• Applied Chemistry for Engineering
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• v.32 no.4
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• pp.423-430
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• 2021

In order to evaluate the fire risk and fire risk rating of wood for construction materials, this study focused on fire performance index-III (FPI-III), fire growth index-III (FGI-III), and fire risk index-IV (FRI-IV) according to Chung's equations-III and -IV. Western red cedar, needle fir, ash, and maple were used as the specimens. The fire characteristics were investigated using a cone calorimeter (ISO 5660-1) equipment on the specimen. The FPI-III measured after the combustion reaction was 0.86 to 12.77 based on polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA). The FGI-III was found to be 0.63 to 5.26 based on PMMA. The fire rating according to the FRI-IV, which is the fire rating index, was 0.05 to 6.12, and the western red cedar was 122.4 times higher than that of the maple. The fire risk rating according to the FRI-IV increased in the order of maple, ash, needle fir, PMMA and western red cedar. The CO peak concentration of all specimens was measured as 103 to 162 ppm, and it was 2.1 to 3.2 times higher than 50 ppm, the permissible exposure limits of the US occupational safety and health administration. Materials such as western red cedar, which have a low bulk density and contain a large amount of volatile organic substances, have a low FPI-III and a high FGI-III, so they have a high fire risk rating.

• Journal of the Korea institute for structural maintenance and inspection
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• v.25 no.1
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• pp.67-74
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• 2021

This paper evaluated the structural safety of an aging PSC I-girder bridge with rebar corrosion in the deck. The geometry and rebar of the bridge were designed based on an actual PSC I-girder bridge, and the numerical analysis was performed considering the crack of concrete and yielding of steel rebar. According to the evaluation criteria of Korea Infrastructure Safety and Technology Corporation, this study defined two criteria of rebar exposure and corrosion rates to construct a total of 32 corrosion scenarios. Rebar exposure was defined as the exposure of tensile rebars in the bridge deck due to the removal of cover concrete. The results of the analysis showed that the safety and rating factors of the bridge decreased with increasing rebar exposure and corrosion rates. For the rebar corrosion rate more than 50%, the safety grade of the bridge should be carefully evaluated for all the rebar exposure rate. When the rebar corrosion rate exceeds 57%, the bridge was evaluated as E grade regardless of rebar exposure rate. A correlation analysis for a 2% of rebar exposure rate found that the bridge was evaluated as A grade up to 55.8% corrosion rate, C grade up to 56.9%, D grade up to 58.5%, and E grade for corrosion rate greater than 58.5%. This study indicates the necessity of a quantitative evaluation of rebar corrosion for evaluating the structural safety of aging bridges.

• Safety and Health at Work
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• v.13 no.3
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• pp.308-314
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• 2022

Background: Occupational cancer is a global health issue. The Korean CARcinogen EXposure (K-CAREX), a database of CARcinogen EXposure, was developed for the Korean labor force to estimate the number of workers exposed to carcinogens by industry. The present study aimed to estimate the intensity of exposure to carcinogens by industry, in order to supply complementary information about CARcinogen EXposure intensity to the K-CAREX. Methods: We used nationwide workplace monitoring data from 2014 to 2016 and selected target carcinogens based on the K-CAREX list. We computed the 95th percentile levels of measurements for each industry by carcinogens. Based on the 95th percentile level relative to the occupational exposure limit, we classified the CARcinogen EXposure intensity into five exposure ratings (1-5) for each industry. Results: The exposure ratings were estimated for 21 carcinogenic agents in each of the 228 minor industry groups. For example, 3,058 samples were measured for benzene in the manufacturing industry of basic chemicals. This industry was assigned a benzene exposure rating of 3. Conclusions: We evaluated the CARcinogen EXposure ratings across industries in Korean workers. The results will provide information on the exposure intensity to carcinogens for integration into the K-CAREX. Furthermore, it will aid in prioritizing control efforts and identifying industries of concern.

