• Journal of agricultural medicine and community health
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• v.47 no.4
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• pp.211-219
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• 2022

Objective: This study was conducted to investigate the awareness of work-related disease prevention of farmers. Method: As a research method, a qualitative focus group interview was conducted in 18 participants. Results: Prevention and management services for work-related diseases of farmers mostly are based on research from other fields and so are not highly effective because their content is not relevant to agricultural work. It has been suggested that such program designers be required to have some appropriate related knowledge, and that incentives and a certification system for participation in such education be established. To analyze work-related diseases of farmers, fields of prevention, diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation should be created. They demanded the designation of hospitals and the actualization of compensation for farmers' safety insurance. The work-related diseases to address were include musculoskeletal diseases, pesticide poisoning-related diseases (cardiovascular disease, respiratory disease), psychiatric diseases such as depression, and allergic diseases. However, this must have been the result of the harmful factors they felt during agricultural work. And for farmer patients diagnosed with work-related diseases, it was said to strengthen farmer safety insurance. Conclusion: In order to increase the safely and health effects of agricultural work, it is necessary to prevent and manage work-related diseases of farmers. Projects should be developed in consideration of cultural and economic barriers of farmers and the characteristics of the work.

• Journal of the Korean GEO-environmental Society
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• v.23 no.9
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• pp.33-40
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• 2022

Sedimentation and pH neutralization has been investigated as preteatment of acid contaminate water. The settling and neutralizing process derive more effective degradation efficiency as the pre-treatment process before the removal process of adsorption, volatile, biodegradation, or oxidation. Settling velocity, uniformity coefficient, coefficient of curvature, and grain size index can define in the sedimentation process for characteristics of the soil. The stainless steel sieve has been used to separate each particle size of the dry soil by assembling in order of 4, 10, 20, 40, 80, 100, and 200 mesh sizes. The soil from Gamcheon Port in Busan drops upper side of the sieve and shakes back and forth to separate each different size of the particle. The 1L of Imhoff cone and 200 mL of the mass cylinder were used as settling tanks to calculate settling velocity. Stokes' equation was used to figure out the average density of dry soil with a value from settling velocity. In the results, the average particle density and lowest settling velocity were 1.93 g/cm³ and 0.11 cm/s, respectively. These values can detect the range of settling points of sediment to prevent chemical accidents. In pH neutralization, the initial pH of 2, 3, 4, and 5 of nitric acid and sulfuric acid are used as an acid solution; 0.1, 0.01, and 0.001 M of sodium hydroxide and calcium hydroxide are used as a base solution. The main goal of this experiment is to figure out the volume percentage of the acid solution becomes pH 7. The concentration of 0.001 M of base solution exceeds all the conditions, 0.01 M exceeds partially, and 0.1 M does not exceed 5 v/v% except pH 2. Calcium hydroxide present less volume than sodium hydroxide at pH neutralization both sulfuric and nitric acid.

• Resources Recycling
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• v.31 no.5
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• pp.67-76
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• 2022

The furniture industry has a high possibility to create value-added and a high potential to create new occupations due to the characteristics of the industry, which mainly consists of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). However, the used furniture, which has sufficient reuse value, is also crushed and used as solid refuse fuel (SRF) recently. Besides, the number of waste treatment companies continues to decrease, and it occurs congestion of wood waste. As a way to solve the issue, a business model development of remanufacturing used furniture can be suggested as an alternative due to its high circular economic efficiency. Remanufacturing business including furniture industry creates positive effects in various aspects such as economic, environmental and job creation. In other words, remanufacturing is an effective recycling way to reduce input resources and energy in the production process. The results of economic analysis show that the expected annual revenue from the single worker furniture remanufacturing site was 104 million won which is 3.11 times more than the average income of a single-worker household in Korea and its B/C ratio was estimated about 30 which means high business feasibility. Revenue through furniture remanufacturing also showed 320 times higher than that of SRF production from the perspective of weight. In addition, it is shown that the GHGs reduction from the furniture remanufacturing is 2.2 ton CO₂-eq. per year, which is similar to the amount of GHGs absorption effect of 937 pine trees or 622 Korean oak trees annually. Thus the results of this study demonstrate that it is important to adopt an appropriate recycling method considering the economic and environmental effects at the end-of-life stage.

