• Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
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• v.85 no.2
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• pp.147-154
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• 2022

Background: The expression of calcium signaling pathway molecules is altered in various carcinomas, which are related to the proliferation and altered characteristics of cancer cells. However, changes in calcium signaling in anti-cancer drug-resistant cells (bearing a T790M mutation in epidermal growth factor receptor [EGFR]) remain unclear. Methods: Afatinib-mediated changes in the level of store-operated Ca²⁺ entry (SOCE)-related proteins and intracellular Ca²⁺ level in non-small cell lung cancer cells with T790M mutation in the EGFR gene were analyzed using western blot and ratiometric assays, respectively. Afatinib-mediated autophagic flux was evaluated by measuring the cleavage of LC3B-II. Flow cytometry and cell proliferation assays were conducted to assess cell apoptosis and proliferation. Results: The levels of SOCE-mediating proteins (ORAI calcium release-activated calcium modulator 1 [ORAI1], stromal interaction molecule 1 [STIM1], and sarco/endoplasmic reticulum Ca²⁺ ATPase [SERCA2]) decreased after afatinib treatment in non-small cell lung cancer cells, whereas the levels of SOCE-related proteins did not change in gefitinib-resistant non-small cell lung cancer cells (PC-9/GR; bearing a T790M mutation in EGFR). Notably, the expression level of SOCE-related proteins in PC-9/GR cells was reduced also responding to afatinib in the absence of extracellular Ca²⁺. Moreover, extracellular Ca²⁺ influx through the SOCE was significantly reduced in PC-9 cells pre-treated with afatinib than in the control group. Additionally, afatinib was found to decrease the level of SOCE-related proteins through autophagic degradation, and the proliferation of PC-9GR cells was significantly inhibited by a lack of extracellular Ca²⁺. Conclusion: Extracellular Ca²⁺ plays important role in afatinib-mediated autophagic degradation of SOCE-related proteins in cells with T790M mutation in the EGFR gene and extracellular Ca²⁺ is essential for determining anti-cancer drug efficacy.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.53 no.12
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• pp.3879-3891
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• 2021

A heat pipe residual heat removal system is proposed to be incorporated into the reactor driven subcritical (RDS) facility, which has been proposed by MIT Nuclear Reactor Laboratory for testing and demonstrating the Fluoride-salt-cooled High-temperature Reactor (FHR). It aims to reduce the risk of the system operation after the shutdown of the facility. One of the main components of the system is an air-cooled heat pipe heat exchanger. The alkali-metal high-temperature heat pipe was designed to meet the operation temperature and residual heat removal requirement of the facility. The heat pipe model developed in the previous work was adopted to simulate the designed heat pipe and assess the heat transport capability. 3D numerical simulation of the subcritical facility active zone was performed by the commercial CFD software STAR CCM + to investigate the operation characteristics of this proposed system. The thermal resistance network of the heat pipe was built and incorporated into the CFD model. The nominal condition, partial loss of air flow accident and partial heat pipe failure accident were simulated and analyzed. The results show that the residual heat removal system can provide sufficient cooling of the subcritical facility with a remarkable safety margin. The heat pipe can work under the recommended operation temperature range and the heat flux is below all thermal limits. The facility peak temperature is also lower than the safety limits.

• Proceedings of the Korea Water Resources Association Conference
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• 2023.05a
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• pp.432-432
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• 2023

한국건설기술연구원(Korea Institute of Civil Engineering and Building Technology, KICT)의 안동하천연구센터(Andong River Experiment Center, REC)는 다양한 하천 관련 실규모 실험을 수행하기 위해 3개의 수로를 보유하고 있다. 본 연구의 주목적인 실증 실험 계측 결과를 기반으로 3D 게임엔진을 이용하여 물 흐름을 재현하기 위해 A1 수로를 대상구간으로 설정하였다. 실증 실험의 경우 2개의 수문 개도율 조건에서 ADV와 ADCP를 활용하여 계측된 유량 및 유속 결과들을 비교하였으며, 추가적으로 영상 데이터로 부터 표면유속(LS-PIV)을 산정하였다. 3D 게임 엔진은 렌더링 엔진, 물리 엔진, 오디오 엔진, UI 시스템, 게임플레이 프레임워크 등이 잘 융합된 소스코드들과 개발자들이 이용하기 쉬운 방식으로 변환된 툴(tool)로 제공하여 현실 세계를 가상 세계에 시각화하여 구현하는데 큰 장점을 가지고 있다. 또한 기존의 흐름 재현이 가능한 수리/수문 모델링의 경우 특정한 목적으로만 이용가능하고 연산에 소용되는 시간 때문에 실시간 흐름재현이 어렵지만, 3D 게임엔진을 이용하는 경우 다양한 목적과 여러 분야와의 고려가 동시에 가능하며 연산의 단순화를 통해 실시간 흐름 재현이 가능하다는 장점이 있다. 본 연구에서는 언리얼 엔진의 Niagara Fluids와 Fluid flux 툴들을 활용하여 하천실증실험 시설 일부 구간에 대해 물 흐름을 재현하였다. 먼저 하천실험실증시설을 드론과 RTK-GPS를 이용하여 촬영된 결과를 정합하여 3D 게임엔진 기반 흐름 재현을 위한 지형 기초 자료를 구축하였다. 지형 계측 결과를 기반으로 A1 수로 전체 구간을 대상구간으로 설정한 이후 수문 조절을 통해 흐름 조건을 제어할 수 있도록 제작하였으며, 실제 흐름에 대한 계측 결과를 기반으로 재현된 흐름을 대상으로 material 값의 조정(방향 X, Y값을 RGB값으로 변환한 뒤 벡터 길이 값으로 환산)을 통해 0~100 사이 값을 이용하여 유속을 표현하였다. 최근 가상공간 (i.e. 디지털트윈) 관련 시장 성장이 매우 빠르고 다양한 사업에서 해당 기술의 수요가 증가하고 있으며, 본 연구를 통해 물 흐름의 디지털 트윈화를 위한 수단으로서 3D 게임 엔진의 활용 가능성을 확인하였다. 다만 실제 하천의 적용과 하천관리를 위한 실용화를 위해서는 추가적인 연구와 분석이 이루어져야 할 것이다.

