• Environmental Engineering Research
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• v.20 no.1
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• pp.89-97
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• 2015

Remediation of wastewater contaminated with metal(II)-complexed species (Cu(II)-NTA (NTA: nitrilotriacetic acid), Cu(II)-EDTA (EDTA: ethylenediamine tetraacetic acid) and Cd(II)-EDTA is attempted using the potential applicability of ferrate(VI). Kinetics of pollutant degradation is obtained with the removal of ferrate(VI) studied at wide range of pH (8.0-10.0) and the concentration of metal(II)-complexed species (0.3 to 15.0 mmol/L) employing a constant dose of ferrate(VI) i.e., 1.0 mmol/L. Pseudo-first-order and pseudo-second-order rate constants were obtained in the reduction of ferrate(VI) which was then employed to obtain the overall rate constants of the pollutant degradation. The mineralization of NTA and EDTA was obtained with the change in TOC (total organic carbon) values collected by the ferrate(VI) treated pollutant samples. Decrease in pH and molar pollutant concentrations was greatly favored the percent mineralization of NTA or EDTA by the ferrate(VI) treatment. The treated pollutant samples were filtered and subjected for AAS (atomic absorption spectrophotometric) analysis to assess the simultaneous removal of copper and cadmium from aqueous solutions at the studied pH as well at the elevated pH 12.0. Results show that an enhanced removal of cadmium or copper was achieved at pH 12.0. Overall, ferrate(VI) possesses multifunctional application in wastewater treatment as it oxidizes the degradable impurities and removes metallic impurities by coagulation process.

• Advances in environmental research
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• v.7 no.3
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• pp.213-223
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• 2018

Continuous input into the aquatic ecosystem and persistent structures have created concern of antibiotics, primarily due to the potential for the development of antimicrobial resistance. Degradation kinetics and mineralization of vancomycin B (VAN-B) by photocatalysis using $TiO_2$ and ZnO nanoparticles was monitored at natural pH conditions. Photocatalysis (PC) efficiency was followed by means of UV absorbance, total organic carbon (TOC), and HPLC results to better monitor degradation of VAN-B itself. Experiments were run for two initial VAN-B concentrations ($20-50mgL^{-1}$) and using two catalysts $TiO_2$ and ZnO at different concentrations (0.1 and $0.5gL^{-1}$) in a multi-lamp batch reactor system (200 mL water volume). Furthermore, a set of toxicity tests with Daphnia magna was performed to evaluate the potential toxicity of oxidation by-products of VAN-B. Formation of intermediates such as chlorides and nitrates were monitored. A rapid VAN-B degradation was observed in ZnO-PC system (85% to 70% at 10 min), while total mineralization was observed to be relatively slower than $TiO_2-PC$ system (59% to 73% at 90 min). Treatment efficiency and mechanism of degradation directly affected the rate of transformation and by-products formation that gave rise to toxicity in the treated samples.

• Ocean Science Journal
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• v.40 no.4
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• pp.221-227
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• 2005

The architecture of macrofaunal burrows and the total area of the sediment-water interface created by biogenic structure were investigated in the Donggeomdo tidal flat on the west coast of Korea. Resin casting methods were applied to recover burrows of four dominant species, Macrophthalmus japonicus, Cleistostoma dilatatum, Perinereis aibuhitensis, and Periserrula leucophryna, and whole burrows within the casting area at three sites in different tidal levels. P. leucophryna excavated the largest burrow in terms of a surface area among them. In the case of whole burrow casting, the space occupied by the biogenic structure was extended into deeper and expanded more greatly at the higher tidal level. In the uppermost flat, the burrow wall surface area within sediment was more extensive than the sediment surface area. Increased oxygen supply through the extended interface could enhance the degradation rates of organic carbon and also change the pathways of degradation. Quantifying the relationship between the extended interface and mineralization rate and pathway requires more extensive study.

• Journal of the Korean Ceramic Society
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• v.48 no.1
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• pp.6-13
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• 2011

In this study, we used activated carbon (AC) and charcoal (CH) as carbon sources with $TiO_2$ powder to prepare spherical carbons containing titania (SCCT) by using phenolic resin (PR) as a bonding agent. The physicochemical characteristics of the SCCT samples were examined by BET, XRD, SEM, EDX, iodine adsorption and compressive strength. The photocatalytic activity was evaluated by measuring the removal efficiency of three kinds of organic dyes: methylene blue (MB), methyl orange (MO) and rhodamine B (Rh.B) under a UV/SCCT system. In addition, evaluation of chemical oxygen demand (COD) of piggery waste was done at regular intervals and gave a good idea about the mineralization of wastewater.

