• Journal of the Korean Society for Marine Environment & Energy
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• v.6 no.4
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• pp.13-23
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• 2003

Organic carbon and nitrogen contents in suspended particulate matter (SPM) and surface sediments in seawater were measured in the Northern East China Sea in summer. The distribution of particulate organic carbon(POC) and particulate organic nitrogen(PON) were in the ranges of 54~481㎍/ℓ and 6~85㎍/ℓ, respectively, with relatively high level of concentrations in the western and southern sides of the study area. Also, there has been a significantly positive correlation between POC and PON, gradually increasing toward the deeper range of depth. Average C:N ratios of POC and PON of SPM were 6 in study area. The ratios of POC to PON of SPM increased as the range of depth increased, indicating nitrogen decomposes more rapidly than carbon and is considered to be influenced by the input of detritus from surface sediments. The distribution of total organic matter(TOM), total organic carbon(TOC) and total organic nitrogen(TON) in surface sediments were in the ranges of 3.1~9.6%, 0.282~0.635% and 0.022~0.069%, respectively, with relatively low range in the western and northern sides of the study area. The ratio of TOC to TON of surface sediments were in the range of 9.8~17.4(average of 13), strongly indicating the active role of the input from the terrestrial organic pollutants.

• Journal of Korean Society of Coastal and Ocean Engineers
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• v.21 no.6
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• pp.444-452
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• 2009

Textural parameters were calculated from the surface sediments collected from Jinu-do beach in Nov. 2005 and May 2006. In Nov. 2005 and May, 2006, the grain size distribution of surface sediments shows that the mode of $3.0\phi$(i.e., 0.125 mm) dominated the west beach of Jinu-do, but in the east beach the mode of $3.0\phi$(i.e., 0.125 mm) decreased and the mode of $2.5\phi$(i.e., 0.177 mm) was apparently distinct, resulting in the more coarsening trend. Mean grain size of surface sediments also indicates little difference in the west beach between two investigations, but the increasing difference between mean grain sizes in the east beach, showing more coarsening pattern. Such seasonal pattern corresponds to the positive skewness in the east beach in May, 2006. As a result, after the winter in 2005, the surface sediments in the west beach of Jinu-do experienced a little variation, whereas the apparent coarsening of surface sediments occurred in the east beach by removal of $3.0\phi$(i.e., 0.125 mm) fine-grained sand particles. The observed seasonal change may be attributed to the different hydrographic condition and sediment delivery/removal on the surface sediments between the west beach and the east beach of Jinu-do through the increased precipitation and more freshwater discharge from the Nakdong River during the summer and the intensified wave and tide during the winter in the Nakdong River estuary.

• Proceedings of KOSOMES biannual meeting
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• 2007.05a
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• pp.27-33
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• 2007

Heavy metals in the surface seawaters and sediments were measured in Jinhae Bay. The high concentrations of heavy metals in the seawaters were found at the stations near the islands. In the sea waters, the mean concentrations of dissolved heavy metals except for Pb were not higher than previous data in this bay. Higher heavy metal contents in the surface sediments were observed at the stations adjacent to the Kojedo or Kadukdo of the Kadoksudo. The contents of Co, Ni, Zn, Cu, As and Cd in the surface sediments showed relatively high correlation coefficients with IL and COD. The order of enrichment factors(EFs) of heavy metals in the sediments was As>Cd>Pb>Zn>Co>Cu>Hg>Ni, and the EFs of As, Cd, Pb and Zn were higher than 1.

• Journal of Environmental Science International
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• v.8 no.5
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• pp.593-600
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• 1999

