• Microbiology and Biotechnology Letters
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• v.40 no.3
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• pp.190-196
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• 2012

In this study, a total of more than 1,000 bacteria, including 739 species of aerobic bacteria, 80 species of urease producing bacteria and 303 species of photosynthetic bacteria, were isolated from red-pepper field soils located in the Gyeongsan Province of the Republic of Korea. Amongst these, 158 species of aerobic bacteria, 70 species of urease producing bacteria and 228 species of photosynthetic bacteria were found to be auxin producing soil bacteria through quantification analysis with the Salkowski test. The latter groupings were then tested for antifungal activities to ${\beta}$-Glucanase and siderophore using CMC congo red agar and CAS blue agar media. In addition, the selected strains were examined for antifungal activity against various phytopathogenic fungi on PDN agar media. Six strains; BCB14, BCB17, C10, HA46, HA143, and HJ5, were noted for their ability to both produce auxin and act as antifungal substances. 16S rDNA sequence comparison analyses of these six strains identified them as Bacillus subtilis BCB14, B. methylotrophicus BCB17, B. methylotrophicus C10, B. sonorensis HA46, B. subtilis HA143, and B. safensis HJ5.

• International Journal of Highway Engineering
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• v.9 no.3
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• pp.111-121
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• 2007

During the whole month of December in 2005, Korea experienced both heavy snowfall and freezing temperature in southeast regions, which had caused frost related damages to many pavements laid on top of box culverts. In-situ observation revealed that the formation of ice lenses in subgrade and subsequent unbound layers led to upward heaving and transverse cracks in concrete and asphalt pavements. This has affected the long-term performance of pavements, as well as has threatened drivers' safety for a while. Recently, Korea Expressway Corporation has proposed a design guide to better protect newly constructed unbound pavement layers over culverts from frost heave. A trench drainage system has been selected to effectively draw off water and to alleviate pore-water pressure in soils during the coldest season. This paper presents experimental and analytical backgrounds behind this new design guide. Soil specimens retrieved from the sites are tested to quantify clay content and to estimate the permeability of subgrade. A 2-D ground seepage analysis has been conducted to better understand the changes in pore water pressures as a function of grain size. Finally, an optimum size of trench drainage is determined based on numerical analysis and workability in the field.

• Journal of Soil and Groundwater Environment
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• v.19 no.3
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• pp.25-32
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• 2014

The amount of TPH contaminated soil treated at off-site remediation facilities is ever increasing. For the recycle of the treated-soil on farmlands, it is necessary to restore biological and physico-chemical soil characteristics and to remove residual TPH in the soil by an economic polishing treatment method such as phytoremediation. In this study, a series of experiments was performed to select suitable plant species and to devise a proper planting method for the phyto-restoration of TPH-treated soil. Rye (Secale cereale) was selected as test species through a germination test, among 5 other plants. Five 7-day-old rye seedlings were planted in a plastic pot, 20 cm in height and 15 cm in diameter. The pot was filled with TPH-treated soil (residual TPH of 1,118 mg/kg) up to 15 cm, and upper 5 cm was filled with horticulture soil to prevent TPH toxic effects and to act as root growth zone. The planted pot was cultivated in a greenhouse for 38 days along with the control that rye planted in a normal soil and the blank with no plants. After 38 days, the above-ground biomass of rye in the TPH-treated soil was 30.6% less than that in the control, however, the photosynthetic activity of the leaf remained equal on both treatments. Soil DHA (dehydrogenase activity) increased 186 times in the rye treatment compared to 10.8 times in the blank. The gross TPH removal (%) in the planted soil and the blank soil was 34.5% and 18.4%, respectively, resulting in 16.1% increase of net TPH removal. Promotion of microbial activity by root exudate, increase in soil permeability and air ventilation as well as direct uptake and degradation by planted rye may have contributed to the higher TPH removal rate. Therefore, planting rye on the TPH-treated soil with the root growth zone method showed both the potential of restoring biological soil properties and the possibility of residual TPH removal that may allow the recycle of the treated soil to farmlands.

• Korean Journal of Microbiology
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• v.53 no.4
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• pp.242-250
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• 2017

