have left. These were kept refrigerated at $4^{\circ}C$ until tested. Each tooth was placed horizontally at a plastic cylinder (diameter 20mm), and embedded in epoxy resin. Teeth were sectioned with diamond burs to expose dentin and grinded with #600 silicon carbide paper. To make sure there was no enamel left, each was observed under an optical microscope. 54 prefabricated zirconium oxide ceramic copings(Lava, 3M ESPE, USA) were assigned into 3 groups ; control, airborne-abraded with $110{\mu}m$ $Al_2O_3$ and scratched with diamond burs at 4 directions. They were cemented with a seating force of 10 ㎏ per tooth, using resin luting cement(Panavia $F^{(R)}$), resin cement(Superbond $C&B^{(R)}$), and resin modified GI cement(Rely X $Luting^{(R)}$). Those were thermocycled at $5^{\circ}C$ and $55^{\circ}C$ for 5000 cycles with a 30 second dwell time, and then shear bond strength was determined in a universal test machine(Model 4200, Instron Co., Canton, USA). The crosshead speed was 1 mm/min. The result was analyzed with one-way analysis of variance(ANOVA) and the Tukey test at a significance level of P<0.05. Results : Superbond $C&B^{(R)}$ at scratching with diamond burs showed the highest shear bond strength than others (p<.05). For Panavia $F^{(R)}$, groups of scratching and sandblasting showed significantly higher shear bond strength than control group(p<.05). For Rely X $Luting^{(R)}$, only between scratching & control group, significantly different shear bond strength was observed(p<.05). Conclusion : Within the limitation of this study, Superbond $C&B^{(R)}$ showed clinically acceptable shear bond between bovine teeth & zirconia ceramics regardless of surface treatments. For the surface treatment, scratching increased shear bond strength. Increase of shear bond strength by sandblasting with $110{\mu}m$ $Al_2O_3$ was not statistically different.

Antimicrobial Activity of GC-l00X against Major Food-Borne Pathogens and Detaching Effects of It against Escherichia coli O157:H7 on the surface of Tomatoes (GC-100X의 주요 식품위해 미생물에 대한 항균효과와 토마토 표면에 부착된 Escherichia coli O157:H7에 대한 세척 효과)

  • 박용호;권남훈;김소현;김지연;임지연;김준만;정우경;박건택;배원기
    • Journal of Food Hygiene and Safety
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    • v.17 no.1
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    • pp.36-44
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    • 2002
  • GC-l00X is non-corrosive alkaline ionic water (pH 12). It is composed of hydroxyl radicals and supplemented with xylitol. Its antimicrobial activity was examined against 6 major food-borne pathogens; Staphylococcus aureus FRI 913, Salmonella enterica serova Enteritidis ATCC 13076, S. enterica serova Typhimurium Korean isolate, Vibrio parahaemolyticus ATCC 17803, Escherichia coli O157:H7 ATCC 43894 and Pseudomonas aeruginosa KCTC 1637 at three different temperatures (4$^{\circ}C$, $25^{\circ}C$ and 36$^{\circ}C$) with or without an organic material (2% yeast extract), respectively. The antimicrobial activities showed over 4 log-reductions (1.0$\times$10$^4$CFU/ml reduction) against all pathogens reacted at 37$^{\circ}C$ for 3 hours in the absence of the organic material. The activities showed same results when GC-l00X was diluted with same volume of distilled water or standard hard water (CaCO$_3$300 ppm). Its antimicrobial activity was more effective and quicker in Gram-negative bacteria than Gram-positive bacteria. Its washing efficacy against E. coli O157:H7 exposed to the surfaces of tomatoes (grapes) was compared with that of the other sanitizers such as other kitchen synthetic detergent and 100-ppm chlorine water. For the toxicological evaluation of the sanitizers, viable counts of E. coli O157:H7 penetrated into the core of tomatoes after washing products were also compared. The result revealed that GC-100X stock solution and its 5% diluted solution had similar washing effects to 100-ppm chlorine water and more effective than the other kitchen synthetic detergent. This result indicated that GC- l00X had antimicrobial activity and no toxicological side effects, therefore, could be useful for a new sanitizer to use in flood safety and kitchen hygiene.