• Progress in Superconductivity and Cryogenics
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• v.10 no.1
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• pp.10-14
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• 2008

Differently from BSCCO tapes which are fabricated by powder-in-tube method, the coated conductors are made by the evaporation of YBCO on metal substrate. Due to this structural merit, although the coated conductors are generally used for large current transportation, they are expected to be favorable to the purpose of the fault current limitation as well. In this study, using YBCO coated conductor having copper stabilizer formed by plating technique(produced by Superpower Co.), we investigated the over-current characteristics of the coated conductor. The coated conductors had 85 A $I_c$ and 90 K $T_c$. The resistance of the conductor was 0.93 $m{\Omega}/cm$ at 300 K and 0.17 $m{\Omega}/cm$ at the temperature right above $T_c$. To the coated conductors, we applied the voltages of the range from 150 $V_{rms}$ to 230 $V_{rms}$ and measured the V-I curves using four probe method. From the results, we could analyze the electric behavior of the coated conductor in flux flow state. As the current exceed $I_c$, the currents were distributed into the superconductor and metal stabilizer. The amounts of the currents shared through both current paths were calculated under the assumption that the ,Joule heating was perfectly eliminated by $LN_2$ surrounding the conductor. Finally, the condition for the stable current flowing state which does not affect the conductor was established from the analysis on the over-current characteristics.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.54 no.11
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• pp.4134-4145
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• 2022

The collimator is one of the high-heat-flux components used to avoid a series of vacuum and thermal problems. In this paper, the heat load distribution throughout the collimator is first calculated through experimental data, and a transient thermodynamic simulation analysis of the original model is carried out. The error of the pipe outlet temperature between the simulated and experimental values is 1.632%, indicating that the simulation result is reliable. Second, the model is optimized to improve the heat transfer performance of the collimator, including the contact mode between the pipe and the flange, the pipe material and the addition of a twisted tape in the pipe. It is concluded that the convective heat transfer coefficient of the optimized model is increased by 15.381% and the maximum wall temperature is reduced by 16.415%; thus, the heat transfer capacity of the optimized model is effectively improved. Third, to adapt the long-pulse steady-state operation of the experimental advanced superconducting Tokamak (EAST) in the future, steady-state simulations of the original and optimized collimators are carried out. The results show that the maximum temperature of the optimized model is reduced by 37.864% compared with that of the original model. The optimized model was changed as little as possible to obtain a better heat exchange structure on the premise of ensuring the consumption of the same mass flow rate of water so that the collimator can adapt to operational environments with higher heat fluxes and long pulses in the future. These research methods also provide a reference for the future design of components under high-energy and long-pulse operational conditions.

• International Journal of Oral Biology
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• v.48 no.1
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• pp.1-7
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• 2023

Oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC), which accounts for approximately 90% of oral cancers, has a high rate of local recurrence and a poor prognosis despite improvements in treatment. Exosomes released from OSCC cells promote cell proliferation and metastasis. Although it is clear that the biogenesis of exosomes is mediated by the endosomal sorting complex required for transport (ESCRT) machinery, the gene expression pattern of ESCRT, depending on the cell type, remains elusive. The exosomal release from the human OSCC cell lines, HSC-3 and HSC-4, and their corresponding gefitinib-resistant sub-cell lines, HSC-3/GR and HSC-4/GR, was assessed by western blot and flow cytometry. The levels of ESCRT machinery proteins, including Hrs, Tsg101, and Alix, and whole-cell ubiquitination were evaluated by western blot. We observed that the basal level of exosomal release was higher in HSC-3/GR and HSC-4/GR cells than in HSC-3 and HSC-4 cells, respectively. Long-term gefitinib exposure of each cell line and its corresponding gefitinib-resistant sub-cell line differentially induced the expression of the ESCRT machinery. Furthermore, whole-cell ubiquitination and autophagic flux were shown to be increased in gefitinib-treated HSC-3 and HSC-4 cells. Our data indicate that the expression patterns of the ESCRT machinery genes are differentially regulated by the characteristics of cells, such as intracellular energy metabolism. Therefore, the expression patterns of the ESCRT machinery should be considered as a key factor to improve the treatment strategy for OSCC.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.55 no.6
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• pp.2315-2324
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• 2023

