• Particle and aerosol research
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• v.16 no.4
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• pp.131-140
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• 2020

Air pollutants emitted from chimneys of coal-fired power plants are considered to be a major source of fine particulate matter in the atmosphere. In order to manage fine particle in the chimney of a coal-fired power plant, it is necessary to know the concentration of fine particle emitted in real time, but the current system is difficult. In this study, a real-time measurement system for chimney fine particle was developed, and measurements were performed on six coal-fired power plants. Through the measurements, the mass concentration distribution according to the particle size could be secured. All six chimneys showed bimodal distribution, and the count median diameters of each mode were 0.5 and 1.1 ㎛. In addition, it was compared with the gravimetric measurement method, and it was determined that the relative accuracy for PM10 was within 20%, and the value measured using the developed measuring instrument was reliable. Finally, three power plants were continuously measured for one month, and as a result of comparing the concentration of PM10 according to the amount of power generation, it was confirmed that the PM10 discharged from the chimney increased in the form of an exponential function according to the amount of power generation.

• Journal of Environmental Health Sciences
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• v.49 no.4
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• pp.183-189
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• 2023

Background: The indoor air quality of classrooms, in which the capacity per unit area is high and students spend time together, must be managed for safety and comfort. It is necessary to develop an eco-friendly indoor air quality reduction method rather than biased management that relies solely on air purifiers. Objectives: In this study, plants and air purifiers were installed in middle school classrooms to evaluate the indoor PM_2.5 reduction. Methods: Four middle school classrooms were selected as test beds. Air quality was monitored in real-time every one minute using IoT equipment installed in the classrooms, corridors, and rooftops. After measuring the background concentration, plants and air purifiers were installed in the classroom and the PM_2.5 reduction effect was analyzed through continuous monitoring. Results: After installing the plants and air purifiers, the average PM_2.5 concentration was 33.7 ㎍/m³ in the classrooms without plants and air purifiers, 25.6 ㎍/m³ in classrooms with plants only, and 21.7 ㎍/m³ in classrooms with air purifiers only. In the classroom where plants and air purifiers were installed together, it was 20.0 ㎍/m³. The reduction rates before and after installation were 4.5% for classrooms with plants only, 16.5% for classrooms with air purifiers only, and 27.6% for classrooms with both plants and air purifiers. The I/O ratio, which compares the concentration of PM_2.5 in classrooms with corridors and outside air, also showed the lowest in the order of plants and air purifiers, air purifiers, and plant-only classrooms. Conclusions: The PM_2.5 reduction effect of using plants was confirmed, and it is expected to be used as basic data for the development of environmentally-friendly indoor air quality improvement methods.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Marine Environment & Safety
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• v.24 no.6
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• pp.834-840
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• 2018

In this study, the characteristics of air pollutant emissions from ships' engines have been investigated by conducting E2 and E3 cycle mode tests. A engine 360Ps (Doosan L126TIH engine) and 400kW dynamometer Horiba-Schenck were utilized for engine tests. The FTIR analyzer and SPC were used to measure exhaust gas (NOx, SOx etc.) and PM (particulate matter), respectively. The results showed that the emissions of THC and CO produced from engine were increased with the increase of sulfur content in fuel oils at E2 and E3 cycle modes. The kinetic viscosity of the fuel increased as the sulfur content of the fuel increased, thereby the specific fuel oil consumption (SFC) of the engine improved. This result is considered to be due to improved combustion conditions due to increased average diameters of sprayed particles and due to increased kinetic viscosity under constant fuel injection pressure in this study. In the case of NOx emission, this study showed no significant change in amount of sulfur content.

• Journal of the Society of Cosmetic Scientists of Korea
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• v.47 no.3
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• pp.237-245
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• 2021

Particulate matter and ultra-particle matters generally refer to very small floating dust, such as 1/6 to 1/7 and 1/20 to 1/30, respectively, compared to the thickness of human hair, and contain various types of heavy metal ions. In addition to breathing, particle matters (PM) that flows in through the gaps in the pores of the skin can induce health problems in the body's tissues and skin, so it must be removed by blocking the inflow or by washing. Through this study, we confirmed the possibility that heavy metal ions can be adsorbed and removed by using Oryza sativa (Rice) bran oil (OSBO). In addition, the cell viability is much higher than that of grain-derived components through cytotoxicity experiments, and the cytoprotective effect of an external stimulus source can be expected. It was confirmed that the expression amount of COL1A1 mRNA increased, and accordingly, it was believed that wrinkles that might be caused by moisture lost by heavy metal ions in fine dust could be alleviated. Based on the results of these experiments, we tried to present a cosmetics containing OSBO, which is a wash-off formulation, in order to finally remove heavy metals.

