• Economic and Environmental Geology
• /
• v.54 no.4
• /
• pp.409-425
• /
• 2021

Carbon dioxide has been known to be a typical greenhouse gas causing global warming, and a number of efforts have been proposed to reduce its concentration in the atmosphere. Among them, carbon dioxide capture and storage (CCS) has been taken into great account to accomplish the target reduction of carbon dioxide. In order to commercialize the CCS, its safety should be secured. In particular, if the stored carbon dioxide is leaked in the arable land, serious problems could come up in terms of crop growth. This study was conducted to investigate the effect of carbon dioxide leaked from storage sites on soil fertility. The leakage of carbon dioxide was simulated using the facility of its artificial injection into soils in the laboratory. Several soil chemical properties, such as pH, cation exchange capacity, electrical conductivity, the concentrations of exchangeable cations, nitrogen (N) (total-N, nitrate-N, and ammonia-N), phosphorus (P) (total-P and available-P), sulfur (S) (total-S and available-S), available-boron (B), and the contents of soil organic matter, were monitored as indicators of soil fertility during the period of artificial injection of carbon dioxide. Two kinds of soils, such as non-cultivated and cultivated soils, were compared in the artificial injection tests, and the latter included maize- and soybean-cultivated soils. The non-cultivated soil (NCS) was sandy soil of 42.6% porosity, the maize-cultivated soil (MCS) and soybean-cultivated soil (SCS) were loamy sand having 46.8% and 48.0% of porosities, respectively. The artificial injection facility had six columns: one was for the control without carbon dioxide injection, and the other five columns were used for the injections tests. Total injection periods for NCS and MCS/SCS were 60 and 70 days, respectively, and artificial rainfall events were simulated using one pore volume after the 12-day injection for the NCS and the 14-day injection for the MCS/SCS. After each rainfall event, the soil fertility indicators were measured for soil and leachate solution, and they were compared before and after the injection of carbon dioxide. The results indicate that the residual concentrations of exchangeable cations, total-N, total-P, the content of soil organic matter, and electrical conductivity were not likely to be affected by the injection of carbon dioxide. However, the residual concentrations of nitrate-N, ammonia-N, available-P, available-S, and available-B tended to decrease after the carbon dioxide injection, indicating that soil fertility might be reduced. Meanwhile, soil pH did not seem to be influenced due to the buffering capacity of soils, but it is speculated that a long-term leakage of carbon dioxide might bring about soil acidification.

• Journal of the Earthquake Engineering Society of Korea
• /
• v.28 no.5
• /
• pp.233-247
• /
• 2024

The damage to structures during an earthquake can be varied depending on the frequency characteristics of seismic waves and the geological properties of the ground. Therefore, considering such attributes in the design ground motions is crucial. The Korean seismic design standard (KDS 17 10 00) provides design response spectra for various ground classifications. If required for time-domain analysis, ground motion time series can be either selected and adjusted from motions recorded at rock sites in intraplate regions or artificially synthesized. Ground motion time series at soil sites should be obtained from site response analysis. However, in practice, selecting suitable ground motion records is challenging due to the overall lack of large earthquakes in intraplate regions, and artificially synthesized time series often leads to unrealistic responses of structures. As an alternative approach, this study provides a case study of generating ground motion time series based on the hybrid broadband ground motion simulation of selected scenario earthquakes at sites in the Nakdonggang delta region. This research is significant as it provides a novel method for generating ground motion time series that can be used in seismic design and response analysis. For large-magnitude earthquake scenarios close to the epicenter, the simulated response spectra surpassed the 1000-year design response spectra in some specific frequency ranges. Subsequently, the acceleration time series at each location were used as input motions to perform nonlinear 1D site response analysis through the PySeismoSoil Package to account for the site response characteristics at each location. The results of the study revealed a tendency to amplify ground motion in the mid to long-period range in most places within the study area. Additionally, significant amplification in the short-period range was observed in some locations characterized by a thin soil layer and relatively high shear wave velocity soil near the upper bedrock.

• Journal of the Korean earth science society
• /
• v.45 no.4
• /
• pp.363-376
• /
• 2024

Alluvial beds are intimately associated with electrical properties related to soil types, including clay mineral content, porosity, and water content. The hydraulic property governs water movement and storage in alluvial beds. This study revealed electrical resistivity and hydraulic properties in space and time in relation to the hydrogeological data, groundwater pumping, and rainfall infiltration into the alluvial bed located in Daesan-myeon, Changwon City. An electrical resistivity survey with electrode spacings of 2 and 4m using a dipole-dipole array indicates that electrical resistivity changes in the alluvial bed depend on groundwater pumping and rainfall events. Additionally, rainfall infiltration varies with hydraulic conductivity in the shallow zone of the alluvial bed. The 2 m electrode spacing survey confirms that electrical resistivity values decrease at shallow depths, corresponding with rainfall and increased water content in the soil, indicating rainfall infiltration approximately 1-2 m below the land surface. The 4m electrode spacing survey reveals that hydraulic conductivity (K) values and electrical resistivity (ρ) values display an inverse relationship from the surface to the water table (approximately 9 m) and at deeper levels than the water table. Notably, ρ values are impacted by pumping around the depth of the water table at 9 m. This study suggests that time-lapsed electrical resistivity surveys in space and time could be effective tools for detecting the impact of rainfall and pumping, as well as hydraulic conductivity in shallow alluvial beds.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
• /
• v.18 no.4
• /
• pp.353-362
• /
• 2019

