• Proceedings of the Korean Biophysical Society Conference
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• 2003.06a
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• pp.62-62
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• 2003

The native form of serpin (serine protease inhibitor) is kinetically trapped in metastable state. Metastability in these proteins is critical to their biological function. Serpins inhibit target proteases by forming a stable covalent complex in which the cleaved reactive site loop of the serpin is inserted into $\beta$-sheet A of the serpin with concomitant translocation of the protease to the opposite of the initial binding site. Despite recent determination of the crystal structures of a Michaelis protease-serpin complex as well as a stable covalent complex, details on the kinetic mechanism remain unsolved. In this study we constructed several $\alpha$$_1$-antitrypsin variants and examined their kinetic mechanism of loop translocation and formation of protease-serpin complex by stopped-flow experiments of fluorescence resonance energy transfer as well as quenched-flow experiment. We report here the relationship of serpin's conformational switch mechanism with Inhibitory activity. There is little direct correlation between loop insertion rate and inhibitory activity. Rather, disrupting a salt bridge between R196 and E354 accelerates loop translocation even though it impairs the inhibitory activity. Moreover, the serpin's reactive site loop is translocated, at least partially, prior to loop cleavage.

• Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society
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• v.32 no.3
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• pp.988-992
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• 2011

$CO_2$ adsorption on mineral sorbents has a potential to sequester $CO_2$. This study used a density functional theory (DFT) study of $CO_2$ adsorption on barium oxide (BaO) in the presence of $H_2O$ to determine the role of $H_2O$ on the $CO_2$ adsorption properties on the ($2{\times}2$; $11.05\;{\AA}{\times}11.05\;{\AA}$) BaO (100) surface because BaO shows a high reactivity for $CO_2$ adsorption and the gas mixture of power plants generally contains $CO_2$ and $H_2O$. We investigated the adsorption properties (e.g., adsorption energies and geometries) of a single $CO_2$ molecule, a single $H_2O$ molecule on the surface to achieve molecular structures and molecular reaction mechanisms. In order to evaluate the coordinative effect of $H_2O$ molecules, this study also carried out the adsorption of a pair of $H_2O$ molecules, which was strongly bounded to neighboring (-1.91 eV) oxygen sites and distant sites (-1.86 eV), and two molecules ($CO_2$ and $H_2O$), which were also firmly bounded to neighboring sites (-2.32 eV) and distant sites (-2.23 eV). The quantum mechanical calculations show that $H_2O$ molecule does not influence on the chemisorption of $CO_2$ on the BaO surface, producing a stable carbonate due to the strong interaction between the $CO_2$ molecule and the BaO surface, resulting from the high charge transfer (-0.76 e).

• Journal of the Korea Concrete Institute
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• v.17 no.6 s.90
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• pp.893-902
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• 2005

Reasonable prediction of residual capacity of fire-damaged reinforced columns is important for both the safety measurement and the rehabilitation of the reinforced concrete structures suffered from exposure to extensive fire. In order to predict the residual behavior of fire-damaged reinforced concrete columns, its predictive model must be able to take into account the amount of heat transferred into the column, the level of deterioration of constituent materials and various column geometries. The numerical model presented in this research includes all these factors. The model has been shown to reasonably predict the residual behavior of fire-damaged columns. Parametric studies were performed using this model for the effects of cover thickness, exposure time to fire and column geometries on the residual behavior of reinforced concrete columns. It was found that serious damage on the residual capacity of column resulted from a longer exposure time to fire but only marginal differences from other factors.

