Evaluation of Waste Tire Devulcanization Technologies

(INTERNAL REPORT) CENTERPLASTICS COMPOUND & ADDITIVES Feb. 2011 – M. S. Laura Fontana – Centerplastics Enterprise, Ltd Eastern Industrial Road, zip. 516127, Shiwan Town, Boluo Area, Huizhou, DongGuan, GuangDong, P. R. China PPH Chapter 1 – Introduction Approximately 25 potential devulcanization technology researchers and developers were identified throughout the world, however, only a very small number of devulcanization systems are now operating. These are primarily small-capacity systems, which are devulcanizing natural or synthetic rubbers (as opposed to devulcanizing the mixture of rubbers recovered from waste tires). The general types of devulcanization technologies identified and analyzed in the study are shown below. Technology Basis of Processing Zone of Reaction Chemical Chemicals/chemical reactions Surface of particles Ultrasonic Ultrasonic waves Throughout particles Microwave Microwaves Throughout particles Biological Microorganisms Surface of particles Other Mechanical Steam Surface of particles Key findings Reliable information and data on devulcanization of waste tire rubber are difficult to obtain due to proprietary claims, efforts to hide poor or infeasible process performance and product quality, and the limited number of technology researchers and developers and of peer-reviewed data. Reliable data relating waste tire characteristics, devulcanized rubber quality, end product performance, and production costs is scarce.  · Only a very small number of low-capacity devulcanization systems are operating in the United States (at approximately 50 Kg /hr, all R&D scale, mechanical, or ultrasonic). No proven commercial capacity units could be found that are currently devulcanizing waste tires, for example, at 500 Kg/hr or greater. The likely reasons include insufficient product quality and high costs of production.  · In terms of the potential of producing high-quality devulcanized rubbers (for example, high strength), the best technology appears to be ultrasonic, based on the current state of the art.  · Devulcanization of single rubbers has much more history than that of multi-rubber mixtures such as waste tires. Only a few companies devulcanize single formulation rubber as a result of captive conversion or merchant scrap recovery from manufacturing. The production of devulcanized rubber from home manufacturing scrap in the U. S represents about 1 to 2 percent of total U. S. rubber consumption.  · The quality of devulcanized single rubbers is higher than that of devulcanized multiple rubbers.  · Devulcanization that depends on surface devulcanization technologies (for example, chemical and mechanical) appears destined in the near term to produce low- or medium-quality devulcanized rubber material. The estimated cost for producing devulcanized materials from waste tires is $0. 3 to $0. 6/Kg  ± 30 percent, if including the cost of crumb rubber feedstock. This range of production costs is significantly greater than that of virgin rubbers. A typical tire compound contains the following constituents: Table 1. Composition of Tires Passenger Tire Constituents Common Materials Natural rubber 14 % Natural rubber Synthetic rubber 27% SBR, butadiene rubber Carbon black 28% Carbon black Steel 14%–15% Steel Fabric, fillers, accelerators, antiozonants, etc. 16%–17% Polyester, nylon, aromatic oil, coumarine resin, silica, bonding agent, stearic acid, ntioxidant, processing chemicals, sulfur, zinc oxide Truck Tire Natural rubber 27% Natural rubber Synthetic rubber 14% Synthetic rubber Carbon black 28% Carbon black Steel 14%–15% Steel Fabric, fillers, accelerators, antiozonants, etc. 16%–17% Polyester, nylon, aromatic oil, stearic acid, antioxidant, wax, processing chemicals, sulfur, zinc oxide Source: Rubber Manufacturers Association, 2004. †¢ Reclaiming is a procedure in which scrap tire rubber or vulcanized rubber waste is converted—using mechanical and thermal energy and chemicals—into a state in which it can be mixed, processed, and vulcanized again. The principle of the process is devulcanization (Franta, 1989). Historically and practically, in the concept of rubber reclaiming, devulcanization consists of the cleavage of intermolecular bonds of the chemical network, such as carbon-sulfur (C-S) and/or sulfur-sulfur (S-S) bonds, with further shortening of the chains also occurring (Rader, 1995). This description of devulcanization is different than that given below, which is limited to chemical interactions involving sulfur atoms. †¢ Reclaim is an interesting raw material as it reduces the production costs of new rubber articles, due to shorter mixing times and lower power consumption. The processing temperature is lower, and the material has a higher dimensional stability during calandering and extrusion due to the remaining three-dimensional network. The most important advantage of cured articles containing reclaim in terms of properties is an improvement of aging resistance. †¢ Devulcanization is the process of cleaving the monosulfidic, disulfidic, and polysulfidic crosslinks (carbon-sulfur or sulfur-sulfur bonds) of vulcanized rubber. Ideally, devulcanized rubber can be revulcanized with or without the use of other compounds. The different types of devulcanization processes also modify other properties of the rubbers. These processes cause diminution of some properties over those of the parent rubber. Ideally, devulcanization would yield a product that could serve as a substitute for virgin rubber, both in terms of properties and in terms of cost of manufacture. Polymers can be divided into two groups: thermoplastics and thermosetting materials. Thermoplastics soften when heated, making it possible to (re-)shape them at higher temperatures. Thermosetting materials, like rubbers, are crosslinked on heating and therefore cannot be softened or remodeled by raising the temperature. Therefore, thermosets are more difficult to recycle compared to thermoplastics. The three-dimensional network has to be broken in order to make the material (re-)processable: the so-called reclaiming process. In this process, either sulfur crosslinks connecting the polymer chains or carbon-carbon bonds in the polymer backbone are broken. The first mechanism is preferred, as the backbone of the polymer remains intact. Scission can be obtained by heat, shear or chemical reactions. Basically, processes of rupturing the rubber network by crosslink or main-chain scission can be classified into five main groups. †¢ Thermal reclaiming; †¢ Thermo-mechanical reclaiming; †¢ Mechano-chemical reclaiming; †¢ Reclaiming by radiation, and †¢ Microbial reclaiming. In actual practice, combinations of thermal and mechanical reclaiming are mostly used, with in some cases the addition of a devulcanization aid for chemical reclaiming. 1. 1-Thermal Reclaiming For this kind of processes, heat (often combined with addition of chemicals) is used to break the sulfur bonds and thus to plasticize the rubber. Hall patented in 1858 one of the oldest and most simple processes in the rubber reclaiming industry, the Heater or Pan process (Oil law). In this process, finely ground natural rubber powder is mixed with oils and reclaiming agents and treated with high or medium pressure steam at temperatures varying from 170 °C to 200 °C. The reclaiming time is long and the homogeneity of the reclaim is low, but this process is able to reclaim a large number of polymers: natural rubber (NR), styrene-butadiene rubber (SBR), chloroprene rubber (CR), acrylonitrile-butadiene rubber (NBR) and butyl rubber (IIR) and the equipment is rather inexpensive. The use of the heater or pan process became less popular after Marks patented the Digester or Alkali process in 1899. The fibers of the rubber scrap, remnants of the tire carcass, were first removed by mixing it with alkali, water, plasticizing oils and, if needed, chemical peptizers. The mixture was heated in a jacketed, agitator equipped autoclave to 180-210 °C. The most important disadvantage of this process is the pollution generated by the chemicals. Modifications of this process minimized the pollution, but increased the reaction times. Processes with short reaction times are for example the High Pressure Steam processes or the Engelke process. In the first process, a fiber-free, coarse ground rubber is mixed with reclaiming agents, and reclaiming is done in a high-pressure autoclave at approximately 280 °C. In the latter process, coarse ground rubber scrap is mixed with plasticizing oils and peptizers and is put into small autoclaves. The material is heated to very high temperatures for a short period of 15 minutes, after which it is lead through refiners (mills with very narrow gaps) and strainers. . 1. 1 – Steam With or Without Chemicals (Digester, DD-CR, HTDD-CR) Steam devulcanization of crumb rubber uses a steam vessel equipped with an agitator for continuous stirring of the crumb rubber while steam is being applied. There are two variants of the basis steam process, namely, â€Å"wet† and â€Å"dry. † The wet process uses caustic and water mixed with the rubber crumb, while the dry proce ss uses only steam. If necessary, various reclaiming oils may be added to the mixture in the reaction vessel. In one case, a wet process using diaryl disulfide and reclaiming oils with saturated steam at 190 °C (374 °F) was fed finely ground NR and synthetic rubber scraps. A charge of about 440 lbs. was partially devulcanized after 15 to 17 hours of processing. This process required 12 hours at ambient temperature for pre-treatment and 3 to 5 hours for steam or high temperature treatment (Adhikari, et al. , 2000). The dry process digester has the advantage of generating less pollution than the wet process. Scrap rubber containing natural and synthetic rubbers can be reclaimed by the steam digestion process. Reclaiming oil used for this process has molecular weights between 200 and 1000, consisting of benzene, alkyl benzene, and alkylate indanes. A generic processing diagram for steam devulcanization is shown in Figure A. Figure A. Schematic Diagram of a Steam Devulcanization System Devulcanized Rubber Dehydrating System Steam Reactor Rubber Crumb Chemical(s) Liquid By-Product 1. 