• Current Photovoltaic Research
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• v.2 no.3
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• pp.103-109
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• 2014

Highly efficient hydrogenated nanocrystalline silicon (nc-Si:H) thin-film solar cells were prepared on flexible stainless steel substrates using plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition. To enhance the performance of solar cells, material properties of back reflectors, n-doped seed layers and wide bandgap nc-SiC:H window layers were optimized. The light scattering efficiency of Ag back reflectors was improved by increasing the surface roughness of the films deposited at elevated substrate temperatures. Using the n-doped seed layers with high crystallinity, the initial crystal growth of intrinsic nc-Si:H absorber layers was improved, resulting in the elimination of the defect-dense amorphous regions at the n/i interfaces. The nc-SiC:H window layers with high bandgap over 2.2 eV were deposited under high hydrogen dilution conditions. The vertical current flow of the films was enhanced by the formation of Si nanocrystallites in the amorphous SiC:H matrix. Under optimized conditions, a high conversion efficiency of 9.13% ($V_{oc}=0.52$, $J_{sc}=25.45mA/cm^2$, FF = 0.69) was achieved for the flexible nc-Si:H thin-film solar cells.

• Advances in nano research
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• v.8 no.2
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• pp.183-190
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• 2020

The objectives of this research were the reduction of membrane fouling and improvement of sludge properties by using synthesized H-ZSM-5 and NH₄-ZSM-5 zeolites. These two nano zeolites were synthesized and added to the membrane bioreactor (MBR). Three similar MBRs with the same operational condition were used in order to evaluate their effect on the mentioned matters. The evaluated parameters were trans-membrane pressure (TMP), Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), particle size distribution (PSD), soluble microbial product (SMP), extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) and, excitation-emission matrix (EEM). The MBR₀ was without any additional zeolite while 0.4 g/L of H-ZSM-5 and NH₄-ZSM-5 were added to MBR_HZSM-5 and MBR_NH4ZSM-5, respectively. The COD removal of the MBR₀, MBR_H-ZSM-5 and MBR_NH4-ZSM-5 were 87.5%, 93.3% and 94.6%, respectively. The TMP of the MBR_H-ZSM-5 was 45% less than MBR₀ whereas the reduction for MBR_NH4-ZSM-5 was 65.5%. Also results showed that both H-ZSM-5 and NH₄-ZSM-5 caused reduction in protein and polysaccharide related EPS but the NH₄-ZSM-5 had better performance toward the elimination of organic compounds.

• Mass Spectrometry Letters
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• v.12 no.1
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• pp.21-25
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• 2021

We aimed to develop and validate a sensitive analytical method of nannozinone A, active metabolite of Nannochelins A extracted from the Myxobacterium Nannocytis pusilla, in mouse plasma using a liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). Mouse plasma samples containing nannozinone A and 13C-caffeine (internal standard) were extracted using a liquid-liquid extraction (LLE) method with methyl tert-butyl ether. Standard calibration curves were linear in the concentration range of 1 - 1000 ng/mL (r2 > 0.998) with the inter- and intra-day accuracy and precision results less than 15%. LLE method gave results in the high and reproducible extraction recovery in the range of 78.00-81.08% with limited matrix effect in the range of 70.56-96.49%. The pharmacokinetics of nannozinone A after intravenous injection (5 mg/kg) and oral administration (30 mg/kg) of nannozinone A were investigated using the validated LC-MS/MS analysis of nannozinone A. The absolute oral bioavailability of nannozinone A was 8.82%. Plasma concentration of nannozinone A after the intravenous injection sharply decreased for 4 h but plasma concentration of orally administered nannozinone A showed fast distribution and slow elimination for 24 h. In conclusion, we successfully applied this newly developed sensitive LC-MS/MS analytical method of nannozinone A to the pharmacokinetic evaluation of this compound. This method can be useful for further studies on the pharmacokinetic optimization and evaluating the druggability of nannozinone A including its efficacy and toxicity.

