Search results

1 – 10 of 138
Open Access
Article
Publication date: 3 May 2022

Qingxiang Zhou, Fang Liu, Jingming Li, Jiankui Li, Shuangnan Zhang and Guixi Cai

This study aims to solve the problem of weld quality inspection, for the aluminum alloy profile welding structure of high-speed train body has complex internal shape and thin…

Abstract

Purpose

This study aims to solve the problem of weld quality inspection, for the aluminum alloy profile welding structure of high-speed train body has complex internal shape and thin plate thickness (2–4 mm), the conventional nondestructive testing method of weld quality is difficult to implement.

Design/methodology/approach

In order to solve this problem, the ultrasonic creeping wave detection technology was proposed. The impact of the profile structure on the creeping wave detection was studied by designing profile structural test blocks and artificial simulation defect test blocks. The detection technology was used to test the actual welded test blocks, and compared with the results of X-ray test and destructive test (tensile test) to verify the accuracy of the ultrasonic creeping wave test results.

Findings

It is indicated that that X-ray has better effect on the inspection of porosities and incomplete penetration defects. However, due to special detection method and protection, the detection speed is slow, which cannot meet the requirements of field inspection of the welding structure of aluminum alloy thin-walled profile for high-speed train body. It can be used as an auxiliary detection method for a small number of sampling inspection. The ultrasonic creeping wave can be used to detect the incomplete penetration welds with the equivalent of 0.25 mm or more, the results of creeping wave detection correspond well with the actual incomplete penetration defects.

Originality/value

The results show that creeping wave detection results correspond well with the actual non-penetration defects and can be used for welding quality inspection of aluminum alloy thin-wall profile composite welding joints. It is recommended to use the echo amplitude of the 10 mm × 0.2 mm × 0.5 mm notch as the criterion for weld qualification.

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 4 December 2017

Stefan Holmström, Frits De Haan, Ulrich Führer, Rami Pohja and Jaromir Janousek

There are a number of different approaches for calculating creep-fatigue (CF) damage for design, such as the French nuclear code RCC-MRx, the American ASME III NH and the British…

1227

Abstract

Purpose

There are a number of different approaches for calculating creep-fatigue (CF) damage for design, such as the French nuclear code RCC-MRx, the American ASME III NH and the British R5 assessment code. To acquire estimates for the CF damage, that are not overly conservative, both the cyclic material softening/hardening and the potential changes in relaxation behavior have to be considered. The data presented here and models are an initial glimpse of the ongoing European FP7 project MATISSE effort to model the softening and relaxation behavior of Grade 91 steel under CF loading. The resulting models are used for calculating the relaxed stress at arbitrary location in the material cyclic softening curve. The initial test results show that softening of the material is not always detrimental. The initial model development and the pre-assessment of the MATISSE data show that the relaxed stress can be robustly predicted with hold time, strain range and the cyclic life fraction as the main input parameters. The paper aims to discuss these issues.

Design/methodology/approach

Engineering models have been developed for predicting cyclic softening and relaxation for Gr. 91 steel at 550 and 600°C.

Findings

A simple engineering model can adequately predict the low cycle fatigue (LCF) and CF softening rates of Gr. 91 steel. Also a simple relaxation model was successfully defined for predicting relaxed stress of both virgin and cyclically softened material.

Research limitations/implications

The data are not yet complete and the models will be updated when the complete set of data in the MATISSE project is available.

Practical implications

The models described can be used for predicting P91 material softening in an arbitrary location (n/Nf0) of the LCF and CF cyclic life. Also the relaxed stress in the softened material can be estimated.

Originality/value

The models are simple in nature but are able to estimate both material softening and relaxation in arbitrary location of the softening curve. This is the first time the Wilshire methodology has been applied on cyclic relaxation data.

Details

International Journal of Structural Integrity, vol. 8 no. 6
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1757-9864

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 22 July 2022

Cecilia Hansen Löfstrand and Christel Backman

The authors set out to show how key private security industry actors in Sweden establish body-worn cameras (BWCs) as a tool to protect private security officers from the public…

Abstract

Purpose

The authors set out to show how key private security industry actors in Sweden establish body-worn cameras (BWCs) as a tool to protect private security officers from the public the officers police and to improve the work environment of the officers.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors conducted qualitative semi-structured interviews with key personnel involved in the implementation of BWCs. The authors' analysis focused on delineating recurrent moral stories and affirmative environments to show how BWC use was made legitimate as a work environment tool.

