• The Journal of Engineering Geology
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• v.25 no.3
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• pp.357-368
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• 2015

Brittle failure of Mesozoic granite in the Daejeon region is predicted using empirical analysis and numerical modeling techniques. The input parameters selected for these techniques were based on the results of laboratory tests, including damage-controlled tests. Rock masses that were considered to be strong during laboratory testing were assigned to "group A" and those considered to be extremely strong were assigned to "group B". The properties of each group were then used in the analyses. In-situ stress measurements, or the ratio of horizontal to vertical stress (k), were also necessary for the analyses, but no such measurements have been made in the study area. Therefore, k values of 1, 2, and 3 were assumed. In the case of k=1, empirical analysis and numerical modeling show no indication of brittle failure from the surface to1000 m depth. When k=2, brittle failure of the rock mass occurs at depths below 800 m. For k=3, brittle failure occurs at depths below 600 m. Although both the Cohesion Weakening Friction Strengthening (CWFS) and Mohr-Coulomb models were used to predict brittle failure, only the CWFS model performed well in simulating the range and depth of the brittle failure zone.

• Geophysics and Geophysical Exploration
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• v.9 no.2
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• pp.155-162
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• 2006

An abnormal seepage flow, which is mainly caused by the piping, is one of the major reasons for embankment dam failure. A leakage detection is therefore a vital part of an embankment dam's monitoring. Resistivity method, which is an efficient tool to detect leakage zones, has been used all over the world for an embankment dam's monitoring. Although the resistivity method gives us very useful information about the leakage problem, there is no more quantitative interpretation than the low resistivity zones in the 2-dimensional resistivity section are regraded simply as the anomalous seepage zones. Recently, resistivity monitoring technique is applied for the detection of leakage zones. However, its interpretation still remains in the stage of presenting the resistivity ratio itself. An increased seepage flow increases a porosity and an increasing porosity decreases the dam's stability. Therefore, the porosity is one of the major factors for an embankment dam's stability. Based on Archie's experimental formula, we try to evaluate a porosity distribution from the resistivity data which is obtained on the dam's crest. We also attempt to represent a procedure to evaluate a safety index of the embankment dam from the resistivity monitoring data.

• Geophysics and Geophysical Exploration
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• v.15 no.4
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• pp.155-162
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• 2012

The Thomsen-Haskell method was used to determine sensitivities of the Rayleigh-wave phase velocities and spectral amplitude of vertical ground motion to insertion of a single velocity-anomaly layer into overburden underlain by a basement. The reference model comprised a 9-m thick overburden with shear-wave velocity (${\nu}_s$ of 300 m/s above a half-space with ${\nu}_s$ = 1000 m/s. The inserted layer, with a velocity of 150, 225, 375, or 450 m/s and a thickness of 1, 2, or 3 m, was placed at depths increasing from the surface in increments of 1 m. Phase velocities were computed for frequencies of 4 to 30 Hz. For inserted layer models, we placed an anomalous layer with thickness of 1 ~ 3 m, shear-wave velocity of 150 ~ 450 m/s, and at depths of 0 ~ 8 m in the overburden. The frequency range of 8 ~ 20 Hz were the most sensitive to the difference of $C_R$ between the inserted and reference models (${\Delta}C_R$) for h = 1 m and the frequency range got wide as h increased. For all of the models, the spectral amplitudes of the fundamental mode exceeded those of the $1^{st}$-higher mode except at frequencies just above the low-frequency cutoff of the $1^{st}$-higher mode.

