This study aims to understand the correlation between odor intensity and dilution factor using the Air Dilution Olfactory Method, which is suggested in the Standard Method of Odor Compounds, by measuring odor intensity and dilution factor for fatty acids and i-butyl alcohol. For the measurement, 18 panel members were selected through a panel test, and odor intensity and dilution factor by substance produced from the selected panel were estimated. The estimation showed that the correlation of odor intensity with dilution factor for a fatty acids and i-butyl alcohol can be reasonably expressed by the equation I = A·log D + 0.5 (I : odor Intensity, D : dilution factor, A : material constant). The material constant was in order of propionic acid 2.0709, n-butyric acid 1.6006, n-valeric acid 1.3369, i-valeric acid 1.182, i-butyl alcohol 1.4326. The geometric average of increased dilution factor for the 5 compounds is about 4.8 time, 3.0 time for propionic acid and 7.0 tme for i-valeric acid due to odor intensity 1 increasing. It is suggested that the result of this study could be used as a base data for research on measures to improve the regulation standards for complex odor concentrations at a boundary sites in operation.

This study was performed as the preliminary research to calculate the concentration of radon exposure and the annual effective dose in public hot spring bath-house. The research found that public bathhouses are the primary cause of the indoor air radon concentration inside a hot spring bathhouse. The indoor radon concentration inside a bathhouse differs significantly by region and among bathhouses in the same region, indicating that the indoor air radon concentration is affected by many factors. The annual effective indoor radon dose by exposure is estimated to range from 1.2×10−2mSv/y to 2.5×10−2mSv/y. Since this research is considered as preliminary research, further and additional relevant research to more reliably calculate the result are necessary, including accumulative research for indoor radon concentrations, and research for exposure coefficients such as the behavior patterns of public bathhouse users, etc.

The objective of this study was to investigate the response characteristics and performance of a biofilter in the removal of ammonia, as a malodor compound. A trickle-bed type biofilter was applied for this study, and operated at the ammonia loading rate of 0.97-15.52 g/m3·h. The results of the experiment indicate that the critical loading rate of ammonia to the biofilter was 10.7 g/m3·h and the elimination capacity was 11.6 g/m3·h. The analysis of nitrogen mass balance in the reactor indicates that inlet nitrogen as gas phase was converted through the biofilter into NH4 + (41.5% by mass), NO2 - (43%), and NO3 - (15%) as the available form of nitrogen in the effluent liquid. Free ammonia concentration in the effluent liquid was estimated as being in the range from 0.14 to 2.93 mg/L (average 1.7 mg/L) during the experimental period.

This paper is focused on an economic analysis of applied air pollutant control technologies used for the particulate matters present in subway. Beneficial effects such as reduction in medical expenses and prevention of productivity loss and death are achievable through the adaptation of control technologies. The result showed that the total investment expense was 97.6 billion won and the cost-benefit was 4776.8 billion won, therefore a 4.8 benefit/ cost ratio was attained.

The correlation analysis between odor sensor and air dilution olfactometry method with odor emission facilities was performed for the real-time evaluation of odor emitted from the 13 facilities. The total correlation was less significant for all facilities due to various emission characteristics of odor. The correlation for the individual facility, however, showed a higher correlation coefficient (R=0.7371~0.9897). Especially, the strong correlation (above 0.9) was observed for the industry type with the odor characteristics like tobacco, styrofoam, acetic acid, and burning smell. The repeated odor measurements using the odor sensor showed good reproducibility with the mean relative standard deviation of 5.06%. The odor sensor could be useful tools for identifying and evaluating odor with an olfactometry in field, if the use and proofreading of the odor sensor are improved by a standardized method.

The metal plating industry produces a large amount of wastewater generally containing heavy metals with various chemical compounds; as such, treating the wastewater is both an environmental and an economic challenge. A vacuum evaporation system has been developed to effectively reduce the volume of plating wastewater. However, the gas stream discharged from the distillation unit of the evaporator is often contaminated with high concentrations of odorous compounds such as ammonia and dimethyl disulfide (DMDS). In this study, a non-thermal plasma process operated in wet conditions was applied to remove the odorous compounds, and it showed high removal efficiencies of greater than 99% for ammonia and 95% for DMDS. However, the gas flowrate more substantially affected the efficiency of ammonia removal than the efficiency of DMDS removal, because the higher the gas flowrate, the shorter the contact time between the odorous compound and the mist particles in the wet plasma reactor. The analyses of the maximum removal capacity indicated that the wet non-thermal plasma system was effective for treating the odorous compounds at a loading rate of less than 20 mg/m3/min even though the lowest amount of electrical power was applied. Therefore, the wet-type non-thermal plasma system is expected alleviate to effectively abate the odor problem of the vacuum evaporator used in the treatment of plating wastewater.

