Space Entry Research Articles

Mission analysis and design of launch vehicle based on MBSE

A reusable launch vehicle is the basis for carrying out large-scale space activities and reducing the cost of space entry. It will greatly enhance the ability to enter space independently and come up with higher requirements for mission planning, demonstration, overall design, and system development of launch vehicles. Based on the model-based system engineering (MBSE) method, the forward process of model-based launch vehicle mission analysis and design is proposed first. Then, taking a launch vehicle as an example, the mission analysis and design are carried out, the mission is defined, the stakeholder requirements and mission requirements are identified, the mission application scenario is analyzed, the mission architecture is built, and the mission requirements model is established. Finally, by establishing the traceability relationship of mission requirements, the forward process of launch vehicle mission analysis is preliminarily realized, and the feasibility of the process is verified. It is of great engineering significance to improve the efficiency of launch vehicle mission analysis and system design.

Unveiling the complexities of lung transplantation in situs inversus

BackgroundLung transplantation for situs inverse is considered technically challenging because of the reverse positioning of the organs. By providing a detailed description of the surgical procedure, perioperative care, and post-transplant follow-up, we aim to contribute valuable information to the existing knowledge base. We presented two cases of successful bilateral sequential lung transplantation in situs inverse patients.Case presentationOur first patient was a 28-year-old, non-smoking woman with Kartagener syndrome and advanced bronchiectasis that developed into pneumonia and required repeated hospital admissions. She underwent double lung transplantation. During the lung transplant procedure, venoarterial extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (VA ECMO) support was provided. The recipient’s morphologically right (anatomically left) lung was explanted. The right main bronchus was anastomosed, followed by the pulmonary artery and left atrial anastomoses. Afterward, we proceeded with the left side. Similar to the right side, left pneumonectomy and implantation were performed using the same methods. The duration of VA ECMO support was 147 min with a 328-min ischemic time. Because of the significant size mismatch, nonanatomic lung volume reduction over the right middle and left upper lobes was necessary. The patient had no complications postoperatively and was discharged on post-operative day (POD) 12. Our second patient was a 51-year- old man with scleroderma-associated interstitial lung disease with situs inversus. Bilateral sequential lung transplantation was performed. Similar to case 1, a clamshell incision was made at the fourth intercostal space entry. The patient then received VA ECMO support identical to that in case 1. The total VA ECMO support time was 155 min with 295 min of ischemic time. The patient recovered uneventfully and was discharged on POD 13.ConclusionsLung transplantation for situs inverse can be a viable treatment option without modifying established transplantation procedures.

Lessons learned in confined space entry management after a gas poisoning accident in China

AbstractOn April 21, 2021, four workers died because of gas poisoning while attempting to maintain an agitator in a reactor at Heilongjiang Kailunda Technology Co., Anda, Heilongjiang Province, China. The event was characterized as a major incident occurring within a confined space. This article analyzes the incident by comparing China's and the US's safety regulations and standards regarding entry into confined spaces. The article concludes with the lessons learned and puts forward suggestions for the prevention of such incidents and for safety improvements in China.

Digital Art and the Metaverse: Benefits and Challenges

As a concept that is somewhat under emergence, the notion of the Metaverse varies across different academic articles. Yet there is a shared view on the benefits to its ongoing implementation, particularly for digital art, where the technology can provide a new metric for artists to showcase and sell their artwork to a global audience with minimal barriers, and for consumers to have an unbounded experience not limited by physical space or museum entry fees. In this article, a contribution is provided to a broader conversation about the future of the digital art and the Metaverse and its role in shaping our online culture. We discuss the concept of the Metaverse, its structure, the role of artificial intelligence and the benefits (and limitations) the technology holds for digital art. For a case study, we develop a 3D art gallery housing an art collection generated using artificial-intelligence-based techniques such as diffusion models. A total of 67 individuals are surveyed from three pools (two in-person and one online-based), with questions relating to the future of digital art, the Metaverse and artificial intelligence. Findings include that the majority of participants were familiar with the concept of the Metaverse and overall, they had a predominately optimistic view of both the use artificial intelligence for art, and the use of the Metaverse to support digital art, with 85.3% of the participants having already seen artificial-intelligence-based artwork. The identification of consumer segments further highlights the importance of finding customised solutions, considering consumers’ heterogenous preferences for AI-generated art. Research presented in this article will be beneficial for those looking to explore the Metaverse for artwork and develop virtual galleries, and the findings further highlight the Metaverse as a potential democratising force in the art world.

