International Safety Standards Research Articles

Study of the Electromagnetic Interference Generated by Wireless Power Transfer Systems

This paper presents a study related with measuring of radio frequency emissions. The purpose is to determine the level of interference generated by wireless power transfer equipment in a specific frequency range, and to compare those levels to the existing standards. The technology of wireless power transfer, especially for electric vehicles batteries charging, is rapidly developing in the recent years. An increasing use of this technology in industrial and consumer electronic products has raised concerns about the possible unfavorable health-effects onto the human being. Another concern is raised from the high intensity fields produced by wireless power transfer systems which will generate highly undesired influence on other electrical and electronic equipment. As a protection against the potential health effects, the governments imposed limits on the occupational and general public exposure to the radio frequencies. These limitations are set out in national and international safety guidelines, standards and regulations. The measurement and evaluation of the human exposure to electromagnetic fields are essential to guarantee occupational and general public safety.

안전중시 시스템의 모델기반 설계에서 메타모델을 활용한 기능 고장의 탐지 및 안전 요구사항 검증

사용자의 요구사항 증대와 기술의 발전으로 인해 현대 시스템은 계속해서 복잡해지고 있어 시스템 설계 오류 및 고장 등으로 인한 시스템 운용 중의 사고도 빈번해지고 있다. 특히 사고로 인한 인적 및 물적 피해가 심각할 수 있는 시스템을 안전중시 시스템이라고 부른다. 이러한 시스템에 대해서는 안전성을 확보하기 위한 특별한 노력이 필요한데 이에 부응하여 본 논문에서는 개발 초기 단계부터 안전성을 반영하면서 시스템 설계를 수행할 수 있는 방법을 연구하였다. 특히 안전 메타모델을 활용해서 기능의 고장 탐지를 수행할 수 있는 시스템 설계 방법을 제시하였다. 구체적으로 국제 안전 표준들을 참고하여 안전 데이터를 추출하고, 시스템 모델링 표준 언어인 SysML을 이용하여 안전 데이터 메타모델을 생성한 후, 시스템 설계에서 안전 데이터 메타모델을 효과적으로 활용하는 모델 기반 안전 시스템 설계 방법을 제시하였고, 이를 기반으로 안전요구사항 생성 및 시뮬레이션 방법에 관하여 논의하였다. 마지막으로 사례연구로서 자동차 시스템 설계에서 SysML 기반 모델링 및 시뮬레이션을 통해 기능 고장의 탐지나 안전 요구사항의 검증이 가능한 것을 보여 주었다. 본 연구에서 안전 데이터에 대한 메타모델의 활용을 통해 안전 데이터 및 정보의 구성 및 관리를 효율적으로 수행할 수 있는 것과, 메타모델 기반 시스템 설계와 시뮬레이션을 활용하여 설계 오류를 줄임으로써 요구사항에 맞는 시스템 설계를 할 수 있음을 제시하였다. Modern systems have become more and more complex due to the ever-increasing user requirements and rapid advance of technology. As such, the frequency of accidents due to system design errors or failure has been increasing. When the damage incurred by accidents to human beings or property is serious, the underlying systems are referred to as safety-critical systems. The development of such systems requires special efforts to ensure the safety of the human beings operating them. To cope with such a requirement, in this paper an approach is employed in which we consider safety starting from the conceptual design phase of the systems. Specifically, a systems design method that can detect functional failure is proposed by utilizing meta-models and M&S methods. To accomplish this, the safety design data from international safety standards are first extracted and also a meta-model is generated using SysML (systems modeling language). Then, a SysML-based system design method is proposed based on the use of the developed meta-model. We also discuss how the safety requirements can be created and verified using a simulation method. Finally, through a case study in automotive design, it is demonstrated that the detection of a functional failure and the verification of a safety requirement can be accomplished using the SysML-based M&S method. This study indicates that the use of meta-models can be useful for collecting and managing safety data and that the meta-model based M&S method can make it possible to satisfy the system requirements by reducing the design errors.