The objective of this study was to investigate the immunomodulatory effects mixed with Weissella cibaria JW15 strain and black soybean (Glycine max (L.) Merr.). In this experiment, JW15 was cultured in De Man Rogosa and Sharpe (MRS) broth at 37% for 17 hr, and the cells were washed twice with sterile phosphate buffered saline (PBS) (pH 7.2). And black soybean was extracted by ethanol or hot boiling water. The immuno-modulatory effects of mixed JW15 and black soybean extract were investigated by measuring the production of nitric oxide (NO), nuclear factor κB (NF-κB) and cytokine (Interleukin-1β and Tumor necrosis factor-α) in RAW 264.7 macrophage cells or RAW blue cells. The 0.1 % ethanol and hot water extract of black soybean increased NO, NF-κB, and cytokine production in a concentration dependent manner. The NF-κB activation by JW15 mixed with 0.1 % hot water extract of black soybean (0.26 ± 0.02) was significantly higher than JW15 alone (0.20 ± 0.02). Also, combination of JW15 and 0.1% hot water extract of black soybean triggered IL-1β production of 110.19 ± 4.38 pg/mL, which was significantly greater than the JW15 alone (12.06 ± 7.58 pg/mL). The results of this study indicate that combination of Weissella cibaria JW15 and black soybean extract may have an ability to activate innate immune response synergistically. According to these results, the mixture of JW15 and black soybean extract could hold great promise for use in probiotics.

The study analyzed performance assessment factors of odor sensors from 4 different manufacturers, including minimum detection limit, humidity stability and temperature stability. In the minimum detection limit assessment, only one electrochemical gas sensor was able to detect ammonia and hydrogen sulfide at the concentration of 5 ppb. The standard deviation ratio was over 10%, and it increased as humidity rose. The range of temperatures in which the electrochemical and photoionization gas sensors could function well was between 25oC and 40oC, and the sensor output values were unstable at low temperatures. Regarding the temperature stability of the metal oxide semiconductor sensor for measuring complex odors, the sensor output values dropped considerably to 0~10oC, and were similar to the concentrations of odor gases generated at 25oC. The results of the test of odor sensor outputs after temperature and humidity pre-treatment revealed that the respective stable output values at 50% humidity and 25oC were similar to the concentrations of manufactured odors. In terms of temperature and humidity stability of the NH3, H2S and Complex odor sensors, all target substances had stable output values at 25~40oC and 50~65% relative humidity, and unstable values at low temperatures and high humidity. Therefore, implementing pretreatment systems including temperature and humidity correction (25~40oC, 50~65% RH) is necessary for the stable use of odor sensors.

Vitis amurensis, Aralia cordata, and Glycyrrhizae radix have been widely used as oriental medicinal plants in Korea, China and Japan and found to possess anti-oxidative and anti-inflammatory activities. A previous study demonstrated a protection of an ethanol extract (SSB) of a mixture of three medicinal plants of Vitis amurensis, Aralia cordata, and Glycyrrhizae radix against β amyloid protein-induced memory impairment. The current study was conducted to investigate the neuroprotective effect of SSB against ischemiainduced brain injury. Transient focal cerebral ischemia was induced by 2 hr middle cerebral artery occlusion followed by 24 hr reperfusion (MCAO/reperfusion) in rats. Oral administration of SSB (5, 10 and 25 mg/kg) 30 min before and 1 h after MCAO, and 1 h after reperfusion reduced MCAO/ reperfusion-induced brain infarct and edema formation. SSB also inhibited development of behavioral disabilities in MCAO/reperfusion-treated rats. Exposure of cultured cortical neurons to 500 μM glutamate for 12 hr resulted in neuronal cell death. SSB (1-10 μg/mL) inhibited glutamateinduced neuronal death, elevation of intracellular calcium concentration ([Ca2+]i), and generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS). These results suggest that the neuroprotective effect of SSB against ischemia-induced brain damage might be associated with its anti-excitotoxic activity and that SSB may have a therapeutic role for prevention of neurodegeneration in stroke.

