• KSCE Journal of Civil and Environmental Engineering Research
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• v.42 no.2
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• pp.163-170
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• 2022

The present study investigates NO_x-removal and sound-absorption performances of photocatalytic porous concrete prepared by various TiO₂ application methods. Photocatalytic porous concrete samples were prepared by one of the following: 1) mechanically mixing TiO₂ during casting; 2) mixing bottom ash aggregate pretreated with TiO₂ during casting; and 3) spraying TiO₂ solution to the normally fabricated porous concrete. The test results indicated that the mechanical mixing of TiO₂ decreased the compressive strength as the added TiO₂ content increased. The use of pretreated bottom ash aggregate reduced the porosity, yet the compressive strength of the concrete was similar to that measured from the former method. Porous concrete samples sprayed with the TiO₂ solution exhibited enhanced compressive strength, while the porosity was analogous to those measured from other methods. The NO_x-removal performance was the highest in the samples sprayed with the TiO₂ solution, followed by the samples using pretreated bottom ash aggregate and mechanically mixed TiO₂. The samples with mechanically mixed TiO₂ identified a relationship between soundabsorption performance and porosity. However, no particular tendency was observable in the samples with other TiO₂ application methods.

• Journal of the Society of Naval Architects of Korea
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• v.60 no.3
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• pp.186-192
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• 2023

According to the regulation on the pollution of the marine environment, SOx emission from ships has to be reduced. A SOx scrubbing system installed in a funnel of a ship is considered in order to reduce SOx emission. A scrubbing layer with a porous material is present in the funnel to increase the contact area between exhaust gas and water. In this study, experiments on the pressure drop characteristics in the scrubbing layer are conducted to investigate the effect of the scrubber on the engine load. The pressure drop according to flow rate of air instead of exhaust gas was measured for fillers such as sphere, pall ring and saddle in the scrubbing layer. First of all, porosity is experimentally measured for the three types of filler and it is confirmed that the porosity of the saddle-type filler was the largest. The pressure drop according to the change in air flow rate was measured for the three types of fillers in the scrubbing layer. As a result, the pressure drop was the smallest in the scrubbing layer with the saddle-type filler which has the largest porosity. In addition, the effect of spraying water flowing counter flow against air flow is experimentally examined. It is known that the pressure drop is increased because the air flow space is reduced when water is sprayed. In the case of the saddle, the pressure drop is about 1.5 to 2 times greater than that when only air flows at the optimum exhaust gas-water injection ratio.

• Journal of Applied Biological Chemistry
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• v.66
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• pp.258-265
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• 2023

After application of veterinary antibiotics, they may be partially metabolized before they are excreted by feces or urine either as unaltered form or as metabolites. Residual antibiotics enter the adjacent agricultural environments by spraying manure-based compost and liquid fertilizer on farmlands and lead to secondary pollution. The objective of this study was to compare the residual concentrations of 6 veterinary antibiotics by different production stages of liquid fertilizer from livestock manure recycling facilities. The relationship between concentration change of the residual antibiotics and the amount of liquid fertilizer component was also assessed. Pre-treatment showed the recovery of 63.4-106.7% at ppb level and the limit of quantification of 0.009-0.037 ㎍/L.As the result of analyzing the relationship between the residual concentrations of antibiotics and the amount of N component in liquid fertilizer by different production stages, the residual concentrations of antibiotics and N tended to decrease as the stabilization period elapsed during the liquid fertilization process. Average concentrations of sulfamethazine in raw materials, middle and final products of liquid fertilizer were 40.85, 26.17, 3.54 ㎍/L, respectively. Those of chlortetracycline decreased from 2.32 to 1.25 ㎍/L. The other 4 antibiotics also showed a decreasing trend by different production stages of liquid fertilizer. The amount of liquid fertilizer component N decreased from 0.21 to 0.096% by production stages of liquid fertilizer. It is considered that the correlation between residual antibiotic concentrations and N content can be applied as basic data for setting antibiotic reduction indicators.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Environmental Restoration Technology
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• v.26 no.6
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• pp.155-164
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• 2023

Sedirea japonica is one of the critically endangered species in South Korea mostly due to artificial harms such as illegal collection and habitat destruction. Therefore, artificial propagation through improving germination rate, increasing growth, and controlling flowering is meaningful for the conservation and reintroduction of S. japonica. It is suggested that cytokinins are one of the multi-factors that contribute to plant growth and floral responses. Especially, exogenous cytokinins have been known to induce or promote shoot growth or earlier flowering in orchids. Therefore, it was investigated how the application of 6-benzylaminopurine (BA) influenced the growth and inflorescence of S. japonica. A foliar spray containing BA at 100, 200, 300, and 400 ppm was applied from 1st July to 30th December 2021. Leaf length, leaf length growth rate, leaf width, and width and length ratio were measured as growth-related factors. Visible inflorescence rate, inflorescence length, the number of flowers per inflorescence, and the distance between the stalks were measured as flowering-related factors. Growth-related factors except for leaf growth rate were not affected by BA treatments, while leaf growth rate was significantly increased by 200 ppm of BA treatment. The visible inflorescence rate increased by 200 ppm of BA treatment, and there seems an optimal concentration and threshold of BA treatment. An iterative experiment with more seedlings and measurement factors would be helpful to figure out the effects of exogenous BA treatment on S. japonica, and it can be applied for mass propagation.

