GIST selected to lead ultra-fine dust issues

- Professor Kihong Park appointed to lead ‘Ultra-Fine Dust Damage Mitigation Project’ …Ministry of Science to provide 8.5 billion won for 3 years
- analyze characteristics and hazards of ultra-fine dust real-time, and develop high-efficiency purification materials and devices

 

 

 

 

□ Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology (GIST, President ‧Young-Joon Kim) will carry out a key research task commissioned by the government to mitigate ultra-fine dusts, which has emerged as a major social issue in Korea.

 

o On April 24, GIST said Professor Kihong Park of School of Environmental Science and Engineering was selected as a researcher to lead the ‘Ultra-Fine Dust Damage Mitigation Taskforce’ as part of the ‘Technology Development for Resolution of Social Issues,’ a R&D project implemented by the Ministry of Science, ICT and Future Planning (Minister Choi Mun-kee).

 

□ Professor Park is an expert in atmospheric environment who heads Aerosol Technology and Monitoring Laboratory. Until 2017, his team will conduct R&D activities for the development of 1) high-efficiency & low-cost purification materials and devices to be applied to in-door air purifier, filter and mask, 2) technologies to analyze and diagnose how the impact of ultra-fine dust on human body varies depending on source of dust, route of dissemination and elements, in real time and 3) forecast methodologies to improve the accuracy of ultra-fine dust forecasting.

 

o The Ministry of Science will provide a total of 8.5 billion won to fund research activities of the team led by Prof. Park for the next three years.

 

o To that end, GIST entered into agreements with Gwangyang (Mayor Lee Sung-woong) and Gwangju Metropolitan City respectively in June in order to cooperate on the research project. Professor Park’s research team will refer to data produced by the Atmospheric Environment System and Monitoring Station of Gwangyang for the real-time diagnose and hazard assessment of ultra-fine dusts.

 

□ Professor Park said “Ultra-fine dusts are a serious social issue which directly affects the health and lives of people. Our team will conduct research with a sense of responsibility and commitment.”

 

□ The ‘Technology Development for Resolution of Social Issues’ pushed ahead with by the Ministry of Science, ICT and Future Planning is a R&D project to address social issues closely related to people’s lives through R&D activities and will be implemented in two phases from 2014 to 2017 (1 year + 2 years). Back in March this year, the Ministry selected ‘ultra-fine dusts’ and ‘green algae in drinking water supply sources’ as the subject of research in 2014.