• Journal of the Korean Geotechnical Society
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• v.23 no.4
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• pp.133-147
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• 2007

Downhole seismic method is very economic and easy of operation because it uses only one borehole and simple surface source to obtain the shear wave velocity ($V_s$) profile of a site. Even though it is widely used by the site investigation companies, universities and institutes, however, the $V_s$ profile determined by downhole seismic method has often low reliability due to employment of wrong combinations of field losing equipment and interpretation method and deficiency of experience. Round robin test was performed and testing equipment and procedure were compared. Adequate downhole seismic testing equipment was constructed based on the comparison and verification study of the round robin test. The data acquisition and software interpretation were also developed for automation and quick test in field. Finally, the effectiveness and applicability were verified through the field test by using the constructed testing system.

• The Journal of Engineering Geology
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• v.20 no.2
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• pp.213-220
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• 2010

The permeability characterization on the natural barrier for deep geological disposal of radioactive waste is very critical to evaluate total safety and performance assessment of disposal site. However, the confidence level in using previous hydraulic testing equipments consist of simple components to estimate rock mass permeability is not high enough to reflect in situ condition. The purpose of this research is to establish an advanced hydraulic testing equipment, which is applicable to deep borehole (up to 1,000 m), through the improvement of technical problems of previous packer systems. Especially, the straddle packer hydraulic testing equipment was designed to adopt both the hydraulic downhole shut-in valve(H-DHSIV) to minimize the wellbore storage effect and the real time data acquisition system to measure the pressure changes of test interval including its upper and lower parts. The results from this research lead to not only improve current technical level in the field of hydraulic testing but also provide important information to radioactive waste disposal technology development and site characterization project.

• Journal of the Korean Geotechnical Society
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• v.23 no.11
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• pp.27-37
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• 2007

Downhole seismic method is very economic and easy to operate because it uses only one borehole and simple surface source to obtain the shear wave velocity profile of a site. In this study, automatic shear wave source was developed for efficient downhole seismic testing. This source is motor-spring type and easy to control. It can lessen the labor of operator and the working time. Moreover, it can provide better and repetitive signals for data interpretation. By combining developed automatic source with automatic receiver system, PC based data acquisition system, advanced managing program, and semi-automatic downhole performing system were constructed. Through comparison test with manual source, advantages of automatic source were verified. Constructed semi-automatic downhole testing system including automatic shear wave source was applied to the soft soil site. The applicability and reliability were verified and the importance of automating testing system for obtaining reliable result was emphasized.

• Tunnel and Underground Space
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• v.28 no.3
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• pp.258-276
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• 2018

The accurate and quantitative ground information on the hydraulic conductivity characteristics of rock mass is one of the key factors for evaluation of the hydro-geological behaviour of rock mass around an excavated opening under high water pressure. For tunnel and rock structures in seabed, where the sea acts as an infinite source of water, its importance become greater with increasing construction depth below sea level. In this study, to improve the problems related with poor system configuration and incorrect data acquisition of previous hydraulic packer testing equipment, we newly developed an integrated main frame and 30 bar level waterproof downhole sonde apparatus, which were optimized for deep hydraulic packer test in seabed rock mass. Integration of individual test equipment into one frame allows safe and efficient field testing work on a narrow offshore drilling platform. For the integrated type main frame, it is possible to make precise stepwise control of downhole net injection pressure at intervals of $2.0kg_f/cm^2$ or less with dual hydraulic oil volume controller. To ensure the system performance and the operational stability of the prototype mainframe and downhole sonde apparatus, the field feasibility tests were completed in two research boreholes, and using the developed apparatus, the REV(Representative Elementary Volume) scale deep hydraulic packer tests were successfully carried out at a borehole located in the basalt region, Jeju. In this paper, the characteristics of the new testing apparatus are briefly introduced and also some results from the laboratory and in-situ performance tests are shown.

• Geophysics and Geophysical Exploration
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• v.7 no.1
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• pp.70-79
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• 2004

We have examined the applicability of the triaxial drill-bit VSP method (TAD-VSP) to the geological survey of possible sites for a high-level radioactive waste disposal repository. The seismic energy generated by a drill bit is measured by a downhole multi-component detector, and the resulting signals are processed to image the geological structure deep underground. In order to apply the TAD-VSP method to civil-engineering-scale drilling, we have developed a small but highly sensitive and precise three-component downhole seismic measurement system, and recorded drill-bit signals at a granite quarry. We have successfully imaged discontinuities in the granite, possibly related to fractures, as highly reflective zones. The discontinuities imaged by the TAD-VSP method correlate well with the results of other borehole observations. In conclusion, the TAD-VSP method is usable in geological investigations for civil engineering because the equipment is compact and it is simple to acquire the drill-bit signal.

• Proceedings of the Korean Geotechical Society Conference
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• 2008.03a
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• pp.605-612
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• 2008

The shear wave velocity ($V_s$) has been commonly used to evaluate the dynamic properties of soil. The field $V_s$ probe (FVP) was already developed to assess the shear stiffness of a soft clay. The objective of this study is to investigate the disturbance effects of the FVP due to the penetration. The laboratory tests are conducted in a large-scale consolidometer (calibration chamber). The reconstituted clay is mixed at the water content of 110% using a slurry mixer. The FVP and down-hole test are carried out every 1cm interval to compare the data. In addition, two square rods with transducers are also implemented to get the reference value. The shear waves evaluated by the FVP, dow-hole tests, and reference rods are closely matched. This study suggests that the disturbance effect of the FVP due to the penetration into the soft clay soils is small enough and the $V_s$ evaluated by the FVP reflects well the in-situ characteristics. Furthermore, the combination of the FVP and down-hole test shows the possibility of hybrid equipment.

• Journal of the Korean Geotechnical Society
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• v.19 no.3
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• pp.23-31
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• 2003

Over the past half century, borehole seismic surveys have been diversified into the three techniques such as crosshole, downhole, and suspension logging according to their devices and testing configurations. These field techniques have been improved, in terms of equipment and testing procedures, and are very valuable in the evaluation of ground characteristics for geotechnical and earthquake engineering problems. Yet, despite the importance and significance of the techniques as engineering tools, the techniques are not much used as standard penetration test (SPT) by practicing engineers. The possible explanations are cost and operational difficulties of the surveys as well as sophistication and complexity of the devices. An in-hole seismic method has been developed to meet the requirement of economical testing cost and practicality in engineering practice to measure dynamic soil properties. The prototype in-hole probe developed herein is small and light enough to be fit in three-inch boreholes and to be handled with bare hands. The performance of the source has been evaluated through extensive crosshole tests at various sites. The in-hole seismic method was adopted at three test sites and verified by comparing with crosshole results.