Inhibition of the Algal Growth using TiO₂-embedded Expanded Polystyrene (EPS) balls in Lab-scale Outdoor Experiment

Kim, Ga Young,Joo, Jin Chul,Ahn, Bo Reum,Lee, Dae Hong,Park, Jae Roh,Ahn, Chang Hyuk,Oh, Jong Min Korean Society of Ecology and Infrastructure Engin 2018 Ecology and resilient infrastructure Vol.5 No.3

$TiO_2$-embedded expanded polystyrene (TiEPS) balls with powdered $TiO_2$ particles embedded on the surface of EPS were developed, and the growth inhibition of Chlorella ellipsoidea, a green algae, was evaluated. The experiment was conducted using four reactors with various conditions of (A) natural sunlight, (B) natural sunlight + TiEPS balls, (C) dark, and (D) dark + TiEPS balls on the roof of the building during five days. Based on the analysis of cell number, cell morphology, concentrations of chlorophyll-a and phaeopigments, both surface reactions in heterogeneous photocatalysis and light shielding could inhibit the growth of C. ellipsoidea. The highly reactive hydroxyl radicals ($OH{\cdot}$) from TiEPS balls degraded the lipid cell membrane through the peroxidation reaction with the light shielding, eventually resulting in cell inactivation. Although dominant inhibitory effects on the growth of C. ellipsoidea were ambiguous, TiEPS balls were feasible to prevent and inhibit the excessive growth of algae in eutrophic water body.

Effects of Phosphorus and Iron on the Phytotoxicity of Lettuce (Lactuca sativa L.) in Arsenic-contaminated Soil

Kim, Min-Suk,Min, Hyun-Gi,Kim, Jeong-Gyu Korean Society of Ecology and Infrastructure Engin 2018 Ecology and resilient infrastructure Vol.5 No.1

We examined the effect of simultaneous application of phosphorus (P) and iron (Fe) on the phytotoxicity of lettuce in arsenic (As) contaminated soil using response surface methodology (RSM). To stabilize As and supply nutrient into soil, Fe and P were treated, respectively. Water soluble As and P was decreased by Fe application but increased by P application. Through phytotoxicity test, the result showed that only the addition of P affected lettuce root elongation even though both P and Fe were added. The correlation coefficients between root elongation and other indices indicated that the As content in the roots seemed to be the main reason that root growth was impeded. We could verify that the former result was not a passing phenomenon and Fe was necessarily needed to protect secondary pollution by exclusive usage of P fertilizer.

Physiological Responses to Three Different Levels of Vibration Stress in Catfish, Silurus asotus

Hur, Jun Wook,Kim, Dae Hee,Lee, Jeong-Yeol Korean Society of Ecology and Infrastructure Engin 2015 Ecology and resilient infrastructure Vol.2 No.4

The purpose of this study is to determine the effects of vibration on primary (e.g. plasma cortisol), secondary (e.g. plasma glucose, aspartate aminotransferase (AST), alanine aminotransferase (ALT), $Na^+$, $K^+$ and $Cl^-$) and tertiary (e.g. mortality) stress responses in cultured catfish, Silurus asotus. For this purpose, three groups (one control group and two stress groups) were set up. The control group was exposed to vibration corresponding to 48 decibel (dB) volt (V) (produced using electric vibrators) for 15 minutes per hour every day, and the two stress groups were exposed to vibrations corresponding to 58 and 68 dB (V) (produced using the same electric vibrators), equally, for 15 minutes per hour every day. Blood was sampled at day 0 (before starting vibration stress tests), and at days 1, 3, 5, 7, 9 and 11 (after starting vibration stress tests). According to the results, the catfish physiologically showed ''typical'' stress responses when they were exposed to chronic vibration. This indicates that such chronic vibration caused substantial stress to catfish; especially, persistently elevated plasma AST and ALT levels observed caused adverse effects to them. In conclusion, chronic vibration could significantly affect hematological characteristics in catfish.

Floristic Composition and Phytomass in the Drawdown Zone of the Soyangho Reservoir, Korea

Cho, Hyunsuk,Jin, Seung-Nam,Marrs, Rob H.,Cho, Kang-Hyun Korean Society of Ecology and Infrastructure Engin 2018 Ecology and resilient infrastructure Vol.5 No.2

The Soyangho Reservoir in Korea has a large drawdown zone, with an annual maximum water level fluctuation of 37 m due to dam operations to maintain a stable water supply and control flooding, especially during the monsoon period. The floristic composition, distribution and biomass of the major plant communities in the drawdown zone of the Soyangho Reservoir were assessed in order to understand their responses to the wide water level fluctuation. Species richness of vascular plants was low, and species composition was dominated by herbaceous annuals. Principal coordinates analysis using both flora and environmental data identified slope angle and the distance from the dam as important factors determining floristic composition. The species richness was low in the steep drawdown zone close to the dam, where much of the soil surface was almost devoid of vegetation. In shallower slopes, distant from the dam plant communities composed of mainly annuals were found. The large fluctuation in water level exposed soil where these annuals could establish. An overall biomass of 122 t (metric tons) Dry Matter was estimated for the reservoir, containing ca 3.6 t N (nitrogen) and ca 0.3 t P (phosphorus); the role of the vegetation of the drawdown zone in carbon sequestration and water pollution were briefly discussed.

