Life quality index for the estimation of societal willingness-to-pay for safety

The engineering and management of human safety is an important societal objective that includes extensive efforts by governments, both legislative and administrative, to enhance the health and safety of the public. Although the achievement of safety goals depend primarily on individuals and organizations responsible for safety, much support is drawn from expertise in diverse scientific and engineering disciplines. The activities range from structural safety (dams, tunnels, bridges to tall buildings) to safe operation of hazardous industrial installations (energy generation facilities, LNG terminals, petrochemical plants) to transportation systems (airline, rail, car safety) to technologies designed to minimize adverse impacts on the environment. All these activities are crucially concerned with risk: with the likelihood and the probable effects of various measures on life and health. We have developed a unified rationale and a clear basis for effective strategic management of risk across diverse sectors. Safety is an important objective in society but it is not the only one. The allocation of society's resources devoted to safety must be continually appraised in light of competing needs, because there is a limit on the resources that can be expended to extend life. The paper presents the Life Quality Index (LQI) as a tool for the assessment of risk reduction initiatives that would support the public interest and enhance safety and quality of life. The paper provides an intuitive reformulation of the LQI as equivalent to a valid utility function that is consistent with the principles of rational decision analysis. The LQI is further refined to consider the issues of discounting of life years, competing background risks, and population age and mortality distribution. The LQI is applied to quantify the societal willingness-to-pay, which is an acceptable level of public expenditure in exchange for a reduction in the risk of death that results in improved life-quality.     

Thermal—Mechanical Fatigue Behavior and Life Analysis of Cast Ni—base Superalloy K417

In-phase(IP) and out-of-phase(OP)thermal-mechanical fatigue(TMF) behavior of cast Ni-base superalloy K417 was studied.All experiments were carried out under total strain control with temperature cycling between 400-850℃.Both in-phase and out-of-phase TMF specimens exhibited cyclic hardening followed by cyclic softening at the minimum temperature.Besides,they cyclically hardened in the early stage of life followed by cyclic softening at the minimum temperature.Besides,they cyclically hardened in the early stage of life followed by cyclic softening at the maximum temperature.OP TMF life was longer than of IP TMF.Various damage mechanisms operating in different controlled strain ranges and phasing were discussed.A few life prediction methods for isothermal fatigue were used to handle TMF fatigue and their applicability to superalloy K417 was evaluated.The SEM analysis of the fracture surface showed that transgranular fracture was the principal cracking mode for both IP and OP TMF.Oxidation was the main damage mechanism in causing shorter fatigue life for IP TMF compared with OP TMF.     

Energy use in the life cycle of conventional and low-energy buildings: A review article

A literature survey on buildings’ life cycle energy use was performed, resulting in a total of 60 cases from nine countries. The cases included both residential and non-residential units. Despite climate and other background differences, the study revealed a linear relation between operating and total energy valid through all the cases. Case studies on buildings built according to different design criteria, and at parity of all other conditions, showed that design of low-energy buildings induces both a net benefit in total life cycle energy demand and an increase in the embodied energy. A solar house proved to be more energy efficient than an equivalent house built with commitment to use “green” materials. Also, the same solar house decreased life cycle energy demand by a factor of two with respect to an equivalent conventional version, when operating energy was expressed as end-use energy and the lifetime assumed to be 50 years. A passive house proved to be more energy efficient than an equivalent self-sufficient solar house. Also, the same passive house decreased life cycle energy demand by a factor of three – expected to rise to four in a new version – with respect to an equivalent conventional version, when operating energy was expressed as primary energy and the lifetime assumed to be 80 years.     

Electron Microscopy Imaging Applications of Room Temperature Ionic Liquids in the Biological Field: A Review

For biological imaging using electron microscopy (EM), the use of room-temperature ionic liquids (RTILs) has been proposed as an alternative to traditional lengthy preparation methods. With their low vapor pressures and conductivity, RTILs can be applied onto hard-to-image soft and/or wet samples without dehydration – allowing for a more representative, hydrated state of material and opening the possibility for visualization of in situ physiological processes using conventional EM systems. However, RTILs have yet to be utilized to their full potential by microscopists and microbiologists alike. To this end, this review aims to provide a comprehensive summary of biological applications of RTILs for EM to bridge the RTIL, in situ microscopy, and biological communities. We outline future research avenues for the use of RTILs for the EM observation of biological samples, notably i) RTIL selection and optimization, ii) applications for live cell processes and iii) electron beam and ionic liquid interaction studies.     

