• Journal of Soil and Groundwater Environment
• /
• v.17 no.6
• /
• pp.69-81
• /
• 2012

Diverse geostatistical tools such as kriging have been used to estimate the volume and spatial coverage of contaminated soil needed for remediation. However, many approaches frequently yield estimation errors, due to inherent geostatistical uncertainties. Such errors may yield over- or under-estimation of the amounts of polluted soils, which cause an over-estimation of remediation cost as well as an incomplete clean-up of a contaminated land. Therefore, it is very important to use a better estimation tool considering uncertainties arising from incomplete field investigation (i.e., contamination survey) and mathematical spatial estimation. In the current work, as better estimation tools we propose stochastic simulation approaches which allow the remediation volume to be assessed more accurately along with uncertainty estimation. To test the efficiency of proposed methods, heavy metals (esp., Pb) contaminated soil of a shooting range area was selected. In addition, we suggest a quantitative method to delineate the confident interval of estimated volume (and spatial extent) of polluted soil based on the spatial aspect of uncertainty. The methods proposed in this work can improve a better decision making on soil remediation.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
• /
• v.59 no.4
• /
• pp.739-759
• /
• 2016

The failure of civil engineering systems is a consequence of decision making under uncertain conditions. Generally, buried flexible pipes are designed for their transversal behavior to prevent from the important failure mode of buckling. However, the interaction effects between soil and pipe are neglected and the uncertainties in their properties are usually not considered in pipe design. In this regard, the present research paper evaluates the effects of these uncertainties on the uncertainty of the critical buckling hoop force of flexible pipes shallowly buried using the subgrade reaction theory (Winkler model) and First-Order Second-Moment (FOSM) method. The results show that the structural uncertainties of the studied pipes and those of the soil properties have a significant effect on the uncertainty of the critical buckling hoop force, and therefore taking into account these latter in the design of the shallowly flexible pipes for their buckling behavior is required.

• Coupled systems mechanics
• /
• v.6 no.4
• /
• pp.487-499
• /
• 2017

This paper investigates the approximate solution bounds of radon diffusion equation in soil pore matrix coupled with uncertainty. These problems have been modeled by few researchers by considering the parameters as crisp, which may not give the correct essence of the uncertainty. Here, the interval uncertainties are handled by parametric form and solution of the relevant uncertain diffusion equation is found by using Galerkin's Method. The shape functions are taken as the linear combination of orthogonal polynomials which are generated based on the parametric form of the interval uncertainty. Uncertain bounds are computed and results are compared in special cases viz. with the crisp solution.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
• /
• v.12 no.3
• /
• pp.483-503
• /
• 2017

Uncertainty is a fact belonging to engineering practice. An important uncertainty that sets geotechnical engineering is the variability associated with the properties of soils or, more precisely, the characterization of soil profiles. The reason is due largely to the complex and varied natural processes associated with the formation of soil. Spatial variability analysis for the study of the stability of natural slopes, complementing conventional analyses, is able to incorporate these uncertainties. In this paper the characterization is performed in back-analysis for a case of landslide occurred to verify afterwards the presence of the conditions of shear strength at failure. This approach may support designers to make more accurate estimates regarding slope failure responding, more consciously, to the legislation dispositions about slope stability evaluation and future design. By applying different kriging techniques used for spatial analysis it has been possible to perform a 3D-slope reconstruction. The predictive analysis and the areal mapping of the soil mechanical characteristics would support the definition of priority interventions in the zones characterized by more critical values as well as slope potential instability. This tool of analysis aims to support decision-making by directing project planning through the efficient allocation of available resources.

• Journal of The Korean Society of Agricultural Engineers
• /
• v.58 no.4
• /
• pp.57-66
• /
• 2016

Harmonized World Soil Database (HWSD) including the global soil information has been implemented to the runoff analysis in many watersheds of the world. However, its accuracy can be a critical issue in the modeling because of the limitation the low resolution reflecting the physical properties of soil in a watershed. Accordingly, this study attempted to assess the effect of HWSD in modeling by comparing parameters of the rainfall-runoff model using HWSD with the detailed soil map. For this, Grid based Rainfall-runoff Model (GRM) was employed in the Hyangseok watershed. The results showed that both of two soil maps in the rainfall-runoff model are able to well capture the observed runoff. However, compared with the detailed soil map, HWSD produced more uncertainty in the GRM parameters related to soil depth and hydraulic conductivity during the calibrations than the detailed soil map. Therefore, the uncertainty from the limited information on soil texture in HWSD should be considered for better calibration of a rainfall-runoff model.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
• /
• v.10 no.6
• /
• pp.517-532
• /
• 2000

A direct output feedback control scheme was recently proposed by the authors for single-story building structures resting on flexible soil body. In this paper, the control scheme is extended to mitigate the seismic responses of multi-story buildings. Soil-structure interaction is taken into account in two parts: input at the soil-structure interface/foundation and control algorithm. The former reflects the effect on ground motions and is monitored in real time with accelerometers at foundation. The latter includes the effect on the dynamic characteristics of structures, which is formulated by modifying the classical linear quadratic regulator based on the fundamental mode shape of the soil-structure system. Numerical result on the study of a $\frac{1}{4}$-scale three-story structure, supported by a viscoelastic half-space of soil mass, have demonstrated that the proposed algorithm is robust and very effective in suppressing the earthquake-induced vibration in building structures even supported on a flexible soil mass. Parametric studies are performed to understand how soil damping and flexibility affect the effectiveness of active tendon control. The selection of weighting matrix and effect of soil property uncertainty are investigated in detail for practical applications.