• Journal of the Computational Structural Engineering Institute of Korea
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• v.34 no.4
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• pp.191-197
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• 2021

To calculate the induced charge of atoms in molecular dynamics, linear equations for the induced charges need to be solved. As induced charges are determined at each time step, the process involves considerable computational costs. Hence, an efficient method for calculating the induced charge distribution is required when analyzing large systems. This paper introduces the Uzawa method for solving saddle point problems, which occur in linear systems, for the solution of the Lagrange equation with constraints. We apply the accelerated Uzawa algorithm, which reduces computational costs noticeably using the Schur complement and preconditioned conjugate gradient methods, in order to overcome the drawback of the Uzawa parameter, which affects the convergence speed, and increase the efficiency of the matrix operation. Numerical models of molecular dynamics in which two gold nanoparticles are placed under external electric fields reveal that the proposed method provides improved results in terms of both convergence and efficiency. The computational cost was reduced by approximately 1/10 compared to that for the Gaussian elimination method, and fast convergence of the conjugate gradient, as compared to the basic Uzawa method, was verified.

• Journal of Korean Society of Water and Wastewater
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• v.36 no.2
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• pp.59-79
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• 2022

Conventional wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) do not fully remove micropollutants. Enhanced treatment of sewage effluents is being considered or implemented in some countries to minimize the discharge of problematic micropollutants from WWTPs. Representative enhanced sewage treatment technologies for micropollutant removal were reviewed, including their current status of research and development. Advanced oxidation processes (AOPs) such as ozonation and UV/H₂O₂ and adsorption processes using powdered (PAC) and granular activated carbon (GAC) were mainly discussed with focusing on process principles for the micropollutant removal, effect of process operation and water matrix factors, and technical and economic feasibility. Pilot- and full-scale studies have shown that ozonation, PAC, and GAC can achieve significant elimination of various micropollutants at economically feasible costs(0.16-0.29 €/m³). Considering the current status of domestic WWTPs, ozonation and PAC were found to be the most feasible options for the enhanced sewage effluent treatment. Although ozonation and PAC are all mature technologies, a range of technical aspects should be considered for their successful application, such as energy consumption, CO₂ emission, byproduct or waste generation, and ease of system construction/operation/maintenance. More feasibility studies considering domestic wastewater characteristics and WWTP conditions are required to apply ozonation or PAC/GAC adsorption process to enhance sewage effluent treatment in Korea.

• Korean Journal of Construction Engineering and Management
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• v.21 no.6
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• pp.84-94
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• 2020

Modular architecture is very important not only in the design phase but also in the construction planning phase because it affects construction methods and module sizes depending on transport equipment. There are economic risks as well as quality, as there may be defects such as internal interiors or elimination of deadlines during transportation, and structural torsion caused by rainfall and shock. However, there is a lack of objective criteria or data to refer to in determining transport equipment that has a material effect on transport. Accordingly, there is no decision model to determine the optimum transportation equipment for each construction site. Therefore, it is necessary to develop a decision support model that can be compared to the review of transport equipment selection factors. The purpose of this study is to propose the transport equipment impact factors and decision support models for systematic review and objective decision making of each construction plan in the construction of small and medium-sized modulators. The decision model proposed in this study can be used as basic data for transport studies, ensuring objectivity and transparency in the equipment selection process.

• KSCE Journal of Civil and Environmental Engineering Research
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• v.9 no.3
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• pp.97-106
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• 1989

This paper is on the modeling of two-dimensional groundwater flow, which is the first step of the development of Dynamic System Model for groundwater flow and pollutant transport in subsurface porous media. The particular features of the model are its versatility and flexibility to deal with as many real-world problems as possible. Points as well as distributed sources/sinks are included to represent recharges/pumping and rainfall infiltrations. All sources/sinks can be transient or steady state. Prescribed hydraulic head on the Dirichlet boundaries and fluxes on Neumann or Cauchy boundaries can be time-dependent or constant. Sources/sinks strength over each element and node, hydraulic head at each Dirichlet boundary node and flux at each boundary segment can vary independently of each other. Either completely confined or completely unconfined aquifers, or partially confined and partially unconfined aquifers can be dealt with effectively. Discretization of a compound region with very irregular curved boundaries is made easy by including both quadrilateral and triangular elements in the formulation. Large-field problems can be solved efficiently by including a pointwise iterative solution strategy as an optional alternative to the direct elimination solution methed for the matrix equation approximating the partial differential equation of groundwater flow. The model also includes transient flow through confining leaky aquifers lying above and/or below the aquifer of interest. The model is verified against three simple cases to which analytical solutions are available. The groundwater flow model shall be combined with the model of pollutant transport in subsurface porous media. Then the combined model, with the applications of the Eigenvalue technique and the Dynamic system theory, shall be improved to the Dynamic System Model which can simulate the real groundwater flow and the pollutant transport accurately and effectively for the analyses and predictions.

