본 연구는 페튜니아(Petunia×hybrida)의 내건성 증진을 위 해 스트레스 메모리 기작을 활용한 프라이밍 처리의 효과를 구명 하고자 하였다. 건조-회복 과정을 통한 프라이밍 처리를 4회 반복 수행하였고, 두 가지 프라이밍 강도(Priming1:물 100mL, Priming2: 물 50mL 관수 후 건조)를 적용한 후 5일 동안 건조스 트레스 조건에서 내성 증진 효과를 관찰하였다. 프라이밍 강도가 높은 Priming2 처리구에서 대조군에 비해 수명이 약 25시간 연장되었다. 이는 페튜니아가 스트레스 메모리 기작을 통해 건조 스트레스에 대한 내성을 높일 수 있음을 보여준다. 본 연구는 정원 식물의 환경 스트레스 내성을 증진시키기 위한 프라이밍 기술의 유용성을 확인하였으며, 향후 다양한 환경 스트레스 조건 에서의 프라이밍 효과를 평가함으로써 화훼식물의 내건성 증진 에 대한 실용적 기술 개발에 기여할 수 있을 것으로 기대된다.

This study explores the innovative utilization of a biomimetic electric ray friction nanogenerator (ER-TENG) in combination with electrolysis technology for the remediation of maritime effluent. The ER-TENG is ingeniously crafted with a flexible, planar structure, enabling seamless adaptation to various curved and irregular substrates such as rocks, corals, and shipwrecks on the ocean floor, obviating the necessity for specialized mounting or securing devices. Simulation results regarding the potential distribution between the copper electrode and the PDMS film under different inter-electrode distances indicate that an increase in separation distance is correlated with an enhanced potential difference on the material's surface, exhibiting a linear upward trend, with the maximum potential difference reaching 120 V. When TiO2 nanoparticles are incorporated at a doping mass fraction of 4.65 wt%, the friction nanogenerator attains its peak electrical performance, boasting a peak opencircuit voltage of 123.25 V and a maximum short-circuit current of 13.52 μA, representing increases of 2.73-fold and 2.56-fold in open-circuit voltage and short-circuit current, respectively. At operational frequencies of 1.2 Hz and 1.0 Hz, the initial stage of sterilization rate enhancement proceeds at a moderate pace. However, after 60 minutes of electrolysis, sterilization rates reach 88.12% and 46.36%, respectively. The electrical energy harvested by the ER-TENG facilitates the generation of potent oxidizing chlorine through electrolysis, which effectively eliminates harmful aquatic organisms and pathogens present in ship ballast water.

We have performed an experiment to evaluate the efficacy of salt and hot water treatments in soil for managing situations where high-risk plant-parasitic nematodes (PPNs) are detected in farms and flower shops that cultivate foliage plants. The density of Pratylenchus penetrans was reduced by 100% with salt treatments of 20 and 40 kg m-2, while decreases of 95% and 99.8% were observed with treatments of 5 and 10 kg m-2, respectively. In the hot water treatment, Pratylenchus penetrans decreased by 97.6% compared to the initial density. The salt treatment resulted in a decrease in pH and an increase in electrical conductivity (EC) compared to untreated soil. However, other characteristics, including organic matter content, available phosphorus, total nitrogen (T-N) rate, and exchangeable cations, did not differ from the control. In the case of hot water treatment, all properties were similar to those in the untreated group. As a result of this study, salt applications of more than 20 kg m-2 and hot water at 96°C could serve as effective control methods when high-risk PPNs are detected in flower shops and greenhouses located in urban or near-urban areas.

In treatment processes of drinking water, the use of disinfectants is essential for eliminating microorganisms and pathogenic viruses. Chlorine dioxide (ClO2) is one of the most promising disinfectants. To ensure its effective application in drinking water treatment, it is crucial to investigate the stability and reactivity of ClO2 in drinking water treatment environments. Therefore, we examined the effects of various environmental factors such as temperature, light type, fluorescence intensity, and water quality on its stability. We also examined its reactivity with activated carbon and other inorganic compounds such as coagulants and hypochlorous acid. Findings revealed that ClO2 stability was influenced by several environmental factors. Typically, ClO2 is highly volatile. However, the rate of its volatility is independent of its concentration. As temperature and fluorescent light intensity increased, the concentration of ClO2 showed a rapid decline. Additionally, the presence of activated carbon significantly reduced ClO2 levels. In contrast, the reactivity of ClO2 with coagulants and hypochlorous acid was negligible. These findings provide essential insights for optimizing the use of ClO2 in drinking water treatment facilities.

