Safety Concept Research Articles

Data informed performance assessment and structural health monitoring for existing and historical concrete structures

AbstractOur generation inherits this cultural heritage of historic material and historic reinforced concrete structures and thus bears a certain responsibility to preserve these historic buildings with the help of the new technologies of lifetime management, conservation concepts and the new digitalization as well as the emerging safety concepts of our time. The aim of this article is to analyze the new technologies of data‐based service life management in relation to the assessment of historic reinforced concrete structures and to test the applicability of these methods to these historic buildings.

Research on Urban Expressway Design Based on New Transportation Concepts

This article is based on the Suzhou Central Expressway project, adhering to the principles of "safety, comfort, ecology, wisdom, and harmony", adhering to the comprehensive, coordinated, and sustainable development concept, guided by the new concept of transportation construction of the Ministry of Transport, integrating the design concept of traffic safety first, resource conservation, environmental friendliness, technological innovation, and intelligent collaboration, and organically combining nature, culture, and roads. The design strives to achieve road aesthetic design, tolerant design, humanistic design, flexible design, and creative design, which is of great significance for the research of ecological smart road design, transportation industry, and sustainable development of nature and culture.

Human Biosafety Concept when Carrying out Medical Procedures Related to the Use of High Medical Technologies in the Field of Transplantation of Human Organs and Tissues: Constitutional and Legal Aspect

The article is devoted to the analysis of the concept of human biosafety during medical procedures using high medical technologies in the field of transplantation of human organs and (or) tissues. An analysis of the regulatory framework in the field of ensuring human biological safety during medical procedures in the field of transplantation and donation is provided, which demonstrates that the biosafety of patients in the Russian Federation is ensured by providing recipients with high-quality biomaterial as strictly established by the legislator based on the achievements of modern medical science. The legislation establishes medical restrictions for potential donors in order to ensure the biological safety of recipients. Special requirements have also been established for medical personnel who have the right to carry out medical procedures related to the transplantation of human organs and tissues. The domestic legislator is actively implementing the concept of biological safety in the field of VMT use by establishing certain criteria and restrictions for this type of assistance, which ensures citizens the right to receive qualified, high-quality medical care in the field of transplantation and donation of human organs and (or) tissues.

Application of the scoping tool and AMBER model in radiological safety assessment of the barrier systems of the borehole disposal system for the disposal of disused sources in Ghana

Radiological safety assessment was carried out to assess the integrity and longevity of the barrier systems of the borehole disposal system (BDS) for the disposal of disused sources in Ghana. The design of the BDS incorporates both the engineered and natural barriers into its safety concept. The safety of the BDS requires confidence in the ability of the engineered barriers on the host environmental conditions to provide containment for the disused sources for a sufficient length of time. The results obtained from the scoping tool indicated that the dose limit was exceeded which showed that the containment provided by the engineered barriers was not sufficient to ensure safety of the disposal system for the specified environmental conditions and radionuclides inventory. Detailed modelling was performed with an AMBER model to evaluate the containment provided by the engineered barriers and the geosphere with some identified scenarios. The AMBER model results showed that the calculated peak dose from any of the disposed radionuclides for the identified scenarios was below the dose constraint of 0.3 mSv/y. The peak doses occurred around 2000–1000000 years. The peak doses were seen to be mainly derived from Ra-266 and Am-241 and/or their daughters. The disused sources could be disposed of safely in the disposal system either in an oxidizing or reducing fractured/porous flow environment without posing any significant radiological threat to humans and the environment.

Pre-licensure nursing students' experiences of psychological safety: A longitudinal qualitative study

