• Economic and Environmental Geology
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• v.30 no.4
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• pp.303-312
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• 1997

The massive, fractured and porous-type of glauconite, which is subdivided by surface morphology, occur in subtidal sand and semiconsolidated intertidal sand/mud from continental shelf of the southeastern Yellow Sea. This area is presumed to be a part of Holocene transgressive tidal systems tract. The glauconite, pellet-like grains with diameter of 0.1 to 1 mm, is scattered in surface sand sediments. Results of X-ray diffraction data of the minerals are monoclinic with $a=5.242{\AA}$, $b=9.059{\AA}$, $c=10.163{\AA}$, ${\beta}=100.5^{\circ}$, $V=474.53{\AA}^3$. Thermal treatments on the oriented glauconite increase the X-ray diffraction intensity near $10{\AA}$ (001), suggesting the presence of some expandable layers. Specific gravity of the glauconite is $2.60{\pm}0.45gm/cc$ on the basis of chemical composition and unit-cell dimensions. Based on $O_{10}(OH)_2$, chemical composition of glauconites, octahedral Fe content ranges from 1.19 to 2.06 atoms, corresponding octahedral AI is 0.18 to 0.76 atoms, which progressively substitute Fe for AI with increasing from porous to massive-type. The Mg content ranges from 0.35 to 0.54 atoms, and shows higher with increasing Al contents. A systematic increase of interlayer K from 0.34 to 0.71 is also observed with apparent increases from porous to massive-type, and related to a proportion of expandable layers. The clay preserved in glauconite, which is recognized as ordered/disordered (massive to fractured-type). The interstratified illite/smectite (porous-type), contains 7 to 27 % expandable layers. The glauconite seems to originate from post depositional authigenic growth in reducing environments promoted by the dissolution of clay minerals and biogenic debris.

• Economic and Environmental Geology
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• v.50 no.5
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• pp.341-352
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• 2017

Along with Cs-137 (half-life: 30.17 years), Sr-90 (half-life: 28.8 years) is one of the most important environmental monitoring radioactive elements. Rapid and easy monitoring method for Sr-90 using Laser-Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy (LIBS) has been studied. Strontium belongs to a bivalent alkaline earth metal such as calcium and has similar electron arrangement and size. Due to these similar chemical properties, it can easily enter into the human body through the food chain via water, soil, and crops when leaked into the environment. In addition, it is immersed into the bone at the case of human influx and causes the toxicity for a long time (biological half-life: about 50 years). It is a very reductive and related with the specific reaction that makes wet analysis difficult. In particular, radioactive strontium should be monitored by nuclear power plants but it is very difficult to be analysed from high-cost problems as well as low accuracy of analysis due to complicated analysis procedures, expensive analysis equipment, and a pretreatment process of using massive chemicals. Therefore, we introduce the Laser-Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy (LIBS) analysis method that analyzes the elements in the sample using the inherent spectrum by generating plasma on the sample using pulse energy, and it can be analyzed in a few seconds without preprocessing. A variety of analytical plates for samples were developed to improve the analytical sensitivity by optimizing the laser, wavelength, and time resolution. This can be effectively applied to real-time monitoring of radioactive wastewater discharged from a nuclear power plant, and furthermore, it can be applied as an emergency monitoring means such as possible future accidents at a nuclear power plants.

• The Korean Journal of Mycology
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• v.35 no.2
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• pp.85-95
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• 2007

This study was carried out to investigate the physiological activities of the ethanol extract from Gymnopilus spectabilis mycelium (EGM) and of the supernatant obtained from fermentation broth (SGB). The contents of polysaccharides, phenol compounds and total ${\beta}-glucans$ of EGM were found to be 80.14%, 3.5 mg/ml and 5.91%, respectively and those for SGB were 78.68%, 3.32 mg/ml and 3.28%, respectively. Both EGM and SGB exhibited dose-dependent nitrate-scavenging abilities at pH 1.2. In addition, both EGM and SGB on the autoxidation rate of the linoleic acid demonstrated powerful antioxidant activities at 1 mg/ml level. With respect to fibrolytic activity, EGM showed 1,180 unit/g, which was the same activity as streptokinase, while SGB was 1,011 unit/g. The angiotensin converting enzyme inhibition activity of EMG determined by both the normal and pretreatment methods were estimated to be 8.2% and 10.2%, respectively. However, SGB showed no corresponding activity. The growth inhibitory effects of EGM on AGS, A549, HeLa and NCTC cells were over 58.88%, respectively. And the growth inhibitory effects of the SGB on HeLa and NCTC cells were 44.92 and 76.76%, respectively. Also, EGM and SGB activated the components of the alternative complement pathway from 51 and 62% at the concentration of 100 mg/ml, The xanthine oxidase inhibition activities of EGM and SGB (1 mg/ml) were 9.53 and 16.92%, respectively.