Experimental Research on the Power Improvement by Increasing Intake pressure in a 1.4 L Turbocharged CNG Port Injection Spark Ignition Engine (1.4L 급 터보 CNG 엔진에서 흡기압력 상승에 따른 출력 증대 효과에 관한 연구)

  • Lee, Jeong-Woo;Park, Cheol-Woong;Bae, Jong-Won;Kim, Chang-Gi;Lee, Sun-Youp;Kim, Yong-Rae
    • Journal of the Korean Institute of Gas
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    • v.23 no.6
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    • pp.90-96
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    • 2019
  • Natural gas has been regarded as one of major alternative fuels, because of the increment of mining shale gas and supplying PNG(Pipeline Natural Gas) from Russia. Thus, it needs to broaden the usage of natural gas as the increasing its supplement. In this situation, application of natural gas on the transport area is a good suggestion to reduce exhaust emissions such as CO2(carbon dioxides) and soot from vehicles. For this reason, natural gas can be applied to SI(spark ignition) engines due to its anti-knocking and low auto-ignitibility characteristics. Recently, since turbocharged SI engine has been widely used, it needs to apply natural gas on the turbocharged SI engine. However, there is a major challenge for using natural gas on turbocharged SI engine, because it is hard to make natural gas direct injection in the cylinder, while gasoline is possible. As a result, there is a loss of fresh air when natural gas is injected by MPI (multi-point injection) method under the same intake pressure with gasoline-fueled condition. It brings the power reduction. Therefore, in this research, intake pressure was increased by controling the turbocharger system under natural gas-fueled condition to improve power output. The goal of improved power is the same level with that of gasoline-fueled condition under the maximum torque condition of each engine speed. As a result, the maximum power levels, which are the same with those of gasoline-fueled conditions, with improved brake thermal efficiency could be achieved for each engine speed (from 2,000 to 6,000 rpm) by increasing intake pressure 5-27 % compared to those of gasoline-fueled conditions.

Working Conditions, Job Satisfaction and Organizational Commitment of Physical Therapists (물리치료사의 근무실태와 직무만족 및 직장애착)

  • Ahn Soyoun;Kim Won-Joong;Huh Young-Bae
    • The Journal of Korean Physical Therapy
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    • v.14 no.4
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    • pp.308-322
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    • 2002
  • The main objective of this paper is to examine the working conditions of physical therapists and to investigate the level of job satisfaction and organizational commitment under different working conditions. A survey was conducted through structured questionnaire for the physical therapists working in Busan area, and data from 175 therapists were utilized in the final analysis. Survey items included general characteristics of the therapists(sex, age, education, marital status, religion, income, career years, etc.), their working conditions(kinds of organizations they work in, location of PT room, weekly working hours, average number of patients, number of co-workers, equipments/facilities, etc.), and organizational effectiveness measured in terms of job satisfaction and organizational commitment. Major results are as follows: 1) As for the general characteristics of the surveyed physical therapists, male(51.4$\%$) slightly exceeded female(48.6$\%$) and majority(more than 90$\%$) was 20-39 in age. Also, there were more single(57.7$\%$) than married(42.3$\%$), and 54.9$\%$ of the respondents had religion while 45.1$\%$ did not. In terms of the ranks in their organizations, only a few of them(6.9$\%$) were managers, and monthly salary mostly ranged from $\₩$1,000,000 to $\₩$2,500,000. More than half of them worked in various kinds of hospitals, with the remaining in health centers or social welfare institutions. 2) In regard to the working conditions of the respondents, 19.4$\%$ of PT rooms were located in basement areas while the remaining 80.6$\%$ in first to third floors. 34.3$\%$ of them treated 15 patients or less per day, whereas 25.1$\%$ treated 31 patients or more. Also, 52$\%$ recorded physical therapy charts periodically. As for the equipments and facilities, 25.1$\%$ felt 'sufficient' and 40$\%$'insufficient.' 3) The respondents provided various kinds of suggestions for the improvement of their working conditions, where the most important were 'salary raise' and 'reduction of working hours.' In addition, their requests to the PT Association included 'permission of opening of independent practice,' 'permission of legal specialty,' and 'vitalization of the Association.' 4) The comparative analysis of job satisfaction and organizational commitment among different characteristics of the respondents revealed that there was no significant difference between male and female, but in terms of age, the group of 40 or older was highest in both aspects. Besides, therapists who had 15 or more years of hospital career reported higher job satisfaction and organizational commitment than the others. It was also found that the level of organizational commitment increased as the rank of the respondents got higher. There were no significant differences in terms of marital status and religion. 5) Comparison with regard to working conditions showed that therapists employed in university hospitals, health centers and social welfare institutions felt higher job satisfaction and organizational commitment than those in community hospitals and clinics. Also, respondents who worked in basement areas had significantly lower job satisfaction than otherwise. The length of weekly working hours did not really affect the level of job satisfaction, but it was important to maintain 'regular working hours' for the hospitals to improve the employees' organizational commitment. As for the number of patients per day, 'medium level' (21-25 patients) had highest scores in both aspects. And, finally, sufficiency of equipments and facilities was found to be important for the improvement of organizational commitment.

