• Journal of Korean Society for Atmospheric Environment
• /
• v.28 no.5
• /
• pp.571-580
• /
• 2012

Epidemiologic studies of air pollution need accurate exposure assessments at unmonitored locations. A land use regression (LUR) model has been used successfully for predicting traffic-related pollutants, although its application has been limited to Europe, North America, and a few Asian region. Therefore, we modeled traffic-related pollutants by LUR then examined whether LUR models could be constructed using a regulatory monitoring network in Metropolitan area in Korea. We used the annual-mean nitrogen dioxide ($NO_2$) in 2010 in the study area. Geographic variables that are considered to predict traffic-related pollutants were classified into four groups: road type, traffic intensity, land use, and elevation. Using geographical variables, we then constructed a model to predict the monitored levels of $NO_2$. The mean concentration of $NO_2$ was 30.71 ppb (standard deviation of 5.95) respectively. The final regression model for the $NO_2$ concentration included five independent variables. The LUR models resulted in $R^2$ of 0.59. The mean concentration of $NO_2$ of elementary schools was 34.04 ppb (standard deviation of 5.22) respectively. The present study showed that even if we used regulatory monitoring air quality data, we could estimate $NO_2$ moderately well. These analyses confirm the validity of land use regression modeling to assign exposures in epidemiological studies, and these models may be useful tools for assessing health effects of long-term exposure to traffic related pollution.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
• /
• v.27 no.11
• /
• pp.1562-1570
• /
• 2014

The effects of Lactobacillus mucosae (L. mucosae), a potential direct fed microbial previously isolated from the rumen of Korean native goat, on the rumen fermentation profile of brewers grain were evaluated. Fermentation was conducted in serum bottles each containing 1% dry matter (DM) of the test substrate and either no L. mucosae (control), 1% 24 h broth culture of L. mucosae (T1), or 1% inoculation with the cell-free culture supernatant (T2). Each serum bottle was filled anaerobically with 100 mL of buffered rumen fluid and sealed prior to incubation for 0, 6, 12, 24, and 48 h from which fermentation parameters were monitored and the microbial diversity was evaluated. The results revealed that T1 had higher total gas production (65.00 mL) than the control (61.33 mL) and T2 (62.00 mL) (p<0.05) at 48 h. Consequently, T1 had significantly lower pH values (p<0.05) than the other groups at 48 h. Ammonia nitrogen ($NH_3$-N), individual and total volatile fatty acids (VFA) concentration and acetate:propionate ratio were higher in T1 and T2 than the control, but T1 and T2 were comparable for these parameters. Total methane ($CH_4$) production and carbon dioxide ($CO_2$) were highest in T1. The percent DM and organic matter digestibilities were comparable between all groups at all times of incubation. The total bacterial population was significantly higher in T1 (p<0.05) at 24 h, but then decreased to levels comparable to the control and T2 at 48 h. The denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis profile of the total bacterial 16s rRNA showed higher similarity between T1 and T2 at 24 h and between the control and T1 at 48 h. Overall, these results suggest that addition of L. mucosae and cell-free supernatant during the in vitro fermentation of dried brewers grain increases the VFA production, but has no effect on digestibility. The addition of L. mucosae can also increase the total bacterial population, but has no significant effect on the total microbial diversity. However, inoculation of the bacterium may increase $CH_4$ and $CO_2$ in vitro.

