Underground adaptations: case studies from health care

Clinical work is accomplished by complex, highly distributed, joint cognitive systems, and involves high levels of uncertainty and ambiguity. Hospital emergency departments (EDs) in particular must adapt to uncertainty, ambiguity and change on a variety of different temporal scales. Many of these adaptations are unofficial, in part because they cannot be specified in advance and because the official models of healthcare work do not include or acknowledge them. This paper presents two case studies of reactive adaptation within the ED setting and uses these to explore their implications for cognitive engineering and design.     

Process and performance optimization by selective assembly of battery electrodes

The increasing demand for electric vehicles and thus lithium-ion batteries results in a multitude of challenges in production technology. The reproducibility and performance of large scale batteries for automotive applications are very high. At the same time the production processes are complex and involve many uncertainties. Two essential process steps are the electrode coating and electrode package assembly. The mass loading of anodes and cathodes are determined by the coating process, where deviations can be caused by different reasons. The selective assembly of the electrodes is a reasonable way to balance the production variances. The contribution shows extended algorithms and their benefits and drawbacks of matching electrodes in order to improve the subsequent electrode packaging process. Here, the aim is to reach higher cell capacities and optimized performance values by “optimally” balanced electrodes regarding the mass loading ratio, which is also related to the specific material capacity.     

Extending and operationalizing construction productivity measurement on building projects

Measuring construction productivity in an accurate, repeatable and reliable way represents a significant problem at a building project level of enquiry. The research develops a measurement framework that balances simplified data gathering against explanatory ability. It aims to assist analytically driven process improvement. Debate and discourse are used to draw upon the extant literature in creating a logic-based flow of ideas to develop the framework. Targeted use of empirical cost and site process data from case studies are presented to punctuate the discourse. The derived approach advocates multifactor measurement inclusive of labour and temporary production infrastructure inputs, set against Gross Floor Area outputs. Emphasis is placed on separately measuring homogenous and heterogeneous parts of work processes. A reductionist approach is used to operationalize measurement where projects are categorized according to fitness-for-purpose criteria and links made between systems, activities and tasks. Emphasizing measurement of homogenous parts of the work is new to the literature. It enables delineated measurement between work involving mass economies of scale (homogenous work), versus customized work (heterogeneous work). The approach enables improved benchmarking, diagnostic and predicative options. A course of ongoing research is provided to assist ongoing development and implementation.     

Sustainable construction: life cycle energy analysis of construction on sloping sites for residential buildings

In 2010, the Australian residential construction sector contributed about 28% of the value of all construction and was responsible for 8% of the total energy consumption. Residential construction will continue to increase to cope with the demand due to population growth. Owing to land scarcity, construction on sloping sites has become a common construction method for residential development in Australia. This method has economic benefits but poses environmental issues as it damages topsoil, disturbs natural drainage and groundwater pathways and imposes additional stress on soil under fill. The life cycle energy consumption of the construction process is examined in relation to residential projects on sloping sites on a range of slopes and soil types in New South Wales, Australia. Forty-one detached dwellings were selected and a service life of 60 years assumed for the study. The research findings reveal that the slope for each type of soil has a positive correlation with life cycle energy consumption. As part of the onsite construction process, the results also show that the energy consumption of construction on sloping sites plays a significant factor in the life cycle energy analysis of a building.     

Chemical Expansion Due to Hydration of Proton‐Conducting Perovskite Oxide Ceramics

The crystal structures of proton‐conducting BaZr_1?xY_xO_3?x/2 (BZY05–BZY20) and BaCe_0.8Y_0.2O_2.9 (BCY20) during hydration/dehydration has been studied by in situ high‐temperature X‐ray diffraction and thermal analysis. A contraction/expansion of the crystal lattice associated with dehydration/hydration was observed for all materials at elevated temperatures and the polymorphic phase transition temperatures of BaCe_0.8Y_0.2O_2.9 were depressed by lowering the vapor pressure of water. A thermodynamic formalism is introduced to describe the chemical expansion associated with the hydration of oxygen vacancies in acceptor‐doped oxides. A conventional point defect model was applied to describe the lattice strain associated with the hydration. The chemical expansion is discussed with respect to the available volumetric data on the hydration of proton‐conducting oxide materials and its likely impact on ceramic fuel cells/hydrogen separation membranes utilizing a proton‐conducting electrolyte.     

Guest editorial–special issue on ground control in mining in 2020

正Ground control is the science of studying and controlling the behavior of rock strata in response to mining operations.Ground-control-related research has seen significant advancements over the last 40 years, and these accomplishments are well documented in the proceedings of the annual International Conference on Ground Control in Mining (ICGCM)[1].