• Korean Journal of Environmental Biology
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• v.41 no.4
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• pp.463-472
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• 2023

The insecticidal activities of 27 different commercial products with environmentally friendly organic material(EFOM) against Scotinophara lurida, a major rice pest, were evaluated in the laboratory using spraying methods on plants and insects. Seven plant-derived organic farming materials (EFOM-8, -10, -12, -13, -19, -20, and -26) with high insecticidal effects when sprayed directly on the insect's body rather than on the plant were selected. In the indoor rice pot test, all 7 EFOMs showed an insecticidal rate of over 73.3% under flooding conditions. Notably, EFOM-13 and EFOM-20 demonstrated much higher insecticidal rates, ranging from 1.5 to 1.8 times, in flooding conditions compared to drained conditions. In the semi-paddy field test, EFOM-10 (80% garlic extract), EFOM-13 (62% neem extract), and EFOM-26 (70% sophora extract+28% ethyl alcohol+2% pyrethrum extract) exhibited a higher control value of 88.9% in the irrigated paddy on the 7th day, surpassing the control values in the drained paddy by 1.4 to 1.9 times. The control value in the irrigated rice paddy field sprayed with EFOM-10 reached 86.2% on the 7th day, which was 1.4 times higher than 61.9% in the drained paddy. Taken together, the findings suggest that direct contact of the insect's body with sufficient amounts of spray solution and the maintenance of paddy irrigation can enhance the controlling effect of EFOMs. These findings will be valuable in developing an optimal S. lurida control strategy for application in rice paddy fields in the near future.

• Korean Journal of Agricultural Science
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• v.50 no.2
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• pp.299-312
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• 2023

The paddy environment is classified as a wetland and occupies a very large proportion of the freshwater environment. It is also ecologically important as a habitat and spawning ground for many aquatic insects and amphibian larvae. However, due to climate change and indiscriminate spraying of pesticides, the rice field ecosystem is continuously threatened. In order to restore ecologically damaged rice paddies in the future, information on organisms living in the rice paddy ecosystem, which can serve as a restoration standard, is needed. The eDNA metabarcoding analysis method is a very effective means of accumulating information on many organisms living in the rice field ecosystem because it can indirectly identify the existence of taxa that are no longer found in the target ecosystem due to different adult life periods or metamorphosis. In this study, genes of four species of frogs and nine species of aquatic insects were also discovered, and some taxa were directly discovered in the field. A large number of taxa have been discovered only by DNA searches, and traditional survey methods have only been able to identify very limited taxa. This eDNA-based paddy field biosearch is expected to be very useful in the investigation of biodiversity in agricultural ecosystems due to its strong analytical resolution.

• Journal of the Korean Recycled Construction Resources Institute
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• v.12 no.3
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• pp.314-321
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• 2024

Due to the depletion of natural aggregate resources, the use of recycled aggregates became an urgent issue. Microcracks generated during production of recycled aggregate and cement paste attached to the surface of aggregate have been the biggest obstacles to promote the use of recycled aggregate. To alleviate such problem, this study attempted the spray and immersion treatment of recycled fine aggregate using mono-ammonium phosphate solution, which is known to be effective for reducing the pH of recycled aggregate. The changes in physical properties before and after treatment were observed, and the compressive strength of mortar specimen was evaluated. According to the experimental results, the absorption capacity of the recycled fine aggregate increased with reduction in pH after mono-ammunium phosphate treatment. Calcium hydroxide and ettringite was removed, and skeletal density of recycled fine aggregate increased due to the formation of hydroxyapatite. Despite the increase in absorption capacity, the compressive strength of the mortar increased and it seems to be associated with the increase in adhesion strength at the interface between cement paste and recycled fine aggregate. When the concentration of ammonium monophosphate aqueous solution was excessive (immersion: 15% and 20%, spraying 20%), the compressive strength of the mortar decreased, which seemed to be related to the increase in the absorption capacity caused by the the excessive dissolution of the hydration products such as portlandite and ettringite.