2 – Thermo-Mechanical Reclaiming The thermo-mechanical reclaiming processes make use of shearing forces to plasticize the rubber. Energy is introduced into the materials, resulting in a significant temperature increase, high enough to cause thermal degradation. The Lancaster-Banbury process is one of the oldest processes. Fiber-free coarse ground rubber scrap is mixed with reclaiming agents and sheared in a high speed, high-pressure internal mixer. When a continuously working, multiscrew devulcanizer is used instead of the internal mixer, the process is called the Ficker reclaiming process. One of the first continuous reclaiming processes is the so-called reclaimator process. This is basically a single screw extruder that has been adapted to reclaim fibre-free rubber scrap in very short extrusion times. The short extrusion times make this method suitable for SBR, that tends to harden when longer recycling times are applied. Another mechanical reclaiming process is the De-Link process. In this process finely ground rubber powder is mixed with the De-Link masterbatch (DeVulc) : a zinc salt of dimethyldithiocarbamate and mercaptobenzothiazole in a molar ratio of 1:1 to 1:12, dispersed in thiols and activated by stearic acid, zinc oxide and sulfur. Advantages of the process are its simplicity and the fact that standard rubber equipment is used. No evidence is available to demonstrate that the De-Link process is used beyond laboratory or pilot scale. The Toyota process is another development of mechanical reclaiming. In this process a mixture of ground rubber, virgin rubber, oils and a devulcanization aid is masticated on a two-roll mill or in an extruder. Mechanical devulcanization is achieved through the repeated deformation of rubber particles under specific conditions of temperature and pressure. The result is a devulcanized rubber, ready for further processing. Toyota developed another continuous process, Toyota Gosei (TG) combining pulverization, reclaiming and deodorization. The rubber waste has to be ground to a particle size of 5-10 mm before it can be fed into a â€Å"modular screw-type reactor† with a pulverization zone and a reaction zone. The operating temperature is in the range of 100-300 °C and 100-900 rpm screw speeds are applied, the process requires about 100 Kw (kilowatts) to process 200 to 300 kg (kilograms)/hr of rubber, or approximately 0. 4 kW/kg. By manipulating screw configuration and rotational speed, and processing temperature, researchers are able to control the duration of the treatment. In this way they can, to some extent, control the properties of the devulcanizate. The TG process has been primarily, if not exclusively, used to devulcanize specific types of rubber compounds, such as NR and SBR. 1. 3 – Mechano-Chemical Reclaiming Mixing of the rubber powder with a peptizer (chemicals used to reduce the viscosity of NR) and a reclaiming agent prior to the mechanical breakdown of the material improves the reclaiming process. The devulcanization aid is supposed to selectively break the sulfur crosslinks in the rubber network. This chemical breakdown is combined with input of thermal and/or mechanical energy, as the rate of this process is sufficiently high only at higher temperatures. The most common devulcanization aids are disulfides, e. g. aryl disulfides or diphenyl sulfides, thiophenols and their zinc salts and mercaptanes. These chemical compounds are radical scavengers: they react with the radicals generated by chain- or crosslink scission and prevent recombination of the molecules. Typical concentrations for the reclaiming agents are 0. 5 to 4 wt%. Suitable peptizers are aromatic and naphthenic oils with a high boiling point. Figure B. Schematic Diagram of a Chemical Devulcanization System Devulcanization Agent Rubber Crumb Mixer Heated Extruder Devulcanized Filter Dryer Rubber Liquid By-Product Unfortunately, a detailed accounting of test materials, performance parameters, and conditions is lacking, thus inhibiting the extent of interpretation of the data. Comparisons of data are primarily limited to comparing the properties of virgin rubbers with compounds containing the virgin and devulcanized material at concentrations of about 30 percent devulcanized material. As shown by the data in the table, the properties of the mixtures containing devulcanized material are in general moderately lower than those of their virgin counterparts. The reported data reflect two different types of chemical devulcanization technologies. Table 2. Properties of Waste Tire Rubber Devulcanized Using Chemical or Chemical/Mechanical Technology Generic Technology Technology Surrogate Test Rubber Compound s % Devulc (or Ground) Mat'l Mooney Viscosity (ML-4 @ 212 °F) Tensile Strengt h (lbs/in2) 300% Modulus (lbs/ in2) Elongation to Break (%) Chemical STI-K Polymers DeLinka NR 0 61. 9 4,270 1,987 534 NR w/devulc NR 30 72. 3 4,020 2,151 489 Virgin SBR (1520) 0 96. 6 3,880 3,059 358 SBR (1520) w/devulc SBR 30 109. 2 3,580 2,923 345 Chemical/ Mechanical LandStar/ Guangzhou Research Instituteb NR 100 28. 4 680 SR 100 17. 2 514 AMRc Powder (devulc. additive) 100 23. 9 640 Tread Tire Compoundd 0 20. 3 772 28. 6 19. 7 628 Light Duty Truck Tire Compounde 0 23. 8 536 28. 6 20. 5 500 1. 4 – Reclaiming by Irradiation Bond type Dissociation energy (KJ/mol) C-C 349 C-S 302 S-S 273 Polysulfidic 253 Table 3. Typical bond energies 1. 4. 1 – Ultrasonic Rubber devulcanization by using ultrasonic energy was first discussed in Okuda and Hatano (1987). It was a batch process in which a small piece of vulcanized rubber was devulcanized using 50 kHz ultrasonic waves after treatment for 20 minutes. The process apparently could break down C-S and S-S bonds, but not carbon-carbon (C-C) bonds. The properties of the revulcanized rubber were found to be very similar to those of the original vulcanizates. One continuous process for devulcanization of rubbers is based on the use of high-power ultrasound electromagnetic radiation. This is a suitable way to recycle waste tires and waste rubbers. The ultrasonic waves, at certain levels, in the presence of pressure and heat, can quickly break up the three-dimensional network in crosslinked, vulcanized rubber. The process of ultrasonic devulcanization is very fast, simple, efficient, and it is free of solvents and chemicals. The rate of devulcanization is approximately one second. This may lead to the preferential breakage of sulfidic crosslinks in vulcanized rubbers. (Isayev, 1993; Yu. Levin, et al. , 1996; Isayev, et al. , 1997; Yun, et al. , 2001; Yun & Isayev, April 2003). Under a license from the University of Akron for the ultrasonic devulcanization technology, NFM Company of Massillon, Ohio, has built a prototype of the machine for ultrasonic devulcanization of tire and rubber products (Boron, et al. 1996; Boron, et al. , 1999). It was reported that retreaded truck tires containing 15 and 30 weight percent (percent by weight) of ultrasonicallydevulcanized carbon black-filled SBR had passed the preliminary dynamic endurance test (Boron, et al. , 1999). Extensive studies on the ultrasonic devulcanization of rubbers, and some preliminary studies on ultrasonic decrosslinking of crosslin ked plastics, showed that this continuous process allows recycling of various types of rubbers and thermosets (Isayev, 1993; Hong & Isayev, 2002 (pp. 160–168); Shim, et al. 2002; Shim & Isayev, 2003; Gonzalez-de Los Santas, et al. , 1999). As a consequence of the process, ultrasonically-devulcanized rubber becomes soft, therefore enabling this material to be reprocessed, shaped, and revulcanized in very much the same way as virgin rubber. This new technology has been used successfully in the laboratory to devulcanize ground tire rubber (commonly referred to in the industry as GRT) (Isayev, et al. , 1995; Yun, et al. , 2001; Boron, et al. , 1996), unfilled and filled rubbers N (Hong & Isayev, 2001; Yu. Levin, et al. , 1996; Isayev, et al. , 1997; Diao, et al. 1998; Shim, et al. , September 2002; Ghose & Isayev, 2003), guayule rubber (Gonzalez-de Los Santas, et al. , 1999), fluoroelastomer, ethylene vinyl acetate foam, and crosslinked polyethylene (Isayev, 1993; Isayev & Chen, 1994). After revulcanization, rubber samples exhibit good mechanical properties, which in some cases are comparable to or exceeding those of virgin vulcanizates. Structural studies of ultrasonically-treated rubber show that the breakup of chemical crosslinks is accompanied by the partial degradation of the rubber chain; that is, the C-C bonds (Isayev, et al. , 1995; Tukachinsky, et al. 1996; Yu. Levin, et al. , 1997 (pp. 641–649); Yushanov, et al. , 1998). The degree of degradation of C-C bonds can be substantial, depending on conditions. The mechanism of rubber devulcanization under ultrasonic treatment is presently not well understood, unlike the mechanism of the degradation of long-chain polymer in solutions irradiated with ultrasound (Suslick, 1988). Ultrasonic devulcanization also alters the revulcanization kinetics of rubbers. The revulcanization of devulcanized SBR appeared to be essentially different from those of virgin SBR (Yu. Levin, et al. , 1997, pp. 120–1 28). The induction period is shorter or absent for revulcanization of devulcanized SBR. This is also true for other unfilled and carbon black-filled rubbers such as ground rubber tire (GRT), SBR, natural rubber (NR), ethylene propylene diene monomer (EPDM), and butadiene rubber (BR) cured by sulfur-containing curative systems, but not for silicone rubber cured by peroxide. Ultrasonically-devulcanized rubbers consist of sol and gel. The gel portion is typically soft and has significantly lower crosslink density than that of the original vulcanizate. Due to the presence of sol and soft gel, the devulcanized rubber can flow and is subject to shaping. Crosslink density and gel fraction of ultrasonically-devulcanized rubbers were found to correlate by a universal master curve (Yushanov, et al. , 1996; Diao, et al. , 1999; Yushanov, et al. , 1998). This curve is unique for every elastomer due to its unique chemical structure. In a comparative analysis of ultrasonically reclaimed unfilled SBR, NR and EPDM rubbers, it was found that it was more difficult to reclaim EPDM than NR and SBR. Reclaiming of EPDM roofsheeting resulted in a good quality reclaim, which after revulcanization showed more or less equal mechanical properties compared to the virgin compound. The surface smoothness of the revulcanized compounds could be controlled by the process conditions. Most companies marketing ultrasonic devulcanization technologies are utilizing very similar technologies involving cold feed extruders and varying physical arrangements of ultrasonic equipment. Ultrasonic devulcanization technology is actually composed of a â€Å"devulcanization