• Journal of the Korean Crystal Growth and Crystal Technology
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• v.26 no.3
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• pp.115-120
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• 2016

$CeO_2$ is used as a co-catalyst with $TiO_2$ to improve the catalytic activity of $MnO_x$ and characterization of nano-sized powder is identified with de-NOx efficiency. A comparison between $MnO_x-CeO_2/TiO_2$ and single $CeO_2$ was conducted in terms of microstructural analysis to observe the behavior of $CeO_2$ in the ternary catalyst. The $MnO_x-CeO_2/TiO_2$ catalyst was synthesized by sol-gel method and the average particle size of the single $CeO_2$ is about $285{\mu}m$ due to the low thermal stability, whereas the particle size $MnO_x-CeO_2/TiO_2$ is about 130 nm. The strong interaction between Ce and Ti was identified through the EDS mapping by transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The improvement about 20 % of $de-NO_x$ efficiency is observed in the low-temperature ($150^{\circ}C{\sim}250^{\circ}C$) and vigorous oxygen exchange by well-dispersed $CeO_2$ is the reason of catalytic activity improvement.

• Korean Chemical Engineering Research
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• v.50 no.2
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• pp.229-237
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• 2012

Phosphorus was incorporated into Co/$Al_2O_3$ catalyst for FTS by impregnating an acidic precursor, phosphoric acid, in ${\gamma}-Al_2O_3$ support to improve the mechanical strength, the hydrothermal stability of the catalyst particle, and the catalytic performance as well. Surface characterization techniques such as FT-IR revealed that $AlPO_4$ phase was generated on the surface of the P-modified catalyst. The addition of phosphorus was found to alleviate the interaction between cobalt and alumina surface, and to increase reducibility of catalyst. The catalytic activity such as $C_{5+}$ productivity and turnover frequency (TOF) was calculated to evaluate catalytic performance. The influence of calcination temperature of the $Al_2O_3$ containing 2 wt.% P on the catalytic performance was also investigated. Through hydrothermal stability test and XRD analysis, the P-modified catalyst had strong resistant to the pressurized and hot $H_2O$. The mechanical strength of the P-modified catalyst was also examined through an in-house fluidized-bed vessel, and it was found that the catalyst fragmentation could be successfully suppressed with P. Taken as a whole, the best performance was shown to be at 1~2 wt.% P in alumina and at the calcination temperature of $500^{\circ}C$.

• Journal of the Society of Cosmetic Scientists of Korea
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• v.43 no.3
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• pp.211-221
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• 2017

This study was performed to investigate the functional properties and characteristics of Dolnamul (Sedum sarmentosum) as a cosmetic ingredient. Lyophilized sedum powder was extracted with ethanol and stored at $-20^{\circ}C$ for the following experiments. Total polyphenol compounds of the ethanol extract of sedum (SE) was $27.98{\pm}0.34g/kg$(dry weight): epicatechin ($162.14{\pm}5.07mg/kg$), epigallocatechin ($55.99{\pm}2.49mg/kg$), and kaempferol ($47.96{\pm}3.02mg/kg$) were contained in the SE. The SE had organic radical scavenging capacity ($78.43{\pm}1.08%$) and metal reducing power (FRAP value $2.54{\pm}0.12$). FTC and TBARS assays confirmed that the SE inhibited the early stage of lipid peroxidation ($62.03{\pm}0.38%$) as well as the final stage of lipid peroxidation ($55.36{\pm}2.05%$), respectively. The SE (5 mg/mL, dry weight) was proved to have antibacterial effect on the growth of Propionibacterium acnes. The inhibitory percentages of the SE on elastase and collagenase activities were $38.94{\pm}7.09%$ and $78.94{\pm}2.49%$, respectively. Compare to the control group, the SE treated group induced an increase of Col3A1 expression and collagen production ($58.11{\pm}1.07%$). The oil in water emulsion (0.5% SE adding group) showed pH 6.88 and 1.47 g/mL of density. The hardness changes of the SE adding emulsions were not detected during the stored periods at various temperatures ($-20-45^{\circ}C$) for four weeks. It is considered that the SE has antibacterial, antioxidant, and antiaging activities.

• The Korean Journal of Mycology
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• v.12 no.4
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• pp.133-140
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• 1984

Some properties of cellulolytic enzymes produced by Pleurotus sajor-caju JAFM 1017 during its growth in synthetic medium were investigated. The optimum pH of avicelase, CMCase, and ${\beta}-glucosidase$ was pH 5.5, pH 4.5 and pH 6.0, respectively. Avicelase and CMCase were stable within pH 5.0 to 6.0 and 4.0 to 6.0, respectively, and ,${\beta}-glucosidase$ was within pH 5.5 to 6.5. The optimum temperature of avicelase, CMCase and ${\beta}-glucosidase$ was the same of $40^{\circ}C$. The enzymes were stable below the optimum temperature, but the enzymes were unstable over the temperature of $50^{\circ}C$, and avicelase was losing about 91.7% of activity at $70^{\circ}C$ for 10 min. The enzyme activity of avicelase and CMCase was increased in proportion to the substrate concentration within 1% and 0.7%, respectively, and ${\beta}-glucosidase$ was within 0.1%. The Michaelis constants (Km) of avicelase and CMCase were 30.77mg avicel/ml and 14.64m Na-CMC/ml, respectively and ${\beta}-glucosidase$ was 5. 13mg salicin/ml. The reducing sugar production of avicelase was proportionaly increased until 120 min. and CMCase and ${\beta}-glucosidase$ were until 60min. The activity of three cellulolytic enzymes were increased by $Ca^{2+}$ at the concentration of $10^{-2}M$, but were inhibited by $Hg^{2+}$, $Ag^+$.

