Some Fundamentals of Explosions Related to the Power Industry

Author(s):  
David G. Lilley

Fundamentals of pertinent information on fire dynamics of explosions are reviewed, with emphasis on technical aspects related to the power industry. Topics include: fundamentals, characterization, vapor cloud explosions, blast damage due to over-pressurization, procedure for estimating the overpressure, blast fragment missile damage, and energy of mechanical explosions. The text is imbued with examples to assist in understanding and applying the ideas in real-world situations. This material is designed especially for persons in fire-related occupations: fire service, insurance adjusters, fire investigators, forensic engineers and attorneys desiring further knowledge about technical aspects of explosions.

2018 ◽  
Vol 55 (1) ◽  
pp. 81-103 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nils Johansson ◽  
Stefan Svensson

2010 ◽  
Author(s):  
Amruta A. Mardikar ◽  
Laurie E. Steffen ◽  
Nathan A. Kimbrel ◽  
Christina Fay ◽  
Rose T. Zimering ◽  
...  

Author(s):  
Fatima Dobani ◽  
Michelle L. Pennington ◽  
Elizabeth Coe ◽  
Patrick Morrison ◽  
Suzy Bird Gulliver

Peer support, as part of a recovery-oriented approach to treatment, is a valuable resource across various clinical and nonclinical populations. Specifically, in fire service, peer support may bridge the gap between firefighters' behavioral health needs and access to professional services. The current chapter summarizes the literature on peer support utility, presents data on barriers to treatment, and describes the roles clinicians can fill in partnering with fire service peer support to enhance the quality and reach of behavioral health services offered to fire service personnel. Finally, future research directions are outlined to continue the conversation about how to improve collaborations between peer supporters, clinicians, and others working to support the needs and strengths of firefighters.


2021 ◽  
pp. 3-23
Author(s):  
Stuart Russell

Following the analysis given by Alan Turing in 1951, one must expect that AI capabilities will eventually exceed those of humans across a wide range of real-world-decision making scenarios. Should this be a cause for concern, as Turing, Hawking, and others have suggested? And, if so, what can we do about it? While some in the mainstream AI community dismiss the issue, I will argue that the problem is real: we have to work out how to design AI systems that are far more powerful than ourselves while ensuring that they never have power over us. I believe the technical aspects of this problem are solvable. Whereas the standard model of AI proposes to build machines that optimize known, exogenously specified objectives, a preferable approach would be to build machines that are of provable benefit to humans. I introduce assistance games as a formal class of problems whose solution, under certain assumptions, has the desired property.


Heritage ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 1260-1273
Author(s):  
Susan Douglas ◽  
Melanie Hayes

An increasing volume of images is available online, but barriers such as digital locks, proprietary interests and narrow scope of information uploaded to image databases maintain structures that have impeded repatriation efforts in the real world. Images of objects (cultural material) in the digital environment support cultural heritage. Institutions are developing complex solutions relevant in the network environment to further repatriation initiatives. These solutions facilitate discovery, opening avenues for research into the ethics of ownership that cross the physical/digital divide. There have been calls for strengthening the potential for use of pertinent information in order to protect and recover cultural heritage through increased visibility. However, some museums still limit access to images. We examine the issues and their implications referencing case studies specific to Indigenous, Inuit and Métis peoples of Canada.


Author(s):  
Alade E. Ilori ◽  
Rabiu A. Magaji

Fire disaster is accident that occur most frequently with different causes. It requires strong intervention for a sustainable fire-free environment. This study assessed causes and people’s behaviour in fire disasters towards a sustainable fire-free environment in Kebbi State, Nigeria. The study focused at identifying remote causes of fire disasters in Kebbi State, the people’s behaviour in/to fire situations using the state capital (Birnin Kebbi) as well as equipment available in the state fire service head-office towards a fire-free environment. Descriptive research approach was used. A sample size of 204 respondents (30 market traders, 144 occupants and 30 fire service personnel) obtained through Cochran 1963 sample size formula were randomly selected. Questionnaire and observation were used to collect data which were analyzed through descriptive statistics (frequency tables and percentages) and results were presented in charts. Results revealed that electrical fault/wiring, political reasons, negligence among others are the causes of fire disaster in the area with electrical fault/wiring as the remote cause. The behaviour of people towards building a sustainable fire-free environment shows people of the area do help one another in extinguishing fire whenever it strikes. Results also shows that lack of manpower and standard fire stations were the prominent challenges faced by the state fire service head-office in the state capital prompting incessant burning and resulting lives and property loss. Occupants of the area should always read and comply with safety guides of electrical appliances bought before use to avoid and prevent them from substandard gadgets that have ability of endangering their lives.


