The annual number of odor complaints increased about 10 times over 14 years from 4,302 in 2005 to 40,854 in 2019, in Korea. Especially, livestock facilities account for more than 50% of the odor complaints and the swine farms account for the most odor complaints among livestock. It is therefore necessary to manage swine farms as the major odor emission source. In this study, a real-time odor monitoring system equipped with PTR-TOF-MS (proton transfer reaction time-of-flight mass spectrometric) was used to measure the odorous substances in two swine farms. Odorous substances emitted from outlets were sampled and measured at the two types of swine farms. In addition, the boundary spots were designated as measurement points. As a result, the rankings of the odorous substances in order, from highest to lowest, were ammonia, acetaldehyde, methyl mercaptan, fatty acids, etc. and the level of odor intensity was 0.8-4.4 at the outlet of the swine farms. The concentration at the boundary decreased between 1/100 ~ 1/10000 compared to the concentration emitted from outlets. Base on the results of evaluating odor activity values, Skatole and p-Cresol were estimated as major odor substances in swine farms.

Starfish are creatures that destroy marine ecosystems due to their high reproductive rate and predatory nature. Instead of mass incineration, this study attempted to utilize them as functional adsorbents to control odorous organic compounds. This waste starfishbased adsorbent showed a high aldehyde capture efficiency of 91.1%. The maximum specific surface area of the prepared waste starfish adsorbent was 2.19m2/g, and the adsorption amount was 101.66mg/g. Therefore, it was confirmed that the waste starfish had the ability to perform well as an adsorbent.

Incheon is an area where complaints about odors occur frequently and there are many sources of odor emission. In this study, we used a real-time monitoring device to measure the odorous concentration near the areas where there are complaints about odors. The measurements were carried out for the three areas (G, C, S) that are located around emissions sources. G is situated in an industrial complex that has a reputation for being one of the most foul smelling regions of Incheon. A petroleum refining plant and storage facility are located around C. S is a residential area nearby an industrial site. The concentration of major designated odor substances in the G and S areas satisfied the site boundary emission standards. With regard to the characteristics of odor substances by region, although the C area region had the highest odor intensity among the three regions due to the odor intensity near the oil storage facility areas G and S were similar in terms of odor intensity. In the region of the G area, the odor intensity was slightly higher at the northern side of t he industrial complex. In terms of the odor intensity of the designated odor substances, trimethyl amine was the strongest, followed by hydrogen sulfide. The real time monitoring system was necessary to analyze the changing trends of odor substances and for the determination of major odor sources. This study was conducted to identify the material causes of odors in areas of Incheon where there are frequent complaints about major odors.

This study was carried out to investigate how airborne bacteria are distributed under different temperature conditions while cultivating oyster mushrooms by setting the indoor temperature of the cultivation room to 10°C, 15°C, 20°C, 25°C, and 30°C. The surveys were conducted in April and May, respectively. Airborne bacterial concentrations were distributed in the range of 1.61 × 102 ~ 3.67 × 102 CFU/m3 in April and 5.47 × 102 ~ 7 × 103 CFU/ m3 in May. In May, the indoor air quality maintenance standard (8.0 × 102 CFU/m3) was exceeded in the 10°C, 20°C, and 25°C cultivation rooms. Bacterial concentrations increased significantly in May compared to April. Bacterial concentrations were different between the cultivation rooms at different temperatures. The difference was more pronounced in May than in April. A total of 15 genera and 20 species were isolated from the indoor air of the oyster mushroom cultivation rooms. Overall, it was most abundant in Actinomycetia. Among the species identified, Agrobacterium radiobacter, Brevundimonas vesicularis, Kocuria palustris, K. salsicia, Lysinibacillus fusiformis, and Sphingobacterium siyangense are known to affect human health. This is the first report of airborne bacteria in cultivation rooms at different temperatures used for oyster mushroom cultivation. The results of this study are expected to be used as basic data to understand the indoor environment of thermophilic mushroom cultivation facilities.