system†Ã¢â‚¬â€ namely, extrusion and ultrasonic processing. Two key differences in some cases are the equipment and materials used to generate the ultrasonic energy required for the process, and the positioning of the transducer(s) relative to the extruder. Two different arrangements of ultrasonic devulcanization systems are shown in Figures C and D. In this type of devulcanization system, size-reduced rubber particles are loaded into a hopper and are subsequently fed into an extruder. The extruder mechanically pushes and pulls the rubber. This mechanical action serves to heat the rubber particles and softens the rubber. As the softened rubber is transported through the extruder cavity, the rubber is exposed to ultrasonic energy. The resulting combination of heat, pressure, and mechanical mastication is sufficient to achieve varying degrees of devulcanization. The time constant of the devulcanization process takes place in seconds. Essentially all of the rubber entering the process is discharged from the extruder in semi-solid product stream. Process losses would be primarily those due to emissions of fine particulates or of gases, if any, generated due to the mechanical and thermal processes occurring during the devulcanization process. After exiting through the extruder die, the rubber is passed through a cooling bath and then dried. Figure C. Schematic Diagram of an Ultrasonic Devulcanization System Showing a Mid- Extruder Location for the Ultrasonic Subsystem Ultrasonic Processing Zone Cooling Bath Devulcanized Rubber Extruder Rubber Crumb Feed Hopper Figure D. Schematic Diagram of an Ultrasonic Devulcanization System Showing the Ultrasonic Subsystem Located at the Discharge End of the Extruder Ultrasonic Processing Zone Cooling Bath Devulcanized Rubber Feed Hopper Extruder Rubber Crumb Table 4. Properties of Waste Tire Rubber Devulcanized Using Ultrasonic Technology Technology Surrogate Test Rubber Compound s % Devulc or (Ground) Mat'l Mooney Viscosity (ML-4 @ 212 °F) Tensile Strength (lbs/in2) 100% Modulus (lbs/ in2) 300% Modulus (lbs/ in2) Elongation to Break (%) U of Akron SBR 1848a 0 2,415 740 780 SBR (1848) w/devulc SBRa 10 1,075 790 540 SBR (1848) w/whole train reclaima (10) 1,940 760 660 SBR (1848) w/30 mesh buffingsa (10) 1,440 780 480 100% NR (SMR CV60) & 0% SBR (23. 5% bound styrene, and Duraden 706)b 0 3,263 116 670 NR (SMR CV60) & 25% SBR (23. 5% bound styrene, and Duraden 706)b 0 1,885 123 600 NR (SMR CV60) w/devulc SBR (23. 5% bound styrene, and Duraden 706)b 25 580 123 380 NR (SMR CV60) & 50% SBR (23. 5% bound styrene, and Duraden 706)b 0 406 131 390 Technology Surrogate Test Rubber Compound s % Devulc or (Ground) Mat'l Mooney Viscosity (ML-4 @ 12 °F) Tensile Strength (lbs/in2) 100% Modulus (lbs/ in2) 300% Modulus (lbs/ in2) Elongation to Break (%) NR (SMR CV60) w/devulc SBR (23. 5% bound styrene, and Duraden 706)b 50 363 123 320 NR (SMR CV60) & 75% SBR (23. 5% bound styrene, and Duraden 706)b 0 363 145 295 NR (SMR CV60) w/devulc SBR (23. 5% bound styrene, and Duraden 706)b 75 276 131 250 100% SBR (23. 5% bound styren e, and Duraden 706)b 0 290 152 200 100% SBR (23. 5% bound styrene, and Duraden 706)b 100 290 138 180 Table 5. Percent Change from Virgin with Selected Devulcanization Rubber Formulations Test Rubber Compounds (grade) Parts or % % Devulc. or (Groun d) Mat'l. Hardnes s Shore Tear Strengt h Tensile Strengt h 100% Modulu s 300% Modulu s Elongatio n to Break Chemical STI-K Polymers DeLinka NR w/devulc NR 30 -5. 9% 8. 3% -8. 4% SBR (1520) w/devulc SBR 30 -7. 7% -4. 4% -3. 6% Kyoto Universityb Truck tire (93 NR+ 7 BR) 84 NR+ 6 BR + 20 devulc 18 8. 1% -2. 3% 2. 6% 0. 0% 74 NR+ 6 BR + 40 devulc 33 12. 9% -11. 9% 28. 2% -17. 4% 65 NR + 5 BR + 60 devulc 46 11. 3% -19. 1% 23. 1% -13. 0% LandStar/Guangzhou R Ic 100 SIR 10 + 50 devulc SIR vs. Case 1 33 4. 3% -23. 7% 6. 7% -6. 7% SIR vs. Case 2 33 6. 5% -23. 0% 11. 5% -8. 6% Tread Tire Compound 0 NR + 30 SR + 20 CIS-BR +40 AMR 28. 6 6. 7% -17. 3% -3. 0% -18. 7% Light Duty Truck Tire Compound 30 NR + 70 SR + 0 CIS-BR + 40 AMR 28. 6 1. 6% -10. 9% -13. 9% -6. 7% Retread Tire Compound c65 NR + 35 SR +40 AMR 28. 6 6. 3% -8. 6% -10. 3% -16. 8% Ultrasonic University of Akrond Versus Akrochem SBR (1848) SBR w/devulc SBR 10 -55. 5% 6. 8% -30. 8% Test Rubber Compounds (grade) Parts o r % % Devulc. or (Groun d) Mat'l. Hardnes s Shore Tear Strengt h Tensile Strengt h 100% Modulu s 300% Modulu s Elongatio n to Break SBR w/whole Tire Reclaim 10 -19. 7% 2. 7% -15. 4% SBR w/30 Mesh Buffings 10 -40. 4% 5. 4% -38. % Natural Rubber and SBR versus devulc Base 100% NR (SMR CV60) & 0% SBR (23. 5% bound styrene, and Firestone Duraden 706) 0 Add 25% SBR, 75% NR 0 -42. 2% 6. 3% -10. 4% Devulc SBR replaces SBR 25% devulc SBR, 75% NR 25 -69. 2% 0. 0% -36. 7% 50% devulc SBR, 50% NR 50 -10. 7% -5. 6% -17. 9% 75% devulc SBR, 25% NR 75 -24. 0% -10. 0% -15. 3% SBR versus devulc SBR 100% devulc SBR 100 0. 0% -9. 5% -10. 0% Heavy carbon-blacked rubber is the hardest to devulcanize, and silica, or other mineral-filled EDPM, is the easiest. Reincorporation of the devulcanized rubber is typically in the 20 to 40 percent range. Devulcanized single-product rubber applications are wide ranging. The reclaimed product may be reintroduced into the same end product or one with more tolerant performance characteristics for the devulcanized rubber. Devulcanized rubber seems to have advantages in bonding, strength, and tread integrity above the properties of crumb rubber, which acts only as a â€Å"rubber†-like filler. According to one developer of a devulcanization process, about 3 to 10 percent of the final product can be blended into virgin material before performance properties are affected. Variations of a few percent are reported by developers of devulcanization when they vary process run conditions. Run-to-run variations are normally acceptable. Devulcanized single rubber products have a much lower degree of degradation than multiple rubber mixtures with devulcanized rubber. Virgin single-grade SBR—or natural rubber replacement with devulcanized material shown by the STI-K and the University of Akron datasets —has, at worst, a reduction of 10 percent in tensile strength, modulus, or elongation. In some cases, the addition of devulcanized rubber causes a major reduction in performance of some properties, along with improvements in one or two properties (hardness and modulus). Because the modulus is the measure of deformation—that is, tension (stretching), compression (crushing), flexing (bending), or torsion (twisting). Similarly, the increase in hardness could be an improvement or detraction, depending on the application. The devulcanized rubber properties displayed are not necessarily optimized for a specific end use. Formulators will likely be able to incorporate devulcanized rubber along with other formulation components to achieve a higher level of final product performance. Key product performance variables are level of contamination, number of rubber types in the rubber mixtures, and additives used by the formulations. The effect of additives was discussed previously under â€Å"Product Characteristics. † The number of types of rubber in waste tires is one of the most important factors affecting quality of devulcanized waste tire rubber. Optimizing a devulcanization process is very difficult when more than one type of rubber is involved. Depending on the process used, process conditions, the material, and the blending level of the devulcanized rubber, most properties will be reduced by a few percent to more than two-thirds of those of the virgin material. In situations where the devulcanized rubber properties are within 10 percent of the original rubber material, blending would seem to be an attractive opportunity that offers the potential of adding a low-cost recycled substitute. The best operating model for devulcanizers of single rubber formulation is a dedicated devulcanization line (or long run) of specific rubber. Smaller volumes of single formulations require incurring extra costs for downtime and lost product caused by the cleanout between runs. The devulcanized rubber itself and some of its additives and fillers—such as carbon black— presumably add value. These fillers take the place of new additives and fillers that would otherwise be necessary. 1. 4. 2 – Microwave Microwave technology has also been proposed to devulcanize waste rubber (Fix, 1980; Novotny, et al. 1978). This process applies the heat very quickly and uniformly on the waste rubber. The method employs the application of a controlled amount of microwave energy to devulcanize a sulfur-vulcanized elastomer— containing polar groups or components—to a state in which it could be compounded and revulcanized into useful products such as hoses. The process requ ires extraordinary or substantial physical properties. On the basis of the relative bond energies of C-C, C-S, and S-S bonds, the scission of the S-S and carbon-sulfur crosslinks appeared to take place. However, the material to be used in the microwave process must be polar enough to accept energy at a rate sufficient to generate the heat necessary for devulcanization. This method is a batch process and requires expensive equipment. Figure E. Schematic Diagram of a Microwave Devulcanization System Rubber Crumb Microwave Unit Devulcanized Rubber Cooling System 1. 