Chironomid larvae in drinking water treatment plants (DWTPs) and tap water lead to highlights the urgent need for effective control measures. The use of combined disinfectant treatments is becoming increasingly common to achieve optimal disinfection efficiency while minimizing residual contamination. This study was conducted to study the effect of combined treatment of disinfectants used in DWTPs on the biological control potential of chironomid larvae. In the experiment, Glytotendipes tokunagai larvae reared according to OECD guidelines were exposed to NaOCl, UV, and O3 complex substances, and biological responses were analyzed using survival rate and body color change as key indicators for 24 hours. The survival rate of larvae exposed to combined disinfectants mostly decreased in a time- and concentration-dependent manner, and lightening of body color was observed. The most significant decrease (53%) of the survival rate was observed to a combination of UV and 4 ppm NaOCl disinfectants and body color change also showed a statistically significant difference compared to the control group (P<0.001). The change in body color is suggested to be a physiological change caused by oxidation of hemoglobin due to exposure to disinfectant complexes. The results of this study contribute to determining the biological impact of combined disinfectant treatment on chironomid larvae of DWTPs, and can be used as data to suggest the biological control potential of disinfectants. In addition, it will provide important information for setting standards for combined disinfectant treatment to improve water quality in the future.

The cost of treating water purification plant water treatment residuals is high, with a low recovery rate and unstable effluent water quality, particularly in plants using lake and reservoir water sources in severe cold regions. Maximizing water resource utilization requires integrating water treatment residuals concentration and treatment effectively. Here, ceramic membrane technology was employed to separate supernatant and substrate after pretreatment. Optimal settling was achieved using 75 μm magnetic powder at 200 and 4 mg/L of nonionic polyacrylamide co-injection. Approximately 65% of the separated supernatant was processed by 0.1–0.2 μm Al2O3 ceramic membranes, yielding a membrane flux of 50 L/m2h and a water recovery rate of 99.8%. This resulted in removal rates of 99.3% for turbidity, 98.2% for color, and 87.7% for color and permanganate index (chemical oxygen demand, COD). Furthermore, 35% of the separated substrate underwent treatment with 0.1–0.2 μm mixed ceramic membranes of Al2O3 and SiC, achieving a membrane flux of 40 L/m2h and a water recovery rate of 73.8%. The removal rates for turbidity, color, and COD were 99.9%, 99.9%, and 82%, respectively. Overall, this process enables comprehensive concentration and treatment integration, achieving a water recovery rate of 90.7% with safe and stable effluent water quality.

The number, size, and material distribution of microplastics (MPs) sized 20-200 μm in the raw water and water treatment processes were analyzed using FT-IR in three water treatment plants in Jeju Province. The number of MPs was detected at 0.075-0.620 MP/L in raw water and 0.040-0.047 MP/L in filtered water, which is relatively lower than the results of other studies. Regarding the size of the MPs, particles sized 20-50 μm in both the raw water and the treated water accounted for the highest proportion, representing 65.6% and 56.3% of the total, respectively. In terms of MP type distribution, polypropylene (PP) was identified as the main type at 58.7%. In the water purification process, the MPs removal efficiency was the highest at 93.5% in the sedimentation and rapid filtration process, followed by 58.4% in membrane filtration and 40.0% in slow filtration. Continuous monitoring of the distribution of MPs in raw water and water treatment processes is recommended.

This study develops a model to determine the input rate of the chemical for coagulation and flocculation process (i.e. coagulant) at industrial water treatment plant, based on real-world data. To detect outliers among the collected data, a two-phase algorithm with standardization transformation and Density-Based Spatial Clustering of Applications with Noise (DBSCAN) is applied. In addition, both of the missing data and outliers are revised with linear interpolation. To determine the coagulant rate, various kinds of machine learning models are tested as well as linear regression. Among them, the random forest model with min-max scaled data provides the best performance, whose MSE, MAPE, R2 and CVRMSE are 1.136, 0.111, 0.912, and 18.704, respectively. This study demonstrates the practical applicability of machine learning based chemical input decision model, which can lead to a smart management and response systems for clean and safe water treatment plant.

This study evaluated the fungicidal efficacy of weakly acidic hypochlorous acid water (WAHW) against Microsporum canis (M. canis) and its therapeutic effect on M. canis-infected mouse skin. WAHW was produced by a WAHW generation module. A fungicidal efficacy test by the broth dilution method was used to determine the lowest effective concentration of the WAHW. The lowest effective concentration of WAHW was less than 10 ppm. For T-1, T-2, and T-3, 30 ppm of WAHW was applied to the infected skin once, twice, and three times a day, respectively, and for T-4, 50 ppm of WAHW was applied once a day. On the 3rd day after the initiation of treatment, skin scores in all of the WAHW-treated groups were significantly decreased compared to those in the positive control group (PC) (p<0.05), and there were no significant differences compared to the normal control (NC). The area of the infected skin in all of the WAHW-treated groups was significantly decreased compared to PC from the first day after the initiation of WAHW treatment (p<0.05). The results showed that WAHW had a fungicidal efficacy on M. canis at less than 10 ppm, and it was effective in improving skin symptoms when 30 ppm of WAHW was applied to the M. canis-infected area once a day for five days or 50 ppm of WAHW was applied once a day.