Dangerous Goods Research Articles

Legal Protection and Liability for Multimodal Transport Operators in The Transport of Dangerous and Toxic Goods

Legal protection protects human rights that harm other people, and every human being is provided with this protection in order they can savor all of their legal right. In other words, legal protection is various legal remedies that must be provided by law enforcement officials to provide a sense of security, both physically and mentally as well as interference from various threats originating from any party. In contrast, transportation law can be interpreted as the overall legal norms and principles governing relationships and consequences of transportation law. This research shows that a form of legal protection for transportation service users can be provided in the form of preventive and repressive legal protection. The responsibility given to service users is in the form of compensation or compensation in the event of damage or loss of goods in the transportation process. There are two approaches used by researchers in this thesis, namely the Legislative Approach and the Conceptual Approach. In this legislative approach, the approach in legal research that provides an analytical point of view of problem-solving legal research is seen from the aspects of the legal concepts that lie behind it or even can be seen from the values contained in the normalization of regulation with the concepts used. Most of these approaches are used to understand the concepts related to normalization in legislation, whether they are in accordance with the spirit contained in the underlying legal concepts.

Features of ensuring transport security of transport infrastructure facilities and railway transport vehicles in the transportation of highly dangerous goods

The system of ensuring transport security in railway transport is considered, aimed at reducing the risk of committing acts of unlawful interference, including terrorist acts, using weapons, explosives and other dangerous substances, by limiting their carrying by the offender to transport infrastructure facilities and vehicles.A list of high-risk goods transported by rail is given. The normative documents regulating transport security are analyzed. The minimum number of posts of the transport security unit for the transport infrastructure facility has been determined.Measures aimed at improving the efficiency of the transport security system are presented.

Illicit COVID-19 products online: A mixed-method approach for identifying and preventing online health risks.

The COVID-19 pandemic triggered a demand for vaccines, cures, and the need of related documentation for travel, work and other purposes. Our project aimed to identify the illicit availability of such products across the Dark Web Markets (DWMs). A retrospective search for COVID-19 related products was carried out across 118 DWMs since the start of the pandemic (March 2020-October 2021). Data on vendors as well as advertised goods such as asking price, marketplace, listed date were collected and further validated through additional searches on the open web to verify the information relating to specific marketplaces. Both quantitative and qualitative methods were used for data analysis. Forty-two listings of unlicenced COVID-19 cures and vaccination certificates were identified across 8 marketplaces sold by 25 vendors with significant variation in prices. The listings were found to be geographically specific and followed the progression of the pandemic in terms of availability. Correlations between vendor portfolios of COVID-19 products and variety of goods of other illicit nature such as illegal weaponry, medication/drugs of abuse also emerged from our analysis. This study is one of the first attempts to identify the availability of unlicenced COVID-19 products on DWMs. The easy accessibility to vaccines, fake test certificates and hypothetical/illegal cures poses serious health risks to (potential) buyers due to the uncontrolled nature of such products. It also exposes buyers to an unwanted contact with vendors selling a variety of other dangerous illicit goods. Further monitoring and regulatory responses should be implemented to protect the health and safety of citizens especially at times of global crisis.

Internalization of the ‘Safety & Quality Assessment for Sustainability’ System Motivations and performance in Spanish road transport firms

The Safety & Quality Assessment for Sustainability (SQAS) system aims to measure sustainability levels – quality, safety, security and environmental requirements – of logistics providers in the distribution of European chemicals. In the context of SQAS adoption, the purpose of this work is twofold. First, it examines how the motivations of road transport companies carrying dangerous goods to evaluate through the SQAS system condition the real (not symbolic) internalization of the system. Secondly, it analyzes how the internalization of the SQAS system impacts sustainability performance. The study analyzes a sample of 78 Spanish companies assessed according to the SQAS Transport Service module. We use structural equations models applying partial least squares to test the research hypotheses. Results suggest that customer pressure is the main motivation for a company to undergo the assessment. In addition, in line with the literature on management standards, the results show that internal motivations impact to a greater extent than external ones in the internalization of SQAS, and that greater internalization contributes to better sustainability performance.