2021 ◽  
pp. 014544552110649
Author(s):  
Vincent B. Van Hasselt ◽  
Michael L. Bourke ◽  
Bailee B. Schuhmann

The past decade has witnessed burgeoning interest and concern regarding the mental health of firefighters. This increased attention is due, in part, to research documenting higher rates of psychiatric problems, including depression, substance abuse, sleep disturbances, posttraumatic stress disorder, and suicidality in fire rescue personnel compared to civilians. Similarly, the National Institute for Occupation Safety and Health (2014) has identified disturbingly elevated rates of physical health difficulties in firefighters, most notably high blood pressure, coronary heart disease, death due heart attacks, as well as different forms of cancer. Despite the heightened awareness of the mental and physical health challenges in this population, behavioral research specifically targeting firefighters is limited. With this is mind, we asked prominent researchers and clinicians working in this area to present results of their early investigative efforts in our Special Issue on “Behavioral Approaches with Firefighters”. In this Introduction, we provide brief summaries of the studies comprising the Issue. Articles in this issue address topics of sleep, PTSD, substance use, physical health concerns, and provide assessment and treatment considerations. A primary goal of the Issue is to stimulate further behavioral research with this group of deserving yet underserved first responders. Moreover, the Issue serves as a tribute to the men and women of the fire service who dedicate and risk their lives to serve their community.


2000 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hyeong-Jin Kim ◽  
David G. Lilley

Abstract The ultimate goal of this study is to improve scientific understanding of fire behavior leading to flashover in structural fires. This document summarizes important information in five topic areas: burning rates, radiant ignition, fire spread rates, ventilation limit imposed by size of opening, and flashover criteria. These are the main components related to the scientific understanding of the fire growth and flashover problem involved in real-world structural fires. Within each topic area, there are four subsections dealing with background, theory, comments, and references. Main components of the study are to develop improved mathematical simulations so as to improve the accuracy of theoretical calculation and to develop and extend the range of knowledge and modeling capability so as to extend the range of available experimental data.


Author(s):  
Jihui Geng ◽  
J. Kelly Thomas

Blast walls are frequently considered as a potential mitigation option to reduce the applied blast loading on a building or structure in cases where unacceptably high levels of blast damage are predicted. There are three general explosion types of interest with respect to blast loading: High Explosive (HE), Pressure Vessel Burst (PVB), and Vapor Cloud Explosion (VCE). The blast waves resulting from these explosion types can differ significantly in terms of blast wave shape and duration. The effectiveness of a blast wall depends on these blast wave parameters (shape and duration), as well as the blast wall parameters (e.g., height, width and standoff distance from the protected structure). The effectiveness of a blast wall in terms of mitigating the blast loading on a protected structure depends on the combination of the blast wave and blast wall parameters. However, little guidance is available on the effectiveness of blast walls as a mitigation option for non-HE explosion sources. The purpose of this paper is to characterize the effect of blast wave parameters on the effectiveness of a blast wall and to provide guidance on how to determine whether a blast wall is an effective and practical blast damage mitigation option for a given blast loading.


1983 ◽  
Vol 15 (2) ◽  
pp. 207-226 ◽  
Author(s):  
R Wallace ◽  
D Wallace

Fire service cuts recommended by the Rand Corporation, and largely implemented before New York City's ‘fiscal crisis’, are known to have initiated a geographically spreading, temporally recurrent fire epidemic. Examination of a resulting fire outbreak in Brooklyn's Bushwick section shows the epidemic to have temporal and spatial ‘patchiness' characteristics of a parasite infestation, as well as an apparent composite ‘life cycle’, but without the stabilizing mechanisms which assure the survival both of host and of parasite populations. The composite fire ‘life cycle’ implies the need for a multiple factor eradication program, in which improvements in fire service play a key role, both for extinguishment and for prevention purposes.


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