Mutual Fund Proliferation and Entry Deterrence

Abstract Why do so few mutual fund families launch so many funds and styles around the world? We argue that launching numerous funds on an increasingly granular style grid allows incumbent families to congest the product space and deter market entry. Key to this argument is the persistently low dimensionality of the mutual fund product space, a fact we establish by analyzing the names of over 40,000 equity funds sold in 91 countries between 1931 and 2015. Over time, the strategy of filling up the style grid has led to the dominance of few families offering large, granular, and similar fund menus. Authors have furnished an Internet Appendix, which is available on the Oxford University Press Web site next to the link to the final published paper online.

Bowtie analysis for risk assessment of confined space at sewerage construction project

This paper aims to investigate the issues related to safety in confined space at the sewerage treatment plant construction project in the Hulu Langat district and to provide a solution by proposing a substantial approach to mitigating risk during confined space entry due to an ineffective risk assessment and poor compliance by project management. The methods used were site visit observation and survey, followed by an analysis of the selected risk assessment method. The site visit to the sewerage treatment plant project investigated the compliance of confined space risk assessment documents to established requirements such as OSHA 1994, FMA 1967, ICOP 2010, HIRARC Guidelines 2008, Quebec Regulation 2015, ISO 31010, HSE UK, and BCGA UK. The selected risk assessment method was analyzed with Bowtie Risk Assessment by referring to the preventive approach concept or barrier analysis. Next, additional information relevant to risk assessment from journals was included. Evaluation of Bowtie Risk Assessment was conducted through a focus group discussion (FGD), which plays an essential role in developing the Bowtie risk assessment graphical framework. The proposed Bowtie Risk Assessment graphical framework provides a sewerage treatment plant construction project with a holistic technique for preventing confined space accidents. It also provides a safe work system, manages hazards and risks effectively, promotes good leadership practices, improves company reputation, and significantly reduces accident costs. The framework is also helpful as a reference model for other industry players.

Hazards Arising from Working in Confined Spaces Case Study: Khartoum North Industrial Area, Sudan

Multiple injuries and fatalities occur during confined space entry work more than any other type of work performed in all developed countries. This research aimed at evaluating employee's awareness of confined spaces basic concepts and work hazards, and to generally assess the entry program used to access these confined spaces. The data were collected from a random sample of factories and industries in Khartoum north industrial area. A questionnaire was the instrument used to collect the data. The data were analyzed using standard Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS). The results demonstrated lack of employee's awareness regarding the concept of confined spaces and hazards of working. It also shows failure of (80%) of workplaces to conduct confined space training, ensure supervision and provide procedures reinforcing the need for a comprehensive confined space safety program. It also demonstrated little evidence of a safe system of work in many of the cases. Over (82%) of the confined spaces were permitted to be entered without pre-entry hazards identification. In addition no atmospheric gases monitoring before or during entry (0%) since over (80%) of spaces expected to contain atmospheric hazards depending on confined space location, construction, condition, and work to be performed. also no effective nor adequate emergency rescue procedures were hold. The results showed that the most important reasons for confined spaces accidents and fatalities were lack of employees' perception of hazards from working in confined spaces, and scarcity of designing appropriate preventive measures and entry written programs by companies. Accordingly, the study will help in putting the companies comply with their own procedures and practices, and to maintain the safety of the employees.

A preliminary design of a 3D maritime gamified mentoring platform to support tanker pre-vetting inspection training: ‘Maritime Gamentor’

ABSTRACT Pre-vetting inspection, enhanced with onsite training, is a critical process to improve safety and environmental compliance onboard tanker ships. As a part of pre-vetting services, this study develops a maritime gamified mentoring platform, namely Maritime Gamentor, to manage crew upskilling in tanker vetting requirements. In this stage, the study considers the recently updated requirements of the Ship Inspection Report (SIRE 2.0) Programme of Oil Companies International Marine Forum (OCIMF) to conceptualise a holistic serious game-based training solution. Then, a step-by-step approach to the preliminary design, development and prototyping of maritime serious games is provided in detail. Particular to the SIRE 2.0 Clause# 5.1.4, the study conducts a case study on Maritime Gamentor Module-01 illustrated with a task-based risk assessment (TBRA) on enclosed space entry operation. Consequently, the Maritime Gamentor is conceptualised as a powerful training and mentorship platform for global shipping companies.