Gwaebultaeng is a cultural property of painting, a large Buddhist painting used for special ceremonies in Buddhism. It is stored in an indoor temple environment, and there is a greater risk of contamination and damage due to environmental factors compared to other cultural properties. In 2021, the treasure Hanging Painting of Anguksa Temple and storage chest stored in Geungnakjeon Hall of Anguksa Temple in Muju-gun, Jeollabuk-do were investigated. As a result, one genus and three species fungi, one species bacteria were found on the surface of the painting. In addition, five genera and 11 species fungi, eight genera and 12 species bacteria were confirmed on the surface of the storage chest. Among them, the same three species of Aspergillus genus were identified in both Gwaebultaeng and the storage chest. These results suggest the possibility of introduction and spread from airborne fungi in the indoor air outside the chest. Among the identified microorganisms, one genus and two species fungi in Gwaebultaeng and three genera and four species fungi, four genera and five species bacteria were identified as those that could cause damage to the storage chest. In addition, it was confirmed that one species fungus in Gwaebultaeng and one genus and two species fungi could cause harm to the human body. The results of this study will serve as a basis for careful discussion and management regarding the storage of cultural properties in the future.

This study evaluated the odor mitigation effect of rice husk biochar addition to the bedded pack dairy barn floor using lab-scale reactors for five days. Rice husk biochar mixed with dairy manure and sawdust mixture at different ratios (5%-addition test unit: adding biochar by 5% of the total solid weight of the mixture, 10%-addition test unit: adding biochar by 10% of the total solid weight of the mixture). Cumulative NH3 and H2S emissions of 10%-addition test unit were reduced by 26% (p< 0.05) and 46% (p = 0.0655), respectively, compared with control. However, 5%-addition test unit did not show NH3 and H2S emission reduction. Further research is needed to determine the appropriate level of biochar addition between 5 and 10%, and to evaluate applicability in the field through economic analysis.

The distance between livestock facilities and residential spaces is decreasing. Moreover, livestock odor complaints are increasing due to the large-scale and concentrated livestock breading industry. In order to reduce odor from livestock facilities, bio-curtain that are easy to install and inexpensive are commonly used in Korea. However, there is a lack of basic data on design standards and operation manuals for bio-curtains. The installation density of the bio-curtain material is an important factor that affects the odor reduction rate, increment of the load on the ventilation fans, and the structural stability of the curtain. There are limitations on deriving the design conditions of the bio-curtain by only field experiments targeting invisible air. Therefore, aerodynamic simulation such as CFD (computational fluid dynamics) can be used to obtain quantitative data according to various environmental conditions. Bio-curtain is a porous medium with a complex structure, and it is necessary to derive aerodynamic coefficients to analyze it. In this study, the wind speed and pressure difference according to the design density of the bio-curtain were monitored using the experimental chamber. Using the field results, a pressure resistance curve was created for each flow velocity and installation density. The viscosity and resistance coefficient of the bio-curtain were calculated through the derived resistance curve.

Low-cost particulate matter (PM) sensors based on the light scattering principle measure the concentration of particles by the change of scattering intensity after light is irradiated onto the particles. It has been reported that when the relative humidity is high, water vapor may cause the expansion of airborne particles and affect the accuracy of the light scattering method for PM measurement, but it has also been shown that the effect of humidity is not significant or even negligible. Therefore, to determine the effect of humidity on the Plantower PMS7003 light scattering sensor, in this study, a BAM1020 (Beta Attenuation Monitoring) was installed alongside to continuously monitor the ambient atmospheric PM concentration for approximately four weeks. The sensors collected data at 10-minute intervals, resulting in a 1-hour average for comparative analysis. To accurately measure humidity, the performance of the Arduino + DHT22 humidity sensor was also pre-evaluated using a series of saturated salt solutions. The humidity was grouped into five intervals and analyzed by visual analysis. The results confirmed that there was no significant correlation between PM2.5 differences and humidity, which were randomly and uniformly distributed around the mean. However, since in the very low and high concentration ranges based on the beta-ray monitor measurements, the difference between the light scattering sensor PM10 measurement and the reference value is much larger than the difference between the PM2.5 and the reference value., there is an additional need to investigate the appropriate correction method for dust season or PM10. The results show that the outcomes of the light scattering sensor are more influenced by particle size and concentration than by humidity.

Although monitoring of radon has been extensively implemented throughout South Korea, the risk assessment has been mainly limited to indoor environments such as schools, workplaces, and multi-use facilities, and evaluations have normally been performed separately. In this study, the differences in radon exposure according to two groups (< 1 and 1-6 years old) were evaluated considering various indoor and outdoor environments, timeactivity patterns, variations in radon concentrations, and dwelling type (single detached and apartment house) using Monte-Carlo simulation. The distribution and representative values of radon concentration by micro-environments were confirmed through the Anders-Darling test, and a uniform distribution was applied in case of uncertainty. The effective dose ranged from 1.81 ± 1.19 to 2.81 ± 3.02mSv/y. Comparing the levels recommended by EPA, WHO, and ICRP with the value of the 95th percentile of this study, it was found that the results for those dwelling in detached houses exceeded recommended levels. Infants that spend a lot of time in homes with relatively high levels of concentration of radon are assessed to be somewhat more vulnerable to radon exposure.

