• Journal of the Korean earth science society
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• v.26 no.6
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• pp.573-583
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• 2005

[ $PM_{10}\;and\;PM_{2.5}$ ] aerosols were collected at Busan from March, 2004 to December, 2004, and the concentrations of some metal elements were chemically analyzed to study their characteristics. The mean concentration of $PM_{10}$ was $58.2{\mu}g/m^3$ with a range of 8.3 to $161.1{\mu}g/m^3$. The mean concentration of $PM_{2.5}$ was $29.3{\mu}g/m^3$ with a range of 2.8 to $65.3\mu}g/m^3$. The mean mass concentrations of Asian dust and non Asian dust in $PM_{10}$ were $121.5\mu}g/m^3$ and $56.0{\mu}g/,^3$ respectively. The mean values of crustal enrichment factors for six elements (Cd, Cr, Cu, Ni, Pb and Zn) were all higher than 10, possibly suggesting the influence of anthropogenic sources. The crustal enrichment factors of some heavy metal elements in non-Asian dust (NAD) were higher than those in Asian dust (AD), possibly due to anthropogenic emissions transported from industries around this area by westerly wind. The soil contribution ratios for $PM_{10}$ and $PM_{2.5}$ were $15.2\%$ and $17.5\%$ on the whole. and those of AD/NAD for $PM_{10}$ and $PM_{2.5}$ were 1.9 and 2.1, respectively.

• Economic and Environmental Geology
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• v.36 no.1
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• pp.27-38
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• 2003

Arsenic contamination around Au-Ag mining areas occurs mainly from the oxidation of arsenopyrite which is frequently contained in mine tailings. In weathered tailings, oxidation of sulfide minerals typically results in the formation of abundant ferric (oxy)hydroxides or (oxy)hydroxysulfates near the tailings surface, and arsenic may be associated with these secondary precipitates. In this study, solid phases of arsenic in weathered tailings of some Au-Ag mines were investigated through the SEM/EDS and sequential extraction analyses. The stability of As solid phases and the leaching potential were assessed with the variation of pH and Eh conditions. Oxidation of sulfides in the tailings samples was indicated by depletion of S molar concentrations compared to As and heavy metals. Under XRD examinations, jarosite as an Fe-oxyhydroxysulfate was found in the tailings of Deokeum, Dongil and Dadeok, and scorodite as an As-bearing crystalline mineral was identified from Dadeok which has the highest concentration of As (4.36 wt.%). Beudantite-like phases and some Pb-arsenates were also found under SEM/EDS analysis, and most of As phases were associated with Fe-(oxy)hydroxides and (oxy)hydroxysulfates despite a few arsenopyrite from Samgwang and Gubong. Sequential extraction analysis also showed that As was present predominantly as coprecipitated with Fe hydroxides from Dongil, Dadeok and Myungbong (72∼99%), and as sulfides (58%) and Fe hydroxide-associated forms (40%) from Samgwang and Gubong. In the tailings leaching experiment, As was released with high amounts by the dissolution of As-bearing Fe(oxy)hydroxysulfates in the lowest pH (2.7) conditions of Deokeum, and by desorption under alkaline conditions of Samgwang and Gubong. Higher leaching rates of arsenite(+3) were found under acidic conditions, which pose a higher risk to water quality. Changes in pH and Eh conditions coupled with microbial processes could influence the stabilities of the As solid phases, and thus, time amendments or landfilling of weathered tailings may result in enhanced As mobilization.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.26 no.1
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• pp.68-74
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• 2016

Perchlorate (ClO₄⁻) is an emerging pollutant detected in surface water, soil, and groundwater. Previous studies provided experimental evidence of autotrophic ClO₄⁻ removal with elemental sulfur (S⁰) particles and activated sludge, which are inexpensive and easily available, respectively. In addition, ClO₄⁻ removal efficiency was shown to increase when an enrichment culture was used as an inoculum instead of activated sludge. PCR-DGGE was employed in the present study to investigate the microbial community in the enrichment culture that removed ClO₄⁻ autotrophically. Microorganisms in the enrichment culture showed 99.71% or more ClO₄⁻ removal efficiency after a 7-day incubation when the initial concentration was approximately 120 mg ClO₄⁻/l. Genomic DNA was isolated from the enriched culture and its inoculum (activated sludge), and used for PCR-DGGE analysis of 16S rRNA genes. Microbial compositions of the enrichment culture and the activated sludge were different, as determined by their different DGGE profiles. The difference in DGGE banding patterns suggests that environmental conditions of the enrichment culture caused a change in the microbial community composition of the inoculated activated sludge. Dominant DGGE bands in the enrichment culture sample were affiliated with the classes β-Proteobacteria, Bacteroidetes, and Spirochaetes. Further investigation is warranted to reveal the metabolic roles of the dominant populations in the ClO₄⁻ degradation process, along with their isolation.