Soil-rock mixture (S-RM) is an inhomogeneous geomaterial that is widely encountered in nature. The mechanical and physical properties of S-RM are important factors contributing towards different deformation characteristics and unstable modes of the talus slope. In this paper, the equivalent substitution method was employed for the preparation of S-RM test samples, and large-scale triaxial laboratory tests were conducted to investigate their mechanical parameters by varying the water content and confining pressure. Additionally, a simplified geological model based on the finite element method was established to compare the stability of talus slopes with different strength parameters and in different excavation and support processes. The results showed that the S-RM samples exhibit slight strain softening and strain hardening under low and high water content, respectively. The water content of S-RM also had an effect on decreasing strength parameters, with the decrease in magnitude of the cohesive force and internal friction angle being mainly influenced by the low and high water content, respectively. The stability of talus slope decreased with a decrease in the cohesion force and internal friction angle, thereby creating a new shallow slip surface. Since the excavation of toe of the slope for road construction can easily cause a landslide, anti-slide piles can be used to effectively improve the slope stability, especially for shallow excavations. But the efficacy of anti-slide piles gradually decreases with increasing water content. This paper can act as a reference for the selection of strength parameters of S-RM and provide an analysis of the instability of the talus slope.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Soil and Groundwater Environment Conference
• /
• 2003.10a
• /
• pp.70-86
• /
• 2003

Despite its usability, TCE has been managed as a hazardous material due to the toxicity and many contamination cases were surveyed in some developed countries. U.S.EPA(Kram et al., 2001) suggested DNAPL characterization methods and approaches based on survey experiences at several sites. However, Korea has not the least assessment of contamination and trial of remediation, although there are a lot of doubtable areas where ground water would be contaminated with TCE. In this study, we try to assess the volume and extent of ground water contamination with TCE and delineate the contamination source zones in an industrial area. Ground water in this area flows through fractures and the contaminant TCE has the properties of high volatility, high density and low partitioning to soil material. Thus, we applied a variety of technical approaches to identify the contamination status; documentary, hydrogeochemical, hydrogeological and geological surveys. In addition, additional survey was performed based on the interim findings, which showed that ground water contamination was limited to the relatively small area with high concentrations to the deep place. The contamination source zone is estimated to be the asphalt test institute where a great deal of TCE has been used to analyze the amount of asphalt soluble in TCE since 1984. Based on the contamination characterization and a myriad of documents about ground water remediation, appropriate site remediation management options will be recommended later. This study is now under way and this paper was focused on describing the technical approaches used to achieve the goals of this study.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
• /
• v.28 no.3
• /
• pp.283-298
• /
• 2022

Landslides triggered by the combination of heavy precipitation and anthropological disturbance in hilly areas cause severe damage to human lives, properties, and infrastructure constructions. A comprehensive investigation of the influencing factors and failure mechanisms of landslides are significant for disaster mitigation and prevention. This paper utilized the combination of detailed geological investigation, physical experimental testing as well as numerical modelling to determine the failure mechanism, and proposed a countermeasures of the Lantian landslide occurred on 2, July 2017. The results reveal that the Lantian landslide is a catastrophic reactivated slide which occurred in an active tectonic region in Southwest China. Because of the unique geological settings, the fully to highly weathered basalts in the study area with well-developed fractures favored the rainwater infiltration, which is the beneficial to slide reactivation. Engineering excavation and heavy precipitation are the main triggering factors to activate the slide motion. Two failure stages have been identified in the landslide. The first phase involves a shallow mass collapse originated at the upper slopes, which extends from the road to platform at rear part, which is triggered by excavation in the landslide region. Subjected to the following prolonged rainfall from 19 June to 2 July, 2017, the pore water pressure of the slope continually increased, and the groundwater table successively rise, resulting in a significant decrease of soil strength which leads to successive large-scale deep slide. Thereinto, the shallow collapse played a significant role in the formation of the deep slide. Based on the formation mechanisms of the landslide, detailed engineering mitigation measures, involving slope cutting, anchor cable frame, shotcrete and anchorage, retaining wall and intercepting ditch were suggested to reduce the future failure risk of the landslide.