• Journal of The Korean Society of Grassland and Forage Science
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• v.41 no.3
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• pp.189-197
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• 2021

Climate change effects are particularly apparent in many cool-season grasslands in South Korea. Moreover, the probability of climate extremes has intensified and is expected to increase further. In this study, we performed climate change vulnerability assessments in cool-season grasslands based on the analytic hierarchy process method to contribute toward effective decision-making to help reduce grassland damage caused by climate change and extreme weather conditions. In the analytic hierarchy process analysis, vulnerability was found to be influenced in the order of climate exposure (0.575), adaptive capacity (0.283), and sensitivity (0.141). The climate exposure rating value was low in Jeju-do Province and high in Daegu (0.36-0.39) and Incheon (0.33-0.5). The adaptive capacity index showed that grassland compatibility (0.616) is more important than other indicators. The adaptation index of Jeollanam-do Province was higher than that of other regions and relatively low in Gangwon-do Province. In terms of sensitivity, grassland area and unused grassland area were found to affect sensitivity the most with index values of 0.487 and 0.513, respectively. The grassland area rating value was low in Jeju-do and Gangwon-do Province, which had large grassland areas. In terms of vulnerability, that of Jeju-do Province was lower and of Gyeongsangbuk-do Province higher than of other regions. These results suggest that integrating the three aspects of vulnerability (climate exposure, sensitivity, and adaptive capacity) may offer comprehensive and spatially explicit adaptation plans to reduce the impacts of climate change on the cool-season grasslands of South Korea.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society for Emotion and Sensibility Conference
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• 1999.11a
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• pp.211-215
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• 1999

It is well known that a long-term exposure to a loud noise environment affects performance, since it distracts attention, and also is able to evoke stress accompanied by negative emotional states. The purpose of this study was to analyze dynamics of subjective and physiological variables during long-lasting (30 min) exposure to intensive white noise (85 dB[A]). Physiological signals on 23 college students were recorded by BIOPAC, Grass Neurodata systems and AcqKnowledge 3.5 software. Autonomic variables, namely skin conductance level (SCL), non-specific SCR number (N-SCR), inter-beat intervals in ECG (RR intervals), heart rate variability index (HF/LF ratio of HRV), respiration rate (RESP), and skin temperature (SKT) were analyzed on 5 min epoch basis. Psychological assessment (subjective rating of stress level) was also repeated on every 5 min basis. Regression and correlation analyses were employed to trace the time course of the dynamics of the subjective and autonomic physiological variables and their relationship. Results showed that intense noise evokes subjective stress with associated autonomic nervous system responses. However, it was shown that physiological variables endure specific changes in the process of exposure to loud white noise. Discussed are probable psychophysiological mechanisms mediating reactivity to long-term auditory stimulation of high intensity.

• The Korean Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology
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• v.23 no.6
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• pp.467-474
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• 2019

Exposure to lead during pregnancy is a risk factor for the development of psychiatric disorders in the offspring. In this study, we investigated whether exposure to low levels of lead acetate (0.2%) in drinking water during pregnancy and lactation causes behavioral impairment and affects the expression of proteins associated with neurodevelopment. Lead exposure altered several parameters in rat offspring compared with those unexposed in open-field, social interaction, and pre-pulse inhibition tests. These parameters were restored to normal levels after clozapine treatment. Western blot and immunohistochemical analyses of the hippocampus revealed that several neurodevelopmental proteins were downregulated in lead-exposed rats. The expression was normalized after clozapine treatment (5 mg/kg/day, postnatal day 35-56). These findings demonstrate that downregulation of several proteins in lead-exposed rats affected subsequent behavioral changes. Our results suggest that lead exposure in early life may induce psychiatric disorders and treatment with antipsychotics such as clozapine may reduce their incidence.

• Science of Emotion and Sensibility
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• v.2 no.2
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• pp.37-42
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• 1999

Long-term exposure to loud noise affects performance since it changes arousal level, distracts attention, and also is able to evoke subjective stress accompanied by negative emotional states. The purpose of the study was to analyze dynamics of subjective and physiological variables during a relatively long-lasting (30 min) exposure to white noise (85 dB[A]). Physiological signals were recorded on 15 college students during 30 min of intense auditory stimulation. Autonomic variables, namely skin conductance level , non-specific SCR number, inter-best intervals in ECG, heart rate variability index (HF/LF ratio of HRV), skin temperature, as well as respiration rate were analyzed on 5 min epoch basis. Psychological assessment (subjective rating of stress level) was also repeated every 5 min. Statistical analysis was employed to trace the time course of the dynamics of subjective and autonomic physiological variables and their relationships. Results showed that the intense noise evoked subjective stress as well as associated autonomic nervous system responses. However it was shown that physiological variables endured specific changes in the process of exposure to the loud white noise. Discussed were probable psychophysiological mechanisms mediating reactivity to long-term auditory stimulation of high intensity, namely short-term activation, followed by transient adaptation (with relatively stable autonomic balance) and then a subsequent wave of arousal due to tonic sympathetic dominance.

