• Korean Journal of Food Science and Technology
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• v.49 no.4
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• pp.377-382
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• 2017

The objective of this study was to isolate and characterize lactic acid bacteria (LAB) exhibiting cholesterol-lowering activity from the Korean traditional fermented food, kimchi. The previously isolated LAB strains were assessed for cholesterol-lowering efficacy in the presence of 0.1% cholesterol. All LAB strains tested in this study were able to assimilate cholesterol at varying levels, ranging from 35.0 to 99.4%. Among them, the Lactobacillus plantarum FMB 31 strain exhibited the highest cholesterol-lowering effect with 99.4% cholesterol removal efficiency. The strain was stable in the presence of acid, bile, and salt stress, and showed high adherence on HT-29 cells, a human colon line. In addition, the LAB strain showed no pathogenic properties such as the production of hemolysin and biogenic amines. Thus, this study suggests that the L. plantarum FMB 31 strain isolated from kimchi can be a potential source of probiotic products with strong cholesterol-lowering effect.

• Journal of Applied Biological Chemistry
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• v.62 no.3
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• pp.257-264
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• 2019

Rice bran is considered a natural source of antioxidants. In this study, rice bran was fermented with lactic acid bacteria to increase its antioxidant activity. Four strains isolated from fermented food, Lactobacillus plantarum MJM60383, Lactococcus lactis subsp. lactis MJM60392, Lactobacillus fermentum MJM60393, and Lactobacillus paracasei MJM60396, were confirmed as safe through stability tests such as safety assessment for biogenic amine production, hemolytic activity, and mucin degradation, and showed high reducing capacity. The antioxidant activity of rice bran fermentation altered by these strains was evaluated using several methods including measurement of $Fe^{2+}$ chelating activity and scavenging activity by 1,1-diphenyl-2-picryl-hydrazil (DPPH), 2,2'-azinobis-(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) (ABTS), and nitric oxide assays. In this study, the total phenolic content and ${\gamma}$-oryzanol were evaluated by high-performance liquid chromatography. Compared to non-fermented rice bran and a commercial product, rice bran fermented with Lactococcus lactis subsp. lactis MJM60392 showed the highest phenolic content (844.13 mg GAE/g). Moreover, the content of ferulic acids, ${\rho}$-coumaric acid, and ${\gamma}$-oryzanol in rice bran increased after fermentation with L. lactis subsp. lactis MJM60392 and L. fermentum MJM60393 compared to other samples. Indeed, the DPPH radical scavenging activity and NO scavenging activity were also found to be high in these fermented rice brans. These results indicated that fermentation with lactic acid bacteria increases the active compound levels and the potent antioxidant activities of rice bran.

• 한국신재생에너지학회:학술대회논문집
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• 2011.05a
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• pp.172-172
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• 2011

Anaerobic digestion(AD) has successfully been used for many applications that have conclusively demonstrated its ability to recycle biogenic wastes. AD has been successfully applied in industrial waste water treatment, stabilsation of sewage sludge, landfill management and recycling of biowaste and agricultural wastes as manure, energy crops. During AD, i.e. organic materials are decomposed by anaerobic forming bacteria and fina1ly converted to excellent fertilizer and biogas which is primarily composed of methane(CH4) and carbon dioxide(CO2) with smaller amounts of hydrogen sulfide(H2S) and ammonia(NH3), trace gases such as hydrogen(H2), nitrogen(N2), carbon monoxide(CO), oxygen(O2) and contain dust particles and siloxanes. The production and utilisation of biogas has several environmental advantages such as i)a renewable energy source, ii)reduction the release of methane to the atomsphere, iii)use as a substitute for fossil fuels. In utilisation of biogas, most of biogas produced from small scale plant e.g. farm-scale AD plant are used to provide as energy source for cooking and lighting, in most of the industrialised countries for energy recovery, environmental and safety reasons are used in combined heat and power(CHP) engines or as a supplement to natural. In particular, biogas to use as vehicle fuel or for grid injection there different biogas treatment steps are necessary, it is important to have a high energy content in biogas with biogas purification and upgrading. The energy content of biogas is in direct proportion to the methane content and by removing trace gases and carbon dioxide in the purification and upgrading process the energy content of biogas in increased. The process of purification and upgrading biogas generates new possibilities for its use since it can then replace natural gas, which is used extensively in many countries, However, those technologies add to the costs of biogas production. It is important to have an optimized purification and upgrading process in terms of low energy consumption and high efficiency giving high methane content in the upgraded gas. A number of technologies for purification and upgrading of biogas have been developed to use as a vehicle fuel or grid injection during the passed twenty years, and several technologies exist today and they are continually being improved. The biomethane which is produced from the purification and the upgrading process of biogas has gained increased attention due to rising oil and natural gas prices and increasing targets for renewable fuel quotes in many countries. New plants are continually being built and the number of biomethane plants was around 100 in 2009.