• Journal of Radiation Protection and Research
• /
• v.43 no.1
• /
• pp.29-38
• /
• 2018

Background: Radon contributing about 42% of annual average dose, mainly comes from soil. In this paper, standard measurement procedures for soil radon exhalation rate are suggested and their measurement uncertainties are analyzed. Materials and Methods: We used accumulation method for estimating surface exhalation rate. The closed-loop measurement system was made up with a RAD7 detector and a surface chamber. Radon activity concentrations in the system were observed as a function of time, with data collection of 5 and 15-minute and the measurement time of 4 hours. Linear and exponential fittings were used to obtain radon exhalation rates from observed data. Standard deviations of measurement uncertainties for two approaches were estimated using usual propagation rules. Results and Discussion: The exhalation rates (E) from linear approach, with 30 minutes measurement time were $44.8-48.6mBq{\cdot}m^{-2} {\cdot}s^{-1}$ or $2.14-2.32atom{\cdot}cm^{-2}{\cdot}s^{-1}$ with relative measurement uncertainty of about 10%. The contributions of fitting parameter A, volume (V) and surface (S) to the estimated measurement uncertainty of E were 59.8%, 30.1% and 10.1%, in average respectively. In exponential fitting, at 3-hour measurement we had E ranged of $51.6-69.2mBq{\cdot}m^{-2} {\cdot}s^{-1}$ or $2.46-3.30atom{\cdot}cm^{-2}{\cdot}s^{-1}$ with about 15% relative uncertainty. Fitting with 4-hour measurement resulted E about $51.3-68.2mBq{\cdot}m^{-2} {\cdot}s^{-1}$ or $2.45-3.25atom{\cdot}cm^{-2}{\cdot}s^{-1}$ with 10% relative uncertainty. The uncertainty contributions in exponential approach were 75.1%, 13.4%, 8.7%, and 2.9% for total decay constant k, fitting parameter B, V, and S, respectively. Conclusion: In obtaining exhalation rates, the linear approach is easy to apply, but by saturation feature of radon concentrations, the slope tends to decrease away from the expected slope for extended measurement time. For linear approach, measurement time of 1-hour or less was suggested. For exponential approach, the obtained exhalation rates showed similar values for any measurement time, but measurement time of 3-hour or more was suggested for about 10% relative uncertainty.

• Korean Journal of Remote Sensing
• /
• v.35 no.5_1
• /
• pp.625-636
• /
• 2019

Soil moisture is a representative factor that plays a key role in hydrological cycle. It is involved in the interaction between atmosphere and land surface, and is used in fields such as agriculture and water resources. Advanced Microwave Scanning Radiometer 2 (AMSR2), Advanced SCATterometer (ASCAT), and European Space Agency Climate Change Initiative (ESACCI) data were used to analyze the applicability and uncertainty of satellite soil moisture product in the Korean peninsula. Cumulative distribution function (CDF) matching and triple collocation (TC) analysis were carried out to investigate uncertainty and correction of satellite soil moisture data. Comparisons of pre-calibration satellite soil moisture data with the Automated Agriculture Observing System (AAOS) indicated that ESACCI and ASCAT data reflect the trend of AAOS well. On the other hand, AMSR2 satellite data showed overestimated values during the freezing period. Correction of satellite soil moisture data using CDF matching improved the error and correlation compared to those before correction. Finally, uncertainty analysis of soil moisture was carried out using TC method. Clearly, the uncertainty of the satellite soil moisture, corrected by CDF matching, was diminished in both freezing and thawing periods. Overall, it is expected that using ASCAT and ESACCI rather than AMSR2 soil moisture data will give more accurate soil moisture information when correction is performed on the Korean peninsula.

• Journal of Soil and Groundwater Environment
• /
• v.18 no.5
• /
• pp.15-25
• /
• 2013

In this study, two kinds of soil-based proficiency testing materials (PTMs), NICE-012L and NICE-012R were prepared and certified for Benzen, Toluene, Etylbenzene and Xylene with evaluation of uncertainties. In order to analyse BTEX (Benzen Toluene Etylbenzene Xylene) for the candidate materials, GC/MS was used after pretreatment according to methods of soil analysis by Ministry of Environment. For the homogeneity test among bottles in terms of candidate materials, ISO 13528 and IUPAC Protocol were used and according to the result, both candidate materials showed sufficient homogeneity. Also, the stability test over the candidate materials was accessed according to the ISO Guide 35 by classifying short-term and long-term stability and the result showed that both candidate materials showed decent stability. The reference values of the two candidate materials depending on BTEX components were derived from the average of the 11 samples that were used for verification of the samples' homogeneity. Uncertainty of measurement was combined by uchar that was caused by a characteristic value, $u_{bb}$ that was caused by between-bottle homogeneity, and $u_{stab}$ that was caused by stability, and then combined uncertainty ($u_{PTM}$) was multiplied to the coverage factor (k) derived from the effective degree of freedom from each factor that leads to expanded uncertainty (U) in about 95% of confidence level. The proficiency testing materials developed through this study were supplied to National Institute of Environmental Research (NIER) and utilized as an external proficiency testing materials for evaluating analysis capacity of soil agencies with specialty in terms of soil analysis approved by Minister of Environment.

• Journal of the Korean Geotechnical Society
• /
• v.28 no.11
• /
• pp.5-16
• /
• 2012

Since geologic data are often sampled at sparse locations, it is important not only to predict attribute values at unsampled locations, but also to assess the uncertainty attached to the prediction. In this paper, the assessment of the local uncertainty of prediction for the depth to weathered soil was performed by using the indicator kriging. A conditional cumulative distribution function (ccdf) was first modeled, and then E-type estimate was computed for the spatial distribution of the depth to the weathered soil. Also, optimal estimate of spatial distribution for the depth to weathered soil was determined by using ccdf and loss function. The design procedure and method considering the minimum expected loss presented in this paper can be used in the decision-making process for geotechnical engineering design.