• Journal of the Korean Solar Energy Society
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• v.40 no.5
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• pp.35-45
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• 2020

Photovoltaic (PV) power system prices have been steadily dropping in recent years due to their mass production and advances in relevant technology. Crystalline silicon (c-Si wafers) account for the largest share of the price of solar cells; reducing the thickness of these wafers is an essential part of increasing the price competitiveness of PV power systems. However, reducing the thickness of c-Si wafers is challenging; typically, phenomena such as bowing and cracking are encountered. While several approaches to address the bowing phenomenon of the c-Si solar cells exist, the only method to study the crack phenomenon (related to the strength of the c-Si solar cells) is the bending test method. Moreover, studies on determining the strength properties of the solar cells have focused largely on c-Si wafers, while those on the strength properties of front and rear-side electrodes and SiNx, the other components of c-Si solar cells, are scarce. In this study, we analyzed the strength characteristics of each layer of c-Si solar cells. The strength characteristics of the sawing mark direction produced during the production of c-Si wafers were also tested. Experiments were conducted using a 4bending tester for a specially manufactured c-Si solar cell. The results indicate that the back side electrode is the main component that experienced bowing, while the front electrode was the primary component regulating the strength of the c-Si solar cell.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.17 no.2
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• pp.280-286
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• 2007

We evaluated a commercial biopreparation of plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) strains Bacillus subtilis GB03 and B. amyloliquefaciens IN937a formulated with the carrier chitosan (Bio Yield) for its capacity to elicit growth promotion and induced systemic resistance against infection by Cucumber Mosaic Virus (CMV) and Pseudomonas syringae pv. tomato DC3000 in Arabidopsis thaliana. The biopreparation promoted plant growth of Arabidopsis hormonal mutants, which included auxin, gibberellic acid, ethylene, jasmonate, salicylic acid, and brassinosteroid insensitive lines as well as each wild-type. The biopreparation protected plants against CMV based on disease severity in wild-type plants. However, virus titre was not lower in control plants and those treated with biopreparation, suggesting that the biopreparation induced tolerance rather than resistance against CMV. Interestingly, the biopreparation induced resistance against CMV in NahG plants, as evidenced by both reduced disease severity and virus titer. The biopreparation also elicited induced resistance against P. syringae pv. tomato in the wild-type but not in NahG transgenic plants, which degrade endogenous salicylic acid, indicating the involvement of salicylic acid signaling. Our results indicate that some PGPR strains can elicit plant growth promotion by mechanisms that are different from known hormonal signaling pathways. In addition, the mechanism for elicitation of induced resistance by PGPR may be pathogen-dependent. Collectively, the two-Bacilli strain mixture can be utilized as a biological inoculant for both protection of plant against bacterial and viral pathogens and enhancement of plant growth.

• Journal of the Architectural Institute of Korea Planning & Design
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• v.35 no.8
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• pp.23-34
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• 2019

The façade, a fundamental function as a skin that protects human life from external environment such as cold and hot weather, snow, rain, and wind, etc, has served as a media for communication between indoor space of the building and outside space. From the media for communication point of view, the approach to envelope design, in which environmental elements are transmitted internally through the filtering of external environments, has been evolving in various ways from the past to the present. Today, modern architecture technologies including curtain wall systems and user-friendly computer programming and environmental analysis programs demonstrate a differentiated approach to envelope design related to the indoor environment. For this reason, it is worth noting that the envelope design factors and trends that appear variously in the UNStudio's projects before and after the 2000s. The factors reflected in the envelop design in conjunction with the indoor environment obtained through the case study of the UNStudio's office projects were daylight environment, thermal environment, ventilation, noise, privacy and view, and consideration for daylight environment and thermal environment was reflected in many cases through the case study. Looking at the changes in the diagrams in order of year, it can be seen that the envelope design using the environmental analysis tool has been performed since 2006. This is a clue to show the envelop design changes from the conceptual method to the data-based one. The diagrams and analysis results related to the envelop design showed that the thermal environment related to solar radiation was the most, and no diagrams and analysis related to the indoor illumination were found. Since 2010, PV panel installation has been shown in the envelope design, which can be found in the increased efficiency of PV panels due to the technological advances and the decrease in production cost.