Multivariate analyses of major and trace elements in 19 species of herbs consumed in Yunnan, China

ABSTRACTThis study aimed to analyze the concentrations of 10 elements in 19 species of herbs related to medical and edible purpose in Yunnan, China. Microwave-assisted acid digestion was used for all of the dried herbs and element contents were determined by inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectrometry. The accuracy of this method was validated by analyzing GBW07605 certified reference material. The results indicated that the distributions of element contents were varied over a wide range in the specimens tested. The decreasing sequence of average element content expressed as dry weight was presented as follows: calcium (1740–22,246 µg/g dry weight), magnesium (634–6367 µg/g dry weight), iron (52.8–5707 µg/g dry weight), barium (9.19–465 µg/g dry weight), zinc (10.7–82.1 µg/g dry weight), strontium (8.25–69.8 µg/g dry weight), copper (4.10–36.6 µg/g dry weight), chromium (0.26–13.3 µg/g dry weight), nickel (0.57–14.7 µg/g dry weight), and cadmium (0.11–2.66 µg/g dry weight). The element contents of samples were different depending on several species. However, the accumulations of toxic elements (cadmium, chromium, and nickel) were above the international safety standards limit in most samples. Principal component analysis generated three principal components that explained 77% of the total variance in the data. Similar samples may get together by cluster analysis and could correspond to the result of principal component analysis.

An empirical study on the public perception and acceptance of hydrogen energy in Taiwan

ABSTRACTIn this study, we extract factors by using factor analysis and then adopt them in a regression analysis to investigate the public perception and acceptance of hydrogen energy in Taiwan. Six reliable factors were extracted from the exploratory factor analysis of 29 5-point Likert-type items. Our regression results show that the public perception of hydrogen energy as a green energy, public belief in domestic hydrogen industries being able to conform to international safety standards, and public perception of the cost advantage of hydrogen gas over petroleum have significantly positive effects on support for the development of hydrogen energy in Taiwan. While people have a high level of concern about the safety of hydrogen and its associated technologies, the unsafe perceptions of hydrogen and its associated technologies have no significant effects on their support. In particular, public belief in domestic hydrogen industries being able to conform to international safety standards is a powerful factor that enhances support for hydrogen energy development.

The WHO EMF Project: Legitimating the Imaginary of Global Harmonization of EMF Safety Standards

An important topic for studies of STS and globalization are the ways “global” institutions create and attempt to implement health guidelines and safety standards to address risks associated with new technologies. In the following discussion this topic is examined through a case study of the activities of the World Health Organization’s Electric and Magnetic Field Project (WHO EMF Project). EMF exposures are associated with telecommunications and electrical infrastructure, most notably high voltage power-lines, radio and cell towers and the use of mobile telephones. The controversy over setting international safety standards and health guidelines has simmered for a number of decades. The mainstream “regulatory science” position has been that it is unlikely EMF’s constitute a significant health risk and therefore minimal regulatory intervention or significant precautionary considerations are required. A small but persistent stream of scientific studies nevertheless have continued to raise significant health concerns and have led to calls for regulators to build stronger precautionary approaches into EMF standards and guidelines. The WHO EMF project was established in 1996 in an attempt to discourage this situation leading to different nation states adopting strong precautionary approaches and developing a diversity of national EMF safety standards and health guidelines. In the following discussion I will explore the history of the WHO EMF Project and the strategies it has used to pursue its goal of global harmonization of EMF science, safety standards and guidelines. Three important strategies used by the WHO EMF Project have involved: appeals to technological determinism, developing bespoke models for sound science, and setting the boundaries between science and policy to attempt to exclude their opponents from the policy making arena.

Prevention of microbial hazard on fresh-cut lettuce throughadoption of food safety and hygienic practices bylettuce farmers.

