• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Soil and Groundwater Environment Conference
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• 2001.09a
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• pp.195-198
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• 2001

Bioremediation of hazardous hydrophobic organic compounds, such as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), is a major environmental concern due to their toxic and carcinogenic properties. Bue to their low solubility in water, the compounds are microbiologically persistent. This work investigates optimal conditions to enhance the biodegradation of phenanthrene in water and soil-slurry systems. Biodegradation tests were performed with three different types of supplements: glucose as a general carbon source, salicylate as an enzyme inducer, and Triton X-100 as a surfactant. The tests indicate that glucose and Triton X-100 were not very effective to increase biodegradation rate, even though the number of microorganisms are highly increased in the case of glucose addition. Salicylate accelerated biodegradation of phenanthrene, but the addition above optimal concentration inhibited microbial growth. Salicylate is considered to be an attractive alternative for the successful bioremediation of PAH-contaminated soil.

• Korean Journal of Breeding Science
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• v.42 no.2
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• pp.121-128
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• 2010

Finding alternative and renewable energy sources has become an important goal for plant scientists, especially with the demand for energy increasing worldwide and the supply of fossil fuel being depleted. The most important biofuel to date is bioethanol which is produced from sugars (sucrose and starch) found in corn and sugarcane. Second generation bioethanol is targeting studies that would allow the use of the cell wall (lignocellulose) as a source of carbon by non-food plants. Plant scientists, including breeders, agronomists, physiologists and molecular biologists, are working towards the development of new and improved energy crops especially, how to design crops for bioenergy production and increased biomass generation for biofuel purposes. This review focuses on: i) the current status of first generation bioenergy production, ii) the limitations of first and second generation bioenergy, and iii) ongoing research to overcome challenging issues in second generation bioenergy.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.20 no.12
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• pp.804-815
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• 2019

Due to the depletion and environmental problems of fossil fuel, biomass has arisen as an alternative energy source. Biomass is a renewable and carbon-neutral source. However, it is moister and has lower energy density. Therefore, biomass needs thermal chemical conversion processes like gasification, and it does not only produce a flammable gas, called 'syngas', which consists of CO, H2, and CH4, but also some unwanted byproducts such as tars and some particulates. These contaminants are condensed and foul in pipelines, combustion chamber and turbine, causing a deterioration in efficiency. Thus this work attempted to find a method to remove tars and particles from syngas with a filter which adopts a pre-coating technology for preventing blockage of the filter medium. Hydrated limestone powder and activated carbon(wood char) powder were used as the pre-coat materials. The removal efficiency of the tars was 86 % and 80 % with activated carbon(wood char) coating and hydrated limestone coating, respectively.

• Transactions of the Korean hydrogen and new energy society
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• v.28 no.2
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• pp.174-180
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• 2017

Recently, the world faces the environmental problem such as air pollution due to harmful gas discharged from car and abnormal climate due to the green-house gases increased by the discharge of $CO_2$. Compressed Natural Gas (CNG), one of alternative for this problem, is less harmful, compared to the existing fossil fuel, as gaseous fuel, and less carbon in fuel ingredients and carbon dioxide generation rate relatively favorable more than the existing fuel. However, CNG fuel has the weakness of slow flame propagation speed and difficult fast burn. On the other hand, hydrogen does not include carbon in fuel ingredients, and does not discharge harmful gas such as CO and HC. Moreover, it has strength of quick burning velocity and ignition is possible with small ignition energy source and it's has wide Lean Flammability Limit. If using this hydrogen with CNG fuel, the characteristics of output and discharge gas is improved by the mixer's burning velocity improved, and, at the same time, is possible to have stable lean combustion with the reduction of $CO_2$ expected. Therefore, this research tries to identify the characteristics of engine and emission gas when mixing CNG fuel and hydrogen in each portion and burning them in spark igniting engine, and grasp the lean combustion limit and emission gas characteristics according and use it as the basic data of hydrogen-CNG premixed engine.

