• Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society
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• v.35 no.2
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• pp.357-364
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• 2014

Size controlled, $LiNi_{0.8}Co_{0.15}Al_{0.05}O_2$ cathode powders were prepared by co-precipitation method followed by heat treatment at temperatures between 750 and $850^{\circ}C$. The synthesized samples are characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and electrochemical performance. The synthesized $LiNi_{0.8}Co_{0.15}Al_{0.05}O_2$ after calcined at $750^{\circ}C$ has a good electrochemical performance with an initial discharge capacity of $190mAhg^{-1}$ and good capacity retention of 100% after 30 cycles at 0.1C ($17mAg^{-1}$). The capacity retention of $LiNi_{0.8}Co_{0.15}Al_{0.05}O_2$ after calcined at $750^{\circ}C$ is better than that at 800 and $850^{\circ}C$ without capacity loss at various high C rates. This is ascribed to the minimized cation disorder, a higher conductivity, and higher lithium ion diffusion coefficient ($D_{Li}$) observed in this material. In the differential scanning calorimetry DSC profile of the charged sample, the generation of heat by exothermic reaction was decreased by calcined at high temperature, and this decrease is especially at $850^{\circ}C$. This behavior implies that the high temperature calcinations of $LiNi_{0.8}Co_{0.15}Al_{0.05}O_2$ prevent phase transitions with the release of oxygen.

• Journal of Korean Society of Water and Wastewater
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• v.30 no.5
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• pp.501-509
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• 2016

In this study, a flat-type photocatalytic reactor is applied under solar irradiation for simultaneous treatment of target pollutants: reduction of Cr(VI) to Cr(III) and oxidation of EDCs (BPA, EE2, E2). An immobilized type of photocatalyst was fabricated to have self-grown nanotubes on its surface in order to overcome limitations of powdery photocatalyst. Moreover, Ti mesh form was chosen as substrate and modified to have both larger surface area and photocatalyst content. Ti mesh was anodized at 50V and $25^{\circ}C$ for 30min in the mixed electrolytes ($NH_4F-H_2O-C_2H_6O_2$) and annealed at $450^{\circ}C$ for 2 hours in ambient oxygen to have anatase structure. Surface characterization was done with SEM and XRD methodologies. Fabricated NTT was applied to water treatment, and coexisting Cr(VI) and organics (EDCs) enhanced each other's reactions by scavenging holes and electrons and thus impeding recombination. Also, several experiments were conducted outdoor under direct sunlight and it was observed that both solar-tracking and applying modified photocatalyst were proven to enhance reaction efficiency.

• Proceedings of the Korean Vacuum Society Conference
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• 2013.02a
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• pp.396-396
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• 2013

The resistive random access memory (ReRAM) has several advantages to apply next generation non-volatile memory device, because of fast switching time, long retentions, and large memory windows. The high mobility of monolayered graphene showed several possibilities for scale down and electrical property enhancement of memory device. In this study, the monolayered graphene grown by chemical vapor deposition was transferred to $SiO_2$ (100 nm)/Si substrate and glass by using PMMA coating method. For formation of metal-oxide nanoparticles, we used a chemical reaction between metal films and polyamic acid layer. The 50-nm thick BPDA-PDA polyamic acid layer was coated on the graphene layer. Through soft baking at $125^{\circ}C$ or 30 min, solvent in polyimide layer was removed. Then, 5-nm-thick indium layer was deposited by using thermal evaporator at room temperature. And then, the second polyimide layer was coated on the indium thin film. After remove solvent and open bottom graphene layer, the samples were annealed at $400^{\circ}C$ or 1 hr by using furnace in $N_2$ ambient. The average diameter and density of nanoparticle were depending on annealing temperature and times. During annealing process, the metal and oxygen ions combined to create $In_2O_3$ nanoparticle in the polyimide layer. The electrical properties of $In_2O_3$ nanoparticle ReRAM such as current-voltage curve, operation speed and retention discussed for applictions of transparent and flexible hybrid ReRAM device.