BackgroundPrevious studies have explored the concept of psychological safety among pre-licensure nursing students; however, the literature is notably sparse on personal descriptions of pre-licensure nursing students' experiences of psychological safety in clinical settings. Individual descriptions of psychological safety will provide added insight and understanding about the elements that shape psychological safety in pre-licensure nursing students. AimThis research aimed to explore pre-licensure nursing students' experiences of psychological safety during clinical rotations and how these experiences change over time. DesignA longitudinal, qualitative, descriptive design was used for this study. SettingsParticipants were recruited from a nursing program in the Mountain West region. ParticipantsFifty-four students from three cohorts were enrolled in the study at the time of this data collection and analysis. MethodsEach participant completed a semi-structured telephone interview after finishing their first academic term involving a clinical rotation. Participants completed additional interviews after each subsequent semester. Individual waves of data were analyzed using thematic analysis, and multiple waves of data were analyzed using a simplified trajectory approach. ResultsFive themes emerged from the data: “Who I Am,” “Where I Am,” “Who I Am With,” “Responding in the Moment,” and “Anticipating the Future.” ConclusionsThe psychological safety of pre-licensure nursing students in clinical settings is fundamental to their learning and future practice within the nursing profession. The development of psychological safety is dynamic and multifaceted. It is interpersonal but also shaped by organizational factors. Any one person can make an outsized difference in a student's experience. Understanding these themes can help clinical preceptors and nursing faculty understand and better fulfill their respective roles in fostering psychological safety in clinical settings. Additional insights are expected as the longitudinal study continues.

Психологическая безопасность образовательной среды: становление направления и перспективы развития

<p style="text-align: justify;">Psychological problems of safety in the modern world have acquired an extremely high relevance due to the growing spectrum of threats present in the socio-cultural environment. Research on the problems of psychological safety of the educational environment and its subjects is one of the areas of achieving the goal set by the decree of President V. V. Putin on the national development goals of Russia until 2030. The purpose of this publication is to analyze the history, current state and prospects for the development of this area in educational psychology and other areas of psychological research. Research design. Research in this area began at the end of the 20th century and is actively continuing today. In 2003, we developed and defended the concept of psychological safety of the educational environment, assessment methods and creation technologies, which still serve as a guide for new theoretical and practical developments. Results. Based on the analysis of scientific literature, we argue that it is a safe educational environment that maintains the state of human psychological safety. Safety means the presence of certain conditions necessary for life, development and activity. The educational environment is a set of conditions in which the formation and development of a person occurs throughout their entire life. A modern student interacts with many social environments: family, street, media environment, Internet environment, educational environment of a school and additional education organizations, etc.</p>

Conceptual Model for Managing Sources of Danger in the Event of an Earthquake

Safety is defined as a state in which human activities are conducted in such a way that the realization of potential dangers is excluded with a certain probability. However, there is an established axiom: all human activities inherently carry some degree of danger. The criterion for assessing this danger is risk, which provides a quantitative measure of potential threats. Experience has shown that the previous concept of safety, which sought to eliminate all risks entirely (known as the "zero risk" concept), is not practical. Today, the prevailing safety approach is the concept of justified risk—the idea that certain levels of risk are deemed acceptable, based on current economic capabilities and social conditions, for the average citizen. This study presents the development of a conceptual model—a model of communication channels—created through system analysis. This model captures the dynamics of information flows regarding the status of danger sources within a potential earthquake zone. The conceptual model is composed of functional operators: B1, B2, B3, B4, B5, B6, and B7. One key area of this research is the mathematical modeling of emergencies and the forecasting of their potential consequences. Such modeling is crucial for enhancing the effectiveness of protective measures and improving disaster response strategies.

Identifying design criteria for implementing inherent safety in chemical process industries part 2: Design mechanism

AbstractInherent safety concepts are common knowledge today, but accidents with similar characteristics do recur. Research on accident causes found that design errors, especially equipment failure, contribute the highest percentage of accidents. The development of inherent safety tools has been increasing at a positive pace, but only a small number of these tools are applicable to equipment design. Ample amounts of inherent safety tools are only suitable to be used at the early design stage. This amplifies the fact that inherent safety tools are still conceptual (e.g., change process routes, change safer materials). This is in contrast to the circumstances, where tools are expected to reinforce the inherent safety of equipment. The objective of this research is to identify design mechanism that can help trigger design thinking for implementation of inherent safety in the chemical process industry. To identify such a design mechanism, 526 cases were collected, and knowledge of the mechanism was extracted from design changes and presented in this research paper. The mechanisms were classified according to equipment and inherent safety keywords. The significant design mechanisms from the overall summation were listed (turbulence, change heat transfer fluid, continuous removal, large surface area, corrosion resistance, seamless joint, thin film, dividing wall, on demand, and double wall).

