Performance evaluation of process industries resilience: Risk-based with a network approach

Risk management can be defined as coordinated activities to conduct and control an organization with consideration of risk. Recently, risk management strategies have been developed to change the approach to hazards and risks. Resilience as a safety management theory considers the technical and social aspects of systems simultaneously. Resilience in process industries, as a socio-technical system, has four aspects of early detection, error-tolerant design, flexibility, and recoverability. Meanwhile, process industries' resilience has three phases: avoidance, survival, and recovery, determining the transition between normal state, process upset event, and catastrophic event. There may be various technical and social failures such as regulatory and human or organizational items that can lead to upset or catastrophic events. In the avoidance phase, the upset event is predicted, and thus, the system remains in a normal state. For the survival phase, the system state is assumed to be an upset process event, and the system tries to survive through the unhealthy process conditions or remains in the same state, probably with low performance. In the recovery phase, the system is supposed to be catastrophic, and the emergency barriers are prioritized to show the severity of the consequences and response time, leading to a resumption of a normal state. Therefore, a resilience-based network can be designed for process industries to show its inherent dynamic transition in nature. In this study, network data envelopment analysis (DEA), as a mathematical model, is used to evaluate the relative efficiency of the process industries regarding a network transition approach based on the system's internal structure. First, a resilience-based network is designed to consist of three states of normal, upset, and catastrophic events. Then, the efficiency of each industrial department, which is defined as decision-making units (DMUs), is evaluated using network DEA. As a case study, a refinery that is considered a critical process industry is assessed. Using the proposed model shows the efficient and inefficient DMUs in each of three states of normal, upset, and catastrophic events of the process and the projection onto efficient frontiers. Besides calculating the network efficiency, the performance of each state is extracted to precisely differentiate between DMUs. The results of this study, which is one of the fewest cases in the area of performance evaluation of process industries with a network approach, indicated a robust viewpoint for monitoring and assessment of risks.     

Experimental investigation of performance and emission characteristics of diesel engine using Jatropha biodiesel with alumina nanoparticles

Biodiesels have come up as a very strong alternative for diesel fuel. Biodiesels such as Jatropha Oil Methyl Ester (JOME) are comparable in performance with that of the diesel engine. The thermal efficiency of engines fuelled with biodiesels was found lower than conventional diesel fuel but due to the bio-origin, the emission characteristics are much better. However, biodiesel increases the NOx emissions as these are rich in oxygen, hence nanoparticles are used in this experiment to curb the high temperatures and reduce the NOx formation. The experiment on naturally aspired diesel engine was conducted with four prepared test fuels other than neat diesel and neat biodiesel. The 50 and 150 of alumina nanoparticles were added separately to the pure diesel and pure Jatropha biodiesel to form the nano emulsions using ultrasonicator. The properties of nanoemulsion were evaluated using dynamic light scattering technique using zetasizer. The performance and emission characteristics of multi-cylinder diesel engine with these nanoemulsions were compared with that of neat fuels. The results showed that using nanoparticles with diesel and biodiesel can contribute in a more efficient, economical, and eco-friendly engine operation.     

包头市水环境综合整治对策研究

为从根本上改善包头市水环境质量,按照国家环境保护模范城市的标准,全面开展包头市水环境综合整治工作,推进水环境污染防治工作.在对包头市水环境现状进行全面分析的基础上,提出以保护水源地为重点,针对工业源、城镇生活源、农业面源等方面提出整治对策建议,通过重点工程的实施,削减污染物排放总量,使包头市各水体水质达到功能区要求.     

高速铁路粉土路基改良试验研究

高速铁路路基稳定性决定了列车运行的舒适度和安全性.粉土作为强度低、水稳定性差、渗透性较强的特殊地层给高速铁路路基的稳定性带来了极大的隐患.本文分析了京沪高速铁路新长段粉土的基本工程力学性质,并对该粉土路基进行了室内水泥改良试验,以为高速铁路路基改良设计和施工提供试验依据和建议.     

江安河武侯区段水质改善的环境经济效益研究

根据成都市江安河武侯区段2010年11月-2011年3月的水质监测数据,结合中国地表水环境质量标准(GB3838-2002)和四川省实际确定水体中各污染物因子的本底浓度对该区段污水处理环境效益进行了分析。首先通过污染经济损失模型计算COD、BOD5、NH3-N、TP、SS和硫化物对水经济价值的损失率,然后在讨论COD、NH3-N、TP和硫化物减排情况的基础上计算了各种污染指标减排至达标后所产生的环境经济效益。研究结果表明,江安河武侯区段水体污染的综合污染损失率高达99.99%,如果各种污染物减排达标至IV类标准产生的环境经济效益14 912万元人民币/a,而减排达标至III类标准产生的环境经济效益更是高达15 786万元人民币/a。     

