• Environmental Engineering Research
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• v.25 no.1
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• pp.29-35
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• 2020

The aim of this study was to estimate the microbial metabolic activity of indigenous soil microbes under the radon exposure with different intensity and times in the secured laboratory radon chamber. For this purpose, the soil microbes were collected from radon-contaminated site located in the G county, Korea. Thereafter, their metabolic activity was determined after the radon exposure of varying radon concentrations of 185, 1,400 and 14,000 Bq/㎥. The average depth variable concentrations of soil radon in the radon-contaminated site were 707, 860 and 1,185 Bq/㎥ from 0, 15, and 30 cm in deep, respectively. Simultaneously, the soil microbial culture was mainly composed of Bacillus sp., Brevibacillus sp., Lysinibacillus sp., and Paenibacillus sp. From the radon exposure test, higher or lower radiation intensities compared to the threshold level attributed the metabolic activity of mixed microbial consortium to be reduced, whereas the moderate radiation intensity (i.e. threshold level) induced it to the pinnacle point. It was decided that radon radiation could instigate the microbial metabolic activity depending on the radon levels while they were exposed, which could consequently address that the certain extent of threshold concentration present in the ecosystem relevant to microbial diversity and population density to be more proliferated.

• Proceedings of the IEEK Conference
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• 2001.10a
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• pp.97-101
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• 2001

Recently, an excavated soil-recycling machine has been receiving considerable attentions. The mobile type excavated soil-recycling machine is able to improve the soils by adding the additives such as slaked lime and cement at the construction site. However, not only the mechanical factors such as paddle inclination angle and pitch of the paddle but also the physical properties of the excavated soils affect the mixing performance of the excavated soils and additives. In this sense, experimental investigations are uneconomical and ineffective. This paper concerns with the numerical simulator to analyze the mixing behavior of excavated soils and additives in the soil-recycling machine with dual shafts in order to assist the economical and effective design of the optimum soil-recycling machine. By using the simulator, several simulations were carried out, and the effects of some mechanical parameters such as the paddle inclination angle and pitch of the paddle on the mixing performance were made clear.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.16 no.3
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• pp.309-320
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• 2018

In this paper, a numerical study using finite element method with considering soil-structure interaction was conducted to investigate the stress and deformation behavior of a sheet pile wall structure. In numerical model, one of the nonlinear elastic material constitutive models, Duncan-Chang E-v model, is used for describing soil behavior. The hard contact constitutive model is used for simulating the behavior of interface between the sheet pile wall and soil. The construction process of excavation and backfill is simulated by the way of step loading. We also compare the present numerical method with the in-situ test results for verifying the numerical methods. The numerical analysis showed that the soil excavation in the lock chamber has a huge effect on the wall deflection and stress, pile deflection, and anchor force. With the increase of distance between anchored bars, the maximum wall deflection and anchor force increase, while the maximum wall stress decreases. At a low elevation of anchored bar, the maximum wall bending moment decreases, but the maximum wall deflection, pile deflection, and anchor force both increase. The construction procedure with first excavation and then backfill is quite favorable for decreasing pile deflection, wall deflection and stress, and anchor forces.

• Proceedings of the Korean Geotechical Society Conference
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• 2008.10a
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• pp.117-125
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• 2008

The detection of thin-layered soil is important in soft soils to evaluate the soil behavior. The smaller diameter cone penetrometer have been commonly used to detect the layer with increasing sensitivity. The objective of this study is to detect the thin-layered soil using cone resistance and electrical resistance. The cone resistivity penetration test (CRPT) is developed to evaluate the cone tip resistance and electrical resistance at the tip. The CRPT is a micro-cone which has a $0.78cm^2$ in projected area. The application test is conducted in a laboratory large-scale consolidometer (calibration chamber). The kaolinite, sand and water are mixed to make the specimen at the liquid limit of 46% using a slurry mixer. It takes two months for the consolidation of the specimen. After consolidation, the CRPT test is carried out. Furthermore the standard CPT results are compared with the electrical resistance measured at the tip in the field. This study suggests that the CRPT may be a useful tool for detecting thin-layers in soft soils.