Findings

The authors show how BWC use by private security officers patrolling public spaces in Sweden is legitimized by four organizational narratives: (1) the vulnerable security officer and the caring employer, (2) defenders of protective regulation, (3) moral selves and morally dubious others and (4) function creep and moral guardians. The authors explain how such organizational narratives are key to establishing and legitimizing the use of BWCs as a tool to improve the work environment of private security guards, and how certain narrative environments promote such organizational narratives in Sweden to improve the work environment of private security guards.

Originality/value

The authors' findings in this article add to a small but growing literature on BWC use in policing outside of the USA and the UK as well as to the hitherto very limited research from the work environment and managerial perspectives. The authors illustrate the importance of organizational narratives and narrative environments for understanding organizational change involving legitimation of new technologies.

Details

Qualitative Research in Organizations and Management: An International Journal, vol. 17 no. 5
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1746-5648

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 10 December 2021

Roberta Troisi and Gaetano Alfano

This paper analyses emergency management in two regions of Italy – Emilia-Romagna and Veneto – in order (1) to understand whether they impact on the spread of local coronavirus…

Abstract

Purpose

This paper analyses emergency management in two regions of Italy – Emilia-Romagna and Veneto – in order (1) to understand whether they impact on the spread of local coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) contagion and (2) evaluate which strategy works best.

Design/methodology/approach

A three-step method was developed consisting of (1) a regional incidence curve analysis; (2) a descriptive statistical analysis of the respective operational measures related to the COVID-19 curve stages; and (3) a dynamic Structural Equation Model.

Findings

The results show the effects of the models during the various stages of the local contagion, focussing both on the two individual regions and a comparison of the way they responded.

Practical implications

Three theoretical implications are highlighted: (1) Better results are not necessarily the outcome of increased expenditure; (2) The overall rigidity they both show does not work; (3) The decision to centralize was, to some extent, effective for both regions.

Originality/value

The article empirically tests the effectiveness of emergency management in tackling a single event. Instead of the widely-used normative approach, the authors adopted a descriptive one, which is not frequently discussed in the emergency management literature.

Details

International Journal of Public Sector Management, vol. 35 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0951-3558

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 13 June 2016

Marcus Achenbach and Guido Morgenthal

The purpose of this paper is to develop a method suitable for the design of reinforced concrete columns subjected to a standard fire.

2948

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to develop a method suitable for the design of reinforced concrete columns subjected to a standard fire.

Design/methodology/approach

The Zone Method – a ’simplified calculation method” included in Eurocode 2 – has been developed by Hertz as a manual calculation scheme for the check of fire resistance of concrete sections. The basic idea is to disregard the thermal strains and to calculate the resistance of a cross-section by reducing the concrete cross-section by a “damaged zone”. It is assumed that all fibers can reach their ultimate, temperature dependent strength. Therefore, it is a plastic concept; the information on the state of strain is lost. The calculation of curvatures and deflections is thus only possible by making further assumptions. Extensions of the zone method toward a general calculation method, suitable for the implementation in commercial design software and using the temperature dependent stress–strain curves of the Advanced Calculation Method, have been developed in Germany. The extension by Cyllok and Achenbach is presented in detail. The necessary assumptions of the Zone Method are reviewed, and an improved proposal for the consideration of the reinforcement in this extended Zone Method is presented.

Findings

The principles and assumptions of the Zone Method proposed by Hertz can be validated.

Originality/value

An extension of the Zone Method suitable for the implementation in design software is proposed.

Details

Journal of Structural Fire Engineering, vol. 7 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2040-2317

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 28 October 2020

Anne Fleur van Veenstra, Francisca Grommé and Somayeh Djafari

Public sector data analytics concerns the process of retrieving data, data analysis, publication of the results as well as re-using the data by government organizations to improve…

3988

Abstract

Purpose

Public sector data analytics concerns the process of retrieving data, data analysis, publication of the results as well as re-using the data by government organizations to improve their operations and enhance public policy. This paper aims to explore the use of public sector data analytics in the Netherlands and the opportunities and challenges of this use.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper finds 74 applications of public sector data analytics, identified by a Web search and consultation with policymakers. The applications are categorized by application type, organization(s) involved and application domain, and illustrative examples are used to elaborate opportunities and challenges.