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Recent Progress in Air-Conditioning and Refrigeration Research : A Review of Papers Published in the Korean Journal of Air-Conditioning and Refrigeration Engineering in 2009 (설비공학 분야의 최근 연구 동향 : 2009년 학회지 논문에 대한 종합적 고찰)

  • Han, Hwa-Taik;Lee, Dae-Young;Kim, Seo Young;Choi, Jong-Min;Baik, Yong-Kyu;Kwon, Young-Chul
    • Korean Journal of Air-Conditioning and Refrigeration Engineering
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    • v.22 no.7
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    • pp.492-507
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    • 2010
  • This article reviews the papers published in the Korean Journal of Air-Conditioning and Refrigeration Engineering during 2009. It is intended to understand the status of current research in the areas of heating, cooling, ventilation, sanitation, and indoor environments of buildings and plant facilities. Conclusions are as follows. (1) Research trends of thermal and fluid engineering have been surveyed as groups of general thermal and fluid flow, fluid machinery and piping, and new and renewable energy. Various topics were covered in the field of general thermal and fluid flow such as an expander, a capillary tube, the flow of micro-channel water blocks, the friction and anti-wear characteristics of nano oils with mixtures of refrigerant oils, etc. Research issues mainly focused on the design of micro-pumps and fans, the heat resistance reliability of axial smoke exhaust fans, and hood systems in the field of fluid machinery and piping. Studies on ground water sources were executed concerning two well type geothermal heat pumps and multi-heat pumps in the field of new and renewable energy. (2) Research works on heat transfer area have been reviewed in the categories of heat transfer characteristics and industrial heat exchangers. Researches on heat transfer characteristics included the heat transfer in thermoelectric cooling systems, refrigerants, evaporators, dryers, desiccant rotors. In the area of industrial heat exchangers, researches on high temperature ceramic heat exchangers, plate heat exchangers, frosting on fins of heat exchangers were performed. (3) In the field of refrigeration, papers were presented on alternative refrigerants, system improvements, and the utilization of various energy sources. Refrigeration systems with alternative refrigerants such as hydrocarbons, mixed refrigerants, and $CO_2$ were studied. Efforts to improve the performance of refrigeration systems were made applying various ideas of suction line heat exchangers, subcooling bypass lines and gas injection systems. Studies on heat pump systems using unutilized energy sources such as river water, underground water, and waste heat were also reported. (4) Research trend in the field of mechanical building facilities has been found to be mainly focused on field applications rather than performance improvements. In the area of cogeneration systems, papers on energy and economic analysis, LCC analysis and cost estimating were reported. Studies on ventilation and heat recovery systems introduced the effect on fire and smoke control, and energy reduction. Papers on district cooling and heating systems dealt with design capacity evaluation, application plan and field application. Also, the maintenance and management of building service equipments were presented for HVAC systems. (5) In the field of architectural environment, various studies were carried to improve indoor air quality and to analyze the heat load characteristics of buildings by energy simulation. These studies helped to understand the physics related to building load characteristics and to improve the quality of architectural environment where human beings reside in.

Evaluating Stabilization Efficiency of Coal Combustion Ash (CCA) for Coal Mine Wastes: Column Experiment (석탄회를 이용한 석탄광산 폐기물의 안정화 효율성 평가: 컬럼 시험)

