• Title/Summary/Keyword: Environment assessment

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Assessment of natural radioactivity in soil and olive mill pomace utilizing nal (TI) gamma-ray spectrometry and low background alpha/beta counting system

  • Amani Kraishan;Mohammad Abu Shayeb;Hafedh Belmabrouk;Ahmad Ali Husein Qwasmeh;Muzahir Ali Baloch
    • Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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    • v.56 no.5
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    • pp.1925-1931
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    • 2024
  • The study conducted in the northwest region of Jordan aimed to assess the levels of natural radioactivity in soil and olive mill pomace (OMP) samples. The researchers used Nal (TI) gamma-ray spectrometry to measure the activity concentrations of 226Ra, 232Th, 40K, and 137Cs in the samples. The average activity concentrations of 226Ra, 232Th, 40K, and 137Cs in the soil samples were found to be 18.624 ± 5.82, 12.276 ± 5.728, 518.33 ± 212.57, and 0.140 ± 0.09 (Bq, kg-1), respectively. In the OMP samples, the average activity concentrations of 226Ra, 232Th, and 40K were 7.272 ± 4.386, 3.454 ± 1.503, and 169.997 ± 81.873 (Bq kg-1), respectively, and no 137Cs was detected. The study also investigated fundamental parameters associated with radon, specifically the radon emanation coefficient (RnEC) and radon mass exhalation rate (Ex). The RnEC values ranged from 0.621 to 0.78 (Bq kg-1), with an average value of 0.71 ± 0.06 (Bq kg-1). The estimated Ex from the soil samples ranged from 65.83 to 124.86 (mBq kg-1h-1), with an average value of 99.74 ± 21.73 (mBq kg-1h-1). Regarding radiological hazards, the study examined various parameters, including radium equivalent activity, external and internal hazard indices, gamma and alpha indices, absorbed gamma dose rate, and excess lifetime cancer risk. All of these assessed values were found to be below the worldwide recommended limits for radiological safety. Additionally, the study analyzed the concentrations of gross alpha and gross beta radioactivities in soil and OMP samples. The soil samples had an average gross alpha activity of 4.642 ± 1.04 (Bq kg-1) and an average gross beta activity of 48.13 ± 14.50 (Bq kg-1). The OMP samples showed an average gross alpha activity of 0.32 ± 0.27 (Bq kg-1) and an average gross beta activity of 59.19 ± 12.94 (Bq kg-1). Overall, the obtained results are crucial for evaluating the radiological risks associated with natural radioactivity in the northwest region of Jordan. The findings establish baseline data for comparison and reference for radioactivity levels in the environment.

Assessment of Educational Needs in Uzbekistan: For the Capacity Building in Textiles and Fashion Higher Education (우즈베키스탄 섬유·패션 고등교육의 역량 강화를 위한 교육협력사업 수요조사)

  • Cho, Ahra;Lee, Hyojeong;Jin, Byoungho Ellie;Lee, Yoon-Jung
    • Journal of Korean Home Economics Education Association
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    • v.35 no.3
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    • pp.169-190
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    • 2023
  • Uzbekistan, one of the top five cotton-producing countries in the world, primarily focuses its textile and fashion industry on raw cotton exports and the sewing industry. For Uzbekistan to achieve high added value, it is essential for the textile and fashion industry, which is currently at the CMT(cut, make, and trim) stage, to upgrade to OEM (original equipment manufacturing), ODM (original design manufacturing), and OBM (original brand manufacturing). South Korea recognizes Uzbekistan as a potential manufacturing base and trading partner and has invested Official Development Assistance (ODA) funds for the development of Uzbekistan's textiles and apparel sector. This study aims to evaluate Uzbekistan's fashion higher education in the context of global competitiveness and measure the need and prospects for education ODA from the Korean government in this field. Comprehensive investigations, including surveys of academics, industry experts, and government officials, in-depth interviews, and focus group interviews, were conducted to understand Uzbekistan's current fashion education environment. According to the research results, despite the textile and fashion sectors playing a pivotal role in the Uzbek economy, there is room for improvement in the curricula and teaching and learning methods of the fashion higher education programs. This study holds significance as foundational data for establishing education ODA strategies.