• Korean Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.39 no.4 s.118
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• pp.435-444
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• 2006

A suite of extracellular enzyme activities involved in organic carbon decomposition were determined in three northern peatlands (a bog, a fen, and a swamp) over a 12 month period along with trace gas ($CO_2$ and $N_2O$) flux and DOC dynamics in the wetlands. The activities varied $0.008-0.066\;{\mu}mole\;g^{-1}\;min^{-1}$, $0.003-0.021\;{\mu}mole\;g^{-1}\;min^{-1}$, $0.003-0.016\;{\mu}mole\;g^{-1}\;min^{-1}$, $0.004-0.047\;{\mu}mole\;g^{-1}\;min^{-1}$, for ${\beta}-glucosidase$, cellobiohydrolase, ${\beta}-xylosidase$, and N-acetylglucosaminidase, respectively. In general, the activities were highest in the forested swamp followed by the fen and the bog. When the data from three wetlands are combined, the enzyme activities exhibited significant positive correlations with trace gas emission and available carbon. Further, the average activity of 4 enzymes explained about 20-40% of the variations of trace gas emssion and available carbon. The results indicate that enzymes related to the mineralization of organic carbon may play an important role in trace gas flux and DOC dynamics in northern peatlands.

• Journal of Applied Biological Chemistry
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• v.51 no.6
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• pp.262-271
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• 2008

Natural abundances of stable isotopes of nitrogen and carbon (${\delta}^{15}N$ and ${\delta}^{13}C$) are being widely used to study N and C cycle processes in plant and soil systems. Variations in ${\delta}^{15}N$ of the soil and the plant reflect the potentially variable isotope signature of the external N sources and the isotope fractionation during the N cycle process. $N_2$ fixation and N fertilizer supply the nitrogen, whose ${\delta}^{15}N$ is close to 0%o, whereas the compost as. an organic input generally provides the nitrogen enriched in $^{15}N$ compared to the atmospheric $N_2$. The isotope fractionation during the N cycle process decreases the ${\delta}^{15}N$ of the substrate and increases the ${\delta}^{15}N$ of the product. N transformations such as N mineralization, nitrification, denitrification, assimilation, and the $NH_3$ volatilization have a specific isotope fractionation factor (${\alpha}$) for each N process. Variation in the ${\delta}^{13}C$ of plants reflects the photosynthetic type of plant, which affects the isotope fractionation during photosynthesis. The ${\delta}^{13}C$ of C3 plant is significantly lower than, whereas the ${\delta}^{13}C$ of C4 plant is similar to that of the atmospheric $CO_2$. Variation in the isotope fractionation of carbon and nitrogen can be observed under different environmental conditions. The effect of environmental factors on the stomatal conductance and the carboxylation rate affects the carbon isotope fractionation during photosynthesis. Changes in the environmental factors such as temperature and salt concentration affect the nitrogen isotope fractionation during the N cycle processes; however, the mechanism of variation in the nitrogen isotope fractionation has not been studied as much as that in the carbon isotope fractionation. Isotope fractionation factors of carbon and nitrogen could be the integrated factors for interpreting the effects of the environmental factors on plants and soils.

• Korean Journal of Environmental Agriculture
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• v.16 no.4
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• pp.295-303
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• 1997

To investigate the transformation characteristics of nitrogen and carbon from cow manure compost amended in soil under different moisture conditions, dynamics of nitrogen and carbon were determined periodically for 15 weeks of aerobic incubation at room temperature during July${\sim}$November, 1996. Cow manure compost matured with mixing saw dust was amended with the 4 ratios (0, 2, 4, 6%(wt/wt)) in Ap horizon soil, which collected from green house in Yesan, Chungnam. Moisture was controlled with 0.2, 0.3, 0.4, and 0.5 of mass water conte nt (${\theta}$m) to air dried soil, and water loss was compensated at every sampling. During incubation, soil pH was decreased continuously, that was caused by hydrogen generated from nitrification of ammonium nitrogen. And pH became higher with inclining cow manure compost amendment and water treatment, that meaned the increase of mineralization of organic-N to $NH_4\;^+-N$. Total nitrogen was reduced with increasing water content, but total carbon showed the contrast tendency with that of nitrogen. Therefore, C/N ratio slightly decreased in the low water condition (${\theta}$m 0.2) during incubation, but increased continuously in high water condition over ${\theta}$m 0.4. As a result, it was assumed that soil fertility is able to be reduced in the high water content over available water content. Nitrate transformation rate increased lasting in the low water content less than ${\theta}$m 0.3. Itdropped significantly in the first $2{\sim}3$ weeks of incubation over ${\theta}$m 0.4. In particular, nitrate was not detected in ${\theta}$m 0.5 of water content after the first $2{\sim}3$ weeks. In contrast, ammonium transformation was inclined with increasing water treatment. Nitrogen mineralization rate, which calculated with percentage ratio of (the sum of ex.$NH_4\;^+-N$ and $NO_3\;^--N$)/total nitrogen, was continuously increased in the low water content of ${\theta}$m 0.2 and 0.3. But it saw the different patterns in high water content over ${\theta}$m 0.4 that was drastically declined in the initial stage and then gradually inclined . From the above results, nitrogen transformation patterns differentiated decisively in water content between ${\theta}$m 0.3 and 0.4 in soil. Thus, it is very important for the maintain of suitable soil water content to enhance fertility of soil amended with manure compost. However, excess treatment of manure compost might enhance the possibility of contamination of small watershed and ground water around agricultural area.

