• Tunnel and Underground Space
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• v.32 no.6
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• pp.598-610
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• 2022

Avoiding a fault zone would be a best practice for safety in underground construction, which is only sometimes possible because of many restrictions and other field conditions. For instance, there is an ongoing conception of Korea-Japan subsea tunnels that inevitably cross a massive fault system in the Korea Strait. Therefore it was deemed necessary to find an efficient way of predicting the likely behaviour of underground structures under fault slip. This paper presents the findings from simple numerical analysis for investigating the stress induced at a normal fault with a dip of 45 degrees. We used a boundary element software that assumed constant displacement discontinuity, which allowed the displacement to be estimated separately at both the fault's hangingwall and footwall sides. The results suggested that a principal stress rotation of 45 degrees occurred at the edges of the fault during the slip, which was in agreement with the phenomenon for fault plane suggested in the body of literature. A simple numerical procedure presented in this paper could be adopted to investigate other fault-related issues associated with underground structure construction.

• Tunnel and Underground Space
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• v.26 no.2
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• pp.59-67
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• 2016

In this paper, we perform a numerical analysis to evaluate the potential of fault reactivation during gas production from hydrate bearing sediments and the moment magnitude of induced seismicity. For the numerical analysis, sequential coupling of TOUGH+Hydrate and FLAC3D was used and the change in effective stress and consequent geomechanical deformation including fault reactivation was simulated by assuming that Mohr-Coulomb shear resistance criterion is valid. From the test production simulation of 30 days, we showed that pore pressure reduction as well as effective stress change hardly induces the fault reactivation in the vicinity of a production well. We also investigated the influence of stress state conditions to a fault reactivation, and showed that normal fault stress regime, where vertical stress is relatively greater than horizontal, may have the largest potential for the reactivation. We tested one simulation that earthquake can be induced during gas production and calculated the moment magnitude of the seismicity. Our calculation presented that all the magnitudes from the calculation were negative values, which indicates that induced earthquakes can be grouped into micro-seismic and as small as hardly perceived by human beings. However, it should be noted that the current simulation was carried out using the highly simplified geometric model and assumptions such that the further simulations for a scheduled test production and commercial scale production considering complex geometric conditions may produce different results.

• Journal of the Korean earth science society
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• v.36 no.1
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• pp.1-15
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• 2015

In order to outline the kinematics and movement history of a new Quaternary fault, Jingwan Fault in Dangjin, West Korea, we analyzed the geometry of the fault zone composed of a few gouge zones, and made ESR dating for fault gouge materials. The $N55^{\circ}E$ striking Jingwan Fault is a normal fault and exhibits a gradual change in dip (gentle in the lower part, steep in the upper part), indicating a listric fault. As for the fault gouge zone, its thickness varies and reaches 2~3 cm in the lower part or between basement rocks, and 20~30 cm in the middle-upper part or between the basement and Quaternary deposit. It is observed in the latter case that more than three gouge zones develop with different colors, and branch out and re-merge, or they are partly superimposed, indicating different movement episodes. The cumulative displacement is estimated to be about 10 m using the geological cross-sections, from which it is inferred that the total length of fault may be about 2.5 km on the basis of the empirical relation between cumulative displacement and fault length. Therefore, a more study would be needed to verify the entire fault length. The results of ESR dating for three gouge samples at different spots along the fault yields ages of $651{\pm}47$, $649{\pm}96$, and $436{\pm}66ka$, indicating at least two movement episodes. Slickenlines observed on the fault planes indicate a pure dip slip (normal faulting), which suggests that the ENE-WSW trending Jingwan Fault was presumably moved under a NNW-SSE extensional environment.

• Journal of The Geomorphological Association of Korea
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• v.28 no.3
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• pp.63-83
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• 2021

In the southeastern part of the Korean Peninsula, the Yangsan Fault, an active fault zone, has developed. Many earthquakes occur around these faults, and the possibility of earthquakes occurring along the branch faults is being discussed. On the other hand, the Yeongdeok Fault is reported in Yeongdeok-gun, which is the northern part of the Yangsan fault. In this study, goemorphic characteristics of a set faults found on the outcrop of the gentle slope of the coast of Byeonggok-myeon were analyzed and granulometric and geochemical characteristics of sediments and other materials, including fault gouges were analyzed. The outcrop of Byeonggok-myeon is the part of the fault core and can be divided into two parts. Theses fault are formed on the upper part of the Mesozoic bedrock and the tertiary sedimentary layer of red sand-supported clasts are covered in several sedimentary units. The faults were normal fault sets, and a number of vertical cracks were developed, and glossy surfaces were observed in the fault area. It appears that these faults have occurred after alluvial deposition had been formed. In the case of samples from fault gouges, there were differences in particle size and geochemical characteristics from the surrounding area.

• Journal of the Korean Geophysical Society
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• v.2 no.1
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• pp.65-74
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• 1999

From refraction data along four seismic profiles near Eonyang which the Yangsan fault passes through, the Slope Variation Indicators (SVI) are computed and interpreted in terms of fault distribution. The average velocities of 2,250-2,870 m/s are estimated using velocity-analysis functions for the target boundary along those profiles. The average velocity for Line 1 is approximately 600 m/s lower than ones for the other lines. The SVI's with amplitude greater than or equal to 0.5 ms/m are turned out to be located near faults shown on the high-resolution reflection section, as closely as one station spacing (3 m). Large amplitude SVI's are densely distributed near National Road 35, and the fault having the largest vertical slip is indicated to be located approximately 930 m west of the inferred fault on the published geologic map.

