• Safety and Health at Work
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• v.12 no.1
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• pp.114-118
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• 2021

Background: Exposure to particulate matter (PM) emitted from vehicle exhaust might disrupt systemic function and elevate the risk of cardiovascular disease. In this study, we examined the changes of cardiometabolic biomarkers among vehicle inspectors exposed daily to PM0.25 and components. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted at two vehicle inspection centers, Pulogadung and Ujung Menteng, located in East Jakarta, Indonesia. The exposed respondents were 43 workers from vehicle inspection centers, and the unexposed group consisted of 22 staff officers working in the same locations. Vehicle exhaust particulate matter was measured for eight hours using a Leland Legacy personal pump attached to a Sioutas Cascade Impactor. The used filters were 25 and 37-mm quartz filters. The particulate matter concentration was analyzed using a gravimetric method, whereas trace elements were analyzed using energy dispersive X-ray fluorescence. An EEL Smoke Stain Reflectometer analyzed black carbon. Results: The personal exposure concentrations of PM0.25 were 10.4-fold higher than those in unexposed groups. Calcium and sulfur were the major components in the obtained dust, and their levels were 3.3- and 7.2-fold higher, respectively, in the exposed group. Based on an independent-samples t-test, high-density lipoprotein, triglyceride, HbA1c, total immunoglobulin E, high-sensitivity C-reactive protein, tumor necrosis factor-alpha, and nitric oxide levels were significantly different between the groups. Conclusions: In summary, it was suggested that PM0.25 exposure from vehicle exhaust might affect cardiometabolic biomarkers change.

• Journal of IKEEE
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• v.25 no.2
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• pp.381-387
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• 2021

As Head-Mounted Displays(HMDs), which are mainly used to maximize realism in games and videos, have experienced increased demand and expanded scope of use in education and training, there is growing interest in methods to enhance the performance of conventional HMDs. In this study, a methodology to utilize Carbon NanoTubes(CNTs) to improve the performance of gate drivers that send control signals to each pixel circuit of the HMD is discussed. This paper proposes a new circuit design method that replaces the transistors constituting the buffer part of the conventional gate driver with transistors incorporating CNTs and compare the performance of the suggested gate drive with that of a gate driver comprising only conventional transistors via simulations. According to the simulation results, by including CNTs in the gate driver, the output voltage can be increased by approximately 0.3V compared to the conventional gate driver high voltage(1.1V) at a speed of 12.5 GHz and the gate width also can be reduced by up to 20 times.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• v.78 no.5
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• pp.611-622
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• 2021

Composite material-due to low density-causes weight savings, which results in lower fuel consumption of transport vehicles. The aim of the research was to change the existing base-plate of the aluminum airplane container with the composite sandwich plate in order to reduce the weight of the containers of cargo aircrafts. The newly constructed sandwich plate consists of aluminum honeycomb core and composite face-sheets. The face-sheets consist of glass or carbon or hybrid fiber layers. The orientations of the fibers in the face-sheets were 0°, 90° and ±45°. Multi-objective optimization method was elaborated for the newly constructed sandwich plates. Based on the design aim, the importance of the objective functions (weight and cost of sandwich plates) was the same (50%). During the optimization nine design constraints were considered: stiffness, deflection, facing stress, core shear stress, skin stress, plate buckling, shear crimping, skin wrinkling, intracell buckling. The design variables were core thickness and number of layers of the face-sheets. During the optimization both the Weighted Normalized Method of the Excel Solver and the Genetic Algorithm Solver of Matlab software were applied. The mechanical properties of composite face-sheets were calculated by Laminator software according to the Classical Lamination Plate Theory and Tsai-Hill failure criteria. The main added-value of the study is that the multi-objective optimization method was elaborated for the newly constructed sandwich structures. It was confirmed that the optimal new composite sandwich construction-due to weight savings and lower fuel consumption of cargo aircrafts - is more advantageous than conventional all-aluminum container.