Headache is one of most common chief complaints of pediatric patients in emergency departments (ED). In this study, the character, duration, strength and location of headaches, as well as the results of brain imaging studies, were recorded. Seventy-four children (34 boys, 40 girls) visiting the ED of major hospitals in Cheongju were enrolled from October 1, 2013 to September 30, 2014. Ages of the children ranged from 3 to 18 years, with the mean age being 13 years. Four of them (5.4%) had trauma-related headaches. There were 34 migraines (45.9%), 27 tension headaches (36.5%), 3 secondary headaches (4.1%), 2 seizure-related headaches (2.7%), 1 headache with hydrocephalus (1.4%), 1 concussion (1.4%), and 1 headache with subdural hematoma (1.4%). The highest number of patients, 31 (41.9%), had symptoms for less than two hours, while 11 pediatric patients (14.9%) had symptoms for 2-4 hours, and the third-largest group, 10 patients (13.5%), had symptoms between 24 and 72 hours. Twenty-nine patients (39.2%) had one headache per month, 20 patients (27.0%) had 1 to 14 headaches per month, and 4 patients (5.4%) had more than 15 headaches per month. Children with migraine took a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAID, 34 patients; 45.9%), acetaminophen (19 patients; 25.7%), and Topiramate (1 patient; 1.4%). Average strength of headache was 7.37 ± 1.79. There were 23 children (31.1%) with headaches in the parieto-temporal area, 16 children (21.6%) in the occipital area, 9 children (12.2%) in the frontal area, 4 children (5.4%) in the global area, and 6 children (8.1%) in an uncertain location. There were 31 children (41.9%) with pulsating headaches, 18 children (24.3%) with squeezing headaches, 5 children (6.8%) with stabbing headaches, and 11 children (14.9%) with headaches of an uncertain nature. Thus, we suspect children visiting the ED had severe headaches.

This study attempts to investigate the impact of pollution by VOCs at schools located around Shihwa national industrial complex. Schools around the Shihwa national industrial complex were divided into two categories based on location, with five schools located near the industrial complex and five schools located near housing development. Samples of the indoor air and the outdoor air were collected from each classified school and analyzed to evaluate the impact of the industrial complex on each school through a comparison and to find the correlation between them. In combination with this, this study attempted to conduct comparative evaluations of the schools in which there might be relatively higher indoor air pollution since new construction and extension or remodelling had recently been carried out with other schools. The samples collected from 10 places in total were analyzed, using GC/MS. TVOCs, and individual component of VOCs, were detected in the schools near shihwa national industrial complex at higher levels than in the schools nearby housing development. TVOCs were detected at the schools in the industrial complex st levels of 166.5 μg/m3, that is, about 1.5 times higher than the level detected at the schools outside the industrial complex. TVOCs were found in the indoor air of the schools that had been extended or remodelled less than 3 years ago at levels of 188.8 μg/m3, while in schools where more than 3 years had passed since extention or remodelling they were found at levels of 97.5 μg/m3, meaning they were about 1.9 times higher in schools in the first 3 years.

The principal hygienic problem caused by livestock industry is the odor exposed to farm workers. This study was performed to assess air cleaner efficiency for reducing odor through on-site evaluation. The concentration of ammonia and hydrogen sulfide, which are major odorous compounds generated from livestock building, were monitored by realtime direct recorder. The odor mixture was measured by air dilution method applying human noses of five panels. Their reduction efficiencies were represented by difference between initial concentration exhausted by non-treatment and concentration measured after treatment of respective control mechanism (water, germicide and plasma ion) of air cleaner. Mean levels of ammonia and hydrogen sulfide were 1.84 (SD:0.22) ppm and 76.83 (SD:1.37) ppb for non-treatment, 1.23 (SD:0.09) ppm and 59.07 (SD:2.68) ppb for wet scrubber (water), 1.08 (SD:0.03) ppm and 58.55 (SD:1.62) ppb for wet scrubber (germicide), and 0.96 (SD:0.03) ppm and 53.66 (SD:1.37) ppb for plasma ion, respectively. Mean dilution factors of odor mixture were 100 for non-treatment, 66.9 for wet scrubber (water), 144.2 for wet scrubber (germicide), and 66.94 for plasma ion, respectively. Based on the results obtained from on-site evaluation, ammonia and hydrogen sulfide showed the mean reduction efficiency of 40% and 25.7% compared with non-treatment process of air cleaner, respectively. In the case of odor mixture, the highest dilution factor was observed at wet scrubber (germicide) compared with other control mechanism of air cleaner.

