The role of analogues in radioecology

If no data are available for a specific radionuclide its analogue could be used in radioecological models. They might be used not only in the frame of screening modelling. Relevant processes and features have to be known, such as time scales of these processes, physical, chemical and biological properties of the environment and relevant media. An analogue could only be proven to be valid by comparing its behaviour in the conditions of interest, while confidence in the validity of an analogue will increase as the quality of the justification increases, there will always be some residual uncertainty. Several main types of analogy can be used when measured or recommended values are not available: the same parameter obtained for another isotope of the same element; the same parameter obtained for another element; a different parameter obtained for the same element. There are several cases, when analogues might be applied as indicators of the determining processes in the radioecological studies.     

Process design optimization and risk analysis

Hazard identification and risk assessment are key aspects in process plant design. They are often applied in the final stages of the process at whatever the cost, unless financial constraints are imposed. However, a much better solution would be to introduce risk analysis earlier by including it in earlier stages of the design process, such as when the cost of a plant and the cost of any accidents that may occur are estimated. In this paper, an optimization methodology is proposed, in which both cost and risk (with a deterministic approach) are taken into account, to improve on the current situation. If a decision variable is chosen, an objective function will be established that makes it possible to analyze variations in overall costs, including the cost of the investment and the cost of accidents. This leads to an optimum situation in which costs are kept to a minimum. Of course, this optimization is subject to constraints, the greatest of which is the fact that risk must not exceed tolerated threshold levels. The procedure is explained and two examples, one involving a toxic release and the other a BLEVE/fireball, are used to illustrate it.     

A process integration approach to industrial water conservation: a case study for a Chinese steel plant

A systematic approach to optimizing water network has traditionally been utilized to exam and plan water conservation in industrial processes. In the present case study, water-pinch technology was used to analyze and optimize the water network of a steel plant near China's Zhangjiakou city. A system design was developed and a limiting constraint (Cl(-) concentration) was identified based on investigations of water quality then the minimum freshwater and wastewater targets were determined without considering water losses. The analysis was then extended by calculating the additional input of freshwater required to balance the actual water losses. A nearest-neighbor algorithm (NNA) was used to distribute the freshwater and recycled water among each of the plant's operations. The results showed that with some reconstruction of the water network, the flow rates of freshwater and wastewater could be decreased by 57.5% and 81.9%, respectively.     

基于AHP的可听噪声影响因素权值分析

影响超高压输电线路可听噪声的因素众多,对影响可听噪声的因素进行合理分析确定其对可听噪声影响的权重是进行可听噪声预测和合理有效降低可听噪声的前提。对影响可听噪声的因素进行分析并运用层次分析法（AnalyticHierarchyProcess,AHP）对影响可听噪声的主要因素进行加权分析,以定量的形式确定影响因素的相对重要度。结果表明,应用层次分析法确定的可听噪声影响因素权重符合实际,准确性较高,为可听噪声选择主要影响因素用于预测及有效降低可听噪声提供参考依据。     

生物倍增工艺同步脱氮除磷强化途径分析

通过对生物倍增工艺处理市政污水的沿程污染物降解规律的考察表明,工艺对有机物的去除效果显著,COD和BOD5出水分别为47.80 mg/L和19.80 mg/L;氨氮去除率可达100%。发现厌氧区提前发生反硝化并一定程度上影响系统除磷效果;通过对各主要影响因素进行分析,认为低碳源的进水条件是影响系统同步脱氮除磷效果的关键因素;提出在进水口直接添加碳源以及分点进水的碳源分配＋辅助化学除磷的方式可强化氮磷去除效果。     

Preparation and implementation of seven ecological compensation plans for Dutch highways

First-generation compensation plans (CPs) for Dutch highway projects have been evaluated with respect to implementation of the compensation principle (1993), which aims to counterbalance the adverse ecological impacts of large-scale development projects. Decision-making on the seven projects took place between 1993 and 1995. Specifically, we considered: (a) the processes employed to prepare and implement the compensation plans; (b) the methods used to identify, plan, and execute the compensation measures; and (c) the results yielded by these methods. We conclude that the CPs were prepared fairly uniformly, particularly in terms of the processes and methodologies used to derive compensation measures. Five of the seven CPs had become operational by 2001 and initial experience is now being gained on land acquisition and transfer of compensation sites to nature conservation trusts. Further progress of CPs is likely to be seriously hampered by growing demand for land for development in general and associated increases in real estate prices. Several problems are addressed and recommendations made with respect to: (a) developing a legal basis for the compensation principle; (b) the relationship with re-allotment projects; (c) estimation of compensation costs; (d) an annual bias of CP budgets to account for rising costs; (e) contingency measures; and (f) criteria for CP (ex-post) evaluation.     

