The post-closure safety assessment of a repository is typically conducted over an extensive timescale from ten thousand to a million years. Considering that biosphere ecosystems may undergo significant changes over such lengthy periods, it is essential to incorporate the long-term evolution of the biosphere into the safety assessment. Climate change and landscape development are identified as critical drivers with the potential to impact the hydrogeological and hydrogeochemical characteristics of the biosphere. These changes can subsequently alter the migration patterns of radionuclides through the biosphere and influence human exposure doses. Therefore, this study formulates scenarios within the context of long-term biosphere evolution. We examine biosphere assessment processes employed in other countries and conduct a comparative study on scenario conditions. For example, biosphere assessment in Finland has identified sea-level changes and land-use alterations as significant factors in the long-term evolution of the biosphere. These factors are linked to Features, Events, and Processes (FEPs) associated with climate change and human activities. Sea-level changes are related to FEPs regarding climate change, land uplift, and shoreline displacement, while land-use changes are based on human activity-related FEPs (e.g., crop type, livestock and forest management, well construction, and demographics). Based on the literature review, this study has configured long-term evolution scenarios for the safety assessment of a deep geological repository for spent fuels.

Safety assessments for geological disposal systems extend over tens of thousands of years, taking into account the radiotoxicity decay period of spent nuclear fuel. During this extensive period, the biosphere experiences multiple glacial cycles, and fluctuations in seawater amounts, attributed to the formation and melting of glaciers, lead to global sea level changes known as eustacy. These sea level changes can directly influence the land-sea interface and groundwater flow dynamics, consequently affecting the pathways of radionuclide transport - an essential element of dose assessment. Therefore, this study aims to investigate how glacial cycles and sea level changes impact radionuclide transport within geological disposal systems, especially in the biosphere. To achieve this objective, we obtained climate evolution data including sea level changes for the Korean Peninsula over a 200,000-years, simulated by a General Circulation Model (GCM). These data were then employed to predict site and hydrology evolutions. The study site was conceptualized biosphere of Artificial Disposal System (ADioS), and we utilized the Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) to simulate hydrological evolution. These datasets, encompassing climate, site, and hydrology evolution, were collectively employed as inputs for the biosphere module of Adaptive Process-Based Total System Performance Assessment Framework (APro). Subsequently, the APro’s biosphere module calculated radionuclide transport in groundwater flow and its release into surface water bodies, considering the influences of glacial cycles and sea level changes. The results show that hydrologic changes due to sea level change are relatively minor, while the impact of sea level change on groundwater flow and discharge is significant. Additionally, we identified that among the water bodies within ADioS, including rivers, lakes, and oceans, the ocean exhibits the most substantial radionuclide outflow throughout the entire period. The spatiotemporal distributions of radionuclides computed within APro will be further processed into a grid format and used as input for the dose assessment module. Through this study, it was possible to determine the impact of long-term glacial cycles and sea level changes on radionuclide transport. Additionally, this module can serve as a valuable tool for providing the spatiotemporal variability of radionuclides required for enhanced dose assessments.

The Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute (KAERI) is currently developing a process-based performance assessment model known as APro. Distinguished from the previous system-level safety assessment model developed by KAERI, APro exhibits the capacity to encompass a threedimensional biosphere domain, evolving over the long term. In this study, we elucidate the methodology employed in developing the dose assessment module of APro and present the module’s functionalities. The procedural steps underlying radiation dose calculations within the APro framework can be succinctly outlined as follows: 1) Definition of a landscape model, utilizing information derived from a specified snapshot period provided by the APro biosphere transport module; 2) Generation of unit biotope objects spanning the landscape; 3) Evaluation of radionuclide transfer within the soil medium; 4) Calculation of activity concentration for flora and fauna groups; 5) Assessment of the distribution of effective dose among representative human groups; 6) Progressing through successive time steps. The APro dose calculation module exhibits notable capabilities that encompass: 1) Accounting for radionuclide decay and ingrowth; 2) Facilitating transfer through unsaturated porous media; 3) Considering sorption effects; 4) Addressing the inheritance of radioactivity between various landscape models; 5) Offering customizable ecosystem parameters; 6) Providing flexibility for user-defined exposure pathways. Leveraging these functionalities of the dose assessment module, APro is proficient in evaluating the distribution of radiological doses and associated risks for representative population groups, all while accounting for the dynamic, long-term evolution of the biosphere, including alterations in land cover.

