BIOLOGICAL EFFECTS OF IONIZING RADIATION BASIC INFORMATION AND TUTORIALS

IONIZING RADIATION IMPACT TO BODY
What Are The Biological Effects of Ionizing Radiation?

Information on the biological effects of ionizing radiation comes from animal experiments and from studies of groups of people exposed to relatively high levels of radiation. The best-known groups are the workers in the luminising industry early this century who used to point their brushes with the lips and so ingest radioactivity; the survivors of the atomic bombs dropped on Japan, and patients who have undergone radiotherapy.

Evidence of biological effects is also available from studies of certain miners who inhaled elevated levels of the natural radioactive gas radon and its radioactive decay products. The basic unit of tissue is the cell. Each cell has a nucleus, which may be regarded as its control centre.

Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) is the essential component of the cell’s genetic information and makes up the chromosomes which are contained in the nucleus. Although the ways in which radiation damages cells are not fully understood, many involve changes to DNA.

There are two main modes of action. A DNA molecule may become ionised, resulting directly in chemical change, or it may be chemically altered by reaction with agents produced as a result of the ionisation of other cell constituents. The chemical change may ultimately mean that the cell is prevented from further division and can therefore be regarded as dead.

Very high doses of radiation can kill large numbers of cells. If the whole body is exposed, death may occur within a matter of weeks: an instantaneous absorbed dose of 5 gray or more would probably be lethal (the unit gray is defined below).

If a small area of the body is briefly exposed to a very high dose, death may not occur, but there may be other early effects: an instantaneous absorbed dose of 5 gray or more to the skin would probably cause erythema (reddening) in a week or so, and a similar dose to the testes or ovaries might cause sterility.

If the same doses are received in a protracted fashion, there may be no early signs of injury. The effect of very high doses of radiation delivered acutely is used in radiotherapy to destroy malignant tissue. Effects of radiation that only occur above certain levels (i.e. thresholds) are known as deterministic. Above these thresholds, the severity of harm increases with dose.

Low doses or high doses received in a protracted fashion may lead to damage at a later stage. With reproductive cells, the harm is expressed in the irradiated person’s offspring (genetic defects), and may vary from unobservable through mildly detrimental to severely disabling.

So far, however, no genetic defects directly attributable to radiation exposure have been unequivocally observed in human beings. Cancer induction may result from the exposure of a number of different types of a cell. There is always a delay of some years, or even decades, between irradiation and the appearance of a cancer.

It is assumed that within the range of exposure conditions usually encountered in radiation work, the risks of cancer and hereditary damage increase in direct proportion to the radiation dose. It is also assumed that there is no exposure level that is entirely without risk.

Thus, for example, the mortality risk factor for all cancers from uniform radiation of the whole body is now estimated to be 1 in 25 per sievert (see below for definition) for a working population, aged 20 to 64 years, averaged over both sexes5. In scientific notation, this is given as 4 10 2 per sievert.

Effects of radiation, primarily cancer induction, for which there is probably no threshold and the risk is proportional to dose are known as stochastic, meaning ‘of a random or statistical nature’.

WORKING ON TRANSFORMERS AND CIRCUIT BREAKERS SAFETY PRECAUTION TIPS AND TUTORIALS

SAFETY PRECAUTIONS ON WORKING ON TRANSFORMERS AND CIRCUIT BREAKERS
What Are The Safety Precautions on Working on Power Transformers and Circuit Breakers

Take the following safety precautions when working on transformers and circuit breakers:

• Prevent moisture from entering when removing covers from oil-filled transformers.

• Do not allow tools, bolts, nuts, or similar objects to drop into the transformers. Tie tools or parts with suitable twine.

• Have workers empty their pockets of lose articles such as knives, keys, and watches.

• Remove all oil from transformer covers, the floor, and the scaffold to eliminate slipping hazards.

• Exhaust gaseous vapor with an air blower before allowing work in large transformer cases because they usually contain some gaseous fumes and are not well ventilated.

• Stay away from the base of the pole or structure while transformers are being raised or lowered.

• Ensure that anyone working on a pole or structure takes a position above or well clear of transformers while the transformers are being raised or supported with blocks.

• Ground the secondary side of a transformer before energizing it except when the transformer is part of an ungrounded delta bank.

• Make an individual secondary-voltage test on all transformers before connecting them to secondary mains. On banks of three transformers connected Y-delta, bring in the primary neutral and leave it connected until the secondary connections have been completed to get a true indication on the lamp tests.

• Disconnect secondary-phase leads before opening primary cutouts when taking a paralleled transformer out of service. Do not disconnect secondary neutral or ground connections until you have opened the primary cutouts.

• Do not stand on top of energized transformers unless absolutely necessary and then only with the permission of the foreman and after all possible precautions have been taken. These precautions include placing a rubber blanket protected with a rubbish bag over the transformer cover. Do not wear climbers.

• Treat the grounded case of a connected transformer the same as any grounded conductor. Treat the ungrounded case of a connected transformer the same as any energized conductor because the case may become energized if transformer windings break down.