X-ray Security Inspection Image Dangerous Goods Detection Algorithm Based on Improved YOLOv4

Aiming at the problems of multi-scale and serious overlap of dangerous goods in X-ray security-inspection-image samples, an X-ray dangerous-goods-detection algorithm with high detection accuracy is designed based on the improvement of YOLOv4. Using deformable convolution to redesign YOLOv4’s path-aggregation-network (PANet) module, deformable convolution can flexibly change its receptive field based on the shape of the detected object. When the high-level information and low-level information are fused in the PANet module, deformable convolution is used to align features, which can effectively improve the detection accuracy. Then, the Focal-EIOU loss function is introduced, which can solve the problem of the CIOU loss function being prone to causing severe loss-value oscillation when dealing with low-quality samples. During training, the network can converge more quickly and the detection accuracy can be slightly improved. Finally, Soft-NMS was used to improve the non-maximum suppression of YOLOv4, effectively solving the problem of the high overlap rate of hazardous materials in the X-ray security-inspection dataset and improving accuracy. On the SIXRay dataset, this model detected 95.73%, 83.00%, 82.95%, 85.13%, and 80.74% AP for guns, knives, wrenches, pliers, and scissors, respectively, and the detected mAP reached 85.51%. The proposed model can effectively reduce the false-detection rate of dangerous goods in X-ray security images and improve the detection ability of small targets.

How to measure the angle of repose of hazardous substances in the test centres for dangerous goods packagings

AbstractThe flow properties of powdery or granular filling substances for dangerous goods packagings are safety‐relevant parameters. To specify the flow behaviour, the angle of repose is measured in the recognized test centres for dangerous goods packagings in Germany. Previous investigations performed on non‐hazardous substances revealed that some of the methods currently used have disadvantages in application. Additionally, for occupational health and safety reasons, it was generally viewed critically to carry out measurements of the angle of repose for dangerous goods at all. Instead, the dimensionless Hausner ratio to describe the flow behaviour was proposed. In this work, the investigations were extended to real hazardous substances to concretize the assessment. Five exemplary hazardous substances were tested for their angle of repose using the methods commonly applied in the test centres. The Hausner ratio was also determined. In addition, the influence of a different climatic preconditioning on the angle of repose measurement was examined using three selected non‐hazardous bulk materials. The results show that the measurement of the angle of repose is not fundamentally excluded for dangerous goods. However, for reasons of applicability, repeatability and occupational health and safety, only the ISO method can be applied for dangerous filling substances. This method provides conservative results regarding a safety‐related evaluation of flow properties for the transport of dangerous goods. In principle, both the ISO method and the determination of the Hausner ratio can be used for dangerous goods. It is also essential especially with finely powdered filling goods, to carry out controlled preconditioning.

Transport risk modeling for hazardous chemical transport Companies—A case study in China

Traffic accidents of hazardous chemical transport vehicles strongly correlate with the operation and management level of road transport companies. An accurate risk assessment of these transport companies will play a critical role in improving their management and supervision and in turn the overall safety of roadways, property, and most importantly people's lives. Therefore, this study constructs a logistic regression scorecard model to evaluate transport risk of hazardous chemical transport companies and evaluates it using a case study in China. This study first selected 16 indicators from the dimensions of driver behaviors, driving performance, dangerous goods and company business operation to construct company user portraits. Next, a K-means++ algorithm was used to cluster the data samples of the companies on a monthly basis. On this basis, a scorecard was constructed based on a logistic regression scorecard model to realize and visualize the monthly risk portrait of companies. The constructed scorecard predicted transport risk of companies accurately. The results show that the more complex the types of dangerous goods transported, the higher the risk value of the company in the dangerous goods index. Moreover, for transport companies, the driver behaviors and driving performance on their trips are closely related to their business risk. In a practical application, the proposed scorecard can realize the dynamic risk monitoring of transport companies and enable managers and supervision departments to clarify where the risk is from. The transport companies can also carry out safety training and rectification for drivers and operations to reduce the occurrence of hazardous materials-related traffic accidents.

The Boiling Liquid Expanding Vapour Explosion (BLEVE): A bibliometric review and futur trends

The phenomenon “Boiling Liquid Expanding Vapor Explosion” (BLEVE) is one of the most common accidental events in the chemical industry and in the transport of dangerous goods. A bibliographic search in the Web of Science Core Collection reported 375 publications related to BLEVEs from 1979 to the present (August 10, 2022). A bibliometric analysis was conducted using the VOSviewer tool to allow a better understanding of the scientific knowledge on this phenomenon. A comprehensive overview of BLEVE research is presented in terms of annual publication, top journals, countries/regions with the highest productivity, authors and their cooperation networks, key terms, and co-citation analysis. The 375 publications cover 691 authors, 83 journals, 44 countries or territories and 290 institutions. The key publication (highest number of citations and co-citations) for understanding the BLEVE phenomenon is. The results obtained constitute a snapshot of the current state of the art on BLEVEs and can be applied to improve the understanding of research on this topic and establish new trends of research.

