• Journal of Soil and Groundwater Environment
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• v.16 no.6
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• pp.58-65
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• 2011

The bacterial uranium(VI) reduction and its resultant low solubility make this process an attractive option for removing U from groundwater. An impact of aqueous suspending iron phase, which is redox sensitive and ubiquitous in subsurface groundwater, on the U(VI) bioreduction by Shewanella putrefaciens CN32 was investigated. In our batch experiment, the U(VI) concentration ($5{\times}10^5M$) gradually decreased to a non-detectable level during the microbial respiration. However, when Fe(III) phase was suspended in solution, bioreduction of U(VI) was significantly suppressed due to a preferred reduction of Fe(III) instead of U(VI). This shows that the suspending amorphous Fe(III) phase can be a strong inhibitor to the U(VI) bioreduction. On the contrary, when iron was present as a soluble Fe(II) in the solution, the U(VI) removal was largely enhanced. The microbially-catalyzed U(VI) reduction resulted in an accumulation of solid-type U particles in and around the cells. Electron elemental investigations for the precipitates show that some background cations such as Ca and P were favorably coprecipitated with U. This implies that aqueous U tends to be stabilized by complexing with Ca or P ions, which easily diffuse and coprecipitate with U in and around the microbial cell.

• Journal of Conservation Science
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• v.32 no.1
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• pp.75-88
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• 2016

In this study, 5 mural paintings in the Buddhist temples of Joseon era were researched for component analysis on the soil contained in the walls. The results of particle size analysis showed that the ratio of particle contents were different in each layer. In the finishing layer, the distribution of the middle sand fraction is higher than that of the middle layer. The results of XRD analysis showed that quartz, feldspar, and clay mineral are the main components of sand, suggesting similar mineral composition to that of ordinary soil component. It seems weathered rocks were used for construction of the walls. The main chemical components detected from EDX analysis were Si, Al, Fe, and K. Also the SEM images showed sand or clay sized minerals. In conclusion, the walls of the buddhist mural paintings in Joseon Dynasty had been constructed by using the loess, and had been produced by using mixture of clay and sand particles of different sizes for each layer. This study identified the characteristics of the materials and the manufacturing technologies used on the walls of mural paintings of Buddhist temples in Joseon era.

• Journal of the Korean Geosynthetics Society
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• v.12 no.3
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• pp.23-29
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• 2013

The mechanical behavior of frozen soils is different from that of unfrozen soils due to the phase change between water and ice. The strength characteristics of frozen soils are governed by the intrinsic material properties such as grain size, ice and water content, air bubbles, and by externally imposed testing conditions such as temperature, freezing time, and strain rate. Especially, the strength of the frozen soils is generally higher than that of unfrozen soils due to ice binding capacity with soil particles, and is strongly affected by a highly complex interaction between the solid soil skeleton and the pore matrix, composed of ice and unfrozen water. In this study, the direct shear test and unconfined compression test are carried out inside of a large-scaled freezing chamber, and the relationships between cohesion and unconfined compression strength under various freezing temperature conditions are discussed.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.14 no.4
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• pp.307-314
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• 2018

Strength of loess that experienced cyclic freeze and thaw is of great significance for evaluating stability of slopes and foundations in loess regions. This paper takes the frequently encountered loess in the Northwestern China as the study object and carried out three kinds of laboratory tests including freeze-thaw test, direct shear test and SEM test to investigate the strength behaviors of loess after cyclic freeze and thaw, and the correlation with meso-level changes in soil structure. Results show that for loess specimens at four dry densities, the cohesion decreases with freeze-thaw cycles until a residual value is reached and thus an exponential equation is proposed. Besides, little change in the angle of internal friction was observed as freeze-thaw proceeds. This may depend on the varying of soil structure, based on which a clue can be found from the surface morphology and mesoscopic scanning of loess specimens. Clearly we observed significant changes in surface morphology of loess and it tends to aggravate at higher water contents or more cycles of freeze and thaw. Moreover, freeze-thaw cycling leads to obvious changes in the meso-structure of loess including lowering the particle aggregates and increasing both the proportion of fine particles and porosity area ratio. A damage variable dependent on the ratio of porosity area is introduced based on the continuum damage mechanics and its correlation with cohesion is discussed.

• Journal of Wetlands Research
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• v.11 no.1
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• pp.105-113
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• 2009

Heat energy exchange is very important processes in the coastal wetland ecosystems. We observed and analyzed the net radiation flux, the sensible heat flux, the latent heat flux and the soil heat flux, which are balanced in the heat energy balance, over a reclaimed land covered with reeds at Goheung, Jeonllanamdo where is horizontally plane. The atmospheric turbulence had been measured in order to estimate the heat transfer during 5 intensive observation periods (IOPs). It was considered that the soil consists of water, fine particles, and vegetation canopy that changes color and density according to the season. We examined the characteristics of the heat flux and the vegetation effect on the air temperature control. It was noted that the heat was transported mainly by latent heat flux in the summer season and the vegetation canopy decreased the daily temperature range due to the heat storage. The air temperature was lower at the IOPs site than near urban area. This showed that the coastal wetland covered with the vegetation control the thermal environment.