• 한국생물공학회:학술대회논문집
• /
• 2000.04a
• /
• pp.89-91
• /
• 2000

Polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) compounds are highly carcinogenic chemicals and common groundwater contaminants that are observed to persist in soils. The adherence and slow release of PAHs in soil is an obstacle to remediation and complicates the assessment of cleanup standards and risks. Biological degradation of PAHs in soil has been an area of active research because biological treatment may be less costly than conventional pumping technologies or excavation and thermal treatment. Biological degradation also offers the advantage to transform PAHs into non-toxic products such as biomass and carbon dioxide. Ample evidence exists for aerobic biodegradation of PAHs and many bacteria capable of degrading PAHs have been isolated and characterized. However, the microbial degradation of PAHs in sediments is impaired due to the anaerobic conditions that result from the typically high oxygen demand of the organic material present in the soil, the low solubility of oxygen in water, and the slow mass transfer of oxygen from overlying water to the soil environment. For these reasons, anaerobic microbial degradation technologies could help alleviate sediment PAH contamination and offer significant advantages for cost-efficient in-situ treatment. But very little is known about the potential for anaerobic degradation of PAHs in field soils. The objectives of this research were to assess: (1) the potential for biodegradation of PAH in field aged soils under denitrification conditions, (2) to assess the potential for biodegradation of naphthalene in soil microcosms under denitrifying conditions, and (3) to assess for the existence of microorganisms in field sediments capable of degrading naphthalene via denitrification. Two kinds of soils were used in this research: Harbor Point sediment (HPS-2) and Milwaukee Harbor sediment (MHS). Results presented in this seminar indicate possible degradation of PAHs in soil under denitrifying conditions. During the two months of anaerobic degradation, total PAH removal was modest probably due to both the low availability of the PAHs and competition with other more easily degradable sources of carbon in the sediments. For both Harbor Point sediment (HPS-2) and Milwaukee Harbor sediment (MHS), PAH reduction was confined to 3- and 4-ring PAHs. Comparing PAH reductions during two months of aerobic and anaerobic biotreatment of MHS, it was found that extent of PAHreduction for anaerobic treatment was compatible with that for aerobic treatment. Interestingly, removal of PAHs from sediment particle classes (by size and density) followed similar trends for aerobic and anaerobic treatment of MHS. The majority of the PAHs removed during biotreatment came from the clay/silt fraction. In an earlier study it was shown that PAHs associated with the clay/silt fraction in MHS were more available than PAHs associated with coal-derived fraction. Therefore, although total PAH reductions were small, the removal of PAHs from the more easily available sediment fraction (clay/silt) may result in a significant environmental benefit owing to a reduction in total PAH bioavailability. By using naphthalene as a model PAH compound, biodegradation of naphthalene under denitrifying condition was assessed in microcosms containing MHS. Naphthalene spiked into MHS was degraded below detection limit within 20 days with the accompanying reduction of nitrate. With repeated addition of naphthalene and nitrate, naphthalene degradation under nitrate reducing conditions was stable over one month. Nitrite, one of the intermediates of denitrification was detected during the incubation. Also the denitrification activity of the enrichment culture from MHS slurries was verified by monitoring the production of nitrogen gas in solid fluorescence denitrification medium. Microorganisms capable of degrading naphthalene via denitrification were isolated from this enrichment culture.

• Transactions of the Korean Society of Mechanical Engineers B
• /
• v.38 no.8
• /
• pp.677-685
• /
• 2014

A direct carbon fuel cell (DCFC) generates electricity directly by converting the chemical energy in coal. In particular, a DCFC system with a solid oxide electrolyte and molten carbonate anode media has been proposed by SRI. In this system, however, there are conflicting effects of temperature, which enhances the ion conductivity of the solid electrolyte and reactivity at the electrodes while causing a stability problem for the anode media. In this study, the effect of temperature on the stability of a carbon-carbonate mixture was investigated experimentally. TGA analysis was conducted under either nitrogen or carbon dioxide ambient for $Li_2CO_3$, $K_2CO_3$, and their mixtures with carbon black. The composition of the exit gas was also monitored during temperature elevation. A simplified reaction model was suggested by considering the decomposition of carbonates and the catalyzed Boudouard reactions. The suggested model could well explain both the measured weight loss of the mixture and the gas formation from it.

