A Study on Methane and Nitrous Oxide Emissions Characteristics from Anthracite Circulating Fluidized Bed Power Plant in Korea

In order to tackle climate change effectively, the greenhouse gas emissions produced in Korea should be assessed precisely. To do so, the nation needs to accumulate country-specific data reflecting the specific circumstances surrounding Korea's emissions. This paper analyzed element contents of domestic anthracite, calorific value, and concentration of methane (CH4) and nitrous oxide (N2O) in the exhaust gases from circulating fluidized bed plant. The findings showed the concentration of CH4 and N2O in the flue gas to be 1.85 and 3.25 ppm, respectively, and emission factors were 0.486 and 2.198 kg/TJ, respectively. The CH4 emission factor in this paper was 52% lower than default emission factor presented by the IPCC. The N2O emission factor was estimated to be 46% higher than default emission factor presented by the IPCC. This discrepancy can be attributable to the different methods and conditions of combustion because the default emission factors suggested by IPCC take only fuel characteristics into consideration without combustion technologies. Therefore, Korea needs to facilitate research on a legion of fuel and energy consumption facilities to develop country-specific emission factors so that the nation can have a competitive edge in the international climate change convention in the years to come

State of Air Pollution and Policy Issues in Seoul, Republic of Korea

The Republic of Korea has experienced severe environmental problems including air pollution because of the rapid urbanization and industrialization during the last three decades. The government has taken various countermeasures in order to solve the air pollution problems. The efforts to reduce the levels of sulfur dioxide(SO₂) and total suspended particulates (TSP) have been quite successful while nitorogen oxides and ozone (O₃) are emerging as more serious threats to the urban atmospheric environment due to the ever-increasing automobiles. The spacio-temporal analyses of the air quality using the monitoring data for the last ten years clearly revealed that the air quality changed with the urban development and countermeasure policies adopted. Future policy recommendations are made based on th analyses. As shown in Figure 1. the annual average levels of SO₂, TSP and CO decreased by 62%, 65% and 44%, respectively, over the last decade (1984-1993), while the oxidants' level (analysed as O₃) showed 63% increase during the same period. The level of NO₂ showed a slight increase in recent years

Policy Responses Towards Improving Solid Waste Management Seoul City

The Seoul City has been the capital city of the nation for about 600 years. However, the City experienced rapid growth only in recent years. The Republic of Korea remained an agricultural country until early 1960s. The rapid industrialization began with the First 5-year Economic Development Plan which started in 1962. The Seoul City grew very rapidly with the success of industrialization. The population of the City increased from 3,471 thousand in 1965 to 10,287 thousand in 1988, which occupies 23.9 per cent of the national total population. The annual population increase rate of the City during the time was 5. 07 per cent while the national average was 1. 66 per cent. As results of rapid industrialization and urbanization, the City faced with serious urban problems such as housing, traffic congestion, environmental pollution, and others. Among them, the solid waste management issue emerged as one of the most urgent urban problems in the City. Traditionally, Korean people did not produce any wastes to be dumped collectively: all wastes were recycled in principle. Wastes were either fed to livestocks or were utilized as fertilizer. However, the citizens could no more practice recycling as the composition of wastes changed and the City became congested. The Metropolitan Government organized a department responsible for managing solid wastes only in early 1960s

Promoting Public Participation and Environmental Education in the Republic of Korea

The industrialization in the Republic of Korea began only in early 1960's. The economic development has been based mainly on the export-oriented heavy-chemical industries. The development has been quite successful. But at the same time it brought severe environmental pollution problems, especially in industrial areas. There have been continual disputes between industrial firms and inhabitants over damages on agricultural and fishery products and on human health. In some areas it was hard to find solution so that the disputes ended up as removing the whole population from the problem areas such as in Ulsan, Onsan, and Yeocheon. Tens of thousand natives had to give up their hometown and occupation, which caused a serious social problem. The Government began to realize the seriousness of the environmental problems, and the Office of Environment was established in 1980 which was raised to the Ministry of Environment in 1990. However, the quality of the environment has not been improved much in spite of the Governmental intervention. It is probably because the Governmental policies have not been strong enough to keep up with the rapid industrialization while the public were not allowed to protest against or participate in governmental policies until democratization in 1987

Emission Characteristics and Factors of Selected Odorous Compounds at a Wastewater Treatment Plant

This study was initiated to explore the emission characteristics of Reduced Sulfur Compounds (RSCs: hydrogen sulfide, methyl mercaptan, dimethyl sulfide, dimethyl disulfide), ammonia and trimethylamine from a Wastewater Treatment Plant (WWTP) located at Sun-Cheon, Chonlanam-Do in South Korea. The study also evaluates flux profiles of the six selected odorous compounds and their flux rates (μg/m2/min) and compares their emission characteristics. A Dynamic Flux Chamber DFC was used to measure fluxes of pollutants from the treatment plant. Quality control of odor samples using a non-reactive sulfur dioxide gas determined the time taken for DFC concentration to reach equilibrium. The reduced sulfur compounds were analyzed by interfacing gas chromatography with a Pulsed Flame Photometric Detector (PFPD). Air samples were collected in the morning and afternoon on one day during summer (August) and two days in winter (December and January). Their emission rates were determined and it was observed that during summer relatively higher amounts of the selected odorous compounds were emitted compared to winter. Air samples from primary settling basin, aeration basin, and final settling basin were tested and the total amount of selected odorous compounds emitted per wastewater ton was found to be 1344 μg/m3 from the selected treatment processes. It was also observed that, in this study, the dominant odor intensity contribution was caused by dimethyl disulfide (69.1%)