• Journal of Korean Society for Atmospheric Environment
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• v.34 no.3
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• pp.457-468
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• 2018

To improve understanding of the physico-chemical characteristics of aerosols in the national park and comparing the air pollution between national park and the urban area nearby national park, the aerosol characterization study was conducted in Bukhansan National Park, Seoul, from July through September 2017. Semi-continuous measurements of $PM_{2.5}$ using PILS (Particle Into Liquid System) coupled with IC (Ion Chromatography) and TOC (Total Organic Carbon) analyzer allowed quantification of concentrations of major ionic species($Cl^-$, $SO_4{^{2-}}$, $NO_3{^-}$, $Na^+$, $NH_4{^+}$, $K^+$, $Mg{^{2+}}$ and $Ca{^{2+}}$) and water soluble organic carbon (WSOC) with 30-minute time resolution. The total mass concentration of $PM_{2.5}$ was measured by T640 (Teledyne) with 5-minute time resolution. The black carbon (BC) and ozone were measured with a minute time resolution. The timeline of aerosol chemical compositions reveals a strong influence from urban area (Seoul) at the site in Bukhansan National Park. Inorganic aerosol composition was observed to be dominated by ammoniated sulfate at most times with ranging from $0.1{\sim}32.6{\mu}g/m^3$ (6.5~76.1% of total mass of $PM_{2.5}$). The concentration of ammonium nitrate, a potential indicator of the presence of local source, ranged from below detection limits to $20{\mu}g/m^3$ and was observed to be highest during times of maximum local urban (Seoul) impact. The total mass of $PM_{2.5}$ in Bukhansan National Park was observed to be 10~23% lower than the total mass of $PM_{2.5}$ in urban area (Gireum-dong and Bulgwang-dong, Seoul). In general, ozone concentration in Bukhansan National Park was observed to be similar or higher than urban sites in Seoul, suggesting additional biogenic VOCs with $NO_x$ from vehicle emission were to be precursors for ozone formation in Bukhansan National Park.

• Journal of Korean Society for Atmospheric Environment
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• v.29 no.2
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• pp.171-185
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• 2013

Wetland has been known as a major biogenic source of $CH_4$ in globe. In a global scale, the amounts of 55~150 Tg $CH_4$ are released into the atmosphere annually from wetlands; and it accounts for about 21% of total $CH_4$ annual global emission. From August 2010 to August 2011, measurements of major greenhouse gas ($CO_2$, $CH_4$, $N_2O$) emissions were conducted from a freshwater wetland at Kunsan ($35^{\circ}56^{\prime}38.94^{\prime\prime}N$, $126^{\circ}43^{\prime}16.62^{\prime\prime}E$), Korea by using floating closed static chamber method. Flux measurements for these gases from western coastal tidal flat at Seocheon ($36^{\circ}07^{\prime}13.85^{\prime\prime}N$, $126^{\circ}35^{\prime}43.18^{\prime\prime}E$), Korea were managed from July 2011 to February 2012 by using closed static chamber method. The average gas fluxes and ranges from freshwater wetland experiment were $0.155{\pm}0.29\;mg\;m^{-2}\;hr^{-1}$ (-0.054~0.942 $mg\;m^{-2}\;hr^{-1}$) for $CH_4$, $17.30{\pm}73.27\;mg\;m^{-2}\;hr^{-1}$ (-52.44~261.66 $mg\;m^{-2}\;hr^{-1}$) for $CO_2$, and $0.004{\pm}0.01\;mg\;m^{-2}\;hr^{-1}$ (-0.02~0.07 $mg\;m^{-2}\;hr^{-1}$) for $N_2O$, respectively. Monthly base flux measurement results revealed that $CH_4$ fluxes during summer months in high water temperature were significantly high, and at least order of one higher than those during other months. The average fluxes and ranges of these greenhouse gases from tidal flat during the experimental period were $0.002{\pm}0.08\;mg\;m^{-2}\;hr^{-1}$ (-0.16~0.22 $mg\;m^{-2}\;hr^{-1}$) for $CH_4$, $-31.18{\pm}75.33\;mg\;m^{-2}\;hr^{-1}$ (-298.87~101.93 $mg\;m^{-2}\;hr^{-1}$) for $CO_2$, and $0.001{\pm}0.01\;mg\;m^{-2}\;hr^{-1}$ (-0.017~0.03 $mg\;m^{-2}\;hr^{-1}$) for $N_2O$, respectively. Comparing the results of gas emissions from tidal flat to those from freshwater wetland, we found significantly lower emissions from tidal flat based on the experiment. Physicochemical parameters of water and soil at these experimental plots were also sampled and analyzed for understanding their correlation with these gas emissions.

