Environmental Persistence of Chemicals

- DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1065/espr2006.01.008 Background The hazard criterion of persistence as it applies to chemicals in the environment is reviewed and discussed. This quantity can not be measured directly in the environment, thus it must be estimated using models that synthesise information on chemical half-lives and partitioning properties, the nature of the environment and how the chemical is released into the environment. Main Features It is suggested that the preferred criterion is the average residence time of the chemical in the environment, i.e. conceptually the sum of the life-times of all molecules (attributable only to losses by degrading reactions) divided by the number of molecules. If all chemical fate processes are first order, this persistence is independent of the quantity of chemical introduced and whether introduction is steady- or unsteady-state in nature. It is shown that in a multimedia environment persistence is affected not only by degradation kinetics, but also by mode-of-entry and partitioning. For screening level purposes a Level II equilibrium model may be adequate but a Level III model is generally preferable for estimating the average persistence. If a distribution of persistences is required a dynamic Level IV model must be used. Discussion The implications for regulating chemicals on the basis of persistence are discussed. Conclusion It is concluded that the preferred strategy is to use Level II, III, and IV models and that the use of only degradation kinetics or media-specific half-lives can be misleading and uneconomical.     

振动加载下转换型密封电磁继电器的性能退化行为研究

目的研究航空用继电器的失效机理。方法通过对电磁继电器进行振动与工作载荷单独施加以及二者综合加载情况下的试验方法及性能退化行为研究,实时监测继电器内部触点间接触电阻等性能参数的变化趋势,并对不同条件下触点表面的微观形貌进行对比分析。结果发现相比较工作载荷单独施加而言,振动应力的加入使得继电器的寿命大幅度降低,并使得触点表面呈现"雪花"一般的形貌。结论振动环境导致了触点之间电弧的变化,以及触点表面接触压力、接触面积和接触超程等,并通过燃弧时间和超程时间的变化趋势对其进行了验证。     

航空用气胀式救生衣的穿戴时间测试

为探究航空用气胀式救生衣穿戴性能,首先,搭建航空座椅试验平台,选择113个大学生和42个成年村民作为对比性测试对象,采用国内各大航空公司均配备的标准救生衣作为穿戴对象开展试验;然后,分析试验结果满足国家标准《航空用气胀式救生衣》(GB/T 36508—2018)中穿戴要求的情况,并采用T检验分析不同性别、年龄、演示水平下穿戴时间的差别是否显著。结果表明:测试的航空用气胀式救生衣穿戴时间无法满足国家标准的要求,且性别、年龄对救生衣穿戴时间无显著性影响,但不同演示水平下穿戴时间的差别十分显著;国家标准中穿戴时间要求、测试对象选择、演示水平等方面与文中研究结论有较大差异,建议更多研究人员通过更详细、更深入的试验,来深入探讨GB/T 36508—2018中这3方面的内容。     

氢气添加对乙醇/空气预混火焰燃烧特性影响的数值模拟研究

通过对不同混合比率的乙醇/氢气/空气燃烧特性进行数值模拟,研究氢气添加量对点火延迟时间、层流燃烧速度、火焰厚度、化学反应滞留时间及组分分布情况的影响。研究发现一定程度上氢气添加量的增加能够缩短混合气体的点火延迟时间,并且氢气对点火延迟时间的影响随着温度的升高而逐渐减小。随着混合比率的增大,层流燃烧速度增大,并且在混合比率大于0.4时显著增大。火焰厚度及化学反应滞留时间随氢气增加而逐渐减小。此外,进一步分析组分分布情况得知氢气添加使火焰中H*、O*、OH*自由基摩尔分数峰值增大,并且H+O+OH摩尔分数峰值与层流燃烧速度存在线性关系。     

Pipeline leakage detection and isolation: An integrated approach of statistical and wavelet feature extraction with multi-layer perceptron neural network (MLPNN)

Leakage diagnosis of hydrocarbon pipelines can prevent environmental and financial losses. This work proposes a novel method that not only detects the occurrence of a leakage fault, but also suggests its location and severity. The OLGA software is employed to provide the pipeline inlet pressure and outlet flow rates as the training data for the Fault Detection and Isolation (FDI) system. The FDI system is comprised of a Multi-Layer Perceptron Neural Network (MLPNN) classifier with various feature extraction methods including the statistical techniques, wavelet transform, and a fusion of both methods. Once different leakage scenarios are considered and the preprocessing methods are done, the proposed FDI system is applied to a 20-km pipeline in southern Iran (Goldkari-Binak pipeline) and a promising severity and location detectability (a correct classification rate of 92%) and a low False Alarm Rate (FAR) were achieved.     