5 – Microbial Reclaiming Thiobacillus-bacteria are able to oxidise the sulfur in polysulfonic bonds to sulphate. This reaction is limited to a surface layer of the rubber with a thickness of less than 1 ? and the oxidation takes several weeks. The thiophilic bacteria Sulfolobus Acidocaldarius is able to split carbonsulfur bonds in a stepwise oxidation reaction of the carbon-bound sulfur into a sulfoxide, a sulfone and finally to a sulphate8, 9. The disadvantage of these processes is the low devulcanization rate. Apparently, these types of biological devulcanization processes are exclusively or primarily limited to the surface layers of the elastomers (Christiansson, et al. , 1998). This circumstance may explain the overall low rates of desulfurization based on total mass processed. Figure F. Schematic Diagram of Biological Devulcanization System Microorganisms and Host Media Mixer/ Reactor Rubber Crumb Devulcanized Rubber Dryer Filter By-Product Gases Liquid By-Product Chapter2 – Cost Analysis Given the lack of information in the literature, the cost estimates are based on a synthesis of information and data from multiple sources for a given generic type of technology; The analysis was generally performed by determining the costs (capital and operating and maintenance) of the processes and equipment described in the available literature. The cost analyses were conducted for three technologies that use different processing approaches: chemical, ultrasonic, and mechanical. * The key processing elements of each of these technologies have been previously described in this report, and they serve as the primary basis of estimating capital and operating and maintenance costs. The data in Table 6 summarize the capital costs and operating and maintenance costs for the technologies analyzed. The data for the capital cost analysis include an allowance for engineering services for the construction of the facility. The information shows that the capital costs for the processes vary from about $92,000 to about $166,000. ** Insufficient technical information and data were found during the study to enable reliable cost analyses for other devulcanization technologies. Table 6. Estimated Unit Costs for the Production of Devulcanized Rubber Item Mechanical Chemical Ultrasonic Capacity (lb/hr) 100 75 75 Capital Cost ($) 92,000 166,000 163,000 O Cost ($) 135,000 172,000 136,000 Amortized Capital and O ($) 143,000 186,000 150,000 Amortized Unit Cost ($/lb) 0. 7 1. 2 1. 0 Interest rate: 6% per year; Amortization period: 20 years Similarly, the data in the table indicate that the operating and maintenance costs for facilities of this type range from about $135,000 to $172,000. The operating cost estimates include the cost of crumb rubber feedstock for each of the processes. Based on the relative small size of the facilities, the costs of the rental of a building for processing in operating and maintenance are included. This eliminated the cost of building a structure. As shown in the Table, the estimated amortized costs for producing devulcanized rubber are: $1. 0/lb for the ultrasonic process, $1. 2/lb for the chemical process, and $0. 7/lb for the mechanical process. The analysis used an interest rate of 6 percent per year and an amortization period of 20 years. Due to uncertainties represented by the lack of detailed technical data and operating history for the technologies, the accuracy of the cost estimates is +/- 30 percent. As mentioned earlier, these costs reflect production at low capacities. Some reduction in unit cost would likely occur due to economies of larger scale production. However, estimating reduction in unit cost is difficult because of the lack of data relating to production costs to different levels of throughput capacity for particular devulcanization technologies. For the size of operations considered in this analysis, labor costs are a substantial portion of the production costs. It is very difficult, however, to estimate the magnitude of any potential reductions in unit labor costs that might occur if processing capacities were increased substantially. All circumstances considered, any estimates of commercial production costs for devulcanization of waste tire rubber are highly speculative at best. The best estimate of the study team is that perhaps production costs could be reduced by 25 to 30 percent if processing capacities were increased by a factor of approximately 5 to 10. The estimates of processing costs developed in this study do not include the costs of pollution control. The chapter lists the types of emissions that could be expected. The difficulty of permitting such a process and the cost of compliance with environmental regulations may comprise a significant barrier to the implementation of this technology. Conceivably, pollution control costs could add 10 to 30 percent to the cost of devulcanization. The difficulty of permitting—and the cost—would be a function of the type of devulcanization technology, the processing rates, and other factors. In general, the expectation is that the cost of environmental control systems for chemical devulcanization systems would be greater than that for ultrasonic or mechanical processes. The composition of rubber and additives that are used in rubber compounds in the manufacture of vulcanized rubber can and do have a dramatic effect on the properties of materials manufactured from devulcanized rubber. Apparently, the inferior properties of some poorly (inadequately) devulcanized rubber can be compensated for by the addition of chemicals and the adjustment of operating conditions, among other remedies. In many cases in the literature, this situation is not addressed or discussed. Consequently, comparing devulcanization technologies is difficult. From most of the literature descriptions of the processes, what happens to the sulfur and other vulcanization chemicals during the various processes is unclear. Chapter 3 – Environmental Analysis Little information is available in the literature on the environmental effects associated with waste tire devulcanization technologies. The lack of information apparently exists because business developers and researchers have concentrated their efforts primarily on technology improvements and achieving satisfactory properties for devulcanized rubber, an estimation of emission rates and a detailed environmental analysis are therefore not possible. However, using data and information from some other types of tire manufacturing processes (for example, extrusion of rubber) and the characteristics of vehicle tires, a qualitative analysis was performed. The environmental analysis described subsequently is limited to chemical and ultrasonic devulcanization and assumes that control of emissions would be required. 3. 1 – Chemical technology Chemical devulcanization processes are usually batch processes that involve mixing crumb rubber with chemical reactants at a specific temperature and pressure. Once the design reaction time has elapsed, the contents are then rinsed, filtered, and dried to remove any remaining unwanted chemical components. The product can then be bagged or otherwise processed for resale. A block flow diagram of a generic chemical devulcanization process is illustrated in Figure G, showing the raw material feed is crumb rubber. The crumb rubber is mixed with one or more devulcanization agents. Chemical agents identified as devulcanization agents are listed in Table 8. During processing in the batch reactor, vapors are released that must be collected and treated before release to the ambient atmosphere. Typical types of vapors that might be emitted from a batch reactor are listed in Table 9. The chemicals that would be vented from the batch reactor are dependent on the characteristics of the waste tire feedstock and on the chemical agent(s) used in devulcanizing the crumb rubber. For example, if disulfides are used in the process, they could result in formation of hydrogen sulfide (H2S) or methyl or other mercaptans (RSH). If the chemical agent orthodichlorobenzene is used, chlorinated hydrocarbons could potentially be released in the form of air emissions. Methyl iodide is volatile, and if used as a devulcanization agent, it could be vaporized. Since tire manufacturing utilizes zinc oxide and zinc carbonate, chemical devulcanization might also produce airborne metal particulates. Once the batch is fully processed, the reactor is vented. The vent gases are treated prior to release to the atmosphere. The vapors cannot be treated by vapor phase carbon because these chemicals will plate out and blind the carbon, making it ineffective. Instead, the vapor from the batch reactor needs to be thermally oxidized. At the high exit temperatures, typically as high as 2000 °F (1100 °C), the thermal oxidizer vent gases need to be cooled in a quench tower to approximately 300 °F (150 °C). Then, to remove any metals or other particulate, the vent gases are piped to a baghouse. Because of the high thermal oxidizer temperatures, methyl mercaptans (RSH) or hydrogen sulfide (H2S) from the crumb rubber is oxidized to sulfur dioxide (SO2). Therefore, downstream of the baghouse, a scrubber is required to remove sulfur dioxide (SO2), as shown in Figure G. Scrubbed vent gases are then released to the atmosphere. In addition to the scrubber vent gases described above, liquid waste is generated from the scrubber. This liquid stream contains sodium sulfate (Na2SO4). This liquid waste can be disposed in receiving waters such as a river, stream, or bay. However, discharging to receiving waters will require a significant amount of treatment equipment and eventually a permit. As seen in Figure G, the devulcanized rubber is moved from the batch reactor to a separator by a heated extruder. Liquid that drips off the devulcanized rubber is removed in the separator and eliminated by feeding it to the same thermal oxidizer as the vent gases from the batch reactor. After the liquid has dripped off the devulcanized rubber in the separator, any remaining moisture is removed in the dryer. Fired dryers are typically fueled by natural gas burners. Dryer vent gases are piped to the common thermal oxidizer. Based on the concentration of solids in the scrubber effluent, processing the scrubber effluent through a filter press to dewater the solids may be necessary and cost-effective. Filter-pressed dewatered solids are called â€Å"filter cake. Filter cake might require disposal in a hazardous waste site. Even though the waste disposal site may accept the scrubber effluent water, the economics may favor installation and use of a filter press. This is necessary to dewater the solids due to the high cost of disposal of liquid waste. Figure G. Block Flow Diagram of a Chemical Devulcan ization System Solids H2O Batch Reactor Heated Extruder Separator Crumb Rubber Devulcanization Agent 300 ° F Liquids Devulcanized Rubber Dryer Natural Gas Vapors Thermal Oxidizer Quench Tower Baghouse Natural Gas Scrubber 2000 ° F 300 ° F H2O Air Emissions Air Emissions to Atmosphere Effluent Water Table 7. Tire Raw Materials Polymers Antiozonants Natural Rubber (polyisoprene) 2,2,4-trimethyl-1,2-dihydroquinoline (polymer) Styrene-Butadiene Rubber (SBR) n,n-(1,3-dimethylbutyl)-pphenylenediamine cis-Polybutadiene copolymer paraffinic wax Vulcanizing Agents Antioxidants Sulfur Alkylphenols Tetra-methyl thiurame sulfide Resorcinol Accelerators 2,6-Diterbutylhydroquinone Diphenylguanidine Retarders 2-Mercaptobenzothiazole n-Cyclohexylthiophthalimide n-Cyclohexyl-2-benzothiazolylsulfenamide Plasticizers 2-(n-Morpholinyl)-mercaptobenzothiazole Aliphatic oil Hexamethylenetetramine Aromatic oil Activators Naphthenic oil Zinc oxide Di-(2-ethylhexyl)-phthalate Zinc carbonate Extenders Stearic acid Silica gel Carbon black Table 8. Chemical Agents Used in Chemical Tire Devulcanization Processes Triphenyl phosphine Sodium di-n-butyl phosphite Thiol-amine reagents (specifically propane-thiol/piperidine, dithiothreitol, and hexane-lthiol) Lithium aluminum hydride Phenyl lithium Methyl iodide Hydroxide with quaternary ammonium chloride as a catalyst Orthodichlorobenzene Diphenyldisulphide Diallyl disulfide Toluene, naphtha, benzene, and/or cyclohexane, etc. in the presence of sodium Diamly disulfide Dibenzyl disulfide Diphenyl disulfide Bis(alkoxy aryl) disulfides Butyl mercaptan and thiopenols Xylene thiols Phenol sulfides and disulfides Alkyl phenol sulfides (for SBR) N,N-dialkyl aryl amine sulfides (for SBR in neutral or alkaline solutions) 3. 