• Journal of the Korean Institute of Gas
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• v.24 no.4
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• pp.84-92
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• 2020

Most facilities in chemical plants operate in environments that are outside the range of temperature and pressure that can be encountered on a daily basis, and are vulnerable to aging due to these stresses and environmental conditions. The facilities exposed to these conditions are not only likely to fail due to cumulative damage, but also lead to accidents if maintenance and replacement are not performed.Recommendation guidelines called risk-based inspection are widely used around the world-wide. However, limits exist for facilities that have already elapsed for a certain. As a result of the survey on the aging of Ulsan industrial complex in Korea, which carries out proper inspection, many of the facilities have been used for 20 years. Also, most of the facilities where the accident occurred have been in operation for more than 20 years. Therefore, this study suggested criteria for classifying devices that have exceeded a certain period of use as obsolete facilities. In addition, quantitative risk assessment was conducted. The safety investment method using the cost-benefit analysis method was proposed in order to calculate the loss cost and reduce the risk by expressing the risks of the corresponding aged facility as an Economic index. By utilizing the method of cost-benefit analysis of old facilities using the quantitative risk assessment presented in this study, it can be expected to improve the performance and life of old facilities, improve production efficiency and reliability of the system of facilities, change the recognition of safety management costs, increase employee stability, and reduce loss costs.

• Korean Chemical Engineering Research
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• v.47 no.2
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• pp.248-257
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• 2009

In this paper, human exposure and risk of environmental pollutants were predicted using an emission assessment model and multimedia fate model. Eight environmental pollutants, acetaldehyde, acrylonitrile, aniline, benzene, carbon tetrachloride, dichloromethane, formaldehyde and vinyl chloride, were selected for the risk assessment in an urban and industrial area in Korea. The emission rate of target pollutants were estimated after considering a variety of point and non-point emission sources including geographical information. A spatially refined multimedia fate model was applied to predict the environmental concentration and fate of pollutants. Hazard data of target materials were obtained from the IRIS(Integrated Risk Information System) database. Using the modeling results with hazard data, the human risks were assessed. Modeling results demonstrate that the considerable risks were observed for several pollutants.

• Journal of Korean Society of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene
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• v.22 no.3
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• pp.191-199
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• 2012

Objectives: The study aim was to evaluate the application of a chemical exposure assessment tool for the Korean workplace. The Ministry of Employment and Labor in Korea (KMOEL) introduced the need for workplace risk assessments in 2011, requiring the Korean chemical industry to consider both domestic and international chemical regulation policies (e.g., estimations of exposure scenarios). Exposure scenarios are required in the European Union as part of material safety data sheets (MSDS) under the Registration, Evaluation, Authorization, and Restriction of Chemicals (REACH) system. Methods: Although many programs for the estimation of exposure have been developed worldwide, to date there is no standard for the Korean workplace. To develop programs suitable for the Korean workplace, we examined the applicability of the European Center for Ecotoxicology and Toxicology of Chemicals target risk assessment (ECETOC TRA), which is recommended by the European Chemical Agency (ECHA). Results: To investigate the applicability of the ECETOC TRA to Korean industry, this study simulated 15 industrial processes. The predicted respiratory exposures for four processes using origin input parameters were underestimated compared to the measured respiratory exposure. Using calibrated input parameters, results for two processes were underestimated compared to the measured respiratory exposure. This result suggests that the use of calibrated input parameters reduces the differences between predicted and measured respiratory exposure. Conclusions: we developed applicable exposure estimating method by modifying the ECETOC TRA program; one suggested the development of exposure estimating program that explains Korea domestic workplace exposure scenario.This study will support the introduction of exposure scenario in MSDS system and protect health of worker from hazardous chemical.

• 한국가스학회:학술대회논문집
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• 2005.05a
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• pp.199-199
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• 2005

• Journal of Soil and Groundwater Environment
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• v.17 no.5
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• pp.1-9
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• 2012

The purpose of ecological risk assessment in soil ecosystem is to protect ecological receptors and to provide a scheme of efficient management for soil contaminants. Developed countries have already prepared the methodologies of ecological risk assessment by considering their soil properties, land use, and ecological receptors. In this study, we compared the soil ecological risk assessment processes in the similarity and differences in methodology. Four countries, except for USA, adjusted the toxicological data for ecological risk assessment, based on their representative soil properties because the soil properties affect toxic effects to ecological receptors. The soil ecological risk assessment methodology of Netherlands and UK was based on 'Technical guidance document on risk assessment (TGD)' of European Chemical Bureau (ECB). Australia, USA, and Canada developed their autonomous methodology. In the Netherlands, UK, Australia, and Canada, they employed the species sensitivity distribution (SSD) approach if sufficient toxicity data are available. The USA determined the ecological soil screening level by obtaining the geometric mean of toxicological data for three species. Furthermore, all countries consider secondary poisoning in their soil ecological risk assessment. The latest risk assessment methodology of soil ecosystem that this study investigated can be used to explore what Korea needs to develop the Korean ecological risk assessment methodology of soil ecosystem in the future.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Toxicology Conference
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• 2006.11a
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• pp.34-45
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• 2006

