• Journal of The Korean Society of Agricultural Engineers
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• v.64 no.6
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• pp.1-12
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• 2022

Estuary reservoirs were artificial reservoir with seawalls built at the exit points of rivers. Although many water resources can be saved, it is difficult to manage due to the large influx of pollutants. To manage this, it is necessary to analyze watersheds and reservoirs through accurate modeling. Therefore, in this study, we linked the Hydrological Simulation Program-FORTRAN (HSPF), Environmental Fluid Dynamics Code (EFDC), and Water quality Analysis Simulation Program (WASP) models to simulate the hydrology and water quality of the watershed and the water level and quality of estuary lakes. As a result of applying the linked model in stream, R² 0.7 or more was satisfied for the watershed runoff except for one point. In addition, the water quality satisfies all within 15% of PBIAS. In reservoir, R² 0.72 was satisfied for water level and the water quality was within 15% of T-N and T-P. Through the modeling system, We applied upstream pollutant management scenarios to analyze changes in water quality in estuary reservoirs. Three pollution source management were applied as scenarios, the improvement of effluent water quality from the sewage treatment plant and the livestock waste treatment plant was effective in improving the quality of the reservoir water, while the artificial wetland had little effect. Water quality improvement was confirmed as a measure against upstream pollutants, but it was insufficient to achieve agricultural water quality, so additional reservoir management is required.

• Membrane Journal
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• v.27 no.3
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• pp.232-239
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• 2017

In this study, the regeneration investigation for waste reverse osmosis membrane filters which were discarded after use for the household water purifiers has been carried out. Sodium hydroxide, sodium bisulfate, and ethylenediamine tetra acetic acid(EDTA). as the chemical cleaning agents were used. And they were in-situ cleaned with the micro-bubble generator as well. The best result was obtained when both 0.1% EDTA and micro-bubbles were used for 30 min cleaning. Thus, when the performance of the brand new RO membrane and restorated RO membrane were compared, the flux, 19.9%, the recovery ratio 45% were enhanced while the salt rejection was reduced for NaCl 100 mg/L solution, in other words, it has been recovered to the original brand new RO membrane filter. Also the removal of pollutants on membrane surface was confirmed in a naked eye through the scanning electron microscopy. Finally, this research has provided the possibility of the re-use of the waste RO membrane filters of household water purifier which were reclaimed or incinerated after use.

• Environmental Analysis Health and Toxicology
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• v.14 no.4
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• pp.175-187
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• 1999

To investigate the risk perception of environmental issues, two consequtive surveys were conducted to environmental professionals using a standardized questionnaire from September to October in 1999. The number of subjects were 72 for the first survey and 68 for the second one. The questionnaire was consisted of items such as the degree of environmental pollution in Korea, risk perception of some issues on human health and ecosystem, and seriousness of the problems in the real situation in Korea. For the degree of environmental pollution in Korea, the average risk rating in the second test (7.4 point) was significantly higher than that in the first test (7.2 point). The risk perception on the general human health and ecosystem, and the seriousness in Korea situation were analyzed in the order of ′air pollution′, ′water pollution′,′soil contamination′,′waste′,′toxic chemical pollutants′,′food contamination′,′ocean contamination′, ′odor pollution′, and ′noise pollution′. Also ′toxic chemical pollutants′ problem was perceived to be the highest risk on general human health or ecosystem, and on present situation in Korea. ′Automotive vehicle exhaust′ problem was perceived to be the most severe environmental problems among specific 30 items. ′Industrial source air pollution′,′toxic air pollutants′, and ′domestic and industrial source pollutants to surface water′ were relatively severe environmental problems comparing to other problems. The pollution issues were classified into four categories by two aspects of perception; risk in general setting and seriousness in Korea situation. If the issues were highly serious in Korea and low risk perception in general setting then it is named "the Korea-specific group". Those that were all high score in two aspects, named "the Common group". Those that were all low in two aspects, named "the Nonsignificant group". And the issues were high risk perception in general setting and low seriousness in Korean situation, named "the Latent group".