2 – Ultrasonic technology Devulcanization by ultrasonic methods may be a continuous process (see Figure H). As the figure illustrates, crumb rubber is loaded into a hopper and is subsequently fed into an extruder. The extruder mechanically pushes and pulls the rubber. This mechanical action serves to heat the rubber particles and soften the rubber. As the softened rubber is transported through the extruder cavity, the rubber is exposed to ultrasonic energy. The resulting combination of ultrasonic energy, along with the heat, pressure, and mechanical mastication, is sufficient to achieve varying degrees of devulcanization. The exposure time to the ultrasonic energy is only seconds. Essentially all of the rubber entering the process is discharged from the extruder in a semi-solid product stream. Process losses would be primarily emissions of fine particulate or of gases, if any, resulting from the mechanical and thermal applications occurring during devulcanization. Since the typical operating temperature of an ultrasonic devulcanization reactor is about 230 °F (110 °C), less vapor emission would be expected than from chemical devulcanization. Furthermore, since no chemicals are added to break the sulfur bonds that caused vulcanization to occur, there would likely be lower air emissions. After exiting through the extruder die, the rubber is passed through a cooling bath and then dried. Vented vapors would need to be treated by one of two methods. One method would be to use a small thermal oxidizer. The design of the thermal oxidizer, baghouse, and scrubber would be similar to that described previously for chemical devulcanization. However, the physical size of the oxidizer would be smaller, and the baghouse and scrubber would be larger. A second method to treat the vent gases exiting the ultrasonic devulcanization reactor would be use of vapor phase carbon. In this method, due to the lower operating temperatures of the ultrasonic process, vent gas exiting the ultrasonic zone would have to be heated above the dew point temperature. If this elevation in temperature is not accomplished, the vent gases could condense on the surface of the carbon and thus blind the bed. In other words, adsorption sites on the surface of the carbon would be ineffective, and vent gases would exit the carbon bed untreated. If vapor phase carbon were to be used, the capital cost would be less than that of a thermal oxidizer. However, carbon is not very efficient. Weight loading can be approximately 10 weight percent—in other words, adsorbing ten pounds of vent gas contaminants for every 100 pounds of carbon used. Use of carbon will have a relatively high operating cost. Also, the disposal of spent carbon can be very expensive. This is especially true if the spent carbon requires disposal at a hazardous waste disposal site. Even if the carbon is regenerated on-site, adsorption efficiency decreases after each regeneration. Typically, carbon can only be regenerated ten times. For illustration purposes, Figure H indicates the use of vapor phase carbon. Devulcanized rubber exiting the ultrasonic processing zone has to be cooled. A common method of reducing the rubber temperature is a cooling bath. The volume of cooling water used would be significant. Cooling water may become ontaminated from the process; this effluent water leaving the cooling bath has to be treated. If an air cooler such as fin fans is used in lieu of water in the cooling bath, the volume of effluent liquid would be reduced. Another alternative would be to use a closed-loop cooling system, where the cooling water is cooled and returned to the process for reuse. If there is a buildup of contaminants, a small slipstream could be taken off and treated in a POTW, greatly reducing the amount of effluent that would otherwise require treatment. Figure H. Block Flow Diagram of an Ultrasonic Devulcanization System Ultrasonic Processing Zone Cooling Bath Devulcanized Rubber Feed Hopper Extruder Crumb Rubber Cooling Water Supply Effluent Water Heater Air Emissions Baghouse Carbon Air Emissions to Atmosphere Table 9. Potential Types of Chemical Compounds Emitted by Chemical and Ultrasonic Devulcanization Technologies Compound Probable Source Benzene Plasticizers: Aromatic oil Methylcyclohexane Plasticizers: Na phthemic oil Toluene Plasticizers: Aromatic oil Heptane Plasticizers: Aliphatic oil 4-Vinylcyclohexene Polymers: Natural Rubber (polyisoprene), styrene-butadiene rubber (SBR), cis- Polybutadiene Ethylbenzene Plasticizers: Aromatic oil Octane Plasticizers: Aliphatic oil p-Xylene Plasticizers: Aromatic oil Styrene Polymers: styrene-butadiene rubber (SBR) Nonane Plasticizers: Aliphatic oil 1,4-Cyclohexadiene-1-isopropyl-4- methyl Polymers: Natural Rubber (polyisoprene) Isopropylbenzene Plasticizers: Aromatic oil Cyclohexene-1-methyl-3-(1- methylvinyl) Polymers: Natural Rubber (polyisoprene) Propylbenzene Plasticizers: Aromatic oil Benzaldehyde Polymers: styrene-butadiene rubber (SBR) 1-isopropyl-4-methylcyclohexane (trans) Plasticizers: Naphthemic oil 1-isopropyl-4-methylcyclohexane cis) Plasticizers: Naphthemic oil 1-isopropyl-3-methylcyclohexane Plasticizers: Naphthemic oil Decane Plasticizers: Aliphatic oil Tri-isobutylene Polymers: styrene-butadiene rubber (SBR) & cis-Polybutadiene; Plasticizers: Naphthemic oil Cyclohexene-5-methyl-3-(1- methylvinyl) Polymers: Natural Rubber (polyisoprene) Indane Plasticizers: Naphthemic oil 1-Isopropyl-4-methylbenzene Plasticizers: Aromati c oil Cyclohexene-1-methyl-4-(1- methylvinyl) Polymers: Natural Rubber (polyisoprene) 1-Isopropyl-2-methylbenzene Plasticizers: Aromatic oil Dimethylstyrene Polymers: styrene-butadiene rubber (SBR) Undecane Plasticizers: Aliphatic oil Tetramethylbenzene Plasticizers: Aromatic oil 1,2,3,4-Tetrahydronaphthalene Plasticizers: Naphthemic oil 1,3-Di-isopropyl benzene Plasticizers: Aromatic oil 1,4-Di-isopropyl benzene Plasticizers: Aromatic oil Compound Probable Source 2-Isopropyl-6-methylphenol Antioxidents: Alkylphenols Cyclohexylisothiocyanate Retarders: n-Cyclohexyl-thiophthalimide Cyclododecatriene Polymers: cis-Polybutadiene Dodecane Plasticizers: Aliphatic oil Tridecane Plasticizers: Aliphatic oil Tetraisobutylene Polymers: styrene-butadiene rubber (SBR) & cis-Polybutadiene; Plasticizers: Naphthemic oil -ter-Butylstyrene Polymers: styrene-butadiene rubber (SBR) Dimethylpropylhexahydronaphthale ne Plasticizers: Naphthemic oil Tetradecane Plasticizers: Aliphatic oil Nonylbenzene Plasticizers: Aromatic oil 2,6-Di-ter-butyl-p-quinone Antioxidents: 2,6-Diterbutyl-hydroquinone Pentadecane Plasticizers: Aliphatic oil 1,6-dimethyl-4-isopropyl-1,2,3,4- tetra-hydronaphthalene Plasticiz ers: Naphthemic oil Decylbenzene Plasticizers: Aromatic oil Di-ter-butylthiophene Plasticizers: Aromatic oil Diethyl phthalate Plasticizers: Di-(2-ethylhexyl)-phthalate Hexadecane Plasticizers: Aliphatic oil ,2-Di-tolylethane Polymers: styrene-butadiene rubber (SBR) Heptadecane Plasticizers: Aliphatic oil 2,6-Di-ter-butyl-4-ethylphenol Antioxidents: Alkylphenols Octadecane Plasticizers: Aliphatic oil 1-Phenylnaphthalene Plasticizers: Aromatic oil Di-iso-butyl phthalate Plasticizers: Di-(2-ethylhexyl)-phthalate Tridecylbenzene Plasticizers: Aromatic oil Dibutyl phthalate Plasticizers: Di-(2-ethylhexyl)-phthalate Eicosane Plasticizers: Aliphatic oil Heneicosane Plasticizers: Aliphatic oil Docosane Plasticizers: Aliphatic oil Di-(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate Plasticizers: Di-(2-ethylhexyl)-phthalate Chapter 4 – Conclusions Devulcanization of specific types of rubber and/or waste tire rubber has a long history. However, only recently have limited technical data been reported in the available literature. Usually when reported, the tested properties of devulcanized rubber compose an incomplete list. This is especially true in the interpretation of how the devulcanized product would perform during compounding, in the manufactured end product, or both. Circumstantial and anecdotal evidence indicates significant technical and economic barriers to devulcanization of waste rubber. Based on the information collected in the study, is believed that the only method of achieving bulk devulcanization, as opposed to surface devulcanization, rests with ultrasonic or microwave devulcanization methods. Of these two methods of energy application, ultrasound appears to have substantially more research and development history. An important observation is that microwave technology is not an effective or efficient way to devulcanize non-polar rubber types, which collectively compose the vast majority of the mass of rubber in waste rubbers. Because of the ability to internally devulcanize cured rubber, ultrasonically devulcanized waste tire rubber may have more desirable marketing characteristics than those of surface-devulcanizing processes under similar conditions of cost and yield. The latter processes (surface devulcanizing) include mechanical, chemical, and biological processes. However, test data and applications for ultrasonically devulcanized waste rubber are lacking in the industry, along with process cost documentation. The devulcanized rubber market is most fully developed for single product materials made from manufacturing scrap that are reclaimed for reuse in the same process or in a broader specification application. The reprocessing of single rubbers depends upon being located near a large-volume rubber products company with enough scrap and enough rubber applications to justify the devulcanization step. Devulcanization of waste rubber, despite considerable research and developmental effort, is still in an early growth stage. Devulcanization lacks adequate test data and data interpretation, and it has poorly defined end product specifications without adequately justified and defined applications and uses. Research funds appear to be most available for studying devulcanization of single rubber types, as opposed to studying rubber types with complex mixtur. In applications already using crumb rubber, devulcanized rubber can have advantages if the process combines a vulcanized rubber or other compatible material to create an integrated structure. The structure must have much better properties than those imparted by the filler role that crumb rubber frequently serves.