• New & Renewable Energy
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• v.16 no.4
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• pp.65-75
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• 2020

The value of tangible assets depreciates over their useful life and this depreciation should be adequately reflected in any tax or financial reports. However, the method used to calculate depreciation can impact the financial performance of solar projects due to the time value of money. Korean tax law stipulates only one method for calculating the depreciation of solar photovoltaic facilities: the straight-line method. Conversely, USA's tax law accepts other depreciation methods as solar incentives, including the modified accelerated cost recovery system (MACRS) and Bonus depreciation method. This paper compares different depreciation methods in the financial analysis of a 10 MW solar system to determine their effect on the financial results. When depreciation was calculated utilizing the MACRS and Bonus depreciation method, the internal rate of return (IRR) was 10.9% and 16.4% higher, respectively, than when the Korean straight-line depreciation method was used. Additionally, the increased IRR resulting from the use of the two US methods resulted in a 20.5% and 27.4% higher net present value, respectively. This shows that changing the depreciation calculation method can redistribute the tax amount during the project period, thereby increasing the discounted cash flow of the solar project. In addition to increasing profitability, USA's depreciation methods alleviate the uncertainty of solar projects and provide more flexibility in project financing than the Korean method. These results strongly suggest that Korean tax law could greatly benefit from adopting USA's depreciation methods as an effective incentive scheme.

• Journal of Climate Change Research
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• v.5 no.1
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• pp.1-12
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• 2014

With continued economic growth, Korea has seen an increase in the nighttime activities of its citizens as hours of activity have extended into night. There is an increasing trend in energy consumption related to citizens' nighttime activities. In order to analyze ideas for an efficient replacement of the power consumption of streetlights and for profit generation by applying grid-type solar systems, this study used an RETScreen model. Through energy analysis and cost analysis, the application benefit and viability of grid-type solar street light systems were analyzed. With analysis result of a total weekly power generation of 114 kWh via a grid-connected solar streetlight system, it was shown that the net present value of a grid-connected solar street light system is 155,362 KRW, which would mean a payback period of about 5.2 years, and as such, it was shown that profit could be generated after about 6 years. In addition, if the grid-connected solar power generation system proposed by this study is to be applied, it was shown that 401,935 KRW in profit could be generated after the 20-year useful life set for the solar system. In addition, the sensitivity analysis was performed taking into account the price fluctuations of SMP, maintenance. As a result, a payback period has increased by 1~2 years, and there were no significant differences. Because the most important factor that affect the economic analysis is the cost of supply certification of renewable energy, a stable sales and acquisition of this certification are very important. the Seoul-type Feed in Tariff(FIT) connected to other institutions will enable steady sales by confirming to purchase the certification for 12 years. Therefore, if those issues mentioned above are properly reflected, Central-grid PV system project will be able to perform well in the face of unfavorable condition of solar PV installation.

• Journal of Advanced Marine Engineering and Technology
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• v.39 no.2
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• pp.152-158
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• 2015

Unlike photovoltaic systems installed on land, photovoltaic systems applied to the offshore plant have the characteristic that is installed in a limited space. For single point mooring plant, it is advantageous in terms of a reliable power supply to be installed in different directions of photovoltaic panels, because it is not possible to identify the position of the sun by rotation of the plant itself. Differences of installation angle between photovoltaic panels make a difference of the intensity of radiation irradiated on each photovoltaic panel, and it brings loss of generation quantity due to the partial shading. In order to provide a photovoltaic system suitable for offshore plant, the modeling which contains multiple photovoltaic panels controlled by single controller is performed. Then, it was examined how the output characteristics of the photovoltaic system change about the difference of the intensity of radiation that varies depending on the altitude of the sun. Finally, through the simulation, a development model of the photovoltaic system which is suitable for offshore plant is suggested.