Comparison Analysis of Environmental Performance between Reconstruction and Remodeling Alternatives for Aged - Focused on CO2 Emissions Analysis - (공동주택 재건축과 리모델링의 친환경성 비교분석 - CO2 배출량 분석을 중심으로 -)

  • Kim, Chibaek;Shin, Dongwoo;Han, Juyeon;Hwang, Youngkyu
    • Korean Journal of Construction Engineering and Management
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    • v.15 no.1
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    • pp.87-100
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    • 2014
  • Environmental problems and the shortage of natural resources are currently gathering more attention in Korea and international countries. With these problems, it is reported that most current domestic buildings are emitting approximately 138 million tons of greenhouse gas. According to a recent report from the investigation of Korean housing population, the total number of households is approximately 12.9 millions, and the apartments that were built more than 15 years ago amounted to 3.1 millions. This shows that the rates of old apartment housings are increasing. Therefore, it is necessary to consider the deteriorated facilities and environmental improvement. Also, the construction industry is benefited by improving these housings which may need either remodeling or reconstruction. Environmental friendly buildings are a rising consideration for remodeling and reconstruction projects; it helps to determine many business matters in construction. The main purpose of this research is to improve environmental condition in apartments with comparison analysis between remodeling and reconstruction alternatives. This research is focused on characteristics of remodeling and reconstruction and it sets up the same condition with each level in order to evaluate the value of environmental friendliness and analyze its definition. The result of this research provides a unique emitting rate at a novel framework and this will cause the reduction of $CO_2$. It is analyzed that the remodeling construction can reduce the great amount of $CO_2$. Therefore, it will be a good decision guideline in selecting the most eco-friendly alternative to improve environment for building construction. Although reconstruction is a popular alternative nowadays in Korea, this research can provide a reason why decision makers should put more emphasis on remodeling as an environment-friendly alternative.

Analysis of the Issues received by Quality Improvement Department and their Management in a Medical Center (일 의료원의 통합 고충처리센터 접수 내용과 이에 대한 해결방안 분석)

  • Tark, Kwan-Chul;Park, Hyun-Ju;Chun, Ja-Hae;Kang, Eun-Sook;Moon, Ju-Young;Choi, Mi-Young;Kim, Hyun-Ju;Kang, Jin-Kyung
    • Quality Improvement in Health Care
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    • v.7 no.1
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    • pp.118-131
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    • 2000
  • Background : A continuous healthcare quality improvement is needed to provide high quality healthcare service as well as to maintain trust in terms of satisfying the needs of the patients. Recently it also became an essential issue. in hospital management, recognized for it's competitive potentiality among healthcare organization groups. This study was conducted to analyze patient complaints and issues received by the Quality Improvement Department. Its purpose is to improve healthcare qualities within the hospital, as well as establish policies and appropriate strategies in hospital management. Method : From July 1st to September 30th of the year 1999, we analyzed all complaints and issues made by various patients and their families, which were received through 24 hour phone consultation, numerous suggestion boxes, letters and E-mails, The issues were classified into 16 different categories based on a Patient Satisfaction Assessment Tool. All data were segregated according to the departmental frequencies and their contents. To come up with for environmental and patient satisfaction improvement, all complaints or issues were communicated with hospital administrators, medical and nursing staff and employees. Comprehensive customer satisfaction activities including improving phone etiquette were discussed in Customer Satisfaction Team, CQI Team and each Department. All opportunities for improvement were implemented. Feedback actions were discussed. Results : A total of 317 cases were collected. Issues regarding parking and other accommodation facilities were most common complaints that were 14.5% of total. Issues regarding admission rooms (10.7%), admission procedures (10.7%), waiting room environment (8.8%), nurses and nurse assistants (7.6%), physicians (6.6%) and others (23%) followed. Thirteen of 45 departments received more than 8 complaints. The Nursing Department had the most complaint, receiving 9.8% of total complaints. Complaints regarding the Nursing Department were predominantly related to the environment of patient rooms. The Department of Psychiatry for phone etiquette (4.7%), Department of Otolaryngology for the nursing staff's attitude and phone etiquette (4.4%), and the Admission Department followed. As a part of efforts to improve patient satisfaction, a new parking structure was built and reallocation of the parking space was done. Renovation of other accommodation facilities were carried out by hospital administration, Monthly phone call and answering attitude survey was done by QI Department. Based on this survey we made a phone etiquette manual and distributed throughout the hospital. Compare to the last year, Patient Satisfaction Index measured by Korea Productivity Center using National Customer Satisfaction Index was improved 7 points. According to our organization's own study, we confirmed the phone etiquette was improved 11% than last year. Conclusions : Issues related to parking and other accommodation facilities ranked first followed by complaints made regarding the patient care area, the admission and cashier process, and nurses' and doctors' attitude. The Nursing and Psychiatry Departments need improvement regarding phone etiquette. Results were shared and played a vital role in policymaking and strategic planning of the hospital. It is imperative that we keep our database updated by listening to and solving the needs of each patient. The CQI activities can be achieved only by full commitment of the hospital top management supported by related personal.