• Applied Chemistry for Engineering
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• v.32 no.3
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• pp.243-252
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• 2021

With increasingly strict requirements for advanced energy storage devices in electric vehicles (EVs) and stationary energy storage systems (EES), the development of lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) with high power density and safety has become an urgent task. Because the performance of LIBs is determined primarily by the physicochemical characteristics of its electrode material, TiO₂, owing to its excellent stability, high safety levels, and environmentally friendly properties, has received significant attention as an alternative material for the replacement of commercial carbon-based anode materials. In particular, self-organized TiO₂ micro and nanostructures prepared by anodization have been intensively investigated as promising anode materials. In this review, the mechanism for the formation of anodic TiO₂ nanotubes and microcones and the parameters that influence their morphology are described. Furthermore, recent developments in anodic TiO₂-based composites as anode electrodes for LIBs to overcome the limitations of low conductivity and specific capacity are summarized.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Safety
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• v.36 no.1
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• pp.86-94
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• 2021

Lecture rooms are crowded with many attendees. Moreover, they rely significantly on the natural ventilation through windows for removing and controlling indoor contaminants such as CO₂. With the aim of broadening the understanding of the characteristics of natural ventilation phenomena in lecture rooms, the average individual CO₂ release rates of attendees were measured during the course of a lecture and compared with previously reported CO₂ release rates. In addition, the effects of natural ventilation through windows on the time-variant CO₂ concentrations in the center of the lecture room were measured and analyzed. Moreover, details about the overall and regional CO₂ concentrations, as well as the air flows in the lecture room, were simulated and analyzed with computational fluid dynamics software, Fluent 2020 R2. It was found that the average individual CO₂ release rates were slightly slower than previously reported rates. The local CO₂ concentrations in the lecture room for regions with a high density of attendees increased over a short period of time, although the natural ventilation was already started by opening the windows. The overall CO₂ concentration in the lecture room rapidly decreased in the early stage of ventilation, but declined very slowly after a longer period of ventilation time. Therefore, in order to enhance the efficiency of a lecture room's natural ventilation, it is recommended to homogeneously distribute the attendees in the lecture room, and to frequently open the windows for short periods of time.

• Journal of Soil and Groundwater Environment
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• v.26 no.1
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• pp.45-53
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• 2021

The removal of 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4-D) in aqueous solution by coupled electro-oxidation and Fe(II) activated persulfate oxidation process was investigated. The electrochemical oxidation was performed using carbon sheet electrode and persulfate using Fe(II) ion as an activator. The oxidation efficiency was investigated by varying current density (2 - 10 mA/㎠), electrolyte (Na2SO4) concentration (10 - 100 mM), persulfate concentration (5 - 20 mM), and Fe(II) concentration (10 - 20 mM). The 2,4-D removal efficiency was in the order of Fe(II) activated persulfate-assisted electrochemical oxidation (Fe(II)/PS/ECO, 91%) > persulfate-electrochemical oxidation (PS/ECO, 51%) > electro-oxidation (EO, 36%). The persulfate can be activated by electron transfer in PS/ECO system, however, the addition of Fe(II) as an activator enhanced 2,4-D degradation in the Fe(II)/PS/ECO system. The 2,4-D removal efficiency was not affected by the initial pHs (3 - 9). The presence of anions (Cl- and HCO3-) inhibited the 2,4-D removal in Fe(II)/PS/ECO system due to scavenging of sulfate radical. Scavenger experiment using tert-butyl alcohol (TBA) and methanol (MeOH) confirmed that although both sulfate (SO4•-) and hydroxyl (•OH) radicals existed in Fe(II)/PS/ECO system, hydroxyl radical (SO4•-) was the predominant radical.

• Textile Coloration and Finishing
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• v.34 no.1
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• pp.68-75
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• 2022

The breathable film refers to a high-functional film that allows gas and water vapor to pass through very fine and sophisticated pores but not liquid. In this research, the breathable film was prepared based on linear low-density polyethylene (LLDPE) and CaCO₃ particles by extrude method. The LLDPE composite film containing CaCO₃ particles had excellent mechanical properties and functionalties. The drawing is a technologically simple and excellent method for improving the mechanical properties of composite films. In this work, the effects of draw ratio on morphology, crystallinity, pore size distribution, mechanical properties, and water vapor permeability of the films were examined. The results revealed that both surface morphology and breathability were affected by the influence of chain orientation and crystal growth with increasing the draw ratio. The mechanical properties were improved with increasing the draw ratio.