Natural Disasters and Health Care

Impact of Natural Disasters on Health Care Submitted by – Dalton Divakaran MS Health Care Management University of Texas at Dallas Index Introduction Types of Disasters Effects of Disaster on Economy Effect of Disaster on Health Care Organization * Sudden Influx * Damage to Facilities * Inadequately Prepared * Specialty Treatment Availability Effects on the Population * Immediate Health Impact * Long-Term Impacts Steps in Disaster Management * Mitigation * Preparedness * Response * Recovery Real Incident Study * Background: * Immediate Response Considerations: * Evacuation: Special Immediate Concerns: * Recovery Process: * Facility Considerations: * Lessons Learned at This Point in Response/Recovery: * Takeaways from this incident: Conclusion References Introduction According to dictionary. com Disasters means â€Å"a calamitous event, especially one occurring suddenly and causing great loss of life, damage, or hardship, as a flood†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Disasters such as Earthquakes, tsunamis, floods, hurricanes, tornados, epidemic disease outbreaks and more can damage any population and have a tremendous effect on the health care organizations that respond.Many health care organizations face major challenges during natural disasters. There are many different causes for those challenges. According to the International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, in 2002, international disasters affected 608 million people and killed more than 24,000. The recent natural disaster in the United States for this year 2011(May 22, 2011) was the tornado Joplin in Missouri; 160 fatalities were reported in this natural disaster. Types of Disasters I. Natural disasters E. g. : Avalanches, Earthquakes, Volcanic eruptions. II. Hydrological disastersE. g. : Floods, Tsunamis. III. Meteorological disasters E. g. : Blizzards, Cyclonic storms, Droughts, Hailstorms, Heat waves, Tornadoes, Fires. IV. Health disasters E. g. : Epidemics, Famines V. Space disasters E. g. : Impact events, Solar flares, Gamma ray burst. VI. Technological disasters: E. g. : Chemical spills. VII. Complex emergencies: E. g. : Civil wars and conflicts. Effects of Disaster on Economy Developing countries suffer more economic losses than developed countries. The common factor is that, the poor are the ones who suffer the most, in both developed and developing nations.Although the total economic loss in dollars is greater in developed countries, the percentage of losses relative to the gross national product in developing countries far exceeds that of developed nations. Technological disasters and complex emergencies are not easily predictable. The major source of disasters in the 21st century may be due to rapid increase of Technological hazards, unregulated industrialization of developing countries and the globalization of the chemical industry. Effect of Disaster on Health Care Organization Sudden Influx * The biggest challenge after an aftermath is to provide emergency t reatment.The sudden influx of patients to a facility and the need for emergency responders in many places at the same time puts a strain on the health care organizations in the local area. Outside sources like the Red Cross would pitch-in for help in rescue and relief operations in the following days of the incident. However, the responsibility of handling the initial emergency care lies with the local health care departments. Damage to Facilities * The other effects of natural disaster are the lossdegrading of equipment and facility due to sudden spurt in the patients handled at the same time.The demand for all possible medical resources is the possibility that some of the resources may not be available because of direct damage from the natural disaster itself. For example floods may disrupt power supply required to run many equipments at the rescue center. Inadequately Prepared * Even though areas are more susceptible to certain natural disasters, such as earthquakes along a fault line or tornados in the South, they still strike with little or no warning. This throws the health care’s schedule out of the ordinary routine. The facility may not be completely prepared for what comes next.Emergency preparedness plans improve the chances that the organization will be able to respond effectively in the event of a natural disaster, whatever said and done it is never a guarantee that when and what magnitude a calamity occurs. Specialty Treatment Availability * Some disasters are not common like the storms, earthquakes and tsunamis. Epidemic outbreaks of infectious disease are something which needs utmost care to stop them from spreading to the others. It is not just to take care of emergency relief but also to quickly and efficiently protect the rest of the population.It is more challenging when there is no existing vaccine or known treatment. At this instance the role of health care organizations becomes even more important. These organizations must work to treat the patients and protect themselves while labs attempt to figure out a way to stop the infection from spreading. Effects on the Population A population’s vulnerability to all types of disasters depends on demographic growth, settlement in unsafe areas, environmental degradation, the pace of urbanization, unplanned development and climate change. Poverty thrives due to lack of access to healthy and safe environment.Poor education and awareness also poises risk to population. The effects of disaster on population can be broadly categorized into: 1. Immediate Health Impact 2. Long-Term Impacts These are explained below: Immediate Health Impact Short-term losses fall under three categories that have both direct and indirect effects: I. Disability, Illness, and Death; II. Direct losses in infrastructure; and III. Loss or disruption in health care delivery. Long-Term Impacts It is primarily a matter of building institutional ability and human resources, and includes: I.Identi fying vulnerability to natural hazards or other calamities; II. Building simple solutions for such occurrence in the future; III. Initiating a changedevelopment among the main factors to develop a basic plan that outlines the responsibilities of each factor in the health sector, identifying possible overlaps or gaps and building a consensus to create an effective healthcare system; IV. Maintaining close collaboration with these main factors; and V. Educating the first health responders and managers to face the special challenges of responding to disasters.Steps in Disaster Management * Mitigation – To minimize the effects of disaster. Examples: Zoning; Vulnerability analyses; Public education. * Preparedness – Planning how to respond. Examples: Preparedness plans; Emergency exercises/training; Warning systems. * Response – Efforts in minimizing the hazards created by a disaster. Examples: Search and rescue; Emergency relief, Finding alternative sources for relie f. * Recovery – Restore the community or organization to business as usual. Examples: Temporary housing; Grants; Medical care. Mitigation Preparedness Response RecoveryFig: Phases of Disaster Management Mitigation Mitigation is to reduce the intensity of a risk. Mitigation activity decreases the probably of the same disaster reoccurring. It includes vulnerability analyses updates; zoning and land use management; building use regulations and safety codes; preventive health care; and public education. Preparedness Preparedness is to have the health care crew on toes during an emergency situation. It is to achieve a level of readiness to handle any emergency situations. Preparedness can take form of education of rescue elief during emergencies.This may include rehearsals as well. Also it helps to ensure an optimum reserve of medicine, food, water, equipments and other essentials maintained for emergencies. Like mitigation activities, preparedness actions also depend on the appro priate measures in national and regional development plans. Response Response is to react to emergency situations to maintain life, sustain injuries and support the morale of the affected. It also includes providing transport, temporary shelter and food for the affected. Charitable organizations often play a major role in this phase of the disaster management cycle.Recovery Recovery is to bring back the affected population to normal life. Recovery measures both short and long term, include restoring life with minimum operating standard, temporary shelter, reconstruction and economic impact studies . This period brings many opportunities to boost prevention, increase vigilance and thus reducing helplessness. Real Incident Study August 2, 2011 Medical Response to Joplin Tornado May 22, 2011 Background: A tornado warning was issued by the National Weather Services on May 22, 2011 at 5:17 p. m. The tornado was rated an EF-5 with winds exceeding 200 mph.It traveled from west to east alon g 32nd street cutting a path ? to 1 mile wide over 13. 8 miles. The tornado eye was approximately 300 yards wide. Mercy St. Johns Hospital took a direct hit, initial and secondary, on the west facade with duration of approximately 45 seconds. There was a pause as the eye passed through the facility. * 160 deaths in the community resulted from this storm. * 8000 structures were destroyed. 