• Journal of environmental and Sanitary engineering
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• v.18 no.4
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• pp.24-35
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• 2003

Recent epidemiologic studies revealed that the concentration of air pollutants and fine particulated matter have some effects on health status and are associated with increased mortality and morbidity. The purpose of this study was to characterize background mass concentration of fine particle (PM2.5) and metallic composition from September 2001 to August 2002 in comparison with a medium city, Asan and metropolitan city, Seoul. Conclusively, proper management for fine particles was required in a medium city, Asan, considering the concentrations of metallic elements in fine particles in Asan were relatively higher than those in Seoul. The results were as followed. 1. Average mass concentrations of fine particles in Asan and Seoul were 37.70(${\pm}18.41{\;}{\mu}g/\textrm{m}^3$) and 5.83(${\pm}38.50$) ${\mu}g/\textrm{m}^3$, respectively. When the weather conditions were classified as normal and yellow-sand, measured average mass concentrations of fine particles in yellow-sand weather condition was significantly higher than those of normal weather condition in both cities (p<0.05). 2. Depending on seasons, measured average mass concentrations of fine particles in Asan and Seoul in spring were 47.76(${\pm}19.07$) ${\mu}g/\textrm{m}^3$m and 61.53 (${\pm}4.37$) ${\mu}g/\textrm{m}^3$, respectively. In summer, the average mass concentrations of fine particles in Asan and Seoul were 29.44(${\pm}9.85$) ${\mu}g/\textrm{m}^3$ and 25.42(${\pm}8.10$) ${\mu}g/\textrm{m}^3$, respectively. Especially, the concentration was the highest in spring and the lowest in summer among four seasons. 3. Average concentrations of manganese(Mn), iron(Fe), chromium(Cr), cadmium(Cd), lead(Pb) and silicon(Si) in fine particles in Asan were significantly higher in Seoul (p<0.05). Average concentration of Si in fine particle in Asan was statistically higher than that of Seoul during yellow -sand condition (p<0.05). 4. Considering the characterization of four seasons, average Pb concentration of fine particle in Asan is significantly higher than that of Seoul in spring(p<0.01). In summer, average Mn and Cr concentrations of fine particle in Asan is higher than those of Seoul (p<0.05). Average Mn, Fe. Cr and Si concentrations in fall (p<0.05), and average Mn, Fe, Cr, Pb, and Si concentrations in winter (p<0.05) in Asan were higher than those of Seoul, respectively. 5. Mass concentrations of each Mn, Fe, Cd and Si in fine particles were significantly correlated with both cities. In normal weather condition, Mn, Cu and Si concentrations are statistically significant in Asan, while Mn, Fe, Cu and Si concentrations are statistically significant in Seoul. Mn, Fe and Si concentrations in both cities were statistically significant during yellow-sand weather.

• Asian Journal of Atmospheric Environment
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• v.11 no.2
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• pp.96-106
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• 2017

In this study, measurements of size-segregated particulate matter (PM) emitted from the combustion of rice straw, pine needles, and sesame stem were conducted in a laboratory chamber. The collected samples were used to analyze amounts of organic and elemental carbon (OC and EC), water-soluble organic carbon (WSOC), humic-like substances (HULIS), and ionic species. The light absorption properties of size-resolved water extracts were measured using ultraviolet-visible spectroscopy. A solid-phase extraction method was first used to separate the size-resolved HULIS fraction, which was then quantified by a total organic carbon analyzer. The results show that regardless of particle cut sizes, the contributions of size-resolved HULIS ($=1.94{\times}HULIS-C$) to PM size fractions ($PM_{0.32}$, $PM_{0.55}$, $PM_{1.0}$, and $PM_{1.8}$) were similar, accounting for 25.2-27.6, 15.2-22.4 and 28.2-28.7% for rice straw, pine needle, and sesame stem smoke samples, respectively. The $PM_{1.8}$ fraction revealed WSOC/OC and HULIS-C/WSOC ratios of 0.51 and 0.60, 0.44 and 0.40, and 0.50 and 0.60 for the rice straw, pine needle, and sesame stem burning emissions, respectively. Strong absorption with decreasing wavelength was found by the water extracts from size-resolved biomass burning aerosols. The absorption ${\AA}ngstr{\ddot{o}}m $ exponent values of the size-resolved water extracts fitted between 300 and 400 nm wavelengths for particle sizes of $0.32-1.0{\mu}m$ were 6.6-7.7 for the rice straw burning samples, and 7.5-8.0 for the sesame stem burning samples. The average mass absorption efficiencies of size-resolved WSOC and HULIS-C at 365 nm were 1.09 (range: 0.89-1.61) and 1.82 (range: 1.33-2.06) $m^2/g{\cdot}C$ for rice straw smoke aerosols, and 1.13 (range: 0.85-1.52) and 1.83 (range: 1.44-2.05) $m^2/g{\cdot}C$ for sesame stem smoke aerosols, respectively. The light absorption of size-resolved water extracts measured at 365 nm showed strong correlations with WSOC and HULIS-C concentrations ($R^2=0.89-0.93$), indicating significant contribution of HULIS component from biomass burning emissions to the light absorption of ambient aerosols.