Smoldering combustion of dust layer on hot surface

The critical temperature as well as the critical flux for ignition of a dust layer of cornflour and a mixture of wheatflour and cornflour (80% wheatflour+20% cornflour) on a hot plate have been determined. The moulded sample was cylindrical in shape and of different heights and diameters. The particle size of dusts ranged between 63 μm to 150 μm. The temperature–time histories for self-heating without ignition and with ignition are offered, showing the critical boundaries between them. Also the times to ignition for each dust, showing the effect of sample size on their values, are determined. Certain experimental correlations which relate to times to ignition, as well as the critical temperature for ignition and thermal and geometrical dimensions of sample are presented.     

基于人的认知可靠性模型(HCR)的接车进路办理诊断时间的研究

接发列车作业事故在铁路运输事故中占有相当大的比重。为减少接车作业事故的发生,合理制定车站接车进路办理时的诊断时间是保证接车作业安全的关键。针对车站采用写实法查定时具有较大随意性的问题,提出采用人的认知可靠性(HCR)模型,根据人因失误概率计算接车作业诊断时间的方法,并在自动闭塞区段通过模拟机实验进行了验证。结果表明,HCR模型确定的诊断时间与人因失误之间的关系与写实法的测定数据具有良好的符合性;作业人员的训练水平对诊断时间有较大的影响;利用该模型,根据作业人员的训练水平与可接受的人因失误概率,可以确定接车进路办理的最佳诊断时间,或对写实法测定的诊断时间进行订正。     

Influence of super-absorbent polymer on the growth rate of gas hydrate

The growth rate of hydrate and morphology of methane hydrate formation were studied in a visual pressure cell at 5.5 MPa. The gas hydrate formation was carried out (coal mine methane (CMM) + tetrahydrofuran (THF) + sodium dodecyl sulphate (SDS) + H₂O) with and without SAP. Experimental data on the hydrate growth rate and induction time were obtained for three different CMM samples. The influence of SAP on hydrate growth rate was determined. Results showed that after the addition of SAP, with the methane concentration increased in CMM, the induction time was reduced by 9 min, 10 min and 3 min, and the growth rate was shortened by 0.56 × 10⁻⁶/m³ min⁻¹, 0.53 × 10⁻⁶/m³ min⁻¹ and 1.42 × 10⁻⁶/m³ min⁻¹, respectively. This study could be useful for the recovery of methane from CMM by forming hydrate in the chemical and mining industry.     

体育馆建筑内青年学生疏散预动作时间调查和分析

通过组织火灾应急疏散逃生演习、现场问卷调查等方式,统计了体育馆内人员的疏散预动作时间,进而建立多分变量逻辑斯蒂回归模型对该统计数据进行了研究.发现:男生选择疏散预动作时间为＜30 s的可能性是女生的0.886倍,选择疏散预动作时间为30-60 s的可能性是女生的2.818倍.预测人员疏散预动作时间为＜30 s、30 -60 s、＞60s的概率,男生分别为15.45％,75.61％、8.94％,而女生分别为24.14％,39.72％、36.14％;研究结果表明:人员性别的不同对疏散预动作时间有一定的影响,在体育馆类建筑中,青少年人员疏散预动作时间基本上小于60 s.     

Estimating the normal background rate of species extinction

A key measure of humanity's global impact is by how much it has increased species extinction rates. Familiar statements are that these are 100–1000 times pre‐human or background extinction levels. Estimating recent rates is straightforward, but establishing a background rate for comparison is not. Previous researchers chose an approximate benchmark of 1 extinction per million species per year (E/MSY). We explored disparate lines of evidence that suggest a substantially lower estimate. Fossil data yield direct estimates of extinction rates, but they are temporally coarse, mostly limited to marine hard‐bodied taxa, and generally involve genera not species. Based on these data, typical background loss is 0.01 genera per million genera per year. Molecular phylogenies are available for more taxa and ecosystems, but it is debated whether they can be used to estimate separately speciation and extinction rates. We selected data to address known concerns and used them to determine median extinction estimates from statistical distributions of probable values for terrestrial plants and animals. We then created simulations to explore effects of violating model assumptions. Finally, we compiled estimates of diversification—the difference between speciation and extinction rates for different taxa. Median estimates of extinction rates ranged from 0.023 to 0.135 E/MSY. Simulation results suggested over‐ and under‐estimation of extinction from individual phylogenies partially canceled each other out when large sets of phylogenies were analyzed. There was no evidence for recent and widespread pre‐human overall declines in diversity. This implies that average extinction rates are less than average diversification rates. Median diversification rates were 0.05–0.2 new species per million species per year. On the basis of these results, we concluded that typical rates of background extinction may be closer to 0.1 E/MSY. Thus, current extinction rates are 1,000 times higher than natural background rates of extinction and future rates are likely to be 10,000 times higher. Estimación de la Tasa Normal de Extinción de Especies