• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Soil and Groundwater Environment Conference
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• 2006.04a
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• pp.20-28
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• 2006

Partitioning tracer tests were conducted to quantify the saturation degree of diesel and water in unsaturated soil, respectively. The use of partitioning tracers that partition into diesel, water, and air (i.e., three-phase partitioning), is in attractive alternative to traditional coring and analysis method. These gaseous partition tracers not global warming gas like CFC's are Butane, Acetylene, Ethylene, Methylene chloride, and Methane. The glass column packed with sandy soil was prepared, in which a three-phase system of air, water, and diesel was maintained. Conservative and partition gas tracers were injected into the columns and detected easily using a single GC detector(FID). For each tracer, a method of moments was used to estimate partition coefficient between water, diesel. and the air, respectively. The results from the column studies showed that the diesel/air tracer partition coefficient ranged from 8.2 to 868 and 9.2 for water/air. Saturation degree of diesel and water in the column, predicted by the partition coefficients obtained from tests, was underestimated up to 66% and 23% respectively.

• KSCE Journal of Civil and Environmental Engineering Research
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• v.26 no.1C
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• pp.1-8
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• 2006

The purpose of this study is to experimentally analysis the eletrokinetic phenomena and remediation characteristics developed during the application of electrokinetic remediation technique to unsaturated soils contaminated by heavy metals. In the laboratory a series of column tests are performed on degree of saturation for shooting range soil. The test results indicated that Pb is mainly removed under unsaturated conditions by electromigration within diffuse double layer, and if the initial containment concentration is below cation exchange capacity and equals to adsorption per unit soil solid weight, the remedial efficiency decreases with the decreasing of transport efficiency due to the changes in the degree of saturation in the electric gradient of 1V/cm.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.11 no.6
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• pp.771-785
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• 2016

The thermal conductivity of soils is an important property in energy-related geotechnical structures, such as underground heat pumps and underground electric power cable tunnels. This study explores the effects of geotechnical engineering properties on the thermal conductivity of soils. The thermal conductivities of quartz sands and Korean weathered silty sands were documented via a series of laboratory experiments, and its variations with effective stress, porosity, and water saturation were examined. While thermal conductivity was found to increase with an increase in the effective stress and water saturation and with a decrease in porosity, replacing air by water in pores the most predominantly enhanced the thermal conductivity by almost one order of magnitude. In addition, we have suggested an improved model for thermal conductivity prediction, based on water saturation, dry thermal conductivity, saturated thermal conductivity, and a fitting parameter that represents the curvature of the thermal conductivity-water saturation relation.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.28 no.1
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• pp.35-48
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• 2022

The effect of discrete polypropylene fibre reinforcement on shear strength parameters, tensile properties and isotropic index of stabilized compacted residual subgrade was investigated. Composites of compacted subgrade were developed from polypropylene fibre dosage of 0%, 1%, 2.5% and 4% and 3% cement binder. Saturated compacted soil benefited from incremental fibre dosage, the mobilized friction coefficient increased to a maximum at 2.5% fibre dosage from 0.41 to 0.58 and the contribution due to further increase in fibre dosage was marginal. Binder stabilization increased the degree of isotropy for unreinforced soil at lower fibre dosage of 1% and then decreased with higher fibre dosage. Saturation of 3% binder stabilized soil decreased the soil friction angle and the degree of isotropy for both unstabilized and binder stabilized soil increased with fibre dosage. The maximum tensile stress of 3% binder stabilized fibre reinforced residual soil was 3-fold that of 3% binder stabilized unreinforced soil. The difference in computed and measured maximum tensile and tangential stress decreased with increase in fibre dosage and degree of stabilization and polypropylene fibre reinforced soil met local and international criteria for road construction subgrade.

• Journal of the Korean Geotechnical Society
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• v.30 no.1
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• pp.37-47
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• 2014

Unsaturated hydraulic conductivity (HC) is integrated theoretically from soil water retention curves (SWRC) by Mualem capillary model, but the prediction of HC is extremely sensitive to small variation of matric suction near saturation. Near saturation, the Mualem HC based on smooth SWRC decreases abruptly and has problems in the reliability of hydraulic behavior and the stability of numerical solutions. To improve van Genuchten-Mualem (VGM) HC, the van Genuchten SWRC model is modified within range of low matric suction (arbitrary air entry pressure). At an arbitrary air entry pressure, the VG SWRC is linearized in log scale until full saturation. The modified VG SWRC does not affect the fit of actual retention behavior and either the parameters of original VG SWRC fit. Using the modified VG SWRC, the VGM HC is modified to integrate for each interval decomposed by arbitrary air entry pressure. An analytical solution on modified VGM HC is proposed each interval, to protect the rapid change in HC near saturation. For silty soils, VGM models of HC function underestimate the unsaturated permeability characteristics and especially show rapid reduction near saturation. The modified VGM model predicts more accurate HC functions for Korean weathered soils. Furthermore, near saturation, the saturated HC is conserved by the modified VGM model. After 2-D infiltration analysis of an actual slope, the hydraulic behaviors are compared for VGM and the modified models. The prediction by the proposed model conserved the convergence of solutions on various rainfall conditions. However, the solution by VGM model did not converge since the conductivity near saturation reduced abruptly for heavy rainfall condition. Using VGM model, the factor of safety is overestimated in both initial and final stage during heavy rainfall. Stability analysis based on infiltration analysis could simulate the actual slope failure by the proposed model on HC.

