• Journal of the Korean Recycled Construction Resources Institute
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• v.10 no.1
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• pp.117-123
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• 2022

Recently, due to COV ID-19, many people are spending most of their time indoors. So, there is a rising interest on the indoor air quality in the field of building construction. The main sources for the indoor air pollution are human indoors activity, building materials, living supplies and the polluted air from outdoor. The Korean government has designated 17 indoor air pollutants including fine dust, total airborne bacteria, fungi and carbon dioxide, etc.. Most people are always exposed to assorted bacteria and molds in our daily life, because indoor environment for human, moderate temperature are humidity, it is favourable to the growth of most of bacteria and fungi. Pine needles have an antibacterial effect against bacteria and fungi. In this study, the antibacterial activity against bacteria and fungi was tested by cement matrix using pine needle extract. As a result, the cement matrix using pine needle extract showed antibacterial activities against bacteria, but in the case of fungi, it did not show antifungal activity.

• Journal of Mushroom
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• v.13 no.1
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• pp.26-29
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• 2015

Since button mushroom (Agaricus bisporus) cultivation is performed in closed environment, the understanding of indoor environment becomes essential for the quality and quantitative production of the greenhouse-grown mushroom. To generate information on indoor environmental factors affecting on fruiting body quality, we investigated temperature, humidity, and bacterial concentration and species in a greenhouse located in Buyeo, Chungnam Province. Temperature and humidity were recorded as $19.75{\pm}0.35^{\circ}C$ and $87{\pm}3.67%$, respectively. The total concentration of bacteria was measured as $3.84{\times}10^3CFU/M^3$. Advenella kashmirensis, Bacillus vietnamensism, B. licheniformis, Burkholderia sordidicola, Fictibacillus phosphorivorans, Lysobacter daejeonensis, Microbacterium esteraromaticum, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, P. protegens, P. gessardii, P. mosseli were identified from indoor air of the greenhouse.

• Journal of Environmental Health Sciences
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• v.40 no.2
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• pp.98-104
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• 2014

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to determine airborne bioaerosols such as bacteria and fungi in the kitchens of restaurants, and to assess the effects of thermal factors on the levels of the bioaerosols. Methods: Air samples were taken from kitchens of nine restaurants. An Anderson type air sampler was used for sampling and measurements. Petri dishes filled with a microbiological culture medium (trypticase soy agar for bacteria and Sabouraud dextrose agar for fungi) were used as the sampling surface. Results: The levels of bacterial aerosol measured were $10-10^3CFU/m^3$ and fungal aerosol $10-10^2CFU/m^3$, respectively The mean values of air temperature and relative humidity in the kitchens were $24.6^{\circ}C$ and 46.4%, respectively. Overall, the levels of bacterial aerosol varied by the restaurant type, and fungal aerosol by the business period (p < 0.05). The main effect of air temperature and interaction effect of air temperature and relative humidity onto the bacterial level were significant (p < 0.05), whereas the effects were not significant onto the fungal level. Conclusions: The results indicate a wide variation in the levels of bioaerosols among different kitchens. The observed differences in bioaerosol levels in the kitchens reflect different periods of use. The interactions of air temperature and relative humidity onto the bacterial level suggest that constant attention should be paid to avoid peaks of contamination during the summer season.

• Journal of Environmental Science International
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• v.16 no.7
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• pp.785-791
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• 2007

The current study evaluated the technical feasibility of the application of titanium dioxide ($TiO_{2}$) photo-catalytic air cleaners for the disinfection of bioaerosols present in indoor air. The evaluation included both laboratory and field tests and the tests of hydraulic diameter (HD) and lamp type (LT). Disinfection efficiency of photocatalytic oxidation (PCO) technique was estimated by survival ratio of bacteria or fungi calculated from the number of viable cells which form colonies on the nutrient agar plates. It was suggested that the reactor coating with $TiO_{2}$ did not enhance the adsorption of bioaerosols, and that the UV irradiation has certain extent of disinfection efficiency. The disinfection efficiency increased as HD decreased, most likely due to the decrease in the light intensity since the distance of the catalyst from the light source increased when increasing the HD. It was further suggested that the mass transfer effects were not as important as the light intensity effects on the PCO disinfection efficiency of bioaerosols. Germicidal lamp was superior to the black lamp for the disinfection of airborne bacteria and fungi, which is supported by the finding that the disinfection efficiencies were higher when the germicidal lamp was used compared to the black lamp in the laboratory test. These findings, combined with operational attributes such as a low pressure drop across the reactor and ambient temperature operation, can make the PCO reactor a possible tool in the effort to improve indoor bioaerosol levels.

