PURPOSES : Sprinkler facilities play a crucial role in extinguishing fires in the early stages of a building blaze. Data indicate that more than 96% of fires are suppressed by sprinklers before growing out of control. However, corrosion and pitting of the sprinkler piping can reduce system performance as facilities age. The purpose of this study is to develop an eco-friendly water-soluble corrosion inhibitor to improve the reliability and longevity of sprinkler piping. METHODS : This study compared and analyzed silicate-based sprinkler piping shrinkage agents as corrosion inhibitor against existing commercial options. Tests were conducted to evaluate reactivity with fire extinguishing water, including electrolyzed reduced water and normal water. The anticorrosive performance of the silicate-based corrosion inhibitor was evaluated under various conditions to establish suitability before potential development or commercialization. RESULTS : The new corrosion inhibitor demonstrated eco-friendly performance. In testing, none of the primary four hazardous substances that pose the most risk of harm to the human body (specifically, arsenic (As), lead (Pb), cadmium (Cd), and mercury (Hg)) were detected. The inhibitor effectively reduced corrosion of carbon steel (SPP), with weight loss rates averaging 0.12% and not exceeding 0.27%. For copper (CDA 110) weight loss rates were up to 0.03%. Testing under constant temperature and humidity conditions show that the inhibitor kept weight loss was below 0.002 g, with no significant numerical value for the weight loss rate. Overall, the results indicate the potential for an environmentally-safe corrosion inhibitor. CONCLUSIONS : The optimal silicate-based sprinkler system can provide real-time sensor information such as oxygen saturation, pH concentration, and total dissolved solids (TDS). These metrics are closely related to the aging process. By linking this system with an aging monitoring solution, maintenance costs and safety could be improved over the lifespan of the sprinkler system. The sensors and monitoring capabilities are expected to enhance maintenance efficiency and equipment reliability.

This study investigated quality characteristics and antioxidant activity of beetroots after blanching. Beetroots were blanched in distilled water, 2% NaCl water, and 2% citric acid water at 100°C for 3 minutes (the blanched group). The moisture content was highest in the control (CON) at 91.30% (p<0.05), and cooking loss was lowest in the water-blanched beetroot (BW) at 5.39% (p<0.01). Chromaticity decreased after blanching compared to CON (p<0.001). Total polyphenol contents (TPC) and total flavonoid contents (TFC) decreased after blanching, and as a result of comparing the True retention (TR) of the blanching treatment group, BW had the highest with TPC TR 91.22% and TFC TR 70.51%. DPPH and ABTS+ radical scavenging activities were highest in the CON, and in the blanching group BW was highest scavenging activity. The total number of microorganisms in the CON group was 2.97 log CFU/g, whereas no microorganisms were detected in the blanched groups. Therefore, this study, blanching in water without additives is the most appropriate method for preserving physiologically active substances and nutrients in beetroots and inhibiting microbial growth.

This study sought to investigate the effects of heat-moisture treatment (HMT) and ethanol treatment (EOH) for improving the quality and storage stability of Tteokbokki Tteok. The quality characteristics were evaluated by moisture, pH, color, texture profile analysis, and observing the microbial properties after the heat-moisture treatment or ethanol treatment. As the storage period increased, the moisture content of Tteokbokki Tteok tended to decrease except for the HMT group (p<0.05) while the pH did not show significant variation except for the EOH group (p<0.05). While measuring the color, the L-value tended to increase in all groups during the storage period. The a-value and the b-value showed the highest values in the HMT group and the control (CON) group, respectively. In the texture profile analysis, all groups showed a significant tendency to increase levels of hardness and chewiness as the storage period increased (p<0.05). The HMT group showed an increase in hardness and adhesiveness, which are characteristics of the HMT treatment. The results of examining the microbial properties of Tteokbokki Tteok showed that the total microbial count in the HMT group was 4.52 on the 8th day of storage, which was lower than the level in the CON group and the EOH group on the 4th day of storage. Yeast and mold were not measured during the storage period. Thus the results of this study showed that when manufacturing Tteokbokki Tteok, the heat-moisture treatment of rice powder increased the storage stability by delaying microbial growth and also had positive effects on quality.

Omija-cheong, concentrated extracts from sugar-treated Omija fruit (Schisandra chinensis Baillon), is produced by traditional manner in Korea. The quality characteristics of Omija-cheong processed at low temperature with a pilot-scale were investigated to optimize the incubation time. With increasing incubation time in processing Omija-cheong, the pH level of Omija-cheong remained constant, while titratable acidity and organic acids increased. Fresh Omija fruits contained citric, malic and succinic acids, most of which were extracted into concentrated extracts after 37 days of incubation and reached to the stable concentration after 47 days of incubation. Titratable acidity in Omija-cheong gradually increased from 1.18% to 2.71%, and also was correlated with total concentration of organic acids. About 80% of supplemented sucrose for manufacturing Omija-cheong was converted into glucose and fructose until 68 days of incubation, and the composition of free sugars was maintained to be stable up to 138 days of incubation. The contents of total flavonoids and phenolic compounds in Omija-cheong were 24.1 mg-GAE/L and 1,635 mg-QE/L at 57 days of incubation, which were more than 9 and 5 times higher than those in Omija fruits, respectively. From the quality characteristics in processing Omija-cheong by low-temperature incubation, more than 60 days of incubation is required for the constant quality and value-added beverage.

본 연구에서는 일반학급 내에서 수학영재아 지도에 대한 교사들의 인식은 어떠한지 조사한다. 조사결과 교사들은 일반학급 내에서 수학영재아를 지도하는데 필요한 수학적 지식이나 수학적 능력은 갖추어져 있다고 생각하는 반면, 수학영재아를 지도하는 방법 및 기술과 관련된 교수학적 지식에 대해서는 충분한 역량을 지니고 있다고 생각하지 않았다. 교사들은 또한 다양한 능력의 학생들로 구성된 학급에서 수학을 지도하는 것에 대해 크게 부담을 느끼지 않는 것으로 나타났으며, 수학영재아를 위해 과제를 변형할 수 있는 역량이 갖추어져 있다고 생각하였다. 그러나 시간적 여유, 일반학생과 수학부진아 지도 등의 교육여건으로 인해 실제로 수업을 계획할 때 수학영재아를 위한 구체적 지도계획을 세우지는 못하는 것으로 나타났다. 일반학급 내에 있는 수학영재아를 배려할 때 약 28%의 교사만이 진도와 관련된 주제에 대해 깊이 있게 생각해 볼 수 있는 과제를 제공하였으며, 약 22%의 교사만이 교육과정을 넘어서는 수학심화 문제를 제공하는 것으로 나타났다.