Actinobacteria tolerating extreme conditions can be a rich source of bioactive compounds and enzymes. In this study filamentous actinobacteria were isolated from soils of Ulleung Island, and their physiological properties were examined. Soil samples were collected, serially diluted and spread on various agar media. The average viable counts of total bacteria were $1.28{\times}10^7CFU/g$ for soil sample 1 (ULS1) and $2.05{\times}10^7CFU/g$ for soil sample 2 (ULS2). As a result, 34 strains of actinobacteria were isolated and assigned to the genera Streptomyces (16 strains), Isoptericola (5 strains), Rhodococcus (4 strains), Agromyces (3 strains), Micrococcus (2 strains), Arthrobacter (1 strain), Williamsia (1 strain), Microbacterium (1 strain), and Oerskovia (1 strain) based on 16S rRNA gene sequence analysis. Enzyme activity and plant growth promoting potential were tested for representative isolates. Multiple strains of Streptomyces degraded starch, casein and Tween 80. As for plant growth promoting potential, strains of Oerskovia, Williamsia, Isoptericola, and Streptomyces solubilized phosphate, and those of Agromyces, Oerskovia, Micrococcus, Rhodococcus, Streptomyces, and Isoptericola produced 3-indole-acetic acid (IAA), respectively. Selected strains of Streptomyces exhibited strong antagonistic activity against Staphylococcus aureus and Bacillus subtilis as well as Candida albicans. This study confirms that actinobacteria from Ulleung Island can be a good source of novel bioactive compounds.

• Korean Journal of Microbiology
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• v.55 no.2
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• pp.143-148
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• 2019

The synthesis of captopril as an important chiral drug in commerce needs expensive resolution process of racemic mixture. Microorganisms, producing a thermostable esterase that catalyzes the stereo-selective hydrolysis of methyl DL-${\beta}$-acetylthioisobutyrate (DL-ester) to D-${\beta}$-acetylthioisobutyric acid (DAT) were screened from soils. Among the strains tested, strain No CJ-317 and strain No CJ-187 with highest activity were selected as the best DAT producer. The newly isolated microorganisms were identified respectively, as Klebsiella pneumoniae and Pseudomonas putida. The cell activity of esterase from K. pneumoniae CJ-317 and P. putida CJ-187 were showed an optimal reaction activity at $75^{\circ}C$ and $60^{\circ}C$, respectively. Also the cell activity of K. pneumoniae CJ-317 was stable up to $80^{\circ}C$ for 1 h, while that of P. putida CJ-187 was not over $60^{\circ}C$. By varying the concentration of DAT in the reaction mixture, the cell activity of P. putida CJ-187 showed about 55% and 80% of product inhibition in the presence of 2.5% (w/v) and 5.0% of DAT respectively. K. pneumoniae CJ-317 had less product inhibition than P. putida CJ-187 by about 35% and 44% at the same concentrations respectively. The esterase of newly isolated K. pneumoniae CJ-317 could be useful for the stereo-selective hydrolysis of DL-ester to DAT.

• Journal of Korean Society of Forest Science
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• v.100 no.4
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• pp.681-686
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• 2011

The aim of this study was to investigate the distribution of soil biota across forest types and soil depths in Gwangneung Experimental Forest. We selected 5 sites, which are 3 deciduous- and 2 coniferous forests. The abundance of microflora in these areas was analyzed by the phospholipid fatty acid (PLFA) indicators, and the density of mesofauna was measured by the abundance of nematodes and microarthropods. The abundance of soil microflora was higher in the A layer than in the B layer based on the PLFA indicators, but there were no differences between deciduous and coniferous forests. Average density of nematodes was higher in the A horizon than in the B horizon. The density of fungivorous nematodes was higher in the deciduous forests. Mean densities of Collembola and Oribatida were 44% and 42% of microarthropods in soil samples, respectively. The results of microbial PLFA indicators were significantly correlated with the density of their consumers, which reflected that the food web in fungi- and bacteria-based soil developed in this forests. This study suggested that the distribution of soil organisms largely separated by soil depths and was slightly affected by the forest type in the Gwangneung Experimental Forest.

• Journal of the Korea institute for structural maintenance and inspection
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• v.24 no.5
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• pp.103-110
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• 2020

In the recent seismic design code KDS 41 17 00, selection and modification procedures of ground motions which are used for nonlinear dynamic analyses were adopted. However, its practical applications are still limited due to the lack of literatures. This paper introduces case studies which used site-response analyses to select and modify ground motions for nonlinear dynamic analyses. Based on the case studies, design criterion for site-response analyses were reviewed thoroughly in the viewpoint of practical applications. It was found that design requirements related with bedrock motions are too conservative that ground motions are selected and modified in the excessive manner. It is especially true for low-rise building structures with period ranges including acceleration-sensitive regions. Even though surface motions have shown appropriate responses, such building structures have to re-select and re-modify ground motions based on pre-analysis procedures rather than post-ones according to the current seismic design code. Also, it was observed that building structures with soft soils under strong ground motions need more comprehensive investigations on soil properties and efficient analysis methods in order to perform site-response analyses. This is due to the fact that lack of reliabilities on soil properties and analysis methods could result in unstable site-responses.