• Advanced Composite Materials
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• v.17 no.2
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• pp.125-137
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• 2008

FBG (Fiber Bragg Grating) sensors and optical fibers were embedded into CFRP dry preforms before resin impregnation in VaRTM (Vacuum-assisted Resin Transfer Molding). The embedding location was the interface between the skin and the stringer in a CFRP-stiffened panel. The reflection spectra of the FBG sensors monitored the strain and temperature changes during all the molding processes. The internal residual strains of the CFRP panel could be evaluated during both the curing time and the post-curing time. The temperature changes indicated the differences between the dry preform and the outside of the vacuum bagging. After the molding, four-point bending was applied to the panel for the verification of its structural integrity and the sensor capabilities. The optical fibers were then used for the newly-developed PPP-BOTDA (Pulse-PrePump Brillouin Optical Time Domain Analysis) system. The long-range distributed strain and temperature can be measured by this system, whose spatial resolution is 100 mm. The strain changes from the FBGs and the PPP-BOTDA agreed well with those from the conventional strain gages and FE analysis in the CFRP panel. Therefore, the fiber-optic sensors and its system were very effective for the evaluation of the VaRTM composite structures.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Propulsion Engineers Conference
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• 2010.11a
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• pp.235-240
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• 2010

Transpiration cooling is the most effective cooling technique for liquid rocket and air-breathing engines operating in aggressive environments with higher pressures and temperatures. Combustor liners and turbine vanes are cooled by the coolant(air or fuel) passing through their porous walls and also the exit coolant acting as an insulating film. However, its practical implementation has been hampered by the limitations of available porous materials. The search for more practical methods of increasing the internal heat transfer within the walls has led to the development of multi-laminate porous structures, such as Lamilloy$^{(R)}$ and Transply$^{(R)}$. This paper reviews recent research activities of transpiration cooling for the propulsions of liquid rocket, gas turbine, and scramjet.

• Computers and Concrete
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• v.2 no.1
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• pp.79-96
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• 2005

The use of high-strength concrete (HSC) has significantly increased over the last decade, especially in offshore structures, long-span bridges, and tall buildings. The behavior of such concrete is noticeably different from that of normal-strength concrete (NSC) due to its different microstructure and mode of failure. In particular, the shear capacity of structural members made of HSC is a concern and must be carefully evaluated. The shear fracture surface in HSC members is usually trans-granular (propagates across coarse aggregates) and is therefore smoother than that in NSC members, which reduces the effect of shear transfer mechanisms through aggregate interlock across cracks, thus reducing the ultimate shear strength. Current code provisions for shear design are mainly based on experimental results obtained on NSC members having compressive strength of up to 50MPa. The validity of such methods to calculate the shear strength of HSC members is still questionable. In this study, a new approach based on artificial neural networks (ANNs) was used to predict the shear capacity of NSC and HSC beams without shear reinforcement. Shear capacities predicted by the ANN model were compared to those of five other methods commonly used in shear investigations: the ACI method, the CSA simplified method, Response 2000, Eurocode-2, and Zsutty's method. A sensitivity analysis was conducted to evaluate the ability of ANNs to capture the effect of main shear design parameters (concrete compressive strength, amount of longitudinal reinforcement, beam size, and shear span to depth ratio) on the shear capacity of reinforced NSC and HSC beams. It was found that the ANN model outperformed all other considered methods, providing more accurate results of shear capacity, and better capturing the effect of basic shear design parameters. Therefore, it offers an efficient alternative to evaluate the shear capacity of NSC and HSC members without stirrups.

• Smart Structures and Systems
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• v.25 no.1
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• pp.23-35
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• 2020

It is important to take into account the thermal behavior in assessing the structural condition of bridges. An effective method of studying the temperature effect of long-span bridges is numerical simulation based on the solar radiation models. This study aims to develop a time-varying solar radiation model which can consider the real-time weather changes, such as a cloud cover. A statistical analysis of the long-term monitoring data is first performed, especially on the temperature data between the south and north anchors of the bridge, to confirm that temperature difference can be used to describe real-time weather changes. Second, a defect in the traditional solar radiation model is detected in the temperature field simulation, whereby the value of the turbidity coefficient t_u is subjective and cannot be used to describe the weather changes in real-time. Therefore, a new solar radiation model with modified turbidity coefficient γ is first established on the temperature difference between the south and north anchors. Third, the temperature data of several days are selected for model validation, with the results showing that the simulated temperature distribution is in good agreement with the measured temperature, while the calculated results by the traditional model had minor errors because the turbidity coefficient t_u is uncertainty. In addition, the vertical and transverse temperature gradient of a typical cross-section and the temperature distribution of the tower are also studied.