• Analytical Science and Technology
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• v.27 no.6
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• pp.357-363
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• 2014

Isoprene is a one of the biogenic volatile organic compounds (BVOCs) and it is known as a source of the tropospheric ozone and formaldehyde. In addition, isoprene is a trace component of the exhaled breath and it is a potential biomarker for the diagnosis of diseases such as lung cancer. In these regards, isoprene gas standards are required for the accurate measurement of isoprene in air samples. To establish a standard for isoprene gas, gravimetric preparation and characterization of primary gas standards were studied. The primary gas standards were produced independently in 4 aluminum cylinders and concentrations were examined by GC-FID. As a result, the uncertainty of the gravimetric preparations including purity of the raw material was 0.01% and reproducibility of the preparation of independent 4 cylinders was 0.08%. The primary gas standards for isoprene showed 14 months of long-term stability. The relative expended uncertainty of 2.8% (95% of confidence level, k=1.96) was assigned to the certified value of 10 ${\mu}mol$/mol level of isoprene based on the quantitative evaluation of the purity, weighing, reproducibility, adsorption and long-term stability.

• Particle and aerosol research
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• v.14 no.4
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• pp.135-144
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• 2018

Based on a two-year measurement data, major sources for the ambient carbonaceous aerosols at the Anmyeon Global Atmosphere Watch (GAW) station were identified by using the Positive Matrix Factorization (PMF) model. The particulate matter less than or equal to $2.5{\mu}m$ in aerodynamic diameter (PM2.5) aerosols were sampled between June 2015 to May 2017 and carbonaceous species including ~80 organic compounds were analyzed. When the number of factors was 5 or 6, the performance evaluation parameters showed the best results, With 6 factor case, the characteristics of transported factors were clearer. The 6 factors were identified with various analyses including chemical characteristics and air parcel movement analysis. The 6 factors with their relative contributions were (1) anthropogenic Secondary Organic Aerosols (SOA) (10.3%), (2) biogenic sources (24.8%), (3) local biomass burning (26.4%), (4) transported biomass burning (7.3%), (5) combustion related sources (12.0%), and (6) transported sources (19.2%). The air parcel movement analysis result and seasonal variation of the contribution of these factors also supported the identification of these factors. Thus, the Anmyeon Island GAW station has been affected by both regional and local sources for the carbonaceous aerosols.

• Analytical Science and Technology
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• v.32 no.1
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• pp.17-23
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• 2019