• Journal of the Korean Geophysical Society
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• v.2 no.3
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• pp.155-168
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• 1999

The paleoseismological importance of the Yangsan fault zone was examined by historical earthquake data, aerial photograph, and trench survey of the area. Occurrences of great earthquakes during the historical time indicate that the Yangsan and/or Ulsan fault have been active during the late Quaternary and generated historical events. Geomorphological evidences of the recent fault activity are clearly shown both in the northern segment (Yugye-ri, Tosung-ri and Naengsu-ri areas) and in the southern segment (Eonyang to Tongdosa areas) of the Yangsan fault. The main Yangsan fault is characterized by fault gouges and NNE-SSW lineaments. The reverse faulting in the Yugye-ri area generated about three-mater displacement of the lower terrace deposits. On the other hand, a major strike-slip movement with a minor component of 5-12 m vertical displacement was identified by the offset of the higher terrace surface in the Eonyang area.

• Economic and Environmental Geology
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• v.57 no.1
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• pp.73-81
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• 2024

To estimate the tectonic displacement of the Chugaryeong Fault System (CFS), gravity surveys were conducted along the Dongducheon fault (DF) and the Wangsukcheon fault (WF). A total of 1,100 stations for the DF and WF regions have been added to the current gravity database. The results of the gravity interpretation indicate that (1) the dextral displacement of the DF is about 3,000 m, similar to the tectonic displacement (2,900-3,100 m) shown in the geological map. (2) The dextral displacement of the WF is about 3,200 m. (3) Taken together, the tectonic displacement of the CFS is estimated to be about 3,000 m on average. To investigate more accurate tectonic displacement of the CFS, further gravity surveys is planned for the Pocheon fault, Gyeonggang fault, and Inje fault.

• Tunnel and Underground Space
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• v.10 no.4
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• pp.497-505
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• 2000

The surveyed area is mainly distributed by the sedimentary rocks, tuffs, and esites in Cretaceous age and acidic and basic dikes are intruded in these rocks. The principle discontinuities are represented by beddings, joints and faults. The trends of the beddings of sedimentary rocks develop as E-W direction in the start area. However, they are gradually bending and finally their trends are N-S direction in terminal area. In the sedimentary rocks the 3∼4 joint sets are distributed and in dikes joints are more scattered. The majority of joints are highly dipped. Sampo fault which has NE-SW trend makes a valley and NW trending normal faults are well developed at 50k+600 to 51k+000 area. During the construction of tunnel the orientation of discontinuities will not significantly influence on the stability of excavation. Since the rock mass is extensively jointed, the overbreak in tunnel wall may be placed.

• Korean Journal of Mineralogy and Petrology
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• v.35 no.3
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• pp.235-258
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• 2022

We interpreted the evolutionary history of the southwestern part of the Pohang Basin, the largest Miocene basin in the southeastern part of the Korean Peninsula, based on the detailed geological mapping and analysis of the geological structures. The southwestern part of the Pohang Basin can be divided into the Bomun Domain in the west and Ocheon Domain in the east by an NNE-trending horst-in-graben. These two domains have different geometries and deformation histories. The Bomun Domain was rarely deformed after the incipient extension of the basin, whereas the Ocheon Domain is an area where continued and overlapped deformations occurred after the basin fill deposition. Therefore, the Bomun Domain provides critical information on the initial extension mode of the Pohang Basin. The subsidence of the Bomun Domain was led by the zigzag-shaped western border fault that consists of NNE-striking normal and NNW-striking dextral strike-slip fault segments. This border fault is connected to the Yeonil Tectonic Line (YTL), a regional dextral principal displacement zone and the westernmost limit of Miocene crustal deformation in SE Korea. Therefore, it is interpreted that the Pohang Basin was initially extended in WNW-ESE direction as a transtensional fault-termination basin resulting from the movement of NNE-striking normal and/or oblique-slip faults formed as right-stepover in the northern termination of the YTL activated since approximately 17-16.5 Ma. As a result, an NNE-trending asymmetric graben or half-graben exhibiting an westward deepening of basin depth was formed in the Bomun Domain. Afterward, crustal extension and deformation were migrated to the east, including the Ocheon Domain.

• Economic and Environmental Geology
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• v.42 no.6
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• pp.635-643
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• 2009

In this paper, a Quaternary fault is described, which is developed in the mid-eastern part of Ulsan Fault Zone, near the southern Gaegok-ri, Oedong-eub, Gyeongju, Korea. The Gaegok 6 fault is developed along the contact between Early Tertiary granite and Quaternary gravel deposit overlying unconformably the granite. The fault strikes $N02^{\circ}{\sim}22^{\circ}E$ and dips $45^{\circ}{\sim}80^{\circ}$ to the west. This fault has a 30~50 cm wide cataclastic shear zone with gouge zone, mixed with Quaternary sediments and fault breccia of granite. In the main Quaternary fault plane, the orientation of striation is $17^{\circ}$, $356^{\circ}$, indicating a dextral strike-slip faulting with some normal component. There is another striation ($78^{\circ}$, $278^{\circ}$ and $43^{\circ}$, $270^{\circ}$) with reverse-slip sense, developed on the subsidiary plane which cuts the main Quaternary fault plane. In brief, the fault has been developed between the granite in the western part and the Quaternary gravel deposit in the eastern part. The western block of fault is uplifted. The striations and movement senses of faults indicate multiple compressional stages in this region. The fault has a similar orientation, westward dipping geometric pattern, and reverse sensed kinematic pattern with Gaegok 1 fault developed in the north. Thus, the Gaegok 6 fault is probably a southern extension of Gaegok 1 fault.