• Environmental Engineering Research
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• v.18 no.3
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• pp.139-143
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• 2013

This study was performed to examine the in vitro toxicities which are incurred due to the mobilization metals from standard reference material (SRM) 1648, fine ($PM_{2.5}$), and coarse ($PM_{10}$) particulate matter collected in Seoul metropolitan area. DNA single strand breaks of approximately 74% and 62% for $PM_{2.5}$ and for $PM_{10}$, respectively, were observed in the presence of chelator (EDTA or citrate)/reductant (ascorbate), as compared to the control by 2% without chelator or reductant. $PM_{2.5}$ induced about 40% more carbonyl formation with proteins in the presence of EDTA/ascorbate than $PM_{10}$. Therefore, more damage to biomolecules was incurred upon exposure to $PM_{2.5}$ than to $PM_{10}$. The treatment of a specific chelator, desferrioxamine, to the reaction mixture containing chelator plus reductant decreased the extent of damage to DNA to the level of the control, but did not substantially decrease the extent of damage to proteins. This suggests that different arrays of metals were involved in the oxidation of DNA and proteins.

• Journal of Korean Society of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene
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• v.27 no.1
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• pp.70-76
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• 2017

Objectives: This on-site study was performed to evaluate the reduction efficiency of an air cleaner on particulate matters and biological agents in a swine facility. Materials and Methods: Particulate matter was measured using a real-time monitoring recorder and biological agents were sampled with a one-stage impactor and then analyzed based on the microbial culture method. An experimental process for the reduction effect on airborne pollutants through air cleaner operation consisted of three conditions: no treatment, wet scrapper by water spray and wet scrapper by disinfectant spray. Results: Geometric mean levels of particulate matter(TSP, $PM_{10}$, $PM_{2.5}$ and $PM_1$) were presented at $1,608{\mu}g/m^3$, $1,373.8{\mu}g/m^3$, $401.8{\mu}g/m^3$ and $144.5{\mu}g/m^3$ for no treatment; $1,503{\mu}g/m^3$, $1,017{\mu}g/m^3$, $159.4{\mu}g/m^3$ and $69.8{\mu}g/m^3$ for wet scrapper by water spray; and $1,222.17{\mu}g/m^3$, $477.17{\mu}g/m^3$, $33.2{\mu}g/m^3$ and $11.1{\mu}g/m^3$ for wet scrapper by disinfectant spray, respectively. In the case of biological agents, the geometric averaged concentrations of total airborne bacteria and fungi were as follows: $45,371cfu/m^3$ and $13,474cfu/m^3$ for no treatment, $43,286cfu/m^3$ and $8,610cfu/m^3$ for wet scrapper by water spray, and $2,440cfu/m^3$ and 1,867 cfu/ for wet scrapper by disinfectant spray, respectively. Regardless of particulate matter and biological agent, the highest concentrations were found for no treatment, while the lowest concentrations were found with wet scrapper by disinfectant spray. Conclusions: Based on the results obtained from this on-site evaluation, there was a significant reduction effect on particulate matter and biological agents through the application of an air cleaner in this study.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Marine Environment & Safety
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• v.29 no.5
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• pp.497-504
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• 2023

In this study, Selective catalytic reduction (SCR) + Diesel particulate filter (DPF) system was installed on a ship with a low-speed engine to conduct the on-board test. The target ship (2,881 gross tons, rated power 1,470 kW@240 rpm ×1) is a general cargo ship sailing in the coastal area. Drawing development, approvals and temporary survey of the ship were performed for the installation of the after-treatment system. For performance evaluation, the gaseous emission analyzer was used according to the NOx technical code and ISO-8178 method of measurement. The particulate matter analyzer used a smoke meter to measure black carbon, as discussed by the International Maritime Organization (IMO). Tests were conducted using MGO (0.043%) and LSFO (0.42%) fuels according to the sulfur content. The test conditions were selected by considering the engine rpm (130, 160 and 180). Gaseous emission and particulate matter (smoke) were measured according to the test conditions to confirm the reduction efficiency of the after treatment system. The results of NOx emission and particulate matter (smoke) revealed that reduction efficiency was more than 90%. The exhaust pressure met the allowable back pressure (less than 50 mbar). This study confirms the importance of the on-board test and the potential of SCR + DPF systems as a response technology for reducing nitrogen oxides and particulate matter.