• Journal of Soil and Groundwater Environment
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• v.22 no.6
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• pp.74-84
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• 2017

Soil erosion is often extreme in Korea due to high rainfall intensities and steep slopes, and climate change has also increased the risk of erosion. Despite its significane, erosion-induced soil organic carbon (SOC) emission and water resource loss are not well understood, along with the lack of an integrated surface soil erosion protection policy. Therefore, to design adequate protection policies, land users, scientists, engineers and decision makers need proper information about surface soil and watershed properties related to greenhouse gas emission potential and water conservation capability, respectively. Assuming the total soil erosion of $346Tg\;yr^{-1}$, soil organic matter (SOM) content of 2% (58% of SOM is SOC), and mineralization rate of 20% of the displaced carbon, erosion-induced carbon emission could reach $800Gg\;C\;yr^{-1}$. Also the available water capacity of the soil was estimated to be 15.8 billion tons, which was 14 times higher than the yearly water supply demand in Seoul, Korea. Therefore, in order to prevent of soil erosion, this study proposes a three-stage plan for surface soil erosion prevention: 1) classification of soil erosion risk and scoring of surface soil quality, 2) selection of priority areas for conservation and best management practices (BMP), and 3) application of BMP and post management.

• The Sea:JOURNAL OF THE KOREAN SOCIETY OF OCEANOGRAPHY
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• v.26 no.2
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• pp.110-123
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• 2021

We investigated geochemical constituents of pore-water and sediment, rates of organic carbon (C_org) oxidation and sulfate reduction (SR), and benthic nutrient flux (BNF) to elucidate characteristic of C_org oxidation and its control in the coastal area near Lake Shihwa. The study sites were selected in the vicinity of Soraepogu (E0), Songdo tidalflat (E1) and Oido dock (E3) and in front of floodgate Shihwa tidal plant (E5). The C_org contents in the sediments and concentrations of ammonium and phosphate in pore water exhibited the highest value at EO, and gradually decreased toward the outer sea (E1, E3, E5). Rates of anaerobic C_org oxidation (260.6 mmol C m^-2 d^-1) and SR (91.4 mmol S m^-2 d^-1) at E0 were 4-9 and 6-54 times higher than at the site of outer sea (E1, E3, E5). Rates of SR at E3 and E5 accounted for 11-23% of anaerobic C_org oxidation, whereas it comprised 47-70% of anaerobic C_org oxidation at E0 and E1. Rates of C_org oxidation and SR showed a highly positive correlation with the concentration of dissolved organic carbon (r² = 0.795 and 0.777, respectively). The BNF at E0, E1, and E3 accounted for 120-510% and 26-178%, respectively, of the N and P required for primary production in the water column. Overall results suggest that the C_org oxidation in the sediment controlled by concentration of dissolved organic carbon in the pore water and the excessive C_org oxidation stimulates the benthic nutrient flux, which may cause a phytoplankton bloom in the water column.

• Journal of Energy Engineering
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• v.26 no.2
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• pp.39-49
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• 2017

Coffee is one of the most popular and consumed beverages in the world, which leads to a high contents of solid residue known as spent coffee grounds (SCG). As is known, coffee beans contain several classes of health related chemicals, including phenolic compounds, melanoidins, diterpenes, xanthines and carotenoids. The waste water coming out of coffee industries has high concentration of organic pollutants and is very harmful for surrounding water bodies, human health and aquatic life if discharged directly into the surface waters. Hence it is essential to treat and manage the coffee waste. Oyster shells are a waste product from mariculture that creates a major disposal problem in coastal regions of southeast Korea. In the study, the oyster shell waste was used to treat the coffee waste and its effluents. Oyster shells are calcined at $1000^{\circ}C$ for 2 h, and allowed to test the calcined CaO powder ability to inhibit the growth of bacteria in different aging coffee wastes. Calcined oyster shell powder showed anti-bacterial effect that inhibited cell growth of Escherichia coli and other bacterial forms. The antimicrobial activity of calcium oxide from oyster shell waste for biological treatment and utilization as a fertilizers with economic ecofriendly in nature.