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A Taxonomic Reconsideration of the Genus Lemna L. (Lemnaceae) in Korea (한국산 좀개구리밥속(개구리밥과)의 분류학적 실체에 대한 재고)

  • Kim, Yong-In;Shim, Sang In;Park, Jin Hee
    • Korean Journal of Environment and Ecology
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    • v.31 no.4
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    • pp.349-364
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    • 2017
  • Duckweed family (Lemnaceae Martinov), including the genus Lemna L., is a typical floating aquatic perennial plant, and about five genera and 40 species in the family are in wide distribution around the world except the polar regions. The genus Lemna is the smallest and the simplest plant among the angiosperms. It has a characteristic of doubling every three days with fast vegetative propagation, which helps the organisms to increase in rapid growth. As such, the plant is ideal for environmental pollution assessment and toxicity test. Although taxonomists and scholars have used different scientific names for the species, many of them have agreed that there is only one member of species of the genus Lemna in Korea. Paying attention to the external morphological variation observed in the Korean genus Lemna, we conducted a molecular phylogenetic analysis to identify the entity of the Korean Lemna species and to investigate the possibility of two or more members of the species existing in Korea. We determined and aligned the DNA sequences of the atpF-H region of the chloroplast DNA in 37 populations of the nationally distributed Lemna species. The results showed that the sequence length of the cp DNA atpF-H region was 463-483 bp, the length of the aligned sequences was 488 bp, and the number of variation site in nucleotide sequences was 47. There were two types of aligned sequences of the cp DNA atpF-H region from 37 populations of Lemna species in Korea. The maximum parsimony analysis revealed that the Korean Lemna consists of two clades, and one of them had two subclades. The results suggest that, contrary to the general understanding, at least two taxa (L.aequinoctialis, L.minor) exist in Korea.

THE STUDY ON RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN PSYCHOPATHOLOGY AND NEUROLOGICAL FACTORS IN CHRONIC EPILEPTIC CHILDREN (경련 질환 환아의 정신병리와 신경학적 요인과의 관계에 대한 연구)

  • Kim, Bung-Nyun;Cho, Soo-Churl;Hwang, Yong-Seung
    • Journal of the Korean Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
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    • v.7 no.1
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    • pp.92-109
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    • 1996
  • The objectives of the present study were to provide comprehensive assessment of the impact of epilepsy on the psychological well-being of children with epilepsy and to identify the neurological factors associated with the psychopathology. The participant patients were recruited from the population of children and adolescent aged 7 to 16 attending the OPD of department of pediatric neurology in Seoul National University Hospital in Korea. We exclude mental retardation, pervasive developmental disorder and brain organic pathology. As control group, formal students were chosen and their sex, age, achievement, socioeconomic status were matched to patients. The first author interviewed the children and their family members and obtained the developmental history and family information. We used the following 10 scales for assessing psychological and behavioral problems in patients and their family member. The scales were standardized and their validity and reliability were confirmed before. Parent rating scales : Yale children's inventory, Disruptive behavior disorder scale, Parent's attitude to epilepsy questionnaire, Family environment scale, Symptom check-list-90 revision, Children behavior check-list. Children's self rating scales : Children's depression inventory, Spielberger's state-trait anxiety anxiety, Piers-Harris self-concept inventory and Self-administered Dependency questionnaire for Mother. The result showed the risk factors associated depression were early onset, complex partial seizure, lateralized temporal focal abnormality on EEG, Drug polypharmacy, high seizure frequency and sick factors associated anxiety were old age of patient, lateralized temporal focal abnormality EEG, Drug polypharmacy, high seizure frequency. Also the result of this present study indicated that risk factors associated oppositional defiant disorder, conduct disorder and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder were young age, male, early onset, lateral temporal EEG abnormality and high seizure frequency. According to these results, common risk factors associated psychological and behavioral problems were lateralized EEG temporal abnormality, high seizure frequency in neurological factors.