• Archives of Plastic Surgery
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• v.36 no.5
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• pp.531-537
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• 2009

Purpose: Alveolar bone grafting has become an essential process in the treatmemt of alveolar cleft patient for stabilization of the maxillary arch, elimination of oronasal fistula, the reconstruction of the soft tissue nasal base support, and creation of bony support for tooth eruption for implant. The use of Autologous iliac cancellous bone is preferable because of the adequate quantity and high osteoinductive potential. However, even with iliac bone, insufficient osteoregeneration and absorption occur due to several factors such as the patient's age, cleft width, functional stress, and others. In order to increase osteoregeneration where the iliac bone is placed, the present study is associated with bone marrow aspirate (BMA). The experimental study evaluated the efficacy of osteoregeneration in normal cleft rabbits when alveolar bone grafting was performed with autologous iliac corticocancellous bone. Methods: Twenty - four New Zealand White rabbits were divided randomly into 2 groups (BMA, control). All animals underwent harvesting of corticocancellous bone graft from the right posterior iliac crest via standard surgical technique. $1m{\ell}$ of BMA were obtained by scraping the needle and aspirate with $10m{\ell}$ syringe from the contralateral iliac bone wall. The muco - periosteal flap on the palate was elevated. A mixture of Equal bone's volumes with BMA and saline as its control was inserted into the cleft. Animals were sacrificed at 2, 4, and 8 weeks and maxilla was harvested for dental peri - apical X-ray, bone matrix density (BMD),and histologic analysis. Result: BMD of regenerated bone to the cleft in the rabbits was higher than that of the control rabbits. X-ray, histologic analysis showed that increased osteoregeneration and low absorption rate were observed in the BMA group. Conclusion: Our experimental study showed BMA enhanced the osteoregeneration and survival rate of alveolar bone grafting. BMA is easy to extract & cost - time effective. So it can be an effective enhancers for bone grafting mixtures.

• Korean Journal of Poultry Science
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• v.44 no.1
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• pp.19-28
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• 2017

The eggshell is an intricate and highly ordered structure composed of multiple layers and a calcified matrix. The eggshell is formed at the uterine segment of the chicken oviduct. In this study, histological changes in the uterine endometrium and the expression of the eggshell-related genes were investigated according to hen age. We analyzed the expression of eggshell protein-related genes, such as OCX-32, OCX-36, OC-17, OC-116, and eggshell-ion-related genes, such as CABL-1, SPP1, SCNN1G, ATP2A2, CA2, and CALM1. In chicken uterine endometrium, histological deformation, fibrosis, atrophy and elimination of micro-villi were found with increasing hen age. The concentration of blood-ion components did not significantly change with age. The amount of telomeric DNA in uterine endometrial cells decreased with increasing hen age. The expression of most of the eggshell-related genes changed significantly with increasing hen age. The expression of some ovo-proteins, which play a role in eggshell formation, increased with increasing hen age; however, there were no significant correlations among eggshell protein genes. Eggshell ion-related genes, such as ATP2A2, SCNN1G, CA2, and CALM1, were closely related to each other. The OCX-32 and OCX-36 genes were closely related to some of the eggshell ion genes. Eggshell protein-related genes, such as the OCX-32, OCX-36 genes and ion-related genes such as CALB-1, ATP2A2, SCNN1G, CA2, CALM1, affected eggshell formation, mutually or independently. This study shows that, uterine although endometrial cell damage occurs with increasing hen age, normal eggshells can be formed in old hens. This suggests that eggshell protein-and eggshell ion-related genes also control the homeostasis of eggshell formation.