• The Journal of Engineering Geology
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• v.10 no.2
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• pp.215-233
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• 2000

The national geochemical baseline mapping project has been conducted since 1996 to establish a quantitative assessment system for geochemical hazards in natural environments. The geochemical image maps have been edited for thirty-six elements(i.e., 10 major oxides and 26 trace elements) in light sediments, finer fraction than 150 $\mu$m, collected from first- to second-order streams(totally 11,000) over five provinces in the western half(ca. 45,000 km$^2$) of Korea. Natural background values of the elements were given for different geological environments. Based on the statistics, geochemical baselines were newly obtained for a quantitative hazard assessment on toxicity of heavy metals and deficiency of essential nutrients. Some chosen examples of geochemical hazards are presented based on new geochemical image maps and related baseline data.

• Journal of Environmental Impact Assessment
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• v.14 no.6
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• pp.415-425
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• 2005

To examine the geochemical behavior and pollution of soils in Gwangju City, an analysis was carried out for pH, on the contents of metals, and organic carbon. Soil samples were taken from environs areas, industrial areas and downtown areas. The major factor controlling the behavior of metallic elements in the soil was chemical weathering of clay mineral in the environs areas, industrialization, and urbanization. Heavy metals including Cu, Pb and Zn were highly enriched for the samples from central part of downtown area. This indicated that the urbanization and the industrialization affected soil pollution. The results show that soil pollution in a metropolitan city which is caused by harmful heavy metals is severest in the center of the city. In consequence, it is inevitable that practical measures should be taken to prevent soil pollution expansion.

• Journal of Environmental Impact Assessment
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• v.19 no.5
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• pp.497-510
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• 2010

Considering to the geochemical behaviors and environmental changes of bottom sediments in streams, Gwangju metropolitan city, this study focuses to analyses on grain sizes, metal elements and organic carbons in sediment samples from Yeongsan and Hwangryong rivers, and Gwangju stream. In the sediments, contents of Cu, Zn, Pb, P and TOC were highly variable, in the case of Gwangju stream particularly. Yenogsan and Hwangryong rivers are influenced by grain sizes and surrounding geological settings and Gwangju stream is connected to organic matters related to life fouls and so forth, with respect to the geochemical behaviorof bottom sediments. Li, Zn, Pb and Cu were enriched in Yeongsan and Hwangryong rivers and Li, Cu, Zn, Pb and P enriched in Gwangju stream, respectively. In the heavy metal contamination of above drainages, the site mutually connected Seobang(GJ 4) with Donggye(GJ 7) streams shows the highest values, in peculiar. It is inferred that those contamination values are mainly related with urban foul waters in the city.

• Journal of Environmental Impact Assessment
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• v.13 no.5
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• pp.251-262
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• 2004

In order to investigate the geochemical characteristics of surface sediments in lower Yeongsan river system, sediment samples from the main stream of Yeongsan river, Gomakwon and Hampyeong streams were collected and analyzed for grain size and metal and organic carbon contents. The sediment types of the streams widely vary from pebble to mud. The metal contents in the sediments are mainly dependent on grain size of the sediments, geology around the streams and organic matter contents from the domestic sewage. Enrichment factor (EF) representing the degree of metal contamination in the sediments are relatively low in the study area. But, high Zn and Pb values seem to be from the study area, partly.

• Journal of Environmental Impact Assessment
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• v.9 no.4
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• pp.301-314
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• 2000

Marine surface sediments in the vicinity of Samcheonpo coal-fired power plant were analyzed by a total analysis($HF+HNO_3+HClO_4$) and sequential extraction procedure for heavy metals in order to investigate the total concentrations and geochemical phases of heavy metals. The result showed that the concentrations of Cr, Cu, Fe and Zn were within ranges typical for coastal areas, which reflected the mineralogical composition of the sediments in the studied area. However, the distributions of Cd, Co, Mn, Ni and Pb were rather different from the former, indicating that these heavy metals had a different origin, or that they were affected by a different geochemical mechanism. Chemical partitioning of heavy metals using sequential extraction procedure revealed that Cu, Fe, Pb, Zn were significantly bound to the residual phases of the sediments, whereas carbonate phases contained considerable amounts of Mn. The significant association of Pb with the exchangeable fraction also indicated that Pb was more mobile and bioavailable than Cu, Fe, Mn, Zn.