• Textile Coloration and Finishing
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• v.23 no.4
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• pp.241-249
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• 2011

Cotton fabrics was treated with persimmon juice by padding and their dyeability and functionality were assessed including antibacterial activity and deodorization ratio. The merit of padding-based dyeing was easier color reproduction over traditional hand dyeing where various colors and color fastness to light and laundering are hard to obtain. With larger number of padding, the dyed fabrics showed deeper red-yellow colors, which had low brightness and high chromatic colors. The dyed cotton fabrics had a perspiration fastness of 4~5 rating, a rubbing fastness of 3~4 rating, and a washing fastness of 4 rating, As the number of padding and exposed time to sunlight or UV light increase, the values of K/S and ${\Delta}E$ increased and the colors became much deeper gradually. The color development had completed about 70 hours exposure to UV. Among the light sources, the dyed fabrics exposed to UV light showed deeper yellow-red color than those of exposed to sunlight. The cotton fabrics treated with premordants like Al, Cr, Cu, and Sn revealed strong yellow colors, especially the fabrics treated with Fe mordant showed greenish red-yellow colors. As the padding times of dyeing with persimmon juice increased, stiffness and water repellent property were enhanced in warp and weft directions, respectively. Also, the dyed fabrics have good antibacterial activity and deodorization.

• Transactions of the Korean Society for Noise and Vibration Engineering
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• v.12 no.6
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• pp.420-430
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• 2002

Rating scales for environmental noise are varied in their calculation procedure. Among them WECPNL (weighted equivalent continuous perceived noise level) is the rating scale for aircraft noise currently being used in domestic and applied only for aircraft noise. However $L_{dn}$ calculated from $L_{eq}$ $L_{eq}$ is used as a rating scale for not only aircraft noise but also environmental noise. Besides, it is easy to calculate and internationally preferred. It is, therefore, not adequate for the evaluation of residents' exposure. Moreover it is very difficult to measure the aircraft noise by WECPNL due to the complicated calculating procedures if automatic measuring system is not used. Accordingly. this study aims to propose alternative evaluation procedure for the aircraft noise. To achieve this purpose, the data measured by automatic measuring system were gathered and calculated with three evaluation procedures : WECPNL $L_{eq}$ and $L_{dn}$, and the results calculated from different methods were compared and analyzed.

• Journal of Environmental Health Sciences
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• v.41 no.1
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• pp.1-10
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• 2015

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to propose an indirect exposure assessment method using a questionnaire survey at a time when direct exposure assessment would be impossible after a chemical accident. Methods: About two weeks after an accident, a questionnaire survey was performed with 1,264 persons from the local community. Variables related to exposure were extracted from the survey contents, weighted and then graded for comparison with subjective symptoms in order to evaluate the extent of exposure. Survey items suitable for reflecting the previous exposure level during the accident were extracted, weighted and divided into quartile ranges. Subjective symptoms showed an increasing tendency with higher exposure level when compared with final exposure level (p<0.01). Results: For the relationship between the final exposure grade and subjective symptoms, as the exposure grade was increasing the rates complaining of symptom also showed an increasing tendency. However, when adjusted for demographic characteristics, there was a tendency for the eye irritation symptom to appear higher in women, and respiratory organ irritation appeared higher in smokers. Conclusions: When the problem of recall bias is considered, this study may not have completely unraveled exposure and the characteristics of the participants can affect subjective symptoms. Nevertheless, the exposure rating method of using a questionnaire showed a significant relationship with symptom level. It can be deemed that assessment of past exposure may be successfully evaluated by questionnaire in cases such as chemical accidents.