• Research in Plant Disease
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• v.30 no.3
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• pp.256-267
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• 2024

We have developed FBcastS (Fire Blight Forecasting System), a cloud-based information system that leverages the K-Maryblyt forecasting model. The FBcastS provides an optimal timing for spraying antibiotics to prevent flower infection caused by Erwinia amylovora and forecasts the onset of disease symptoms to assist in scheduling field scouting activities. FBcastS comprises four discrete subsystems tailored to specific functionalities: meteorological data acquisition and processing, execution of the K-Maryblyt model, distribution of web-based information, and dissemination of spray timing notifications. The meteorological data acquisition subsystem gathers both observed and forecasted weather data from 1,583 sites across South Korea, including 761 apple or pear orchards where automated weather stations are installed for fire blight forecast. This subsystem also performs post-processing tasks such as quality control and data conversion. The model execution subsystem operates the K-Maryblyt model and stores its results in a database. The web-based service subsystem offers an array of internet-based services, including weather monitoring, mobile services for forecasting fire blight infection and symptoms, and nationwide fire blight monitoring. The final subsystem issues timely notifications of fire blight spray timing alert to growers based on forecasts from the K-Maryblyt model, blossom status, pesticide types, and field conditions, following guidelines set by the Rural Development Administration. FBcastS epitomizes a smart agriculture internet of things (IoT) by utilizing densely collected data with a spatial resolution of approximately 4.25 km to improve the accuracy of fire blight forecasts. The system's internet-based services ensure high accessibility and utility, making it a vital tool in data-driven smart agricultural practices.

• Journal of Dental Anesthesia and Pain Medicine
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• v.24 no.5
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• pp.351-360
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• 2024

Background: This study aimed to evaluate and compare the efficacy of oral premedication with ibuprofen on the anesthetic efficacy of inferior alveolar nerve block (IANB) using 2% lignocaine and 1:100000 epinephrine in tobacco-chewing (TC) and non-tobacco-chewing (NTC) patients with symptomatic irreversible pulpitis (SIP) during nonsurgical endodontic intervention (NEI). Methods: This multicenter, prospective, double-blind, two-arm parallel-group randomized controlled trial involving 160 patients was conducted for a period of 9 months. The patients were classified into the study (TC patients) and control (NTC patients) groups, which were subdivided into two subgroups 1 hour before the procedure based on oral premedication with tab ibuprofen 600 mg. Nicotine dependence was assessed using the Modified Fagerstrom Tolerance Nicotine Scale. Patients were administered an IANB injection of 2% lignocaine containing epinephrine 1:100000 after premedication. Pulpal anesthesia before NEI was confirmed using electric pulp testing and cold spraying. Patients rated their pain on the 10-point visual analog scale (VAS) during NEI thrice at the dentin, pulp, and instrumentation levels. No pain at each level indicated the success of anesthesia. Results: The success and failure rates did not differ between the premedication and non-premedication subgroups in the TC or NTC groups (P > 0.05). However, the success rate was higher in the premedication subgroup of the NTC group (52.5%) than in the TC group (45%). Most patients with premedication experienced failure at the instrumentation level, whereas patients in the non-premedication group experienced pain at the dentin level. Failure rates of IANB did not differ significantly at different levels between the groups (P > 0.05). The mean VAS scores differed significantly at the dentin level in both groups, with lower values in the premedication group (P < 0.05). Conclusions: The efficacy of ibuprofen premedication with IANB during NEI did not differ significantly between the TC and NTC patients with SIP. The effect of premedication was more significant in the NTC group than in the TC group. A causal relationship between nicotine consumption and the success of premedication could not be established, and further studies are required to validate the results of the present study.

• Journal of Bio-Environment Control
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• v.21 no.3
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• pp.163-169
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• 2012

We have conducted three experiments to develop a fertilizer-dissolving apparatus used in fertigation or hydroponics cultivation in order to decrease the fertilizer dissolving time and labor input via automation. All of the experiments were conducted twice. In the first experiment, four selected treatments were tested to dissolve fertilizers rapidly. The first treatment was to dissolve fertilizer by spraying water with a submerged water pump, placed in the nutrient solution tank. The water was sprayed onto fertilizer, which is dissolved and filtered through the hemp cloth mounted on the upper part of the nutrient solution tank (Spray). The second treatment was to install a propeller on the bottom of the nutrient solution tank (Propeller). The third treatment was to produce a water stream with a submerged water pump, located at the bottom of the tank (Submerged). Finally, the fourth treatment was to produce an air stream through air pipes with an air compressor located at the bottom of the tank (Airflow). The Spray treatment was found to take the shortest time to dissolve fertilizer, yet it was inconvenient to implement and manage after installation. The Airflow treatment was thought to be the best method in terms of the time to dissolve, labor input, and automation. In the second experiment, Airflow treatment was investigated in more detail. In order to determine the optimal number of air pipe arms and their specification, different versions of 6- and 8-arm air pipe systems were evaluated. The apparatus with 6 arms (Arm-6) that was made of light density polyethylene was determined to be the best system, evaluated on its time to dissolve fertilizer, easiness to use regardless of the lid size of the tank, and easiness to produce and install. In the third experiment, the Submerged and Arm-6 treatments were compared for their dissolving time and economics. Arm-6 treatment decreased the dissolving time by 8 times and proved to be very economic. In addition, dissolving characteristics were investigated for $KNO_3$, $Ca(NO_3)_2{\cdot}4H_2O$, and Fe-EDTA.