Simplified modelling of explosion propagation by dust lifting in coal mines

Dispersion of accumulated layers of combustible dust by turbulent flow or shock waves ahead of the propagating flame may sustain explosion propagation in coal mine galleries and other industrial facilities. The mechanisms involved in transforming dust layers into dust suspensions are rather complex, and detailed numerical modelling of this process is therefore practically impossible, at least on industrial scales. In the computational fluid dynamics code DESC (Dust Explosion Simulation Code), a simplified empirical relation describes the dust-lifting phenomenon. The relation originates from experimental work in a laboratory-scale shock tube, and a small wind tunnel, at Warsaw University of Technology. The present paper describes the modelling of dust lifting in the current version of DESC, and illustrates the performance of the code by simulating some large-scale dust explosion experiments conducted in a 100-m surface gallery at the Experimental Mine Barbara in Katowice, Poland. Although there are significant uncertainties associated with this type of calculations, the results suggest that a simplified approach to dust lifting may become a useful tool for risk assessments in the future.publishedVersio

Male, National, and Religious Collective Narcissism Predict Sexism

Results of three cross-sectional studies indicate that sexism in Poland is associated with collective narcissism—a belief that one’s own group’s (the in-group’s) exaggerated exceptionality is not sufficiently recognized by others—with reference to three social identities: male, religious, and national. In Study 1 (n = 329), male collective narcissism was associated with sexism. This relationship was sequentially mediated by precarious manhood and traditional gender beliefs. In Study 2 (n = 877), Catholic collective narcissism predicted tolerance of violence against women (among men and women) over and above religious fundamentalism and in contrast to intrinsic religiosity. In Study 3 (n = 1070), national collective narcissism was associated with hostile sexism among men and women and with benevolent sexism more strongly among women than among men. In contrast, national in-group satisfaction—a belief that the nation is of a high value—predicted rejection of benevolent and hostile sexism among women but was positively associated with hostile and benevolent sexism among men. Among men and women collective narcissism was associated with tolerance of domestic violence against women, whereas national in-group satisfaction was associated with rejection of violence against women

Impact of clinical phenotypes on management and outcomes in European atrial fibrillation patients: a report from the ESC-EHRA EURObservational Research Programme in AF (EORP-AF) General Long-Term Registry

Background: Epidemiological studies in atrial fibrillation (AF) illustrate that clinical complexity increase the risk of major adverse outcomes. We aimed to describe European AF patients\u2019 clinical phenotypes and analyse the differential clinical course. Methods: We performed a hierarchical cluster analysis based on Ward\u2019s Method and Squared Euclidean Distance using 22 clinical binary variables, identifying the optimal number of clusters. We investigated differences in clinical management, use of healthcare resources and outcomes in a cohort of European AF patients from a Europe-wide observational registry. Results: A total of 9363 were available for this analysis. We identified three clusters: Cluster 1 (n = 3634; 38.8%) characterized by older patients and prevalent non-cardiac comorbidities; Cluster 2 (n = 2774; 29.6%) characterized by younger patients with low prevalence of comorbidities; Cluster 3 (n = 2955;31.6%) characterized by patients\u2019 prevalent cardiovascular risk factors/comorbidities. Over a mean follow-up of 22.5 months, Cluster 3 had the highest rate of cardiovascular events, all-cause death, and the composite outcome (combining the previous two) compared to Cluster 1 and Cluster 2 (all P <.001). An adjusted Cox regression showed that compared to Cluster 2, Cluster 3 (hazard ratio (HR) 2.87, 95% confidence interval (CI) 2.27\u20133.62; HR 3.42, 95%CI 2.72\u20134.31; HR 2.79, 95%CI 2.32\u20133.35), and Cluster 1 (HR 1.88, 95%CI 1.48\u20132.38; HR 2.50, 95%CI 1.98\u20133.15; HR 2.09, 95%CI 1.74\u20132.51) reported a higher risk for the three outcomes respectively. Conclusions: In European AF patients, three main clusters were identified, differentiated by differential presence of comorbidities. Both non-cardiac and cardiac comorbidities clusters were found to be associated with an increased risk of major adverse outcomes