• Geophysics and Geophysical Exploration
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• v.12 no.1
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• pp.154-162
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• 2009

Sonic wave dispersion characteristics are one of the most important targets of study, particularly in estimating shear wave velocity from borehole sonic logging. We have tested dispersion characteristics using monopole and dipole sources. Theoretical dispersion curves were computed for tool-absent and tool-included models having the same physical properties but different diameters (including ${\Phi}520mm$, ${\Phi}150mm$, and ${\Phi}76mm$). Comparisons were made between boreholes of different sizes and between tool-absent and tool-included models. Between the tool-included and the tool-absent boreholes, a close similarity in dispersion curve shape was revealed for the monopole source, and a significant difference was shown for the dipole source. However, for the cut-off frequency, particularly in the engineering boreholes (${\Phi}76mm$ and ${\Phi}50mm$), a significant difference was observed for signals from the monopole source, but approximately the same cut-off frequencies were found with the dipole source. This indicates the need of careful choice of source frequency in monopole-source sonic logging, particularly in an engineering borehole. The results of numerical experiments show that cut-off frequency is exponentially proportional to the inverse of borehole radius, irrespective of the mode type and the presence of a tool, and that the cut-off frequencies for each borehole environment could be expressed as an exponential function, rather than the inversely proportional relationship between the cut-off frequency and the borehole radius that was previously generally recognised. From the direct comparison of dispersion curves, the effects on the dispersion characteristics of borehole size and the presence of the tool can be revealed more clearly than in previous studies, which presented the dispersion curve and/or characteristics for each borehole environment separately.

• Geophysics and Geophysical Exploration
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• v.12 no.3
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• pp.246-254
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• 2009

We developed a novel polarization filter to separate linearly polarized waves from elliptically polarized waves in an infinite homogeneous medium and at the free surface using methods of multicomponent complex trace analysis. Sensitivity to filter parameters were examined using synthetic data simulating particle motions in a homogeneous medium. For known amplitude ratios of horizontal-to-vertical components of P and Rayleigh waves $C_L$ and $C_R$, respectively, the polarization filter precisely removes Rayleigh waves. Errors in the vertical and horizontal components of the filtered results increase with the ratio $C_R$/$C_L$ and the product $C_R$.$C_L$, respectively. The vertical component errors also increase rapidly as the ratios of applied-to-modeled values of $C_L$ and $C_R$ ($C_L'$/$C_L$ and $C_R'$/$C_R$) decrease, and are sensitive to $C_R'$/$C_R$ and $C_L'$/$C_L$ for small and large incidence angles, respectively. Errors of the filter are exactly the same for shear waves when the incidence angle is the supplementary of P-wave incidence angle.

• Geophysics and Geophysical Exploration
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• v.17 no.4
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• pp.247-252
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• 2014

Gagok Mine, which is skarn deposits, includes sulfide minerals such as sphalerite, galena, chalcopyrite, and pyrrhotite. To explore these minerals, spectral induced polarization (SIP) is relatively effective compared to other geophysical exploration methods because there is a strong IP effect caused by electrode polarization. In the SIP, the chargeability related to sulfide mineral contents and the time constant related to the grain size of the minerals are obtained. For this reason, we aim to compare difference in the mineralized characteristics between two orebodies in the Gagok Mine by using the chargeability and the time constant. For this study, we sampled ores from the south of Wolgok orebody and the north of Sungok orebody. In order to recognize the mineralization characteristics, the metal content of the samples was measured by a potable XRF and the SIP data of the samples were acquired by using a laboratory SIP measurement system. As a result, the metals in the samples such as Pb, Zn, Cu, and Fe were detected by the portable XRF measurement. In particular, the Fe and Zn contents were far higher than the other metals. The Fe and the Zn were caused by the sphalerite and the pyrrhotite through microscopy. The Wolgok orebody had higher sulfide mineral contents than the Sungok orebody and the result corresponded with the chargeability result. However, we considered that the Sungok orebody had a larger sulfide mineral grain size than the Wolgok orebody because the time constant of the Sungok orebody was larger.