• Transactions of the Korean hydrogen and new energy society
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• v.27 no.4
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• pp.357-364
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• 2016

Recently, the world faces the environmental problem such as air pollution due to harmful gas discharged from car and abnormal climate due to the green-house gases increased by the discharge of $CO_2$. Compressed Natural Gas (CNG), one of alternative for this problem, is less harmful, compared to the existing fossil fuel, as gaseous fuel, and less carbon in fuel ingredients and carbon dioxide generation rate relatively favorable more than the existing fuel. However, CNG fuel has the weakness of slow flame propagation speed and difficult fast burn. On the other hand, hydrogen does not include carbon in fuel ingredients, and does not discharge harmful gas such as CO and HC. Moreover, it has strength of quick burning velocity and ignition is possible with small ignition energy source and it's has wide Lean Flammability Limit. If using this hydrogen with CNG fuel, the characteristics of output and discharge gas is improved by the mixer's burning velocity improved, and, at the same time, is possible to have stable lean combustion with the reduction of $CO_2$ expected. Therefore, this research tries to identify the characteristics of engine and emission gas when mixing CNG fuel and hydrogen in each portion and burning them in spark igniting engine, and grasp the combustion stability and emission gas characteristics according and use it as the basic data of hydrogen-CNG premixed engine.

• Mycobiology
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• v.45 no.2
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• pp.90-96
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• 2017

Different endophytes isolated from the seeds of Sophora flavescens were tested for their ability to produce matrine production. Response surface methodology (RSM) was applied to optimize the medium components for the endophytic fungus. Results indicated that endophyte Aspergillus terreus had the ability to produce matrine. The single factor tests demonstrated that potato starch was the best carbon source and the combination of peptone and $NH_4NO_3$ was the optimal nitrogen source for A. terreus. The model of RSM predicted to gain the maximal matrine production at $20.67{\mu}g/L$, when the potato starch was 160.68 g/L, peptone was 24.96 g/L and $NH_4NO_3$ was 2.11 g/L. When cultured in the optimal medium, the matrine yield was an average of $20.63{\pm}0.11{\mu}g/L$, which was consistent with the model prediction. This study offered an alternative source for the matrine production by endophytic fungus fermentation and may have far-reaching prospect and value.

• Journal of Animal Science and Technology
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• v.53 no.3
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• pp.261-268
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• 2011

The increasing demand of the crops (soybean and corn) for biofuel production has increased the focus of the animal nutritionists to look for alternative feeds, which are economic and environmental friendly. To identify microalgae as suitable candidate as an alternative feed, growth response of Chlorella vulgaris was studied under varying concentrations of carbon dioxide (0.07, 1.4, 3.0 and 5.0%) and photon densities (39.19, 72.97, 105.41, 116.22, 135.14, $175.68\;{\mu}mol/m^2/s$) by employing a photo-bioreactor. Swine wastewater was also investigated as nutritional source to economize the biomass production. Results showed that the higher biomass production was found to be at 3.0% $CO_2$ compared to other $CO_2$ concentrations. However, no difference in biomass production was found at $105.41\;{\mu}mol/m^2/s$ and above photon densities with 12 h of photoperiodicity. It was observed that C. vulgaris could easily grow in 200 times diluted swine wastewater and growth was found to be similar with that of artificial medium. Provided the conducive conditions for optimal growth, it has also the potentiality of depleting ammonia nitrogen ($NH_4$-N) and orthophosphate ($PO_4^{3-}$-P) completely from the wastewater after 3~4 days of cultivation. Thus, growing C. vulgaris would not only solve the problem of animal feed, but also help in biological $CO_2$ mitigation and wastewater treatment.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.9 no.6
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• pp.804-810
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• 1999