  • Oh, Se-Jin;Kim, Sung-Chul;Ko, Ju-In;Lee, Jin-Soo;Yang, Jae-E.
    • Korean Journal of Soil Science and Fertilizer
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    • v.44 no.6
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    • pp.1071-1079
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    • 2011
  • In this study, coal combustion ash (CCA) was evaluated for its stabilization effect on acidic mine waste with column experiment. Total of six treatments were installed depending on mixing ratio between coal wastes and CCA (0, 20, 40%) and mixing method (completely mixing and layered). Artificial acidic rain (pH 5.6) was used for feeding solution with flow rate of $0.05mL\;min^{-1}$. Result showed that higher pH of leachate was observed as more CCA was mixed. The highest pH in leachate was measured when 40% of CCA was mixed with coal waste (pH of 5.8). Also, complete mixing with CCA and coal waste was more effective to increase the pH of leachate than layered treatment. Regarding the reduction of soluble Fe amount, the highest efficiency (78%) was observed when 20% of coal ash was completely mixed with mine waste. Based on those result, optimum mixing ratio of coal ash with mine waste can be ranged 20-40% depending on environmental circumstances in the field.

Changes in Inorganic Element Concentrations in Leaves, Supplied and Drained Nutrient Solution according to Fruiting Node during Semi-forcing Hydroponic Cultivation of 'Bonus' Tomato ('Bonus' 토마토 반촉성 수경재배 시 착과절위에 따른 식물체, 공급액 및 배액의 무기성분 농도 변화)

  • Lee, Eun Mo;Park, Sang Kyu;Lee, Bong Chun;Lee, Hee Chul;Kim, Hak Hun;Yun, Yeo Uk;Park, Soo Bok;Chung, Sun Ok;Choi, Jong Myung
    • Journal of Bio-Environment Control
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    • v.28 no.1
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    • pp.38-45
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    • 2019
  • Recycling of drained nutrient solution in hydroponic cultivation of horticultural crops is important in the conservation of the water resources, reduction of production costs and prevention of environmental contamination. Objective of this research was to obtain the fundamental data for the development of a recirculation system of hydroponic solution in semi-forcing cultivation of 'Bonus' tomato. To achieve the objective, tomato plants were cultivated for 110 days and the contents of inorganic elements in plant, supplied and drained nutrient solution were analyzed when crop growth were in the flowering stage of 2nd to 8th fruiting nodes. The T-N content of the plants based on above-ground tissue were 4.1% at the flowering stage of 2nd fruiting nodes (just after transplanting), and gradually get lowered to 3.9% at the flowering stage of 8th fruiting nodes. The tissue P contents were also high in very early stage of growth and development and were maintained to similar contents in the flowering stage of 3rd to 7th fruiting nodes, but were lowed in 8th node stages. The tissue Ca, Mg and Na contents in early growth stages were lower than late growth stages and the contents showed tendencies to rise as plants grew. The concentration differences of supplied nutrient solution and drained solution in $NO_3-N$, P, K, Ca, and Mg were not significant until 5 weeks after transplanting, but the concentration of those elements in drained solution rose gradually and maintained higher than those in supplied solution. The concentrations of B, Fe, and Na in drained solution were slightly higher in the early stages of growth and development and were significantly higher in the mid to late stages of growth than those in supplied solution. The above results would be used as a fundamental data for the correction in the inorganic element concentrations of drained solution for semi-forcing hydroponic cultivation of tomato.

Development of Conformal Radiotherapy with Respiratory Gate Device (호흡주기에 따른 방사선입체조형치료법의 개발)

