• Journal of environmental and Sanitary engineering
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• v.20 no.4 s.58
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• pp.69-75
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• 2005

Professional taxi driver exposure to indoor air pollutants has been a subject of concern in recent years because of higher levels of air pollutants, comparing to the surrounding atmosphere. This study evaluated the potential exposure to respirable suspended particulate (RSP), nitrogen dioxide $(NO_2)$ and volatile organic compounds (VOCs; benzene and toluene) for professional taxi drivers inside each of 10 vehicles in Pusan, comparing weekday (Monday and Thursday) and weekend (Saturday). Indoor mean concentrations of RSP inside vehicle were $53.88\;ug/m^3\;and\;75.52\;ug/m^3$ on weekday and weekend, respectively. Measured indoor $NO_2$ concentrations were 28.32ppb and 40.69 ppb, respectively. Benzene and toluene mean concentrations inside vehicle were 5.41 ppb and 11.36 ppb, respectively. Considering no smoking of taxi drivers inside vehicle, closed window in winter, and increased usage of taxi on weekend, source of indoor air pollutants inside taxi might be mainly suggested from the number of passenger's carried, faulty exhaust systems, and engine and carburetor evaporative emissions.

• Journal of Korean Society for Atmospheric Environment
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• v.29 no.4
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• pp.369-377
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• 2013

The trends of the criteria air pollutants' concentrations over Seoul are reviewed, relative contributions of major sources are discussd, and directions for future air quality management are suggested. It was shown that the yearly average concentrations of the criteria air pollutants except nitrogen dioxide and ozone have decreased significantly over the last three decades. Though the concentration of nitrogen dioxide has not decreased, the concentration of $NO_x$ has decreased significantly. The major reason for the reduction of the criteria air pollutants has been strict government regulations such as establishment of strict emission standards and switch to cleaner fuels. However, it is not clear the major reason (s) for the reduction of the $PM_{10}$ concentration. It is suggested that to further reduce the concentrations of secondary air pollutants such as ozone and $PM_{2.5}$, understanding the major chemical pathways for them is essential. In addition, influence from outside Seoul should be quantified and effectively controlled.

• Proceedings of the KAIS Fall Conference
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• 2006.05a
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• pp.223-226
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• 2006

The micro-gas sensor based on carbon nanotubes (CNTs) was fabricated and its gas sensing characteristics on nitrogen dioxide ($NO_2$) have been investigated. The sensor consists of a heater, an insulating layer, a pair of contact electrodes, and CNT-sensing film on a micromachined diaphragm. The heater plays a role in the temperature change to modify sensor operation. Gas sensor responses of CNT-film to $NO_2$ at room temperature are reported. The sensor exhibits a reversible response with a time constant of a few minutes at thermal treatment temperature of $130^{\circ}C$.

• The Journal of Korean Medicine
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• v.16 no.2 s.30
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• pp.299-311
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• 1995

The studies were investigated in the coma time and the survival time induced by KCN, the duration of breathing after decapitation, the survival time following ligation of both common carotid arteries and the survival time after it is treated for normobaric bypoxia with a nitrogen gas, a carbon dioxide gas or a vaccum in mice. The results were as follows: 1. In histotoxic anoxia, Moschus(0.4mg／kg, p.o) demonstrated a protective effect on coma induced by a sublethal dose of KCN(1.8mg／kg, i.v.) in mice. 2. Mice subjected to a lethal dose of KCN(3.0mg／kg, i.v.) did not die by administration of Moschus. 3. Moschus was significantly extended the duration of breathing after decapitation in mice. 4. Moschus showed a significant extension of survival time in mice following ligation of both common carotid arteries. 5. In the normobaric hypoxia with a nitrogen gas, Moschus showed a significant extension of survival time in mice. 6. In the normobaric hypoxia with a carbon dioxide gas, Moschus showed a significant shortness of survival time in mice. 7. In the normobaric hypoxia with a vaccum, Moschus showed a significant extension of survival time in mice. From the above results, it is suggested that Moschus demonstrated protective effects on the brain damages induced by cerebral anoxia.