• Ensure that the breaker cannot be opened or closed automatically before working on an oil circuit breaker and that it is in the open position or the operating mechanism is blocked.

• Ensure that metal-clad switching equipment is deenergized before working on it.

• Ensure that regulators are off the automatic position and set in the neutral position before doing any switching on a regulated feeder.

• Do not break the charging current of a regulator or large substation transformer by opening disconnect switches because a dangerous arc may result. Use oil or air brake switches unless special instructions to do otherwise have been issued by the proper authority.

• Do not operate outdoor disconnecting switches without using the disconnect pole provided for this
purpose.

• Ensure that all contacts are actually open and that safe clearance is obtained on all three phases each time an air brake switch is opened. Do not depend on the position of the operating handle as evidence that the switch is open.

• Do not operate switches or disconnect switches without proper authority and then only if thoroughly
familiar with the equipment.

• Remove potential transformer fuses with wooden tongs. Wear rubber gloves and leather over gloves.

• Do not open or remove disconnect switches when carrying load. First open the oil circuit breaker in series with the switches. Open disconnect switches slowly and reclose immediately if an arc is drawn.

HOTLINE TOOLS SAFETY RULES FOR WORKING BASIC INFORMATION AND TUTORIALS

LINEMAN SAFETY RULES FOR WORKING USING HOTLINE TOOLS
Hotline Tools Safety Rules

Follow these safety rules when working with hot-line tools:

• Do not perform hot-line work when rain or snow is threatening or when heavy dew, fog, or other excessive moisture is present. Exceptions to this rule are when conducting switching operations, fusing, or clearing damaged equipment that presents a hazard to the public or to troops.

• Remain alert. If rain or snow starts to fall or an electrical storm appears while a job is in progress, complete the work as quickly as possible to allow safe, temporary operation of the line until precipitation or lightning ceases. Judgment of safe weather conditions for hot-line work is the foreman's responsibility.

• Perform hot-line work during daylight if possible. In emergency situations, work under artificial light if all conductors and equipment being worked on are made clearly visible.

• Do not wear rubber gloves with hot-line tools because they make detection of brush discharges impossible.

• Avoid holding outer braces or other metal attachments.

• Avoid unnecessary conversation.

• Maintain close cooperation among everyone on the job.

• Treat wooden pole structures the same as steel towers.

• Be careful with distribution primaries. When they are located on the same pole with high-tension lines, cover them with rubber protective equipment before climbing through or working above them.

• Do not change your position on the pole without first looking around and informing others.

• Never use your hands to hold a live line clear of a lineman on a pole. Secure the line with live-line tools and lock it in a clamp.

• Stay below the live wire when moving it until it is thoroughly secured in a safe working position.
Take special precautions on poles having guy lines. Do not use a rope on conductors carrying more than 5,000 volts unless the rope is insulated from the conductor with an insulated tension link stick.

RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN NOISE EXPOSURE AND HEARING LOSS BASIC INFORMATION

WHAT IS THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN NOISE EXPOSURE AND HEARING LOSS
The relationship between noise exposure and hearing loss.

If hearing damage is to be prevented by limiting occupational noise exposure, then it is necessary to have some quantitative understanding of the relationships between sound pressure level, frequency, exposure time and the degree of damage caused.

Having established that there is a risk to hearing, though, it would be unethical to refrain from taking all reasonable measures to prevent it. During the 1960s a great deal of work was done in the UK and the rest of the world to establish the relationships between noise exposure and noise-induced hearing loss.

At that time it was relatively easy to find populations who had worked at one job, and been exposed to steady noise levels, for a number of years. Since then, social mobility, changing patterns of employment, and indeed government action to limit noise exposure, have made it much harder to find large groups of workers whose noise exposure can be logged over several years.

Information on the precise relationship between the various factors influencing hearing damage is therefore incomplete, and a full understanding of the subject will never be achieved. Full understanding is not required, though.

What is needed is sufficient information to frame legislation and advisory procedures which are capable of being put into practice in such a way that occupational hearing damage is reduced and eventually eliminated, without also making essential industrial processes impossible or uneconomical to carry out. This is itself quite a demanding objective.

In studying the relationship between noise exposure and hearing loss a range of questions can be asked. It can be assumed that louder sounds will result in more damage than quieter ones, but more detailed questions include:

. Is there a sound pressure level below which there is no contribution to hearing damage?
. If so, then what is this level?
. If all noise contributes to damage then what is the trade-off between level and damage?
. Does an extended period of noise exposure do the same amount of damage as a series of shorter exposures at the same level?
. Are particular frequencies or ranges of frequencies significantly more damaging than others?
. Is there a link between the frequencies to which the ear is exposed and the frequencies at which hearing loss occurs?

The answers to these questions and other questions will all have consequences for the way in which noise exposure must be measured. In the European Union, an approach to the assessment of noise exposure has emerged which uses the best available answers to these questions.