• Journal of the Korean Geotechnical Society
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• v.34 no.8
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• pp.27-36
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• 2018

The collapse behavior of ground subsidence caused by continuous loss of particles depends on the saturated condition and density of the ground. In this study, types of ground subsidence were classified based on the saturated condition and each type was performed on the different relative density to analyze the influence factors on the collapse behavior by distinct element method. According to analysis results, the relatively small amount of settlement occurred on the dense ground and a cavity was created under dense-unsaturated ground. In contrast, loose ground showed the large amount of settlement and collapsed immediately without cavity formation even if the unsaturated ground was simulated. The results demonstrated that because the relative density has influence on the mechanical interlocking and saturated condition has influence on the inter-particle force, these are important factors to change the collapse behavior.

• Journal of Soil and Groundwater Environment
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• v.19 no.6
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• pp.80-90
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• 2014

The laboratory and field studies were conducted to identify an optimal injection concentration of nanoscale zero-valent iron particles (NZVI) and to evaluate the applicability of NZVI-based reactive zone technology to the site contaminated with trichloroethylene (TCE) DNAPL (Dense Non-Aqueous Phase Liquid). The laboratory test found an optimal injection concentration of NZVI of 5 g/L that could remove more than 95% of 0.15 mM TCE within 20 days. Eleven test wells were installed at the aquifer that was mainly composed of alluvial and weathered soils at a strong oxic condition with dissolved oxygen concentration of 3.50 mg/L and oxidation-reduction potential of 301 mV. NZVI of total 30 kg were successfully injected using a centrifugal pump. After 60 days from the NZVI injection, 86.2% of the TCE initially present in the groundwater was removed and the mass of TCE removed was 405 g. Nonchlorinated products such as ethane and ethene were detected in the groundwater samples. Based on the increased chloride ion concentration at the site, the mass of TCE removed was estimated to be 1.52 kg. This implied the presence of DNAPL TCE which contributed to a higher estimate of TCE removal than that based on the TCE concentration change.

• Journal of the Korean Geotechnical Society
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• v.38 no.8
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• pp.39-52
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• 2022

Multilayer perceptron neural network was trained to determine the factor of safety and slip surface of the slope. Slope geometry is a simple slope based on Korean design standards, and the case of dry and existing groundwater levels are both considered, and the properties of the soil composing the slope are considered to be sandy soil including fine particles. When curating the data required for model training, slope stability analysis was performed in 42,000 cases using the limit equilibrium method. Steady-state seepage analysis of groundwater was also performed, and the results generated were applied to slope stability analysis. Results show that the multilayer perceptron model can predict the factor of safety and failure arc with high performance when the slope's physical properties data are input. A method for quantitative validation of the model performance is presented.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.55 no.8
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• pp.2802-2811
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• 2023

In a first-of-its-kind study, terrestrial radionuclide concentrations were measured in 35 topsoil samples from the outskirts of Dhaka using HPGe gamma-ray spectrometry to assess the radiological consequences of such a vast number of brick kilns on the plant workers, general as well as dwelling environment. The range of activity concentrations of ²²⁶Ra, ²³²Th, and ⁴⁰K is found at 19 ± 3.04 to 38 ± 4.94, 39 ± 5.85 to 57 ± 7.41, and (430 ± 51.60 to 570 ± 68.40) Bq/kg, respectively. ²³²Th and ⁴⁰K concentrations were higher than the global averages. Bottom ash deposition in lowlands, fly ash buildup in soils, and the fallout of micro-particles are all probable causes of the elevated radioactivity levels. ¹³⁷Cs was found in the sample, which indicates the migration of ¹³⁷Cs from nuclear accidents or nuclear fallout, or the contamination of feed coal. Although the effective dose received by the general public was below the recommended dose limit but, most estimates of hazard parameters surpass their respective population weighted global averages, indicating that brick kiln workers and nearby residents are not safe due to prolonged exposures to terrestrial radiation. In addition, the soil around sampling sites is found to be unsuitable for agricultural purposes.

• Journal of the Korean Geotechnical Society
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• v.22 no.1
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• pp.53-61
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• 2006

Soil liquefaction occurs by complex dynamic interaction between soil particles and pore fluid. Therefore, experimental researches have been widely performed to analyze liquefaction phenomena. In this research, centrifuge tests were performed to analyze the liquefaction behavior of horizontal sand ground. Centrifugal acceleration was 40g and the thickness of model ground was 25cm, which simulates 10m thickness in prototype scale. Viscous fluid was used as pore fluid to remove the time scaling difference between dissipation and dynamic shaking. Test results showed that the dissipation of excess pore pressure is the combined behavior of solidification and consolidation. In addition, the solidification rate, the ground acceleration amplitude, and the dynamic permeability during solidification were influenced by the confining pressure.