• Korean Journal of Environmental Agriculture
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• v.40 no.4
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• pp.330-334
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• 2021

BACKGROUND: More recently, it has been shown that atmospheric ammonia (NH₃) plays a primary role in the formation of secondary particulate matter by reacting with the acidic species, e.g. SO₂, NOx, to form PM2.5 aerosols in the atmosphere. The Jeonbuk region is an area with high concentration of particulate matter. Due to environmental changes in the Saemangeum reclaimed land with an area of 219 km², it is necessary to evaluate the impact of the particulate matter and atmospheric ammonia in the Jeonbuk region. METHODS AND RESULTS: Atmospheric ammonia concentrations were measured from June 2020 to May 2021 using a passive sampler and CRDS analyzer. Seasonal and annual atmospheric ammonia concentration measured using passive sampler was significantly lower in Jangjado (background concentration), and the concentration ranged from 11.4 ㎍/m³ to 18.2 ㎍/m³. Atmospheric ammonia concentrations in Buan, Gimje, Gunsan, and Wanju regions did not show a significant difference, although there was a slight seasonal difference. The maximum atmospheric ammonia concentration measured using the CRDS analyzer installed in the IAMS near the Saemangeum reclaimed land was 51.5 ㎍/m³ in autumn, 48.0 ㎍/m³ in summer, 37.6 ㎍/m³ in winter, and 32.7 ㎍/m³ in spring. The minimum concentration was 4.9 ㎍/m³ in spring, 4.2 ㎍/m³ in summer, and 3.5 ㎍/m³ in autumn and winter. The annual average concentration was 14.6 ㎍/m³. CONCLUSION(S): Long term monitoring of atmospheric ammonia in agricultural areas is required to evaluate the formation of fine particulate matter and its impact on the environment. In addition, continuous technology development is needed to reduce ammonia emitted from farmland.

• Elastomers and Composites
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• v.59 no.2
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• pp.64-72
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• 2024

As air pollution continues to increase owing to increasing traffic centered in urban areas, the tire industry is researching methods to reduce particulate matter. In this study, functionalized lithium butadiene rubber (F-LiBR) was applied to a natural rubber (NR)/butadiene rubber (BR) blend compound often used in truck bus radial (TBR) tire treads. The effect of the functional group that can react with carbon black (CB) in BR was investigated in terms of the dispersion of CB and the compound performance, including the generation of particulate matter. Compounds that were substituted with F-LiBR exhibited enhanced interaction with CB, resulting in excellent filler dispersion. Although F-LiBR exhibited lower crosslinking density and inferior abrasion resistance due to its high vinyl content, the compound with 30 phr of F-LiBR was advantageous in terms of its rolling resistance due to the excellent filler dispersion, which was also effective in reducing the amount of generated particulate matter (up to 56% reduction for PM_2.5, and 67% reduction for PM₁₀). The results confirmed the benefits of the introduction of functional groups into TBR tire tread compounds, which can aid in improving the fuel efficiency and reducing particulate matter generation.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Safety
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• v.32 no.5
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• pp.157-167
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• 2017

Millions of People die every year from diseases caused by exposure to outdoor air pollution. Especially, one of the most severe types of air pollution is fine particulate matter (PM10, PM2.5). South Korea also has been suffered from severe PM. This paper analyzes regional risks induced by PM10 and PM2.5 that have affected domestic area of Korea during 2014~2016.3Q. We investigated daily maxima of PM10 and PM2.5 data observed on 284 stations in South Korea, and found extremely high outlier. We employed extreme value distributions to fit the PM10 and PM2.5 data, but a single distribution did not fit the data well. For theses reasons, we implemented extreme mixture models such as the generalized Pareto distribution(GPD) with the normal, the gamma, the Weibull and the log-normal, respectively. Next, we divided the whole area into 16 regions and analyzed characteristics of PM risks by developing the FN-curves. Finally, we estimated 1-month, 1-quater, half year, 1-year and 3-years period return levels, respectively. The severity rankings of PM10 and PM2.5 concentration turned out to be different from region to region. The capital area revealed the worst PM risk in all seasons. The reason for high PM risk even in the yellow dust free season (Jun. ~ Sep.) can be inferred from the concentration of factories in this area. Gwangju showed the highest return level of PM2.5, even if the return level of PM10 was relatively low. This phenomenon implies that we should investigate chemical mechanisms for making PM2.5 in the vicinity of Gwangju area. On the other hand, Gyeongbuk and Ulsan exposed relatively high PM10 risk and low PM2.5 risk. This indicates that the management policy of PM risk in the west side should be different from that in the east side. The results of this research may provide insights for managing regional risks induced by PM10 and PM2.5 in South Korea.