• Journal of Korean Society on Water Environment
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• v.37 no.6
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• pp.531-538
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• 2021

In this study, the TOC in six estuarine reservoirs in the West Sea (Ganwol, Namyang, Daeho, Bunam, Sapkyo, and Asan) was estimated using optically-active water quality factors by the water environment monitoring network. First, specification data and land use maps of each estuarine reservoir were collected. Subsequently, water quality data from 2013 to 2020 were collected. The data comprised of 11 parameters: pH, dissolved oxygen, BOD, COD, suspended solids (SS), total nitrogen, total phosphorus, water temperature, electrical conductivity, total coliforms, and chlorophyll-a (Chl-a). The TOC in the estuarine reservoirs was 4.9~7.0 mg/L, with the highest TOC of 7.0 mg/L observed at the Namyang reservoir, which has a low shape coefficient and high drainage density. The correlation of TOC with water quality factors was also analyzed, and the correlation coefficients of Chl-a and SS were 0.28 and 0.19, respectively, while the correlation coefficients of these factors in the Namyang reservoir were 0.42 and 0.27, respectively. To improve the estimation of TOC using Chl-a and SS, the TOC was averaged in 5 mg/L units, and Chl-a and SS were averaged. Correlation analysis was then performed and the R² of Chl-a-TOC was 0.73. The R² of SS-TOC was 0.73 with a non-linear relationship. TOC had a significant non-linear relationship with Chl-a and SS. However, the relationship should be assessed in terms of the spatial and temporal variations to construct a reliable remote sensing system.

• Journal of the Korean institute of surface engineering
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• v.55 no.1
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• pp.32-37
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• 2022

In a carbon-zero social atmospher, research is underway to reduce the use of fossil fuels. Interest in cleaner energy sources and their storage system is growing, and among them, research on effective energy storage is being actively conducted. Energy storage system(ESS) can be divided into secondary batteries, fuel cells, and capacitors, and the superiority of energy density of secondary batteries has a dominent influence on the ESS market. However, as problems with secondary batteries, charge/discharge speed, safety, and deterioration of electrodes are being highlighted. In this study, an electrode for supercapacitor with superior charge/discharge speed and specific capacitance is manufactured. The manufactured spinel nickel cobalt electrodes had specific capacitances of 1018.8 F/g, 690.8 F/g, and 475.1 F/g at 1 A/g in 1 M KOH electrolyte, and shows a performance retention rate of 77.48%, 63.30%, and 58.16% after 2000cycles at 7 A/g.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.32 no.10
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• pp.1292-1298
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• 2022

Soil autotrophic bacterial communities play a significant role in the soil carbon (C) cycle in paddy fields, but little is known about how rhizosphere soil microorganisms respond to different long-term (35 years) fertilization practices under double rice cropping ecosystems in southern China. Here, we investigated the variation characteristics of rhizosphere soil RubisCO gene cbbL in the double rice ecosystems of in southern China where such fertilization practices are used. For this experiment we set up the following fertilizer regime: without any fertilizer input as a control (CK), inorganic fertilizer (MF), straw returning (RF), and organic and inorganic fertilizer (OM). We found that abundances of cbbL, 16S rRNA genes and RubisCO activity in rhizosphere soil with OM, RF and MF treatments were significantly higher than that of CK treatment. The abundances of cbbL and 16S rRNA genes in rhizosphere soil with OM treatment were 5.46 and 3.64 times higher than that of CK treatment, respectively. Rhizosphere soil RubisCO activity with OM and RF treatments increased by 50.56 and 45.22%, compared to CK treatment. Shannon and Chao1 indices for rhizosphere soil cbbL libraries with RF and OM treatments increased by 44.28, 28.56, 29.60, and 23.13% compared to CK treatment. Rhizosphere soil cbbL sequences with MF, RF and OM treatments mainly belonged to Variovorax paradoxus, uncultured proteobacterium, Ralstonia pickettii, Thermononospora curvata, and Azoarcus sp.KH33C. Meanwhile, cbbL-carrying bacterial composition was obviously influenced by soil bulk density, rhizosphere soil dissolved organic C, soil organic C, and microbial biomass C contents. Fertilizer practices were the principal factor influencing rhizosphere soil cbbL-carrying bacterial communities. These results showed that rhizosphere soil autotrophic bacterial communities were significantly changed under conditions of different long-term fertilization practices Therefore, increasing rhizosphere soil autotrophic bacteria community with crop residue and organic manure practices was found to be beneficial for management of double rice ecosystems in southern China.