A methodology for assessment of long-term exposure to whole-body vibrations in vehicle drivers to propose preventive safety measures

Introduction: The appearance of musculoskeletal disorders (MDs) in professional drivers due to exposition to whole-body vibration (WBV) makes it relevant to assess this exposure. The European Directive 2002/44/EC has two methods to evaluate exposure to WBV (defined in ISO2631-1:2008). These methods evaluate the exposure associated with an 8-hour working day; however, MDs due to WBV could also be caused by accumulated exposure to vibrations over long term, and hence, the methods defined in the European directive may be limited in their ability to ensure the safety of workers exposed to WBV throughout their years of employment. Method: A detailed comparison and discussion of methods defined in the European Directive and the ISO2631-5:2018 was used as a starting point of the main results of this paper. On this basis, a new methodology for the management and organization of preventive measures is proposed to consider the assessment of ISO2631-5:2018 standard and the full working life of workers. Experimental data to assess exposure to WBV in heavy equipment vehicle (HEV) drivers under different road surface conditions and range of velocities were considered to illustrate the process of the proposed methodology. Results: The methods defined in the standards provide different assessments leading to a different possible consideration of safe operations when the risks associated with them may actually be high. The proposed methodology can be used with the aim of ensuring safety of workers throughout their working lives and providing an easy implementation of the calculations of ISO2631-5:2018 standard. Conclusions: A procedure to assess the health risk probability to which the HEV worker is exposed in terms of the exposure years and a different range of operational vehicle speeds is proposed and exemplified with a study case. Practical applications: This study provides a practical tool for the management of WBV exposure related to work-tasks in HEV drivers. Safety managers should consider the global exposition to WBV throughout their working life, and this research provides an easy tool to accomplish it.     

Two-step fast microwave-assisted pyrolysis of biomass for bio-oil production using microwave absorbent and HZSM-5 catalyst

A novel technology of two-step fast microwave-assisted pyrolysis(f MAP) of corn stover for bio-oil production was investigated in the presence of microwave absorbent(Si C) and HZSM-5catalyst. Effects of f MAP temperature and catalyst-to-biomass ratio on bio-oil yield and chemical components were examined. The results showed that this technology, employing microwave, microwave absorbent and HZSM-5 catalyst, was effective and promising for biomass fast pyrolysis. The f MAP temperature of 500°C was considered the optimum condition for maximum yield and best quality of bio-oil. Besides, the bio-oil yield decreased linearly and the chemical components in bio-oil were improved sequentially with the increase of catalyst-to-biomass ratio from 1:100 to 1:20. The elemental compositions of bio-char were also determined. Additionally, compared to one-step f MAP process, two-step f MAP could promote the bio-oil quality with a smaller catalyst-to-biomass ratio.     

河北省PM2.5污染变化特征及暴露人群健康效应评估研究

PM2.5污染是影响中国城市居民健康和形成雾霾天气的重要原因之一,也是河北省健康发展的一个制约因素.采用环境污染流行病研究为基础的暴露-反应关系估算了2014年和2015年全省因PM2.5污染的居民早逝和罹患相关疾病住院的人数,并利用国家和河北省卫生统计数据,估算出人均人力资源价值和人均住院成本,计算出总经济损失.结果表明,河北省各市的PM2.5年均浓度呈下降趋势,因此,继续坚持有效的大气污染控制和应急健康防护措施,仍然是今后环保工作的重中之重.     