There is a possibility that carvone, a monoterpene from spearmint (Mentha spicata), could induce the bph degradative pathway and genes in Alcaligenes eutrophus H850, which is a known Gram-negative PCB degrader with a broad substrate specificity that was thoroughly investigated with Arthrobacter sp. BIB, a Gram-positive PCB degrader. The strains BIB and H850 were unable to utilize and grow on the plant terpene [(R)-(-)-carvone] (50ppm) to be recognized as a sole carbon source. Nevertheless, the carvone did induce 2,3-dihydroxybiphenyl 1,2-dioxygenase (encoded by bphC) in the strain B lB, as observed by a resting cell assay that monitors accumulation of a yellow meta ring fission product from 4,4'-dichlorobiphenyl (DCBp). The monoterpene, however, did not appear to induce the meta cleavage pathway in the strain H850. Instead, an assumption was made that the strain might be using an alternative pathway, probably the ortho-cleavage pathway. A reverse transcription (RT)-PCR system, utilizing primers designed from a conserved region of the bphC gene of Arthrobacter sp. M5, was employed to verify the occurrence of the alternative pathway. A successful amplification (182bp) of mRNA transcribed from the N-terminal region of the bphC gene was accomplished in H850 cells induced by carvone (50ppm) as well as in biphenyl-growth cells. It is, therefore, likely that H850 possesses a specific PCB degradation pathway and hence a different substrate specificity compared with B1B. This study will contribute to an elucidation of the dynamic aspects of PCB bioremediation in terms of roles played by PCB degraders and plant terpenes as natural inducer substrates that are ubiquitous and environmentally compatible.

• Journal of the Korean Wood Science and Technology
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• v.51 no.3
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• pp.207-221
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• 2023

The increasing demand for clean energy requires considerable effort to find alternative energy sources, such as briquettes. This research aims to develop a charcoal briquette with added pine resin (API) that has excellent combustion speed and distinctive aroma. Briquettes are composed of charcoal, pine resin (concentration: 0%-30%), and starch (up to 7%). They are produced in several stages, including coconut shell pyrolysis in conventional combustion, to obtain charcoal for the briquette precursor. Briquette compaction is conducted by mixing and densifying the charcoal, pine resin, and starch using a hydraulic press for 3 min. The hydraulic press has a total surface area and diameter of 57.7 cm² and 3.5 cm, respectively. The briquettes are dried at different temperatures, reaching 70℃ for 24 h. The study results show that the briquettes have a thickness and diameter of up to 2 and 3.5 cm, respectively; moisture of 2.18%-2.62%; ash of 11.61%-13.98%; volatile matter of 27.15%-51.74%; and fixed carbon content of 40.24%-59.46%. The compressive strength of the briquettes is 186-540 kg/cm². Their calorific value is 5,338-6,120 kcal/kg, combusting at a high speed of 0.15-0.40 s. The methoxy naphthalene, phenol, benzopyrrole, and lauryl alcohol; ocimene, valencene, and cembrene are found in the API. The API briquette has several chemical compounds, such as musk ambrette, ocimene, sabinene, limonene, 1-(p-cumenyl) adamantane, butane, and propanal, which improve aroma, drug application, and fuel production. Accordingly, API briquettes have considerable potential as an alternative energy source and a health improvement product.

• New & Renewable Energy
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• v.4 no.2
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• pp.21-30
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• 2008

Anaerobic digestion (AD) is the most promising method of treating and recycling of different organic wastes, such as OFMSW, household wastes, animal manure, agro-industrial wastes, industrial organic wastes and sewage sludge. During AD, i.e. degradation in the absence of oxygen, organic material is decomposed by anaerobes forming degestates such as an excellent fertilizer and biogas, a mixture of carbon dioxide and methane. AD has been one of the leading technologies that can make a large contribution to producing renewable energy and to reducing $CO_2$ and other GHG emission, it is becoming a key method for both waste treatment and recovery of a renewable fuel and other valuable co-products. A classification of the basic AD technologies for the production of biogas can be made according to the dry matter of biowaste and digestion temperature, which divide the AD process in wet and dry, mesophilic and thermophilic. The biogas produced from AD plant can be utilized as an alternative energy source, for lighting and cooking in case of small-scale, for CHP and vehicle fuel or fuel in industrials in case of large-scale. This paper provides an overview of the status of biogas production and utilization technologies.