• Journal of the Korea Organic Resources Recycling Association
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• v.31 no.2
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• pp.5-18
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• 2023

As a result of the survey on the emission status of fluorine-based chemicals in Korea, 13 kinds of substances, including hydrogen fluoride (91%) and perfluorocarbons (5%), were emitted in workplaces. By regional groups, about 98% was emitted in the Gyeongbuk, Gyeonggi and Chungcheong regions, and about 98% in three sectors of industry related to manufacture of electronic parts, chemicals and non-metallic mineral products. The detection status of PFOS and PFOA in domestic main rivers was continuously detected in the Nakdong River, the Geum River and the Anseong Stream estuary with high fluorine-related chemical emissions, and four sites of PFOS and two sites of PFOA were detected for the first time in 2021. PFOS and PFOA were continuously detected in relatively high concentrations in the rivers where there were many semiconductor and display related sectors of industry.

• Journal of Korean Society of Water and Wastewater
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• v.34 no.5
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• pp.323-334
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• 2020

Adsorption by granule activated carbon(GAC) is recognized as an efficient method for the removal of perfluorinated compounds(PFCs) in water, while the poor regeneration and exchange cycles of granule active carbon make it difficult to sustain adsorption capacity for PFCs. In this study, the behavior of PFCs in the effluent of wastewater treatment plant (S), the raw water and the effluents of drinking water treatment plants (M1 and M2) located in Nakdong river waegwan watershed was monitored. Optimal regeneration and exchange cycles was also investigated in drinking water treatment plants and lab-scale adsorption tower for stable PFCs removal. The mean effluent concentration of PFCs was 0.044 0.04 PFHxS g/L, 0.000 0.00 PFOS g/L, 0.037 0.011 PFOA g/L, for S wastewater treatment plant, 0.023 0.073 PFHxS g/L, 0.000 0.00 PFOS g/L, 0.013 0.008 PFOA g/L for M1 drinking water treatment plant and 0.023 0.073 PFHxS g/L, 0.000 0.01 PFOS g/L, 0.011 0.009 PFOA g/L for M2 drinking water treatment plant. The adsorption breakthrough behaviors of PFCs in GAC of drinking water treatment plant and lab-scale adsorption tower indicated that reactivating carbon 3 times per year suggested to achieve and maintain good removal of PFASs. Considering the results of mass balance, the adsorption amount of PFCs was improved by using GAC with high-specific surface area (2,500㎡/g), so that the regeneration cycle might be increased from 4 months to 10 months even if powdered activated carbon(PAC) could be alternatives. This study provides useful insights into the removal of PFCs in drinking water treatment plant.

• Korean Journal of Food Science and Technology
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• v.50 no.1
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• pp.14-20
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• 2018

Perfluorinated compounds (PFCs) have recently been recognized as global environmental pollutants. This study was performed to develop an analytical method for determination of levels of PFCs in food by LC-MS/MS. One hundred and nine food products were divided into two groups based on their fat and protein contents (high and low), following which samples containing high fat and protein contents were pooled and subjected to pretreatment consisting of enzymatic degradation and hexane extraction. The limit of detection of 17 PFCs in the samples were in the range of 0.013-0.145 ng/g. The degrees of precision of detection for group 1 (samples with low fat and protein contents) and group 2 (samples with high fat and protein contents) were 0.8-21.1 and 1.7-28.2%, respectively, with an accuracy of 78.8-109.8% for group 1 and 80-114.5% for group 2. This study indicated that pretreatment of high fat and protein foods with enzymatic degradation and hexane extraction would improve the detection of PFCs in food.

• Clean Technology
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• v.18 no.2
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• pp.216-220
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• 2012

The objective of the present study was to evaluate catalytic performance of a commercial catalyst (Co/$ZrO_2-Al_2O_3$) for the decomposition of perfluorinated chemicals in a pilot scale reactor containing 30 L of catalysts. At a reaction condition of GHSV $1,800h^{-1}$, $T_{95}$ of $SF_6$ was increased from 580 to $610^{\circ}C$ with increasing of $SF_6$ concentration from 1,000 to 10,000 ppm. $T_{95}$ of $SF_6$ in catalytic decomposition was much smaller than that of thermal decomposition ($1,600^{\circ}C$). The 99% conversion of $SF_6$ was maintained for 72 hours a reaction temperature of $650^{\circ}C$. In order to maintain the $SF_6$ conversion more than 99%, it is necessary to operate at a reaction condition of GHSV less than $2,000h^{-1}$. An operating temperature of $710^{\circ}C$ was required to achieve >95% destruction of the $CF_4$, which was much higher than that of catalytic decomposition of $SF_6$.

• Environmental and Resource Economics Review
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• v.31 no.4
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• pp.777-799
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• 2022

This study examined the latest EU regulatory strengthening trends for refrigerant gases with very large global warming potential (GWP) and derived implications for carbon neutrality. The European Commission recently unveiled an amendment that significantly strengthens the F-gas Regulation. This study presented the meaning of the main contents related to refrigerants in the amendment by comparing them with the current regulations. The main contents of the amendment include drastically reducing the maximum amount of HFCs that can be placed on the market, strengthening regulations related to HFCs allocation, adding products and equipment that use high GWP refrigerants, adding regulated F-gas and updating the GWP of existing gases, and other stricter regulatory designs. This movement of the EU will affect the policy stance of advanced countries such as the United States and Japan, and Korea's policy will also be further strengthened. Therefore, it will be inevitable for related industries to change to next-generation refrigerant gas. Meanwhile, this study also analyzed the latest policy trends related to per- and polyfluoralkyl substances (PFAS) regulation, which were not noted in previsou studies on refrigerants and F-gas. If PFAS's registration of REACH restricted substances, which are being promoted by five European countries, is made, it will have a very big impact on the industry regarding refrigerant gas. In addition, it will be inevitable to thoroughly review each country's greenhouse gas reduction strategies related to F-gas materials, including refrigerants.

• Journal of dental hygiene science
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• v.16 no.4
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• pp.272-283
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• 2016

This study compared and analyzed the occluding effects of fluoride compounds and desensitizers, which are commonly used in dental clinics, on dentinal tubules. This study also evaluated the persistence of the active ingredients over time by performing toothbrushing with an electric toothbrush. Thirty-five molar teeth, which had been extracted within the past 3 months from healthy people without tooth decays, amalgam fillings, or dental crowns, were divided into 4 pieces each. Of these, 135 teeth pieces were used as study specimens. These specimens were divided into a control group, an untreated group, and 5 experimental groups (acidulated fluoride gel, fluoride varnish, Gluma, Super Seal, and SE-Bond). The specimens were then subjected to toothbrushing equivalent to 1 week (140 times), 2 weeks (280 times), and 4 weeks (560 times), and the occluding effects on dentinal tubules in 3 regions of each specimen were examined under a scanning electron microscope. The fluoride varnish treated group showed the highest degree of dentinal tubule occlusion effects during the first, second, and fourth weeks of toothbrushing, with the SE-Bond treated group showing the second highest degree and the Gluma treated group showing the lowest degree. After 4 weeks of toothbrushing, the Gluma treated group and the Super Seal treated group showed the lowest degrees of dentinal tubule occlusion effects. In summary, the fluoride varnish treated group and the SE-Bond treated group displayed higher occlusion effects even after 4 weeks of treatment than did the other experimental groups. Therefore, it is the authors' belief that fluoride varnish and SE-Bond are effective for treating dentinal hyperesthesia.