New kinetic-spectrophotometric method for monitoring the concentration of iodine in river and city water samples

A new kinetic method has been developed for the determination of iodine in water samples. The method is based on the catalytic effect of I^? with the oxidation of Indigo Carmine (IC) by KBrO₃ in the sulfuric acid medium. The optimum conditions obtained are 0.16 M sulfuric acid, 1?×?10^?3 M of IC, 1?×?10^?2 M KBrO₃, reaction temperature of 35°C, and reaction time of 80 s at 612 nm. Under the optimized conditions, the method allowed the quantification of I^? in a range of 12–375 ng/mL with a detection limit of 0.46 ng/mL. The method was applied to the determination of iodine in river and city water samples with the satisfactorily results.     

Development of a new chemical process-industry accident database to assist in past accident analysis

Past accident analysis (PAA) is one of the most potent and oft-used exercises for gaining insights into the reasons why accidents occur in chemical process industry (CPI) and the damage they cause. PAA provides invaluable ‘wisdom of hindsight’ with which strategies to prevent accidents or cushion the impact of inevitable accidents can be developed.A number of databases maintain record of past accidents in CPI. The most comprehensive of the existing databases include Major Hazard Incident Data Service (MHIDAS), Major Accident Reporting System (MARS), and Failure and Accidents Technical Information Systems (FACTS). But each of these databases have some limitations. For example MHIDAS can be accessed only after paying a substantial fee. Moreover, as detailed in the paper, it is not infallible and has some inaccuracies. Other databases, besides having similar problems, are seldom confined to accidents in chemical process industries but also cover accidents from other domains such as nuclear power plants, construction industry, and natural disasters. This makes them difficult to use for PAA relating to CPI. Operational injuries not related to loss of containment, are also often included. Moreover, the detailing of events doesn’t follow a consistent pattern or classification; a good deal of relevant information is either missing or is misclassified.The present work is an attempt to develop a comprehensive open-source database to assist PAA. To this end, information on about 8000 accidents, available in different open-source clearing houses has been brought into a new database named by us PUPAD (Pondicherry University Process-industry Accident Database). Multiple and overlapping accident records have been carefully eliminated and a search engine has been developed for retrieval of the records on the basis of appropriate classification. PUPAD doesn’t aim to replace or substitute the well established databases such as MHIDAS and MARS but, rather, aims to compliment them.     

A criterion for developing credible accident scenarios for risk assessment

Maximum credible accident analysis is one of the most widely used concepts in risk assessment of chemical process industries. Central to this concept is the aspect of ‘credibility’ of envisaged accident scenarios. However, thus far the term credibility is mostly treated qualitatively, based on the subjective judgement of the concerned analysts. This causes wide variation in the results of the studies conducted on the same industrial unit by different analysts.

This paper presents an attempt to develop a criterion using which credible accident scenarios may be identified from among a large number of possibilities. The credible scenarios thus identified may then be processed for detailed consequence analysis. This would help in reducing the cost of the analysis and prevent undue emphasis on less credible scenarios at the expense of more credible ones.     

Fetal spina bifida: What we tell the parents

Worldwide, about 150 000 infants are born with spina bifida yearly, making this condition one of the most common fetal central nervous system anomalies compatible with life. Over the last decade, major changes have been introduced in the prenatal diagnosis and management of spina bifida. In this review, we provide a brief summary of the current management of fetal spina bifida and present essential information that should be provided to expecting parents when their fetus has been diagnosed with spina bifida. This information is focused around common parental questions, as encountered in our typical clinical practice, to facilitate knowledge translation.     

Attenuation of Gaseous Pollutants by Greenbelts

The article draws attention towards the importance ofgreenbelts in attenuating gaseous pollutants andpresents the meteorological, physico-chemical,biological, and horticultural dimensions associatedwith effective greenbelt design.We have presented the gist of a system ofmethodologies, developed by us, for greenbelt design. A case study demonstrating the applicability of thesystem has been presented.     

Identification and Classification of Key Variables and their Role in Environmental Impact Assessment: Methodology and Software Package Intra

There is, as yet, no proven methodology to enable, objectively,the identification of key parameters out of a large number one normally encounters during any EIA. As EIA is a costly and time-consuming exercise, it is necessary to separate the man from the boys – so to speak – in order to optimize costs andefforts.In this paper a methodology for distinguishing the moreimportant parameters from the less important ones, developed byus, is described. The methodology aims at identifying andshortlisting the key parameters which ought to be studied in agiven EIA situation, thereby helping in reducing time, effort,and cost of EIA. With this methodology a system structure is developed whichgives hierarchical pattern of inter-parameter interaction, andreveals several distinguishing features of each parameter. Asoftware package INTRA (INTer-parameter Relationship Analysis)based on this methodology, has been developed. The paper alsodescribes a case study in which INTRA has been used to study theenvironmental impacts of urbanization of a typical third worldtown (Roorkee).     

Performance of comprehensive first trimester fetal anatomy assessment

Objective

Ultrasound assessment of the fetal anatomy and fetal echocardiography are feasible in the first trimester of pregnancy. This study was designed to assess the performance of a comprehensive fetal anatomy assessment in a high-risk population at a tertiary fetal medicine unit.

Methods

A retrospective review of high-risk patients undergoing comprehensive fetal anatomy ultrasound assessment between 11 weeks and 13 + 6 weeks of gestation was conducted. Findings of the early anatomy ultrasound scan were compared with those of the second trimester anatomy scan, and birth outcomes or post-mortem results.

Results

Early anatomy ultrasounds were performed in 765 patients. The sensitivity of the scan for detecting fetal anomalies compared to the birth outcome was 80.5% (95% CI 73.5–86.3) and specificity was 93.1% (95%CI 90.6–95.2). Positive and negative predictive values were 78.5% (95% CI 71.4–84.6) and 93.9% (95% CI 91.4–95.8), respectively. The most missed and overdiagnosed abnormalities were ventricular septal defects. The second trimester ultrasound had sensitivity of 69.0% (95% CI 55.5–80.5) and specificity of 87.5% (95% CI 84.3–90.2).

Conclusions

In a high-risk population, early assessments had similar performance metrics as the second trimester anatomy ultrasound. We advocate for a comprehensive fetal assessment in the care of high-risk pregnancies.