• Economic and Environmental Geology
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• v.55 no.4
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• pp.407-419
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• 2022

Soil(vadose zone) gas compositions were measured for about 3 days to suggest a method for monitoring and interpreting soil gas data collected around wells from which methane(CH₄) is outflowing. The vadose zone gas samples were collected within 1 m around two test wells(TB2 and TB3) at Pohang and analyzed for CO₂, CH₄, N₂ and O₂ concentrations in situ. CO₂ flux was measured beside TB2. In addition, gas samples from well head in TB2 and atmospheric air samples were collected for comparison. Carbon isotopes of CO₂(δ¹³C_CO2) of samples collected on the last day of the study period were analyzed in the laboratory. The two test wells (TB2 and 3) were 12.7 m apart and only TB3 was cemented to the surface. According to the bio-geochemical process-based interpretation, the relationships between CO₂ and O₂, N₂, and N₂/O₂ of vadose zone gas were plotted between the lines of CH₄ oxidation and CO₂ dissolution. In addition, the CH₄ concentrations of gas samples from the wellhead of the uncemented well (TB2) were 5.2 times higher than the atmospheric CH₄ concentration. High CO₂ concentrations (average 1.148%) of vadose zone gas around TB2 seemed to be attributed to the oxidation of CH₄. On the other hand, the vadose zone CO₂ around the cemented well(TB3) showed a relatively low concentration(0.136%). This difference indicates that the vadose zone gas(including CO₂) around the CH₄ outflowing well were strongly affected by well completion(cementing). This study result can be used to establish strategies for environmental monitoring of soil around natural gas sites, and can be used to monitor leakage around injection and observation wells for CO₂ geological storage. In addition, the method of this study is useful for soil monitoring in natural gas storage and oil-contaminated sites.

• Journal of the Korean GEO-environmental Society
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• v.4 no.2
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• pp.39-46
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• 2003

An immobilization zone can be constructed by modifying soils in the vadose zone with surfactants, which can be used to promote retardation of organic contaminants in the subsurface. Column experiments were conducted to investigate the behavior of surfactants and organic contaminants in unsaturated and saturated conditions with different water contents (25%, 50%, 75%, 100%). Transport and sorption of surfactant (dialkylated disulfonated diphenyl oxide) in the columns containing aluminum oxide was similar under the conditions at different water contents. However, transport of a model organic compound (naphthalene) was retarded as the water content decreased by enhanced partitioning of the compound into the surfactants that were sorbed on the aluminum oxide. This suggests that the immobilization method could well be applied to vadose zone as well as to saturated zone.

• Economic and Environmental Geology
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• v.36 no.4
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• pp.285-293
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• 2003

Tailings of Dukum mine in the vadose and saturated zone were investigated to reveal the mobility of metal elements and the condition of mineralogical solubility according to redox environments throughout the geochemical analysis, thermodynamic modelling, and mineralogical study for solid-samples and water samples(vadose zone; distilled water: tailings=5 : 1 reacted, saturated zone; pore-water extracted). In the vadose zone, sulfide oxidation has generated low-pH(2.72∼6.91) condition and high concentration levels of S $O_4$$^{2-}$(561∼1430mg/L) and other metals(Zn : 0.12∼l57 mg/L, Pb : 0.06∼0.83 mg/L, Cd : 0.06∼l.35 mg/L). Jarosite$(KFe_3(SO_4)_2(OH)_6)$ and gypsum$(CaSO_4{\cdot}2H_2O$) were identified on XRD patterns and thermodynamics modelling. In the saturated zone, concentration of metal ions decreased because pH values were neutral(7.25∼8.10). But Fe and Mn susceptible to redox potential increased by low-pe values(7.40∼3.40) as the depth increased. Rhodochrosite$(MnCO_3)$ identified by XRD and thermodynamics modelling suggested that $Mn^{4+}$ or $Mn^{3+}$ was reduced to $Mn^{2+}$. Along pH conditions, concentrations of dissolved metal ions has been most abundant in vadose zone throughout borehole samples. It was observed that pH had more effect on metal solubilities than redox potential. How-ever, the release of co-precipitated heavy metals following the dissolution of Fe-Mn oxyhydroxides could be the mechanism by which reduced condition affected heavy metal solubility considering the decrease of pe as depth increased in tile saturated zone.

• Geophysics and Geophysical Exploration
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• v.9 no.4
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• pp.304-315
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• 2006

We have examined the applicability of f-k analysis to the GPR direct wave measurement for water content to characterize vadose zone condition. When the vadose zone consists of a dry surface layer over wet substratum, we obtained f-k spectra where most of the energy is bounded by the air and dry soil velocities. In this case, dry soil velocity was successfully estimated by using high frequency data. On the other hands, when wet soil overlies dry substratum, the f-k spectra show a contrasting response where most of the energy travels with the velocity bounded by dry and wet soil velocities. In this case, the radar waves are trapped and guided within wet soil layer, exhibiting velocity dispersion. By adopting modal propagation theory, we could formulae a simple inversion code to find two layer's dielectric constants as well as layer thickness. By inverting the velocity dispersion curve obtained from f-k spectra of synthetic modeling data, we could obtain good estimates of dielectric constants of each layer as well as first layer thickness. Moreover, we could obtain more accurate results by including the higher mode data. We expect this method will be useful to get the quantitative property of real subsurface when the field condition is similar.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Soil and Groundwater Environment Conference
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• 2002.04a
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• pp.18-21
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• 2002

Phytoremediation which uses plants to enhance the bioremediation through stimulation of microbial activity and root uptake, has been a topic of increasing interest. Mathematical model were developed that can be applied to various bioremediation methods in the unsaturated zone, especially phytoremediation, for simulating the fate and transport of contaminants under field conditions. A 2-year field study was conducted using 72 (1.5m long and 0.1 m diameter) column lysimeters with four treatments: Johnsongrass; wild rye grass; a rotation of Johnsongrass and wild rye grass; and unplanted fallow conditions. The developed model represented the fate and transport of contaminant both in vegetated and unplanted soils satisfactorily for field applications. Parameters related to the contaminant concentration in the water phase were the main parameters determining the contaminant fate in the vadose zone and indicated that the bioavailability can be the most important factor in the success of phytoremediation as well as bioremediation applications.