This study examined the effects of user interactivity with VR in a digital retail setting on mental imagery and sensory brand app experience and its consequential impacts on perceived enjoyment, perceived usefulness, attitude toward using VR, and behavioral intent. Mental imagery is understood in relation to quantity, vividness, and valence. The user involvement with the device is employed as a moderator to fully understand the impact of VR in connection with consumer engagement. An IKEA VR application was utilized for this study. A convenient sample of college students was recruited from a large research university in the US. The findings of the study show that user interactivity impacts mental imagery, and it subsequently influences sensory brand app experience, perceived enjoyment, perceived usefulness, attitude toward using VR, and behavioral intent. Overall, this study provides meaningful and practical information to academicians and practitioners.

The timescale of safety assessment for a geological disposal system is considered up to hundreds of thousands of years when the radionuclides in spent nuclear fuel decay to levels comparable to natural radioactivity. During this long period, a variety of climate changes are expected to occur, including variations in temperature and precipitation as well as long-term sea level changes and glacial cycles. These climate changes can either directly affect water balance components or indirectly affect water balance by altering terrain and vegetation that have an impact on water balance. Water balance is a significant element of safety assessment, because it affects the radionuclide transport via groundwater flow, which in turn affects the radiological risk to humans and other biotas. Therefore, it is important to understand the hydrologic response to climate changes for proving the long-term safety of the disposal system. To this end, this study performed hydrological simulations using the SWAT (Soil and Water Assessment Tool) for several climate change scenarios. SWAT is the watershed-scale hydrological model developed by the USDA-ARS (United States Department of Agriculture - Agricultural Research Service) and has been widely used to quantify the water balance in a watershed. It calculates the hydrologic cycle based on the water balance equation with different physical processes for water balance components such as evapotranspiration, surface runoff, and groundwater recharge. This study assumed several climate change scenarios (e.g., variations in temperature and precipitation, sea level change, and formation of permafrost) and analyzed how the components of the water balance would respond under different scenarios and which scenarios would have the greatest impact on the water balance. These findings can provide valuable insights for future long-term safety assessments on the Korean Peninsula and can also be used as input data for the biosphere module of APro (Adaptive process-based total system performance assessment framework).

The Korean Nuclear Safety and Security Commission has established a general guideline for the disposal of high-level waste, which requires that radiological effects from a disposal facility should not exceed the regulatory safety indicator, a radiological risk. The post-closure safety assessment of the disposal facility aims to evaluate the radiological dose against a representative person, taking into account nuclide transport and exposure pathways and their corresponding probabilities. The biosphere is a critical component of radiation protection in a disposal system, and the biosphere model is concerned with nuclide transport through the surface medium and the doses to human beings due to the contaminated surface environment. In past studies by the Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute (KAERI), the biosphere model was constructed using a representative illustration of surface topographies and groundwater conditions, assuming that the representative surface environment would not change in the future. Each topography was conceptualized as a single compartment, and distributed surface contamination over the geometrical domain was abstracted into 0D. As a result, the existing biosphere model had limitations, such as a lack of quantitative descriptions of various transport and exposure pathways, and an inability to consider the evolution of the surface environment over time. These limitations hinder the accurate evaluation of radiological dose in the safety assessment. To overcome these limitations, recent developments in biosphere modeling have incorporated the nuclide transport process over a 2D or 3D domain, integrating the time-dependent evolution of the surface environment. In this study, we reviewed the methodology for biosphere modeling to assess the radiological dose given by distributed surface contamination over a 2D domain. Based on this review, we discussed the model requirements for a numerical module for biosphere dose assessment that will be implemented in the APro platform, a performance assessment tool being developed by the KAERI. Finally, we proposed a conceptual model for the numerical module of dose assessment.