Lettuce is consumed raw in salads and is susceptible to microbial contamination through environment, agricultural practices, and its morphology, thus, a potential vehicle for food‐borne illness. This study investigated the effect of adoption of food safety and hygienic practices by lettuce farmers on the microbial safety of field sourced lettuce in Lagos State, Nigeria. Ten structured questionnaires were administered randomly to 10 lettuce farmers to assess food safety and hygienic practices (FSH). Two farmers who practice FSH and two farmers who do not practice NFSH were finally used for this study. Samples of ready‐to‐harvest lettuce, manure applied, and irrigation water were obtained for a period of five months (August – December 2013) and analyzed for total plate count (TPC), total coliform count (TCC), Escherichia coli, Listeria spp., Salmonella spp., and Shigella spp. counts. Result of microbial analyses of lettuce samples was compared with international microbiological specification for ready‐to‐eat foods. Results showed that the range of TPC on lettuce was 6.00 to 8.11 LogCFU/g from FSH farms and TPC of lettuce samples from NFSH farms ranged from 6.66 to 13.64 LogCFU/g. 1.49 to 4.85LogCFU/g were TCC ranges from lettuce samples obtained from FSH farms while NFSH farms had TCC ranging between 3.95 and 10.86 LogCFU/g, respectively. The range of isolated pathogen count on lettuce from FSH and NFSH farms exceeded the international safety standard; there was a significant difference in the microbial count of lettuce from FSH farms and NFSH farms. This study concludes that the lettuce samples obtained did not pass the international microbial safety standards. FSH compliance is a major determinant of the microbial safety of lettuce. Hence, the institution of FSH on farm to improve microbial safety of lettuce produced for public consumption is emphasized.

Environmental and human health risks of antimicrobials used in Fenneropenaeus chinensis aquaculture production in China.

This study aimed to quantify the environmental fate of antimicrobials applied in Fenneropenaeus chinensis aquaculture production in China and to assess their potential risks for surrounding aquatic ecosystems, for the promotion of antimicrobial resistance in target and non-target bacteria and for consumers eating shrimp products that contain antimicrobial residues. For this, we first used the results of an environmental monitoring study performed with the antimicrobial sulfamethazine to parameterize and calibrate the ERA-AQUA model, a mass balance model suited to perform risk assessments of veterinary medicines applied in aquaculture ponds. Next, a scenario representing F. chinensis production in China was built and used to perform risk assessments for 21 antimicrobials which are regulated for aquaculture in China. Results of the model calibration showed a good correspondence between the predicted and the measured sulfamethazine concentrations, with differences within an order of magnitude. Results of the ecological risk assessment showed that four antimicrobials (levofloxacin, sarafloxacin, ampicillin, sulfadiazine) are expected to have adverse effects on primary producers, while no short-term risks were predicted for invertebrates and fish exposed to farm wastewater effluents containing antimicrobial residues. Half of the evaluated antimicrobials showed potential to contribute to antimicrobial resistance in bacteria exposed to pond water and farm effluents. A withdrawal period of three weeks is recommended for antimicrobials applied via oral administration to F. chinensis in order to comply with the current national and international toxicological food safety standards. The results of this study indicate the need to improve the current regulatory framework for the registration of aquaculture antimicrobials in China and suggest compounds that should be targeted in future aquaculture risk assessments and environmental monitoring studies.

경전철 역사 개념설계 단계에서 기능분석 결과를 활용한 안전요구사항의 생성방법에 관한 연구

Abstract For safety-critical systems including railways, there has been a growing need for effective and systematic safety management processes. The outcomes of efforts in this area are international safety standards, such as IEC 61508, 62278, and ISO 26262. One of the principal activities in the safety process is hazard analysis. For this reason,considerable efforts have been directed toward methods of hazard analysis. On the other hand, the hazard analysis methods reported thus far appear to be unclear in terms of their relationship with the system design process. In addition, in some cases, the methods appear to rely heavily on information regarding the hardware and software components, the number of which is increasing. These aspects can become troublesome when design changes are necessary. To improve the situation, in this paper, hazard analysis was carried out using the result of functional analysis early in the concept development stage for a safety-critical system design. Because hazard analysis is carriedout at the system level and the result is then used to develop the safety requirements, improvements can be expectedin terms of the development time and cost when design changes are required due to changes in the requirements.As a case study, the generation of safety requirements for the development of light rail transit stations is presented.