某铁矿安全避险六大系统建设实例研究与分析

对所负责参与的某铁矿安全避险六大系统建设的实例进行研究与分析。针对系统运行期间发现的问题和不足,提出相关的应对改进措施。     

Optimization of HSE in maintenance activities by integration of continuous improvement cycle and fuzzy multivariate approach: A gas refinery

Gas refineries have been continuously focusing on Health, Safety and Environment programs to improve maintenance activities. Several researches have studied on this area with different analysis methods. This study presents an integrated approach for optimization of factors contributing to the implementation of Health, Safety and Environment (HSE) in maintenance activities. HSE managers in each sector answered standard questionnaire whit respect to HES. The methodology is based on fuzzy data envelopment analysis (FDEA) and Deming's continuous improvement cycle. Also, this method is used to rank the relevant performance efficiencies in certain and uncertain conditions of each HSE sectors whit considering HSE in maintenance activities. It corresponds and integrates its registered HSE-MS with OHSAS 18001:2007 and ISO 14001:2004 to evaluate multiple inputs and outputs of over 36 subsidiary HSE divisions with parallel mission and objectives simultaneously. Also, it determines efficient target indices and could assure continuous improvement in the organization. This is the first study that introduces an integrated approach to improve HSE management programs in a gas refinery by a robust and continuous improvement approach.     

Book reviews and notices

The aim of sustainable development is to balance social, economic, and environmental needs. In order to justify the decisions they make, stakeholders must quantify the different impacts found in the operations and developments of companies and/or projects throughout their life cycle. However, as some areas are subjective in nature, the quantification process of the different impacts and the assessment of sustainable development performance become arduous tasks of development, validation, and application of scientific and empirical methods with the intrinsic objective of finding an agreement among the involved parties (i.e., stakeholders). Several environmental and sustainability assessment tools, instruments, processes, and methodologies have been developed; rating systems stand out and have gained attention and credibility, as demonstrated by the vast number of certified projects around the world and the widely-known usefulness and advantages of their application. The Wa-Pa-Su project sustainability rating system presents an integrated approach to sustainability assessment by integrating three distinctive areas of knowledge: (1) sustainable development theory and fundamentals supports the ultimate goal of the rating system, which is to contribute to sustainability, with the aim of finding a path to balance social, economic, and environmental needs; (2) continual performance improvement becomes essential due to the duration of the projects, as it is critical to allow organizations or projects to improve performance over time; and (3) multi-criteria decision analysis assists with the assessment process through stakeholder engagement and participation, and the design and implementation of a criteria weighting system.     

番茄ARF4基因果实特异RNAi载体的构建及遗传转化

构建ARF4基因果实特异表达的RNA干涉载体,对转基因番茄果实进行初步分析,可为采用基因工程方法改良番茄果实品质做出新尝试.利用RT-PCR技术从番茄果实cDNA中扩增SlARF4基因全长,将番茄ARF4基因正反向重复序列片段导入到植物表达载体pBI121上,启动子是番茄果实特异表达的TFM7.将构建的ARF4基因果实特异RNA干涉载体pBI121-TFM7-A4Ri通过根癌农杆菌介导转入到野生型番茄中,进而对转化获得的植株进行了阳性鉴定.分别以转基因番茄和野生型番茄为材料,分析ARF4在果实中的表达水平,测定绿熟期果实叶绿素含量、果实的单果重量和果皮厚度.酶切证实pBI121-TFM7-A4Ri果实特异表达载体构建成功,而且,PCR检测也得到阳性转基因株.半定量RT-PCR分析显示,转基因番茄果实中ARF4的表达量明显低于野生型果实.转基因番茄果实的叶绿素含量、单果重量和果皮厚度都比野生型有提高.因此,ARF4果实特异表达的RNAi方法能够改良番茄果实品质.     

复杂地质低渗煤层水力压裂-割缝综合瓦斯增透技术研究

针对水力压裂区域化瓦斯增透盲区,提出了水力割缝局部化瓦斯增透技术措施,形成了复杂地质低渗煤层水力压裂-割缝综合瓦斯增透技术,并进行现场验证。研究结果表明:水力压裂区内的3个压裂钻孔平均瓦斯抽采纯流量较238底板道常规抽采钻孔单孔瓦斯抽采纯流量提高15.8倍,瓦斯抽采浓度提高4%,压裂区瓦斯抽采纯流量较对比区提高2.1倍,但水力压裂区域性措施受断层及煤层硬度等地质条件限制,存在盲区;水力割缝增透区内的抽采钻孔瓦斯浓度平均提高4.9倍,瓦斯纯流量平均提高3.3倍,对不同地质条件的适应性强,但是割缝影响范围小,抽采时效短;复杂地质低渗煤层水力压裂-割缝综合瓦斯增透技术综合了水力压裂与割缝的优点,对复杂地质煤层具有较强适应性,大幅提高了瓦斯治理水平。现场验证结果表明复杂地质低渗煤层水力压裂-割缝综合瓦斯增透技术在复杂地质条件下煤层强化抽采中有较好的实际应用价值。