• Journal of the Korean Society for Railway
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• v.10 no.6
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• pp.723-729
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• 2007

The Ministry of Environment established a guide line in December 2006, "Indoor Air Quality Management guidelines in Public Facilities." As the items of the guideline, $CO_2$ (Carbon dioxide) and PM10 (particulate matter) is shown to Level 1 and 2. Therefore trains and subways are included. There are a lot of tunnels by the lay of mountains on KTX (Korean Train Express) service. HVAC (Heating Ventilating and Air-conditioning)-pressurization equipment on KTX is various functioning flaps blocking outside pressure waves. At that time, the fresh air is blocked by flap operation and the air is circulated by return air. In this study, we measured the time series of $CO_2$ and PM10 concentrations in the KTX passenger cabin during the train service of Gyongbu line (Seoul-Busan) and Honan line (Yongsan-Mokpo) from July 2006. Also, analyzed the air quality by operation of KTX HVAC-pressurization equipment in tunnel passing point. As a result, PM10 concentration was totally lower than the regulation values. However, $CO_2$ was highly correlated with several tunnels, such as Oksan-Otan, Godeung-Hyudae and Gaechak-Iijik tunnel. but, the indoor air quality of KTX train have been proved satisfy the recommendation the Ministry of Environment guidelines.

• Particle and aerosol research
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• v.16 no.1
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• pp.19-30
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• 2020

The organic carbon in the ambient particulate matter (PM) is divided into primary organic carbon (POC) and secondary organic carbon (SOC) by their formation way. To regulate PM effectively, the estimation of the amount of POC and SOC separately is one of important consideration. Since SOC cannot be measured directly, previous studies have evaluated determination of SOC by the EC tracer method. The EC tracer method is a method of estimating the SOC value from calculating the POC by determining (OC/EC)pri which is the ratio of the measured values of OC and EC from the primary combustion source. In this study, three different ways were applied to OC and EC concentrations in PM_2.5 measured at Seoul for determining (OC/EC)pri: 1) the minimum value of OC/EC ratio during the measurement period; 2) regression analysis of OC vs. EC to select the lower 5-20% OC/EC ratio; 3) determining the OC/EC ratio which has lowest correlation coefficient value (R²) between EC and SOC which is reported as minimum R squared method (MRS). Each (OC/EC)pri ratio of three ways are 0.35, 1.22, and 1.77, respectively from the 1 hourly data. We compared the (OC/EC)pri ratio from 1hourly data with 24 hourly data and revealed that (OC/EC)pri estimated from 24 hourly data had twice larger than 1hourly data due to the low time resolution of sampling. We finally confirmed that the most appropriate value of (OC/EC)pri is that calculated by a regression analysis of 1 hourly data and estimated SOC amounts at PM_2.5 of the Seoul atmosphere.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Surveying, Geodesy, Photogrammetry and Cartography
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• v.38 no.6
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• pp.573-581
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• 2020

Using CCTV images and weather parameters, a method for estimating PM (Particulate Matter) index was proposed, and an experiment was conducted. For CCTV images, we proposed a method of estimating the PM index by applying a deep learning technique based on a CNN (Convolutional Neural Network) with ROI(Region Of Interest) image including a specific spot and an full area image. In addition, after combining the predicted result values by deep learning with the two weather parameters of humidity and wind speed, a post-processing experiment was also conducted to calculate the modified PM index using the learned regression model. As a result of the experiment, the estimated value of the PM index from the CCTV image was R2(R-Squared) 0.58~0.89, and the result of learning the ROI image and the full area image with the measuring device was the best. The result of post-processing using weather parameters did not always show improvement in accuracy in all cases in the experimental area.

• Atmosphere
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• v.30 no.4
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• pp.439-454
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• 2020

This study investigates the change in the fine particulate matter (PM2.5) concentration and World Health Organization (WHO) air quality index (AQI) in East Asia (EA) under Shared Socioeconomic Pathways (SSPs). AQI is an indicator of increasing levels about health concern, divided into six categories based on PM2.5 annual concentrations. Here, we utilized the ensemble results of UKESM1, the climate model operated in Met Office, UK, for the analysis of long-term variation during the historical (1950~2014) and future (2015~2100) period. The results show that the spatial distributions of simulated PM2.5 concentrations in present-day (1995~2014) are comparable to observations. It is found that most regions in EA exceeded the WHO air quality guideline except for Japan, Mongolia regions, and the far seas during the historical period. In future scenarios containing strong air quality (SSP1-2.6, SSP5-8.5) and medium air quality (SSP2-4.5) controls, PM2.5 concentrations are substantially reduced, resulting in significant improvement in AQI until the mid-21st century. On the other hand, the mild air pollution controls in SSP3-7.0 tend to lead poor AQI in China and Korea. This study also examines impact of increased in PM2.5 concentrations on downward shortwave energy at the surface. As a result, strong air pollution controls can improve air quality through reduced PM2.5 concentrations, but lead to an additional warming in both the near and mid-term future climate over EA.