  • Chu Sung Sil;Cho Kwang Hwan;Lee Chang Geol;Suh Chang Ok
    • Radiation Oncology Journal
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    • v.20 no.1
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    • pp.41-52
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    • 2002
  • Purpose : 3D conformal radiotherapy, the optimum dose delivered to the tumor and provided the risk of normal tissue unless marginal miss, was restricted by organ motion. For tumors in the thorax and abdomen, the planning target volume (PTV) is decided including the margin for movement of tumor volumes during treatment due to patients breathing. We designed the respiratory gating radiotherapy device (RGRD) for using during CT simulation, dose planning and beam delivery at identical breathing period conditions. Using RGRD, reducing the treatment margin for organ (thorax or abdomen) motion due to breathing and improve dose distribution for 3D conformal radiotherapy. Materials and Methods : The internal organ motion data for lung cancer patients were obtained by examining the diaphragm in the supine position to find the position dependency. We made a respiratory gating radiotherapy device (RGRD) that is composed of a strip band, drug sensor, micro switch, and a connected on-off switch in a LINAC control box. During same breathing period by RGRD, spiral CT scan, virtual simulation, and 3D dose planing for lung cancer patients were peformed, without an extended PTV margin for free breathing, and then the dose was delivered at the same positions. We calculated effective volumes and normal tissue complication probabilities (NTCP) using dose volume histograms for normal lung, and analyzed changes in doses associated with selected NTCP levels and tumor control probabilities (TCP) at these new dose levels. The effects of 3D conformal radiotherapy by RGRD were evaluated with DVH (Dose Volume Histogram), TCP, NTCP and dose statistics. Results : The average movement of a diaphragm was 1.5 cm in the supine position when patients breathed freely. Depending on the location of the tumor, the magnitude of the PTV margin needs to be extended from 1 cm to 3 cm, which can greatly increase normal tissue irradiation, and hence, results in increase of the normal tissue complications probabiliy. Simple and precise RGRD is very easy to setup on patients and is sensitive to length variation (+2 mm), it also delivers on-off information to patients and the LINAC machine. We evaluated the treatment plans of patients who had received conformal partial organ lung irradiation for the treatment of thorax malignancies. Using RGRD, the PTV margin by free breathing can be reduced about 2 cm for moving organs by breathing. TCP values are almost the same values $(4\~5\%\;increased)$ for lung cancer regardless of increasing the PTV margin to 2.0 cm but NTCP values are rapidly increased $(50\~70\%\;increased)$ for upon extending PTV margins by 2.0 cm. Conclusion : Internal organ motion due to breathing can be reduced effectively using our simple RGRD. This method can be used in clinical treatments to reduce organ motion induced margin, thereby reducing normal tissue irradiation. Using treatment planning software, the dose to normal tissues was analyzed by comparing dose statistics with and without RGRD. Potential benefits of radiotherapy derived from reduction or elimination of planning target volume (PTV) margins associated with patient breathing through the evaluation of the lung cancer patients treated with 3D conformal radiotherapy.

Smoking-Induced Dopamine Release Studied with $[^{11}C]Raclopride$ PET ($[^{11}C]Raclopride$ PET을 이용한 흡연에 의한 도파민 유리 영상 연구)

  • Kim, Yu-Kyeong;Cho, Sang-Soo;Lee, Do-Hoon;Ryu, Hye-Jung;Lee, Eun-Ju;Ryu, Chang-Hung;Jeong, In-Soon;Hong, Soo-Kyung;Lee, Jae-Sung;Seo, Hong-Gwan;Jeong, Jae-Min;Lee, Won-Woo;Kim, Sang-Eun
    • The Korean Journal of Nuclear Medicine
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    • v.39 no.6
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    • pp.421-429
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    • 2005
  • Purpose: It has been postulated that dopamine release in the striatum underlies the reinforcing properties of nicotine. Substantial evidence in the animal studies demonstrates that nicotine interacts with dopaminergic neuron and regulates the activation of the dopaminergic system. The aim of this study was to visualize the dopamine release by smoking in human brain using PET scan with $[^{11}C]raclopride$. Materials and Methods: Five male non-smokers or ex-smokers with an abstinence period longer than 1 year (mean age of $24.4{\pm}1.7$ years) were enrolled in this study $[^{11}C]raclopride$, a dopamine D2 receptor radioligand, was administrated with bolus-plus-constant infusion. Dynamic PET was performed during 120 minutes ($3{\times}20s,\;2{\times}60s,\;2{\times}120s,\;1{\times}180s\;and\;22{\times}300s$). following the 50 minute-scanning, subjects smoked a cigarette containing 1 mg of nicotine while in the scanner. Blood samples for the measurement of plasma nicotine level were collected at 0, 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30, 45, 60, and 90 minute after smoking. Regions for striatal structures were drawn on the coronal summed PET images guided with co-registered MRI. Binding potential, calculated as (striatal-cerebellar)/cerebellar activity, was measured under equilibrium condition at baseline and smoking session. Results: The mean decrease in binding potential of $[^{11}C]raclopride$ between the baseline and smoking in caudate head, anterior putamen and ventral striatum was 4.7%, 4.0% and 7.8%, respectively. This indicated the striatal dopamine release by smoking. Of these, the reduction in binding potential in the ventral striatum was significantly correlated with the cumulated plasma level of the nicotine (Spearman's rho=0.9, p=0.04). Conclusion: These data demonstrate that in vivo imaging with $[^{11}C]raclopride$ PET could measure nicotine-induced dopamine release in the human brain, which has a significant positive correlation with the amount or nicotine administered bt smoking.