• The Transactions of The Korean Institute of Electrical Engineers
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• v.60 no.9
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• pp.1674-1683
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• 2011

More than 80% of electric loads need DC electricity rather than AC at the moment. If DC power could be supplied directly to the terminal loads, power conversion stages including rectifiers, converters, and power adapters can be reduced or simplified. Therefore, DC microgrids may be able to improve energy efficiency of power distribution systems. In addition, DC microgrids can increase the penetration level of renewable energy resources because many renewable energy resources such as solar photovoltaic(PV) generators, fuel cells, and batteries generate electric power in the form of DC power. The integration of the DC generators to AC electric power systems requires the power conversion circuits that may cause additional energy loss. This paper discusses the capability and feasibility of DC microgrids with regard to energy efficiency analysis through detailed dynamic simulation of DC and AC microgrids. The dynamic simulation models of DC and AC microgrids based on the Microgrid Test System in KEPCO Research Institute are described in detail. Through simulation studies on various conditions, this paper compares the energy efficiency and advantages of DC and AC microgrids.

• The Transactions of The Korean Institute of Electrical Engineers
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• v.64 no.2
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• pp.222-227
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• 2015

This paper presents the optimal energy generation systems for economical EVs(Electric Vehicles) charging stations located in an island area. The system includes grid electricity, diesel generator and renewable energy sources of wind turbines and PV(Photovoltaic) panels. The independent generation system is designed with data resources such as annual average wind speed, solar radiation and the grid electricity price by calculating system cost under different structures. This sensitive analysis on the varying data resources allows for the configuration of the most economical generation system for charging stations by comparing initial capital, operating cost, NPC(Net Present Cost) and COE(Cost of Energy). Depending on the increase of the grid cost, the NPC variation of the most economical system which includes renewable energy generations and grid electricity can be smaller than those of other generation systems.

• 한국태양에너지학회:학술대회논문집
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• 2012.03a
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• pp.529-533
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• 2012

By introducing RPS(Renewable Portfolio Standard) for reduction of greenhouse gas, Renewable energy sources have becoming widespread gradually. However, Renewable energy sources, such as wind power and PV are difficult to control the output and they have intermittent characteristics of the output. These characteristics would cause some problems when it is connected in the power system. In order to solve these problems, Energy Storage Systems(ESS) are considered to use. Although there are many different storage devices, the utilization of Secondary Battery is the one of the best ways to stabilize an output fluctuation of RES because of its fast responsibility. For that reason, it would better fit a large-capacity of Secondary battery for stabilization. However, batteries cannot be installed with a large capacity blindly because of its expensive cost. So to select proper capacity of the battery is an important consideration. This paper presented a methodology for the optimal capacity and operation of ESS in microgrids.

• The Plant Pathology Journal
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• v.24 no.3
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• pp.283-288
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• 2008

Plant leaf surface is an important niche for diverse epiphytic microbes, including bacteria and fungi. Plant leaf surface plays a critical frontline defense against pathogen infections. The objective of our study was to evaluate the effectiveness of a starch-based super-absorbent polymer(SAP) combination, which enhances water potential and nutrient availability to plant leaves. We evaluated the effect of SAP on the maintenance of bacterial populations. In order to monitor bacterial populations in situ, a SAP mixture containing Pseudomonas syringae pv. tabaci that expressed recombinant green fluorescent protein(GFPuv) was spray-challenged onto whole leaves of Nicotiana benthamiana. The SAP combination treatment enhanced bacterial robustness, as indicated by disease severity and incidence. Unexpectedly, bacterial numbers were not significantly different between leaves treated with the SAP combination and those treated with water alone. Furthermore, young leaves treated with the SAP combination had more severe symptoms and a greater number of bacterial spots caused by primary and secondary infections compared to young leaves treated with the water control. In contrast, bacterial cell numbers did not statistically differ between the two groups, which indicated that measurement of viable GFP-based bacterial spots may provide a more sensitive methodology for assessing virulence of bacterial pathogens than methods that require dilution plating following maceration of bacterial-inoculated leaf tissue. Our study suggests that the SAP combination successfully increased bacterial aggressiveness, which could either be used to promote the ability of biological agents to control weedy plants or increase the robustness of saprophytic epiphytes against competition from potentially harmful microbes.