Role of artificial intelligence in transmission line protection: A review of three decades of research

The optimal functioning of the power system is crucially dependent upon the sound protection of its major stakeholder, i.e., the transmission line, as it is prone to fault. To maintain the integrity of the power system and protect costly power system equipment, protective relaying is necessary to provide a steady and affordable supply of electricity. Relays recognize, classify, and identify transmission line faults using input signals of voltage and current. Many artificial intelligent methods based on Expert Systems, Artificial Neural Networks, Fuzzy Logic, Support Vector Machines, Wavelet-based systems, and deep learning techniques are being investigated to improve modern digital relays’ consistency, speed, and accuracy. This paper is a comprehensive and all-inclusive survey that reviews and incorporates Phasor Measurement Unit (PMU) and Global Positioning System (GPS) approaches together with all of these intelligent transmission line safety strategies and concepts. Initial investigators will benefit from this study by being able to examine, evaluate, and analyze a variety of approaches with references for all relevant contributions.

'I Think the First Priority is Physically Safe First, Before You Can Actually Get Psychologically Safe': Staff Perspectives on Psychological Safety in Inpatient Mental Health Settings.

While the concept of psychological safety has been gaining momentum, research concerning psychological safety in inpatient mental health wards is lacking. To investigate how psychological safety is conceptualised by healthcare staff in inpatient mental health units, and what barriers and facilitators exist. Reflexive Thematic Analysis was used to analyse 12 interviews. Participants conceptualised psychological safety as feeling safe from physical harm, being able to develop meaningful relationships and feeling valued at work. Participants often did not feel physically safe at work, which led them to feel psychologically unsafe. Barriers to psychological safety were reliance on agency workers, punitive management approaches and the inherent risk in working with mental health inpatients. Facilitators included appropriate staffing ratios and skill mix, being able to form meaningful relationships and having access to support. The emphasis on the physical safety element within psychological safety means that existing definitions of psychological safety require extension for the mental healthcare context. However, large-scale research is needed to further understand experiences of psychological safety in this group. A better understanding of the dimensions of psychological safety in inpatient mental health settings could support the development of tools to investigate psychological safety interventions. Organisations could support psychological safety through regular staff supervision and improved staffing ratios and skill mix.

Tank pool fire domino effect prevention by inherently safer layout planning: A techno-economic analytical index

Tank pool fire domino effects, represented by their capacities of accident consequence escalation and extensive damages, present substantial safety challenges within chemical storage systems. In this work, the inherent safety concept is introduced to proactively address these challenges while ensuring cost-effectiveness. Accordingly, a dedicated novel metric called Inherent Safety & Economic Risk Index (IS&ERI) is proposed to make safety and cost trade-offs for indicating the risk levels of various tank farm layout options. To develop the IS&ERI, the Dow's loss estimate procedure is adapted for representing the economic implications, and the Bayesian Networks are employed for indicating the failure probabilities of target units considering the synergistic effects of multiple pool fires. Two improved graph theory metrics are presented to determine the root nodes of the Bayesian Networks. For demonstrating the proposed IS&ERI, a case study is conducted and the results show that the IS&ERI of 4 tank farm layout options are 0.2991, 0.3120, 0.3525, and 0.2285, implying that Option 4 is the best layout with the lowest potential loss in case of the pool fire domino effects. As the key research contribution, the IS&ERI is presented and it can be used as a useful tool to compare and select the best tank farm layout option to eliminate or significantly reduce the knock-on effects of tank pool fires at their sources.

Gamified Exercise for the Appropriation of Concepts in Occupational Health and Safety

This article presents an innovative educational tool called "Risks Career Game" designed to improve education in occupational health and safety in educational settings. The game focuses on recreating real workplace situations to reaffirm concepts and knowledge related to applicable regulations in occupational health and safety. The tool was developed using design thinking methodology and is structured into an initial stage of explaining the activity's mechanics, followed by a gameplay stage where students must identify and solve problems related to occupational health and safety. The Risks Career Game is presented as an innovative solution to address deficiencies in the teaching and learning process of occupational health and safety, and is considered to have the potential to revolutionize the way this subject is taught and learned. The tool is adaptable to virtual and face-to-face environments and is useful for subjects such as industrial engineering, human talent, and occupational health.

Safety amid the scalpels: creating psychological safety in the operating room.