• Journal of Applied Biological Chemistry
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• v.63 no.3
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• pp.283-290
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• 2020

Oxidative stress is one of the contributors of neurodegenerative disorders including Alzheimer's disease. According to previous studies, Aster yomena (Kitam.) Honda (AY) possesses variable pharmacological activities including anti-coagulant and anti-obesity effect. In this study, we aimed to determine the neuroprotective effect of ethyl acetate fraction from Aster yomena (Kitam.) Honda (EFAY) against oxidative stress. Therefore, we carried out 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,3-diphenyl tetrazolium bromide, lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), and 2',7'-dichlorofluorescin diacetate assays in SH-SY5Y neuronal cells treated with hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂). H₂O₂-treated control cells exhibited reduced viability of cells, and increased LDH release and reactive oxygen species (ROS) production compared to normal cells. However, treatment with EFAY restored the cell viability and inhibited LDH release and ROS production. To investigate the underlying mechanisms by which EFAY attenuated neuronal oxidative damage, we measured protein expressions using Western blot analysis. Consequently, it was observed that EFAY down-regulated cyclooxygenase-2 and interleukin-1β protein expressions in H₂O₂-treated SH-SY5Y cells that mediated inflammatory reaction. In addition, apoptosis-related proteins including B-cell lymphoma-2-associated X protein/B-cell lymphoma-2 ratio, cleaved caspase-9, and cleaved-poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase protein expressions were suppressed when H₂O₂-treated cells were exposed to EFAY. Our results indicate that EFAY ameliorated H₂O₂-induced neuronal damage by regulating inflammation and apoptosis. Altogether, AY could be potential therapeutic agent for neurodegenerative diseases.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.24 no.4
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• pp.483-488
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• 2014

In order to improve the expression of heat-resistant xylanase XYNB from Aspergillus niger SCTCC 400264, XynB has been cloned into Pichia pastoris secretary vector pPIC9K. The XynB production of recombinant P. pastoris was four times that of E. coli, and the $V_{max}$ and specific activity of XynB reached $2,547.7{\mu}mol/mg$ and 4,757 U/mg, respectively. XynB still had 74% residual enzyme activity after 30 min of heat treatment at $80^{\circ}C$. From the van der Waals force analysis of XYNB (ACN89393 and AAS67299), there is one more oxygen radical in AAS67299 in their catalytic site, indicating that the local cavity is much more free, and it is more optimal for substrate binding, affinity reaction, and proton transfer, etc, and eventually increasing enzyme activity. The H-bonds analysis of XYNB indicated that there are two more H-bonds in the 33rd Ser of XYNB (AAS67299) than in the 33rd Ala(ACN89393 ), and two H-bonds between Ser70 and Asp67.

• Journal of Korean Society of Environmental Engineers
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• v.27 no.5
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• pp.542-548
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• 2005

A fluidized bed reactor containing porous media has been known to be effective for nitrogen and organic matters removal in wastewater. The porous media which attached microbes plays important roles in simultaneous nitrification/denitrification (SND) due to coexistence of oxic, anaerobic and anoxic zone. For SND reaction, oxygen and organic substrates should be effectively diffused from wastewater into the intra-carrier zone. However, the overgrowth heterotrophic microbes at the surface of porous media may restrict from substrates diffusion. From these viewpoints, the existence and effect of heterotrophic bacteria at surface of porous media might be the key point for nitrogen removal. A porous media-membrane hybrid process was found to have improved nitrogen removal efficiency, due to stimulated denitrification as well as nitrification. Microelectrode studies revealed that although intra-media denitrification rate in a conventional fluidized bed was limited by organic carbon, this limitation was reduced in the hybrid process, resulting in the increased denitrification rate from 0.5 to $4.2\; mgNO_3-N/L/hr$.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.23 no.2
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• pp.137-143
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• 2013

The diversity and distribution of methanogenic archaea in a four-compartment anaerobic baffled reactor (ABR) treating sugar refinery wastewater were investigated by polymerase chain reaction-denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (PCR-DGGE). At an organic loading rate of 5.33 kg $COD/m^3{\cdot}day$, the ABR could perform steadily with the mean chemical oxygen demand (COD) removal of 94.8% and the specific $CH_4$ yield of 0.21 l/g $COD_{removed}$. The $CH_4$ content in the biogas was increased along the compartments, whereas the percentage of $H_2$ was decreased, indicating the distribution characteristics of the methanogens occurred longitudinally down the ABR. A high phylogenetic and ecological diversity of methanogens was found in the ABR, and all the detected methanogens were classified into six groups, including Methanomicrobiales, Methanosarcinales, Methanobacteriales, Crenarchaeota, Arc I, and Unidentified. Among the methanogenic population, the acid-tolerant hydrogenotrophic methanogens including Methanoregula and Methanosphaerula dominated the first two compartments. In the last two compartments, the dominant methanogenic population was Methanosaeta, which was the major acetate oxidizer under methanogenic conditions and could promote the formation of granular sludge. The distribution of the hydrogenotrophic (acid-tolerant) and acetotrophic methanogens in sequence along the compartments allowed the ABR to perform more efficiently and steadily.