A resilient approach of safety assessment for confined space operations on FPSO units

Operations performed on Floating Production Storage and Offloading (FPSO) units involve many hazards, and these operations are inherently dangerous. Therefore, it is vital to establish safe environments where operability and maintainability are ensured by these systems. On FPSO units, especially confined space entry and operations, include a variety of critical risks and threats. The study proposes to use the Principles (capabilities) of Resilience Engineering (RE) as a new perspective to control and reduce potential risks that occur during confined space entry and operations. Also, the performances of these abilities are determined. If these capacities were identified and extended, this would make the confined space activities more resilient and safer. The results of the study show the proactive ability and usefulness of the RE in enabling the avoidance, mitigation, recovery, and survival from threats.

A structured approach to support the definition of confined space entry and working procedures in the wine industry

The wine-production process involves several phases, during which the grape arriving at the winery in agricultural trailers becomes bottled wine. Equipment and machinery for wine production include hoppers with screws, stalk removers, and pumps. The products of the wine-production process are stored in different wine containers, e.g. wine tanks, autoclaves, and fermenting vats, depending on the production stage. The winery personnel are required to periodically access such confined spaces to perform ordinary and non-ordinary work activities, as cleaning, inspection, and maintenance. Particularly attention must be dedicated to define an efficient set of rescue procedures in case of emergency.This paper provides a structured approach promoting safe work in confined spaces in the wine industry. The aim is to provide an effective methodology supporting employers and safety professionals dealing with work in confined spaces, in defining a proper procedure for their specific operational context, i.e. the confined space in which the winery personnel is required to access.

Inherently safer design: An accident prevention perspective on reported confined space fatalities in Quebec

The design of most industrial facilities incorporates confined spaces. Although they are not designed for human occupation, many workers penetrate them to perform tasks such as repairs, cleaning, and inspections while facing the risks of asphyxiation, drowning, and toxicity from chemical exposure. Legislative and normative frameworks recommend adopting Inherently Safer Design (ISD) principles as the primary accident prevention strategy However, confined space fatalities occur mainly during improvised interventions, emphasizing the need for designers to consider these accidents' underlying factors in their future or present projects. This paper provides an applied perspective, suggesting how practitioners can employ ISD principles to effectively overcome the inherent design deficiencies and hazards associated with confined space fatalities. For this purpose, ten confined space fatalities in six different sectors of activity were analyzed using the Causal Tree Method (CTM). Industrial process cases are included. Our results show that alternative safer designs of confined spaces or permanent adapted equipment could eliminate the need for a confined space entry or confined space work. A first model of a design-oriented solutions knowledge base, called Confined Space Permanent Collective Principles (CSPCP), is proposed. This model provides stakeholders from across various industries with an overview of safety measures that can be integrated at different life cycle phases to address confined space hazards.

Ecologically Dependent Architectural Space as One of the Main Objects of Study in Higher Architectural School

The restoration of the source ecosystems lost during the urban development of the territory is due to the formation of spatial cells that are friendly to the elements of an ecosystem. Thus, education and research in sustainable architecture has to be focused on studying the principles and ways of forming an “ecologically dependent architectural space”, starting with obvious dependencies. Five levels of such a program can be as follows: 1. Principles and methods of forming a climate-oriented architectural space (entry level); 2. Architecture and renewable energy engineering systems interconnection; 3. Green systems in architecture, including city farms and algaetecture; 4. Transformable architectural forms and adaptive landscape design to the dynamics of weather and climatic conditions; 5. The specifics of architecture and urban design integrating natural ecosystems (graduate level). Graduation level main attention is focused on the study of water sensitive urban design and related concepts, as well as the concepts of renovation of the littoral marine zone. One of the obvious outcomes of experience is the need for a specialized educational program “sustainable architecture and design” in a higher architectural school.

Taking vision 20/20 to new heights

AbstractVision 20/20 was developed by the Center for Chemical Process Safety (CCPS) in 2013 as a forward‐looking initiative describing the characteristics of organizations with exceptional process safety performance. The CCPS Vision 20/20 incorporated five basic tenets: Committed Culture, Vibrant Management Systems, Disciplined Adherence to Standards, Intentional Competency Development, and Enhanced Applications of Lessons Learned. These tenets represent foundational elements that are essential for excellence in process safety and have been the basis for improved process safety performance in many companies, including Dow. As we end the year 2020, it is time to reflect on Vision 20/20 and the future of process safety over the next decade. Certainly, the five tenets of Vision 20/20 remain critical for sustained process safety performance. However, now is an appropriate time to consider how developing technology can drive new advances in process safety over the next decade. At Dow, the utilization of digital technologies is helping to take Vision 20/20 to new heights by providing tools, insights, and applications that improve process and personal safety as well as drive value delivery. Through the application of analytics, robotics, mobile tools, and overall data connectivity, Dow is driving improvements in inspections, reductions in confined space entries, greater unplanned event prevention, and improved reliability. The application of these emerging and applied digital tools sets the standard for beyond Vision 20/20 performance in operational safety and reliability.