Effect of increasing levels of apparent metabolizable energy on laying hens in barn system

Objective This experiment was to investigate the effect of increasing levels of apparent metabolizable energy (AMEn) on the laying performance, egg quality, blood parameters, blood biochemistry, intestinal morphology, and apparent total tract digestibility (ATTD) of energy and nutrients in diets fed to laying hens. Methods A total of three-hundred twenty 33-week-old Hy-Line Brown laying hens (Gallus domesticus) were evenly assigned to four experimental diets of 2,750, 2,850, 2,950, and 3,050 kcal AMEn/kg in pens with floors covered with deep litter of rice hulls. There were four replicates of each treatment, each consisting of 20 birds in a pen. Results AMEn intake was increased (linear, p<0.05) with inclusion level of AMEn in diets increased. Feed intake and feed conversion ratio were improved (linear, p<0.01), but hen-day egg production tended to be increased with an increasing level of AMEn in diets. During the experiment, leukocyte concentration and blood biochemistry (total cholesterol, triglyceride, glucose, total protein, calcium, asparate aminotransferase, and alanine transferase were not influenced by increasing level of AMEn in diets. Gross energy and ether extract were increased (linear, p<0.01) as the inclusion level of AMEn in diets increased. Conclusion Laying hens fed high AMEn diet (i.e., 3,050 kcal/kg in the current experiment) tended to overconsume energy with a positive effect on feed intake, feed conversion ratio, nutrient digestibility, and intestinal morphology but not on egg production and egg mass

Snake fang-inspired stamping patch for transdermal delivery of liquid formulations

A flexible microneedle patch that can transdermally deliver liquid-phase therapeutics would enable direct use of existing, approved drugs and vaccines, which are mostly in liquid form, without the need for additional drug solidification, efficacy verification, and subsequent approval. Specialized dissolving or coated microneedle patches that deliver reformulated, solidified therapeutics have made considerable advances; however, microneedles that can deliver liquid drugs and vaccines still remain elusive because of technical limitations. Here, we present a snake fang-inspired microneedle patch that can administer existing liquid formulations to patients in an ultrafast manner (&lt; 15 s). Rear-fanged snakes have an intriguing molar with a groove on the surface, which enables rapid and efficient infusion of venom or saliva into prey. Liquid delivery is based on surface tension and capillary action. The microneedle patch uses multiple open groove architectures that emulate the grooved fangs of rear-fanged snakes: Similar to snake fangs, the microneedles can rapidly and efficiently deliver diverse liquid-phase drugs and vaccines in seconds under capillary action with only gentle thumb pressure, without requiring a complex pumping system. Hydrodynamic simulations show that the snake fang-inspired open groove architectures enable rapid capillary force-driven delivery of liquid formulations with varied surface tensions and viscosities. We demonstrate that administration of ovalbumin and influenza virus with the snake fang-inspired microneedle patch induces robust antibody production and protective immune response in guinea pigs and mice

Comparison of Product Sustainability of Conventional and Low-Carbon Apples in Korea

Apple is Korea&rsquo;s most representative fruit. This study calculated absolute and relative product sustainability through environmental and cost assessments on apples by cultivation farming. The ISO 14040 life cycle assessment (LCA) methodology was used as a method of environmental assessment. Primary data for one year, 2018, were collected for the environmental assessment of conventional and low-carbon farming. The eco-points of apples cultivated by conventional and low-carbon farming using the LCA 2.07 &times; 10&minus;3 and 1.17 &times; 10&minus;3, respectively. The environmental impact of conventional apples was 78% higher than that of low-carbon apples. Cost assessment results show that every 1 kg of conventional and low-carbon apples costs USD 1.93 and USD 3.17, respectively, and their profits were USD 0.20 and USD 1.00, respectively. The total cost of conventional apples was lower than that of low-carbon apples, but its profit was one-fifth that of low-carbon apples. The UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UN ESCAP)&rsquo;s eco-efficiency method was used to calculate absolute sustainability, and the concept of factor X was introduced to evaluate relative sustainability. Absolute sustainability for conventional and low-carbon apples was 96.01 (USD/eco-point) and 853.03 (USD/eco-point), respectively. Low-carbon apples&rsquo; relative sustainability was computed in factor 8.89. Finally, if all farms that grow conventional apples shift to cultivating low-carbon apples, they can save 58,111 tons of carbon dioxide. This amount is at least 3.4% of the nation&rsquo;s greenhouse gas reduction in the agricultural and livestock sectors. This study provides a clear reason for the agricultural sector to shift its cultivation method from conventional to eco-friendly farming, including low-carbon farming

Ammonia Emission Characteristics and Emission Factor of Municipal Solid Waste Incineration Plant

This study aims to analyze whether ammonia emission occurs when municipal solid waste (MSW) is incinerated. In cases where ammonia is emitted, we aim to develop an emission factor, calculate annual emission amounts by utilizing activity data (waste incineration amount) applied in air pollutant emission calculations for the waste combustion in Korea, and investigate whether there is a need for emission calculation. As a result of the study, the ammonia emission factor of the MSW incineration facility to be studied was 0.0091 kgNH3/ton, which was 3 times higher than the emission factor in Europe. In the case of emissions, a randomly developed emission factor was applied to confirm the necessity of development of the emission factor, and as a result of the application, it was found to be 22 NH3 ton/year, which is the same number as the annual NH3 emission of the entire waste treatment sector in 2016. Therefore, we believe that MSW incinerator facilities should be recognized as one of the major NH3 omitted emission sources. Moreover, it is evident that there is a need for an NH3 emission factor and emission calculations that reflect the characteristics of Korea