• Korean Journal of Food Science and Technology
• /
• v.29 no.1
• /
• pp.115-119
• /
• 1997

The chemical and microbial properties and acceptability of milk and soymilk inoculated with Bifidobacterium were studied at each storage time (0, 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, and 30 days). Soymilk, milk, low-heat milk, low-fat milk, non-fat dry milk with Bifidobacterium longum ATCC 15707 were incubated in a nitrogen-carbon dioxide atmosphere at $4^{\circ}C$ for 30 days. pH and acidity of all the samples were in the range of $pH\;6.6{\sim}pH\;6.9$ and $0.4%{\sim}0.55%$ for 30 days, respectively. The viable cell numbers in non-fat dry milk reached above $8.4{\times}10^9\;CFU/mL$ after 15 days. The glucose content in soymilk was $4.5{\times}10^{-2}{\sim}5.5{\times}10^{-2}\;mM$ at 10 days of storage. Milk and soymilk containing B. longum at $4^{\circ}C$ were found to be different in taste, odor, off-flavor at each storage time (0, 2, 4, 6, 8, and 10 days). Sensory scores indicated that milk containing bifidobacteria was poorly affected by the storage time, but milk at 4 days of storage was quite close in odor and off-flavor to milk with storage time 0. Soymilk containing bifidobacteria at 2 and 4 days of storage had significantly higher acceptability of taste than soymilk with storage time 0.

• Korean Journal of Remote Sensing
• /
• v.29 no.2
• /
• pp.235-241
• /
• 2013

$NO_2$ vertical column densities were retrieved via ground based Multi-Axis Differential Optical Absorption Spectroscopy (MAX-DOAS) measurements for the first time for 6 months over the spring season in 2007 and 2008 in Seoul, one the megacities in the Northeast Asia. The retrieved $NO_2$ vertical column densities were compared with those obtained from space borneOzone Monitoring Instrument (OMI). Over the entire measurement period, the $NO_2$ vertical column densities measured by MAX-DOAS ranged from $1.0{\times}10^{15}molec{\cdot}cm^{-2}$ to $6.0{\times}10^{16}molec{\cdot}cm^{-2}$ while those obtained by OMI ranged $1.0{\times}10^{15}molec{\cdot}cm^{-2}$ to $7.0{\times}10^{16}molec{\cdot}cm^{-2}$. The correlation coefficient between $NO_2$ vertical column densities obtained from MAX-DOAS and OMI is 0.73 for the entire measurement period whereas the correlation coefficient of 0.85 is found for the dates under the clear sky condition. The cloudy condition is thought to play a major role in increase in uncertainty of the retrieved OMI $NO_2$ vertical column densities since air mass factor may induce high uncertainty due to the lack of cloud and aerosol vertical distribution information.

• Journal of Korean Society for Atmospheric Environment
• /
• v.23 no.4
• /
• pp.498-506
• /
• 2007

To reduce the vehicular emissions of air pollutants, various traffic control programs (TCPs) have been used. In 2002, two TCPs have been implemented in Seoul and Busan, respectively. In this study, based on the study results on the effectiveness of the TCP in Seoul (Kim et al., 2005) and Busan (Lee et al., 2006), emission reduction by the TCP in Seoul was estimated and their contribution to the ambient air pollutants' concentrations was discussed. During the TCP period in 2002 at Seoul, emissions of air pollutants were reduced by 35% for CO and $NO_2$, 80% for HC, 23% for $PM_{10}$, and 24% for $SO_2$. Vehicular emission reduction affected the ambient concentrations significantly for $NO_2$. However, for $SO_2$, vehicular emission reduction did not affect the ambient concentration significantly. For $PM_{10}$, vehicular emission reduction did not affect the ambient concentration significantly if considering fugitive emissions.