• Applied Chemistry for Engineering
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• v.33 no.4
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• pp.352-366
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• 2022

Nuclear power plant operations for electricity generation, rare-earth mining, nuclear medical research, and nuclear weapons reprocessing considerably increase radioactive waste, necessitating massive efforts to eradicate radioactive waste from aquatic environments. Cobalt (⁵⁸Co) and strontium (⁹⁰Sr) radioactive elements have been extensively employed in energy generation, nuclear weapon testing, and the manufacture of healthcare products. The erroneous discharge of these elements as pollutants into the aquatic system, radiation emissions, and long-term disposal is extremely detrimental to humans and aquatic biota. Numerous methods for treating radioactive waste-contaminated water have emerged, among which the adsorption process has been promoted for its efficacy in eliminating radioactive waste from aquatic habitats. The current review discusses the adsorptive removal of radioactive waste from aqueous solutions using low-cost adsorbents, such as graphene oxide, metal-organic frameworks, and inorganic metal oxides, as well as their composites. The chemical modification of adsorbents to increase their removal efficiency is also discussed. Finally, the current state of ⁵⁸Co and ⁹⁰Sr removal performances is summarized and the efficiencies of various adsorbents are compared.

• Membrane and Water Treatment
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• v.14 no.3
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• pp.121-128
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• 2023

This study introduces a NaOH/Zn-assisted hydrothermal method for the synthesis of zeolites derived from coal ash (CA). A zeolite/Zn adsorbent is successfully prepared by the activation of CA with NaOH and Zn; it is characterized by a high surface area and a negative surface charge.Methylene blue (MB) and methyl orange (MO) are selected as dye pollutants, and their adsorption onto the zeolite/Zn adsorbent is investigated. Results show the high adsorption capacities of MB and MO and that the negative surface charge facilitates electrostatic interactions between the adsorbates and adsorbents. The zeolite/Zn adsorbents shows the selective adsorption of positively charged dye MB via electrostatic interactions between the =NH+ group (positive dipole) and the oxygen functional group of the adsorbents (negative dipole). The selectivity for the positively charged dye is sufficiently high, with the removal efficiency reaching 99.41% within 10 min. By contrast, the negatively charged dye MO exhibits negligible absorption. These findings confirm the role of electrostatic interactions in the adsorption of MB, in addition to the effect of a large surface area. The results of this study are expected to facilitate the development of simple, eco-friendly, and cost-effective zeolite-based adsorptive composites from CA residuals for the selective removal of dye pollutants from CA waste.

• Korean Journal of Environmental Agriculture
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• v.15 no.4
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• pp.506-519
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• 1996

The water quality in the rural areas is degrading due to a variety of causes such as the increase of the urban sewage and industrial wastes, the disposal of solid wastes, the growth of livestock waste, the growth of leisure facilities, the establishment of agricultural industry estates and etc. The water pollutants are scarce while the effluent is increasing from wide scattered sources. The technology specifically designed for the rural wastes water treatment plant needs to be implemented with improvement of agricultural water quality. 1. An integrated management measures against water pollution sources. The prevention of water pollution is the best measures in the environmental pollution. Hence, the most effective measures needs to be against the sources. Small-scale water treatment plants needs to be constructed in each village in the rural areas. As for the industrial effluent, the effluent discharge needs to be strictly monitored. Government subsidy for the establishment of treatment plant for livestock wastes is necessary. 2. The establishment of national-wide network for agricultural water quality. The network for agricultural water quality have been operated to conserve the agricultural water quality, and to develop management policies by the assessment of water pollution in the rural areas. The results of agricultural water quality network indicates that the water quality is degrading not only around urban areas but also in the distant rural areas, and the water quality at the pumping stations and weirs is worse than that of reservoirs. 3. The legal, systematic, and technical approaches for the agricultural water quality management. The actions currently implemented for the improvement of agricultural water quality involve temporary measures such as the improvement of irrigation facilities. These contingency measures are not effective in the long-term, and sometimes bring secondary pollution. Therefore, integrated measures covering the whole water environment such as the flow, quality, river morphology, aquatic ecosystem, and the surrounding environment, need be invented and implemented. Besides, the legal, systematic, and technical frameworks for the management are not fully established so far. The technology for the treatment of rural water pollution should be refined afterwards, and the research for the development of rural waste water treatment plant should be carried out.

