• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.26 no.1
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• pp.120-129
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• 2016

An industrial complex in Wonju, contaminated with trichloroethene (TCE), was one of the most problematic sites in Korea. Despite repeated remedial trials for decades, chlorinated ethenes remained as sources of down-gradient groundwater contamination. Recent efforts were being made to remove the contaminants of the area, but knowledge of the indigenous microbial communities and their dechlorination abilities were unknown. Thus, the objectives of the present study were (i) to evaluate the dechlorination abilities of indigenous microbes at the contaminated site, (ii) to characterize which microbes and reductive dehalogenase genes were responsible for the dechlorination reactions, and (iii) to develop a PCE-to-ethene dechlorinating microbial consortium. An enrichment culture that dechlorinates PCE to ethene was obtained from Wonju stream, nearby a trichloroethene (TCE)-contaminated industrial complex. The community profiling revealed that known organohalide-respiring microbes, such as Geobacter, Desulfuromonas, and Dehalococcoides grew during the incubation with chlorinated ethenes. Although Chloroflexi populations (i.e., Longilinea and Bellilinea) were the most enriched in the sediment microcosms, those were not found in the transfer cultures. Based upon the results from pyrosequencing of 16S rRNA gene amplicons and qPCR using TaqMan chemistry, close relatives of Dehalococcoides mccartyi strains FL2 and GT seemed to be dominant and responsible for the complete detoxification of chlorinated ethenes in the transfer cultures. This study also demonstrated that the contaminated site harbors indigenous microbes that can convert PCE to ethene, and the developed consortium can be an important resource for future bioremediation efforts.

• Magazine of the Korean Society of Agricultural Engineers
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• v.39 no.2
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• pp.62-73
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• 1997

The application of nutrients and pesticides to agricultural lands has been reported to contribute to groundwater contamination, which can be explained by preferential flow in lieu of convective-dispersive flow. An one-dimensional numerical model depicting preferential water and solute movement was modified to describe multi-layer flows. The model is based on a piecewise linear conductivity function. By combining conservation of mass and Darcy's law and using the method of characteristics a solution is obtained for water flow in which water moves at distinct velocities in different flow regions instead of an average velocity for the whole profile. The model allows transfer ofqr solutes between pore groups. The transfer is characterized by assuming mixing coefficients. The model was applied to undisturbed soil columns and an experiment site with structured sandy clay loam soil. Chloride, bromide, and 2, 4-D were used as tracers. Simulated solutes concentrations were in good agreement with the soil column data and field data in which preferential flow of solute is significant. The proposed model is capable of describing preferential solute transport under laboratory and field conditions.

• Journal of Environmental Impact Assessment
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• v.10 no.2
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• pp.99-108
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• 2001

This study was performed to develop an information processing system for the sound conservation of soil and groundwater resources. The system contains numerical models and geographic information systems for underground flow and contamination. Multidimensional Finite Element Model for Subsurface Environment (MFEMSE) was invented to analyze underground flow and pollution problems of water and gas phases. Newly developed and conventional models (MODFLOW, MOC3D, MT3D, PMPATH, PEST, UCODE) were integrated with GIS (ArcView) for the construction of an integrated information management system of subsurface environment. This system was applied to the management of three mineral water companies located in clean high mountain basin. Desirable management criteria and operational strategies were suggested using this system. The system was constructed to be applied for the broad sense of decision supporting tools in related topics of this study, so that it can be used not only for the prevention regulations, but also for clean up projects.

• Membrane and Water Treatment
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• v.11 no.2
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• pp.167-172
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• 2020

The effectiveness of in situ sediment capping as a technique for heavy metal risk mitigation in Hyeongsan River estuary, South Korea was studied. Sites in the estuary were found previously to show moderate to high levels of contamination of mercury, methylmercury and other heavy metals. A 400 m x 50 m section of the river was selected for a thin layer capping demonstration, where the total area was divided into 4 sections capped with different combinations of capping materials (zeolite, AC/zeolite, AC/sand, zeolite/sand). Pore water concentrations in the different sites were studied using diffusive gradient in thin film (DGT) probes. All capping amendments showed reduction in the pore water concentration of the different heavy metals with top 5 cm showing %reduction greater than 90% for some heavy metals. The relative maxima for the different metals were found to be translated to lower depths with addition of the caps. For two-layered cap with AC, order of placement should be considered since AC can easily be displaced due to its relatively low density. Investigation of methylmercury (MeHg) in the site showed that MeHg and %MeHg in pore water corresponds well with maxima for sulfide, Fe and Mn suggesting mercury methylation as probably coupled with sulfate, Fe and Mn reduction in sediments. Our results showed that thin-layer capping of active sorbents AC and zeolite, in combination with passive sand caps, are potential remediation strategy for sediments contaminated with heavy metals.

• Journal of Korea Soil Environment Society
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• v.4 no.1
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• pp.35-47
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• 1999

Mine tailings, soils. stream sediments around Gubong disused mine were analyzed in order to investigate their distribution and pollution levels of heavy metals and cyanide. The average contents of As, Cd, Cu. Hg, Pb, Zn, and CN￣ in mine tailings were 6.93$\times$$10^{3}$, 56.9, 209, 5.03, 3.25$\times$$10^{3}$, 1.89$\times$$10^{3}$, 21mg/kg respectively. The pollution indices that calculated by the tolerance level of Kloke were 42~95 and the pH values were slightly alkaline in mine tailings. The contents of heavy metals and cyanide in field soils near the mine were higher than the paddy soils. The contents of heavy metals in the stream sediment were up to that of the tailings, so contamination from the mine tailings were serious.