• Journal of Environmental Health Sciences
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• v.31 no.4 s.85
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• pp.260-265
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• 2005

Indoor air quality might be affected by source strength of indoor pollutants, ventilation rate, decay rate, outdoor level, and so on. Although technologies measuring these factors exist directly, direct measurements of all factors are not always practical in most field studies. The purpose of this study was to develop an alternative method to estimate the source strength and deposition constant by application of multiple measurements. For the total duration of 60 days, indoor and outdoor $NO_2$ concentrations every 3 days were measured in 30 houses in Seoul, Asan and Daegu. Using a compartment model by mass balance and linear regression analysis, penetration factor (ventilation divided by sum of air exchange rate and deposition constant) and source strength factor (emission rate divided by sum of air exchange rate and deposition constant) were calculated. Subsequently, the source strength and deposition constant were estimated. Natural ventilation was $1.80{\pm}0.42\;ACH,\;1.11{\pm}0.50\;ACH,\;0.92{\pm}0.26\;ACH$ in Seoul, Asan and Daegu, respectively. Calculated deposition constant(K) and source strength of $NO_2,$ in this study were $0.98{\pm}0.28\;hr^{1}\;and\;16.28{\pm}7.47\;ppb/h,$ respectively.

• Journal of Korean Society for Atmospheric Environment
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• v.24 no.1
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• pp.108-121
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• 2008

On January 1, 2005, the Korean Ministry of Environment put into operation a comprehensive program, so called 'Blue Sky 21' project, for the improvement of air quality in greater Seoul metropolitan area. This program was legally based on the 'Special Act on Metropolitan Air Quality Improvement' for Greater Seoul area, which was established in 2003, and should be updated every 10 years. The principal objective of this program is to improve the air quality in Seoul and surrounding area by 2014 to the levels of air quality in Tokyo and Paris, with particular emphases on reducing the concentrations of nitrogen dioxide and $PM_{10}$. Any regulation of the emission of toxic air pollutants in general, and $NO_2$ and $PM_{10}$ in particular, should be based on human exposure levels and consequential health effects. In this article, the contents and feasibility of the special program were critically evaluated with respect to the reduction of health risks. Important issues for improving not only air quality but public health are discussed, and future requirements for the success of the special program are suggested.

• Journal of the Korean institute of surface engineering
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• v.54 no.5
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• pp.260-266
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• 2021

Synthesizing low-dimensional structures of oxide semiconductors is a promising approach to fabricate highly efficient gas sensors by means of possible enhancement in surface-to-volume ratios of their sensing materials. In this work, vertically aligned zinc oxide (ZnO) nanorods are successfully synthesized on a transparent glass substrate via seed-mediated hydrothermal synthesis method with the use of a ZnO nanoparticle seed layer, which is formed by thermally oxidizing a sputtered Zn metal film. Structural and optical characterization by x-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and Raman spectroscopy reveals the successful preparation of the ZnO nanorods array of the single hexagonal wurtzite crystalline phase. From gas sensing measurements for the nitrogen dioxide (NO₂) gas, the vertically aligned ZnO nanorod array is observed to have a highly responsive sensitivity to NO₂ gas at relatively low concentrations and operating temperatures, especially showing a high maximum sensitivity to NO₂ at 250 ℃ and a low NO₂ detection limit of 5 ppm in dry air. These results along with a facile fabrication process demonstrate that the ZnO nanorods synthesized on a transparent glass substrate are very promising for low-cost and high-performance NO₂ gas sensors.