• Journal of Bio-Environment Control
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• v.31 no.3
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• pp.180-187
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• 2022

In order to select suitable light in a plant factory, electric energy use efficiency and light use efficiency should be considered simultaneously to consider operating costs as well as quantitative and functional aspects. The growth characteristics, electric energy use efficiency, light use efficiency by light intensity, LED ratio, and photoperiod conditions were compared together. Light intensity is 60, 130, 230, and 320 µmol·m^-2·s^-1 treatments, and light quality is the mixing ratio of red light and blue light 8:2, 6:4, 4:6, and 2:8 treatments. Photoperiod is 9, 12, 15, and 18 hours treatments based on the daytime. In the light intensity experiment, the growth rate increased as the light intensity increased, but there was no significant difference in the light use efficiency. When comparing the leaf fresh weight per power consumption, only the 320 µmol·m^-2·s^-1 treatment group showed significantly low efficiency, and there was no significant difference in the other treatments, so 230 µmol·m^-2·s^-1, which produced the most, was the most efficient. In the light quality experiment, the ratio of red light and blue light was measured to be high at the same time as the growth rate and light use efficiency in RB 8:2, and there was no significant difference in color difference and flavonoids content, so a Red:Blue ratio of 8:2 was the most suitable condition. In the photoperiod experiment, the longer the photoperiod, the higher the growth rate. However, there was no significant difference in the growth rate over 12 hours of daytime, so 12 hours considering the light consumption efficiency was a suitable condition. Based on the above results, LED light environmental conditions for perilla growth in plant factories were light intensity, light quality, and day length of 230 µmol·m^-2·s^-1 or more, 8:2, and 12 hours or more, respectively.

• Pediatric Infection and Vaccine
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• v.28 no.3
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• pp.133-143
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• 2021

Purpose: This study aimed to determine the incidence of central line-associated bloodstream infection (CLABSI) in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU), evaluate the patients' clinical characteristics, and identify the etiologic agents for guidance in prevention and treatment. Methods: A retrospective chart review study of infants classified as having CLABSI was conducted at the NICU of Seoul National University Bundang Hospital from January 2016 to December 2020. Results: Of the 45 infants, 53 had CLABSIs within a follow-up period of 18,622 catheter days. The incidence of CLABSIs was 2.85 per 1,000 catheter days. The most common catheter type was a peripherally inserted central catheter (n=47, 81%). A total of 57 pathogens were isolated, of which 57.9% (n=33) were Gram-positive bacteria, 36.8% (n=21) were Gram-negative bacteria, and 5.3% (n=3) were Candida spp. The most common pathogens were Staphylococcus aureus (n=12, 21%) and coagulase-negative staphylococci (n=12, 21%), followed by Klebsiella aerogenes (n=8, 14%). The median duration of bacteremia was 2 days, and 19 episodes showed bacteremia for 3 days or more. The mortality rate of infants within 14 days of CLABSI was 13.3% (n=6). Conclusions: This study analyzed the incidence of CLABSI and the distribution of pathogens in the NICU. Continuous monitoring of CLABSI based on active surveillance serves as guidance for empiric antibiotic use and also serves as a tool to assess the necessity for implementation of prevention strategies and their impact.

• Economic and Environmental Geology
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• v.55 no.5
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• pp.531-540
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• 2022