In order to determine the changes of sediment facies and metal levels in surface sediments after the construction of Shiwha Lake, surface sediments were sampled at 8 sites located on the main channel monthly from June, 1995 to August, 1996 and analysed for 12 metals (Al, Fe, Mn, V, Cr, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, Cd, As and Pb) by ICP/AES and ICP/MS. Two groups of sampling sites(the inner lake with 3 sites and the outer lake with 5 sites) are subdivided by the surface morphology ; the inner lake is a shallow channel area with a gentle slope, while the outer lake is relatively deep and wide channel with a steep slope which has many small distributaries. After the construction of dam, fine terrestrial materials were deposited near the outer lake, which resulted in the change of major sediment facies from sandy silt to mud. With the deposition of fine sediments in the outer lake, anoxic water column induced the formation of sulfide compounds with Cu, Cd, Zn and part of Pb. Metal (Cr, Ni, Cu, Zn and Cd) contents in sediments increased up to twice within 2 years after the construction of dam. This is due to the direct input of industrial and municipal wastes into the lake and the accumulation of metals within the lake. In addition, frequent resuspension of contaminated sediments in a shallow part of the lake may make metal-enriched materials transport near the outer lake with fine terrestrial materials. As the enrichment of Cu, Zn, Cd and part of Pb in the Shiwha Lake may be related to the formation of unstable sulfide compounds by sulfate reduction in anoxic water or sediment column, the effect of mixing with open coastal seawater is discussed.

• Korean Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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• v.39 no.2
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• pp.106-117
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• 2006

We measured the concentrations of organic matter and metallic elements (Al, Fe, Cr, Mn, Ni, Cu, Zn, As, Cd, Pb and Hg) in the surface sediments of Masan Harbor (in the southern sea, Korea) to evaluate the geochemical characters of sediment and the pollutions by organic matter and metallic elements. The mean grain size of the surface sediments in the study area ranged from $5.6{\phi}$ to $7.8{\phi}$, indicating silt sediment. The water content of the surface sediments exceeded 60% except at some stations. The contents of ignition loss (IL), total organic carbon (TOC) and total nitrogen (TN) ranged from 7.2-14.3%, 1.2-3.2%, and 0.10-0.28%, respectively. Based on the C/N ratios, the organic matter in the surface sediments of Masan Harbor may originate from terrigenous sources including fluvial inputs (mainly sewage in urban areas). The chemical oxygen demand (COD) and acid volatile sulfide (AVS) ranged from $11.3-29.9\;mgO_2/g\;dry$ and 0.20-4.47 mgS/g dry, respectively, and low concentrations were observed near a shipping route. In addition, the concentrations of metallic elements showed large spatial variations in Masan Harbor and the distributions of metallic elements were also comparable to those of organic matter. This implies that the distributions of organic matter and metallic elements in the surface sediments of Masan Harbor are mainly controlled by biogenic matter and artificial action (mainly dredging). In addition, we calculated the enrichment facto. (EF) and geoaccumulation index (Igeo) in order to evaluate pollution by metallic elements. The enrichment of metallic elements relative to Al was three to eighteen times higher at the study sites, compared to levels in the Earth's crust except for Fe, Ni and Mn. In addition, the Igeo class indicated that the surface sediments in the study area were moderately to strongly polluted in terms of metallic elements.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Soil and Groundwater Environment Conference
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• 2000.11a
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• pp.196-201
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• 2000

The influence of adsorption on cadmium toxicity to soil microorganisms in smectite-rich soils and sediments was quantified as a function of solution and sorbent characteristics. Adsorption and surface complexation experiments were conducted to infer Cd sorption mechanisms to a reference smectite and three fractions of a Veritsol soil, and to elucidate the effects of the surface complexation on Cd bioavailability and toxicity in soils and sediments. Cadmium adsorption isotherms conformed to the Langmuir adsorption model, with adsorptive capacities of the different samples dependent on their characteristics. Equilibrium geochemical modeling (MINTEQA2) was used to predict the speciation of Cd in the soil suspensions using Langmuir and Triple Layer surface complexation models. The influence of adsorption and surface complexation on cadmium toxicity to soil microorganisms was assessed indirectly through the relative change in microbial hydrolysis of fluorescein diacetate (FDA) as a function of total Cd concentration and sorbent characteristics. Adsorption decreased the toxicity of Cd to soil microorganisms. Inner-sphere complexation is more effective than outer-sphere complexation in reducing the bioavailability and toxicity of heavy metals in soils and sediments.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.23 no.5
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• pp.602-613
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• 2013

