武汉市环境责任险实践评析和政策路径

在环境污染事故高发、未来全国环境政策将更多地借助于市场力量的背景下,评析了在武汉市实施环境污染责任险的必要性,分析了武汉市环境污染责任险实践中所存在的问题,并提出了未来政策改革的建议。指出近期内武汉市应主要在重点行业、饮用水源地推进政策试点,相关部门应积极配合、联合研发政策推行所需的关键支撑技术和信息平台,并积极培育政策向成熟发展所需配套的法律及政策环境。     

Graphical strategies for design of evaporation crystallization networks for environmental wastewater applications

This paper introduces graphical strategies for the design of an evaporation/crystallization network for ternary wastewater environmental applications. Sources, sinks and other streams are located on a ternary composition diagram. While a source is any wastewater stream that has the potential to be recycled, a sink is any unit in the process that can accept sources. The proposed methodology is extremely simple to understand and implement, as it only requires basic solid-liquid phase equilibria data and uses lever arm principles to generate alternative process designs. Geometric constructions are carried out on the ternary composition diagram and the respective lever arms are used to determine intermediate flow rates in the evaporation/crystallization network. The relative locations and flow rates of the sources and sinks under consideration, as well as the unique shape of the solid-liquid equilibrium, drive the design of the separation (via evaporation/crystallization) network. Some generic structures are proposed for a typical evaporation and crystallization network. Once the general problem statement has been defined, special cases consisting of a single source-single sink, single source-two sinks and two sources-single sink are described. These special cases are representative of commonly occurring industrial wastewater design problems. Several graphical insights are listed that allow one to represent evaporation and crystallization operations on a ternary triangular composition diagram and avoid mathematical complexity. The possibility of bypassing a part of the initial feed streams is also considered. Certain feasible composition regions are identified on the ternary composition diagram for cases dealing with multiple sources and sinks. The methodology is useful in pre-screening and eliminating certain sources/sinks and is readily applicable to cases with lower number of sources and sinks. A case study involving the ammonium nitrate manufacturing process is included to demonstrate the broad applicability and value of the proposed approach.     

大型原油储罐设计中主要安全问题及对策

大型原油储罐储量很大,潜在危险性高,一旦发生事故,损失将十分惨重。为此,在分析了大型原油储罐工程危险性的基础上,重点论述了大型原油储罐设计中的主要安全问题及其对策,包括储罐地基和基础、浮顶储罐密封装置、信号报警联锁系统、排水设计、防腐蚀措施等,特别针对大型原油储罐的特点,详细讨论了浮盘沉底事故原因并介绍了预防浮盘沉底的设计要求,为工程设计提供了有价值的参考依据。     

The brief as an instrument of policy

A review of the use of planning and design briefs by local authorities in the United Kingdom was carried out in 1982–83 to test whether the role of the brief as an instrument of local policy and as a promotional tool in the development process was being fully exploited. The paper provides a state of the art review, presents a summary of the findings and offers some comments on the results. It concludes that most authorities now use briefs as part of their normal planning procedures, but that there is potential which is not yet being exploited.     

Design training and aesthetic evaluation: An intergroup comparison

A number of studies have observed differences in the evaluation of visual, aesthetic stimuli between those with and without professional training in art and design. If exposure to design training underlies such differences it follows that evidence of training effects should be observable when comparing subjects at different stages of design training, and not observable when comparing subjects at different stages of non-design training. In addition, this evidence should be consistent with directional predictions. The study reported in this paper investigated this question using a sample of 192 trained and untrained subjects in an evaluative task. Subjects were from two departments (Design and Computer Studies) of the same educational establishment and comprised balanced groups of lecturers, 1st, 2nd and 3rd year undergraduate students. The results obtained demonstrated evaluative differences and patterns of association both within and between the subject groups consistent with a training hypothesis.     