• Journal of Korea Soil Environment Society
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• v.2 no.1
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• pp.3-12
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• 1997

Phytoremediation, using plants to remediate toxic organic and inorganic pollutants in contaminated soils, is an emerging technology for environmental cleanup. Three strategies of this technology are applicable to the remediation of toxic heavy metals, radionuclides, and toxic organic pollutants: They are (1) phytoextraction, in which plants anumulate the contaminants and are harvested for the downstream processing; (2) phytodegradation, in which plant-released enzymes or plant-associated microorganisms convert toxic pollutants into non-toxic materials; and (3) phytostabilization, in which toxic pollutants are precipitated from solution or absorbed in either the plant tissue or the soil matrix. Phytoremediation is more effective and less expensive than other current treatment technologies.

• Journal of Korean Society on Water Environment
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• v.25 no.1
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• pp.84-89
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• 2009

Our nation's water resources remain susceptible to contamination by phenolic agrichemicals. These compounds can be toxic to a variety of organisms including humans. Their disposal is restricted in many countries with strict limits for acceptable concentrations in drinking water. Enzyme-mediated in situ stabilization has been advocated as an approach for the treatment of phenolic compounds in soils and groundwater. This study reports the development of a new approach to quantify the activity of the HRP enzyme in aqueous systems. The method is based on the coupled processes of energy transfer and enhanced chemiluminescence using a luminol-$H_2O_2$-HRP system. In this study, the effects of solution pH, ionic strength and aqueous concentrations of HRP, $H_2O_2$ and enhancer were evaluated on the p-iodophenol-enhanced, HRP-catalyzed chemiluminescence reaction intensity in Tris-HCl buffer. All assay components were found to affect the maximum chemiluminescene intensity. The calibration curve for HRP showed the linear relationship with maximum light intensity.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Agricultural Engineers Conference
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• 2003.10a
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• pp.303-306
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• 2003

This survey was carried out to investigate the chemical characteristics of ground water for livestock purpose and to estimate the influence of ground water quality by livestock farming. Water samples were collected three times in 2000, and analyzed for theirs chemical compositions using Korean Standard Methods for Water Quality. The EC of ground water was from 0.214 to 0.474 dS/m. $NO_3-N$ contamination range was from 3.56 to 11.81. The $SO_4{^{2-}}$ was $4.31{\sim}69.37mg/L$ and CI was $12.75{\sim}41.46mg/L$. The data of ground water quality indicated suitable quality for livestock. Also, the concentration of heavy metals in the sample could not make damage to the animals. The $NO_3-N$ concentration of the water by times are as follows: October (8.19 mg/L) > July (7.65 mg/L) > April (4.04 mg/L) with no significant differences during the livestock farming period. The average quality of groundwater for livestock is good for its purpose, and it was showed there was few influence by livestock farming.

• Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society
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• v.32 no.9
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• pp.3437-3442
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• 2011

An on-line flow injection analysis with dual pre-concentration method was developed to determine the ultra trace tri and hexavalent chromium in water. In this system, the cation and anion pre-concentration columns were combined with a 10-port injection valve and then used to separate and concentrate Cr (III) and Cr (VI) selectively. The two species of concentrated chromium were sequentially eluted and determined by using HCl-KCl buffer of pH 1.8 as an eluent. Cr (III) was oxidized by hydrogen peroxide to Cr (VI). It was detected spectrophotometrically at 548 nm by complexation with DPC (diphenylcarbazide). Several factors such as concentration of $H_2O_2$, DPC and coil length in reaction condition were optimized. The linear range for Cr (III) and Cr (VI) was 0.1-50 ${\mu}g$/L. The limit of detections ($3{\sigma}$) of Cr (III) and Cr (VI) were 52 ng/L and 44 ng/L under the optimized FIA system, and their recoveries 98% and 103%, respectively. This method was applied to analyze contamination level of chromium species in tap water, groundwater and bottled water.

• Proceedings of the Korean Geotechical Society Conference
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• 2008.03a
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• pp.242-250
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• 2008

Lining systems are used for two purpose in landfills : as covers to minimize leachate generation and surface water contamination by providing a barrier from precipitation and other percolating waters, and as containment liners to contain leachate and minimize its downward migration into underlying groundwater. So identifying leaks in landfill liners is an essential part of waste management. There are many leakage detection systems to monitor and seek leakage location, such as two electrode method, electrode grid method, diffusion hoses, capacitance sensors and tracers sensing cables. However, most of them can be applied in the new landfill construction sites because sensors must be installed prior to work. This paper presents a new type of leakage detection system, so called fence type electrode arrangement system, to monitor leakage and to seek leakage location in working landfill as well as new landfill. This system is based on the measurement of an electrical current flowing through leakage point. Series of laboratory tests are performed to investigate an availability of this system and this paper present some of these results.