The safety assessment of a geological disposal system is performed over a period of hundreds of thousands of years, during which the activity of radionuclides in spent nuclear fuel decreases to natural radioactivity levels. During this period, the biosphere also experiences the long-term evolution of the surface environment including climate, terrain, and ecosystem changes. These changes cause changes in the water balance, which in turn change the pathways of radionuclides in the subsurface. Therefore, it is essential to consider these long-term changes in the surface environment for a reasonable biosphere safety assessment. For this purpose, this study developed the biosphere assessment module considering the long-term evolution of the surface environment, as a sub-module of APro (Adaptive process-based total system performance assessment framework). As a preceding study, the biosphere assessment module was previously developed using COMSOL for hydraulic and radionuclide transport processes, to simulate the pathway of radionuclides traveling from the shallow aquifer to the surface water body and soil. To consider the long-term evolution of the surface environment, the previous module needed to be improved to apply different water balances as boundary conditions of the module at each snapshot, which is a sub-time period divided based on the surface evolution data. To this end, this study utilized SWAT (Soil and Water Assessment Tool) which calculates the water balance using the surface environmental data including climate, terrain, land cover, and soil type. Conceptually, SWAT calculated annual water balance considering surface environmental changes, and certain components (i.e., groundwater recharge and hydraulic head of water bodies) of water balance were transferred to COMSOL as external data to simulate the pathway of radionuclide transport and spatio-temporal variability of radionuclides. At the current stage, the biosphere computational module has been developed to correspond to its conceptual model, and we plan to further test the applicability of the module using different surface environmental data.

The capacity of high nickel Li(NixCoyMn1-x-y)O2 (NCM, x ≥ 0.8) cathodes is known to rapidly decline, a serious problem that needs to be solved in a timely manner. It was reported that cathode materials with the {010} plane exposed toward the outside, i.e., a radial structure, can provide facile Li+ diffusion paths and stress buffer during repeated cycles. In addition, cathodes with a core-shell composition gradient are of great interest. For example, a stable surface structure can be achieved using relatively low nickel content on the surface. In this study, precursors of the high-nickel NCM were synthesized by coprecipitation in ambient atmosphere. Then, a transition metal solution for coprecipitation was replaced with a low nickel content and the coprecipitation reaction proceeded for the desired time. The electrochemical analysis of the core-shell cathode showed a capacity retention of 94 % after 100 cycles, compared to the initial discharge capacity of 184.74 mA h/g. The rate capability test also confirmed that the core-shell cathode had enhanced kinetics during charging and discharging at 1 A/g.

Extensive research is being carried out on Ni-rich Li(NixCoyMn1-x-y)O2 (NCM) due to the growing demand for electric vehicles and reduced cost. In particular, Ni-rich Li(NixCoyMn1-x-y-zAlz)O2 (NCMA) is attracting great attention as a promising candidate for the rapid development of Co-free but electrochemically more stable cathodes. Al, an inactive element in the structure, helps to improve structural stability and is also used as a doping element to improve cycle capability in Ni-rich NCM. In this study, NCMA was successfully synthesized with the desired composition by direct coprecipitation. Boron and tin were also used as dopants to improve the battery performance. Macro- and microstructures in the cathodes were examined by microscopy and X-ray diffraction. While Sn was not successfully doped into NCMA, boron could be doped into NCMA, leading to changes in its physicochemical properties. NCMA doped with boron revealed substantially improved electrochemical properties in terms of capacity retention and rate capability compared to the undoped NCMA.

Shopping at bricks-and-mortar stores is considered highly experiential. An ability to experience and physically interact with a product is a key benefit of shopping at offline stores. In an online shopping context where sensory experience is absent, researchers have looked at how mental imagery as an alternative to in-store sensory experience impact consumer decision-making (Yoo & Kim, 2014). However the role of mental imagery has been largely overlooked in the context of offline store shopping. While it is true that shopping at offline stores facilitates sensory experience, evidence from cognitive neuropsychology literature supports that visual perception impacts visual mental imagery (Bartolomeo, 2002). Therefore, it is reasonable to posit that sensory experience in stores is related to mental imagery. Yet the relationship between actual sensory experience and mental imagery in the context of store shopping has not been studied. To fill a gap in the current literature, this study aims to examine the process by which sensory experience and mental imagery facilitate purchase decision-making in the context of offline stores. Based on the model of recursive relationships among consumers’ emotional, cognitive, perceptual and behavioral responses (Scherer, 2003) and a review of previous literature, this study posits that actual sensory experience and mental imagery related. It is further posited that both actual sensory experience and mental imagery influence consumers’ affective (anticipatory emotion) and cognitive responses (e.g., decision satisfaction, perceived ownership and decision satisfaction). This study employed an online survey in Korea. Apparel shoppers who shopped and purchased apparel at brick-and-mortar stores during the last six months were recruited. To facilitate a retrieval of in-store experiences, a series of questions about their specific shopping trip and purchases were asked at the beginning of survey. The current study consists of measurements adopted from the existing literature with adequate reliabilities. All the items were measured using a 7-point Likert-type scale. A total of 455 respondents completed the online survey questionnaire. Cronbach’s alpha coefficients were examined to assess reliabilities of the measures, and reliability coefficients were acceptable for all constructs (.78 ~ .92). Results of the SEM revealed that all the model-fit indexes exceeded their respective common acceptance levels, suggesting that the proposed model fitted the data well (2 = 627.38, df = 175; NFI = .92; IFI = .94; CFI = .94; RMSEA = .075). All the direct relationships among variables were significant except for the effect of sensory experience on perceived ownership, the effect of mental imagery on decision confidence, and the effect of perceived ownership on behavioral intention. This study provides new insights into consumer in-store shopping experiences and theoretical and practical implications. Sensory experience and mental imagery are complementary in facilitating consumer in-store shopping experiences. In addition to the importance of sensory experience, this study provides empirical evidence to support the vital role of mental imagery in the context of in-store shopping. Visualizing a situation through vivid mental imagery combined with actual sensory experience will lead consumers to positive shopping outcomes. Further research is warranted to better understand how to optimize actual sensory experience and mental imagery to offer excellent in-store experiences.