• Korean Journal of Materials Research
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• v.27 no.5
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• pp.255-262
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• 2017

Reactive oxygen species (ROS) can be produced by interactions between sunlight and light-absorbing substances in natural water environments and can completely destroy various organic pollutants in waste water. In this study, we used graphene oxide modified $Ag_2Se$ nanoparticles to enhance photochemically generated oxygen (PGO) species activity. Surface area and pore volumes of the $Ag_2Se-graphene$ ($Ag_2Se-G$) samples showed catastrophic decrease due to deposition of $Ag_2Se$. The generation of reactive oxygen species was detected through the oxidation reaction of DPCI to DPCO. The photocurrent density and the PGO effect increase in the case of the use of modified graphene. The PGO effect of the graphene modified with $Ag_2Se$ composites increased significantly due to a synergetic effect between graphene and the $Ag_2Se$ nanoparticles. The photocatalytic activity of sample was evaluated by measuring the degradation of organic pollutants such as methylene blue (MB) and industrial dyes such as Texbrite BA-L (TBA) under visible light.

• The Korean Journal of Mycology
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• v.23 no.4 s.75
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• pp.354-358
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• 1995

A yeast loading biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) sensor was designed and constructed to quickly measure the concentration of biologically assimilable organic substances dissolved in water as BOD values to feed back to the waste water treating processes. The sensitivity of the BOD sensor reached maximum at around pH 7.0 and $30^{\circ}C$ where yeast showed the highest assimilation activity. Biomass also affected the sensor output, and biomass of $ 0.14\;mg/cm^2$ on the dialysis membrane appeared to be the optimum cell mass level. The sensitivity of the sensor depended on the kinds of pollutants and increased considerably when the yeast was preincubated in the solution of respective pollutants before loading on the sensor.

• Environmental Analysis Health and Toxicology
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• v.11 no.1_2
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• pp.31-39
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• 1996

Leachate from municipal solid waste (MSW) landfill, effluent from leachate treatment plant, and ground water sample from a monitoring well near landfill site were tested for an acute toxicity. Microtox toxicity test was used for testing the acute toxicity of leachate and other samples. EC$_{50}$ values which a concentration of pollutant for reducing 50% light output from luminescent bacteria, Photobacterium phosphoreum were determined to assess the toxicity of pollutants as well as the relative toxicity. In addition, characteristics of leachate were studied and compared to those of phenol and pentachlorophenol (PCP) which are typical aquatic toxic pollutants. For leachate, EC$_{50}$ for 30 min incubation was 10.8%, while for phenol and PCP, 46 ppm and 1.2 ppm, respectively. the relative toxicity of treated leachate by in situ aeration with activated sludge was reduced to more than 75% of toxicity of the untreated leachate. Microtox toxicity test was failed to figure out EC$_{50}$ values for groundwater from a monitoring well since the relative toxicity of the unconcentrated sample was too low to estimate EC$_{50}$. Addition of activated carbon to leachate was reduced the relative toxicity. The reduction Pattern of the relative toxicity of leachate by mechanical aeration was similar to that of PCP, but different from that of phenol. These findings suggest that the toxicity of leachate may come from PCP-like toxic compounds rather than phenol-like one. In conclusion, the process of aeration with activated sludge might be very important to reduce the environmental toxicity of leachate. And Microtox test could be a reasonable bioassay for screening and monitoring the environmental toxicity of leachate from municipal solid waste landfill as well as for determining the reduction efficiency of the leachate toxicity by various treatment processes in leachate treatment plant.

• Analytical Science and Technology
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• v.7 no.1
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• pp.33-39
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• 1994

The purpose on this study was to develop a new improved chromatographic method for determination of trace phenols from environmental waste water. The research was carried out with selected 8 phenols, and solid-phase extraction was employed as sample pretreatment method. The coupling of XAD-4 and Dowex $1{\times}8$ resin as preconcentration column increased the selectivities toward interferences coexisted in matrix. Automation was accomplished with on-line process of pretreatment and HPLC system. After elution of sample through XAD-4 column, phenols were adsorbed by dispersion force, then displaced from it by ACN basified, simultaneously and selectively readsorbed via anion exchange on Dowex $1{\times}8$. Dowex $1{\times}8$ column was washed by water. Phenols readsorbed were removed from Dowex $1{\times}8$ column by a minimum volumn of methanol containing HCl. Each pretreatment step was connected by switching valves and the eluate was directly on-line injected to obtain fast and reliable results into the HPLC. Recovery of phenols was greater than 90%. To examine utility of this method, analysis of phenols from laboratory waste water sample which was added some organic pollutants to find with phenols on environmental waste water were also accomplished without their interference effects.