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Comparison of Seawater Exchange Rate of Small Scale Inner Bays within Jinhae Bay (수치모델을 이용한 진해만 내 소규모 내만의 해수교환율 비교)

  • Kim, Nam Su;Kang, Hoon;Kwon, Min-Sun;Jang, Hyo-Sang;Kim, Jong Gu
    • Journal of the Korean Society for Marine Environment & Energy
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    • v.19 no.1
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    • pp.74-85
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    • 2016
  • For the assessment of seawater exchange rates in Danghangpo bay, Dangdong bay, Wonmun bay, Gohyunsung bay, and Masan bay, which are small-scale inner bays of Jinhae bay, an EFDC model was used to reproduce the seawater flow of the entire Jinhae bay, and Lagrange (particle tracking) and Euler (dye diffusion) model techniques were used to calculate the seawater exchange rates for each of the bays. The seawater exchange rate obtained using the particle tracking method was the highest, at 60.84%, in Danghangpo bay, and the lowest, at 30.50%, in Masan bay. The seawater exchange rate calculated based on the dye diffusion method was the highest, at 45.40%, in Danghangpo bay, and the lowest, at 34.65%, in Masan bay. The sweater exchange rate was found to be the highest in Danghangpo bay likely because of a high flow velocity owing to the narrow entrance of the bay; and in the case of particle tracking method, the morphological characteristics of the particles affected the results, since once the particles get out, it is difficult for them to get back in. Meanwhile, in the case of the Lagrange method, when the particles flow back in by the flood current after escaping the ebb current, they flow back in intact. However, when a dye flows back in after escaping the bay, it becomes diluted by the open sea water. Thus, the seawater exchange rate calculated based on the dye diffusion method turned out to be higher in general, and even if a comparison of the sweater exchange rates calculated through two methods was conducted under the same condition, the results were completely different. Thus, when assessing the seawater exchange rate, more reasonable results could be obtained by either combining the two methods or selecting a modeling technique after giving sufficiently consideration to the purpose of the study and the characteristics of the coastal area. Meanwhile, through a comparison of the degree of closure and seawater exchange rates calculated through Lagrange and Euler methods, it was found that the seawater exchange rate was higher for a higher degree of closure, regardless of the numerical model technique. Thus, it was deemed that the degree of closure would be inappropriate to be used as an index for the closeness of the bay, and some modifications as well as supplementary information would be necessary in this regard.

Comparison of Deep Learning Frameworks: About Theano, Tensorflow, and Cognitive Toolkit (딥러닝 프레임워크의 비교: 티아노, 텐서플로, CNTK를 중심으로)

  • Chung, Yeojin;Ahn, SungMahn;Yang, Jiheon;Lee, Jaejoon
    • Journal of Intelligence and Information Systems
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    • v.23 no.2
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    • pp.1-17
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    • 2017
  • The deep learning framework is software designed to help develop deep learning models. Some of its important functions include "automatic differentiation" and "utilization of GPU". The list of popular deep learning framework includes Caffe (BVLC) and Theano (University of Montreal). And recently, Microsoft's deep learning framework, Microsoft Cognitive Toolkit, was released as open-source license, following Google's Tensorflow a year earlier. The early deep learning frameworks have been developed mainly for research at universities. Beginning with the inception of Tensorflow, however, it seems that companies such as Microsoft and Facebook have started to join the competition of framework development. Given the trend, Google and other companies are expected to continue investing in the deep learning framework to bring forward the initiative in the artificial intelligence business. From this point of view, we think it is a good time to compare some of deep learning frameworks. So we compare three deep learning frameworks which can be used as a Python library. Those are Google's Tensorflow, Microsoft's CNTK, and Theano which is sort of a predecessor of the preceding two. The most common and important function of deep learning frameworks is the ability to perform automatic differentiation. Basically all the mathematical expressions of deep learning models can be represented as computational graphs, which consist of nodes and edges. Partial derivatives on each edge of a computational graph can then be obtained. With the partial derivatives, we can let software compute differentiation of any node with respect to any variable by utilizing chain rule of Calculus. First of all, the convenience of coding is in the order of CNTK, Tensorflow, and Theano. The criterion is simply based on the lengths of the codes and the learning curve and the ease of coding are not the main concern. According to the criteria, Theano was the most difficult to implement with, and CNTK and Tensorflow were somewhat easier. With Tensorflow, we need to define weight variables and biases explicitly. The reason that CNTK and Tensorflow are easier to implement with is that those frameworks provide us with more abstraction than Theano. We, however, need to mention that low-level coding is not always bad. It gives us flexibility of coding. With the low-level coding such as in Theano, we can implement and test any new deep learning models or any new search methods that we can think of. The assessment of the execution speed of each framework is that there is not meaningful difference. According to the experiment, execution speeds of Theano and Tensorflow are very similar, although the experiment was limited to a CNN model. In the case of CNTK, the experimental environment was not maintained as the same. The code written in CNTK has to be run in PC environment without GPU where codes execute as much as 50 times slower than with GPU. But we concluded that the difference of execution speed was within the range of variation caused by the different hardware setup. In this study, we compared three types of deep learning framework: Theano, Tensorflow, and CNTK. According to Wikipedia, there are 12 available deep learning frameworks. And 15 different attributes differentiate each framework. Some of the important attributes would include interface language (Python, C ++, Java, etc.) and the availability of libraries on various deep learning models such as CNN, RNN, DBN, and etc. And if a user implements a large scale deep learning model, it will also be important to support multiple GPU or multiple servers. Also, if you are learning the deep learning model, it would also be important if there are enough examples and references.