Findings

Public sector data analytics is most frequently used for inspection and enforcement of social services and for criminal investigation. Even though its usage is often experimental, it raises concerns for scope creep, repeated targeting of the same (group of) individuals, personal data use by third parties and the transparency of governmental processes.

Research limitations/implications

Drawing on desk research, it was not always possible to identify which type of data or which technology was used in the applications that were found. Furthermore, the case studies are illustrative rather than providing an in-depth overview of opportunities and challenges of the use of data analytics in government.

Originality/value

Most studies either perform a literature overview or present a single case study; this paper presents a more comprehensive overview of how a public sector uses data analytics.

Details

Transforming Government: People, Process and Policy, vol. 15 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1750-6166

Keywords

Open Access
Book part
Publication date: 9 December 2021

Marina Da Bormida

Advances in Big Data, artificial Intelligence and data-driven innovation bring enormous benefits for the overall society and for different sectors. By contrast, their misuse can…

Abstract

Advances in Big Data, artificial Intelligence and data-driven innovation bring enormous benefits for the overall society and for different sectors. By contrast, their misuse can lead to data workflows bypassing the intent of privacy and data protection law, as well as of ethical mandates. It may be referred to as the ‘creep factor’ of Big Data, and needs to be tackled right away, especially considering that we are moving towards the ‘datafication’ of society, where devices to capture, collect, store and process data are becoming ever-cheaper and faster, whilst the computational power is continuously increasing. If using Big Data in truly anonymisable ways, within an ethically sound and societally focussed framework, is capable of acting as an enabler of sustainable development, using Big Data outside such a framework poses a number of threats, potential hurdles and multiple ethical challenges. Some examples are the impact on privacy caused by new surveillance tools and data gathering techniques, including also group privacy, high-tech profiling, automated decision making and discriminatory practices. In our society, everything can be given a score and critical life changing opportunities are increasingly determined by such scoring systems, often obtained through secret predictive algorithms applied to data to determine who has value. It is therefore essential to guarantee the fairness and accurateness of such scoring systems and that the decisions relying upon them are realised in a legal and ethical manner, avoiding the risk of stigmatisation capable of affecting individuals’ opportunities. Likewise, it is necessary to prevent the so-called ‘social cooling’. This represents the long-term negative side effects of the data-driven innovation, in particular of such scoring systems and of the reputation economy. It is reflected in terms, for instance, of self-censorship, risk-aversion and lack of exercise of free speech generated by increasingly intrusive Big Data practices lacking an ethical foundation. Another key ethics dimension pertains to human-data interaction in Internet of Things (IoT) environments, which is increasing the volume of data collected, the speed of the process and the variety of data sources. It is urgent to further investigate aspects like the ‘ownership’ of data and other hurdles, especially considering that the regulatory landscape is developing at a much slower pace than IoT and the evolution of Big Data technologies. These are only some examples of the issues and consequences that Big Data raise, which require adequate measures in response to the ‘data trust deficit’, moving not towards the prohibition of the collection of data but rather towards the identification and prohibition of their misuse and unfair behaviours and treatments, once government and companies have such data. At the same time, the debate should further investigate ‘data altruism’, deepening how the increasing amounts of data in our society can be concretely used for public good and the best implementation modalities.

Details

Ethical Issues in Covert, Security and Surveillance Research
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-80262-414-4

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 25 April 2022

Jesper Falkheimer, Mats Heide, Charlotte Simonsson and Rickard Andersson

This study aims, first, to explore and analyze if and how organizational members’ professions or occupations influence perceptions of internal crisis communication. The second…

1672

Abstract

Purpose

This study aims, first, to explore and analyze if and how organizational members’ professions or occupations influence perceptions of internal crisis communication. The second, related, aim is to discuss the role of internal communication in creating a strong organizational identity during a prolonged crisis such as the Covid-19 pandemic.

Design/methodology/approach

This study is mainly conceptual but uses quantitative data from a survey conducted in a health-care organization in late 2020 to illustrate the theoretical reasoning.