We investigated the pharmacokinetics of ferulic acid, a potential antioxidant agent, after intravenous (i.v.) bolus administration in rats. To analyze ferulic acid levels in the plasma, bile, urine and tissue samples, we developed an HPLC-based method which was validated for a pharmacokinetic study by suitable criteria. After i.v. bolus administration of ferulic acid, it rapidly disappeared from blood circulation within 15 min. The mean plasma half-lives at α phase (t1/2α) when administered at doses of 2 and 10 mg/ kg were 1.10 and 1.39 min, respectively. The values of t1/2β at the corresponding doses increased 40% (from 5.02 to 7.01 min) with increasing doses. The total body clearance (CLt) values significantly decreased as the ferulic acid dose increased. On the other hand, steady-state volume of distribution (Vdss) values did not show the significant difference with the increase in dose. Of the various tissues, ferulic acid mainly distributed to the liver and kidney after i.v. bolus administration. The ferulic acid concentrations in various tissues at 2 hr after i.v. bolus administration were below 1.0 μg/g tissue. Ferulic acid was excreted in the bile and urine after i.v. bolus administration at the dose of 10 mg/kg. The cumulative amount of ferulic acid in the bile 2 hr after dosage was comparable with the amount excreted in the urine after 72 hr, indicating that i.v. administered ferulic acid was mainly excreted in the both bile and urine. In conclusion, ferulic acid was rapidly cleared from the circulating blood and transferred to tissues such as the liver and kidney after i.v. bolus administration. Moreover, the majority of ferulic acid appears to be excreted in the bile and urine after i.v. bolus administration.

Zinc Sulfide (ZnS) is one of the II-VI semiconducting materials, having novel fundamental properties and diverse areas of application such as light-emitting diodes (LEDs), electroluminescence, flat panel displays, infrared windows, catalyst, chemical sensors, biosensors, lasers and biodevices, etc. However, despite the remarkable versatility and prospective potential of ZnS, research and development (R&D) into its applications has not been performed in much detail relative to research into other inorganic semiconductors. In this study, based on global patent information, we analyzed recent technical trends and the current status of R&D into ZnS applications. Furthermore, we provided new technical insight into ZnS applicable fields using in-depth analysis. Especially, this report suggests that ZnS, due to its infrared-transmitting optical property, is a promising material in astronomy and military fields for lenses of infrared systems. The patent information analysis in this report will be utilized in the process of identifying the current positioning of technology and the direction of future R&D.

In this study, 5 um sized ZrSiO4 was ground to 1.9 um, 0.3 um, and 0.1 um sized powders by wet high energy milling process, and the sintering characteristics were observed. Pure ZrSiO4 itself can-not be sintered to these levels of theoretical density, but it was possible to sinter ZrSiO4 powder of nano-scale size of, −0.1 um to the theoretical density and to lower the sintering temperature for full density. Also, the decomposition of ZrSiO4 with a size in the micron range resulted in the formation of monoclinic ZrO2; however, in the nano sized range, the decomposition resulted in the tetragonal phase of ZrO2. So, it was possible to improve the sintering characteristics of nano-sized ZrSiO4 powders.

In this study, to increase the strength and enhance the sintering property of Al2O3, Y2O3 and La2O3 were added; the effects of these additions on the sintering characteristics of Al2O3 were observed. Adding 1 % of Y2O3 to Al2O3 repressed the development of abnormal particles and reduced the grain boundary migration of Al2O3, curbing pores to capture particles; as such, the material showed a fine microstructure. But, when over 2% of Y2O3 was added, the sintering property was reduced because of abnormal particle grain growth and pore formation in particles. Adding 1 % of Y2O3 and La2O3 to Al2O3 led to the development of abnormal particles and formed pores in the particles; when over 3% of La2O3 was added, the sintering property was reduced because the shape of the Al2O3 particles changed to angled plates.

We present the rectifying and nitrogen monoxide (NO) gas sensing properties of an oxide semiconductor heterostructure composed of n-type zinc oxide (ZnO) and p-type copper oxide thin layers. A CuO thin layer was first formed on an indium-tin-oxide-coated glass substrate by sol-gel spin coating method using copper acetate monohydrate and diethanolamine as precursors; then, to form a p-n oxide heterostructure, a ZnO thin layer was spin-coated on the CuO layer using copper zinc dihydrate and diethanolamine. The crystalline structures and microstructures of the heterojunction materials were examined using X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy. The observed current-voltage characteristics of the p-n oxide heterostructure showed a non-linear diode-like rectifying behavior at various temperatures ranging from room temperature to 200 oC. When the spin-coated ZnO/CuO heterojunction was exposed to the acceptor gas NO in dry air, a significant increase in the forward diode current of the p-n junction was observed. It was found that the NO gas response of the ZnO/CuO heterostructure exhibited a maximum value at an operating temperature as low as 100 oC and increased gradually with increasing of the NO gas concentration up to 30 ppm. The experimental results indicate that the spin-coated ZnO/CuO heterojunction structure has significant potential applications for gas sensors and other oxide electronics.

