Process chemicals – An ever present concern during plant shutdowns

Chemical accidents during process plant shutdowns may have severe consequences. In spite of this, the safety management systems in place in many companies still mainly cover the normal operations and little explicitly addresses the maintenance shutdown and plant start-up phases. A Finnish research project found that the level of safety during shutdowns is more closely related to the skills of key individuals at the plants and less due to the systematic safety management system of the companies. A guidebook on the topic in conjunction with tools to improve the situation were developed during the project in order to help the companies improve their documentation associated with chemical safety during shutdowns.     

Fine Particle (PM25) Measurement Methodology,Quality Assurance Procedures,and Pilot Results of the EXPOLIS Study

ABSTRACT

EXPOLIS is a European multicenter (Athens, Basel, Grenoble, Helsinki, Milan, and Prague) air pollution exposure study. It is the first international, population-based, large-scale study, where personal exposures to PM_{2 5} aerosol particles (together with volatile organic compounds and carbon monoxide) are being monitored. EXPOLIS is performed in six different centers across Europe, the sampled aerosol concentrations vary greatly, and the mi-croenvironmental samples are not collected with the same equipment as the personal samples. Therefore careful equipment selection, methods development and testing, and thorough quality assurance and quality control (QA & QC) procedures are essential for producing reliable and comparable PM_2.5 data. This paper introduces the equipment, the laboratory test results, the pilot results, the standard operating procedures, and the QA & QC procedures of EXPOLIS. Test results show good comparability and repeatability between personal and microenvironmen-tal monitors for PM2.5 at different concentration levels measured across Europe in EXPOLIS centers.     

Chlorophenols in lake bottom sediments: A retrospective study of drinking water contamination

Lake and brook bottom sediments were analyzed for chlorophenols to provide historical data of exposure assessment, after the water intake plant of a Finnish village had been found to be contaminated in 1987, and subsequently elevated non-Hodgkin lymphoma risk was detected. Highly elevated 2,3,4,6-tetrachlorophenol and pentachlorophenol levels were found in all four lake sediment cores investigated. The distribution was uneven with much higher concentrations in the estuary, in contrast to PCB compounds which were more evenly distributed within the basin. The inlet origin of the chlorophenols in the sediments was further supported by the regional distribution pattern of these compounds in the sediment and water along transects of the inlet and its tributaries. The composition of chlorophenol congeners in the sediments was similar to that in a commercial fungicide used by a local sawmill, but different from other sediment analyses reported in Finland, also implying a local source. Dating of three cores by Pb-210 and soot ball chronology indicated that the contamination of the watercourse started in the early 1970s at the latest but possibly earlier. This would provide the latency time required for tumour appearance in the 1970s and 1980s.     

Biological monitoring of aromatic diisocyanates in workers exposed to thermal degradation products of polyurethanes

Exposure to diisocyanates was assessed by biological monitoring among workers exposed to the thermal degradation products of polyurethanes (PURs) in five PUR-processing environments. The processes included grinding and welding in car repair shops, milling and turning of PUR-coated metal cylinders, injection moulding of thermoplastic PUR, welding and cutting of PUR-insulated district heating pipes during installation and joint welding, and heat-flexing of PUR floor covering. Isocyanate-derived amines in acid-hydrolysed urine samples were analysed as perfluoroacylated derivatives by gas chromatography mass spectrometry in negative chemical ionisation mode. The limits of quantification (LOQs) for the aromatic diamines 2,4- and 2,6-toluenediamine (2,4- and 2,6-TDA) and 4,4'-methylenedianiline (4,4'-MDA) were 0.25 nmol l(-1), 0.25 nmol l(-1) and 0.15 nmol l(-1), respectively. The LOQ for the aliphatic diamines hexamethylenediamine (HDA), isophoronediamine (IpDA) and 4,4'-diaminodicyclohexyl methane (4,4'-DDHM) was 5 nmol l(-1). TDA and MDA were detected in urine samples from workers in car repair shops and MDA in samples from workers welding district heating pipes. The 2,4-TDA isomer accounted for about 80% of the total TDA detected. No 2.6-TDA was found in the urine of non-exposed workers. The highest measured urinary TDA and MDA concentrations were 0.79 nmol mmol(-1) creatinine and 3.1 nmol mmol(-1) creatinine, respectively. The concentrations found among non-exposed workers were 0.08 nmol mmol(-1) creatinine for TDA and 0.05 nmol mmol(-1) creatinine for MDA (arithmetic means). Exposure to diisocyanates originating from the thermal degradation of PURs are often intermittent and of short duration. Nevertheless, exposure to aromatic diisocyanates can be identified by monitoring diisocyanate-derived amines in acid-hydrolysed urine samples.     