Findings

The results show that the administrative groups perceive factors in the internal crisis communication more favorably than the professional groups. The study suggests that organizational members perceive internal crisis communication differently depending on which intra-organizational group they belong to. This further points to the absence of a “rally-around-the-flag” effect and highlights the importance of working proactively with professionals and in internal crisis communication.

Originality/value

This study highlights the role of professionals in crisis communication, which is an aspect that so far has been ignored. The internal professionalization processes and an intriguing power struggle between professions have obvious consequences for crisis communication. As shown in the overview of earlier research on internal communication, leadership and professional organizations, the prerequisites for creating an increased organizational unity among coworkers are challenging. The idea that a crisis may, as in certain political situations in society, create a “rally-around-the-flag” effect is still relevant, even if the case study is an example of how this did not happen.

Details

Corporate Communications: An International Journal, vol. 27 no. 5
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1356-3289

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 19 March 2024

Zhenlong Peng, Aowei Han, Chenlin Wang, Hongru Jin and Xiangyu Zhang

Unconventional machining processes, particularly ultrasonic vibration cutting (UVC), can overcome such technical bottlenecks. However, the precise mechanism through which UVC…

Abstract

Purpose

Unconventional machining processes, particularly ultrasonic vibration cutting (UVC), can overcome such technical bottlenecks. However, the precise mechanism through which UVC affects the in-service functional performance of advanced aerospace materials remains obscure. This limits their industrial application and requires a deeper understanding.

Design/methodology/approach

The surface integrity and in-service functional performance of advanced aerospace materials are important guarantees for safety and stability in the aerospace industry. For advanced aerospace materials, which are difficult-to-machine, conventional machining processes cannot meet the requirements of high in-service functional performance owing to rapid tool wear, low processing efficiency and high cutting forces and temperatures in the cutting area during machining.

Findings

To address this literature gap, this study is focused on the quantitative evaluation of the in-service functional performance (fatigue performance, wear resistance and corrosion resistance) of advanced aerospace materials. First, the characteristics and usage background of advanced aerospace materials are elaborated in detail. Second, the improved effect of UVC on in-service functional performance is summarized. We have also explored the unique advantages of UVC during the processing of advanced aerospace materials. Finally, in response to some of the limitations of UVC, future development directions are proposed, including improvements in ultrasound systems, upgrades in ultrasound processing objects and theoretical breakthroughs in in-service functional performance.

Originality/value

This study provides insights into the optimization of machining processes to improve the in-service functional performance of advanced aviation materials, particularly the use of UVC and its unique process advantages.

Details

Journal of Intelligent Manufacturing and Special Equipment, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2633-6596

Keywords

Open Access
Book part
Publication date: 9 December 2021

Alfonso Alfonsi and Maresa Berliri

This chapter, based on a sociological approach, addresses the ethical issues of surveillance research from the perspective of the profound transformations that science and…

Abstract

This chapter, based on a sociological approach, addresses the ethical issues of surveillance research from the perspective of the profound transformations that science and innovation are undergoing, as part of a broader shift from modern to post-modern society, affecting also other major social institutions (such as government, religion, family, and public administration). The change occurring in the science and technology system is characterised by diminishing authority, uncertainty about internal mechanisms and standards, and a declining and increasingly difficult access to resources. Such changes, also related to globalisation and new digital technologies, have transformed the way research is conducted and disseminated. Research is now more open and its results more easily accessible to citizens.

Scientific research is also put under increased public scrutiny, while, at the same time, public distrust and disaffection towards science is rising. In such a context, it is more important than ever to make sure that research activities are not compromised by fraudulent and unethical practices. The legitimate expectations of citizens to enjoy their rights, including the ability to protect their private sphere, are growing. Scientific and technological development is deeply interrelated with the widespread awareness of these rights and the possibility of exercising them, but it produces also new risks, while a widespread sense of insecurity increases. The digital revolution, while improving people’s quality of life, offers at the same time new opportunities for crime and terrorism, which in turn has produced a demand to strengthen security systems through increasingly advanced and intrusive surveillance technologies. Misconduct in the field of surveillance may not only undermine the quality of research, but also further impair society’s trust in research and science as well as in the State and its institutions.

Details

Ethical Issues in Covert, Security and Surveillance Research
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-80262-414-4

Keywords

1 – 10 of 138