圆坯连铸GCr15SiMn的成分偏析和接触疲劳寿命研究

利用金属原位分析技术和钻孔化学分析方法对高淬透性轴承钢GCr15SiMn的Φ450 mm连铸圆坯和Φ130 mm圆钢的C、Si、Mn、Cr元素横截面的分布情况进行分析。采用推力片式接触疲劳试验机进行了材料的接触疲劳寿命测试。结果表明：GCr15SiMn连铸圆坯C元素的偏析倾向较大,易产生中心正偏析,而Cr、Si、Mn元素的偏析倾向较小。通过采取稳定低过热度浇铸、三段强电磁搅拌等措施,铸坯的中心碳偏析得以改善。采用(1240±20)℃×5 h高温扩散、初轧首道次变形量≥90 mm大变形轧制的Φ130 mm圆钢的碳偏析可以得到进一步的改善,试验钢在5.3GPa高应力负载下的接触疲劳额定寿命L₁₀达到3.58×10⁶次,接近电渣重熔钢的水平。     

High-temperature performance evaluation of adirectionally solidified nickel-base superalloy

The application of a new approach, design for performance, for high-temperature alloy development, design analysis, and remaining life assessment, based on short-time high-precision testing, is described in this paper. The material tested was a directionally solidified nickel-base alloy, GTD111. It was found that the creep strength at 850 °C was indeed superior to that of a competitive alloy, IN738, but was not necessarily enhanced by the preferred alignment of grain boundaries and crystal orientation. In contrast, the fracture resistance at 800 °C was improved in the longitudinal direction compared with transverse and diagonal orientations in terms of susceptibility to gas phase embrittlement (GPE) by oxygen. Specimens cut transversely and diagonally to the growth direction were more sensitive to GPE than specimens taken from conventionally cast IN738. The new conceptual framework allows account to be taken of GPE and other embrittling phenomena, which may develop in service, leading to rational life management decisions for gas turbine users. Additionally, straightforward design analysis procedures can be developed from the test data, which for the first time allow separate measurements of creep strength and fracture resistance to be used for performance evaluation.     

Assembly and Disassembly Processes in Product Life Cycle Perspectives

Industrial companies change the paradigms of business operations from optimisation of manufacturing processes to optimisation of products life cycles in order to activate the value of products, taking into account the potentials of product services in all phases of each product's life. From design to the end of their life capital intensive products, like manufacturing or assembly systems, are linked to a manufacturer network by global communication systems. This network allows special services even in the phases of usage and recycling. For this new paradigm it is necessary to develop strategies, methods and technologies to manage the business processes and the information and knowledge required in all phases of a product's life and to industrialise the processes of design, assembly, usage, service and remanufacturing by disassembly and recycling. It is the objective of this paper to define the processes for management of life cycle with a focus on assembly, service and disassembly of capital intensive products.     

基于WLF方程的硬质聚氨酯泡沫塑料贮存寿命评估

对硬质聚氨酯泡沫塑料进行了105℃条件下的高温老化试验，试验前后检测了其压缩性能的变化情况。结果表明，硬质聚氨酯泡沫塑料老化后其压缩性能没有明显变化，因而不能应用Arrhenius方程来推导其贮存寿命。为此从时温等效原理出发，通过对硬质聚氨酯泡沫塑料压缩蠕变曲线的平移推算出了其WLF方程，利用此方程，可以很容易地推导出硬质聚氨酯泡沫塑料高温老化的低温等效贮存时间；该种硬质聚氨酯泡沫塑料在20℃、25℃及30℃条件下的存贮寿命应至少分别在50．3a、45．3a及40．5a以上。     

The psychological functions of avatars and alt(s): A qualitative study

Prior research has shown that approximately 50% of active participants in the 3D virtual world of Second Life have one or more secondary avatars or “alts” in addition to their primary avatar. Thus, these individuals are operating a “multiple or poly-identity system” composed of a physical self, a primary avatar, and one or more alts. However, little is known about the functions these virtual identities serve for the virtual-world user. The current study involved qualitative analysis of semistructured interviews with Second Life participants (N = 24) who had a primary avatar and at least one alt. Interviews were coded to examine the functions that primary avatars and alts served. Eight functions—seven suggested by previous research on virtual world identity and one that emerged from analyses—were reflected in a large majority of the transcribed interviews and are described in the article. The current findings add to our understanding of how multifaceted identity systems operate, as more individuals augment their physical self with a set of virtual identities.     

疲劳与蠕变复合作用下PS的应变与寿命

对PS在疲劳/蠕变复合作用下应变与寿命进行了研究。结果表明：其疲劳/蠕变曲线与纯蠕变曲线十分相似。加载时间周期越短和疲劳载荷变化越频繁。结束普弹应变阶段应变越小，进入延迟弹性变形的平台应变阶段越早。在疲劳/蠕变复合作用下聚苯乙烯存在疲劳和蠕变的交互损伤，其断裂寿命比纯疲劳或纯蠕变的断裂寿命低。断裂寿命减小，疲劳/蠕变的交互损伤程度与温度密切相关，PS在较低温度的疲劳/蠕变交互损伤作用大于较高温度的交互损伤作用。随温度升高，疲劳/蠕变断裂寿命下降是疲劳和蠕变各自的单独损伤增加所致。