• The Sea:JOURNAL OF THE KOREAN SOCIETY OF OCEANOGRAPHY
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• v.14 no.1
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• pp.56-62
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• 2009

Stable carbon isotope analysis was used to investigate the autotrophic carbon sources supporting fisheries in three coastal bay systems of the southern coast of Korea. Carbon isotope ratios (${\delta}^{13}C$) of 31 fish species were analysed and compared with those of a range of potential primary food sources [e.g., seagrass (Zostera marina), seagrass epiphytes, benthic microalgae, macroalgae, marine particulate organic matter (marine POM), marsh plant (Phragmites australis) and terrestrial POM]. ${\delta}^{13}C$ values (range, -16.2${\sim}$-8.3‰) of fishes from the coastal embayment systems were overlapped with those of seagrass (-8.3${\pm}$1.9‰), seagrass epiphytes (-12.4${\pm}$0.6‰), benthic microalgae (-15.4${\pm}$1.6‰) and macroalgae (-16.0${\pm}$1.8‰). In addition, fishes (-12.9${\pm}$1.5‰) from the study area had distinctly higher ${\delta}^{13}C$ values compared to those collected in offshore sites (-17.3${\pm}$0.8‰) of the southern sea of Korea and Nakdong River (-23.2${\pm}$1.6‰). This result indicates that carbon supporting fish communities of these coastal bay systems is mainly derived from the local benthic producers.

• Journal of Korean Society for Atmospheric Environment
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• v.27 no.5
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• pp.485-493
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• 2011

In Korea, PM (Particulate Matter) emissions caused by coal-fired power plants are measured by a system, so called Clean Air Policy Support System (CAPSS), which uses foreign emission factors. However, the system fails to reflect the characteristics of domestic power plants. In this regard, this study aims to develop local, accurate domestic emission factors. The study measured the amount of TSP (Total Suspended Particulates), PM10 and PM2.5 by collecting samples from the latter parts of pollution control devices which were installed at 3 bituminous-fired power plants and 3 anthracite-fired power plants. The results showed that the average concentrations of TSP, PM10 and PM2.5 measured at bituminous-fired power plants were 4.63 mg/$Sm^3$, 2.96 mg/$Sm^3$ and 3.07 mg/$Sm^3$ respectively, much higher than those from anthracite-fired power plants (2.96 mg/$Sm^3$, 2.47 mg/$Sm^3$ and 1.37 mg/$Sm^3$, respectively). In addition, bituminous-fired power plants showed higher ratios of PM10/TSP and PM2.5/TSP with 0.66 and 0.92, respectively, compared to 0.82 and 0.46, the ratios of PM10/TSP and PM2.5/TSP measured in anthracite-fired power plants. Emission factors based-on concentration measurements were also higher for bituminous-fired power plants, and PM with smaller particles tended to have bigger difference in emission factors between the two fuels. This study calculated the amount of PM emissions by using the estimated emission factors. When it comes to the PM emissions, it was less than that of CAPSS while similar to that of CleanSYS in its amount. It is expected that the emission factors developed by this study will be used in Korea replacing foreign emission factors currently used in Korea by ensuring the objectivity and reliability as domestic emission factors.

• Journal of Korean Society for Atmospheric Environment
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• v.32 no.1
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• pp.114-126
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• 2016

Many cohort studies have reported associations of individual-level long-term exposures to $PM_{10}$ and health outcomes. Individual exposures were often estimated by using exposure prediction models relying on $PM_{10}$ data measured at national regulatory monitoring sites. This study explored spatial and temporal characteristics of regulatory $PM_{10}$ measurement data in South Korea and suggested $PM_{10}$ concentration metrics as long-term exposures for assessing health effects in cohort studies. We obtained hourly $PM_{10}$ data from the National Institute of Environmental Research for 2001~2012 in South Korea. We investigated spatial distribution of monitoring sites using the density and proximity in each of the 16 metropolitan cities and provinces. The temporal characteristics of $PM_{10}$ measurement data were examined by annual/seasonal/diurnal patterns across urban background monitoring sites after excluding Asian dust days. For spatial characteristics of $PM_{10}$ measurement data, we computed coefficient of variation (CV) and coefficient of divergence (COD). Based on temporal and spatial investigation, we suggested preferred long-term metrics for cohort studies. In 2010, 294 urban background monitoring sites were located in South Korea with a site over an area of $415.0km^2$ and distant from another site by 31.0 km on average. Annual average $PM_{10}$ concentrations decreased by 19.8% from 2001 to 2012, and seasonal $PM_{10}$ patterns were consistent over study years with higher concentrations in spring and winter. Spatial variability was relatively small with 6~19% of CV and 21~46% of COD across 16 metropolitan cities and provinces in 2010. To maximize spatial coverage and reflect temporal and spatial distributions, our suggestion for $PM_{10}$ metrics representing long-term exposures was the average for one or multiple years after 2009. This study provides the knowledge of all available $PM_{10}$ data measured at national regulatory monitoring sites in South Korea and the insight of the plausible longterm exposure metric for cohort studies.