• Environmental Engineering Research
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• v.25 no.3
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• pp.316-323
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• 2020

The degradation of aqueous oxytetracycline (OTC) from an aqueous solution antibiotic using H₂O₂/Fe²⁺ process was studied in one 1 L batch chemical reactor. The extent of OTC degradation (20 mg/L) was investigated from a known initial pH solution, temperature and the type of catalyst (Fe²⁺, Fe³⁺) and for various initial concentrations of OTC, H₂O₂ and Fe²⁺. The degradation efficiency achieved was found to be very important (90.82% and 90.63%) at initial pH solution of 3 and 4, respectively. However, the type of catalyst and the reaction temperature had a slight impact on the final degradation of OTC. The results showed that the OTC removal increased with increasing initial H₂O₂ concentration in the range of 70 to 150 mg/L and initial Fe²⁺ concentrations in the range of 2 to 5 mg/L. The highest degradation efficiency obtained at ambient temperature was 90.95% with initial concentration of OTC of 10 mg/L, H₂O₂ = 150 mg/L and Fe²⁺ = 5 mg/L. Moreover, biodegradability improved from 0.04 to 0.36 and chemical oxygen demand degradation was 78.35% after 60 min of treatment. This study proved that Fenton process can be used for pretreatment of wastewater contaminated by OTC before a biological treatment.

• Archives of Pharmacal Research
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• v.29 no.2
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• pp.145-151
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• 2006

We investigated the effects of Ginsenoside $R_e$ on human sperm motility in fertile and asthenozoospermic infertile individuals in vitro and the mechanism by which the Ginsenosides play their roles. The semen samples were obtained from 10 fertile volunteers and 10 asthenozoospermic infertile patients. Spermatozoa were separated by Percoll and incubated with 0, 1, 10 or $100\;{\mu}M$ of Ginsenoside $R_e$. Total sperm motility and progressive motility were measured by computer-aided sperm analyzer (CASA). Nitric oxide synthase (NOS) activity was determined by the $^{3}H$-arginine to $^{3}H$-citrulline conversion assay, and the NOS protein was examined by the Western blot analysis. The production of sperm nitric oxide (NO) was detected using the Griess reaction. The results showed that Ginsenoside $R_e$ significantly enhanced both fertile and infertile sperm motility, NOS activity and NO production in a concentration-dependent manner. Sodium nitroprusside (SNP, 100 nM), a NO donor, mimicked the effects of Ginsenoside $R_e$. And pretreatment with a NOS inhibitor $N^{w}$-Nitro-L-arginine methyl ester (L-NAME, $100\;{\mu}M$) or a NO scavenger N-Acetyl-L-cysteine (LNAC, 1 mM) completely blocked the effects of Ginsenoside $R_e$. Data suggested that Ginsenoside $R_e$ is beneficial to sperm motility, and that induction of NOS to increase NO production may be involved in this benefit.

• Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society
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• v.32 no.3
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• pp.988-992
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• 2011

$CO_2$ adsorption on mineral sorbents has a potential to sequester $CO_2$. This study used a density functional theory (DFT) study of $CO_2$ adsorption on barium oxide (BaO) in the presence of $H_2O$ to determine the role of $H_2O$ on the $CO_2$ adsorption properties on the ($2{\times}2$; $11.05\;{\AA}{\times}11.05\;{\AA}$) BaO (100) surface because BaO shows a high reactivity for $CO_2$ adsorption and the gas mixture of power plants generally contains $CO_2$ and $H_2O$. We investigated the adsorption properties (e.g., adsorption energies and geometries) of a single $CO_2$ molecule, a single $H_2O$ molecule on the surface to achieve molecular structures and molecular reaction mechanisms. In order to evaluate the coordinative effect of $H_2O$ molecules, this study also carried out the adsorption of a pair of $H_2O$ molecules, which was strongly bounded to neighboring (-1.91 eV) oxygen sites and distant sites (-1.86 eV), and two molecules ($CO_2$ and $H_2O$), which were also firmly bounded to neighboring sites (-2.32 eV) and distant sites (-2.23 eV). The quantum mechanical calculations show that $H_2O$ molecule does not influence on the chemisorption of $CO_2$ on the BaO surface, producing a stable carbonate due to the strong interaction between the $CO_2$ molecule and the BaO surface, resulting from the high charge transfer (-0.76 e).