This paper aims at an investigation of the features of bacterial communities in surface sediments of the South China Sea (SCS). In particular, biogeographical distribution patterns and the phylogenetic diversity of bacteria found in sediments collected from a coral reef platform, a continental slope, and a deep-sea basin were determined. Bacterial diversity was measured by an observation of 16S rRNA genes, and 18 phylogenetic groups were identified in the bacterial clone library. Planctomycetes, Deltaproteobacteria, candidate division OP11, and Alphaproteobacteria made up the majority of the bacteria in the samples, with their mean bacterial clones being 16%, 15%, 12%, and 9%, respectively. By comparison, the bacterial communities found in the SCS surface sediments were significantly different from other previously observed deep-sea bacterial communities. This research also emphasizes the fact that geographical factors have an impact on the biogeographical distribution patterns of bacterial communities. For instance, canonical correspondence analyses illustrated that the percentage of sand weight and water depth are important factors affecting the bacterial community composition. Therefore, this study highlights the importance of adequately determining the relationship between geographical factors and the distribution of bacteria in the world's seas and oceans.

• Journal of Environmental Science International
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• v.13 no.6
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• pp.561-570
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• 2004

This study was carried out to survey the pollution of nonylphenol (NP) in surface sediments around Gwangyang bay and Yeosu sound. NP was suspected chemicals as endocrine disruption. Gwangyang bay is located on the mid south coast of Korea. It is a semi-closed bay which Yeosu petrochemical industrial complex, POSCO (Pohang Steel Company) and Gwangyang container harbor are there. The surface sediments were collected at 15 stations with gravity corer at October, 1999, February, May and August, 2000. Also, the stream and intertidal sediment were collected at 5 sites at August, 2000. Concentrations of NP in surface sediments were in the range of 6.89 to 202.70 ng/g dry wt.. Seasonal range (mean value) of NP is 13.98 to 30.48 (23.46) ng/g dry wt. at October, 10.35 to 54.91 (28.10) ng/g dry wt. at February, 29.05 to 202.70 (82.32) ng/g dry wt. at May and 6.98 to 83.40 (25.37) ng/g dry wt. at August. NP was seasonally fluctuated, and the highest mean value and range was detected at May, 2000. NP was highly distributed in the inner part of Gwangyang bay than Yeosu sound. Concentrations of NP in stream and intertidal sediments showed the highest value in downstream near Yeosu petrochemical industrial complex and Yondung stream. It suggests that the source of NP is industrial wastewater and municipal sewage.

• Journal of Environmental Science International
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• v.26 no.5
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• pp.639-649
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• 2017

Measurements of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) were taken in surface sediments inside Seogwipo and Hallim Harbors of Jeju Island, Korea, to evaluate their distribution. These harbors typically have heavy ship traffic. The samples were collected three times (in June, October, and December, 2013). PCB concentrations in sediments from Seogwipo Harbor were higher than in those from Hallim Harbor, but both levels were very low, compared with those in other parts of the world. Sedimentary PCB levels had a strong correlation with organic carbon and fine granule mud content. PCB concentration values in the examined surface sediments were much lower than Sediment Quality Guidelines (SQGs) such as ER-L (Effect Rrange-Low), TEL (Threshold Effects Level) and ISQG (Interim Sediment Quality Guideline)-low value applied in countries, such as USA, Canada, and Australia. This suggests that the PCBs did not have significant biological effects on benthic organisms in the marine environment.

• Journal of Environmental Science International
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• v.30 no.6
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• pp.487-500
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• 2021

To evaluate the geochemical characteristics and assess the pollution in surface sediments of the Nakdong River estuary, two sites adjacent to the estuary bank (Hh1 and Hh2) and one site at the upper part of the estuary bank (Hh3) were investigated. The surface sediments were analyzed for their contents of metals (Cu, Pb, Ni, Cr, Zn, and Al), organic matter (IL, COD, TOC, and TN), and grain size from 2018 to 2020. As a result of the pollution assessment, there was little anthropogenic contamination by most of the metals. The surface sediments in Hh2 had comparatively abundant silt and clay, whereas the other sites were mainly composed of sand. The organic index and contents of organic matter were highest at Hh2. Multivariate statistical analyses (cluster analysis and Pearson correlation analysis) showed that the contents of organic matter and pollution were associated with fine sediment. These results suggest that the geochemical characteristics were changed by the estuary bank built in the research area and that the increase in fine sediment attributable to the low-energy environment resulted in an increase in organic matter pollution.