Major accident management in the process industry: An expert tool called CESMA for intelligent allocation of prevention investments

A tool (called CESMA) was developed to carry out cost–benefit analyses and cost-effectiveness analyses of prevention investments for avoiding major accidents. A wide variety of parameters necessary to calculate both the costs of the considered preventive measures and the benefits related with the avoidance of accidents were identified in the research. The benefits are determined by estimating the difference in (hypothetical) major accident costs without and with the implementation of a preventive measure. As many relevant costs and benefits as possible were included into the tool, based on literature and expert opinion, in order to be able to deliver an all-embracing cost–benefit analysis and cost-effectiveness analysis to assist in the investment decision process. Because major accidents are related to extremely low frequencies, the tool takes the uncertainty of the unwanted occurrence of a major accident into account through the usage of a so-called ‘disproportion factor’. Compared with existing software, the CESMA tool is innovative by striving for an as-accurate-as-possible picture of costs and benefits of major accident prevention, and taking the uncertainties accompanying disastrous events into consideration. Furthermore, an illustrative example of CESMA is presented in the paper.     

Simulation-based fault propagation analysis—Application on hydrogen production plant

Recently production of hydrogen from water through the Cu–Cl thermochemical cycle is developed as a new technology. The main advantages of this technology over existing ones are higher efficiency, lower costs, lower environmental impact and reduced greenhouse gas emissions. Considering these advantages, the usage of this technology in new industries such as nuclear and oil is increasingly developed. Due to hazards involved in hydrogen production, design and implementation of hydrogen plants require provisions for safety, reliability and risk assessment. However, very little research is done from safety point of view. This paper introduces fault semantic network (FSN) as a novel method for fault diagnosis and fault propagation analysis by using evolutionary techniques like genetic programming (GP) and neural networks (NN), to uncover process variables’ interactions. The effectiveness, feasibility and robustness of the proposed method are demonstrated on simulated data obtained from the simulation of hydrogen production process in Aspen HYSYS^®. The proposed method has successfully achieved reasonable detection and prediction of non-linear interaction patterns among process variables.     

A mathematical approach for retrofit and optimization of total site steam distribution networks

This paper presents a generic mathematical model for retrofitting the steam power plants in an industrial site. The industrial sector under review consists of one steel mill, one oil refinery, and several petrochemical plants, where only small-scale steam integration has been implemented before this study. The relevant unit models in a typical steam power plant are established, and the steam plant retrofit problem is formulated as a mixed-integer nonlinear program (MINLP). Feasible retrofit alternatives suggested by experienced field engineers are investigated in sequence to examine the revenue of those possible modifications. The first scenario examines operational optimization of existent plants; the second option allows installation of one new turbine and replacement of several boilers and turbines with lower efficiency; the third scenario considers using a steam ejector to upgrade the disqualified import steam in the oil refinery. The significant merits from these three retrofit alternatives show that the proposed MINLP formulation has been a great help to enhance the inter-plant steam integration in an industrial sector.     

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。     

衡阳市城市垃圾处理现状及改进建议

城市垃圾数量大、成分复杂,如果不好好处理会对环境和人体健康造成很大危害.就城市垃圾的危害及垃圾处理现状进行了分析,并对衡阳市垃圾处理提出改进建议.参6.     

Ergonomics and Quality Management—Humans in Interaction With Technology,Work Environment,and Organization

Abstract

In many studies, ergonomics has been shown to influence human performance. The aim of this paper was to demonstrate imp ortan t ergonomics influences on quality in industrial production, from the perspective of interactions between humans, technology, organization, and work environment. A second aim was to elab orate on the implications of these findings for the development of quality management strategies. This paper shows that ergonomics problems in terms of adverse work environmental conditions, in appropriate design of technology, and an unsuitable org an izatio n are important causes of quality deficiencies. Problem solving aimed at improving ergonomics, quality, and productivity simultaneously is likely to obtain sup po rt from most of the interest parties of the company, and may also enhance participation. Ergonomics has the potential of becoming a driving force for the development of new quality management strategies.     

The impact of implementation of the requirements of Standard No. OHSAS 18001:2007 to reduce the number of injuries at work and financial costs in the Republic of Croatia

This article contains the results of research into the impact of implementation of the requirements mentioned in Standard No. OHSAS 18001:2007 to reduce the number of injuries at work and the financial costs incurred in this way. The study was conducted on a determined sample by a written questionnaire survey method in the Republic of Croatia. The objective of the empirical research is to determine the impact of implementation of the requirements of Standard No. OHSAS 18001:2007 to reduce the number of injuries at work and financial costs in Croatia in business organizations that implement these requirements. To provide a broader picture, the research included the collection and analysis of data on the impact of the Standard No. OHSAS 18001:2007 on accidents and fatalities at work. Research findings are based on the analysis of performed statistical data where correlation and regression analysis has been applied.     

项目教学法在高职商务英语谈判教学中的应用——以中国环境管理干部学院为例

项目教学法是教师为主导,学生为主体,项目为载体,任务为驱动,以职业能力培养为目标,以社会需求为背景的系统的教学方法。以中国环境管理干部学院为例,通过讲述项目教学法的特点及在实践教学中的应用原则,提出了项目教学法在学院商务英语谈判课堂上进行的步骤、遇到的困难,并提出了相应的改进措施。