• KSCE Journal of Civil and Environmental Engineering Research
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• v.40 no.6
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• pp.583-592
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• 2020

This study assessed source depletion in the vadose zones of contaminated sites. The possible range of infiltration rate in Korea was statistically analyzed. The results showed a trend of decreasing leachate concentration of 13 pollutants used for risk assessment. Among them, benzene, ethylbenzene, toluene, and xylene showed a lower leachate concentration in groundwater over time due to their low distribution coefficient and also possible biodegradation effects. The average values of the relative concentration could be taken as a default index due to a very small range of uncertainties. In the case of heavy metals, it was shown that the leachate concentration in a pollutant does not decrease over time. Considering the annually different infiltration, a site-specific source-depletion scenario was applied to Cheongju in North Chungcheong Province. The result was expressed as a time series of the relative concentration of the leachate concentration, and this was compared to the trend by averaged Korean infiltration. Finally, an open-source code that used Python was used to help calculate the leachate concentration by this site-specific infiltration scenario.

• Economic and Environmental Geology
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• v.37 no.2
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• pp.185-193
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• 2004

A physical model experiment was conducted using a sand and gravel-filled tank model, to investigate the influence on the GPR response of LNAPL vapor phase effects in the unsaturated zone and of residual phase of LNAPL trapped in the saturated zone. Background measurements of GPR were made with only water in the tank using a fluctuating water table model. Gasoline was, then, injected into the bottom of the model tank to simulate a subsurface discharge from a leaking pipe or tank at depth, obtaining GPR data with rising and lowering of water table. Results from the experiment show the GPR sensitivity to the changes in the moisture content in the vadose zone and its effectiveness for monitoring minor fluctuation of the water table. The results also demonstrate a potential of GPR for monitoring possible vapor phase effects of volatile hydrocarbons in the vadose zone as a function of time, and for detecting the effects of residual phase of hydrocarbons in the water saturated system. In addition, the results provide the basis for a strategy that has the potential to successfully detect and delineate residual LNAPL contamination in the water-saturated system at field sites where the conditions are similar to those simulated in the physcial models described herein.

• Journal of Soil and Groundwater Environment
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• v.15 no.1
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• pp.1-8
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• 2010

Cometabolic air sparging (CAS) is a new and innovative technology that uses air sparging principles but attempts to optimize in situ contaminant degradation by adding a growth substrate to saturated zone. CAS relies on the degradation of the primary growth substrate and cometabolic substrate transformation in the saturated zone and in the vadose zone for volatilized contaminants. In this study, we have investigated to determine MTBE degradation pattern and microbial activity variation if using propane as a primary substrate at the condition of considering air injection rate and air injection pattern. Laboratory-scale two-dimentional aquifer physical model studies were used and the experimental results were represented that the optimal conditions were as air injection rate of 1,000 mL/min and pulsed air injection pattern (15 min on/off). Over 1,000 mL/min air injection rate and continuous air injection pattern was no affected to increase DO concentration. On the other hand, Injection of propane and propane-utilizing bacteria degraded MTBE partially. And also, injection of propane- and MTBE-utilizing bacteria effectively degraded MTBE and TBA production was observed.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Soil and Groundwater Environment Conference
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• 2006.04a
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• pp.316-318
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• 2006

The purpose of this research is to write out vulnerability for western area in Jeju island by using drastic method which is the most frequently utilized among the writing techniques of underground water vulnerability. In case of aquifer, it was divided into two types, gravel layer or not and rated. And soil media was rated two kinds of method. Plan 1 is concerned with only soil class and plan 2 is concerned with soil class and gravels (or rocks), Vadose zone was rated differently according to the ratio of gravel layer. In case of plan 1, the scope of drastic index is from the minimum 77 to the maximum 176, on the other hand, plan 2, the scope of drastic index is from the minimum 79 to the maximum 182. In case of using the water quality data of Nitrate from 1994 to 2004, Pearson correlation coefficient are 0.164(Plan 1) and 0.124(Plan 2) and Spearman correlation coefficient are 0.132(Plan 1) and 0.113.

• Proceedings of the Korean Geotechical Society Conference
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• 1992.12a
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• pp.19-32
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• 1992

Objectives of this study are : 1) to utilize capillary theory and obtain pore-size distribution profiles from moisture-suction relationships using Laplace theory. 2) to investigate the behavior of Light Non-Aqueous Phase Liquids(LNAPLs) in the subsurface environment and to develop several predictive relationships which can be used to assess the effectiveness of various LNAPLs remediation technologies. The relationship to predict pore-size distribution function expressed in differencial equation is found by using capillary theory. Also, experiments are conducted to : the various LNAPLs subjected to vadose zone drainage, groundwater table drainage, waterflooding with surfactants. The experiments are performed with #2 heating oil, jet fuel. and kerosene. Several relationships have been derived describing the effect of various properties and process parameters on the LNAPL residual saturation.