• Journal of the Korean GEO-environmental Society
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• v.22 no.12
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• pp.65-70
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• 2021

River-side Embankment collapse involves various causes. The embankment collapse due to internal erosion around embedded structures reaches up to more than 10% in Korea. Many studies are being attempted to prevent from the collapse of the embankment rooted from overtopping and instability as well as internal erosion. One of them is the study on the application of biopolymers. The application of biopolymers to soils are divided into enhancing strength, vegetation and erosion resistance. This study investigated the effect of biopolymer treated soil on erosion resistance. The main goal of the study is to obtain basic data for real-scale experiments to verify the effectiveness of biopolymer treated soil embankment including a review of the collapse pattern in the model embankment with various test conditions. The optimized experimental conditions were selected by examining the erosion patterns according to each induction path with three compaction degree of the model embankment. As a result of the experiment, the internal erosion rate in the embankment to which the biopolymer treated soil was applied is greatly reduced, and it could be concluded that it might be applied to the actual embankment. However, in this study, the conclusion was drawn only within the scaled-down model embankment. In order to practically apply the biopolymer treated soil to the embankment, the study considering the scale effect would be needed.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Crop Science Conference
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• 2022.10a
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• pp.78-78
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• 2022

Food productivity in North Korea is about 50% lower than in South Korea. In order to increase the productivity of major crops, it is necessary to develop early maturing, disease resistance, and high-yielding varieties and apply them early. Since the late 1990s, North Korea has been actively developing potatoes, rice and com as major food crops, and soybeans are considered important as a protein-supplying crop. Domestic cultivated varieties, which are expected to be most adaptable eco-climatologically, are mainly selected from soil with high nutrient soil. It is necessary to test separately for adaptability in low organic soil. So it is very necessary to apply technology to improve soil improvement through rotational crop selection in the middle and long-term. Therefore, this study was conducted to test the adaptability to low organic soils of domestic cultivars and to select varieties. In 2021 there are twenty two (22) varieties of soybeans were grown in low organic soil at the field of Chungbuk National University. This year twenty two (22) varieties of soybeans were also grown in low organic soil at the field of Chungbuk National University. Sowing was done on June 10, the planting distance was 70cm × 15cm, after opening the cotyledons fully, the soybeans were thinned and leaving two plants per hole. In addition, various types of growth characteristics and quantitative components were investigated to evaluate the adaptability to low organic soil of domestic varieties. This study was conducted to investigate the growth characteristics and quantitative components of soybean varieties grown in low organic soil. The flowering period of 22 varieties of soybeans was about 14 days from July 22 to August 4. The flowers of the beans were white, purple, light purple and the pubescence color was gray and brown where most of them were gray. The highest plant height was up to 130.4 cm and lowest was 20.3 cm, highest stem length was up to 119.5 cm and lowest was 15.3 cm. Highest first pod height (FPH) was up to 34.0 cm and lowest was 3.0 cm. Highest stem diameter was up to 15.76mm and lowest was 1.76 mm. Number of main stem nodes was up to 19 and at least 1. Number of branch was up to 10 and at least 0. The number of pod per plant was up to 121. Bacterial pustule has been spread in soybean field.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Crop Science Conference
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• 2022.10a
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• pp.52-52
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• 2022

Recently, PE (polyethylene) film has been used increasingly in com cultivation. However, PE films often cause soil and environment contamination. In order to reduce this problem, many researches have been carrying out studies on biodegradable films (BF) that are easily decomposed by soil microorganisms. Therefore, this study was conducted to determine which BF is optimal for growth and yield of com crops while also having the highest rates of film decomposition. BFs Farmsbio (Farm Hannong), Heulgro Film (Sejin Bio), Vonto Film (Eco-Hansung) as well as a selected PE film were used in this study. For the control, we used crops grown without any kind of mulching. Experimental fields were fertilized according to conventional cultivation methods, tilled, and then covered by either BF or PE. After 1 week, com (cv. MIBECK2ho) at the 3-leaf stage (16 days after seeding) was transplanted. Plant height was measured at 18 and 32 days after transplanting and heading stages. Yield components and yield were also measured at harvest. In addition, pH, EC, and decomposition and light transmittance levels of films were investigated during the experimental period. Daily average temperature, relative humidity and organic matter in soils were also measured during the experimental period. There was no significant difference in plant height, heading date, and silking between crops with BFs and PE, but the crops grown with BFs and PE films reached higher growth parameters in a shorter amount of time than the crops in the non-mulching control. Additionally, there were no significant differences in yield components such as length of ears, ear width, ear weight, and yield in crops that were grown using films or crops in the control plot. Light transmittance and decomposition levels of films generally increased with time after transplanting, and was highest in the Heulgro film than other BFs. Soil pH and organic matter in crops using BFs and PE films were significantly higher than in the control plot at 99 and 113 days after transplanting. In general, the EC contents in the control plot was lower than in crops using BFs and PE films. The average daily moisture in soil was higher when BFs and PE films were used than in the control plot. However, the daily average soil temperature was higher in crops using BFs and PE films than in the control plots at the beginning of the experimental period, but there was no consistent difference in soil temperature towards the later part of the experimental period. Therefore, the BFs used in this study were shown to be helpful without causing negative impacts on the growth and yield of com.