Improved criteria for evaluating impact targets in regulative drop tests of dangerous goods packagings

AbstractFor dangerous goods packagings, drop testing onto an essential unyielding target can be used to assess the mechanical resistance to impact loads. Adopted regulations like Agreement concerning the International Carriage of Dangerous Goods by Road (ADR)/Regulation concerning the International Carriage of Dangerous Goods by Rail (RID) require that the impact surface provided shall be integral with a mass at least 50 times than that of the heaviest package to be tested. The problem is that many manufacturers do not possess impact targets that satisfy the required 50 times mass ratio for regulative drop tests during series production. The objective of this work is to verify existing and define improved criteria for impact target structures based on systematic investigations. Previous evidence highlights the relevance of other parameters in addition to the mass ratio. Therefore, in this research, a variation of drop test parameters was carried out experimentally. Furthermore, numerical vibration analysis was applied to investigate the deformability of the impact surface. The results conclude that the mass ratio of 1:50 cannot be defined as a decisive criterion. In order to determine the influence of further drop test parameters, the research findings were used to validate a parametric model that assesses impact target deflection. An approximation quality of over 90% was achieved. As a result, new evaluation criteria are proposed. First, a method for identifying critical impact target designs is provided. Second, a new comprehensive formula compares the approximated maximum deflection of a real impact target to the respective theoretical threshold derived from a worst‐case assumption. In practice, this leads to great advantages in the evaluation of already installed impact targets for dangerous goods packagings.

Optimal Location of Emergency Facility Sites for Railway Dangerous Goods Transportation under Uncertain Conditions

Railroad accidents involving dangerous goods (DG) need to be rescued quickly due to their hazardous nature. This paper proposes an emergency facility location model for the railway dangerous-goods transportation problem (RDGT-EFLP, abbreviated as EFLP). The EFLP model is based on an ellipsoidal robust model that introduces a robust control safety parameter Ω to measure the risk preferences of decision makers and limits the range of uncertain demand, the range of uncertain service and the range of safety parameters to find the solution for siting emergency facilities, when the time and location of emergency events are unknown. The model is solved using a genetic algorithm (GA) and real data after abstraction. Finally, a comprehensive analysis of the solution results under different maximum overcoverages illustrates the feasibility and effectiveness of the model.

Analysis of the layout of the Dangerous and Toxic Goods (B3) warehouse using the 5S method (Seiri, Seiton, Seiso, Seiketsu, and Shitsuke) on PT Mitra Agung Sejati

This research was conducted at PT Mitra Agung Sejati. The purpose of this study is to analyze the layout of dangerous and toxic goods (B3) warehouses using the 5s method (Seiri, Seiton, Seiso, Seiketsu, and Shitsuke) at PT Mitra Agung Sejati. The research methodology used in this study is qualitative research method. The results of the study explained that this B3 storage area has not met the 5S principle, namely the absence of sorting, neat and clean arrangement for hazardous and toxic materials and labeling goods. The actual layout of this company is not organized, making operators uncomfortable in picking and storing hazardous and toxic materials to be used or quantities to be stored. However, after being researched and proposed using the 5S method, activities in the warehouse will be more organized and operators will find it easier to pick up goods and store goods such as labeling and making markings for the location of goods and laying work tools and marking for forklift parking. Through the application of this 5S method, the physical condition of the work environment at PT. Mitra Agung Sejati is more neatly organized and affects the comfort of workers.

БЕЗОПАСНАЯ ЭКСПЛУАТАЦИЯ ВАГОНОВ ПРИ НАЛИЧИИ НЕИСПРАВНОСТЕЙ

A study of various types of malfunctions in railway transport is conducted. Their critical impact on the safety of operation is evaluated. The research is aimed at studying statistical data on appearing failures and malfunctions both on rolling stock and on railway tracks. At high loads on mechanical components, the probability of various defects is high, which requires the most thorough study of the reliability of structural elements. Any deviation can lead to significant breakdowns and cause huge damage, especially for rolling stock for passenger transportation or transportation of dangerous goods. It is also necessary to predict the indicators of reliability and stability of the system to various impacts. In this regard, the study is aimed at evaluating the failures of railway systems and their critical impact on traffic safety. Despite such a great interest in the problems of evaluating and ensuring the safety of railway transport, there is still no unambiguous evaluation of the parameters of railway carriages and the track for the maximum stability coefficient, if exceeded, the train is highly likely to derail.

