• The Journal of Engineering Geology
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• v.24 no.4
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• pp.525-534
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• 2014

Environmental problems typically occurring in abandoned mine lands (AML) include: contaminated and acidic surface water and groundwater; stockpiled waste rock and mill tailings; and ground subsidences due to mining operations. This study examines the effectiveness of various geophysical techniques for mapping potential hazard and contaminated zones. Four AML sites with sedimentation contamination problems, acid mine drainage (AMD) channels, ground subsidence, manmade liner leakage, and buried mine tailings, were selected to examine the applicability of various geophysical methods to the identification of the different types of mine hazards. Geophysical results were correlated to borehole data (core samples, well logs, tomographic profiles, etc.) and water sample data (pH, electrical conductivity (EC), and heavy metal contents). Zones of low electrical resistivity (ER) corresponded to areas contaminated by heavy metals, especially contamination by Cu, Pb, and Zn. The main pathways of AMD leachate were successfully mapped using ER methods (low anomaly peaks), self-potential (SP) curves (negative peaks), and ground penetrating radar (GPR) at shallow penetration depths. Mine cavities were well located based on composite interpretations of ER, seismic tomography, and well-log records; mine cavity locations were also observed in drill core data and using borehole image processing systems (BIPS). Damaged zones in buried manmade liners (used to block descending leachate) were precisely detected by ER mapping, and buried rock waste and tailings piles were characterized by low-velocity zones in seismic refraction data and high-resistivity zones in the ER data.

• Tunnel and Underground Space
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• v.27 no.4
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• pp.205-216
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• 2017

Fluctuations in groundwater level are the major cause of ground subsidence in the abandoned limestone mine. In this study, evaluation of groundwater flow under three different cases of natural condition, aggregate-filling, temporary drainage in groundwater-saturated limestone mine cavities was executed by 3-dimensional analysis. In the case of aggregate-filling, although the water level both in the upper ground of mine cavities and an agricultural watershed was elevated, it was lower than the water level fluctuation of an agricultural water use and rainfall and the flow rate was similar to the flow rate of natural condition. In the case of temporary drainage, as the water level in the upper ground of mine cavities and an agricultural watershed decrease rapidly and the flow rate has increased by 25times, so the risk of ground subsidence increased.

• Explosives and Blasting
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• v.41 no.4
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• pp.29-40
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• 2023

Rock blasting is utilized in various fields such as mining, tunneling, and the construction of underground structures. The role of rock blasting technology has became increasingly significant with the growing utilization of underground cavity. Blast hole pressure, generated during rock blasting, is a critical variable directly impacting factors such as crushing and blast vibration. It stands out as one of the most important parameters for assessing explosive performance and predicting blasting effects. While blast hole pressure has been studied by several researches, comparisons are challenging due to variations in experimental conditions such as explosive type, charge, and blasting conditions. In this study, blast hole pressure sensors and observation hole pressure sensors were developed to measure pressure during single-hole blasting, The experimental results were then used to discuss the propagation characteristics of pressure around the blast hole and the corresponding blast vibration.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.35 no.1
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• pp.29-39
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• 2023

As the intensity of urban underground space development increases, more and more tunnels are planned and constructed, and sometimes it is inevitable to encounter situations where tunnels have to underpass the river embankments. Most previous studies involved tunnels passing river embankments perpendicularly or with large intersection angle. In this study, a project case where two EPB shield tunnels with 8.82 m diameter run parallelly underneath a river embankment was reported. The parallel length is 380 m and tunnel were mainly buried in the moderate / slightly weathered clastic rock layer. The field monitoring result was presented and discussed. Three-dimensional back-analysis were then carried out to gain a better understanding the interaction mechanisms between shield tunnel and embankment and further to predict the ultimate settlement of embankment due to twin-tunnel excavation. Parametrical studies considering effect of tunnel face pressure, tail grouting pressure and volume loss were also conducted. The measured embankment settlement after the single tunnel excavation was 4.53 mm ~ 7.43 mm. Neither new crack on the pavement or cavity under the roadbed was observed. It is found that the more degree of weathering of the rock around the tunnel, the greater the embankment settlement and wider the settlement trough. Besides, the latter tunnel excavation might cause larger deformation than the former tunnel excavation if the mobilized plastic zone overlapped. With given geometry and stratigraphic condition in this study, the safety or serviceability of the river embankment would hardly be affected since the ultimate settlement of the embankment after the twin-tunnel excavation is within the allowable limit. Reasonable tunnel face pressure and tail grouting pressure can to some extent suppress the settlement of the embankment. The recommended tunnel face pressure and tail grouting pressure are 300 kPa and 550 kPa in this study, respectively. However, the volume loss plays the crucial role in the tunnel-embankment interaction. Controlling and compensating the tunneling induced volume loss is the most effective measure for river embankment protection. Additionally, reinforcing the embankment with cement mixing pile in advance is an alternative option in case the predicted settlement exceeds allowable limit.

• Geophysics and Geophysical Exploration
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• v.10 no.4
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• pp.383-392
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• 2007

Karstic features and mining-related cavities not only lead to severe restrictions in land utilizations, but also constitute serious concern about geohazard and groundwater contamination. A microgravity survey was applied for detecting, mapping and monitoring karstic cavities in the test site at Muan prepared by KIGAM. The gravity data were collected using an AutoGrav CG-3 gravimeter at about 800 stations by 5 m interval along paddy paths. The density distribution beneath the profiles was drawn by two dimensional inversion based on the minimum support stabilizing functional, which generated better focused images of density discontinuities. We also imaged three dimensional density distribution by growing body inversion with solution from Euler deconvolution as a priori information. The density image showed that the cavities were dissolved, enlarged and connected into a cavity network system, which was supported by drill hole logs. A time-lapse microgravity was executed on the road in the test site for monitoring the change of the subsurface density distribution before and after grouting. The data were adjusted for reducing the effects due to the different condition of each survey, and inverted to density distributions. They show the change of density structure during the lapsed time, which implies the effects of grouting. This case history at the Muan test site showed that the microgravity with accuracy and precision of ${\mu}Gal$ is an effective and practical tool for detecting, mapping and monitoring the subsurface cavities.