• Journal of Korean Society of Environmental Engineers
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• v.22 no.1
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• pp.33-42
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• 2000

Adsorption onto the surfaces of solid particles is a well known phenomenon that causes the retardation effect of heavy metals in soils. For adequate remediation of soil and groundwater contamination, it is important to investigate the mobility of heavy metals that largely depends on pH conditions in the soil water since adsorption of heavy metals is pH-dependent. In this study, we investigated the transport of Zn ion under various pH conditions in a sandy soil by conducting batch and column tests. The batch test was performed using the standard procedure of equilibrating fine fractions collected from the soil with eleven different initial $ZnCl_2$ concentrations, and analysis of Zn ion in the equilibrated solutions using ICP-AES. The column test consisted of monitoring the concentrations of soil solutions exiting the soil column with time known as a breakthrough curve (BTC). We injected respectively $ZnCl_2$ and KCl solutions with the concentration of 10 g/L as a tracer in a square pulse type under three different pH conditions (7.7, 5.8, 4.1) and monitored the flux concentration at the exit boundary using an EC meter and ICP-AES. The resident concentration was also monitored at the 10cm-depth by Time Domain Reflectometry (TDR). The results of batch test showed that ion exchange process between Zn and other cations (Ca, Mg) was predominant. The retardation coefficients obtained from adsorption isotherms (Linear, Freundlich, Langmuir) resulted in the various values ranging from 1.2 to 614.1. No retardation effect but ion exchange was found for the BTCs under all pH conditions. This can be explained by the absence of other cations to desorb Zn ion from soil exchange sites under the conditions of ETC experiment imposing blank water as leachate in steady-state flow. As pH decreased, the peak concentration of Zn increased due to the competition of Zn with hydrogen ions ($H^+$) and the concentrations of other cations decreased. The peak concentration of Zn was increased by 12.7 times as pH decreased from 7.7 to 4.1.

• Journal of Soil and Groundwater Environment
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• v.11 no.3
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• pp.31-42
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• 2006

Drought indices, such as PDSI (palmer Drought Severity Index), SWSI (Surface Water Supply Index) and SPI (Standardized Precipitation Index), have been developed to assess and forecast an intensity of drought. To find the applicability of groundwater level data to a drought assessment, a correlation analysis between SPI and groundwater levels was conducted for each time series at a drought season in 2001. The comparative results between SPI and groundwater levels of shallow wells of three national groundwater monitoring stations, Chungju Gageum, Yangpyung Gaegun, and Yeongju Munjeong, show that these two factors are highly correlated. In case of SPI with a duration of 1 month, cross-correlation coefficients between two factors are 0.843 at Chungju Gageum, 0.825 at Yangpyung Gaegun, and 0.737 at Yeongju Munjeong. The time lag between peak values of two factors is nearly zero in case of SPI with a duration of 1 month, which means that groundwater level fluctuation is similar to SPI values. Moreover, in case of SPI with a duration of 3 month, it is found that groundwater level can be a leading indicator to predict the SPI values I week later. Some of the national groundwater monitoring stations can be designated as DIW (Drought Index Well) based on the detailed survey of site characteristics and also new DIWs need to be drilled to assess and forecast the drought in this country.

• The Korean Journal of Nuclear Medicine
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• v.34 no.4
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• pp.336-343
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• 2000

Purpose: Thallous-201 chloride produced at Korea Cancer Center Hospital(KCCH) is used in detecting cardiovascular disease and cancer. Thallium impurity can cause emesis, catharsis and nausea, so the presence of thallium and other metal impurities should be determined. According to USP and KP, their amounts must be less than 2 ppm in thallium and 5 ppm in total. In this study, the detection method of trace amounts of metal impurities in $[^{201}Tl]$TICI injection with polarography was optimized without environmental contamination. Materials and Methods: For the detection of metal impurities, Osteryoung Square Wave Stripping Voltammetry method was used in Bio-Analytical System (BAS) 50W polarograph. The voltammetry was composed of Dropping Mercury Electrode (DME) as a working electrode, Ag/AgCl as a reference electrode and Pt wire as a counter electrode. Square wave stripping method, which makes use of formation and deformation of amalgam, was adopted to determine the metal impurities, and pH 7 phosphate buffer was used as supporting electrolyte. Results: Tl, Cu and Pb in thallous-201 chloride solution were detected by scanning from 300 mV to -800 mV Calibration curves were made by using $TINO_3,\;CuSO_4\;and\;Pb(NO_3){_2}$ as standard solutions. Tl was confirmed at -450 mV peak potential and Cu at -50 mV Less than 2 ppm of Tl and Cu was detected and Pb was not detected in KCCH-produced thallous-201 chloride injection. Conclusion: Detection limit of thallium and copper is approximately 50 ppb with this method. As a result of this experiment, thallium and other metal impurities in thallous-201 chloride injection, produced at Korea Cancer Center Hospital, are in the regulation of USP and KP Polarograph could be applied for the determination of metal impurities in the quality control of radiopharmaceuticals conveniently without environmental contamination.

