Quantitative assessment in safety reports of the consequences from the detonation of solid explosives

Safety reports are mandatory documents in member states of European Union whenever any threshold limits of amounts of either stored or processed hazardous substances are exceeded. After a short introduction to EU Seveso Directives on major-accident hazards involving dangerous substances and to the transposition and implementation by member states, with a brief comment on last 2012/18/EU Directive (also known as Seveso III directive), the paper focuses on drafting of safety reports for industrial activities involving solid explosives. Specifically, the quantitative assessment of consequences from detonation is tackled respect to the side-on overpressure and the debris production. Both direct and inverse problems are illustrated to determine respectively the overpressure value at a given distance, and the explosive amount that allows respecting the regulations. Their solution is based on either analytic or numerical techniques and being based on recent scientific publications on the matter either evaluates or zeroes nonlinear algebraic equations. The availability of these equations avoids grounding the consequences assessment on diagrams and nomograms that otherwise would lead to interpretation and usage errors besides avoiding the automatic solution of the inverse problem. The paper focuses also on details such as embankment, crater, munitions, rocket propellant, building structure, and wall material that, at different levels, play a role in the assessment of detonation consequences. A discussion on debris formation, the available literature, and the evaluation of the impact probability of fragments on both fixed and moving targets closes the paper.     

Applying Hierarchical Loglinear Models to Nonfatal Underground Coal Mine Accidents for Safety Management

Underground mining is considered to be one of the most dangerous industries and mining remains the most hazardous occupation. Categorical analysis of accident records may present valuable information for preventing accidents. In this study, hierarchical loglinear analysis was applied to occupational injuries that occurred in an underground coal mine. The main factors affecting the accidents were defined as occupation, area, reason, accident time and part of body affected. By considering subfactors of the main factors, multiway contingency tables were prepared and, thus, the probabilities that might affect nonfatal injuries were investigated. At the end of the study, important accident risk factors and job groups with a high probability of being exposed to those risk factors were determined. This article presents important information on decreasing the number accidents in underground coal mines.     

Arabian,Asian, western: a cross-cultural comparison of aircraft accidents from human factor perspectives

Introduction. Rates of aviation accident differ in different regions; and national culture has been implicated as a factor. This invites a discussion about the role of national culture in aviation accidents. This study makes a cross-cultural comparison between Oman, Taiwan and the USA. Method. A cross-cultural comparison was acquired using data from three studies, including this study, by applying the Human Factors Analysis and Classification System (HFACS) framework. The Taiwan study presented 523 mishaps with 1762 occurrences of human error obtained from the Republic of China Air Force. The study from the USA carried out for commercial aviation had 119 accidents with 245 instances of human error. This study carried out in Oman had a total of 40 aircraft accidents with 129 incidences. Results. Variations were found between Oman, Taiwan and the USA at the levels of organisational influence and unsafe supervision. Seven HFACS categories showed significant differences between the three countries (p?<?0.05). Conclusion. Although not given much consideration, national culture can have an impact on aviation safety. This study revealed that national culture plays a role in aircraft accidents related to human factors that cannot be disregarded.     

Occupational Cognitive Failures and Safety Performance in the Workplace

Introduction. The majority of industrial accidents occur because of human errors. Human error has different causes, however, in all cases cognitive abilities and limitations of human play an important role. Occupational cognitive failures are cognitively-based human errors that occur at work. The aim of this study was to examine the relationship between occupational cognitive failures and safety consequences. Method. Personnel of a large industrial company in Iran filled out an occupational cognitive failure questionnaire (OCFQ) and answered questions on accidents. Univariate and multiple logistic regression analysis were used to determine the relationship between cognitive failures and safety consequences. Results. According to developed regression models, personnel with a high rate of cognitive failure, in comparison to low rate, have a high risk of minor injury involvement (OR 5.1, 95% CI [2.62, 10.3]); similar results were for major injury and near miss. Discussion. The results of this study revealed usefulness of the OCFQ as a tool of predicting safety-related consequences and planning preventive actions.     