• Geophysics and Geophysical Exploration
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• v.18 no.1
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• pp.1-8
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• 2015

To estimate the shear-wave velocity (${\nu}_s$ beneath the OTVZ seismic station on Ngauruhoe volcano in New Zealand, we calculated receiver functions (RFs) using 127 teleseismic data ($Mw{\geq}5.5$) with high signal-to-noise ratios recorded during November 11, 2011 to September 11, 2013. The genetic inversion algorithms was applied to 21 RFs calculated by the iterative time-domain deconvolution method. In the 1-D ${\nu}_s$ model derived by the inversion, the Moho is observed at a 14 km depth, marked by a ${\nu}_s$ transition from 3.7 km/s to 4.7 km/s. The average ${\nu}_s$ of the overlying crust is 3.4 km/s, and the average ${\nu}_s$ of a greater than 9-km thick low-velocity layer (LVL) in the lower crust is 3.1 km/s. The LVL becomes thinner with increasing distance from the station. Another LVL thicker than 10 km with ${\nu}_s$ less than 4.3 km/s is found in the upper mantle. Those LVLs in the lower crust and the upper mantle and the relatively thin crust might be related to the magma activity caused by the subducting Pacific plate.

• Geophysics and Geophysical Exploration
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• v.19 no.2
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• pp.67-75
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• 2016

To investigate spatial and temporal variations of low-frequency (${\leq}5Hz$) ambient seismic noise, we analyzed the noise data recorded for one whole year of 2014 at surface accelerometer stations in South Korea. After decomposed into low-frequency (LF; < 1 Hz) and high-frequency (HF; ${\geq}1Hz$) components, the root-mean-squared (RMS) amplitudes and power spectral densities (PSD) of the noise data were computed. The RMS amplitudes were larger on islands and near-shore stations, but also large RMS amplitudes were observed at inland stations in large cities only for HF components. The RMS amplitudes of HF components were larger in the daytime than at nighttime and during weekdays than on Sunday and holidays. This indicates the HF components are closely related to human activities. On the contrary, daily and weekly variations were not clear in the LF components while they showed seasonal variations with its maximum during the winter and a good correlation with significant wave height. Therefore, we interpret the mechanism of LF components is closely related to natural phenomena such as sea. The amplitude of LF components decreased as an exponential function of the distance to the center of typhoons. The exponential index of -0.76 suggested that ambient seismic noise included both surface and body waves. Peak frequencies of the PSD curves were near 0.34 Hz indicating the double frequency. No temporal variation in the peak frequency was clearly noticed.

• Geophysics and Geophysical Exploration
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• v.17 no.2
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• pp.66-73
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• 2014

To estimate the shear-velocity ($v_s$) structure beneath the WIZ station on White Island in New Zealand, we applied receiver function (RF) inversion and H-${\kappa}$ stacking methods to 362 teleseismic events (Mw > 5.5) recorded during April 20, 2007 to September 6, 2013. Using 71 RFs with errors less than 20% after 200 iterative computations, we determined that the depth to Moho of $v_s$ = 4.35 km/s is $24{\pm}1km$ within a 15 km radius of the station. In an 1-d $v_s$ model derived by RF inversions, a 4-km thick low-velocity layer (LVL) at depths of 18 ~ 22 km was identified in the lower crust. This LVL, which is 0.15 km/s slower than the rocks above and below it, may indicate the presence of a deep magma reservoir. The H-${\kappa}$ stacking method yielded an estimate of the depth to the Moho of 24.5 km, which agrees well with the depth determined by RF inversions. The low $v_p/v_s$ ratio of 1.64 may be due to the presence of gas-filled rock or hot crystallizing magma.

• The Journal of Engineering Geology
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• v.25 no.4
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• pp.587-598
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• 2015

We examined various existing threshold methods for the determination of the first arrival time of acoustic emission (AE), and developed a new variable threshold method that could determine the first arrival time of AE more accurately and more quickly than existing methods. The new method, a modification of an existing threshold method, does not fix the threshold, but applies variable thresholds for the AE signals according to noise analysis. Two- and three-dimensional models were established to test the effectiveness of the new method. It could determine source locations of AE in a two-dimensional model 38.3% more accurately than the pre-existing threshold methods. Its accuracy improvement over the existing methods in a three-dimensional model was about 15.2%. A practical test involved measuring the source locations of AE during three-point bending tests of granite cores. The new method placed the sources closer to the fracture plane than did the pre-existing methods, indicating its superior (and quicker) ability to determine the source locations of AE.