• Proceedings of the KSR Conference
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• 2008.06a
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• pp.1561-1565
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• 2008

More than 3.4 million people use Hong Kong metro a day. It was first constructed in 1979, and extended to 9 operating lines with 168.1km length operated by Hong Kong Mass Transit Railway Corporation (MTR). In Hong Kong, airborne viruses such as avian influenza (bird's flu) and severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), air pollution by high-density traffics, bacteria and mold due to relatively high humidity are major concerns on air quality management. In this study, we focused on the cases for improving indoor air quality conducted by Hong Kong MTR currently. The case includes the photocatalytic coatings on knobs (or hand straps) to prevent outbreak of bird's flu and SARS, the high voltage ionizers installed at metro platform, and the periodical radon monitoring.

• Journal of Internet of Things and Convergence
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• v.6 no.2
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• pp.19-24
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• 2020

In the present study, using biological information of bacteria and biochemical information of chlorine dioxide gas, Gram-positive bacteria, e.g., Alloiococcus otitis, Erysipelothrix rhusiopathiae, Staphylococcus caprae, Staphylococcus lentus, and gram-negative bacteria, e.g., Acinetobacter baumannii complex, Aeromonas salmonicida, Brucella melitensis, Oligella ureolytica were used whether a plastic kit to release ClO₂ gas could inhibit their growth. Overall, chlorine dioxide gas showed about 99% inhibition of bacterial growth, with less than 10 CFU. However, it was found that Gram positive Alloiococcus otitis and Gram negative Aeromonas salmonicida had more than about 50 CFU. When comparing the results of experiments with several bacteria, it suggested that the concentration of chlorine dioxide gas would be at least 10 ppm to 400 ppm for the bacterial inhibition. The results of this study could be used as basic data to evaluate the clinical usefulness of chlorine dioxide gas. If this study helps with prior knowledge to help clinicians to recognize and prevent the presence of micro-organisms that cause infections in hospitals, it would be helpful for activities such as patient care as a convergence field. In the future, it is considered that the research results will be the basis for rapidly inhibiting the microbes infected with patients by utilizing data of the information of the microbes that are inhibited for chlorine dioxide gas.

• Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
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• v.58 no.2
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• pp.167-173
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• 2005

Background : Airborne particles during Yellow Sand phenomena are known to be associated with the respiratory disease. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the concentration and metal component properties of Yellow Sand particles and compare with airborne microbial concentration and species in non Yellow Sand and Yellow Sand phenomena. Methods : Samplings were carried out in 2002 in Seosan, during non Yellow Sand and Yellow Sand phenomena. Samples were taken using the 8-stage Cascade impactor and metallic elements were analyzed by XRF. Those were culture on the media for bacterial and fungal culture and celline for virus. Results : The concentration of total suspended particulate matter were respectively $80.2{\mu}g/m^3$, $40.3{\mu}g/m^3$ in non Yellow Sand and Yellow Sand phenomena. The concentration of metallic elements such as Ca, Fe, Cu and Zn in Yellow Sand phenomena were higher than its in non Yellow Sand. Two bacteria, Bacillus species and Staphylococcus were grown in two periods. In both periods, several fungal spores(Mucor species, Cladosporum, Alternaria, Aspergillus, Penicillium, and Alternaria species) were identified. The differences of bacteria and fungus species not observed in Yellow Sand and non Yellow Sand. Any viruses were not isolated in between both periods. Conclusions : The concentration of total suspended particulate matter and some metallic elements in Yellow Sand phenomena were higher than its in non Yellow Sand. The difference of bacteria and fungus species was not observed in non Yellow Sand and Yellow Sand phenomena.