• The Journal of Engineering Geology
• /
• v.18 no.1
• /
• pp.27-36
• /
• 2008

To derive easily the coefficient of permeability from several other soil properties, the estimation model of coefficient of permeability was proposed using linear regression analysis. The coefficient of permeability is one of the major factors to evaluate the soil characteristics. The study area is located in Kangwon-do Pyeongchang-gun Jinbu-Myeon. Soil samples of 45 spots were taken from the study area and various soil tests were carried out in laboratory. After selecting the soil factor influenced by the coefficient of permeability through the correlation analysis, the estimation model of coefficient of permeability was developed using the linear regression analysis between the selected soil factor and the coefficient of permeability from permeability test. Also, the estimation model of coefficient of permeability was compared with the results from permeability test and empirical equation, and the suitability of proposed model was proved. As the result of correlation analysis between various soil factors and the coefficient of permeability using SPSS(statistical package for the social sciences), the largest influence factor of coefficient of permeability were the effective grain size, porosity and dry unit weight. The coefficient of permeability calculated from the proposed model was similar to that resulted from permeability test. Therefore, the proposed model can be used in case of estimating the coefficient of permeability at the same soil condition like study area.

• Economic and Environmental Geology
• /
• v.40 no.4
• /
• pp.419-443
• /
• 2007

Recently, the branch-out of foreign companies into domestic markets through M&A and the opened followed by the Free Trade Agreement(FTA) with America have made the environmental site assessments of specific site more necessary. In this study, through case study of conducting actual environmental site assessment by use of a toolbox approach at a large scale of chemical plant with various contaminants located in a coastal area, the problems of guideline of domestic environmental assessment of soil were complemented. And an efficient and economical assessment was achieved. All six steps such as basic investigation, environmental site history survey, sampling and analysis, installation of monitoring wells and hydrogeological survey, and data interpretation were conducted in this study. All results of document survey, geological lineament analysis, field geology survey of surrounding area, geophysical prospecting of the site, hydraulic conductivity, measurement of groundwater flow rate and direction, sampling and analysis at each step were associated and estimated as an integrated tool box approach. As a consequence of this study, toolbox approaches were very useful techniques for contamination level and site characterization of subsurface media. The given conditions to conduct a basic survey for domestic soil environment assessment of site by use of existing documents, as well as interviews with the owner/manager/user of all adjacent properties and thorough review of all practically reviewable records pertaining to the property and surrounding properties within "Guideline for Soil Environment Assessment" radii are very poor. As a result, the application of toolbox approach in the environment site assessment of site is not only more efficient and economical, but also could be very useful assessment to integrate the soil and groundwater contamination.

• Geophysics and Geophysical Exploration
• /
• v.13 no.1
• /
• pp.102-108
• /
• 2010

The internal structure of a river embankment must be delineated as part of investigations to evaluate its safety. Geophysical methods can be most effective means for that purpose, if they are used together with geotechnical methods such as the cone penetration test (CPT) and drilling. Since the dyke body and subsoil in general consist of material with a wide range of grain size, the properties and stratification of the soil must be accurately estimated to predict the mechanical stability and water infiltration in the river embankment. The strength and water content of the levee soil are also parameters required for such prediction. These parameters are usually estimated from CPT data, drilled core samples and laboratory tests. In this study we attempt to utilise geophysical data to estimate these parameters more effectively for very long river embankments. S-wave velocity and resistivity of the levee soils obtained with geophysical surveys are used to classify the soils. The classification is based on a physical soil model, called the unconsolidated sand model. Using this model, a soil profile along the river embankment is constructed from S-wave velocity and resistivity profiles. The soil profile thus obtained has been verified by geotechnical logs, which proves its usefulness for investigation of a river embankment.

• Journal of Korean Society of Water and Wastewater
• /
• v.26 no.6
• /
• pp.815-823
• /
• 2012

Non-point source pollutants in down stream of Nakdong river were simulated by SWAT. GIS was utilized to make input data of SWAT such as landuse pattern and soil. Meteorological data of 2007 and 2009 were applied for the calibration and validation of runoff in SWAT. It was difficult to calibrate and validate the runoff and nutrient results since a study area was influenced by the tidal effects. Jindong site was selected to escape from the bias of runoff simulation in the coastal area. $R^2$ values of calibration and validation were 0.8 and 0.79. However, $R^2$ values of water qualities were very low level in comparison to runoff. These resulted from the concentration scale of water qualities such as BOD, T-N and T-P. Additionally, tidal influence could effected on the measurements of nutrients. The simulated annual averages and patterns of BOD, T-N and T-P in SWAT were similar to the measurement data. 80 ~ 96 % of nonpoint source pollutants at Nakbon M site were released from April to August of 2009. The ratio of T-N and T-P from nonpoint source were above 50 % during the rainy season.