• Korean Journal of Soil Science and Fertilizer
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• v.34 no.1
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• pp.1-7
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• 2001

Total upland area for cultivating the vegetable crops in the Alpine soils of Northeastern South Korea has been extending its limit to meet the increasing demand of vegetable food in recent decades. About 70% of these alpine soils are located in over 7% of the slope and most of vegetable crops have been cultivated intensively without practicing the best management systems. Thus, soil erosion and continuous cropping system have degenerated the soil fertility and shown detrimental effects on water quality. We initiated an intensive and extensive investigation to characterize the fertility problems encountered in these uplands. Objectives of this paper were to characterize the fertility status in the Alpine soils cultivated with vegetable crops for many years and to provide the recommendations for adequate soil management measures including fertilization and erosion control. Soils in general have good drainage with textural classes of loam or sandy loam. Their topographical characteristics tended to lead them to shallow plow layers, and the steepness of the terrain created erosion hazard. Of the soils examined, about 11% of uplands over 30% gradient was found in need of an urgent reforestation. A high content of gravel and firm hardness of soil attributed to inhibit the utilization of farm machinery and plant-root development. The average soil pH 5.6 was slightly low relative to pH 5.70 of the national average. Organic matter content was high compared with 2.0% of national average, but decreased with the prolonged cultivation periods. Available $P_2O_5$ concentration was unusually high due to the consequence of over dose application with chemical and organic fertilizers. Exchangeable cations as Ca, Mg, and K were appeared to be decreased in these regions with prolonging the cultivation periods. There were no significant differences in cation exchange capacity (CEC) and electrical conductivity (EC) among locations. Heavy metal contents were mostly lower than the threshold of danger level designated by Soil Environment Conservation Law of South Korea. Results indicated that a proper countermeasure and the best management practice should be immediately implemented to conserve the top soil and fertility in the Alpine regions.

• Economic and Environmental Geology
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• v.55 no.4
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• pp.407-419
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• 2022

Soil(vadose zone) gas compositions were measured for about 3 days to suggest a method for monitoring and interpreting soil gas data collected around wells from which methane(CH₄) is outflowing. The vadose zone gas samples were collected within 1 m around two test wells(TB2 and TB3) at Pohang and analyzed for CO₂, CH₄, N₂ and O₂ concentrations in situ. CO₂ flux was measured beside TB2. In addition, gas samples from well head in TB2 and atmospheric air samples were collected for comparison. Carbon isotopes of CO₂(δ¹³C_CO2) of samples collected on the last day of the study period were analyzed in the laboratory. The two test wells (TB2 and 3) were 12.7 m apart and only TB3 was cemented to the surface. According to the bio-geochemical process-based interpretation, the relationships between CO₂ and O₂, N₂, and N₂/O₂ of vadose zone gas were plotted between the lines of CH₄ oxidation and CO₂ dissolution. In addition, the CH₄ concentrations of gas samples from the wellhead of the uncemented well (TB2) were 5.2 times higher than the atmospheric CH₄ concentration. High CO₂ concentrations (average 1.148%) of vadose zone gas around TB2 seemed to be attributed to the oxidation of CH₄. On the other hand, the vadose zone CO₂ around the cemented well(TB3) showed a relatively low concentration(0.136%). This difference indicates that the vadose zone gas(including CO₂) around the CH₄ outflowing well were strongly affected by well completion(cementing). This study result can be used to establish strategies for environmental monitoring of soil around natural gas sites, and can be used to monitor leakage around injection and observation wells for CO₂ geological storage. In addition, the method of this study is useful for soil monitoring in natural gas storage and oil-contaminated sites.