Footedness and Mounting—Short Review and Two Case Studies

Footedness is a personal quality like handedness. Footedness may be associated with moving ability during mounting, dismounting, and jumping movements. Occupational accidents have occurred during movement at different working levels, during the use of access and exit systems, and during the mounting of vehicles. Aging can also affect accident risk and body laterality. For example, falling accidents on stairs are common among the elderly. One reason for accidents may be that the structure of the access system or stair system is unsuitable for individual moving patterns depending partly on body laterality. Footedness and the way the feet are used may be contradictory to the demands of the moving situation, especially during uncommon or rapid situations. This contradiction may trigger disturbance during moving. The aims of this pilot study were (a) to review the literature briefly and (b) to describe the use of the dominant and nondominant foot by farmers and the elderly when mounting a tractor and stairs, respectively. The study also gives ideas for future studies based on both (a) and (b).     

基于交通冲突技术的交织区交通安全评价

为了分析城市快速路多个交织区之间的相对交通安全状况,及比选同一个交织区的多个设计方案,建立基于交通冲突技术的交织区交通安全评价方法。首先,使用微观交通仿真软件模拟一定道路交通条件下车流运行状态及其随时空变化的过程,并生成车辆轨迹文件;然后,运用交通安全替代评价模型(SSAM)分析车辆轨迹文件,识别和统计交通仿真过程中"发生"的交通冲突;最后,以交织区交通冲突数与交织区交通量、交织区长度的比值作为评价指标,评价交织区的交通安全状况。案例分析表明,交织区交通冲突率越高,其服务水平往往越低;交织区的交通冲突率有随交织区交通量增加而增加,随交织区长度、交织区车道数的增加而降低的趋势。     

倒计时信号灯绿灯间隔时间设置研究

就保障倒计时信号交叉口交通安全而言,适当设置倒计时信号灯绿灯间隔时间具有重要意义。选择南京一个道路交叉口,利用交通冲突理论,分析产生严重交通冲突的条件,考虑车流不饱和与饱和2种情况,得到在不发生严重交通冲突条件下的绿灯间隔时间,并通过实例说明。研究结果显示,在车流饱和状态下,头车与尾车均为大车时,头车以初速度零开始加速进入交叉口时绿灯间隔时间应最短;在不饱和状态下,头车与尾车均为大车时,头车以一定速度通过交叉口时绿灯间隔时间应最长;车流饱和时绿灯间隔时间应较短,车流不饱和时绿灯设置间隔时间应较长。     

自助加油站典型静电事故案例分析及防范措施

随着自助加油站在我国的不断推广和普及,其安全防护问题也日益凸显.为了促进我国自助加油站的安全管理,降低自助加油站的运营风险,首先对自助加油站面临的安全风险做了阐述,然后针对国内外自助加油站的典型静电事故案例进行了分析、整理及总结,并在参考和借鉴国外自助加油站相关法规的基础上,提出了一系列有针对性的静电事故防护措施.     

高危行业事故应急科技服务实用性平台研究

针对当前我国高危行业应急平台建设中存在事故应急救援决策支撑弱、应急救援服务能力差的缺陷,以“江苏省高危行业事故应急科技服务平台”项目为背景,提出高危行业事故应急科技服务平台的总体建设架构;并以此为基础提出建立应急信息共享,预案可视化与推演,事故后果分析模拟,应急救援决策支持,应急咨询、培训、评估,事故现场快速监测六大子平台。以期利用VR、GIS、人工智能等先进技术,从功能、系统、体系三个层面完善高危行业事故应急科技服务平台建设内容,从而为政府门提供应急决策支持、为企业和社会公众提供应急科技服务。     

菏泽市交通噪声环境污染原因及防治

根据菏泽市城区历年道路交通噪声监测结果,分析评价其环境质量状况、污染原因,并提出对策建议。