Study on Safety Design for Port Dangerous Goods Ro-Ro Terminal Engineering

According to the current situation of domestic transportation, this paper identifies and analyzes the characteristics and causes of accidents in ro-ro operation of dangerous goods in port. Combined with the quantitative risk assessment of accident consequences, this paper emphatically analyzes mutual safety influence with the surrounding environment. Based on that, safety design for dangerous goods ro-ro terminal engineering is demanded. The research results may serve as a reference for improving the inherent safety of dangerous goods ro-ro terminal engineering.

A Bibliometric Analysis of Research Trends in Goods Transportation Using the Scopus Database

In our study, we applied bibliometric analysis techniques to explore the research trends in goods transportation. The Scopus database is selected for our research works. Since the extracted datasets from the Scopus database are effectively useful for bibliometric and descriptive analysis using VOSVIEWER software and MS-EXCEL. This study used six research contributions to find out descriptive statistics such as year—wise publications trend, document type, publisher contribution summary, percentage of articles vs subject category, the contribution of authors and their countries based on the total number of publications and their corresponding total citations, the reputation of documents and journals according to the total citations that occurred over the period by performing citation analysis, the intellectual structures of goods transportation by performing co-citation analysis with co-cited authors, to identify the trends involving goods transportation by performing keywords co-occurrence analysis, and to know the research gaps and further research directions on goods transportation. This research study has found gradual results of goods transportation from 2000 to 2021 and performed network analysis to get the intellectual structure and emergent themes in goods transportation, such as dangerous goods transportation, railway goods transportation, technology enhancement in goods transportation, and sustainability perspectives. This study was limited to documents that were retrieved from the largest database Scopus. Those which are not incorporated here are not part of the study, which may or may not affect our research findings. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first attempt at the evolution of documents about goods transportation by using bibliometric tools.

Evaluation and Management of Health and Safety Risks of Chlorine Gas in Transportation Routes

Background: More than 90% of goods movement in Iran is done by road transport. A significant part of these materials is dangerous goods. Considering that chlorine gas is considered a toxic and oxidizing substance, predicting the way of release and mortality due to accidental leakage of chlorine gas can be a crucial tool in adopting preventive strategies. This study aims to evaluate the safety of chlorine gas transportation and analyze the consequences of its release. Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional-analytical study was conducted in 2020 in Tehran. The transportation risk rating index was used to measure and evaluate the quantitative risk of transportation of hazardous materials. PHAST software was used to determine the consequence of possible accident scenarios on the transportation route. In the final stage, according to the amount of traffic, the time and manner of response to emergencies by the fire and emergency organization were simulated using Pathfinder software. Results: In this evaluation, the chlorine risk rating was calculated as 192. The worst possible scenario was a catastrophic rupture of chlorine in the second half of 2021. As a result of the accident, up to a radius of 1800 m from the center of the leak, the dangerous concentration is equal to 20 ppm, that is, equal to the ERPG3 limit. The simulation results showed that the release of poisonous chlorine gas leads to the death of 10% of people up to a radius of 192 m around the scenario. Conclusion: In the scenario of the sudden release of chlorine, in which people need to escape and move away from the accident site, it was found that it takes more than 24 minutes to leave the ERPG-3 area. Considering that the assumed average speed of 1.15 m/s is the average speed of people and naturally the speed of sensitive people is much lower in the conditions of an accident, it can be concluded that in the scenario of a sudden leak, a significant part of the people involved in the accident may suffer severe and irreparable damage.

Testing of tanks for transportation of liquid dangerous goods by road

Testing of tanks for transportation of liquid dangerous goods by road

"PERFORMANCE ANALYSIS OF INERT GAS PLANT WITH SCRUBBER USING ANSYS FOR A VLCC SHIP"

"Through the 1978 SOLAS Protocol and then through the introduction of amendments from 1981 and 1983, new specifications are brought regarding the design, operation, maintenance, verification of inert gas systems intended for both oil tanks and bulk chemical tanks, and, in general, the systems of safety on board ships carrying dangerous goods. The inerting method using a gas system with generator and scrubber involves a continuous and very efficient process, with a low level of supervision and maintenance, that is why this type of installation was chosen in this study. Installations with a scrubber type unit require the installation of an inert gas generator that operates at a pressure of 8-10 bar and releases nitrogen at 7-9 bar. The quality of the air will depend on the type of generator used, scrubber type unit, but air without impurities with the best possible quality is recommended. Nitrogen quality for a given unit varies with production rate and is generally 95-97% pure. By connecting high-quality scrubbers, nitrogen can be brought to 99% purity, but at lower production rates and much higher energy consumption rates of any system on board ship is specifically identified with its reliability. So as to get the best out of marine motors, it is critical to screen their performances and take measures to accomplish productive combustion. As a result of heat gains on board ships from engine rooms and crew, the increase in humidity as well as due to the various releases of gases from on board systems, room air deteriorates, requiring replacement and its processing through the HVAC (heat, ventilation and air conditioning) system. The combustion process in diese."

