Occurrence, removal, and prioritization of organic micropollutants in four full-scale wastewater treatment plants in Korea.

This study investigated the occurrence, removal rate, and potential risks of 43 organic micropollutants (OMPs) in four municipal wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) in Korea. Results from two-year intensive monitoring confirmed the presence of various OMPs in the influents, including pharmaceuticals such as acetaminophen (pain relief), caffeine (stimulants), cimetidine (H-blockers), ibuprofen (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs- NSAIDs), metformin (antidiabetics), and naproxen (NSAIDs) with median concentrations of >1 μg/L. Some pharmaceuticals (carbamazepine-anticonvulsants, diclofenac-NSAIDs, propranolol-β-blockers), corrosion inhibitors (1H-benzotriazole-BTR, 4-methyl-1H-benzotriazole-4-TTR), and perfluorinated compounds (PFCs) were negligibly removed during WWTP treatment.

Loss of micropollutants on syringe filters during sample filtration: Machine learning approach for selecting appropriate filters.

Prefiltration before chromatographic analysis is critical in the monitoring of environmental micropollutants (MPs). However, in an aqueous matrix, such monitoring often leads to out-of-specification results owing to the loss of MPs on syringe filters. Therefore, this study investigated the loss of seventy MPs on eight different syringe filters by employing Random Forest, a machine learning algorithm.

Cr-Doped FeCO Microrods Formed Directly on AISI 420 Stainless Steel to Enhance Electrochemical NO Reduction to N at Circumneutral pH.

We synthesized low-cost cathodes for use in the electrochemical NO reduction reaction (NORR) via the simple reconstruction of AISI 420 stainless steel (SS). Thermochemical treatment of the SS in oxalic acid generated iron oxalate (FeCO) microrods (BL-SS), with further anodization affording Cr-doped FeO (R-SS) or FeCO (G-SS). G-SS displayed supreme N selectivity during galvanostatic electrolysis at circumneutral pH.

Predicting micropollutant fate during wastewater treatment using refined classical kinetic model based on quantitative monitoring in multi-metropolitan regions of South Korea.

This study aimed to implement an extensive prediction model for the fate of micropollutants (MPs) in wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs). Five WWTPs equipped with seven different biological treatment processes were monitored from 2020 to 2022 with three to four sampling events in each year, and 27 datasets for 20 MPs were collected. Among these datasets, 12 were used to investigate the behavior and fate of MPs in WWTPs in South Korea.

Opportunities and challenges of machine learning in bioprocesses: Categorization from different perspectives and future direction.

Recent advances in machine learning (ML) have revolutionized an extensive range of research and industry fields by successfully addressing intricate problems that cannot be resolved with conventional approaches. However, low interpretability and incompatibility make it challenging to apply ML to complicated bioprocesses, which rely on the delicate metabolic interplay among living cells. This overview attempts to delineate ML applications to bioprocess from different perspectives, and their inherent limitations (i.

Optimization of the Design Configuration and Operation Strategy of Single-Pass Seawater Reverse Osmosis.

The numerical study was conducted to compare process performance depending on the pump type and process configuration. The daily monitoring data of seawater temperature and salinity offshore from Daesan, Republic of Korea was used to reflect the site-specific seawater conditions. An algorithm for reverse osmosis in constant permeate mode was developed to simulate the process in time-variant conditions.

A multi-scale framework for modeling transport of microplastics during sand filtration: Bridging from pore to continuum.

The fate and transport of microplastics (MPs) during deep bed filtration were investigated using combined laboratory experiments and numerical modeling. A series of column experiments were conducted within the designated ranges of six operating parameters (i.e.

Prediction of biogas production rate from dry anaerobic digestion of food waste: Process-based approach vs. recurrent neural network black-box model.

The stability of dry anaerobic digestion (AD) of food waste (FW) as well as the resulting methane gas generation was investigated from the perspective of system dynamics. Various organic loading rates were applied to the system by modifying the water content in the FW feed and solid retention time (SRT). The excessive organic loading due to the accumulation of volatile fatty acids (VFAs) from the feed with 80% water content during the short SRT (15 and 20 d) caused system failure.

Sex-specific role of education on the associations of socioeconomic status indicators with obesity risk: A population-based study in South Korea.

Background: No study of obesity risk for people in developed countries has conducted a multi-dimensional analysis of the association of socioeconomic status with obesity. In this paper, we investigated if education functions as either a confounder or an effect modifier in the association of another socioeconomic status indicator with obesity.

Methods: This cross-sectional study analyzed data of an adult population sample (10,905 men and 14,580 women) from the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (2010-2014).

Gender-specific interactions between education and income in relation to obesity: a cross-sectional analysis of the Fifth Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES V).

Objectives: To identify gender-specific associations between education and income in relation to obesity in developed countries by considering both the interaction-effect terms of the independent variables and their main-effect terms.

Design: A cross-sectional study. Education and income levels were chosen as socioeconomic status indicators.

Modifying effects of education on the association between lifestyle behaviors and the risk of obesity: evidence from South Korea.

Background: No previous study has explored the interactions between education and lifestyle in relation to obesity. This study hypothesized that education may be obesogenic through its interplay with lifestyle behaviors.

Methods: Data for a nationally representative sample (6937 men and 9333 women) from the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (2010-2012) were analyzed.

Gender-specific combined effects of smoking and hypertension on cardiovascular disease mortality in elderly Koreans: THe Kangwha Cohort Study.

Objective: We examined gender-specific combined effects of smoking and hypertension on risk of mortality from cardiovascular disease in elderly Korean men and women.

Study Design: This study followed a cohort of 6097 residents (2593 men, 3504 women) in the general population of Kangwha County, aged ≥55 years in March 1985 and examined their cause-specific mortality for 20.8 years, up to December 31, 2005.

The socioeconomic burden of coronary heart disease in Korea.

Objectives: We aimed to estimate the annual socioeconomic burden of coronary heart disease (CHD) in Korea in 2005, using the National Health Insurance (NHI) claims data.

Methods: A prevalence-based, top-down, cost-of-treatment method was used to assess the direct and indirect costs of CHD (International Classification of Diseases, 10th revision codes of I20-I25), angina pectoris (I20), and myocardial infarction (MI, I21-I23) from a societal perspective.

Results: Estimated national spending on CHD in 2005 was $2.

Estimating the lifetime economic burden of stroke according to the age of onset in South Korea: a cost of illness study.

Background: The recently-observed trend towards younger stroke patients in Korea raises economic concerns, including erosion of the workforce. We compared per-person lifetime costs of stroke according to the age of stroke onset from the Korean societal perspective.

Methods: A state-transition Markov model consisted of three health states ('post primary stroke event', 'alive post stroke', and 'dead') was developed to simulate the natural history of stroke.

Economic burden of injuries in South Korea.

Unlabelled: BACKGROUND STUDIES: on the cost of injury are useful in setting research and policy priorities and it is valuable to observe differences in the economic burden of injuries across countries.

Objective: To estimate the treated prevalence rate, economic burden and gender- and age-specific costs of injuries in Korea in 2006.

Design: Annual direct healthcare costs associated with injuries were estimated from the National Health Insurance, Medical Aid and Automobile Insurance databases.

[Socioeconomic costs of stroke in Korea: estimated from the Korea national health insurance claims database].

Objectives: To estimate the annual socioeconomic costs of stroke in Korea in 2005 from a societal perspective.

Methods: We identified those 20 years or older who had at least one national health insurance (NHI) claims record with a primary or a secondary diagnosis of stroke (ICD-10 codes: I60-I69, G45) in 2005. Direct medical costs of the stroke were measured from the NHI claims records.