400 businesses destroyed, * 8 school buildings destroyed, * 18,000 vehicles destroyed and * 4,500 jobs displaced. When St.Johns took the direct hit from the tornado initially the generators were destroyed, the roof was destroyed and most of which landed in the parking lots and on top of other facility equipment. All communications was immediately lost. The facility fire suppression sprinklers discharged and lines were broken. Several walls and floors were damaged. Doors were torn from their hinges, all of the glass was blown out of the building except the high impact shatter resistant glass in the p sychiatric ward, gas lines were broken, sewer lines were destroyed with raw sewage projected throughout the facility, and 86 medical offices were destroyed.The oxygen tank was severely damaged and discharged all of the liquid oxygen. There was a strong smell of natural gas throughout the building and all over the campus. Water discharged by the fire suppression system left the rooms and hallways with 3 to 6 inches of standing water. The air evacuation helicopter was destroyed. Typically the helicopter would have been moved to a local airport; however, the storm track did not predict impact to the hospital and there weather conditions prevented safe flight. All Hospital’s vehicles, except a John Deere tractor, were destroyed and the emergency trailer was found in pieces several blocks away.Everyone in the facility panicked that they were going to die, nurses evacuated patients to the hallways per their procedures and at the time of impact nurses covered patients with their bod ies to offer as much protection as possible. IV’s were ripped from patients’ arms, the IV poles became projectiles, and several patients were bleeding as a result. The ceilings collapsed, electrical, IT, and HVAC equipment dropped and littered the hallways. All emergency lights and exit signs were ripped from their mounts and were useless. Both incident command centers were destroyed and Emergency Operations Plans (EOP) lost in the debris.The facility was filled with hazardous waste and the radioactive material was unsecured. Outside debris was mixed and power lines were down. Note: If the tornado had moved just two blocks south Freeman would also have been destroyed. Freeman did suffer some physical damage that resulted in internal evacuation of at least 6 patient rooms. Immediate Response Considerations: There were many immediate considerations that had to be made. If the generators were started, then there was an extremely high probability of electrocution and possi ble explosion from natural gas.Various ways for communication should be arranged. Communications is not yet interoperable. Security forces and public safety could not communicate with each other due to variation is radio systems. Ambulance radios became the communication infrastructure during the initial response. Staff management is vital. Sufficient staff should be available for relief. Drug dispensing machines are useless in this type of a disaster. Staff had to break into the machines to gain access to life saving drugs. ID badges need to be backed up with wallet identification cards for employees.Several staff members lost their homes and automobiles and the badges went with them in many cases. National Guard troops refused to allow staff into the area because of no identification. Pharmacies need to be guarded with armed security. Have strong security so that people won’t run away with cars they do not own. The hospital needs access to several utility terrain vehicles ( UTV) for equipment and patient transport. Same uniform, common identification and common radio frequencies are required for the security team for easy identity. Remember that even the staffs require food, water and rest.Evacuation: Within a few hours St. Johns evacuated 183 patients, completed one surgical case while the storm was in progress, had 1 patient in the PACU, 24 ED patients and 28 critical care patients were among the evacuees. Evacuation was a tough job. This rescue team used what is described as the reverse START process found in our evacuation plan. The team discharged most of the patients they could. Some had no home to go to and opted to stay in the health care system as long as possible. Patient tracking was a nightmare. It took about 4 days to positively locate all of the evacuated patients.Many were sent to hospitals a great distance from St. Johns. The usage of heliport was not practicable and two temporary heliports were constructed in the parking lot. Anything that could be used to move a patient was used. Hospital evacuation sleds, mattresses, doors, wheelchairs, and mattresses were used to move patients down 9 flights of stairs that were dark and littered with debris. The Hospital had three predetermined collection points (muster stations) to evacuate to. This helped them to identify the patients and giving accountability for staff. Special Immediate Concerns:Staffs and physician homes were looted while they were trying to save other. There were attempts to loot property and drugs from the hospital and physicians’ offices. Hospitals need deployable incident command centers rather than fixed. Intra-operation communications was an immediate and continuing concern. Security forces could not be identified since they came in variety of uniforms. There was no common identification and no common radio frequency. Hospitals need the ability to install at least a 6’ steel chain link fence around the perimeter as soon as possible fol lowing the initial event.Know your staff was personally affected by the storm, many lost family members and homes. Many were not prepared to see the level of trauma and had difficulty dealing with the reality of this event. Nearly all required debriefing and employee support services. Special equipments are required for immediate rescue. Know whom your local, state, and federal response partners are and have an established relationship with them prior to any event. In an event of this magnitude, if you try to survive in your facility you cannot do it. You will need to evacuate the facility as soon as safe to do so.Everyone should be included during the planning process. It is important to acknowledge that although a given natural disaster may last for only a short period; survivors can be involved with the disaster aftermath for months or even years. Recovery Process: The first step is security of the facility and campus. The next morning after the event the mass evacuation was comp lete and the facility was cleared. As stated earlier, contracted security forces need to be in the same uniform and on the same radio frequencies as the Hospital security forces so that the recovery process goes smooth.Arrangement for vehicles and fuel should be done and agreements must be in place to have them delivered from locations outside the affected area. The types of vehicles needed should be predetermined. The delivery mechanism should be established very effectively to even work without any phone service. Tent operations became the first means of providing medical services followed by portable facilities. Facility Considerations: During Disasters even emergency power outlets may not operate. Assuming you can use a power generator, consider the following facilities: * Camera’s intended for security purpose should be on power generator. Lighting on emergency power needs to be evaluated. * Exit signs, stairs should be marked with photo luminescent tape or paint. * Know ledge on how to shut down utilities and medical gases quickly and establish a protocol for this procedure. * Proper lightning should be maintained in parking lots and facility areas during recovery phase. * The facility should be considered unstable until cleared by structural engineers. * Secure wiring, HVAC components, piping and light fixtures correctly above ceilings. * Plan for rapid deployment and connection trailer mounted equipment, portable buildings, and portable equipment. Debris removal is lengthy and complex. Lessons Learned at This Point in Response/Recovery: * Intra department communication is a must. If the Hospital and response partners are not on common frequencies then effective communication will not be possible. * Purchase solar charging stations for cellular phones and radio batteries. * Social networks or texting services may not be available during disaster. Effective alternative ways to communicate should be taught to the staffs. * Telephone landlines and su pport from IT are vital. Electronic Medical Records were essential to the continuum of patient care and for identification of practitioners who were in the facility at the time of impact. * Know that your reserve supplies will be inadequate or may be lost. A 96 hour cache of supplies may last as few as 4 hours because of the unanticipated demand. * If the generators operated the potential exists for several deaths by electrocution or explosion. * Stairwell lighting will be lost. JCMH egress lighting is all generator fed with no battery emergency lighting. * Manage staff and provide staff support, including mental health services.This will help them in taking quick decision. * Security of the building is critical. You have to protect your resources. * Badges will be lost during this type of event. Have wallet identification cards for your staff. Takeaways from this incident: * What you practice is what you do. * Knowledge of response partners, local, state, and federal. * Rehearsals with your community partners for rescue related activities. * Add patient slippers/shoes to your weather plan. Have on bed during Code Grey Level I. * Warehousing emergency supplies and to make it easily accessible even without transport facility. Have emergency kits throughout the facility with pens, pencils, paper, and medical record forms. Also include gloves, masks, flashlights, and batteries. * Develop a common triage tag and process. It is best to have a standard triage system. Share and follow it with all of the hospitals in your region. * You need to develop a rapid response team for security and a component of the security team will need to be armed. * Staff adequately during such events. * Efficient disbursement of supplies (Medicines, food etc) among staff for patient care and personal use. Consider staff physical and psychological needs – shift relief, food, rest, and debriefing. * Many storms usually have a follow- up storm and to be ready to minimize damage caus ed to structure and building (eg: Glass debris)during such events.. * The Joint Commission will arrive on site to assist with reestablishment of services and they proved to be a valuable resource. * Establish â€Å"Scrub Racks† with many sizes of scrubs to keep staff in suitable clothing. Conclusion Natural disasters are crisis situations. However, with planning, costly and ineffective interventions can be avoided.Improvisation and rush inevitably come with a high price, and there are many things health officials ought to avoid— preferential use of expatriate health professionals; emergency procurement and airlifting of food, water, and