Heavy metal contamination of the biosphere has increased sharply over the last century. Anthropogenic activities such as industrialisation and demographic growth can be considered as the main causes of it. Soil contam...Heavy metal contamination of the biosphere has increased sharply over the last century. Anthropogenic activities such as industrialisation and demographic growth can be considered as the main causes of it. Soil contamination affects every organism and poses major environmental and human health problems worldwide. The issue has been addressed in the past and a few methodologies have been developed in order to effectively clean up the contaminated areas. However, many of these remedies are very aggressive and can damage the soil. This paper focuses on the use of gentler techniques, which take advantage of the properties of several plants and wildflowers that absorb heavy metals and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, and their potential application in megacities such as Hong Kong.展开更多
Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) is one of the non-invasive techniques commonly used to identify “anomalies” in the ground. It has been proven very effective in different fields ranging from the location of pipes and ...Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) is one of the non-invasive techniques commonly used to identify “anomalies” in the ground. It has been proven very effective in different fields ranging from the location of pipes and other underground services to the identification of archaeological sites. After the 1994 Kwun Lung Lau accident in Hong Kong, the Government has been commissioning the feasibility of different geophysics techniques to identify any issues related to engineering slopes and retaining walls. Among the different techniques tested during phase I, Electrical Imaging (EI) and Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) were the most applicable in the study of old masonry walls. This paper aims to stress the importance of using the appropriate frequencies during the GPR survey of engineering slopes. In order to do that, two independent contractors who used different frequencies to carry out the GPR survey on the same area will be compared.展开更多
文摘Heavy metal contamination of the biosphere has increased sharply over the last century. Anthropogenic activities such as industrialisation and demographic growth can be considered as the main causes of it. Soil contamination affects every organism and poses major environmental and human health problems worldwide. The issue has been addressed in the past and a few methodologies have been developed in order to effectively clean up the contaminated areas. However, many of these remedies are very aggressive and can damage the soil. This paper focuses on the use of gentler techniques, which take advantage of the properties of several plants and wildflowers that absorb heavy metals and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, and their potential application in megacities such as Hong Kong.
文摘Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) is one of the non-invasive techniques commonly used to identify “anomalies” in the ground. It has been proven very effective in different fields ranging from the location of pipes and other underground services to the identification of archaeological sites. After the 1994 Kwun Lung Lau accident in Hong Kong, the Government has been commissioning the feasibility of different geophysics techniques to identify any issues related to engineering slopes and retaining walls. Among the different techniques tested during phase I, Electrical Imaging (EI) and Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) were the most applicable in the study of old masonry walls. This paper aims to stress the importance of using the appropriate frequencies during the GPR survey of engineering slopes. In order to do that, two independent contractors who used different frequencies to carry out the GPR survey on the same area will be compared.