• Biomolecules & Therapeutics
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• v.32 no.1
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• pp.162-169
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• 2024

Particulate matter (PM) constitutes a hazardous blend of organic and inorganic particles that poses health risks. Inhalation of fine airborne PM with a diameter of ≤ 2.5 ㎛ (PM_2.5) can lead to significant lung impairments. (+)-afzelechin (AZC), a natural compound sourced from Bergenia ligulata, boasts a range of attributes, including antioxidant, antimicrobial, anticancer, and cardiovascular effects. However, knowledge about the therapeutic potential of AZC for patients with PM_2.5-induced lung injuries remains limited. Thus, in this study, we investigated the protective attributes of AZC against lung damage caused by PM_2.5 exposure. AZC was administered to the mice 30 min after intratracheal instillation of PM_2.5. Various parameters, such as changes in lung tissue wet/dry (W/D) weight ratio, total protein/total cell ratio, lymphocyte counts, levels of inflammatory cytokines in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF), vascular permeability, and histology, were evaluated in mice exposed to PM_2.5. Data demonstrated that AZC mitigated lung damage, reduced W/D weight ratio, and curbed hyperpermeability induced by PM_2.5 exposure. Furthermore, AZC effectively lowered plasma levels of inflammatory cytokines produced by PM_2.5 exposure. It reduced the total protein concentration in BALF and successfully alleviated PM_2.5-induced lymphocytosis. Additionally, AZC substantially diminished the expression levels of Toll-like receptors 4 (TLR4), MyD88, and autophagy-related proteins LC3 II and Beclin 1. In contrast, it elevated the protein phosphorylation of the mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR). Consequently, the anti-inflammatory attribute of AZC positions it as a promising therapeutic agent for mitigating PM_2.5-induced lung injuries by modulating the TLR4-MyD88 and mTOR-autophagy pathways.

• Particle and aerosol research
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• v.20 no.2
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• pp.25-33
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• 2024

Suspension of particulate matter (PM) in indoor spaces, which increases risk of negative impact on occupants' health from exposure to PM, is influenced by humidity level in the indoor environment. The goal of this study is to investigate the property of size-resolved PM suspension in accordance with the relative humidity through simulation chamber experiments which reflect the indoor environmental characteristics. The relative humidity of simulation chamber is adjusted to 35%, 55% and 75% by placing it inside a real-size environmental chamber which allows artificial control of climatic conditions (e.g., temperature, humidity). At the respective humidity conditions, PM suspension concentration caused by occupant walking is analyzed by particle size (0.5-0.8, 0.8-1.0, 1.0-2.5, 2.5-3.5, 3.5-4.5, 4.5-5.5, 5.5-8.0, and 8.0-10 ㎛). Irrespective of the particle size, the suspension concentration reveals a decreasing tendency as the relative humidity increases. Furthermore, a one-way analysis of variance (one-way ANOVA) test statistically verifies that the suspension concentration has a significant difference depending on the indoor relative humidity level. In addition, as the relative humidity increases, a proportion of the suspended particles with 0.5-2.5 ㎛ diameter decreases, while that with 2.5-3.5 ㎛ diameter increases. The reason is considered that the humidity has an effect on adhesion and coagulation forces of the particles.

• Journal of Convergence for Information Technology
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• v.11 no.3
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• pp.7-13
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• 2021

This study develops an artificial intelligence prediction system for Fine particulate Matter(PM2.5) based on the deep learning algorithm GAN model. The experimental data are closely related to the changes in temperature, humidity, wind speed, and atmospheric pressure generated by the time series axis and the concentration of air pollutants such as SO2, CO, O3, NO2, and PM10. Due to the characteristics of the data, since the concentration at the current time is affected by the concentration at the previous time, a predictive model for recursive supervised learning was applied. For comparative analysis of the accuracy of the existing models, CNN and LSTM, the difference between observation value and prediction value was analyzed and visualized. As a result of performance analysis, it was confirmed that the proposed GAN improved to 15.8%, 10.9%, and 5.5% in the evaluation items RMSE, MAPE, and IOA compared to LSTM, respectively.

• Land and Housing Review
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• v.10 no.2
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• pp.53-58
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• 2019

Particulate matter (PM) is designated as a group 1 carcinogen by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) of the World Health Organization (WHO). In South Korea, the health threat caused by PM is the most serious level internationally. Therefore, in order to solve the urban PM problem, it is important to develop the technology that can control PM efficiently. In this study, CFD(Computational Fluid Dynamics) simulation was performed for PM pre-filter (type 1-3 with different PM collecting room) to develop a high-efficiency PM collecting device. The complex flow field and the local flow phenomenon inside the PM collecting device were understood with CFD simulation by changing the shape and size of the pre-filter. The PM removal performance can be described with flow rate through the device and PM removal efficiency. The type-1 pre-filter with 5x5 size collecting room was confirmed to have the highest efficiency. Based on the analysis results, the optimal type of pre-filter could be developed and it would be applied as an element technology included in the PM collecting device.