• Resources Recycling
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• v.29 no.2
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• pp.55-61
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• 2020

Selective catalytic reduction (SCR) has been a promising technology to reduce the air pollution caused by nitrogen oxides (NOx) in several industries. The consumption of SCR catalysts increases every year as technology evolves, however those have a limited lifespan and usually end up in landfills after they deactivate. Currently, the most widely used catalyst for and stationary applications is V₂O₅-WO₃/TiO₂ which can contain around 50% wt V₂O₅ and 7-10% wt of WO₃. The vast uses for both vanadium and tungsten and the worldwide interest in recycling methods that allow for the extraction of metals from secondary sources represent the major motivation for this research. The extraction time, pH dependency, extraction concentration studies were carried out using Aliquat 336 in exxol D80 as the extractant. It was determined that to optimize the extraction of both metals 30min of contact time with an organic phase containing 0.5mol/L of Aliquat 336 are needed at a slightly acidic pH (~5.0). In addition, counter McCabe-Thiele studies allowed us to determine that one stage is necessary for the removal of 99% of vanadium while 2 stages are necessary for the extraction of tungsten and counter current simulations proved that the theoretical approach was correct.

• Economic and Environmental Geology
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• v.50 no.3
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• pp.215-224
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• 2017

Arsenic (As) is known to be the most toxic element and frequently detected in groundwater environment. Inorganic As exists as arsenite [As(III)] and arsenate [As(V)] in reduced and oxidized environments, respectively. It has been reported that the toxicity of arsenite is much higher than that of arsenate and furthermore arsenite shows relatively higher mobility in aqueous environments. For this reason, there have been numerous researches on the process for oxidation of arsenite to arsenate to reduce the toxicity of arsenic. In particular, photooxidation has been considered to be simple, economical, and efficient to attain such goal. This study was conducted to evaluate the applicability of naturally-occurring goethite as a photocatalyst to substitute for $TiO_2$ which has been mostly used in the photooxidation processes so far. In addition, the effects of several factors on the overall performance of arsenite photocatalytic oxidation process were evaluated. The results show that the efficiency of the process was affected by total concentration of dissolved cations rather than by the kind of those cations and also the relatively higher pH conditions seemed to be more favorable to the process. In the case of coexistence of arsenite and arsenate, the removal tendency by adsorption onto goethite appeared to be different between arsenite and arsenate due to their different affinities with goethite, but any effect on the photocatalytic oxidation of arsenite was not observed. In terms of effect of humic acid on the process, it is likely that the higher concentration of humic acid reduced the overall performance of the arsenite photocatalytic oxidation as a result of competing interaction of activated oxygen species, such as hydroxyl and superoxide radicals, with arsenite and humic acid. In addition, it is revealed that the injection of oxygen gas improved the process because oxygen contributes to arsenite oxidation as an electron acceptor. Based on the results of the study, consequently, the photocatalytic oxidation of aqueous arsenite using goethite seems to be greatly feasible with the optimization of process.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.28 no.11
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• pp.1354-1360
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• 2018

The aim of this study was to develop a simple, environmentally friendly synthesis of silver nanoparticles (SNPs) without the use of chemical reducing agents by exploiting the extracellular synthesis of SNPs in a culture supernatant of Bacillus thuringiensis CH3. Addition of 5 mM $AgNO_3$ to the culture supernatant at a ratio of 1:1 caused a change in the maximum absorbance at 418 nm corresponding to the surface plasmon resonance of the SNPs. Synthesis of SNPs occurred within 8 hr and reached a maximum at 40-48 hr. The structural characteristics of the synthesized SNPs were investigated by various instrumental analysis. FESEM observations showed the formation of well-dispersed spherical SNPs, and the presence of silver was confirmed by EDS analysis. The X-ray diffraction spectrum indicated that the SNPs had a face-centered cubic crystal lattice. The average SNP size, calculated using DLS, was about 51.3 nm and ranged from 19 to 110 nm. The synthesized SNPs exhibited a broad spectrum of antimicrobial activity against a variety of pathogenic Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria and yeasts. The highest antimicrobial activity was observed against C. albicans, a human pathogenic yeast. The FESEM observations determined that the antimicrobial activity of the SNPs was due to destruction of the cell surface, cytoplasmic leakage, and finally cell lysis. This study suggests that B. thuringiensis CH3 is a potential candidate for efficient synthesis of SNPs, and that these SNPs have potential uses in a variety of pharmaceutical applications.