• Economic and Environmental Geology
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• v.52 no.6
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• pp.519-528
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• 2019

In 2017, Korea Institute of Geoscience and Mineral Resources (KIGAM) has excavated a trench at Yongjang-li in the city of Gyeongju to examine the evidence of fault movement related with the 2016 earthquake in unconsolidated sediments. In the trench profile, the author has observed the features of ongoing soil-forming processes and groundwater movement overlapped on the sedimentary layers. The soil formation was in its initial stage, and most of the original sedimentary layers could be observed. The color changes depending on the redox conditions and by the Mn/Fe oxide precipitation, however, were the most significant features obscuring sedimentary records. The dark Mn oxide precipitates formed at the groundwater levels often concealed the sedimentary unit boundaries. The groundwater levels varied depending on the particle sizes of the sedimentary layers contacting the groundwater, and the Mn oxide precipitates have formed at varying depths. The groundwater could move upward along the narrow pores in the fine-textured sedimentary layer more than a few meters showing the gray color indicating a reducing condition for iron.

• Geophysics and Geophysical Exploration
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• v.2 no.1
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• pp.8-16
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• 1999

In terms of high resolution, seismic reflection survey is by far the most significant geophysical method applied to define subsurface structure. In shallow seismic reflection survey, it is, however, difficult to obtain high resolution image due to both the wave attenuation in the unconsolidated layer and the existence of source-generated surface waves Therefore, when collecting data, it is imperative to select proper equipments and choose optimum field data acquisition parameters for acquiring high S/N data. In this survey, a small size hammer was used as a low energy source and 40-Hz vertical geophones were used as receivers. Trigger signal was obtained from the hammer starter attached in the aluminum plate and thus it was possible to control the source onset time for the vertical stack. During the field work, a modified standard CMP technique was introduced to achieve the many-fold CMP data effectively. Data processing was conducted by the 'Seismic Unix' which is mounted on PC with a Linux operating system. The main distinctions were the emphasis and detail placed on near-surface velocity analysis and the extra care exercised in muting.

• Economic and Environmental Geology
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• v.43 no.4
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• pp.371-379
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• 2010

Fresh water injection test in a fractured bedrock aquifer was applied as an efficient approach to lower saline concentrations in the saltwater-freshwater transition zone formed by seawater intrusion in a coastal area. The methodology and effectiveness of fresh water injection for hydraulically controlling seawater intrusion is overwhelmingly site dependent, and there is an urgent need to characterize the permeable fractures or unconsolidated porous formations which can allow for seawater flow and transport. Considering aquifer characteristics, injection and monitoring boreholes were optimally designed and completed to inject fresh water through sand layer and fractured bedrock, respectively. We devised and used the injection system using double packer for easy field operation and maintenance. Overall fracture distribution was systematically identified from borehole image logs, and the section of fresh water injection was decided from injection test and monitoring. With fresh water injection, the fluid electrical conductivity of the monitoring well started to be lowered by the inflow of fresh water at the specific depth. And this inflow leaded to the replacement of the fluid in the upper parts of the borehole with fresh water. Furthermore, the injection effect lasted more than several months, which means that fresh water injection may contribute to the mitigation of seawater intrusion in a coastal area.

• The Korean Journal of Petroleum Geology
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• v.14 no.1
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• pp.1-11
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• 2008

As conventional oil and gas reservoirs become depleted, interests for oil sands has rapidly increased in the last decade. Oil sands are mixture of bitumen, water, and host sediments of sand and clay. Most oil sand is unconsolidated sand that is held together by bitumen. Bitumen has hydrocarbon in situ viscosity of >10,000 centipoises (cP) at reservoir condition and has API gravity between $8-14^{\circ}$. The largest oil sand deposits are in Alberta and Saskatchewan, Canada. The reverves are approximated at 1.7 trillion barrels of initial oil-in-place and 173 billion barrels of remaining established reserves. Alberta has a number of oil sands deposits which are grouped into three oil sand development areas - the Athabasca, Cold Lake, and Peace River, with the largest current bitumen production from Athabasca. Principal oil sands deposits consist of the McMurray Fm and Wabiskaw Mbr in Athabasca area, the Gething and Bluesky formations in Peace River area, and relatively thin multi-reservoir deposits of McMurray, Clearwater, and Grand Rapid formations in Cold Lake area. The reservoir sediments were deposited in the foreland basin (Western Canada Sedimentary Basin) formed by collision between the Pacific and North America plates and the subsequent thrusting movements in the Mesozoic. The deposits are underlain by basement rocks of Paleozoic carbonates with highly variable topography. The oil sands deposits were formed during the Early Cretaceous transgression which occurred along the Cretaceous Interior Seaway in North America. The oil-sands-hosting McMurray and Wabiskaw deposits in the Athabasca area consist of the lower fluvial and the upper estuarine-offshore sediments, reflecting the broad and overall transgression. The deposits are characterized by facies heterogeneity of channelized reservoir sands and non-reservoir muds. Main reservoir bodies of the McMurray Formation are fluvial and estuarine channel-point bar complexes which are interbedded with fine-grained deposits formed in floodplain, tidal flat, and estuarine bay. The Wabiskaw deposits (basal member of the Clearwater Formation) commonly comprise sheet-shaped offshore muds and sands, but occasionally show deep-incision into the McMurray deposits, forming channelized reservoir sand bodies of oil sands. In Canada, bitumen of oil sands deposits is produced by surface mining or in-situ thermal recovery processes. Bitumen sands recovered by surface mining are changed into synthetic crude oil through extraction and upgrading processes. On the other hand, bitumen produced by in-situ thermal recovery is transported to refinery only through bitumen blending process. The in-situ thermal recovery technology is represented by Steam-Assisted Gravity Drainage and Cyclic Steam Stimulation. These technologies are based on steam injection into bitumen sand reservoirs for increase in reservoir in-situ temperature and in bitumen mobility. In oil sands reservoirs, efficiency for steam propagation is controlled mainly by reservoir geology. Accordingly, understanding of geological factors and characteristics of oil sands reservoir deposits is prerequisite for well-designed development planning and effective bitumen production. As significant geological factors and characteristics in oil sands reservoir deposits, this study suggests (1) pay of bitumen sands and connectivity, (2) bitumen content and saturation, (3) geologic structure, (4) distribution of mud baffles and plugs, (5) thickness and lateral continuity of mud interbeds, (6) distribution of water-saturated sands, (7) distribution of gas-saturated sands, (8) direction of lateral accretion of point bar, (9) distribution of diagenetic layers and nodules, and (10) texture and fabric change within reservoir sand body.