Process Safety Architecture System Neutral Solution Comparison

There are many different solutions of safety systems on the marked. We will see the difference and advantage of the architecture of safety related components also the corresponding definition in the international safety standards. The aim is to give an overview of the safety life cycle from the analysis, realization to the operation phase and the basic knowledge for future decisions of safety related solutions.

(Invited) New Li Ion Cells with Extended Temperature Range

Saft developed a new Li ion cell limiting cell aging between -40oC and 85oC. It avoids Li deposition, electrodes de-percolation & swelling.This new cell design address issue of the state of art Li ion cell which are not able to work both at LT (-20°C and below) and at HT (+60°C to +85°C), without a strong cell electrical performances degradation. It sustains a long calendar life or floating period at 4.1V-4.2V @ 60°C, without a strong electrical performances degradation, and/or a rapid opening of the circuit breaker in link with internal cell gas generation. It limits cell self heating at end of discharge during high rate discharge at elevated temperature environment. It has 10 years life floating at 4.2V. This cell has three layers of safety protection and compliance to international safety standard.

STUDING RADIOECOLOGICAL PROBLEMS IN THE CASPIAN REGION

In the present article there is given analysis of materials about study of the natural and anthropogenic radio nuclides in the Caspian region for the creation of a monitoring network and the assessment of radiological hazards with determinations of compliance to international health and safety standards. Radionuclides are come across in different districts of the Caspian territory and their radiation give way to the realization of the ionizing radiation. Also there have bееn shown ways of nature protection оn the ecological and legal base to prevent water pollution. In the Caspian districts where more than 3 million people live, the investigations carried out about the radiation levels do not draw a clear picture about the environmental pollution.

Experiencing the Food Safety Regime: Compliance, Market Access, and Coping Strategies of Indian Fishery Sector

This paper has attempted to capture the impact of food safety standards on seafood exports from India. The research issues contemplated in the study are: (i) quantifying the trade effects on fishery exports from India due to the evolving stringency of international food safety standards, (ii) structural changes of export dynamics in the standards regime, and (iii) analysing the implications of standards-related compliance on participation of actors in the export value chain. A unidirectional gravity model (for the period 1998–2013) has been used, wherein, India's fishery exports to 34 countries has been modelled by taking food safety standard as the key independent variable. The structural changes in export dynamics are captured through the constant market share analysis and export market diversification analysis. To understand the forms of coordination in the seafood export value chain, snowball sampling technique has been adopted to select the key informants of the value chain. The study has revealed that the regulations are trade restrictive, and the standards regime is causing a major restructuring of the existing value chain. It is inevitable that India should elevate the national system for testing, certification and laboratory accreditation so as to be at par with the prevailing international trade regulatory safety parameters.

Risk Assessment Process for Collaborative Assembly – A Job Safety Analysis Approach

International safety standards state that risk assessment is the first step in understanding and eliminating hazardous work environment. The traditional method of risk assessment using Job Safety Analysis, where sequential tasks of the operator are analysed for potential risks, needs to be adapted to applications where humans and robots collaborate to complete assembly tasks. This article proposes a novel approach by placing equal emphasis on various participants working within their workspaces. An industrial case study wil be used to showcase the merits of the process when used at an early stage in the development of a collaborative assembly cell.

Dependability Model for Decomposition and Allocation of System Safety Integrity Levels of Software Quality

The aim of this paper is to propose a consensual model of software safety requirements for decomposition and allocation of system safety integrity levels of quality. For this purpose, a procedural method is used for describing and evaluating the proposed model of software safety requirements; using a strategy that is based neither on our own views nor on individual researchers view of such type of requirements, but that is based on a consensus perspectives documented in international standards of software safety as quality requirements. This work contributes to the research knowledge by proposing a model that guides in practice both system and software engineers for early identification and specification of the software safety non functional requirements and their detailed allocation as specific safety functions.

