Numerical modeling of physical transport processes and water quality conditions in estuarine and coastal systems ...

Research Interests

My research interests lie in the processes related to the fate of contaminants, mostly land-derived, in tidal rivers, estuaries, and coastal systems.  All dissolved and passive particulate contaminants, once introduced into an aquatic system, are affected by water movement (physical transport) and material-specific biogeochemical processes.  I am interested in studying physical transport processes in the context of their effects on water quality and living resources, using field observations, theoretical analyses, and numerical models.  Specific topics I have been studying include pollutant dispersion, residual circulation, salt transport, turbulent mixing, sediment transport, etc.  I am also interested in numerical modeling of the processes related to water quality and living resources, including eutrophication, hypoxia/anoxia, larval transport, etc.  I have involved in interdisciplinary projects that considered interactions between pollutant loading from watershed, physical transport, and biogeochemical processes in affecting and determining spatial and temporal patterns in pollutant distributions.  The ultimate goal of my research is, through the collaborative studies with researchers from various disciplines, to develop predictive models for water quality and living resources as research and management tools.

Selected Publications

Park, K., H. V. Wang, S.-C. Kim and J.-H. Oh.  2008.  A model study of the estuarine turbidity maximum along the main channel of the upper Chesapeake Bay. Estuaries and Coasts 31:115-133. 

Park, K., C.-K. Kim and W. W. Schroeder.  2007. Temporal variability in summertime bottom hypoxia in shallow areas of Mobile Bay, Alabama. Estuaries and Coasts 30:54-65.

Park, K., J. F. Valentine, S. Sklenar, K. R. Weis and M. R. Dardeau.  2007.  The effects of Hurricane Ivan in the inner part of Mobile Bay, Alabama.  J. Coastal Res. 23:1332-1336.

Park, K., H.-S. Jung, H.-S. Kim and S.-M. Ahn.  2005.  Three-dimensional hydrodynamic-eutrophication model (HEM-3D): Application to Kwang-Yang Bay , Korea . Mar. Environ. Res. 60(2):171-193.

Kuo, A. Y., K. Park, S.-C. Kim and J. Lin.  2005.  A tidal prism water quality model for small coastal basins. Coast. Manage. 33(1):101-117.

Park, K., H.-S. Jung, H.-S. Kim and S.-M. Ahn.  2003.  Estuarine and coastal water quality modeling: Concept and a case study in Korea . Pp. 98-114, In: H. Yu and N. Bermas (Eds.), Determining Environmental Carrying Capacity of Coastal and Marine Areas: Progress, Constraints, and Future Options, PEMSEA, Quezon City , Philippines.

Lin, J., H. V. Wang, J.-H. Oh, K. Park, S.-C. Kim, J. Shen and A. Y. Kuo.  2003.  A new approach to model sediment resuspension in tidal estuaries. J. Coast. Res. 19(1):76-88.

Park, K., J.-H. Oh, H.-S. Kim and H.-H. Im.  2002.  Case study: Mass transport mechanism in Kyunggi Bay around Han River mouth, Korea . J. Hydraul. Eng. 128(3):257-267.

Yoo, J.-W., J.-S. Hong, S. R. Yang and K. Park.  2002.  Nitrogen budget analysis using a box model for Hajeon tidal flat in the west coast of Korea . The Sea, J. Korean Soc. Oceanogr. 7(4):257-266.

Kim, C.-K., K.-I. Chang, K. Park and M.-S. Suk.  2000. The South Sea circulation of Korea : two-dimensional barotropic model. The Sea, J. Korean Soc. Oceanogr. (5):257-266.

Kim, K.-H., N.-Y. Kim and K. Park.  2000.  Factors controlling geochemical behavior of water quality parameters - case study of Kyunggi Bay , Yellow Sea . J. Korea Soc. Environ. Anal. 3(2):73-83.

Kim, S.-C., K. Park, A. Y. Kuo and M. D. Phillips.  2000.  An expert system aiding permit writers for point source discharges. Pp. 143-152, In: G. Ibarra-Berastegi, C.A. Brebbia, and P. Zannetti, (Eds.), Development and Application of Computer Techniques to Environmental Studies VIII. WIT Press , UK .

Lee, K.-S., K. Park and J.-H. Oh.  2000.  Development of a three-dimensional, semi-implicit hydrodynamic model with wetting-and-drying scheme. J. Korean Soc. Coast. Ocean Eng. 12(2):70-80.

Song, Y.-S., J.-H. Lee and K. Park.  2000.  Estimation of optimal weight in tidal modeling with the adjoint method. The Sea, J. Korean Soc. Oceanogr. 5(3):177-185.

Kim, N.-Y., K.-H. Kim and K. Park.  1999.  Distribution characteristics of major water quality parameters in the Kyung Gi Bay , Yellow Sea . J. Korean Earth Sci. Soc. 20(5)::564-579.

Park, K. and J.-H. Oh.  1998.  Calibration and verification of a hydrodynamic model in Chunsu Bay and adjacent coastal water. J. Korean Soc. Coast. Ocean Eng. 10(3):109-119.

Park, K., J. Shen and A. Y. Kuo.  1998.  Application of a multi-step computation scheme to an intratidal estuarine water quality model. Ecol. Model. 110:281-292.

Kim, S.-C., J. Chen, K. Park and J.-K. Choi. 1998. Coastal surges from extratropical storms on the west coast of the Korean Peninsula . J. Coast Res. 14(2):660-666.

Selected Current Research Grants

Alabama Oyster Reef Restoration Program, NMFS, NOAA. Oyster larval transport in Mobile Bay and adjacent Eastern Mississippi Sound : Modeling study and field observation.

Alabama Center for Estuarine Studies, USEPA. Development of a water quality modeling framework for Weeks Bay , Alabama: Modeling of physical transport processes.

Alabama Oyster Reef Restoration Program, NMFS, NOAA. Relationship between fecal coliform bacteria and environmental conditions in the context of oyster harvesting in Alabama coastal waters. (with Manish Misra)

Alabama Center for Estuarine Studies, USEPA. Wavelet-based multi-scale modeling of dissolved oxygen variations in Mobile Bay. (with Manish Misra)