Quality standards of activated carbon for gas-phase applications have been deleted from the Korean national standard list since 2007, and the iodine adsorption test is the only measure currently used for quality assurance. This study was performed to propose a suitable test method and a quality standard for gas-phase activated carbon. The "1/2 saturated vapor adsorption" test has been developed as a simple and convenient method to determine the adsorption capacity of activated carbon. In this study, the developed test method was evaluated using model VOCs including toluene, methyl ethyl ketone (MEK), and ethyl acetate (EA). A virgin activated carbon revealed adsorption capacities of 344mg/g, 322mg/g, and 328mg/g for toluene, EA, and MEK, respectively, and the adsorption capacity for a mixture of the three VOCs was 334 mg/g. When a regenerated activated carbon was applied, the adsorption capacities dramatically decreased to 62 mg/g, 52 mg/g, and 61 mg/ g for toluene, EA, and MEK, respectively. In addition, the 1/2 solvent vapor adsorption tests using 13 different specimens of activated carbon showed that their capacities were closely related to the iodine adsorption numbers, and this study suggested the adsorption capacity of 300 mg/g as a new quality standard. The novel test method and its standard may help to guarantee the quality of gas-phase activated carbon used for VOCs abatement processes.

Public complaints arising from centralized animal manure treatment plants are increasing due to the odors produced during animal manure treatment. Various physico chemical and biological methods are used to mitigate such odors. Still, many problems exist, such as a lack of fundamental data on odor generation characteristics and design standards for odor mitigation facilities. Therefore, this study evaluated the characteristics of NH3 and H2S gas produced from a centralized animal manure treatment plant. The centralized animal manure treatment plant selected in this study has a treatment capacity of 150 tons (animal manure and food waste) per day. The composting matrix was mechanically turned from 9:00 am to 6:00 pm on weekdays and not turned all day on weekends. The NH3 concentrations measured during the day on weekdays (96.4 ± 7.8 ppmv) were about 14% higher than on weekends (84.9 ± 15.9 ppmv). During the week, the ammonia concentration during the day was about 15% higher than at night, but there was no difference between day and night on weekends. The hydrogen sulfide concentration during the day (4,729 ± 3,687 ppbv) on a weekday was about 4.7 times higher than at night (1,007 ± 466 ppbv). The results of this study provide valuable information that is necessary for the operation of odor mitigation facilities. It is expected that the results will contribute to establishing an operational strategy that can reduce the energy required to collect exhaust gas.

This study was conducted to obtain basic information for the use of the ATP fluorescence detection method in consideration of the most common and frequent contamination situation that occurs in laboratories dealing with fire blight causing bacterium, Erwinia amylovora. ATP luminescence measurements (Relative Light Unit, RLU) were tested against these pathogen cells (CFU/cm2) which were artificially introduced on the disinfected surface of a bench floor of a biosafety cabinet (Class 2 Type A1), on a part of the disinfected surface of a lab experimental bench, on a part of the disinfected floor, and on a part of the disinfected floor of an acryl chamber for bioaerosol studies in a biosafety laboratory (BSL 2 class) using two different ATP bioluminometers. RLU values were not much increased with the bacterial cells from 2.15 × 102/cm2 to 2.15 × 106/cm2. RLU values varied among the four different surfaces tested. RLU values measured from the same number of bacterial cells differed little between the two different ATP bioluminometers used for this study. RLU values obtained from bacterial cells higher than 2.15 × 107/cm2 indicated the presence of bacterial contamination on the four different surfaces tested. The R2 values obtained based on the correlation data for the RLU values in response to different E. amylovora cell numbers (CFU/ cm2) on the surfaces of the four test spots ranged from 0.9827 to 0.9999.