• Journal of The Korean Society of Agricultural Engineers
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• v.60 no.3
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• pp.51-61
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• 2018

Transportation and storage technologies, which are key drivers for trade, has increased global trade of agricultural products about 165% from 1995 to 2015. Korea imports 76.2% of grain from major food exporters such as USA, Australia, Brazil, and China. The expected long shipping distances from these countries can seriously cause environmental impacts on various environmental categories such as climate change, particulate matter, and acidification. The goal of this study is to assess the environmental implications focused on greenhouse gases (GHGs) and particulate matters (PMs) emissions of imported grains (wheat, corn, and bean) using food miles analysis and life cycle assessment (LCA). The environmental impacts of imported crops are estimated by transportation modes using the national LCI database provided by Korea Environmental Industry & Technology Institute (KEITI). The results of this study are as follows; (1) Imported wheat comes from USA (29%), AUS (27%), and URK (20%), corn is imported from USA (34%), BRA (29%), and URK (16%), and bean comes from BRA (57%), USA (40%), and CHN (2%); (2) the food miles of imported crops (wheat, corn, and bean) are 3.62E+10, 1.30E+11, and $2.20E+10ton{\cdot}km$, respectively; (3) the potential GHGs and PMs of wheat, corn, and bean are 5.02E+08, 1.67E+09, and 2.84E+08 kg $CO_2e$ and 5.89E+05, 1.83E+06, 3.07E+05 kg $PM_{10}e$, respectively. The outputs of this study could provide environmental impacts and carrying distances of imported agricultural products for preparing a plan to reduce environmental impacts.

• Toxicological Research
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• v.30 no.2
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• pp.83-90
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• 2014

An increasing number of recent studies have focused on the impact of particulate matter on human health. As a model for atmospheric particulate inhalation, we investigated the effects of inhaled carbon black nanoparticles (CBNP) on mice with bleomycin-induced pulmonary fibrosis. The CNBPs were generated by a novel aerosolization process, and the mice were exposed to the aerosol for 4 hours. We found that CBNP inhalation exacerbated lung inflammation, as evidenced by histopathology analysis and by the expression levels of interleukin-6 protein, fibronectin, and interferon-${\gamma}$ mRNAs in lung tissues. Notably, fibronectin mRNA expression showed a statistically significant increase in expression after CBNP exposure. These data suggest that the concentration of CBNPs delivered (calculated to be $12.5{\mu}g/m^3$) can aggravate lung inflammation in mice. Our results also suggest that the inhalation of ultrafine particles like PM 2.5 is an impactful environmental risk factor for humans, particularly in susceptible populations with predisposing lung conditions.

• Journal of Korean Society for Atmospheric Environment
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• v.11 no.2
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• pp.179-184
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• 1995

This study was carried out to characterize sources of suspended particulate matter(SPM) in Mt. Soback area from January to Novembver in 1993. The collection and major water soluble ion analysis of SPM were conducted by using a High Volumn Air Sampler(HVAS; W&A Inc., PM-10) and ion chromatograph(DIONEX 4000i), respectively. The variations of SPM and major ion concentrations were found to be 9. sim. 156.mu.g/ $m^{3}$, $F^{-10}$ 0.00 .sim. 0.15.mu.g/ $m^{3}$, C $l^{-10}$ 0.06 .sim. 3.79.mu.g/ $m^{3}$, N $O_{3}$$^{-10}$ 0.90 .sim. 6.85.mu.g/ $m^{3}$, S $O_{4}$$^{2-}$ 1.99 .sim. 9.36.mu.g/ $m^{3}$ N $a^{+}$0.00 .sim. 0.27.mu.g/ $m^{3}$, N $H_{4}$ $^{+}$0.72 .sim. 5.77.mu.g/ $m^{3}$, $k^{+}$0.03 .sim. 0.88.mu.g/ $m^{3}$ and $Ca^{2+}$0.12 .sim. 2.76.mu.g/ $m^{3}$. Tree sources were identified by Principal Component Amalysis(PCA) using a SPSS/P $C^{+}$. The explanation ability of forst, second and third Principal Component were 60.8%, 13.6%, 8.2%, of total variance. The sources classfied by PCA were found to be secondary aerosol/fuel combustion, soil dust related cement production/yellow sand and aerosol related waste burning.related waste burning.g.