Evaluation of Toxicity for Commercial Red Mud Pellets Using Pseudokirchneriella subcapitata and Daphnia magna

Lee, Saeromi,Ahn, Chang Hyuk,Park, Jae Roh,Lee, Sooji,Lee, Inju,Joo, Jin Chul Korean Society of Ecology and Infrastructure Engin 2015 Ecology and resilient infrastructure Vol.2 No.4

The toxicity of red mud (RM) pellets for water purification was evaluated using Pseudokirchneriella subcapitata and Daphnia magna in a lab-scale experiment. According to the algal growth inhibition test, both specific growth rates and relative growth rates of P. subcapitata decreased, and the growth inhibition rates increased ($R^2=0.97$, p<0.001) as the concentration of RM pellets in the aqueous solution increased (>1.6 g/L). Also, based on the acute toxicity evaluation test on D. magna, toxic unit (TU) values ranged between 0.00 and 2.83, and increased with an increase in the concentration of RM pellets in the aqueous solution. A correlation analysis indicated that the pH of RM pellets was statistically correlated with TU values ($R^2=0.77$, p=0.02). The environmental implication from this study is that the concentration of RM pellets in an aqueous solution needs to be lower than 4.4 g/L to keep the maximum permissible TU value less than 1.0.

Development of Titanium Dioxide (TiO₂)-immobilized Buoyant Photocatalyst Balls Using Expanded Polystyrene (EPS)

Joo, Jin Chul,Lee, Saeromi,Ahn, Chang Hyuk,Lee, Inju,Liu, Zihan,Park, Jae-Roh Korean Society of Ecology and Infrastructure Engin 2016 Ecology and resilient infrastructure Vol.3 No.4

A new immobilization technique of nanoscale $TiO_2$ powder to expanded polystyrene (EPS) balls with temperature-controlled melting method was developed, and the photocatalytic activity of $TiO_2$ powder-embedded EPS balls were evaluated using methylene blue (MB) solution under ultraviolet irradiation (${\lambda}=254nm$). Based on the scanning electron microscope (SEM) images and associated energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX) analysis, the components of the intact EPS balls were mainly carbon and oxygen, whereas those of $TiO_2$-immobilized EPS balls were carbon, oxygen, and titanium, indicating that relatively homogenous patches of $TiO_2$ and glycerin film were coated on the surface of EPS balls. Based on the comparison of degradation efficiencies of MB between intact and $TiO_2$-immobilized EPS balls under UVC illumination, the degradation efficiencies of MB can be significantly improved using $TiO_2$-immobilized EPS balls, and surface reactions in heterogeneous photocatalysis were more dominant than photo-induced radical reactions in aqueous solutions. Thus, $TiO_2$-immobilized EPS balls were found to be an effective photocatalyst for photodegradation of organic compounds in aqueous solutions without further processes (i.e., separation, recycling, and regeneration of $TiO_2$ powder). Further study is in progress to evaluate the feasibility for usage of buoyant $TiO_2$-immobilized EPS to inhibit the excessive growth of algae in rivers and lakes.

Analysis of the Changes of the Vegetated Area in an Unregulated River and Their Underlying Causes: A Case Study on the Naeseong Stream

Lee, Chanjoo,Kim, Donggu Korean Society of Ecology and Infrastructure Engin 2018 Ecology and resilient infrastructure Vol.5 No.4

This study aims to investigate the changes in the riparian vegetated area in the Naeseong stream, an unregulated river, in order to analyze the main factors leading to these changes. For this purpose, the land surface cover in the channel area of the Naeseong stream was classified into 9 categories using past aerial photographs collected between 1970 and 2016, which recorded the long-term changes of the Naeseong stream. The increase or decrease in the vegetated area was calculated for each category using a pair of before and after images. The changes in the vegetated area were divided into 6 periods: the unvegetated channel period (1970 - 1980), the first rapid increase (1980 - 1986), the period of decrease due to flood (1986 - 1988), the period of repetitive man-induced disturbance and vegetation increase (1988 - 2008), the period of gradual vegetation increase (2008 - 2013), and the period of second rapid increase (2013 - 2016). Multiple regression analysis was performed using independent variables representing hydrology, climate, and geomorphology. The major variables found to be involved in the changes in the vegetated area of the Naeseong stream were the discharge during June - July, channel width, and temperature during April - June. Among the three variables, discharge and temperature were respectively the main independent variables in the downstream and the upstream reaches as per a single variable model. Channel width was the variable that distinguished the upstream and downstream reaches of the stream. The implication of the long-term increase in the vegetated area in the Naeseong stream was discussed based on the result of this study.