Each of the assumptions listed below can be challenged, and together they represent a gross simplification of a very complicated area of knowledge. For the time being, they seem to offer a practical way forward to those working to reduce occupational hearing loss, and as stated above, that is the most that can be asked for.

1. All sound energy received by the ear will, in some degree, contribute to hearing damage.
2. The degree of damage is proportional to the amount of sound energy deposited in the ear. That means that a doubling of exposure time is equivalent to a 3 dB increase in sound pressure level. It also means that the total exposure time at a given level is important; breaking the overall time up into shorter periods has no effect.
3. The A weighting system correctly evaluates the contribution of different frequencies to hearing loss.
4. Very high sound pressures can cause damage which may not be reflected in an equal-energy assessment as described above. An additional limit on peak sound exposure can be used to prevent this.

In the United States, rather different conclusions have been reached, and as a result a rather different trade-off between sound pressure level and exposure time is used. This is based on the assumption that a 5 dB increase in level (rather than 3 dB) is equivalent to a doubling of exposure time.

To add to the confusion, for some purposes in the United States 4 dB (rather than 3 or 5 dB) is assumed to be equivalent to a doubling of exposure time. Those carrying out noise exposure assessments in Europe need to be aware of these different practices in order to avoid being misled by procedures or instrumentation intended for American use.

The current European approach to the prevention of occupational hearing damage is based on the principles listed above. The issue is the subject of continuing debate as research into hearing damage continues. Given the difficulties of generating further large sets of data which can be used to refine our knowledge, it seems likely that for the foreseeable future this approach will continue.

SAFE SYSTEM OF WORK - ADDRESSING ELECTRICAL SAFETY AND WORKPLACE SAFETY

SAFE SYSTEM OF WORK - WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
What is Safe System of Work? Basic Tutorials on Safe System of Work

What is a safe system of work?
A safe system of work has been defined as:
Image result for safe system of work
The integration of personnel, articles and substances in a laid out and considered method of working which takes proper account of the risks to employees and others who may be affected, such as visitors and contractors, and provides a formal framework to ensure that all of the steps necessary for safe working have been anticipated and implemented.

In simple terms, a safe system of work is a defined method for doing a job in a safe way. It takes account of all foreseeable hazards to health and safety and seeks to eliminate or minimize these. Safe systems of work are normally formal and documented, for example, in written operating procedures but, in some cases, they may be verbal.

The particular importance of safe systems of work stems from the recognition that most accidents are caused by a combination of factors (plant, substances, lack of training, supervision, etc.). Hence prevention must be based on an integral approach and not one which only deals with each factor in isolation.

The adoption of a safe system of work provides this integral approach because an effective safe system:

➤ is based on looking at the job as a whole
➤ starts from an analysis of all foreseeable hazards, e.g. physical, chemical, health;
➤ brings together all the necessary precautions, including design, physical precautions, training, monitoring, procedures and personal protective equipment.

It follows from this that the use of safe systems of work is in no way a replacement for other precautions, such as good equipment design, safe construction and the use of physical safeguards.

However, there are many situations where these will not give adequate protection in themselves, and then a carefully thought-out and properly implemented safe system of work is especially important.

The best example is maintenance and repair work, which will often involve as a fi rst stage dismantling the guard or breaking through the containment, which exists for the protection of the ordinary process operator. In some of these operations, a permit to work procedure will be the most appropriate type of safe system of work. The operations covered may be simple or complex, routine or unusual.

Whether the system is verbal or written, and whether the operation it covers is simple or complex, routine or unusual, the essential features are forethought and planning – to ensure that all foreseeable hazards are iidentified and controlled. In particular, this will involve scrutiny of:

➤ the sequence of operations to be carried out
➤ the equipment, plant, machinery and tools involved
➤ chemicals and other substances to which people might be exposed in the course of the work
➤ the people doing the work – their skill and experience
➤ foreseeable hazards (health, safety, environment), whether to the people doing the work or to others who might be affected by it
➤ practical precautions which, when adopted, will eliminate or minimize these hazards
➤ the training needs of those who will manage and operate under the procedure
➤ monitoring systems to ensure that the defi ned precautions are implemented effectively.

Assessment of what safe systems of work are required
Requirement
It is the responsibility of the management in each organization to ensure that its operations are assessed to determine where safe systems of work need to be developed. This assessment must, at the same time, decide the most appropriate form for the safe system, that is:
\➤ is a written procedure required?
➤ should the operation only be carried out under permit to work?
➤ is an informal system suffi cient?

Factors to be considered for safe systems of work
It is recognized that each organization must have the freedom to devise systems that match the risk potential of their operations and which are practicable in their situation.

However, they should take account of the following factors in making their decision:
➤ types of risk involved in the operation
➤ magnitude of the risk, including consideration of the worst foreseeable loss
➤ complexity of the operation
➤ past accident and loss experience
➤ requirements and recommendations of the relevant health and safety authorities
➤ the type of documentation needed
➤ resources required to implement the safe system of work (including training and monitoring).