• Atmosphere
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• v.29 no.5
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• pp.525-535
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• 2019

Vertical distributions of aerosol mass concentrations over Seoul and Gangneung from January to February 2015 were investigated using aerosol Mie-scattering lidars. Vertical mass concentration of aerosol was calculated from the lidar data using KALION's algorithm and quantitatively compared with ground PM₁₀ concentration to obtain objectivity of data. The backward trajectories calculated using HYSPLIT (version 4) were clustered into 5 traces for Seoul and 6 traces for Gangneung, and the observed aerosol vertical mass distribution was analyzed for individual trajectories. Result from the analysis shows that, aerosol concentrations with in the planetary boundary layer were highest when airflows into the measurement points originated in the Shandong Peninsula or the Inner Mongolia. In addition, the difference of aerosol mass concentrations in the two regions below 1 km was about twice as large as that in the long range transport from the Shandong Peninsula compared to the local emission. This result shows that the air quality over Korea related to particulate matters are affected more by aerosol emissions in the upstream source regions and the associated transboundary transports than local emissions. This study also suggests that the use of local aerosol observations is critical for accurate simulations of aerosol-cloud interactions.

• Atmosphere
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• v.29 no.2
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• pp.213-218
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• 2019

A valuation of air pollution is critical for relevant policy-making for the public and research direction. This study conducted a willingness-to-pay (WTP) survey using contingent valuation method (CVM) in Seoul Korea. In detail, this study puts an emphasis on its temporal changes referred on two surveys conducted in 2014 and 2019. In reference to the previous studies in 2002, our survey indicated that the public awareness of air pollution and interests on its sources and solutions increased noticeably. Our survey showed that WTP increased significantly from 2588 to 4827 and 8240 Korean Won $month^{-1}$ in 2002, 2014, and 2019, respectively. Moreover, the percentage of respondents to pay the WTP also increased from 48% to 68% and 79% in 2002, 2014, and 2019, respectively. Our analysis based on the number of Google search on particulate matters (PMs) strongly suggests that such the noticeable increases of the public attention to air pollution is well accorded with the moment of the announcement of a standard for ultra-fine particles and the start of PM prediction in late 2013. But the Google search rate grew about 16.7 times in 2009 compared to 2014, which is much larger than the growth rate of interest and WTP between 2014 and 2019. Our results shed light on policy decision for the right person in the right place on the right time in the era of air pollution.

• Journal of Environmental Health Sciences
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• v.50 no.1
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• pp.6-15
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• 2024

Background: People's activities have been restricted due to the COVID-19 pandemic. These changes in activity patterns may lead to a decrease in fine particulate matter (PM_2.5) concentrations. Additionally, the level of population exposure to PM_2.5 may be changed. Objectives: This study aimed to analyze the impact of population movement and meteorological factors on the distribution of PM_2.5 concentrations before and after the outbreak of COVID-19. Methods: The study area was Guro-gu in Seoul. The research period was selected as January to March 2020, a period of significant population movement changes caused by COVID-19. The evaluation of the dynamic population was conducted by calculating the absolute difference in population numbers between consecutive hours and comparing them to determine the daily average. Ambient PM_2.5 concentrations were estimated for each grid using ordinary kriging in Python. For the population exposure assessment, the population-weighted average concentration was calculated by determining the indoor to outdoor population for each grid and applying the indoor to outdoor ratio to the ambient PM_2.5 concentration. To assess the factors influencing changes in the ambient PM_2.5 concentration, a statistical analysis was conducted, incorporating population mobility and meteorological factors. Results: Through statistical analysis, the correlation between ambient PM_2.5 concentration and population movement was positive on both weekends and weekdays (r=0.71, r=0.266). The results confirmed that most of the relationships were positive, suggesting that a decrease in human activity can lead to a decrease in PM_2.5 concentrations. In addition, when population-weighted concentration averages were calculated and the exposure level of the population group was compared before and after the COVID-19 outbreak, the proportion of people exceeding the air quality standard decreased by approximately 15.5%. Conclusions: Human activities can impact ambient concentrations of PM_2.5, potentially altering the levels of PM_2.5 exposure in the population.

• Plant Journal
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• v.16 no.1
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• pp.34-37
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• 2020

The need to improve the performance of the dust collector by increasing the fine dust pollution in Korea is eminent. In this study, electrostatic spray wet electrostatic precipitator is used to remove Particulate Matter (PM). In order to enter the Cone-jet mode, which is the most stable spray mode among the various modes of electrostatic spraying, an appropriate voltage-flow condition must be satisfied, and a voltage-flow interval enabling this can be expressed as Stability Island. The voltage at which the conduit mode starts in the Stability Island section is referred to as the electrostatic spray minimum voltage (Onset Voltage). However, the conventional electrostatic spray is uses a very low flowrate, at most few millilitres per minute. The use of much higher flowrates has introduced different patterns of electrospray modes. In this study, the different spray modes will be studied in detail.