• KSCE Journal of Civil and Environmental Engineering Research
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• v.40 no.1
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• pp.51-58
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• 2020

As interest in lunar exploration increases, studies on lunar surface environment simulation including a lunar soil simulant are being conducted. One of the problems when creating a vacuum environment with lunar soil is that it takes long time to reach high vacuum due to outgas from the soil. Most of the outgas is water, and the time to reach high vacuum can be significantly reduced by a pretreatment process that removes moisture adhering to the surface of the lunar soil before putting soil into a vacuum chamber. The existing soil drying methods were examined to determine how these methods were effective to remove moisture from the lunar simulant soil. Drying experiments of lunar soil samples were carried out using a dry oven, a microwave oven, direct heating method and a vacuum oven, and the results of the drying experiment were presented. Drying soil at 110℃ using a dry oven and drying soil by a microwave oven were not enough to remove moisture, and vacuum oven drying method and direct heating drying method at more than 200℃ were effective in water removal.

• Journal of Environmental Science International
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• v.19 no.2
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• pp.217-227
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• 2010

This paper was studied $CO_2$ respiration rate with physicochemical properties of soils at wetland, paddy field and forest in Nongju-ri, Haeryong-myeon, Suncheon city, Jeollanam-do. Soil temperature and $CO_2$ respiration rate were measured at the field, and soil pH, moisture and soil organic carbon were analyzed in laboratory. Field monitoring was conducted at 6 points (W3, W7, W13, W17, W23, W27) for wetland, 3 points (P1, P2, P3) for paddy field and 3 points (F1, F2, F3) for forest in 10 January 2009. $CO_2$ concentrations in chamber were measured 352~382 ppm for wetland, 364~382 ppm for paddy field and 379~390 ppm for forest, and the average values were 370 ppm, 370 ppm and 385 ppm, respectively. $CO_2$ respiration rates of soils were measured $-73{\sim}44\;mg/m^2/hr$ for wetland, $-74{\sim}24\;mg/m^2/hr$ for paddy field and $-55{\sim}106\;mg/m^2/hr$ for forest, and the average values were $-8\;mg/m^2/hr$, $-25\;mg/m^2/hr$ and $38\;mg/m^2/hr$. $CO_2$ was uptake from air to soil in wetland and paddy field, but it was emission from soil to air in forest. $CO_2$ respiration rate function in uptake condition increased exponential and linear as soil temperature and soil organic carbon. But, it in emission condition decreased linear as soil temperature and soil organic carbon. $CO_2$ respiration rate function in wetland decreased linear as soil moisture, but its in paddy and forest increased linear as soil moisture. $CO_2$ respiration rate function in all sites increased linear as soil pH, and increasing rate at forest was highest.

• Korean Journal of Soil Science and Fertilizer
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• v.49 no.5
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• pp.564-571
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• 2016

As the amount of rice straw collected increases, green manure crops are used to provide the needed organic matter. However, as green manure crops generate methane in the process of decomposition, we tested with different tillage depths in order to reduce the emission. The atmosphere temperature of the chamber was $25{\sim}40^{\circ}C$ during the examination of methane and soil temperature was $2{\sim}10^{\circ}C$ lower than air temperature. The redox potential (Eh) of the soil drastically fell right before irrigated transplanting and showed -300~-400 mV during the cultivating period of rice (7~106 days after transplant). When hairy vetch was incorporated to soil and the field was not irrigated, the generation of methane did not occur from 12 to 4 days before transplanting rice and started after irrigation. Regarding the pattern of methane generation during the cultivation of rice, methane was generated 7 days after transplanting, reached the pinnacle at by 63~74 days after transplanting, rapidly decreased after 86~94 days past transplanting and stopped after 106 days past transplanting. When tested by different soil types, methane emission gradually increased in loam and clay loam during early transplant, whereas it sharply increased in sandy loam. The total amount of methane emitted was highest in sandy loam, followed by loam and clay loam. In all three soil types, methane emission significantly reduced when tillage depth was 20 cm compared to 10 cm. The rice growths and yield were not affected by tillage depth. Therefore, reduction of methane emission could be achieved when application hairy vetch to the soil with tillage depth of 20 cm in paddy soil.