Chemical toxicants are metabolically converted to numerous metabolites in the body. Toxicokinetic characteristics of metabolites could be therefore used as biomarker of exposure for human risk assessment. Biologically based dose response (BBDR) model was proposed for future direction of risk assessment. However, this area has not been developed well enough for human application. Benzo(a)pyrene (BP), for example, is a well-known environmental carcinogen and may produce more than 100 metabolites and BPDE-DNA adduct, a covalently bound form of DNA with benzo(a)pyrene diolepoxides (BPDES), has been applied to qualitatively or quantitaively estimate human exposure to BP. In addition, di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP), a widely used plasticize. in the polymer industry, is one of endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs) and has been monitored in humans using urinary or serum concentrations of DEHP or its monomer MEHP for exposure and risk assessment. However, it is difficult to estimate the actual level of toxicants using these biomarkers in humans using. This presentation will discuss a methodology of exposure and risk assessment by application of metabolic profiling kinetics.

• Toxicological Research
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• v.32 no.1
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• pp.5-8
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• 2016

Risk assessment is the process of quantifying the probability of a harmful effect to individuals or populations from human activities. Mechanistic approaches to risk assessment have been generally referred to as systems toxicology. Systems toxicology makes use of advanced analytical and computational tools to integrate classical toxicology and quantitative analysis of large networks of molecular and functional changes occurring across multiple levels of biological organization. Three presentations including two case studies involving both in vitro and in vivo approaches described the current state of systems toxicology and the potential for its future application in chemical risk assessment.

• Journal of Soil and Groundwater Environment
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• v.15 no.3
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• pp.7-14
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• 2010

Ecological Risk Assessment (ERA) supports a decision-making process such as establishment of environmental quality criteria. Soil quality criteria (SQC) are essential to protect soil organisms from the exposure to various soil contaminants. In this study, ERA methodologies of advanced countries for soil pollution were extensively compared to propose the ERA approach suitable for soil ecosystem in Korea. The soil ERAs in European Chemical Bureau(ECB), The Netherlands, and Canada can be classified as deterministic ecological risk assessment (DERA), and probabilistic ecological risk assessment (PERA) based on species sensitivity distribution (SSD). We propose three ERA methods according to abundance and reliability of soil ecotoxicity data. The method considered land use such as residential/agricultural, and industrial/commercial uses. The taxonomic groups of soil organism were classified as 'Class' level including different trophic levels (Magnoliopsida or Liliopsida, Clitellata, and Insecta or Secernentea). This study can be used to estimate the soil quality criteria to protect soil biota.

• 대한예방의학회:학술대회논문집
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• 1994.02a
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• pp.412-415
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• 1994

The fundamental assumption that thresholds exist for noncarcinogenic toxic effects of chemicals is reviewed; this assumption forms the basis for the no-observed-effect level/ safety-factor (NOEL/SF) approach to risk assessment for such effects. The origin and evolution of the NOEL/SF approach are traced, and its limitations are discussed. The recently proposed use of dose-response modeling to estimate a benchmark dose as a replacement for the NOEL is explained. The possibility of expanding dose-response modeling of non carcinogenic effects to include the estimation of assumed thresholds is discussed. A new method for conversion of quantitative toxic responses to a probability scale for risk assessment via dose-response modeling is outlined.

• Journal of Environmental Health Sciences
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• v.47 no.5
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• pp.432-445
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• 2021

Background: The European Centre for Ecotoxicology and Toxicology of Chemicals' Targeted Risk Assessment (ECETOC TRA) tool has been recognized by EU REACH as a preferred approach for calculating worker health risks from chemicals. Objectives: The applicability of the ECETOC TRA to occupational exposure estimation from industrial uses of methanol was studied by inputting surveyed and varied parameters for TRA estimation as well as through comparison with measured data. Methods: Information on uses of methanol was collected from seven working environment monitoring reports along with the measured exposure data. Input parameters for TRA estimation such as operating conditions (OCs), risk management measures (RMMs) and process categories (PROCs) were surveyed. To compare with measured exposures, parameters from the surveyed conditions of ventilation but no use of respiratory protection were applied. Results: PROCs 4, 5, 8a, 10, and 15 were assigned to ten uses of methanol. The uses include as a solvent for manufacturing sun cream, surfactants, dyestuffs, films and adhesives. Methanol was also used as a component in a release agent, hardening media and mold wash for cast products as well as a component of hard-coating solution and a viscosity-controlling agent for manufacturing glass lenses. PROC 8a and PROC 10 of a cast product manufacturer without LEV (local exhaust ventilation) and general ventilation as well as no respiratory protection resulted in the highest exposure to methanol. Assuming the identical worst OCs and RMMs for all uses, exposures from PROC 5, 8a, and 10 were the same and the highest followed by PROC 4 and 15. The estimation resulted in higher exposures in nine uses except one use where measured exposure approximated exposures without RMMs. Conclusions: The role of ECETOC TRA as a conservative exposure assessment tool was confirmed by comparison with measured data. Moreover, it can guide which RMMs should be applied for the safe use of methanol.