We briefly review the concept of psychological safety and discuss the actions that can create it in the anesthesiologist's work environment. The interest in psychological safety has grown in popularity since the publication of Amy Edmondson's book The Fearless Organization in 2018. While the concept and its benefits are described in the healthcare literature, the specific actions necessary to create it are often not. To ensure patient safety, we want members of the teams we lead to be comfortable sharing emerging problems that they see before we become aware of them. As educators, we want trainees to approach us when they do not understand something and openly participate and contribute without the fear of how others will perceive them. These scenarios require an environment of psychological safety - the ability to ask for help, admit mistakes, and be respectfully forthright with unpopular beliefs without the fear of being ostracized or ignored. Methods for creating an environment of psychological safety will be discussed.

Research on energy consumption evaluation and energy-saving design of cranes in service based on structure-mechanism coupling

Aiming at the problem that the life cycle energy consumption index of hoisting machinery is difficult to be objectively quantified, a crane energy consumption evaluation calculation method based on the working cycle of the service period is proposed, the typical service working mode of the crane is analyzed, and the working cycle process of the mechanism is clarified. On this basis, the stress cycle characteristics of the crane structure during the service period are determined based on the coupling relationship between the mechanism and the structure, which lays the foundation for accurately evaluating the life index of the crane. According to the relationship between the load rate and effective power of each mechanism during the service period of the crane, the calculation method for the evaluation and calculation of the structure energy consumption during the service period of the crane is studied. Finally, the crane is designed based on the concept of absolute service safety, and an optimal design model of the main girder structure of the crane with the goal of the lowest energy consumption in service is established. Using the research method of this paper to study a certain type of bridge crane, the energy consumption of the hoisting machinery during its service period is not only related to the accumulation of the operating characteristics of the mechanism but also related to the characteristic parameters such as the structure self-weight. The comprehensive evaluation of energy consumption provides an effective quantitative method and a reliable green design theory for crane design.

Theoretical and experimental considerations regarding the airbag system operation

Abstract The concept of Passive Safety aims to reduce the harmful effects on vehicle occupants and pedestrians in the event of an accident. Intelligent car bodies and restraint systems have been designed. Thus, side, front, knee and head airbag systems have been introduced, as well as pre-strained seat belts and force limiters. The objectives of car manufacturers are not only to reduce injuries that can cause death, but also a significant reduction of those that can result in permanent damage such as a whiplash. Advanced airbag systems are currently introduced, which offer protection to the occupants at the knees, torso, hips and abdomen. The topic proposed in the paper concerns both theoretical research on the operation of passive security systems, respectively the airbag system, and experimental research. Regarding the theoretical research, this paper proposes a virtual prototyping method by means of the LS Dyna software package of the airbag system functioning in order to protect the driver in the event of a frontal collision. For the analysis of the airbag system functioning, a complex assembly which contains of a dummy, seat, steering wheel, passive safety systems was used. For the experimental research a stand was designed for the analysis and testing of the airbag system, which has the role to protect the driver in the event of a frontal collision of the vehicle. In order to carry out the experimental tests, it was proposed to create a sledge type stand, which simulates frontal collisions.

Different concepts of neighborhood safety and child internalizing and externalizing behaviors.

Neighborhood safety is defined inconsistently across epidemiologic studies - a conceptual problem that results in incomparable measurements, hampering the design of health interventions. Using child behavior problems (measured via the Child Behavior Checklist) as the outcome of interest, this study directly compared four measures of neighborhood safety: two of experienced safety and two of perceived safety, with each one measured at family and community levels. These included children's direct experience of harm, parental perceptions, community crime statistics, and community perceptions. In a sample of 3291 ten-year-olds from the Generation R cohort (living in municipal Rotterdam, Netherlands, 2013), all four measures were correlated (χ2 ≥ 9.2, P < 0.002 in pairwise chi-square comparisons), but ultimately identified different levels of risk for behavioral health. Direct experiences of harm, parental perceptions, and community crime statistics were all associated with increased child internalizing behaviors (β = 3.12, β = 2.10, and β = 1.77, respectively), while only experiences of harm and parental perceptions were associated with increased externalizing behaviors (β = 2.75 and β = 1.31, respectively). These results provide novel evidence that the conceptual distinctions underlying different measures of neighborhood safety are meaningful for child mental health and should be considered in intervention design.