A human reliability assessment through enclosed space entry operation onboard ships

An enclosed space poses a serious risk to workers since its atmosphere can be oxygen-deficient, polluted or contain flammable and/or toxic gases or vapours. Hence, it is important to keep in mind that an enclosed space should not be entered unless it is absolutely necessary. However, many processes often need the worker to be present in an enclosed space. At this point, great attention should be paid to create and maintain safe working conditions, when entering enclosed space is required. Even though studies have investigated several aspects of enclosed space entry, further research is required to explore the human element role. This is urgently needed, considering that human errors are one of the main reasons for enclosed space entry accidents. Hence, this study has investigated the human element role during an enclosed space entry operation via the enhanced SOHRA method. Three scenarios have been developed to assess HEP values. Beyond that, systematic control measure assignment is provided to reduce HEP values. Hierarchy of control measures are considered to improve entering enclosed space operational safety. Elimination (drone-assisted survey), substitution (IoT), engineering (permit control system-PCS), and administrative control measures (electronic permit) have been proposed. Further, this study results can also provide useful insight for other industries (petrochemical, oil, refinery, gas, agriculture, construction etc.), where the accidents in enclosed spaces taking place. Therefore, the study provides not only a theoretical insight but also practical application to improve the safety of seafarers.

PageDumper: a mechanism to collect page table manipulation information at run-time

The state-of-the-art contributions in the area of memory forensics are centered around uncovering potentially hidden processes, control flow and code pointer integrity manipulations and detecting malicious code injections done by attackers. At the same time, deployment of memory protection mechanisms like control flow integrity, data execution prevention/no-execute, address space layout randomization and kernel address space layout randomization, have obviated the use of such attack vectors for sensitive information disclosure. Thus, attackers are now adopting various techniques to elude memory protection using memory corruption or memory disclosure attacks inside the operating system (OS). The heavy-dependence of all such advanced prevention and defense mechanisms on memory protection/memory safety attributes are luring attackers to conduct sophisticated data attacks against the OS that leaves no traces in the file system. In this paper, while assessing the security implications of such attack vectors, we propose a mechanism to capture such memory-protection-manipulation-based attack footprints at run time in the form of a utility called PageDumper. While parsing the system virtual address space and page table entries(for the process and kernel address space), it collects the in-memory data attack footprints at run time. Thus, PageDumper can supplement information(s) for the postmortem analysis of run time process and the kernel address space environment, when used in conjunction with memory snapshots taken through memory acquisition tools for a more practical and in-depth memory analysis.

Revolutionising confined space safety management: a case study

Maintaining safety during confined space work is one of the most challenging aspects of a turnaround, shutdown or outage. To handle the safety risks associated with confined space entry, a safety attendant is normally assigned to the entry point of a confined space to maintain communication with workers inside. However, the duties of the attendant are restricted to the outside of the vessel. So how do we ensure that the workers continue to be safe when they are inside the confined space? Harnessing technological advancements, a solution was designed that combines gas detection, video surveillance, two-way communication, access control and a command centre to enhance safety while improving productivity and reducing costs. The solution combines real-time gas detection, cameras with day–night vision installed outside and inside vessels, video recording and two-way communication. It delivers and stores data useful in alerting workers of hazardous environments, providing video evidence of safe behaviour, enables operators to see work inside the vessels in real time, and stores video and overlaid gas data logs to protect against future liabilities. The innovation revolutionises the role of the safety watch by replacing multiple safety attendants with two highly qualified personnel who monitor all confined spaces from the command centre. The paper discusses examples and provides data on the potential savings resulting from the implementation of the technology. The present paper also discusses further enhancements, including body cameras, monitoring of employee wellbeing and facility access control. This is the path to the digital turnaround of the future.