A commercial NiO (green nickel oxide, 86 wt% Ni) powder was reduced using a batch-type fluidized-bed reactor in a temperature range of 500 to 600 oC and in a residence time range of 5 to 90 min. The reduction rate increased with increases in temperature; however, agglomeration and sintering (sticking) of Ni particles noticeably took place at high temperatures above 600 oC. An increasing tendency toward sticking was also observed at long residence times. In order to reduce the oxygen content in the powder to a level below 1 % without any sticking problems, which can lead to defluidization, proper temperature and residence time for a stable fluidized-bed operation should be established. In this study, these values were found to be 550 oC and 60 min, respectively. Another important condition is the specific gas consumption rate, i.e. the volume amount (Nm3) of hydrogen gas used to reduce 1 ton of Green NiO ore. The optimum gas consumption rate was found to be 5,000 Nm3/ton-NiO for the complete reduction. The Avrami model was applied to this study; experimental data are most closely fitted with an exponent (m) of 0.6 ± 0.01 and with an overall rate constant (k) in the range of 0.35~0.45, depending on the temperature.

TiO2 nanoparticles were synthesized by a sol-gel process using titanium tetra isopropoxide as a precursor at room temperature. Ag-doped TiO2 nanoparticles were prepared by photoreduction of AgNO3 on TiO2 under UV light irradiation and calcinated at 400 oC. Ag-doped TiO2 nanoparticles were characterized for their structural and morphological properties by Xray diffractometry (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS), and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The photocatalytic properties of the TiO2 and Ag-doped TiO2 nanoparticles were evaluated according to the degree of photocatalytic degradation of gaseous benzene under UV and visible light irradiation. To estimate the rate of photolysis under UV (λ = 365 nm) and visible (λ ≥ 410 nm) light, the residual concentration of benzene was monitored by gas chromatography (GC). Both undoped/doped nanoparticles showed about 80 % of photolysis of benzene under UV light. However, under visible light irradiation Ag-doped TiO2 nanoparticles exhibited a photocatalytic reaction toward the photodegradation of benzene more efficient than that of bare TiO2. The enhanced photocatalytic reaction of Ag-doped TiO2 nanoparticles is attributed to the decrease in the activation energy and to the existence of Ag in the TiO2 host lattice, which increases the absorption capacity in the visible region by acting as an electron trapper and promotes charge separation of the photoinduced electrons (e−) and holes (h+). The use of Ag-doped TiO2 nanoparticles preserved the option of an environmentally benign photocatalytic reaction using visible light; These particles can be applicable to environmental cleaning applications.

BaMoO4:Tb3+ phosphor powders were synthesized with different concentrations of Tb3+ ions using the solid-state reaction method. XRD patterns showed that all the phosphors, irrespective of the concentration of Tb3+ ions, had tetragonal systems with two main (112) and (004) diffraction peaks. The excitation spectra of the Tb3+-doped BaMoO4 phosphors consisted of an intense broad band centered at 290 nm in the range of 230-330 nm and two weak bands. The former broad band corresponded to the 4f8 →4f75d1 transition of Tb3+ ions; the latter two weak bands were ascribed to the 7F2→ 5D3 (471 nm) and 7F6→ 5D4 (492 nm) transitions of Tb3+. The main emission band, when excited at 290 nm, showed a strong green band at 550 nm arising from the 5D4→ 7F5 transition of Tb3+ ions. As the concentration of Tb3+ increased from 1 to 10 mol%, the intensities of all the emission lines gradually increased, approached maxima at 10 mol% of Tb3+ ions, and then showed a decreasing tendency with further increase in the Tb3+ ions due to the concentration quenching effect. The critical distance between neighboring Tb3+ ions for concentration quenching was calculated and found to be 12.3 Å, which indicates that dipoledipole interaction was the main mechanism for the concentration quenching of the 5D4→ 7F5 transition of Tb3+ in the BaMoO4:Tb3+ phosphors.