Legal incentives to combat arms and ammunition smuggling

The article states that arms and ammunition smuggling is one of the most serious threats to society's security. Illicit trade in arms and ammunition can lead to acts of terrorism, crime and international instability. One way to combat arms and ammunition smuggling is to establish legal incentives to prevent this phenomenon. One of the most effective methods of combating the smuggling of weapons and ammunition is to establish strong legal incentives to help prevent the trade of these dangerous goods. National legislation should ensure proper procedures, control and accountability for violations of the law. Establishing stiff penalties and other sanctions can help reduce the number of cases of arms and ammunition smuggling.
 Arms and ammunition smuggling poses a serious threat to security and international stability. States and international organizations are making significant efforts to counter this phenomenon. One effective tool to combat arms smuggling is the creation of legal incentives to enforce laws, regulate the circulation and storage of weapons and ammunition.
 The use of innovative methods, such as artificial intelligence, blockchain technology and others, in combating the smuggling of weapons and ammunition is an important legal incentive.
 In addition, there is a need to change the legislation to ensure more effective regulation of the circulation and storage of weapons and ammunition. This includes the regulation of production, import, export, transit, storage and transportation of weapons and ammunition. To achieve this goal, states must change or supplement their legislation and standards at the international level. Thus, arms and ammunition smuggling is a serious threat to national security and global stability. One of the most effective methods of combating arms and ammunition smuggling is the establishment of strong legal incentives that will help prevent trade in these dangerous goods. National legislation should ensure proper procedures, control and accountability for violations of the law. Establishing stiff penalties and other sanctions can help reduce the number of cases of arms and ammunition smuggling.

Solving a heterogeneous fleet multi-compartment vehicle routing problem:a case study

Vehicle Routing Problem (VRP) is a complex optimisation problem in the field of supply chain management, especially in the Oil & Gas sector. Due to the rising cost of fuel, effective planning of transportation routes has become a crucial success factor for distribution companies, increasing operational efficiency as well as the corresponding service level. In this paper, we present an optimisation model to solve a heterogeneous fleet multi-compartment vehicle routing problem (MCVRP), a variant of the conventional vehicle routing problem (VRP). Real data are obtained from a medium size oil distribution company, operating in Greece and incorporates 19 petrol stations served from a central oil depot using a fleet of various multi-compartment tanker trucks. The main objective of this research is to design an optimum set of routes minimising distance and truck operating costs. The MCVRP with a heterogeneous fleet of vehicles is modelled as a Mixed-Integer Linear Programming (MILP) problem and the proposed solution determines the number of assigned vehicles, the planning of daily routes and the allocation of different fuels to vehicles compartments, while satisfying customer demand following specific requirements, as detailed in the Carriage of Dangerous Goods (ADR) Regulations.

Recognition Mechanism of Dangerous Goods Marks: Evidence from an Event-Related Potential Study.

Dangerous goods marks are the most effective means of alerting individuals to the potential dangers associated with the transport of dangerous goods. In order to gain a better understanding of how dangerous goods marks convey risk information, the cognitive processing of dangerous goods marks was examined by measuring event-related potentials (ERPs). We recruited 23 participants, and their ERP data were recorded. We discovered that the dangerous goods marks elicited a larger P200 amplitude and a smaller N300 amplitude, indicating that, compared to other marks, the dangerous goods marks exhibited stronger warning information and drew more attention from the subjects. Simultaneously, dangerous goods marks elicited insufficient emotional arousal in individuals. Therefore, these findings suggest that the designs of dangerous goods marks need to be improved, such as improving the graphic consistency. Changes in ERP patterns can be used to measure the risk perception level of dangerous goods marks, which can be used as an accurate indicator of the effectiveness of warning sign design. In addition, this study provides a theoretical foundation for the cognitive understanding mechanism of dangerous goods marks.