Monitoring and Analyzing Water Area Variation of Lake Enriquillo, Dominican Republic by Integrating Multiple Endmember Spectral Mixture Analysis and MODIS Data

Kim, Sang Min,Yoon, Sang Hyun,Ju, Sungha,Heo, Joon Korean Society of Ecology and Infrastructure Engin 2018 Ecology and resilient infrastructure Vol.5 No.2

Lake Enriquillo, the largest lake in the Dominican Republic, recently has undergone unusual water area changes since 2001 thus it has been affected seriously by local community's livelihood. Earthquakes and seismic activities of Hispaniola plate tectonic coupled with human activities and climate change are addressed as factors causing the increasing. Thus, a thorough study on relationship between lake area changing, and those factors is needed urgently. To do so, this study applied MESMA on MODIS data to extract water area of Lake Enriquillo during 2001 and 2012 bimonthly, with six issues 12-year. MODIS provides high temporal resolution, and its coarse spatial resolution is compensated by MESMA fraction map. The increase in water area was $142.2km^2$, and the maximum lake area was $338.0km^2$ (in 2012). Water areas extracted by two Landsat scenes at two different times with three image classification approaches (ISODATA, MNDWI, and TCW) were used to assess accuracy of MODIS and MESMA results; it indicated that MESMA water areas are same as ISODATA's, less than 0.4%, while the highest difference is between MESMA and TCW, 2.4%. A number of previously formulated hypotheses of lake area change were investigated based on the outcomes of the present study, though none of them could fully explain the changes.

Differences in Biogeochemical Properties and Microbial Activities in Stream Segments with Changes in Land-use Type

Kim, Jinhyun,Jang, Inyoung,Lee, Hyunjin,Kang, Hojeong Korean Society of Ecology and Infrastructure Engin 2015 Ecology and resilient infrastructure Vol.2 No.3

Changes in land-use type can affect soil and water properties in stream ecosystems. This study examined the effects of different land-use types on biogeochemical properties and microbial activities of a stream. We collected water and sediment samples in a stream at three different sites surrounded by varying land-use types; a forest, a radish field and a rice paddy. Nitrogen contents, such as nitrate, nitrite and total nitrogen in the stream water body, showed significant differences among the sampling sites. The highest nitrogen values were recorded at the site surrounded by cropland, as fertilizer runoff impacted the stream. Soil organic matter content in the sediment showed significant differences among sites, with the highest content exhibited at the forest mouth site. These differences might be due to the organic matter in surrounding terrestrial ecosystems. Microbial activities determined by extracellular enzyme activities showed similar values throughout all sites in the water body; however, the activities in the sediments exhibited the highest values near the forest site and mirrored the soil organic matter content values. From these results, we conclude that different land-use types are important factors affecting water and sediment properties in stream ecosystems.

Assessing Phosphorus Availability in a High pH, Biochar Amended Soil under Inorganic and Organic Fertilization

Kahura, Millicent Wanjiku,Min, Hyungi,Kim, Min-Suk,Kim, Jeong-Gyu Korean Society of Ecology and Infrastructure Engin 2018 Ecology and resilient infrastructure Vol.5 No.1

Phosphorous remains as one of the most limiting nutrients to plant growth, second only to nitrogen. Research on use of biochar as a soil amendment for available phosphorus in temperate calcareous soils has limited studies compared with to tropical acidic soils. An incubation experiment to assess phosphorous availability in a biochar amended calcareous soil under inorganic (Fused superphosphate, FSP) and organic fertilizer (bone meal, BM) and respectively, at the dose of 40, 80 and $120mg\;P\;kg^{-1}$ was carried out. Soil was incubated at $25^{\circ}C$ for 70 days. Results show that the rate of increase in available P was proportional to the fertilizer application rate with or without biochar amendment. Biochar did not have a significant effect on soils amended with either fertilizeron the values of available P. However, time had a significant effect (p<0.001) on the amount of available P during the incubation period. Inorganic fertilizer treatments had recorded high amount of available P with time compared to organic fertilizer treatments. Organic fertilizer treatment sample were significantly not different from control and for most of the incubation time biochar acted as a soil conditioner. Further research is required to understand the holistic and long-term effect of biochar.