• Pediatric Infection and Vaccine
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• v.5 no.2
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• pp.230-238
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• 1998

Purpose : Worldwidely, the incidence of the hepatitis A has been markedly decreased in the past years. Also in Korea, there has been only a few sporadic cases without evidence of epidemics since the mid 1980s. However, the incidence of the hepatitis A in young adults and childen has been in trends of increasing since 1996. So, we retrospectively performed the study on the epidemiolgical changes and the clinical feature of hepatitis A in childen, living in Kyung-gi province, since 1988 to 1998. Methods : The four affiliated hospitals of the Catholic University of Korea, Our lady of Mercy's hospital, Holy family hospital, Eui-Jung-bu St. Mary's hospital, and St. Vincent hospital, were enrolled in this study. We conducted statistical analysis on the incidence of hepatitis A since 1988 to 1998, concerning with the period (monthly, annually), age, sex and related epidemiological property, by reviewing the hospital records of the patients with hepatitis A. We simultaneously performed the study concerning with the clinical characteristics of hepatitis A. Results : 1) During the study period, 46 children was diagnosed as hepatitis A, and among them 28 children (60.1%) developed sporadically in the 1998. And sex ratio was 1.2(male):1(female). 2) Most of the patients developed between March and July, and hepatitits A were mainly developed in the patients above the 10 year old ages(37 patients; 80.4%). 3) The socioeconomic and educational status of the patient's parents was almostly below the middle and low class. Although, we could not find the etiological factors in most cases, but we found the evidence of interfamilial transmission in one family. 4) The patients complained the symptoms of nausea and vomiting, jaundice, poor appetite, mild fever, fatigueness, abdominal pain, URI symptom, dyspepsia, dark urine, headache and diarrhea in order, and findings of jaundice, hepatomegaly, RUQ tenderness, splenomegaly and LLQ tenderness in order were seen. 5) All patients showed abnormal findings of the liver function tests, and the pattern of cholestatic hepatitis were seen in most cases, but these findings were normalized within the 2~4 weeks. The findings of the gall bladder wall thickening, hepatomegaly, splenomegaly and ascites were seen on abodominal sonogram. 6) The prognosis of all patients were good without complications, except in one case who had the episode of transient recuurence. And the mean hospitalization dates were 11.1 days. Conclusion : We found that the incidence of hepatitis A showed the increasing trend, and peaked in the 1998 in Kyung-gi province children. And hepatitis A mainly developed in children above the 10 year old ages. The scioeconomic and educational status of patient's family was almostly below the middle class. All of them showed abnormal liver function, and clinically cholestatic hepatitis features were seen in most cases. But, the prognosis was excellent without complication in all cases.

• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
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• v.3 no.1
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• pp.1-16
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• 1970

The present status of control measures for public health important helminthic infections in Korea was surveyed in 1969 and the following results were obtained. The activities of parasitic examination and Ascaris treatment for the positives which were done during 1966 to 1969 were brought in poor result and could not decrease the infection rate. It is needed to improve or strengthen the activities. The mass treatment activities for paragonimiasis and clonorchiasis in the areas which were designated by the Ministry of Health were carried out during 1965 to 1968 with no good results in decrease of estimated number of the patients. There were too many pharmaceutical companies where many kinds of anthelmintics were produced. It may be better to reduce the number of anthelmintics produced and control the quality. The human feces, the most important source of helminthic infections, was generally not treated in sanitary ways because of the poor sewerage system and no sewage treatment plant in urban areas and insanitary latrines in rural areas. The field soils of 170 specimens were collected from 34 areas out of 55 urban and tourist areas where night soil has been prohibited by a regulation to be used as a fertilizer, and examined for parasites contamination with the result of Ascaris egg detection in 44%. Some kinds of vegetables of 64 specimens each from the supply agents of parasite free vegetables and general markets were collected and examined for parasites contamination with the results of Ascaris egg detection in 25% and 36% respectively. The parasite control activities and the ability of parasitological examination techniques in the health centers of the country were not satisfactory. The budget of the Ministry of Health for the parasite control was very poor. The actual expenditure needed for cellophane thick smear technique was 8 Won per a specimen. As a principle the control of helminthic infections might be led toward breaking the chain of events in the life cycle of the prasites and eliminating environmental and host factors concerned with the infections, and the following methods nay be pointed out. 1) Mass treatment might be done to eliminate human reservoirs of an infection. 2) Animal reservoirs which are related with human infections night be eliminated. 3) The excretes of reservoirs, particularly human feces, should be treated in sanitary ways by the means of sanitary sewerage system and sewage treatment plant in urban areas and sanitary latrines such as waterborne latrine, aqua privy and pit latrine in rural areas. The increase of national economical development and prohibition of the habit of using night soils as a fertilizer might be very important factors to achieve the purpose. 4) The control of vehicles and intermediate hosts might be done by the means of prohibition of soil contamination with parasites, food sanitation, insect control and snail control. 5) The improvement of insanitary attitudes and bad habits which are related with parasitic infections night be done by the means of prohibition of habit of using night soils as a fertilizer, and improving eating habits and personal hygiene. 6) Chemoprophylactic measure and vaccination may be effective to prevent the infections or the development of a parasite to adult in the bodies when the bodies were invaded by parasites. Further studies and development of this kind of measures are needed.