Arbetsmetodik för samordnad riskhantering inom processindustri med avseende på säkerhet, hälsa och miljö

The aim of this master thesis is to coordinate risk management for process facilities. This has been done through several inventories concerning process facilities and their ability to coordinate risk management regarding Safety, Health and Environment. The inventories along with literature studies have resulted in a framework for coordination of SHE for risk management in process facilities. An evaluation of the coordinated risk management at the Akzo Nobel ́s facility in Sege has been carried out by using the framework

Solidmechanical simulation of high pressure hydraulic couplings

Hydrauliska högtryckskopplingar av typen FEM ½” studeras med avsikten att fastställa en effektiv beräkningsmetodik som kan användas till att prediktera kopplingarnas hållfasthet. Metodiken utgörs av finita element analyser (FEA), och valideras av experimentella trycktester utförda på kopplingstypen FEM ½”. Genom FEA kan kopplingarnas hållfasthetsbeteende och maximala belastningskapacitet studeras virtuellt, vilket minskar behovet av experimentella tester och medför potential för optimering av produkterna. Arbetet utförs på Parker Hannifin AB i Skövde. Experimentella tester utförs på 20 stycken kopplingspar av typen FEM ½” för att utöka förståelsen av kopplingarnas beteende under brottsförloppet och för att prediktera trycket som medför haveri. Testernas genomförande och struktur baseras på metodiken Design of Experiments (DOE). Kritiska komponenter identifieras utifrån experimentets resultat, vilka sedan studeras närmare via FEA. Analyserna valideras utifrån standarder som kopplingarna ska efterfölja, och mätdata insamlad under de experimentella testerna. Från de experimentella testerna är det komponenterna: kulhållaren, styrningen och nippelhuset som upptar belastning i störst utsträckning. Vid haveri framgår två brottmoder som vanliga, att kulhållaren slits isär samt att styrningen brister, båda fallen uppkommer vid approximativt samma tryck. FE-analyserna för styrningen och kulhållaren visar god överensstämmelse med experimentella resultat. Deformationerna skiljer sig dock mellan analyserna och de experimentella testerna, var nippelhusets analyser uppvisar störst avvikelser. FE-modellerna uppvisar god potential för att prediktera samt utvärdera kopplingarnas mekaniska beteende under tryckbelastning. Analyserna är dock helt beroende av ingående data, var saknaden av en verklig materialmodell medför avvikelser från experimentella resultat. Förhållandet framgår tydligt av nippelhuset, vars relaterade härdningsegenskaper saknas.Hydraulic FEM ½" high pressure couplings are studied with the purpose of establishing an effective methodology that can be used to predict the strength of the couplings. The methodology consists of finite element analyzes (FEA) and is validated by experimental pressure tests, performed on the FEM ½” couplings pairs.  Using FEA, the couplings solid mechanical behavior and maximum load ability can be viewed virtual, reducing the need for experimental tests and gives the potential for optimized products. The work is performed at Parker Hannifin AB in Skovde. Experimental tests are performed on 20 FEM ½” couplings pairs, to understand the solid mechanical behavior of the couplings until failure occurs, and to predict the maximum pressure that can be applied. The experimental structure and performance is based on the method Design of Experiments (DOE). Critical components are identified based on the results from the experimental tests, which are then studied more closely through FEA. The analysis are validated based on the applied material model, and data collected during the experimental tests. From the experimental tests it is shown that the components: ball cage, guide and plug housing are the components in which failure occur. In case of failure, two failure modes appear as common, that the ball cage is worn apart and that the guide burst, both types of failure modes occur at a similar pressure. The analysis for the guide and ball cage corresponds with the experimental outcomes. Differences occurs however when looked at the deformations, in which the plug housing shows the largest deviation when compared to the experimental results. The usage of FE-models appears to be appropriate for predicting and evaluating the mechanical strengths of the couplings during pressure loads. The analysis are however entirely dependent on the input data, where an incorrect material model generates incorrect results. The relationship is shown for the plug housing, which lack the mechanical properties related to curing processes

Long-term trends of light pollution assessed from SQM measurements and an empirical atmospheric model

We present long-term (4–10 yr) trends of light pollution observed at 26 locations, covering rural, intermediate, and urban sites, including the three major European metropolitan areas of Stockholm, Berlin, and Vienna. Our analysis is based on (i) night sky brightness (NSB) measurements obtained with sky quality metres (SQMs) and (ii) a rich set of atmospheric data products. We describe the SQM data reduction routine in which we filter for moon- and clear-sky data and correct for the SQM ‘aging’ effect using an updated version of the twilight method of Puschnig et al. (2021). Our clear-sky, aging-corrected data reveal short- and long-term (seasonal) variations due to atmospheric changes. To assess long-term anthropogenic NSB trends, we establish an empirical atmospheric model via multivariate penalized linear regression. Our modelling approach allows to quantitatively investigate the importance of different atmospheric parameters, revealing that surface albedo and vegetation have by far the largest impact on zenithal NSB. Additionally, the NSB is sensitive to black carbon and organic matter aerosols at urban and rural sites, respectively. Snow depth was found to be important for some sites, while the total column of ozone leaves impact on some rural places. The average increase in light pollution at our 11 rural sites is 1.7 per cent per year. At our nine urban sites, we measure an increase of 1.8 per cent per year and for the remaining six intermediate sites we find an average increase of 3.7 per cent per year. These numbers correspond to doubling times of 41, 39, and 19 yr. We estimate that our method is capable of detecting trend slopes shallower/steeper than ±1.5 per cent per year