Teaching traffic safety in Qatari schools: Expectation and reality

Introduction In pursuit of the realization of the Qatar National Vision 2030 (QNV 2030) and to ensure the success of the hosting of the 2022 FIFA World Cup, the Qatari higher authorities have assigned paramount importance to instilling and prorogating traffic awareness among the various community groups and school students. Thus, the establishment of the National Committee for Traffic Safety (NCTS) headed by His Excellency the Prime Minister and Minister of Interior in which the relevant authorities in Qatar have been accomplished. The National Committee for Traffic Safety has prepared a general educational framework for traffic safety program, familiarizing students of all age groups with many of the traffic safety concepts to ensure instilling the needed traffic awareness. This study aims at identifying the effectiveness of the application of the general educational framework of the traffic safety program on experimental basis in some governmental and private schools in Qatar (2015-2013) in preparation to introducing it to all schools in the coming years (if the outcome of the pilot project is proved positive). Study Approach This study will be made as part of the assessment of the implementation of the procedural action plans for teaching traffic safety in Qatar. The study will include conducting a survey among school principals, teachers, parents and students, and measuring the impact of the acquisition of traffic safety knowledge on the students› behavior by examining the school zones and how far the traffic safety measures are applied. It will also follow-up the extra-curricular activities carried out by students outside the classroom. Study Expectations The results of this study are expected to contribute to the enhancement and improvement of the general framework of the proposed educational content before its application on all Qatari schools. As expected in this study, many government and private entities are to be engaged in the preparation of the teaching aids and awareness films to ensure the effective application of the traffic safety concepts on schools. It is also expected that the development of the framework would include the following aspects: preparation of teaching aids, production of awareness films appropriate for each age group and preparation of illustrative pictures and workshops designed to educate teachers before the application of the educational framework. It also aims to improve school zones to enhance traffic safety around schools in accordance with the international safety standards and measures among other improvements.

Food safety and hygiene practices of vendors during the chain of street food production in Florianopolis, Brazil: A cross-sectional study

The aims of this study were to assess the compliance of street foods sold in an urban center in a major capital of Brazil with international standards for food safety and to provide data that could be used for the elaboration of specific legislation to ensure the safety of street food. The study investigated demographic profiles of street vendors and hygiene practices used in critical points of food production for products sold. Direct observations and structured interviews were conducted among vendors at stationary locations in the downtown area. Forty-three participating vendors were mostly males who generally completed only elementary school. Among observed food safety risks: 12% of the vendors did not provide ice at the point of sale for perishable ingredients; 95% did not wash hands between food and money transactions and restroom breaks; 91% did not have hair coverings and 100% of the vendors did not have access to a water supply. The interviews revealed that 12% of the vendors did not provide proper cold holding during transportation; 33% did not wash their hands at all, whereas 24% only used water to wash their hands; and 33% never took the required food-handling course. The study indicates a need for improvements of the environmental conditions at these sites to prevent foodborne diseases. Specific local and national laws for street food need to be created to protect the consumer, and continuous training of vendors could help address the lack of food quality and safety.

Role of Acrylic Copolymers in Designing Environmentally Friendly Technologies for Finishing Textile Materials