A Study on the Habitat Use of Waterbirds and Grading Assessment of the Tidal Flat at Muan Bay in Jeollanamdo, Korea (전라남도 무안만에 도래하는 수조류의 서식지 이용 및 갯벌등급 평가)

  • Kang, Tae-Han;Yoo, Seung-Hwa;Lee, Si-Wan;Choi, Ok-In;Lee, Chong-Bin
    • Korean Journal of Environment and Ecology
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    • v.22 no.5
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    • pp.521-529
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    • 2008
  • This research conducted a survey on waterbirds visiting this area four times by season from February to October in 2007 to look into the habitat use of waterbirds, to do a value and grade testing of the tidal flat by dividing the foreshore on Muan Bay located in Jeollanam-do into four areas (Dongam, Guro, Bokryong and Wangsan tidal flats). The survey results revealed that there existed a total of 15,755 individuals of 54 species including 2 species of grebes, 7 species of herons, 7 species of dabbling ducks, 6 species of diving ducks, 20 species of waders, 3 species of gulls and 9 other species and this survey also observed 9,291 individuals of the wading birds as a dominant group on Muan Bay. In these classified groups, the gulls and waders were observed to mostly use Dongam tidal flat as their habitat, while the group using Guro tidal flat as their habitat was mostly grebes, dabbling and diving ducks. As a result of UPGMA clustering analysis in consideration of the species and number of individuals, there appear the close similarities between Dongam and Bokryong tidal flats and so do Guro and Wangsan tidal flats. Taking a look at the grading of tidal flats by setting up ecological indexes, such as diversity index, abundance index, and dominance index, etc. legally reserved species and maximum number of individuals as a standard, the rank for the value and importance degree of Bokryong tidal flat appeared higher than that of the other three tidal flats. Like this, the gradation of tidal flats according to waterbirds are judged to able to suggest objective data on the issue of proper judgment and designation of valuable tidal flat areas and its subsequent effective preservation and management.

Assessment of Soil Contamination and Hydrogeochemistry for Drinking Water Sites in Korea (국내 먹는샘물 개발지역의 토양 오염 평가 및 수리지구화학적 특성)

  • 이두호;전효택
    • Journal of the Korean Society of Groundwater Environment
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    • v.4 no.1
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    • pp.41-53
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    • 1997
  • Geochemical data of soil and water samples were presented in order to assess the environmental impart for drinking water sites. Microscopic observation of rock samples and physical and chemical analysis of soil and water samples were undertaken. The geology of study areas are classified into three groups such as granitic rocks, meta-sedimentary rocks and sedimentary rocks. Enrichment of heavy metals derived from those rocks is not found in this study areas. Soils were analyzed for Cu, Pb, Zn, Cd and Cr using AAS extracted by HNO$_3$+HClO$_4$ and 0.1 N HCl. Heavy metal concentrations in soils are within the range of those in uncontaminated soils. In comparison of metal contents extracted by 0.1 N HCl and HNO$_3$+HC1O$_4$, less than 10% of the heavy metals are present in the exchangeable fraction. In particular, an pollution index has been proposed to assess the degree of soil contamination. Pollution index in soils are between 0.03 and 0.47 therefore, soils are not polluted with heavy metals. Deep groundwaters within granitic rocks have been evolved into Na$\^$+/-HCO$_3$$\^$-/ type, whereas other deep groundwaters evolved into Ca$\^$2+/-HCO$_3$$\^$-/ type. The predominance of Na$\^$+/ over Ca$\^$2+/ in deep groundwaters within granitic rocks is a result of dissolution of plagioclase, but for sedimentary and meta-sedimentary rocks, dissolution of calcite is a dominant factor for their hydrogeochemistry. The pH, conductivity and contents of the most dissolved ions in the water increase with depth. Shallow groundwaters, however, are highly susceptible to pollution owing to agricultural activities, considering the fact that high contents of nitrate, chloride and potassium, and high K/Na ratio are observed in some shallow groundwaters. In a thermodynamic approach, most natural water samples are plotted within the stability fields of kaolinite and smectite. Therefore, microcline and other feldspars will alter to form clay minerals, such as kaolinite and smectite. From the modelling for water-rock interactions based on mass balance equation, models accord well with behavior of the ions and results of thermodynamic studies are derived.

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