• KEPCO Journal on Electric Power and Energy
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• v.2 no.4
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• pp.531-536
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• 2016

The worldwide research and development for high-efficiency power generation system is progressing steadily because of the growing demand for reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Many countries have spurred the research and development of supercritical $CO_2$ power generation technology since 2000 because it has the advantage of compactness, efficiency, and diversity. Supercritical $CO_2$ power generation system can be classified into an indirect heating type and a direct heating type. As of now, most studies have concentrated on the development of indirect type supercritical $CO_2$ power generation system. In the United States, NREL(National Renewable Energy Lab.) is developing supercritical $CO_2$ power generation system for Concentrating Solar Power. In addition, U.S. DOE(Department of Energy) also plans to start investing in the development of the supercritical $CO_2$ power generation system for coal-fired thermal power plant this year. GE is developing not only 10MW supercritical $CO_2$ power generation turbomachinery but also the conceptual design of 50MW and 450MW supercritical $CO_2$ power generation turbomachinery. In Korea, the Korean Atomic Energy Research Institute has constructed the supercritical $CO_2$ power generation test facility. Moreover, KEPRI(Korea Electric Power Research Institute) is developing a 2MW-class supercritical $CO_2$ power generation system using diesel and gas engine waste heat with Hyundai Heavy Industries.

• Journal of the Korea Organic Resources Recycling Association
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• v.32 no.2
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• pp.37-48
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• 2024

Wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) are obligated to reduce carbon emissions as a part of public sector greenhouse gas (GHG) emission reduction targets. However, Sewage Statistics(2022) shows that CO₂ emissions per wastewater treatment volumes have decreased by only 3.03 % compared to 2020, which is far from enough to meet the Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) targets. This study aimed to find operational conditions of biological reactors that minimize total carbon footprint (CFP). Total CFP considers both direct emissions from biological processes and indirect emissions from energy consumption. A study was conducted using a computer simulation program which is called as EQPS for a 4-stage BNR WWTP. The results showed that total CFP was reduced by 10.97% compared to the design condition when the mixed liquor recirculation (MLR) was set to 100 % of the influent flow. The N₂O emission factor (EF) of the target WWTP was calculated to be 0.138-0.199 %, which is significantly lower than the IPCC default value of 1.6 %. This study proposes a method to minimize total CFP in WWTPs by optimizing biological reactor operation and emphasizes the need for further research on N₂O emission reduction.

• Korean Journal of Organic Agriculture
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• v.20 no.4
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• pp.503-518
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• 2012

Korean type of no-tillage cultivation method which was applied on this study used the ridge and the furrow and constantly recycling them as it was suitable for Korea's weather and farming conditions. This no-tillage cultivation was reported to have little negative impact such as reduction of production (Kwon et al., 1997). In addition, it was found to have a lot of benefits as it requires less agro-materials and energy costs as well as shortened working hours because tillage operation is not needed. (Yang et al., 2012). According to an analysis, no-tillage cultivation can reduce greenhouse gas emissions by $344.7kgCO^2$ (58%) in every 10a ($1,000m^2$) compared to ordinary pepper farming technique (Korea averages). Direct-indirect reduction effects from using fertilizer and using less amount of energy were 92% and 44% respectively both of which can be considered very high. Besides the direct effects of no-tillage cultivation, soil management using no-tillage technique raises carbon sequestration effect on soil as time goes on (West & Marland, 2002), that is why the technique is expected to have constant carbon emission reduction effect. For theses reasons, distribution and expansion of Korean type no-tillage cultivation are expected to play a role as major agro-green technologies for achieving our goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions in agricultural sector.

• Proceedings of the Korea Water Resources Association Conference
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• 2021.06a
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• pp.148-149
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• 2021

Food waste has increasingly become a global issue of concern among the researchers and policymakers due to its significant environmental and economic impacts, and other associated unsustainable use of resources, including water resources. While food wastage occurs at each stage of the supply chain with food loss at the upstream and food waste at the downstream, the impacts of food waste occurring at the consumption side are enormous due to the accumulated added values. In this study, the embedded water resources, greenhouse gas emissions, and economic loss of household food waste were investigated. The primary granular data of household food waste was collected through direct sampling from 218 selected households of the Buk-gu community in Daegu, South Korea from July 2019 to May 2020. The water footprint, which was based on the water footprint concept, i.e., indirect water use, and GHG emission potential factor for each of the food items were adopted from the literature, while the retail prices and disposal cost were used to assess the economic cost of wasted food items. The water footprint, GHG emission associated with environmental impacts, and the economic cost of 42 major identified wasted food items were conducted. The findings showed that an average of 0.73 ± 0.06 kg/household/day edible food waste was generated among the sampled households, with leafy vegetable, watermelon, and rice responsible for 10, 9, and 4%, respectively, of the total weight of the 42 food wasted items. The water footprint and environmental impact of the household food waste resulted in 0.46 ± 0.04 m³ and 0.71±0.05 kg CO2eq, respectively. Beef, pork, poultry, and rice accounted for 52, 9, 5, and 4% of the total water footprint, while beef, pork, rice, tofu/cheese had 52, 8, 6, and 6% of the total emissions, respectively, embedded in the food wasted. Furthermore, the average estimated economic cost associated with wasted food items was 3855.93±527.27 Korean won, with beef, fish, and leafy vegetable responsible for 21, 13, and 10%, respectively, of the total economic cost. A combined assessment using water-environmental-economic nexus indicated that animal-based food had the highest footprint impacts, with beef, pork, and poultry indicating high indices of 0.3, 0.08, and 0.06 respectively, on a scale of 0 to 1, compared to corn and lettuce with lowest impacts of 0.02. Other food items had moderate impact values ranging from 0.03 to 0.05. This study, therefore, provides insight into the enormity of environmental and economic implications of household food waste among Korean households.