Space nuclear reactors are becoming popular in deep space exploration owing to their advantages of high-power density and stability. Following the fourth-generation nuclear reactor technology, a conceptual design of the dual drum-controlled space molten salt reactor (D²-SMSR) is proposed. The reactor concept uses molten salt as fuel and heat pipes for cooling. A new reactivity control strategy that combines control drums and safety drums was adopted. Critical physical characteristics such as neutron energy spectrum, neutron flux distribution, power distribution and burnup depth were calculated. Flow and heat transfer characteristics such as natural convection, velocity and temperature distribution of the D²-SMSR under low gravity conditions were analyzed. The reactivity control effect of the dual-drums strategy was evaluated. Results showed that the D²-SMSR with a fast spectrum could operate for 10 years at the full power of 40 kWth. The D²-SMSR has a high heat transfer coefficient between molten salt and heat pipe, which means that the core has a good heat-exchange performance. The new reactivity control strategy can achieve shutdown with one safety drum or three control drums, ensuring high-security standards. The present study can provide a theoretical reference for the design of space nuclear reactors.

• Composites Research
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• v.36 no.6
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• pp.388-394
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• 2023

In composites manufacturing, increasing resin impregnation is a key way to speed up the manufacturing process and improve product quality. While resin improvement is important, simple fiber surface treatments can also improve resin flowability. In this study, different plasma treatment times were applied to carbon fiber fabrics to improve the impregnation between resin and fiber. Electrical resistivity measurements were used to evaluate the dispersion of resin in the fibers, which changed with plasma treatment. The effect of fiber surface treatment on resin spreadability could be observed in real time. When inserting a carbon fiber tow into the resin, the amount of resin that soaked into the tow was measured to objectively compare resin impregnation. Five minutes of plasma treatment improved the tensile and compressive strength of the composite by more than 50%, while reducing the void content and increasing the fire point impregnation flow rate. Finally, a dynamic flexural fatigue test was conducted using a portion of the composite used as an architectural composite part, and the composite part did not fail after one million cycles of a 3 kN load.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.56 no.2
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• pp.463-471
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• 2024

Average and local convective heat transfer coefficients of nitrogen are measured experimentally in an electrically heated circular tube for a range of Reynolds number from 1.08 × 10⁴ to 3.60 × 10⁴, and wall-to-bulk temperature ratio from 1.01 to 1.77. The exit Mach number is up to 0.17, and the heat flux is up to 46 kW·m^-2. The molybdenum test section has a 62 diameters heated section with an inside diameter of 5 mm and a 30 diameters entrance section to ensure the fully-developed flow. Uncertainty of Nusselt number is less than 1.6 % in this study. The results indicate that the average heat transfer correlations evaluated by both the bulk and the modified film Reynolds numbers agree well with the experimental data. The local heat transfer results based on bulk properties are compared with previous empirical correlations. New prediction correlations are recommended which are significantly affected by the property variation and heated length. The comparison between the proposed correlations and experimental points shows that 88 % of experimental data fall into an error of 10 %, and almost all data are within an error of 20 %.

• Journal of Climate Change Research
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• v.34 no.22
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• pp.9093-9113
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• 2021

This study examines the role of the relative wind (RW) effect (wind relative to ocean current) in the regional ocean circulation and extratropical storm track in the south Indian Ocean. Comparison of two high-resolution regional coupled model simulations with and without the RW effect reveals that the most conspicuous ocean circulation response is the significant weakening of the overly energetic anticyclonic standing eddy off Port Elizabeth, South Africa, a biased feature ascribed to upstream retroflection of the Agulhas Current (AC). This opens a pathway through which the AC transports the warm and salty water mass from the subtropics, yielding marked increases in sea surface temperature (SST), upward turbulent heat flux (THF), and meridional SST gradient in the Agulhas retroflection region. These thermodynamic and dynamic changes are accompanied by the robust strengthening of the local low-tropospheric baroclinicity and the baroclinic wave activity in the atmosphere. Examination of the composite life cycle of synoptic-scale storms subjected to the high-THF events indicates a robust strengthening of the extratropical storms far downstream. Energetics calculations for the atmosphere suggest that the baroclinic energy conversion from the basic flow is the chief source of increased eddy available potential energy, which is subsequently converted to eddy kinetic energy, providing for the growth of transient baroclinic waves. Overall, the results suggest that the mechanical and thermal air-sea interactions are inherently and inextricably linked together to substantially influence the extratropical storm tracks in the south Indian Ocean.