Sources of NOx are both anthropogenic (e.g. fossil fuel combustion, vehicles, and other industrial processes) and natural (e.g. lightning, biogenic soil processes, and wildfires). The nitrogen stable isotope ratio of NOx has been proposed as an indicator for NOx source partitioning, which would help identify the contributions of various NOx sources. In this study, the ${\delta}^{15}N-NO_2$ values of vehicle emissions were measured in an urban region, to understand the sources and processes that influence the isotopic composition of NOx emissions. The Ogawa passive air sampler was used to determine the isotopic composition of $NO_2$(g). In urban tunnels, the observed $NO_2$ concentration and ${\delta}^{15}N-NO_2$ values averaged $3809{\pm}2656ppbv$ and $7.7{\pm}1.8$‰, respectively. The observed ${\delta}^{15}N-NO_2$ values are associated with slight regional variations in the vehicular $NO_2$ source. Both $NO_2$ concentration and ${\delta}^{15}N-NO_2$ values were significantly higher near the expressway ($965{\pm}125ppbv$ and $5.9{\pm}1.4$‰) than at 1.1 km from the expressway ($372{\pm}96ppbv$ and $-11.5{\pm}2.9$‰), indicating a high proportion of vehicle emissions. Ambient ${\delta}^{15}N-NO_2$ values were used in a binary mixing model to estimate the percentage of the ${\delta}^{15}N-NO_2$ value contributed by vehicular NOx emissions. The calculated percentage of the ${\delta}^{15}N-NO_2$ contribution by vehicles was significantly higher close to the highway, as observed for the $NO_2$ concentration and ${\delta}^{15}N-NO_2$.

• Journal of the Korean earth science society
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• v.34 no.3
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• pp.209-223
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• 2013

The purpose of this study was to estimate the contributed concentration of each emission source to $CH_4$ by verifying the simulated concentration of $CH_4$ in the Korean peninsula, and then to compare the $CH_4$ emission used to the $CH_4$ simulation with that of a box model. We simulated the Weather Research Forecasting-Community Multiscale Air Quality (WRF-CMAQ) model to estimate the mean concentration of $CH_4$ during the period of April 1 to 22 August 2010 in the Korean peninsula. The $CH_4$ emissions within the model were adopted by the anthropogenic emission inventory of both the EDGAR of the global emissions and the GHG-CAPSS of the green house gases in Korea, and by the global biogenic emission inventory of the MEGAN. These $CH_4$ emission data were validated by comparing the $CH_4$ modeling data with the concentration data measured at two different location, Ulnungdo and Anmyeondo in Korea. The contributed concentration of $CH_4$ estimated from the domestic emission sources in verification of the $CH_4$ modeling at Ulnungdo was represented in about 20%, which originated from $CH_4$ sources such as stock farm products (8%), energy contribution and industrial processes (6%), wastes (5%), and biogenesis and landuse (1%) in the Korean peninsula. In addition, one that transported from China was about 9%, and the background concentration of $CH_4$ was shown in about 70%. Furthermore, the $CH_4$ emission estimated from a box model was similar to that of the WRF-CMAQ model.

• The Sea:JOURNAL OF THE KOREAN SOCIETY OF OCEANOGRAPHY
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• v.10 no.1
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• pp.92-99
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• 2005

To discriminate the provenance of shelf sediments in the East China Sea, textural and elemental compositions along with strontium isotopic ratio ($^{87}Sr/^{86}Sr$) were analyzed and compared with the sediments originated from Chinese rivers. The sediments in the study area are composed of fine-grained mud with a mean grain size of $47\;{\phi}$ and their $CaCO_3$, contents range from 3.9 to 11.5% (average 7.6%). In the study area, the content of most metallic elements are strongly constrained by sediment grain size (quartz dilution effect) and that of biogenic material and, thereby, their spatial distribution seems not enough for understanding sediment provenance in the study area. The muddy sediments of the Yangtze river have much lower $^{87}Sr/^{86}Sr$ ratio ($0.71197{\sim}0.71720$) than the Yellow Sea shelf muddy sediments which are supposed to be originated from the Huanghe river ($0.72126{\sim}0.72498$), suggesting the distribution pattern of $^{87}Sr/^{86}Sr$ ratios as a new tracer to discriminate the provenance of shelf sediments in the study area. Different source rock compositions and weathering processes between both drainage basins may account for the differences in $^{87}Sr/^{86}Sr$ ratio. Although the ratios show wide range, from 0.71445 to 0.72184 with an average 0.71747 in the study area, they are close to the values of the Yangtze river sediments, suggesting that the sediments were mainly originated from the Yangtze river. The previous studies on the dispersal pattern of modern sediments and the physico-chemical properties of seawater in the Yellow and East China seas support the possibility that the fine-grained Yangtze river sediments can reach to the East China Sea shelf as well as to the southeastern Yellow Sea.