• New & Renewable Energy
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• v.20 no.1
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• pp.79-87
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• 2024

This study introduces a method for estimating Aerosol Optical Depth (AOD) using Broadband Aerosol Optical Depth (BAOD) derived from direct normal irradiance and meteorological factors observed between 2016 and 2017. Through correlation analyses between BAOD and atmospheric components such as Rayleigh scattering, water vapor, and tropospheric nitrogen dioxide, significant relationships were identified, enabling accurate AOD estimation. The methodology demonstrated high correlation coefficients and low Root Mean Square Errors (RMSE) compared to actual AOD₅₀₀ measurements, indicating that the attenuation effects of water vapor and the direct impact of tropospheric nitrogen dioxide concentration are crucial for precise aerosol optical depth estimation. The application of BAOD for estimating AOD₅₀₀ across various time scales-hourly, daily, and monthly-showed the approach's robustness in understanding aerosol distributions and their optical properties, with a high coefficient of determination (0.96) for monthly average AOD₅₀₀ estimates. This study simplifies the aerosol monitoring process and enhances the accuracy and reliability of AOD estimations, offering valuable insights into aerosol research and its implications for climate modeling and air quality assessment. The findings underscore the viability of using BAOD as a surrogate for direct AOD₅₀₀ measurements, presenting a promising avenue for more accessible and accurate aerosol monitoring practices, crucial for improving our understanding of aerosol dynamics and their environmental impacts.

• Korean Journal of Agricultural and Forest Meteorology
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• v.13 no.4
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• pp.165-170
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• 2011

The ambient concentrations of nitrogen dioxide ($NO_2$) at 65 forest areas were measured every month using passive diffusive samplers from 2002 to 2009 and were compared to those at urban areas in order to investigate the characteristics of temporal and spatial distributions of $NO_2$ from the forest and urban areas. The annually averaged concentrations of $NO_2$ gradually decreased for both areas. The average concentration of $NO_2$ in the forest areas was 8.0 ppb, which was lower than that in the urban areas (i.e., 19.4 ppb) and the ecological standard level of the European Union (i.e., 14.6 ppb). The monthly average of $NO_2$ concentration depicted seasonal variations particularly in the urban areas, showing higher concentration in winter and lower concentration in summer. Strong locality of $NO_2$ concentration distribution illustrates that the locations near the metropolitan areas (e.g., Gyeonggi and Chungnam provinces) had the highest concentration during the measurement period. A significant positive correlation between $NO_x$ emissions and $NO_2$ concentration was observed, suggesting that the magnitude and proximity to sources of atmospheric nitrogen oxides would be important controlling factors.

• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
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• v.48 no.3
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• pp.151-169
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• 2015

Objectives: The deleterious effects of air pollution on various health outcomes have been demonstrated. However, few studies have examined the effects of air pollution on liver enzyme levels. Methods: Blood samples were drawn up to three times between 2008 and 2010 from 545 elderly individuals who regularly visited a community welfare center in Seoul, Korea. Data regarding ambient air pollutants (particulate matter ${\leq}2.5{\mu}m$ [$PM_{2.5}$], nitrogen dioxide [$NO_2$], ozone [$O_3$], carbon monoxide, and sulfur dioxide) from monitoring stations were used to estimate air pollution exposure. The effects of the air pollutants on the concentrations of three liver enzymes (aspartate aminotransferase [AST], alanine aminotransferase [ALT], and ${\gamma}$-glutamyltranspeptidase [${\gamma}$-GTP)]) were evaluated using generalized additive and linear mixed models. Results: Interquartile range increases in the concentrations of the pollutants showed significant associations of $PM_{2.5}$ with AST (3.0% increase, p=0.0052), ALT (3.2% increase, p=0.0313), and ${\gamma}$-GTP (5.0% increase, p=0.0051) levels; $NO_2$ with AST (3.5% increase, p=0.0060) and ALT (3.8% increase, p=0.0179) levels; and $O_3$ with ${\gamma}$-GTP (5.3% increase, p=0.0324) levels. Significant modification of these effects by exercise and alcohol consumption was found (p for interaction <0.05). The effects of air pollutants were greater in non-exercisers and heavy drinkers. Conclusions: Short-term exposure to air pollutants such as $PM_{2.5}$, $NO_2$, and $O_3$ is associated with increased liver enzyme levels in the elderly. These adverse effects can be reduced by exercising regularly and abstinence from alcohol.