• Journal of Nuclear Fuel Cycle and Waste Technology(JNFCWT)
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• v.19 no.1
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• pp.113-121
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• 2021

A safety assessment of radioactive waste repositories is a mandatory requirement process because there are possible radiological hazards owing to radionuclide migration from radioactive waste to the biosphere. For a reliable safety assessment, it is important to establish a parameter database that reflects the site-specific characteristics of the disposal facility and repository site. From this perspective, solubility, a major geochemical parameter, has been chosen as an important parameter for modeling the migration behavior of radionuclides. The solubilities were derived for Am, Ni, Tc, and U, which were major radionuclides in this study, and on-site groundwater data reflecting the operational conditions of the Gyeongju low and intermediate level radioactive waste (LILW) repository were applied to reflect the site-specific characteristics. The radiation dose was derived by applying the solubility and radionuclide inventory data to the RESRAD-OFFSITE code, and sensitivity analysis of the dose according to the solubility variation was performed. As a result, owing to the low amount of radionuclide inventory, the dose variation was insignificant. The derived solubility can be used as the main input data for the safety assessment of the Gyeongju LILW repository in the future.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.38 no.6
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• pp.459-482
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• 2006

A geochemical approach to the long-term safety of waste disposal is discussed in connection with the significance of actinides, which shall deliver the major radioactivity inventory subsequent to the relatively short-term decay of fission products. Every power reactor generates transuranic (TRU) elements: plutonium and minor actinides (Np, Am, Cm), which consist chiefly of long-lived nuclides emitting alpha radiation. The amount of TRU actinides generated in a fuel life period is found to be relatively small (about 1 wt% or less in spent fuel) but their radioactivity persists many hundred thousands years. Geological confinement of waste containing TRU actinides demands, as a result, fundamental knowledge on the geochemical behavior of actinides in the repository environment for a long period of time. Appraisal of the scientific progress in this subject area is the main objective of the present paper. Following the introductory discussion on natural radioactivities, the nuclear fuel cycle is briefly brought up with reference to actinide generation and waste disposal. As the long-term disposal safety concerns inevitably with actinides, the significance of the aquatic actinide chemistry is summarized in two parts: the fundamental properties relevant to their aquatic behavior and the geochemical reactions in nanoscopic scale. The constrained space of writing allows discussion on some examples only, for which topics of the primary concern are selected, e.g. apparent solubility and colloid generation, colloid-facilitated migration, notable speciation of such processes, etc. Discussion is summed up to end with how to make a geochemical approach available for the long-term disposal safety of nuclear waste or for the performance assessment (PA) as known generally.

• 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.

• Economic and Environmental Geology
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• v.37 no.1
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• pp.35-48
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• 2004

This paper provides a comprehensive overview of geochemical approaches for investigating and assessing heavy metal contamination in abandoned mine sites. Major sources of contaminants at the abandoned mine sites are mine water, waste rocks, tailings, and chemicals used in beneficiation and mineral processing. Soil, sediment, surface and ground water, and ecological system can be contaminated by heavy metals, which are transported due to erosion of mine waste piles, discharge of acid mine drainage and processed water, and dispersion of dust from waste rocks and tailings. The abandoned mine sites should be characterized using various methods including chemical analysis, mineralogical analysis, acid generation prediction tests, leaching/extraction tests, and field tests. Potential and practical environmental impacts from the abandoned mines should be assessed based on the site characterization.

• Journal of Environmental Impact Assessment
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• v.10 no.2
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• pp.85-98
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• 2001

This study was conducted to investigate the geochemical factors governing the distribution of heavy metals(Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, Mn, Ni, Pb, and Zn) in the marine surface sediment samples collected from the Samcheonpo coal-fired power plant. Variations of absolute metal concentrations were related to those in textural and/or carbonate and organic matter content. Most elements, except for Pb, showed generally lower contents compared with the average shale concentration, and the effect of anthropogenic input appeared to be minimal in the sediments. Computations of LF%(labile fraction) and EF(enrichment factor) based on all trace metal data indicated the presence of mineralogical control for Co, Cr, Cu, Ni, and Zn, and anthropogenic contamination for Pb, which needs to be considered in the design of long term monitoring programmes.