Various iron minerals that precipitate in acid mine drainage have a great influence on the concentration change and mobility of trace elements in the drainage during phase transition to other minerals as well as the precipitation process. This study investigated the change of mineral properties and the behaviors of trace elements influenced by pH and time for the precipitates collected from the acid mine drainage treatment system of the Dalsung mine, where schwertmannite is mainly precipitated. However, the main mineral precipitated in the drainage was goethite, suggesting schwetmannite has already undergone a phase transition to goethite to some extent, and it was observed that at higher pH, the peak width at half maximum of XRD peak was narrower. This can be interpreted as the transformation of small amount of amorphous schwetmannite to goethite or an increase in the crystallinity of goethite, and it showed that the higher the pH, the greater this change was. The concentration of Fe was also greatly affected by the pH values, and as the pH increased, the concentration of Fe in the drainage decreased. With increasing time, the Fe concentration increased and then decreased, which can be interpreted to indicate the dissolution of schwertmannite and precipitation of goethite. This mineral change probably resulted in the rapid increase of the concentration of S at initial stage, but its concentration was stabilized later. The concentration of S is also related to the stability of schwetmannite, showing a high concentration at a low pH at which schwertmannite is stable and a low concentration at a high pH at which goethite is stable. The trace elements present as cations in the drainage also showed a close relationship with the pH, generally the lower the pH, the higher the concentration, due to the solubility changes by the pH, and the precipitation and the changes in mineral surface charge at high pH. On the other hand, in the case of As, existing as an anion, although it showed a high concentration at low pH, its concentration increased with time at all pH values, which is probably related to the concentration of Fe which can be coprecipitated in the drainage, and the increase of As concentration with time is also considered to be related to the decrease in schwertmannite rather than the mineral surface charge.

• Korean Journal of Environmental Agriculture
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• v.42 no.1
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• pp.52-62
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• 2023

This study focused on determining the specific causes and prevention methods of mass fish deaths occurred in five reservoirs (Gagugi, Neupgokgi, Danggokgi, Sagokji, and Hangokji) in Andong-si. For this purpose, a survey of agricultural land and livestock in the upper part of the reservoirs and analysis of water quality in the reservoir irrespective of whether it rains or not were conducted. We attempted to examine the changes in dissolved oxygen (DO) in the surface and bottom layers of reservoirs and changes in DO depending on the amount of livestock compost and time. Based on the above investigations, treatment plans were established to efficiently control the inflow of contaminated water into reservoirs. The rainfall and farmland areas in the upper part of the reservoir were investigated using Google and aviation data provided by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, and Transport. The current status of livestock farms distributed around the reservoirs was also examined because compost from these farms can flow into the reservoir when it rains. Various water quality parameters, such as phosphate phosphorus (PO₄-P) and ammonium nitrogen (NH₃-N), were analyzed and compared for each reservoir during the rainy season. Changes in the DO concentration and electrical conductivity (EC) were also observed at the inlet of the reservoir during raining using an automated instrument. In addition, DO was measured until the concentration reached 0 ppm in 10 min by adding livestock compost at various concentrations (0.05%, 0.1%, 0.3%, and 0.5% by wt.), where the concentration of the livestock compost represents the relative weight of rainwater. The DO concentration in the surface layer of reservoirs was 3.7 to 5.3 ppm, which is sufficient for fish survival. However, the fish could not survive at the bottom layer with DO concentration of 0.0-2.1 ppm. When the livestock compost was 0.3%, DO required 10-19 h to reach 0 ppm. Considering these results, it was confirmed that the DO in the bottom layer of the reservoir could easily change to an anaerobic state within 24 h when the livestock compost in the rainwater exceeds 0.3%. The results show that the direct cause of fish mortality is the inflow of excessive livestock compost into reservoirs during the first rainfall in spring. All the surveyed reservoirs had relatively good topographical features for the inflow of compost generated from livestock farms. This keeps the bottom layer of the reservoir free of oxygen. Therefore, to prevent fish death due to insufficient DO in the reservoir, measures should be undertaken to limit the amount of livestock compost flowing into the reservoir within 0.3%, which has been experimentally determined. As a basic countermeasure, minerals such as limestone, dolomite, and magnesia containing calcium and magnesium should be added to the compost of livestock farms around the reservoir. These minerals have excellent pollutant removal capabilities when sprayed onto the compost. In addition, measures should be taken to prevent fish death according to the characteristics of each reservoir.