Using the ECLPSS software environment to build a spatially explicit component-based model of ozone effects on forest ecosystems

We have developed a modeling framework to support grid-based simulation of ecosystems at multiple spatial scales, the Ecological Component Library for Parallel Spatial Simulation (ECLPSS). ECLPSS helps ecologists to build robust spatially explicit simulations of ecological processes by providing a growing library of reusable interchangeable components and automating many modeling tasks. To build a model, a user selects components from the library, and then writes new components as needed. Some of these components represent specific ecological processes, such as how environmental factors influence the growth of individual trees. Other components provide simulation support such as reading and writing files in various formats to allow inter-operability with other software. The framework manages components and variables, the order of operations, and spatial interactions. The framework provides only simulation support; it does not include ecological functions or assumptions. This separation allows biologists to build models without becoming computer scientists, while computer scientists can improve the framework without becoming ecologists. The framework is designed to operate on multiple platforms and be used across networks via a World Wide Web-based user interface. ECLPSS is designed for use with both single processor computers for small models, and multiple processors in order to simulate large regions with complex interactions among many individuals or ecological compartments. To test Version 1.0 of ECLPSS, we created a model to evaluate the effect of tropospheric ozone on forest ecosystem dynamics. This model is a reduced-form version of two existing models: , which represents an individual tree, and , which represents forest stand growth and succession. This model demonstrates key features of ECLPSS, such as the ability to examine the effects of cell size and model structure on model predictions.     

三烧溴化锂集中制冷空调系统改建设计

武钢三烧区域改建了二台大连三洋蒸汽型双效溴化锂吸收式制冷机。叙述了该改建项目的主机选型、参数选定、设计特点等。     

A new approach to determine relieving temperature and thermodynamic behavior of trapped single and multi-phase fluid exposed to fire

Process safety plays a key role in modern industries. This is more significant specifically in off-shore oil and gas platforms where releasing hydrocarbons could cause irreversible damages to both environment and personnel. An important instrument device which can provide safety for process equipment in oil and gas fields is safety relief valve. Correct sizing procedure of such devices depends strongly on physical properties of fluid and relieving condition. The present study revolved around applying thermodynamic concepts and modeling to throw some light on the behavior of trapped fluid exposed to fire in order to evaluate precise temperature and fluid properties at relieving condition. Peng–Robinson equation of state together with a three phase flash has been utilized to handle the calculation. Effect of different design parameters has been evaluated for three distinct categories of fluids namely natural gas, gas-condensate mixture, and gas-oil mixtures. These parameters encompass of operating temperature, operating pressure, Difference of Operating and Design Pressure, gas and oil specific gravities, gas-oil ratio, and water cut. The study depicted that American Petroleum Institute practice number 521 which suggests an ideal gas assumption fails to provide reliable predictions as it significantly overestimate the relieving temperature. Moreover, black oil correlations were also used for the relief temperature estimation of gas-oil-water mixtures. Comparison with HYSYS results as a prominent engineering software proved that black oil models are reliable tools to predict relief temperature.     

The role of situation awareness in accidents of large-scale technological systems

In the last two decades, several serious accidents at large-scale technological systems that have had grave consequences, such as that at Bhopal, have primarily been attributed to human error. However, further investigations have revealed that humans are not the primary cause of these accidents, but have inherited the problems and difficulties of working with complex systems created by engineers. The operators have to comprehend malfunctions in real time, respond quickly, and make rapid decisions to return operational units to normal conditions, but under these circumstances, the mental workload of operators rises sharply, and a mental workload that is too high increases the rate of error. Therefore, cognivitive human features such as situation awareness (SA)—one of the most important prerequisite for decision-making—should be considered and analyzed appropriately. This paper applys the SA Error Taxonomy methodology to analyze the role of SA in three different accidents: (1) A runaway chemical reaction at Institute, West Virginia killing two employees, injuring eight people, and requiring the evacuation of more than 40,000 residents adjacent to the facility, (2) The ignition of a vapor cloud at Bellwood, Illinois that killed one person, injured two employees, and caused significant business interruption, and (3) An explosion at Ontario, California injuring four workers and caused extensive damage to the facility. In addition, the paper presents certain requirements for cognitive operator support system development and operator training under abnormal situations to promote operators’ SA in the process industry.