We present the results of studies aimed at designing environmentally friendly technologies for printing and final finishing of textile materials. The technologies are based on the specific properties of carboxylated acrylic copolymers that can increase the viscosity in an alkaline medium. The obvious connection between negative changes in nature and the anthropogenic impact of industrial plants on the environment has raised general concerns, and requires solving a number of problems involved in the indicated issue. The negative impact of industrial activity on natural processes and living organisms is due not only to its wasteful management but also to shortcomings in the production processes employed [1]. Within the broad range of sectors in the national economy, the textile industry makes an appreciable contribution to environmental pollution and pollution of water and air basins. Considering this fact, improving processes in dyeing-and-finishing departments and designing environmentally friendly technologies for finishing textile materials is a timely and important direction in solving the important problem of reducing the level of toxicological and ecological stress on the environment and designing environmentally friendly textiles meeting international safety and quality standards. In this paper, we present the results of studies to develop environmentally friendly printing and final finishing using acrylic latexes and water-soluble copolymers of domestic manufacture (Nord Sintez LLC). In this case, improvement of the environmental situation is achieved as a result of the following: – using few-component pigment compositions, not containing toxic crosslinking agents; – improving the degree of utilization of reactive dyes and reducing their desorption during washing of printed material, with a corresponding decrease in their input into wastewaters from the dye-and-finishing plant; – designing low-formaldehyde and formaldehyde-free coupling agents, ensuring permanence and high resistance of the effects of final finishing to organic solvents. In the first step, we evaluated the properties of aqueous dispersions of acrylic and styrene-acrylic latexes of domestic manufacture, with the objective of using them as binders in the composition of pigment printing inks. The acrylic latex recommended for use is a copolymer of butyl acrylate, methyl methacrylate, acrylonitrile, and acrylic acids with the optimal ratio of “hard” and “soft” monomer units in the macromolecular chain, which ensures the needed combination of strength and elasticity of the polymer film. Such films are distinguished by high weathering resistance and form coatings that do not yellow over time, in contrast to films based on diene structures which tend to oxidize [2]. We established that an aqueous dispersion of acrylic carboxyl-containing latex MN-10 has low surface tension (36.7 mN/m), comparable with its value for divinyl nitrile latexes BNK 40/4 and BNK 20/35 (respectively 38.4 and 33.1 mN/m). The effective wettability and penetration of cellulose-containing fabrics by printing compositions based on this latex promotes stronger fixation of the pigment particles to the fiber substrate. The light scattering method has shown (Fig. 1) that the average size of MN-10 latex globules is not more than 100 nm, which is responsible for the high degree of homogeneity of the films and their stronger fixation to the polymer substrate [3].

Examination of Thai Construction Safety Factors using the Analytic Hierarchy Process

The construction industry is one of the industries with high accident rate. To improve safety standard to compete internationally, the key construction safety factors are examined in this paper utilizing the analytic hierarchy process. The results reveal the Policy factor as the most important factor to improve safety standard. The implementation plan must be practical and include regulations stated in the international safety standards.

A review of Chinese fish trade involving the development and limitations of food safety strategy

The export growth of Chinese fisheries is reviving significantly after a chain of food safety incidents in 2007, but regulatory aspects associated with the scale and rapidity of this revival are far from optimal. Quality and safety problems of Chinese fishery products have remained as a primary impediment to consolidating the country's trade competitiveness in major foreign markets. Continual recurrence of safety scandals due to enterprises' wrongful production and processing practices has frustrated the importers' confidence in Chinese food safety control efficacy. This article attempts to offer some insights into the principal development dilemmas inherent in China's fisheries economic plan to explain the root of government regulatory failures. It further analyzes the opportunities and channels for Chinese government to graduate from a responsive approach tailored to foreign demands, and to take a more cooperative instance when dealing with ever-increasing international food safety standards related to fisheries.

International standardization compliance in aviation

The commercial aviation industry is global in the sense that passengers travel around the world from destination to destination. It is also global in that the states of the world (countries) regulate the industry domestically and internationally. There is a unique stage where the world comes together to promote aviation, discuss ideas and establish international standards. This stage is the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO). The 191 current member states signed treaties acknowledging their commitment to abiding by the standards and practices established by ICAO. No state is 100 percent compliant with international standards, however, and the purpose of this paper was to explore the relationship between the fulfillment of compliance by individual member states and the safety of the commercial aviation industry in terms of fatality rates. Using a Negative Binomial regression, the results suggested that there was a relationship between compliance with international safety standards and fatalities, as well as associations between fatality rates and member states levels of GDP and population. Implications of this research apply to all ICAO member states as the concerns grow over growing air travel and airspace congestion over the next several decades.