Numerical evaluation of the effectiveness of NO2 and N2O5 generation during the NO ozonation process

Wet scrubbing combined with ozone oxidation has become a promising technology for simultaneous removal of SO₂ and NO_x in exhaust gas. In this paper, a new 20-species, 76-step detailed kinetic mechanism was proposed between O₃ and NO_x. The concentration of N₂O₅ was measured using an in-situ IR spectrometer. The numerical evaluation results kept good pace with both the public experiment results and our experiment results. Key reaction parameters for the generation of NO₂ and N₂O₅ during the NO ozonation process were investigated by a numerical simulation method. The effect of temperature on producing NO₂ was found to be negligible. To produce NO₂, the optimal residence time was 1.25 sec and the molar ratio of O₃/NO about 1. For the generation of N₂O₅, the residence time should be about 8 sec while the temperature of the exhaust gas should be strictly controlled and the molar ratio of O₃/NO about 1.75. This study provided detailed investigations on the reaction parameters of ozonation of NO_x by a numerical simulation method, and the results obtained should be helpful for the design and optimization of ozone oxidation combined with the wet flue gas desulfurization methods (WFGD) method for the removal of NO_x.     

Spatial variance and assessment of nitrogen dioxide pollution in major cities of Pakistan along N5-Highway

This paper discusses the findings of the first car MAX-DOAS (multi-axis differential optical absorption spectroscopy) field campaign (300 km long) along the National Highway-05 (N5-Highway) of Pakistan conducted on 13 and 14 November, 2012. The main objective of the field campaign was to assess the spatial distribution of tropospheric nitrogen dioxide (NO₂) columns and corresponding concentrations along the N5-Highway from Islamabad to Lahore. Source identification of NO₂ revealed that the concentrations were higher within major cities along the highway. The highest NO₂ vertical column densities (NO₂ VCDs) were found around two major cities of Rawalpindi and Lahore. This study also presents a comparison of NO₂ VCDs measured by the ozone monitoring instrument (OMI) and car MAX-DOAS observations. The comparison revealed similar spatial distribution of the NO₂ columns with both car MAX-DOAS and satellite observations, but the car MAX-DOAS observations show much more spatial details. Maximum NO₂ VCD retrieved from car MAX-DOAS observations was up to an order of magnitude larger than the OMI observations in urban areas.     

华北地区兼性塘中试研究

研究了华北地区一个串联塘系统中的一个兼性塘。该塘系统由两个厌氧塘,一个兼性塘和一个好氧塘蛆成,处理河北省沧州市的城市污水。该污水中工业污水的比例约为70%。对运行数据的分析表明,该兼性塘在去除BOD₅方面起到了应有的作用,并且有较强的分解难降解有机物的能力,但对氨氯及SS的去除贡献甚微。示踪试验的结果表明,该兼性塘的结构设计、进水配水及出水集水装置的布量合理,可以推荐使用。在运行和研究结果基础上,本文提出了几种方法和参数,作为有关兼性塘设计使用。      

序批式活性污泥法处理毛皮废水的研究

采用序批式活性污泥法处理毛皮模拟废水的试验条件为：水温２０℃,ＤＯ２ｍｇ／Ｌ,ＣＯＤｃｒ１５００ｍｇ／Ｌ,ＢＯＤ５ ９００ｍｇ／Ｌ,ＭＬＳＳ ２１００ｍｇ／Ｌ增至２６００ｍｇ／Ｌ左右,试验结果表明,采用限制曝气方式运行的序批式活性污泥系统最不易发生污泥膨胀。     

突发性环境污染事故应急预警系统发展探讨

在介绍突发性环境污染事故的概念、类型与特性的基础上,综述了近年来国内外对这一领域的研究进展．并结合“5S”技术提出突发性环境污染事故应急预警系统的全程模拟。     

钴铜改性的ZSM-5对低浓度NO吸附性能的研究

利用固定吸附床研究了不同金属离子改性的ZSM-5分子筛对一氧化氮的吸附性能。实验发现:在过渡金属同钴离子一起改性的ZSM-5中,钴铜金属离子共同改性的ZSM-5分子筛对一氧化氮的吸附性能最好;当铜钴离子共同浸渍、铜钴离子浸渍量比(n(Cu) n(Co))为0 8和Al2O3(粘合剂)用量w(Al2O3)为23%时,改性的ZSM-5分子筛既具有良好的吸附性能又有良好的机械强度。另外,实验还发现改性分子筛吸附一氧化氮的穿透时间随吸附温度的升高而缩短,并利用热重技术,分析了吸附剂的热再生问题。