Clinical complexity and impact of the ABC (Atrial fibrillation Better Care) pathway in patients with atrial fibrillation: a report from the ESC-EHRA EURObservational Research Programme in AF General Long-Term Registry

Background: Clinical complexity is increasingly prevalent among patients with atrial fibrillation (AF). The ‘Atrial fibrillation Better Care’ (ABC) pathway approach has been proposed to streamline a more holistic and integrated approach to AF care; however, there are limited data on its usefulness among clinically complex patients. We aim to determine the impact of ABC pathway in a contemporary cohort of clinically complex AF patients. Methods: From the ESC-EHRA EORP-AF General Long-Term Registry, we analysed clinically complex AF patients, defined as the presence of frailty, multimorbidity and/or polypharmacy. A K-medoids cluster analysis was performed to identify different groups of clinical complexity. The impact of an ABC-adherent approach on major outcomes was analysed through Cox-regression analyses and delay of event (DoE) analyses. Results: Among 9966 AF patients included, 8289 (83.1%) were clinically complex. Adherence to the ABC pathway in the clinically complex group reduced the risk of all-cause death (adjusted HR [aHR]: 0.72, 95%CI 0.58–0.91), major adverse cardiovascular events (MACEs; aHR: 0.68, 95%CI 0.52–0.87) and composite outcome (aHR: 0.70, 95%CI: 0.58–0.85). Adherence to the ABC pathway was associated with a significant reduction in the risk of death (aHR: 0.74, 95%CI 0.56–0.98) and composite outcome (aHR: 0.76, 95%CI 0.60–0.96) also in the high-complexity cluster; similar trends were observed for MACEs. In DoE analyses, an ABC-adherent approach resulted in significant gains in event-free survival for all the outcomes investigated in clinically complex patients. Based on absolute risk reduction at 1 year of follow-up, the number needed to treat for ABC pathway adherence was 24 for all-cause death, 31 for MACEs and 20 for the composite outcome. Conclusions: An ABC-adherent approach reduces the risk of major outcomes in clinically complex AF patients. Ensuring adherence to the ABC pathway is essential to improve clinical outcomes among clinically complex AF patients

Impact of renal impairment on atrial fibrillation: ESC-EHRA EORP-AF Long-Term General Registry

Background: Atrial fibrillation (AF) and renal impairment share a bidirectional relationship with important pathophysiological interactions. We evaluated the impact of renal impairment in a contemporary cohort of patients with AF. Methods: We utilised the ESC-EHRA EORP-AF Long-Term General Registry. Outcomes were analysed according to renal function by CKD-EPI equation. The primary endpoint was a composite of thromboembolism, major bleeding, acute coronary syndrome and all-cause death. Secondary endpoints were each of these separately including ischaemic stroke, haemorrhagic event, intracranial haemorrhage, cardiovascular death and hospital admission. Results: A total of 9306 patients were included. The distribution of patients with no, mild, moderate and severe renal impairment at baseline were 16.9%, 49.3%, 30% and 3.8%, respectively. AF patients with impaired renal function were older, more likely to be females, had worse cardiac imaging parameters and multiple comorbidities. Among patients with an indication for anticoagulation, prescription of these agents was reduced in those with severe renal impairment, p <.001. Over 24 months, impaired renal function was associated with significantly greater incidence of the primary composite outcome and all secondary outcomes. Multivariable Cox regression analysis demonstrated an inverse relationship between eGFR and the primary outcome (HR 1.07 [95% CI, 1.01–1.14] per 10 ml/min/1.73 m2 decrease), that was most notable in patients with eGFR <30 ml/min/1.73 m2 (HR 2.21 [95% CI, 1.23–3.99] compared to eGFR ≥90 ml/min/1.73 m2). Conclusion: A significant proportion of patients with AF suffer from concomitant renal impairment which impacts their overall management. Furthermore, renal impairment is an independent predictor of major adverse events including thromboembolism, major bleeding, acute coronary syndrome and all-cause death in patients with AF