• Journal of Climate Change Research
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• v.7 no.4
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• pp.397-405
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• 2016

For better understand of the soil respiration characteristic in ecosystem, it is necessary to accurately determine the daily, monthly and seasonal $CO_2$ flux related to various environmental factors. In general, soil respiration is being measured on a sunny day. But soil respiration is known to be affected by soil temperature and soil moisture content. In case of forestry, changes in soil moisture content are entirely dependent on rainfall. If we calculated the monthly soil respiration measured based on sunny days data only, it could be a factor that loses credibility soil respiration. On this study, we measured soil respiration on Pinus koraiensis plantation at Mt. Taehwa of Gwangju, Gyeonggi-do on sunny and rainy days in 2012, using Automatic Open-Closed Chamber system (AOCC) and portable $CO_2$ analyzer (GMP343). Then we computed the regression equations using sunny days data, precipitation less than 10 mm data, and precipitation over 10 mm data. At first, there were no significant differences in observed data and computed data. But less than 10 mm precipitation, computed data was 26.5% lower than observed data. Precipitation over 10 mm, on the other hand, the former was 29.3% higher than the latter. In each case, it showed significant differences between observed and computed data (p<0.05). So if we computed regression equation using soil respiration measured sunny days only, about 30% of annual soil respiration could be overestimated. Through further study, we suggest the subdivision and computation of regression equation on the basis of the rainfall intensity.

• Corrosion Science and Technology
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• v.17 no.5
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• pp.211-217
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• 2018

Natural degradation of grounding-electrode in soil environment should be monitored for several decades to predict the lifetime of the grounding electrode for efficient application and management. However, long-term studies for such electrodes have many practical limitations. The conventional accelerated corrosion test is unsuitable for such studies because simulated soil corrosion process cannot represent the actual soil environment. A preliminary experiment of accelerated corrosion test was conducted using existing test standards. The accelerated corrosion test that reflects the actual soil environment has been developed to evaluate corrosion performances of grounding-electrodes in a short period. Several test conditions with different chamber temperatures and salt spray were used to imitate actual field conditions based on ASTM B162, ASTM B117, and ISO 14993 standards. Accelerated degradation specimens of copper-bonded electrodes were made by the facile method and their corrosion performances were investigated. Their corrosion rates were calculated to $0.042{\mu}m/day$, $0.316{\mu}m/day$, and $0.11{\mu}m/day$, respectively. These results indicate that accelerated deterioration of grounding materials can be determined in a short period by using cyclic test condition with salt spray temperature of $50^{\circ}C$.

• Korean Journal of Environmental Agriculture
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• v.26 no.2
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• pp.131-140
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• 2007

Phospho-gypsum a primary waste by-product in phosphate fertilizer manufacturing industry and a potential source of electron acceptors, such as mainly of sulfate and a trace amount of iron and manganese oxides, was selected as soil amendment for reducing methane $(CH_4)$ emissions during rice cultivation. The selected amendment was added into potted soils at the rate of 0, 2, 10, and 20 Mg $ha^{-1}$ before rice transplanting. $CH_4$ flux from the potted soil with rice plant was measured along with soil Eh and floodwater pH during the rice cultivation period. $CH_4$ emission rates measured by closed chamber method decreased with increasing levels of phospho-gypsum application, but rice yield markedly increased up to 10 Mg $ha^{-1}$ of the amendment. At this amendment level, total $CH_4$ emissions were reduced by 24% along with 15% rice grain yield increment over the control. The decrease in total $CH_4$ emission may be attributed due to shifting of electron flow from methanogenesis to sulfate reduction under anaerobic soil conditions.