Warming autumns at high latitudes of Europe: an opportunity to lose or gain in cereal production?

Regional Environmental Change - Climate change is projected to prolong Finland’s short growing season at both ends though warming autumns are not expected to benefit arable crops such as...     

The Significance of Protected Areas for the Land Birds of Southern Finland

Protected areas (nature reserves) cover 0.7% of the land area in southern Finland (162,000 km²), which belongs to the south- and mid-boreal coniferous forest zones. The value of these areas in preserving land birds was studied on the basis of quantitative censuses. The numbers of bird pairs were estimated in nature reserves and in the whole of southern Finland, and the significance of the reserves was evaluated based on how large a proportion of the total population in southern Finland was found in them. Forest habitat generalists and species of coniferous forests occurred in protected areas as expected by the proportion of these areas in southern Finland. Specimens of these species groups comprise two thirds of all the country's land birds. Species of old-growth forests and open peatlands clearly preferred protected areas, whereas species of bushes, and lush and deciduous forest were scarcer in protected areas than elsewhere in southern Finland. The latter fertile habitats are poorly represented in protected areas, even though due to their disappearance or alteration elsewhere several species confined to these habitats have declined and are even threatened. Drainage of open peatlands and clearcutting of old-growth forests has caused a decrease in the area of these habitats in southern Finland during the past decades. Therefore, protected areas have a high significance in preserving bird species preferring these habitats. Protected areas are particularly important for decreased species of old-growth forests, such as the Three-toed Woodpecker Picoides tridactylus and the Siberian Jay Perisoreus infaustus , as about 10% of their total population in southern Finland was estimated to breed in protected areas. The future protection of both old-growth and deciduous forests is important if we are to preserve bio-diversity of land birds in Finland.     

Conversion of dissolved phosphorus in runoff by ferric sulfate to a form less available to algae: Field performance and cost assessment

Conversion of dissolved P by ferric sulfate into a particulate form sparingly available to algae was studied in 15 ditches in Finland using stand-alone dispensers for ferric sulfate administration. Ferric sulfate typically converted 60–70 % of dissolved P into iron-associated form, a process which required 250–650 kg per kg dissolved P. Mean cost was 160 EUR per kg P converted (range 20–400 EUR kg^?1). The costs were lowest at sites characterized by high dissolved P concentrations and small catchment area. At best, the treatment was efficient and cost-effective, but to limit the costs and the risks, ferric sulfate dispensers should only be installed in small critical source areas.     

Health Risks Associated with Predicted Increase of Cadmium in Cultivated Soils and in the Diet

We have assessed the change of the dietary intake and the potential health risks of cadmium in Finland, assuming that a high level of cadmium in fertilizers (138 mg Cd/kg P) would prevail for the next 100 years. Soil measurements and modelling were used to derive the predicted level of cadmium in foods. In three important cultivars, wheat, potato and sugar beet, the cadmium concentration would increase by 20–35%. Consequently, the average dietary intake of cadmium in Finland would increase from 7.9 to 10.0 μg/day, corresponding with the urinary level of about 0.2 μg/l, a level that has not been associated with effects on the human health. However, in the risk group with 1) high dietary intake of cadmium, 2) elevated gastrointestinal absorption, and 3) tobacco smoking, the estimated urinary level of cadmium would be 2.0 μg/l. Recent epidemiological studies have shown that urinary level of 1–2 μg Cd/l is associated with an increased risk of bone demineralization and fractures, and 2–4 μg Cd/l with pre-clinical kidney damage. People characterized by more than one of the above-mentioned risks factors, may develop the adverse health effects at an old age, when cadmium has accumulated in the body.