Origin of limestone conglomerates in the Choson Supergroup(Cambro-Ordovician), mid-east Korea

  • Kwon Y.K.;Chough S.K.;Choi D.K.;Lee D.J.
    • 한국석유지질학회:학술대회논문집
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    • autumn
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    • pp.63-65
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    • 2001
  • The Chosen Supergroup (Cambro-Ordovician), mid-east Korea consists mainly of shallow marine carbonates and contains a variety of limestone conglomerates. These conglomerates largely comprise oligomictic, rounded lime-mudstone clasts of various size and shape (equant, oval, discoidal, tabular, and irregular) and dolomitic shale matrices. Most clasts are characterized by jigsaw-fit (mosaic), disorganized, or edgewise fabric and autoclastic lithology. Each conglomerate layer is commonly interbedded with limestone-dolomitic shale couplets and occasionally underlain by fractured limestone layer, capped by calcareous shale. According to composition, characteristic sedimentary structures, and fabric, limestone conglomerates in the Hwajol, Tumugol, Makkol, and Mungok formations of Chosen Supergroup can be classified into 4 types: (1) disorganized polymictic conglomerate (Cd), (2) horizontally stratified polymictic conglomerate (Cs), (3) mosaic conglomerate (Cm), and (4) disorganized/edgewise oligomictic conglomerate (Cd/e). These conglomerates are either depositional (Cd and Cs) or diagenetic (Cm and Cd/e) in origin. Depositional conglomerates are interpreted as storm deposits, tidal channel fills, or transgressive lag deposits. On the other hand, diagenetic conglomerates are not deposited by normal sedimentary processes, but formed by post-depositional diagenetic processes. Diagenetic conglomerates in the Chosen Supergroup are characterized by autoclastic and oligomictic lithology of lime-mudstone clasts, jigsaw-fit (mosaic) fabric, edgewise fabric, and a gradual transition from the underlying bed (Table 1). Autoclastic and oligomictic lithologies may be indicative of subsurface brecciation (fragmentation). Consolidation of lime-mudstone clasts pre-requisite for brecciation may result from dissolution and reprecipitation of CaCO3 by degradation of organic matter during burial. Jigsaw-fit fabric has been considered as evidence for in situ fragmentation. The edgewise fabric is most likely formed by expulsion of pore fluid during compaction. The lower boundary of intraformational conglomerates of depositional origin is commonly sharp and erosional. In contrast, diagenetic conglomerate layers mostly show a gradual transition from the underlying unit, which is indicative of progressive fragmentation upward (Fig. 1). The underlying fractured limestone layer also shows evidence for in situ fragmentation such as jigsaw-fit fabric and the same lithology as the overlying conglomerate layer (Fig, 1). Evidence from the conglomerate beds in the Chosen Supergroup suggests that diagenetic conglomerates are formed by in situ subsurface fragmentation of limestone layers and rounding of the fragments. In situ subsurface fragmentation may be primarily due to compaction, dewatering (upward-moving pore fluids), and dissolution, accompanying volume reduction. This process commonly occurs under the conditions of (1) alternating layers of carbonate-rich and carbonate-poor sediments and (B) early differential cementation of carbonate-rich layers. Differential cementation commonly takes place between alternating beds of carbonate-rich and clay-rich layers, because high carbonate content promotes cementation, whereas clay inhibits cementation. After deposition of alternating beds and differential cementation, with progressive burial, upward-moving pore fluid may raise pore-pressure in the upper part of limestone layers, due to commonly overlying impermeable shale layers (or beds). The high pore-pressure may reinforce propagation of fragmentation and cause upward-expulsion of pore fluid which probably produces edgewise fabric of tabular clasts. The fluidized flow then extends laterally, causing reorientation and further rounding of clasts. This process is analogous to that of autobrecciation, which can be analogously termed autoconglomeration. This is a fragmentation and rounding process whereby earlier semiconsolidated portions of limestone are incorporated into still fluid portions. The rounding may be due mainly to immiscibility and surface tension of lime-mud. The progressive rounding of the fragmented clasts probably results from grain attrition by fluidized flow. A synthetic study of limestone conglomerate beds in the Chosen Supergroup suggests that very small percent of the conglomerate layers are of depositional origin, whereas the rest, more than $80\%$, are of diagenetic origin. The common occurrence of diagenetic conglomerates warrants further study on limestone conglomerates elsewhere in the world.

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