云南省土壤环境质量分析系统设计与实现

土壤是人类赖以生存的基本要素之一,然而随着我国经济社会的发展,土壤环境污染日益严重,已威胁到各种陆生动植物的生态平衡。为落实环保部《关于加强土壤污染防治工作的意见》要求,2006年云南省土壤污染调查全面启动。系统运用Microsoft Visual Basic作为开发语言,SQL Server作为数据库,Arc GIS作为地图开发工具,来完成数据的导入和校验,统计、评价和对比的分析与查询,以及各类统计图表的自动生成。系统开发解决了庞大数据的管理与分析问题,对数据进行了生动的图表化表示并通过数据自动更新机制,简化了数据的管理工作,提高了《云南省土壤环境质量报告》的编制效率,对各级管理部门的决策工作具有较大的辅助意义。     

A human-centered framework for innovation in conservation incentive programs

The promise of environmental conservation incentive programs that provide direct payments in exchange for conservation outcomes is that they enhance the value of engaging in stewardship behaviors. An insidious but important concern is that a narrow focus on optimizing payment levels can ultimately suppress program participation and subvert participants’ internal motivation to engage in long-term conservation behaviors. Increasing participation and engendering stewardship can be achieved by recognizing that participation is not simply a function of the payment; it is a function of the overall structure and administration of the program. Key to creating innovative and more sustainable programs is fitting them within the existing needs and values of target participants. By focusing on empathy for participants, co-designing program approaches, and learning from the rapid prototyping of program concepts, a human-centered approach to conservation incentive program design enhances the propensity for discovery of novel and innovative solutions to pressing conservation issues.     

城市防洪工程风险决策方法

本文着重讨论了与城市防洪工程决策制定密切相关的几个问题：①城市防洪工程设计标准的确定；②现有防洪工程的性能评估，③最优防洪工程对策的确定等，并在风险分析的基础上，给出了解决上述问题的方法。所得结论可为城市防洪工程决策的制定提供较为科学的理论依据。     

An experimental study on the effect of mobile phone conversation on drivers' reaction time in braking response

Introduction

This paper presents an experimental study in which the effect of three factors (distance between cars, mobile call duration, and time of driving (day or night)) on drivers' reaction time in braking response was investigated.

Methods

The experiment was performed in a real driving environment in which 27 male adults between the ages of 22 and 24 years participated. Three levels of the first two factors (i.e., distance between cars and call duration) and two levels of the last factor (i.e., time of driving) were selected to conduct the experimental study. A full factorial design of experiment with 18 treatment combinations and three replicates of each combination were used. Fifty-four trial runs were performed in a random manner and for each run drivers' reaction time in braking response was measured, which served the data for further analysis. Analysis of variance (ANOVA), interaction effect analysis, and various model adequacy tests were carried out using Design Expert software.

Results

The results of the study indicated that the most important factor affecting the drivers' reaction time in car braking response was the mobile call duration followed by the time of driving, with a high level of interaction between the two factors. It was also found that the distance between cars did not seem to have a significant effect on the reaction time in braking response. It is to be noted that these response times are expected to be higher under normal driving conditions where awareness of experimental environment is not present.

Impact on Industry

The findings of this study would help mobile phone industries in improving safety of mobile phone users in driving environment.     

Optimizing the design of storage facilities through the application of ISD and QRA

Four strategies can be used to achieve safety in chemical processes: inherent, passive, active and procedural. However, the strategy that offers the best results is the inherent safety approach, especially if it is applied during the initial stages of a project. Inherently Safer Design (ISD) permanently eliminates or reduces hazards, and thus avoids or diminishes the consequences of incidents. ISD can be applied using four strategies: substitution, minimization, moderation and simplification. In this paper, we propose a methodology that combines ISD strategies with Quantitative Risk Assessment (QRA) to optimize the design of storage installations. As 17% of major accidents in the chemical industry occur during the storage process and cause significant losses, it is essential to improve safety in such installations. The proposed method applies QRA to estimate the risk associated with a specific design. The design can then be compared to others to determine which is inherently safer. The risk analysis may incorporate complex phenomena such as the domino effect and possible impacts on vulnerable material and human elements. The methodology was applied to the San Juanico tragedy that occurred in Mexico in 1984.