Integral system safety for machine learning in the public sector: An empirical account

This paper introduces systems theory and system safety concepts to ongoing academic debates about the safety of Machine Learning (ML) systems in the public sector. In particular, we analyze the risk factors of ML systems and their respective institutional context, which impact the ability to control such systems. We use interview data to abductively show what risk factors of such systems are present in public professionals' perceptions and what factors are expected based on systems theory but are missing. Based on the hypothesis that ML systems are best addressed with a systems theory lens, we argue that the missing factors deserve greater attention in ongoing efforts to address ML systems safety. These factors include the explication of safety goals and constraints, the inclusion of systemic factors in system design, the development of safety control structures, and the tendency of ML systems to migrate towards higher risk. Our observations support the hypothesis that ML systems can be best regarded through a systems theory lens. Therefore, we conclude that system safety concepts can be useful aids for policymakers who aim to improve ML system safety.

A mechanistic framework for the leakage risk reduction of mobile hydrogen refueling stations based on inherent safety concepts

This study presents a mechanistic framework for assessing and mitigating hydrogen leakage risks in Mobile Hydrogen Refueling Stations (MHRS) based on inherent safety concepts. A bow-tie model is proposed to identify potential hazards, event pathways, and consequences. Subsequently, this model is mapped into Bayesian Networks (BN) to enable quantitative risk assessment. Fuzzy set theory is adopted to address the uncertainty of prior probabilities, using a Noisy-MAX model to optimize the BN conditional probabilities. To mitigate leakage risks, a dedicated inherently safer design checklist is developed to identify opportunities for incorporating inherent safety. A case study demonstrates that the leakage potentials decrease from 0.2600 to 0.1997, and the leakage consequences decrease by approximately 22%. This work presents a novel mechanism using inherent safety to reduce the hydrogen leakage risk of MHRS, which is useful for creating an inherently safer MHRS with fundamental and natural robustness against hydrogen leakage.

(Invited) Battery Safety and Self-Quenching Battery Pack Concept: D3 (Dissipate, Direct, and Douse Heat and Fire)

Battery pack safety following an individual cell runaway is an important aspect to address as we pack more energy into a small volume and mass. Thermal runaway incidents are extremely rare but can be catastrophic. The runaway can be triggered by local overcharge, thermal or mechanical abuse.In this talk, we will first go into the details of thermal runaway initiation and propagation. Second, solution to quench the thermal runaway from propagating within the cell through a novel and passive detection of incipient thermal runaway temperature via thermoplastics will be introduced; and that is followed by discussion on the coolant release trigger to quench the runaway. In addition, this solution prevents propagation from cell-to-cell and reduce the chance for secondary combustion. This solution also leverages the fast thermal conductivity that is offered by the Cu and Al current collectors within the cell. The role of current collectors in relaying the information from the source of thermal runaway to the surface of the new format cell will be discussed.The solution proposed here is chemistry agnostic and can be adapted to applications such as in transportation of cells and packs, grid energy storage, and mobility. The talk concludes by describing the next steps and value chain partnerships to make this safer solution a reality.Below is an image that shows the self-quenching battery concept. Figure 1

Reliability in mass alert system for dam emergencies: Case study of Vale S/A

AbstractIn its iron ore operations, Vale, the largest mining company in Brazil and the fourth largest mining company in the world by market value, has 77 dams considered with high potential damage in case of a failure in the stability controls. This classification follows the criteria of the sector regulatory agency in Brazil and determines that, for this class, a mass alert system is necessary for the resident population and workers immediately downstream of the dam within a region preset by legislation, considering a simulated flood area. For Vale, the mass alert system for dam emergencies is part of a critical mitigating control for a business risk analysis considering the hypothetical dam break as an unwanted material event. Therefore, both the probability of failure on demand, spurious failure, and availability of the assets of this protection barrier are important elements for this purpose, as well as the emergency response plan and the evacuation simulation of flood areas, which are part of a risk management system that require continuous verification and continuous improvement. Currently, Vale has 375 sirens, and it is planned to reach 420 sirens by the end of 2024. The purpose of this article is to present how the safety concepts applied to these systems were developed, the good practices applied from this study, and the lessons learned from the dam emergency management arising from the break of the Brumadinho dam in 2019. The reliability analyses of the systems involved and the main contributors to the Safety Critical Unavailability are presented, as well as the results of the reduction in the maintenance time and increase in system availability.