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Hazardous Materials (hazardous + material)

Distribution by Scientific Domains

Engineering	50%

Selected Abstracts

CONCEPTUAL CLUSTERING AND CASE GENERALIZATION OF TWO-DIMENSIONAL FORMS

COMPUTATIONAL INTELLIGENCE, Issue 3-4 2006
Silke Jänichen
Case-based object recognition requires a general case of the object that should be detected. Real-world applications such as the recognition of biological objects in images cannot be solved by one general case. A case base is necessary to handle the great natural variations in the appearance of these objects. In this paper, we will present how to learn a hierarchical case base of general cases. We present our conceptual clustering algorithm to learn groups of similar cases from a set of acquired structural cases of fungal spores. Due to its concept description, it explicitly supplies for each cluster a generalized case and a measure for the degree of its generalization. The resulting hierarchical case base is used for applications in the field of case-based object recognition. We present results based on our application for health monitoring of biologically hazardous material. [source]

Emergency preparation and green engineering: Augmenting the environmental knowledge and assessment tool

ENVIRONMENTAL PROGRESS & SUSTAINABLE ENERGY, Issue 4 2009
Clinton E. Whiteley
Abstract As our society continues to better prepare itself to address biological, radiological, chemical, and environmental emergencies, there is a need for better and more readily available emergency planning information for program managers and military or business personnel. Incorporating an online hazardous materials (HAZMATs) and emergency planning tool into the Environmental Knowledge and Assessment Tool (EKAT: www.ekat-tool.com) would adequately fill that need. Although not yet fully functional, the project report that this manuscript is based on is available for viewing on the EKAT web site. The proposed online emergency preparation and green engineering (EPGE) tool would provide the user with information regarding links to local emergency response teams and resources, guides for developing emergency plans and reports, HAZMATs training information, case studies to illustrate HAZMAT situations, and the ability to judge the environmental greenness of chemicals. In this way, it will serve as a means of facilitating and educating individuals for best responses in an organized fashion. To address their environmental responsibilities, public and private organizations are adopting environmental management systems (EMS). The EPGE tool is used in conjunction with EMS to address sustainability. Currently, the creation of a comprehensive tool that identifies environmental, health, and safety concerns along with supplying relevant emergency data is applicable to any business or organization. It is designed to be used as a guide to characterize and solve the environmental issues that could affect any business. © 2009 American Institute of Chemical Engineers Environ Prog, 2009 [source]

Package performance testing of dangerous goods in high-altitude shipments

PACKAGING TECHNOLOGY AND SCIENCE, Issue 3 2003
S. Paul Singh
Abstract This paper discusses the impact of high-altitude shipments on package integrity. High-altitude shipments are encountered when trucks travel over high mountain passes or when cargo and feeder aircraft transport packages in non-pressurized or partially-pressurized cargo holds. Both these types of transport methods will result in severe changes in pressure as compared to packages being transported close to sea level. The testing of packages under these conditions is critical since package integrity may be compromised. The current shipping tests performed in test laboratories do not account for pressure changes and vibration together. This study showed that combination packages for dangerous goods and hazardous materials that are tested to existing UN, ICAO and US DOT requirements are limited, and can result in significant number of leaks. Testing under combined vibration and pressure changes is necessary. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source]

Assessing risks from threats to process plants: Threat and vulnerability analysis

PROCESS SAFETY PROGRESS, Issue 4 2002
Paul Baybutt
Process security management addresses threats from terrorist and criminal acts against plants that may result in the release of hazardous materials. The risk of such threats must be assessed to determine if existing security measures and safeguards are adequate or need improvement. Risk assessment is the heart of a process security program. Process plants need straight forward and easily applied methods to assess security risks using techniques that can be employed in a variety of situations and at varying levels of detail. This paper describes an approach that accomplishes these objectives. Threat analysis is the first step. It is used to identify the sources and types of threats and their likelihood. The approach described in this paper involves the consideration of motivations and capabilities of adversaries and the rating of facility security factors to develop a threat profile. Once specific threats have been identified, process vulnerability analysis is used to identify threat scenarios, i.e., how threats could be realized. Plants and processes are divided into sectors, and each credible threat within each sector is considered. Vulnerabilities are identified by brainstorming the ways barriers can be penetrated and process containment breached. Checklists are used to guide the brainstorming, and scenario consequences are recorded. Existing security measures and safeguards are listed, and any recommendations for improvements to reduce the likelihood and severity of terrorist and criminal acts are made for consideration by management based on the nature of the threat, process vulnerabilities, possible consequences, and existing security measures and safeguards. Risk rankings are performed as part of the analyses. [source]