An assessment of laminar burning speed of dust/air mixtures based on pressure measurement in a spherical chamber

W artykule opisano trudności związane z implementacją procedury dopasowania parametrów modelu Dahoe do wyników doświadczalnych uzyskiwanych w standardowej komorze 20-1. Przedstawiono trzy metody przezwyciężenia tych trudności. Zastosowanie tych metod poprawia jakość dopasowania parametrów modelu Dahoe do wyników pomiarów ciśnienia wybuchu w komorze 20-1 i w konsekwencji istotnie zmniejsza niepewność wyznaczania laminarnej szybkości spalania.In the paper difficulties bounded with implementation of fitting procedure of the Dahoe model parameters to experimental results obtained in the standard 20-1 spherical chamber were discussed. Three methods of overcoming the difficulties were presented. Application of the methods improves the fit ąuality of parameters of Dahoe model to pressure histories measured in the 20-1 sphere and in conseąuence significantly reduce uncertainty of assessment of the laminar burning speed

Simple model of explosion propagation in dust-air mixture

W artykule omówiono prosty, jednowymiarowy model wybuchu mieszaniny pył-powietrze. Do numerycznego całkowania równań modelu wykorzystano schemat centralny Tadmora (Kurganov A., Tadmor E. 2002). Weryfikację przewidywań modelu przeprowadzono na podstawie wyników doświadczalnych opublikowanych przez Srinatha (Srinath S.R. 1985). Wstępne wyniki symulacji numerycznej wykazały dość dobrą zgodność z wynikami doświadczalnymi. Model poprawnie odtwarzał kształt przebiegu ciśnienia wybuchu oraz prędkość płomienia w obszarze, gdzie wpływ specyficznych cech urządzenia badawczego (FAT) nie był znaczący. Wartości uzyskiwanych ciśnień były jednak niższe niż doświadczalne.Abstract In the paper a simple one-dimensional model of explosion in a dust-air mixture was described. For numerical integration of the model's equations the central scheme developed by Tadmor (Kurganov A., Tadmor E. 2002) has been applied. Model predictions were verified basing on the experimental data of Srinath (Srinath S.R. 1985). Results of preliminary simulations were in fairly good agreement with the experimental data. The model correctly reproduced pressure history and flame speed in the area, where the specific features of the experimental tube (FAT) were insignificant. However, pressures were lower than those obtained in the experiment

Determination of the laminar burning velocity of dust-air mixtures by applying the model of dust explosion in as closed vessel

W artykule przedstawiono wyniki oznaczania laminarnej szybkości spalania deflagracyjnego mieszanin pyłowo-powietrznych metodą pozwalającą na rutynowe wykonywanie tego typu oznaczeń. Po raz pierwszy metoda ta została zastosowana przez Dahoe'a (2000). Polega ona na wykorzystaniu pomiarów zmian ciśnienia w czasie wybuchu mieszaniny pyłowo-powietrznej w zamkniętej, sferycznej objętości oraz modelu wybuchu opracowanego z uwzględnieniem zasad zachowania masy, pędu i energii w ujęciu całkowym. Dopasowanie parametrów modelu do zmierzonych zmian ciśnienia pozwala na wyznaczenie laminarnej szybkości spalania w mieszaninie pyłowo-powietrznej. W artykule przedstawiono wyniki oznaczeń laminarnych szybkości spalania dwóch pyłów: lycopodium i skrobi kukurydzianej.The article describes the method of determining the laminar burning velocity of dust-air mixtures by use of experimental data from standardized tests. For the first time the method was applied by Dahoe (2000). Data on pressure development in a closed, spherical vessel were used as an input to the integral balance model of dust explosion. Pressure history predicted by the model was fitted to the experimental data with the laminar burning velocity as the model's parameter. The article presents the results obtained for two dusts: lycopodium and maize starch