• Journal of the Institute of Electronics Engineers of Korea SD
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• v.38 no.4
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• pp.302-312
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• 2001

As the data transfer rate between chips gets higher, both crosstalk and SSN (Simultaneous Switching Noise) deteriorate seriously the performance of a system. The proposed interface scheme uses P-CTR and N-CTR(Positive/Negative Constant Transition Rate) which encodes data at both falling and rising edges, where the transition directions of N-CTR and P-CTR are opposite. And the proposed bus system places two P-CTR drivers and two N-CTR drivers alternatively. In the proposed P/N-CTR interface scheme, the signals of neighboring interconnection lines at both sides of a bus will not switch simultaneously in the same direction, which leads to reduction in the maximum crosstalk and SSN compared to conventional interfaces. For verification of noise reduction of the proposed interface scheme, the scheme is applied to several kinds of bit-wide buses with various interconnection structures, and HSPICE simulation was performed with 0.35 ${\mu}{\textrm}{m}$ SPICE parameters. The simulation results show that in the 32-bit or less wide bus, the maximum SSN and crosstalk are reduced to at least 26.78% and 50%, respectively in comparison with the conventional interface scheme.

• Imaging Science in Dentistry
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• v.47 no.3
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• pp.199-207
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• 2017

Purpose: Evaluation of alveolar bone is important in the diagnosis of dental diseases. The periodontal ligament space is difficult to clearly depict in cone-beam computed tomography images because the reconstruction filter conditions during image processing cause image blurring, resulting in decreased spatial resolution. We examined different reconstruction filters to assess their ability to improve spatial resolution and allow for a clearer visualization of the periodontal ligament space. Materials and Methods: Cone-beam computed tomography projections of 2 skull phantoms were reconstructed using 6 reconstruction conditions and then compared using the Thurstone paired comparison method. Physical evaluations, including the modulation transfer function and the Wiener spectrum, as well as an assessment of space visibility, were undertaken using experimental phantoms. Results: Image reconstruction using a modified Shepp-Logan filter resulted in better sensory, physical, and quantitative evaluations. The reconstruction conditions substantially improved the spatial resolution and visualization of the periodontal ligament space. The difference in sensitivity was obtained by altering the reconstruction filter. Conclusion: Modifying the characteristics of a reconstruction filter can generate significant improvement in assessments of the periodontal ligament space. A high-frequency enhancement filter improves the visualization of thin structures and will be useful when accurate assessment of the periodontal ligament space is necessary.

• The Journal of the Acoustical Society of Korea
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• v.16 no.2
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• pp.10-15
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• 1997

The hydrophones is mounted in many applications on a vibrating surface and functions as an underwater acoustic signal receiver without sensing the vibrations from the mounting surface. However, their performance is usually degraded by the interference of exterior noises such as acoustic cavitation in water stream, host structural vibration in the hull, and propeller motions. This paper describes the design and evaluation of a self noise suppressing hydrophones which shows very poor sensitivity to the external noises, first, effects of the external noise on the its receiver performance is simulated with finite element method(FEM). Second, the geometrical variations are implemented on the original structure that include additional air pockets and acoustic walls which work as acoustic shied or scatter of the noises. The results show that the effect of the external noise is the most significant when it is applied near to the bottom of the side wall of the hydrophones. The transverse noise induced by the outside water flow is isolated most effectively when a thin compliant (damping) layer combined with two air pockets is inserted to the circumference of the nose. Noise level is reduced about fifty nine percent of that of the original structure.