• Korean Journal of Environmental Agriculture
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• v.42 no.1
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• pp.35-43
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• 2023

The fine particulate structure of biochar limits its use as a heavy metal adsorbent, and makes separation of the biochar from the solution technically challenging, thereby reducing recovery of the heavy metals. To address this issue, this study prepared biochar beads under various mixing conditions and investigated their efficiency in removing Pb from aqueous solutions using adsorption models. The biochar beads were produced by mixing alginate and biochar at different ratios: alginate bead (AB), 1% biochar + bead (1-BB), 2.5% biochar + bead (2.5-BB), and 5% biochar + bead (5-BB). The results revealed that the Freundlich isothermal adsorption pattern of the biochar beads to Pb was of the L-type. The highest Langmuir isothermal adsorption capacity (28.736 mg/g) was observed in the 2.5-BB treatment. The dominant mechanism among the kinetic adsorption characteristics of biochar beads for Pb was chemical adsorption. Additionally, the optimal pH range for Pb adsorption was found to be between 4 and 5.5. The highest Pb removal efficiency (97.9%) was achieved when 26.6 g/L of biochar beads were used. These findings suggest that biochar beads are an economical and highly efficient adsorbent that enables separation and recovery of fine biochar particles.

• Laboratory Medicine Online
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• v.2 no.1
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• pp.10-14
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• 2012

Background: Measurement of HbA_1c levels is widely used to diagnose diabetes mellitus and to evaluate and monitor plasma-glucose concentrations over 6-8 weeks. In this study, we evaluated the diagnostic performance of the newly developed latex immunoturbidimetric method by using Autolab HbA_1c. Methods: We analyzed and compared the diagnostic performance of Autolab HbA_1c with that of Toshiba 200FR between April 2009 and July 2009. According to guidelines (EP5-A2, EP6-P, EP9-A2) of the clinical and laboratory standards institute (CLSI), we compared linearity, precision and correlation of Autolab HbA_1c with those of G7 (Tosoh Corp., Kyoto, Japan) by using high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) method. Results: Data obtained using Autolab HbA_1c showed good linearity in mixtures of samples with low (3.1%) and high (15.1%) levels of HbA_1c (r²=0.9997). In the analysis of within-run precision of the samples with HbA_1c levels of 5.1% and 12.1%, the SDs were 0.04 and 0.06 and covariances of these samples were 0.8% and 0.5%, respectively. In the Deming regression model, the regression equation was as follows: Autolab HbA_1c=1.0859×Tosoh HPLC-0.6957. Conclusions: In this study, Autolab HbA_1c method showed better performance characteristics than Tosoh G7 did. In reference review, there was no interference of variant hemoglobin. The data acquisition time of Autolab HbA_1c was lower than that of Tosoh G7. The advantages of Autolab HbA_1c are that it can be used as an autoanlyzer in routine chemical analysis, it does not require pre-analytical treatment, and the samples are automatically treated with distilled water for hemolysis.

• Korean Journal of Heritage: History & Science
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• v.55 no.4
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• pp.166-177
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• 2022

The Shiveet Khairkhan is located on Tsengel Som in the middle of Bayan-ulgi Aimag in the Altai region. Various remains have been identified, and it has been found to be an important area of the Eurasian steppe. In this study, the characteristics of textile fibers and dyes excavated from the tombs of the 1st~3rd century Xianbei period in the sites of Shiveet Khairkhan, Mongolia were investigated. As a result of analysis using optical microscopic observation and attenuated total reflectance-Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (ATR-FTIR) for fiber identification, green and yellow fabrics were identified as silk fabrics. To investigate the properties of the dye, the surface reflectance of the dyed fabric was measured using an fiber optic reflectance spectrophotometer for non-destructive analysis. The green fabric appeared similar to the reflection spectrum of indigo dye. In addition, as a result of component analysis using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry, isatin and indigotine were detected. Isatin and indigotine are characteristic components of indigo dye, and it was found that the green fabric of the tombs of the Xianbei period was dyed using indigo dye. It was difficult to identify the type of dye in the yellow fabric as a result of reflectance spectrum and gas chromatography analysis. Indigo plants are a dye used for blue dyeing from thousands of years ago, and many species are distributed around the world. It was confirmed that the fabric was relatively well preserved and indigo dye was used for the green Jikryeongui (garment with a straight collar) in the ancient tomb of the Xianbei period about 1,800 years ago, even though it was buried for a long time. Scientific investigation of textile cultural heritage is an essential process for conservation treatment, restoration, exhibition, and the creation of a conservation environment. It is expected that related research will be activated in the future and will be helpful in interpreting the living culture at the time, preserving textiles, and a conservation environment.