• Journal of Environmental Health Sciences
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• v.48 no.2
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• pp.116-122
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• 2022

Background: The recent COVID-19 pandemic is one of the worst disease outbreaks of the 21th century. Due to a lack of reliable antiviral therapeutics, wearing face masks is recommended to prevent airborne infection originating from virus-contaminated bioaerosols. Objectives: The aim of this study was to evaluate the filtration efficiencies of face masks that are commercially available in South Korea for a biological aerosol of Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) and murine coronavirus, a well-known surrogate for human coronaviruses. Methods: We collected six different kinds of commercial masks: two Korea Filter (KF)94 (KF94-1, KF94-2) masks, one surgical (Surgical-1) mask, one anti-droplet (KF-AD-1) mask, and two dust (Dust-1, Dust-2) face masks. S. aureus (ATCC 6538), a well-performing test bacteria and murine coronavirus (ATCC VR-764) were prepared under a suitable culture condition. Then, a mask biological filtration tester was used to examine the microbial filtration efficiencies of masks. Test microorganisms were quantitatively measured via cultivation methods and microbial filtration efficiencies were calculated appropriately. Results: All face masks showed over 99.6% filtration efficiency for S. aureus or murine coronavirus. There were no significant differences among the bacterial filtration efficiencies of the face masks. KF94-1 (99.97±0.08%) and Dust-1 mask (99.97±0.07%) showed the highest (over 99.9%) filtration efficiency for murine coronavirus. KF94-1 or Dust-1 masks showed a significant virus filtration efficiency compared to Surgical-1 mask (p<0.05; Mann-Whitney U test). Conclusions: All the commercially available face masks used in this study can filter S. aureus or murine coronavirus in bioaerosols efficiently, regardless of the mask type. Therefore, our results suggest that wearing a certified face mask is a reliable means to prevent the transmission of infectious airborne diseases via biological aerosols.

• Journal of the Society of Disaster Information
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• v.18 no.3
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• pp.566-573
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• 2022

Purpose: This study attempted to verify the effectiveness of the application of air sterilizers in elementary schools at risk of group infection among vulnerable groups in order to address fears of new infectious diseases that have increased since the outbreak of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) and Coronavirus infection-19 (COVID-19). Method: One air sterilizer was installed in each classroom, cafeteria, and bathroom of an elementary school in Seoul, and surface and air samples were collected at a distance of 2m from the air sterilizer, and the bacterial reduction effect was analyzed compared to the uninstalled control group. Result: The sterilization effect on the surface was less than 2log CFU/cm² in both the control group and the test group, and the test group showed 54 to 87% less general bacterial colony formation than the control group. In addition, the sterilization effect in the air differed depending on the location of the air sterilizer, and the wall installation showed a reduction effect of up to 91% compared to the control group, and the central installation showed a reduction effect of up to 93%. Conclusion: As a result of the study, it is expected that the prevention of infectious diseases can be increased by maintaining the current quarantine program in elementary schools that conduct regular disinfection while applying air sterilizers. In addition, it is considered desirable to facilitate the inflow of air into the air sterilizer.

• Journal of Korean Society of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene
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• v.27 no.1
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• pp.70-76
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• 2017

Objectives: This on-site study was performed to evaluate the reduction efficiency of an air cleaner on particulate matters and biological agents in a swine facility. Materials and Methods: Particulate matter was measured using a real-time monitoring recorder and biological agents were sampled with a one-stage impactor and then analyzed based on the microbial culture method. An experimental process for the reduction effect on airborne pollutants through air cleaner operation consisted of three conditions: no treatment, wet scrapper by water spray and wet scrapper by disinfectant spray. Results: Geometric mean levels of particulate matter(TSP, $PM_{10}$, $PM_{2.5}$ and $PM_1$) were presented at $1,608{\mu}g/m^3$, $1,373.8{\mu}g/m^3$, $401.8{\mu}g/m^3$ and $144.5{\mu}g/m^3$ for no treatment; $1,503{\mu}g/m^3$, $1,017{\mu}g/m^3$, $159.4{\mu}g/m^3$ and $69.8{\mu}g/m^3$ for wet scrapper by water spray; and $1,222.17{\mu}g/m^3$, $477.17{\mu}g/m^3$, $33.2{\mu}g/m^3$ and $11.1{\mu}g/m^3$ for wet scrapper by disinfectant spray, respectively. In the case of biological agents, the geometric averaged concentrations of total airborne bacteria and fungi were as follows: $45,371cfu/m^3$ and $13,474cfu/m^3$ for no treatment, $43,286cfu/m^3$ and $8,610cfu/m^3$ for wet scrapper by water spray, and $2,440cfu/m^3$ and 1,867 cfu/ for wet scrapper by disinfectant spray, respectively. Regardless of particulate matter and biological agent, the highest concentrations were found for no treatment, while the lowest concentrations were found with wet scrapper by disinfectant spray. Conclusions: Based on the results obtained from this on-site evaluation, there was a significant reduction effect on particulate matter and biological agents through the application of an air cleaner in this study.