• Journal of the Korean Geotechnical Society
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• v.20 no.7
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• pp.171-181
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• 2004

This study was conducted to explore the tensile strength models in granular soil at the full range of unsaturated state. Direct tension experiments were carried out with a newly developed direct tension technique. The measured experimental data were compared with theoretical models developed by Rumpf and Schubert for monosized ideal particulate solids at the unsaturated state. To do this, the soil-water characteristic curve obtained from a suction-saturation experiment was used to define the unsaturation state and the negative pore water pressure with different water content levels, which are important factors in theoretical tensile strength models. The nonlinear behavior of the tensile strength for unsaturated granular soil at the pendular state is appropriately simulated with Rumpf's model. For the funicular and capillary states, the predicted trend by Schubert's model is properly matched with the experimental data: tensile strength steadily increases and reaches a maximum value and then decreases until it reaches zero. This comparison supports the concept that the tensile strength of unsaturated real granular soil can be approximately simulated with theoretical models.

• Journal of the Korean Geotechnical Society
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• v.39 no.9
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• pp.5-11
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• 2023

In analyzing geotechnical structures, the analysis fields are becoming increasingly diversified. In particular, the need for predicting the thermal behavior of ground materials has become important in fields related to soil freezing. To ensure a reliable assessment of the freezing behavior of the ground, considering the variation in the effective thermal conductivity of soil specimens under various conditions is crucial. In this study, probe experiments were conducted by varying the porosity, initial degree of saturation, and read time settings of the meter. Next, the factors influencing the effective thermal conductivity of the frozen sandy soil were evaluated. The experimental results conducted under different porosity conditions showed a tendency for the effective thermal conductivity of frozen soil to increase as the specimen's porosity decreased. However, as the degree of saturation of the specimen increased, the effective thermal conductivity also increased. The sensitivity of the meter's read time setting to the measurement of effective thermal conductivity was observed. When the read time was set to 1 min, the measured values were in a range similar to that obtained in previous studies conducted in Korea with the same soil specimen.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Environmental Restoration Technology
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• v.3 no.1
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• pp.62-69
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• 2000

Topography influences shallow landslide initiation through both concentration of subsurface flow and the gradient on slope stability. A model for the topographic influence on shallow landslide initiation developed by Mongomerry et al (1994) is applied to 24 places with similar terrain and subsurface flow. The criterion of landslide prone areas developed by Korea Forestry Administration (1998) is likely to misinterpreted under the condition of heavy rainfall. Soil saturation can be predicted by this model. This relative soil saturation can be used to analyze the stability of each topographic point in the case of cohesionless soils with spatially constant thickness and saturated conductivity. The three different stages of steady state rainfall predicting to cause instability in each topographic points provide a good measure of shallow landsliding possibility.

• Proceedings of the Korean Geotechical Society Conference
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• 2010.03a
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• pp.649-655
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• 2010

Unsaturated compressive tests are performed to evaluate the effect of matric suction on the strength and the deformation characteristics for statically compacted natural kaolin in Korea. Under different conditions of the initial degree of saturation in kaolin, the relationship between suction and the degree of saturation at failure can be expressed by unique soil-water characteristic curve. These results demonstrate that the newly established constant water content type unsaturated shear strength test equipment can be used for estimating the relationship between suction and the compressive strength.

• Korean Journal of Soil Science and Fertilizer
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• v.41 no.4
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• pp.260-266
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• 2008

Small lysimeter experiment under rain shelter plastic film house was conducted to investigate the effect of soil characteristics on the leaching and soil solution concentration of nitrate and phosphate. Three soils were obtained from different agricultural sites of Korea: Soil A (mesic family of Typic Dystrudepts), Soil B (mixed, mesic family of Typic Udifluvents), and Soil C (artificially disturbed soils under greenhouse). Organic-C contents were in the order of Soil C ($32.4g\;kg^{-1}$) > Soil B ($15.0g\;kg^{-1}$) > Soil A ($8.1g\;kg^{-1}$). Inorganic-N concentration also differed significantly among soils, decreasing in the order of Soil B > Soil C > Soil A. Degree of P saturation (DPS) of Soil C was 178%, about three and fifteen times of Soil B (38%) and Soil A (6%). Prior to treatment, soils in lysimeters (dia. 300 mm, soil length 450 mm) were tabilized by repeated drying and wetting procedures for two weeks. After urea at $150kg\;N\;ha^{-1}$ and $KH_2PO_4$ at $100kg\;P_2O_5\;ha^{-1}$ were applied on the surface of each soil, total volume of irrigation was 213 mm at seven occasions for 65 days. At 13, 25, 35, 37, and 65 days after treatment, soil solution was sampled using rhizosampler at 10, 20, and 30 cm depth and leachate was sampled by free drain out of lysimeter. The volume of leachate was the highest in Soil C, and followed by the order of Soils A and B, whereas the amount of leached nitrate had a reverse trend, i.e. Soil B > Soil A > Soil C. Soil A and B had a significant increase of the nitrate concentration of soil solution at depth of 10 cm after urea-N treatment, but Soil C did not. High nitrate mobility of Soil B, compared to other soils, is presumably due to relatively high clay content, which could induce high extraction of nitrate of soil matrix by anion exclusion effect and slow rate of water flow. Contrary to Soil B, high organic matter content of Soil C could be responsible for its low mobility of nitrate, inducing preferential flow by water-repellency and rapid immobilization of nitrate by a microbial community. Leached phosphate was detected in Soil C only, and continuously increased with increasing amount of leachate. The phosphate concentration of soil solution in Soil B was much lower than in Soil C, and Soil A was below detection limit ($0.01mg\;L^{-1}$), overall similar to the order of degree of P saturation of soils. Phosphate mobility, therefore, could be largely influenced by degree of P saturation of soils but connect with apparent leaching loss only more than any threshold of P accumulation.