Social media play a role in the value that sneakerheads, individuals who collect, wear, and trade sneakers with extraordinary effort and resources, place on specific brands and models of sneakers. In-depth interviews with 25 sneakerheads, recruited through sneakerhead online communities and snow-ball sampling, were conducted to explore how social media contribute to emotional and monetary value creation of sneakers, as well as how social media is used across the Inventory Ownership Cycle (IOC) which includes pre-acquisition, acquisition, physical possession, and disposal of sneakers (Boyd & Mcconocha, 1996). Finding shows that during the pre-acquisition stage, emotional and monetary value is constructed when brands post images of celebrities wearing new models on various social media sites. Hype initially created by the brand is perpetuated by posts and conversations among sneakersheads. Perceived higher levels of hype lead one to believe demand surpasses supply, and therefore, monetary values of specific models increase. Through social media, consumers research and gauge the value not only of soon to be released sneakers, but also previously released sneakers only available on the resale market. During the acquisition stage, the online environment has become increasingly important. To avoid issues associated with selling high-demand/low-supply sneakers in- store, such as violent incidents and dishonest employees, many retailers have shifted sales of such product to online formats (Dunne, 2014). Social media serves as a platform for sneakerheads to learn about dates and locations of new releases and to locate resellers from whom they can purchase previously released sneakers. During the physical possession stage, sneakerheads engage with community members via social media; they show off their sneaker collections, as well as to obtain and share information regarding sneaker customization and maintenance to preserve aesthetics and value. It is through the engagement with fellow sneakerheads and the sneakers within their personal collections that emotional value can be further constructed. During the disposal stage, social media is used by resellers to determine monetary value, identify and communicate with potential buyers across the nation, and complete resale transactions. In summary, this research demonstrates how sneakerheads use social media throughout the IOC, as well as the role social media plays in the construction and identification of sneaker value.

Pro-inflammatory cytokines, interleukin-1β (IL1B), IL6, and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF), are known to play important roles in regulating the endometrial function in the uterus during the estrous cycle and pregnancy in several species. However, the expression and function of these cytokines and their receptors in the uterine endometrium during the estrous cycle have not been studied in pigs. Thus, this study determined the expression and regulation of IL1B, IL6, TNF and their respective receptors, IL1R1, IL1RAP, IL6R, GP130, TNFRSF1A, and TNFRSF1B during the estrous cycle in pigs. To analyze levels of each gene expression in the uterine endometrium we obtained from endometrial tissues on Days 0, 3, 6, 9, 12, 15, and 18 of the estrous cycle. Real-time RT-PCR analysis showed that levels of IL1B, IL1RAP, IL6R, GP130, TNF, TNFRSF1A, and TNFRSF1B mRNAs were highest on Day 15 or 18 of the estrous cycle, which corresponds to the proestrus period. Levels of IL1R1 were highest on Day 0, while levels of IL6 were biphasic with high levels on Day 6 and Day 15. The abundance of IL1B, IL6, IL6R, and TNF mRNAs was decreased by progesterone, while levels of GP130 were increased by progesterone in endometrial tissue explants. These results showed that expression of pro-inflammatory cytokines and their receptors changed stage-specifically during the estrous cycle and regulated by progesterone in the uterine endometrium in pigs, suggesting that these pro-inflammatory cytokines may be involved in the regulation endometrial function during the estrous cycle in pigs.