The types and distribution ratio of odor removal systems installed in publicly owned environmental facilities such as sewage treatment, wastewater treatment, manure treatment, livestock manure treatment, and food waste treatment were investigated. Since the intensity of the odor and the composition of the odor substances are different depending on the type of each public treatment facility, different odor removal efficiencies were derived depending on the applied odor removal technology. In addition, the removal efficiency of complex odors and individual odor substances of odor removal systems such as those applying biofilters, scrubbers, and adsorption towers were also compared and evaluated. Although it depends on each odor removal technology and application facility, about 50% of various odor removal systems presented an odor removal performance of less than 30%. The odor removal systems with an odor removal efficiency of 70% or more were evaluated to be less than 30% of the total number. Therefore, we suggest that odor removal efficiencies should be improved through continuous monitoring, diagnosis, reinforcement of maintenance, and improvement of systems.

Complaints about foul odors are emerging as an issue, and the number of complaints is steadily increasing every year. Biofiltration is known to remove harmful or odorous substances from the atmosphere by using microorganisms, and full-scale biofilters are being installed and operated in various environmental and industrial facilities. In this study, the current status and actual odor removal efficiency of full-scale biofilters installed in publicly owned treatment facilities such as sewage, manure, and livestock manure treatment plants were investigated. In addition, the effects of design and operating factors on their efficiency were also examined. As a result, it was found that odor prevention facilities with less than 30% odor removal efficiency based on complex odors accounted for 40%-50% of the biofilters investigated. In investigating the appropriate level of operating factors on odor removal efficiency, it was found that compliance with the recommended values p lays a significant role in improving odor removal efficiency. In the canonical correlation analysis for the on-site biofilter operation and design data, residence time and humidity were found to be the most critical factors. The on-site biofilter operation and design data were analyzed through canonical correlation analysis, and the residence time and humidity maintenance were found to be the most important factors in the design and operations of the biofilter. Based on these results, it is necessary to improve the odor removal efficiency of on-site biofilters by reviewing the effectiveness of the operation factors, improving devices, and adjusting operating methods.

As awareness about the danger of radon in indoor air has increased, various studies have been conducted to reduce the source of radon. This study was performed to investigate the effect of radon mitigation technology in a railway tunnel. Radon barrier paint and radon shield membrane developed to reduce the concentration of radon in soil and construction material were applied in the tunnel. The tunnel was divided into three sections, A, B, and C, and radon barrier paint, a buffer section, and radon shield membrane were applied, respectively. After securing a sealing screen to the floor and division of each section, radon concentrations were measured and compared before and after each product was applied, and statistical significance was confirmed through the Wilcoxon signed rank test. Measurement was performed with the In-Situ Method and Closed Chamber Method. Radon concentration measured by the in-situ method changed in A section to 124.1 Bq/m2/day from 614.1 Bq/m2/day (79.8%, z=-2.521, p<0.05), in B section to 416.2 Bq/m2/day from 467.1 Bq/m2/day (10.9%, z=-0.980, p=0.327), and in C section to 47.3 Bq/m2/day from 645.6 Bq/m2/day (92.7%, z=-2.521, p<0.05). Radon concentration measured by the closed chamber method recorded a decrease in A section to 88.8 Bq/m3 from 364.2 Bq/m3 (75.6%, z=-2.201, p<0.05), in B section to 471.8 Bq/m3 from 583.3 Bq/m3 (19.1%, z=-0.700, p=0.484), and in C section to 115.9 Bq/m3 from 718.8 Bq/m3 (83.9%, z=-2.521, p<0.05). In addition to soil, it is very important to mitigate radon from building materials with a high contribution rate of radon in order to manage radon by source. Due to the spatial characteristics of railway tunnels, soil and wall concrete structures are exposed as they are, so it is considered that radon mitigation actions are required utilizing verified methods with high mitigation efficiency.

Korea is a country where the population is concentrated in metropolitan areas that have undergone rapid industrial development. As of 2020, more than 43% of the total population lives in large cities, and about 18.5% of the total population lives in Seoul. A basic human need living in such a metropolis is a pleasant environment. In this study, complex odors and designated odors were evaluated at the boundary areas and at the outlets for 15 public environmental facilities selected from among odor sources in Seoul. As a result of measuring the complex odor intensity was 3 ~ 6 times at the boundary areas and 100 ~ 4,481 times at the outlets. In food waste treatment facilities, incineration facilities, and waste transfer station facilities, the compound making the largest contribution to odor is acetaldehyde, which was recorded at 46%, 25%, and 32% respectively. At a sewage treatment facility and agro-fisheries wholesale market, hydrogen sulfide was the largest contributing compound at 71% and 29% respectively.