• Journal of Korean Society for Atmospheric Environment
• /
• v.32 no.5
• /
• pp.536-546
• /
• 2016

The diurnal variations of $O_3$ and $NO_2$ in an urban park and the effects of air temperature and wind speed on the diurnal variations are investigated. $O_3$ and $NO_2$ concentrations were observed at a site in an urban park of Seoul from 27 July 2015 to 9 August 2015. The $O_3$ and $NO_2$ concentrations observed in the urban park are compared to those observed at the Gangnam air quality monitoring station (AQMS). The $O_3$ concentration is higher in the urban park than at the Gangnam AQMS in the daytime because the amount of $O_3$ dissociated by NO is smaller as well as partly because the amount of $O_3$ produced in the oxidation process of biogenic volatile organic compounds (VOCs) is larger in the urban park than at the Gangnam AQMS. The $NO_2$ concentration is lower in the urban park than at the Gangnam AQMS during day and night because the observation site in the urban park is relatively far from roads where $NO_x$ is freshly emitted from vehicles. The difference in $NO_2$ concentration is larger in the daytime than in the nighttime. To examine the effects of air temperature and wind speed on the diurnal variations of $O_3$ and $NO_2$, the observed $O_3$ and $NO_2$ concentrations are classified into high or low air temperature and high or low wind speed days. The high $O_3$ and $NO_2$ concentrations in the daytime appear for the high air temperature and low wind speed days. This is because the daytime photochemical processes are favorable when the air temperature is high and the wind speed is low. The scatter plots of the daytime maximum $O_3$ and minimum $NO_2$ concentrations versus the daytime averages of air temperature and wind speed show that the daytime maximum $O_3$ and minimum $NO_2$ concentrations tend to increase as the air temperature increases or the wind speed decreases. The daytime maximum $O_3$ concentration is more sensitive to the changes in air temperature and wind speed in the urban park than at the Gangnam AQMS.

• Microbiology and Biotechnology Letters
• /
• v.47 no.4
• /
• pp.630-638
• /
• 2019

Nitrous oxide (N₂O) is a greenhouse gas with a global warming potential 310 times higher than that of carbon dioxide. In this study, an N₂O-reducing consortium was obtained by enrichment culture using advanced treatment sludge as the inoculum. The dominant bacteria in the consortium were Sulfurovum (17.95%), Geobacter (14.63%), Rectinema (11.45%), and Chlorobium (8.24%). The consortium displayed optimal N₂O reducing activity when acetate was supplied as the carbon source at a carbon/nitrogen ratio (mol·mol^-1) of 6.3. The N₂O reduction rate increased with increasing N₂O concentration at less than 3,000 ppm. Kinetic analysis revealed that the maximum N₂O reduction rate of the consortium was 163.9 ㎍-N·g-VSS^-1·h^-1. Genes present in the consortium included nosZ (reduction of nitrous oxide to N₂), narG (reduction of nitrate to nitrite), nirK (reduction of nitrite to nitric oxide), and norB (reduction of nitric oxide to nitrous oxide). These results indicate that the N₂O-reducing consortium is a promising bioresource that can be used in denitrification and N₂O mitigation.

• Environmental and Resource Economics Review
• /
• v.29 no.1
• /
• pp.23-45
• /
• 2020

The rapid economic growth has brought tremendous pressure on the environment and caused severe air pollution in China. This study empirically examines causes of air pollution in China. Panel-corrected standard errors procedure (PCSE) was used to analyze major determinants of increasing or reducing emissions of sulfur dioxide (SO₂) and nitrogen oxides (NO_X) in 30 Chinese provinces. The estimation results show that SO₂ emission is mitigated as per capita regional GDP increases, but the relation between emission of NO_X and per capita regional GDP is found to have an inverse N-shaped curve, which implies that emission of NO_X is ultimately expected to decline with economic growth. As for increasing factors of air pollutants, electricity consumption is a significant common source of SO₂ and NO_X emissions. Moreover, the results show that increment of coal consumption significantly affects emission of SO₂ while increase of natural gas consumption reduce emission of SO₂. On the other side, investment in energy industry, and investment on treatment of waste gases are determinants of mitigating emissions of SO₂, but have no impact on NO_X. Consumption of diesel, truck ratio and number of vehicles increase emission of NO_X. Meanwhile, higher precipitation rate is a common determinant of mitigating emissions of SO₂ and NO_X. Policy implications are suggested in the conclusion.