Confined Space Entry: A Regulatory and Best-Practices Review

Confined Space Entry: A Regulatory and Best-Practices Review

A new generation of catalyst deactivation, removal and loading technology in the liquefied natural gas industry

In 2019, Santos applied an innovative, world first technology for catalyst changeout at Gladstone Liquefied Natural Gas (GLNG) Plant which eliminated 900 crane lifts, reduced confined space entry work by 145 h and reduced catalyst loading duration compared with traditional methods. Removing and replacing adsorbent media or catalyst in the LNG industry is a high risk activity that often drives the critical path of shutdown events. Traditional methods require confined space entry in an inert environment, with a worker required to manipulate a vacuum hose or loading sock while wearing an air supplied mask inside a vessel. Air temperatures inside can exceed 40°C and the risk of trapped pockets of hydrocarbons is difficult to eliminate. For the GLNG Train 1 2019 Major Shutdown, Santos awarded the catalyst changeout scope to EnerMech to deliver on innovations designed to eliminate the key risks of traditional media changeout operations. New technologies, techniques and processes for the decontamination, unloading and loading of adsorbent media were developed to mitigate the risks of traditional media handling through; (1) Ensuring adsorbent media is hydrocarbon free and deactivated before unloading; (2) Waste minimisation during decontamination of the media; (3) Effective remote unloading of adsorbent media; (4) Predictable outcomes through immunity to adverse weather conditions; (5) Limited cranes, flow bins or bulk bags required for loading; (6) Continuous adsorbent media fill at high rates; (7) Ability to maintain media moisture content during loading; (8) Flexibility and scalability in vessel loading; (9) Minimise media attrition through reduced media handling; (10) Significant safety benefits through the elimination of inert entry; and (11) Effective environmental and schedule upsides. The paper details the actual performance data of the technology as delivered at the GLNG Train 1 Shutdown.

The Global Menu of Funds

Why do so few mutual fund families launch so many funds and styles around the World? We posit that launching numerous funds on an increasingly granular style grid allows incumbent families to congest the product space and deter market entry. Key to this argument is the persistently low dimensionality of the mutual fund product space, which we establish by analyzing the names of over 40,000 equity funds sold in 91 countries between 1931 and 2015. Over time, the strategy of filling up the style grid has led to the dominance of few families offering large, granular, and similar fund menus.

Using unmanned aerial vehicles and robotics in hazardous locations safely

AbstractConfined space entries and elevated work are two of the most hazardous practices in the chemical industry. As part of its breakthrough Manufacturing 4.0 initiative, The Dow Chemical Company has been employing devices such as unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs or “drones”) and robots to eliminate the need for employees to enter confined spaces or conduct elevated work, while allowing effective, remote inspections. Since piloting the use of UAVs and robots in 2016 at Dow, over 1000 confined space entries have been avoided. UAVs are being used to inspect distillation columns, flares, transmission towers, and pipelines—avoiding the need for over 2200 elevated work inspections by humans. Robotic miniature submarines are also being used to allow remote sensing for underwater inspections. The role of UAVs and robots in safety is continuing to expand beyond gathering visual data; robots are now equipped with sophisticated tools for gathering samples and nondestructive data, enhancing the ability to monitor environmental performance and ensure mechanical integrity. They are also being used to perform functions such as dismantling and removing internal equipment, cutting/sawing, hydroblasting, vacuuming sludge, and performing vessel wall/pipe thickness, ultraviolet, gauss (magnetic), and infrared scans. The benefits of UAVs and robots in reducing human risk, enhancing data collection, and improving productivity are quite clear; however, the hazards of these technologies need to be carefully evaluated to ensure that the devices can be used safely in specific applications. UAVs can present collision hazards, and a poorly chosen flight path could result in human injury, significant damage to process equipment, or the loss of the UAV. During internal equipment inspections, UAVs and robots can be made of incompatible materials of construction that could contaminate or damage the equipment being inspected or the UAV or robot itself. Also, during internal inspections, UAVs and robots can become disabled or lose power inside of the equipment, requiring emergency extrication. Another key consideration is hazardous area classification (HAC). UAVs and robots are energized devices that could potentially present ignition sources to flammable materials and combustible dusts, so consideration of the HAC of the work area (internal and external to the equipment)—as well as the certification of the robotic equipment for the specific application—is vital when employing these technologies. Manufacturing 4.0 provides a compelling vision of safer production operations. The use of UAVs and robots can significantly reduce human exposure to process and personal hazards. However, to capitalize on this potential, it is critical that organizations employing these technologies perform thorough hazard analyses, supply adequate guidance, and provide tools that can be leveraged at the site level to facilitate the development of safe work plans for specific applications. This article discusses potential hazards that should be considered when evaluating the suitability of a UAV or robot for a particular application and provides guidance on leveraging hazard recognition tools and training to the site level.