Brandteknisk riskvärdering av Hagagymnasiet i Norrköping

This report is a fire safety evaluation of Hagagymnasiet, a highschool in Norrköping, Sweden. A fieldtrip to Hagagymnasiet was made and different scenarios were studied. Likely scenarios were chosen. Dimensioned fires for the different scenarios were constructed based on the probability of the scenarios and hazard for people in the event of an evacuation. Times to critical conditions have been calculated by hand and in simulation with the computer programs CFAST and Argos. Time to evacuation has been made by hand and in the computer program Simulex. The Hagagymnasiet´s systematical fire-protection has also been studied and compared with a school index. Based on results in hand-calculations and simulations have different conclusions and suggestions to improve the fire safety for people in the building been made. Critical conditions will appear in Hagagymnasiet. Therefore it is very important to improve the fire safety in the building. Hagagymnasiet has to do different kind of fire-technical improvments and to work harder in the systematical fire-protection program

Validation guidelines for PCR workflows in bioterrorism preparedness, food safety and forensics

The polymerase chain reaction (PCR) is the backbone of contemporary DNA/RNA analysis, ideally enabling detection of one or just a few target molecules. However, when analysing food or forensic samples the analytical procedure is often challenged by low amounts of poor quality template molecules and complex matrices. Applying optimised and validated methods in all steps of the analysis workflow, i.e. sampling, sample treatment, DNA/RNA extraction and PCR (including reverse transcription for RNA analysis), is thus necessary to ensure the reliability of analysis. In this paper, we describe how in-house validation can be performed for the different modules of the diagnostic PCR process, providing practical examples as tools for laboratories in their planning of validation studies. The focus is analysis of heterogeneous samples with interfering matrices, with relevance in food testing, forensic DNA analysis, bioterrorism preparedness and veterinary medicine. Our objective is to enable rational in-house validation for reliable and swift quality assurance when results are urgent, for example in the event of a crisis such as a foodborne outbreak or a crime requiring the analysis of a large number of diverse samples. To that end, we explain the performance characteristics associated with method validation from a PCR and biological sample matrix perspective and suggest which characteristics to investigate depending on the type of method to be validated. Also, we include a modular approach to validation within the PCR workflow, aiming at efficient validation and a flexible use of methods

Using ground-penetrating radar, topography and classification of vegetation to model the sediment and active layer thickness in a periglacial lake catchment, western Greenland

The geometries of a catchment constitute the basis for distributed physically based numerical modeling of different geoscientific disciplines. In this paper results from ground-penetrating radar (GPR) measurements, in terms of a 3-D model of total sediment thickness and active layer thickness in a periglacial catchment in western Greenland, are presented. Using the topography, the thickness and distribution of sediments are calculated. Vegetation classification and GPR measurements are used to scale active layer thickness from local measurements to catchment-scale models. Annual maximum active layer thickness varies from 0.3m in wetlands to 2.0m in barren areas and areas of exposed bedrock. Maximum sediment thickness is estimated to be 12.3m in the major valleys of the catchment. A method to correlate surface vegetation with active layer thickness is also presented. By using relatively simple methods, such as probing and vegetation classification, it is possible to upscale local point measurements to catchment-scale models, in areas where the upper subsurface is relatively homogeneous. The resulting spatial model of active layer thickness can be used in combination with the sediment model as a geometrical input to further studies of subsurface mass transport and hydrological flow paths in the periglacial catchment through numerical modeling. The data set is available for all users via the PANGAEA database, doi:10.1594/PANGAEA.845258

Hydrological and meteorological investigations in a lake near Kangerlussuaq, west Greenland

Few hydrological studies have been made in Greenland, other than on glacial hydrology associated with the ice sheet. Understanding permafrost hydrology and hydroclimatic change and variability, however, provides key information for understanding climate change effects and feedbacks in the Arctic landscape. This paper presents a new extensive and detailed hydrological and meteorological open access dataset, with high temporal resolution from a 1.56 km**2 permafrost catchment with a lake underlain by a through talik close to the ice sheet in the Kangerlussuaq region, western Greenland. The paper describes the hydrological site investigations and utilized equipment, as well as the data collection and processing. The investigations were performed between 2010 and 2013. The high spatial resolution, within the investigated area, of the dataset makes it highly suitable for various detailed hydrological and ecological studies on catchment scale