supplies that often are available locally or that remain in storage for long periods of time; the tendency to adopt dramatic measures— all contribute to making disaster relief one of the least cost effective health activities. . The occurrence of a major disaster can be the initial catalyst that helps health authorities recognize that disasters are a public health risk that must be addressed in an organized manner.Yet, preparedness cannot wait. A continual effort is needed to reduce possibility, by decreasing weakness through elimination and minimization and by increasing potential through ability methods. There needs to be a continuum between normal development, preparedness, and disaster response activities. Disasters are not likely to decrease in the foreseeable future. A sustained effort is needed to minimize risk, by reducing vulnerability through prevention and mitigation and by increasing capacity through preparedness measures.Disasters need to be addressed on a long-term and institutionalized basis through an established ministry of health program or department for prevention, mitigation, preparedness, and response for all types of disasters. References * Environmental health in emergencies and disasters: A practical guide. WHO, 2002. * Disaster Help, US Department of Homeland Security. * Green Pape r on Disaster Management, Department of Provincial and Local Government, South Africa * http://www. ehow. com/list_6847852_effects-disasters-health-care-organizations. tml#ixzz1epfIqgRL * Guide to Emergency Management Planning in Health CareBy Joint Commission Resources, Inc * http://www. scsrc. org/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/Joplin_Tornado_Trip_Report. pdf * http://www. himss. org/content/files/ambulatorydocs/BridgeheadWhitePaper_HealthcareDisasterRecovery. pdf * http://www. healthcaredisasterplanning. org/ * http://www. sans. org/reading_room/whitepapers/hipaa/disaster-recovery-healthcare-organizations-impact-hipaa-security_1336 * http://pandemic. wisconsin. gov/docview. asp? docid=14447 * http://www. dcp2. org/file/121/

Blood Diamonds Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Blood Diamonds - Essay Example Diamonds are commonly associated with glamour, love and affluence but the discovery that they were financing conflicts in Sierra Leone, The Congo, Liberia and Angola took the ‘shine off the stone.’ â€Å"In some African countries, such as the Democratic Republic of Congo tens of thousands of civilians have over the past years been killed or tortured and millions have been displaced† (International Secretariat, 2006). Many came to realize that they not only financed genocide and other acts of vulgar inhumanity by purchasing a diamond but were also wearing and flaunting this symbol of human suffering. The main source of this horrific revelation to the world community was last year’s movie ‘Blood Diamond’ which attempted to alert the masses to the atrocities occurring in Africa. Until then, this situation was largely ignored by Western governments and news media. In one scene of the movie, the character Maddy Bowen witnesses a massive refugee camp that contains more than a million displaced, poverty stricken, desperate people and says â€Å"we’ll only get a glimpse of it in CNN, somewhere between Sports and Weather† (Zwick, 2006). Rebel militias deal in the illegal diamond trade for many reasons. The most obvious is that diamond’s value-to-weight ratio is very high which allows for great amounts of capital to be easily transported. Diamonds are mined with low-profile, rudimentary tools and in various regions, many of which are remote making it all but impossible to adequately patrol. Additionally, determining the source of individual diamonds is tremendously problematical although efforts have been made in this respect such as the Angolan government issuing tamper-proof ‘certificates of origin.’

Vaccines for Children Computer Input Manual Research Paper

Vaccines for Children Computer Input Manual - Research Paper Example We have adopted Vermont Immunization Registry (IMR) at the Family Medical Center, which is a powerful tool to ensure proper treatment and timely immunization. This has helped in saving many by ensuring that the right vaccine is administered to the children (Maciosek et al., 2006). The efficiency of the offices is also improved since the required time to gather review records of immunization is reduced. When there is a disease outbreak, it is very easy for public health departments to identify those individual at risk by the use of registry. Gap Analysis Although the applied registry is efficient, it is not fully implemented in our Family Medical Centre. Problem Analysis Learning how to operate our registry is very important. This is because its computerized application, which is to some extent complicated, needs qualified personnel to be able to fill in the data. Rationale of Importance of Problem Our healthcare facility is accredited with vaccines for children. Data input should be correctly done to be able to guide on the appropriate type of vaccine administered and the relevant time to vaccinate. If this is not achieved, there will be a loss of program, and services will not be offered to the public.

CASE STUDY tree Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

CASE STUDY tree - Essay Example It will also help Joan overcome the exceptional situation she is put in. There are various vital points that Joan needs to establish in order to justify her decision to follow the recommendation made by one of her officers that the 16-year-old mentally retarded boy should be provided with a community based treatment. She has to prove all her arguments valid to the reporter and therefore the following points may be put across in justification of the decision. May go about finding fault with the decision taken and rearrange the entire policy in a way that an experienced and more efficient officer is given the responsibility of the entire activity regarding the matter wherein he plays a key role. Although all these are possibilities, the chief probation officer should take the most innovative and judicious steps to see the plans of Joan are carried forward and realized as such an action alone could help the specific case to be resolved. Therefore, he needs to act with extra maturity and consciousness. The recommendation made by the probation officer in relation to the specific case of the 16-year-old child may be criticized on various levels. However, when the facts about the specific case are considered, these criticisms prove to be without any room. There is no situation in which the officer is making an escape from the responsibility. Many often the longevity of probation officers is treated as reason for stress and/or burnout and they â€Å"are more likely to leave the position or try to avoid additional work.† (Peak, 2001). Conversely, the recommendation of the officer is not based on any such reasons. It is a correct recommendation to make considering the given facts. It is particularly notable that the recommendation and the decision with regard to the specific case must be followed through and if any type of

Education Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 10

Education - Essay Example To me education means more than the custom representation of a room and someone giving the instructions, the teacher, while others takes the instruction, underlying the assumption that these instructions are supposed to be beneficial to the individual. For instance, how many days in the calendar year is someone supposed to attend school and how much of these new skills is one supposed to learn in a single day? This would purely lie on the definition of education and measure of its significance from the learner and the society’s point of view. The classical definitions of education will explain the subject and units one is supposed to take or guided through by an instructor within a given period of time. The time may take weeks, months or even years depending on the education structure of the country with scholarly terms such as terms and semesters in place (Education Review, 6). This would be the total sum of the subject the learner is taken through within the period which in most cases the monitoring of the progress is done through continuous assessment tests and the end of term or semester examinations. This does not give the quantifiable definition of what education is and the subjects of the assessment tests may not necessarily cover the â€Å"amount† the learner has acquired. So, what exactly is education and how much does the learner need to â€Å"absorb† so as to be termed as â€Å"fully educated†? Historians and theorists have come up with definitions in an attempt to holistically define origin of education and the measure to evaluate how much one needs to have achieved to be regarded as â€Å"educated†. They argue â€Å"education derived from Latin word â€Å"Educatum† which means the act of teaching or training†, while others claim â€Å"education originated from Latin word â€Å"Educere† meaning to â€Å"lead forth† or to â€Å"come out†. Some

Food security and Bioterrorism Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Food security and Bioterrorism - Essay Example government of United States gives utmost importance and significance to food security due to which, it assures that in any kind of problematic situation, people will be provided with proper food items (Singer, 1997). Due to the country’s well-managed food items, the country also makes financial benefit in food products and is considered a major economy in the world (Fogel, 2004). All the food products and the ways that are employed for the transportation of food products predict themselves as an imperative part of United States financial system (Singer, 1997). In the past few years, United States is threatened by many revolutionary terrorism attacks. The government of United States considers the importance of availability of food to its citizens in case of any attack from terrorists. FBI is active in getting all the information about any possible attacks on any part of the State (Paquette, 2002). It is also assessed that the assailants can attack by biological means that comes under bioterrorism, which means that biological means like virus, bacteria, parasite or any other toxic materials can be employed by the bioterrorists to conduct their attack on food items (Wagner, Moore and Aryel, 2006). A proper strategy is designed for people working with food items and drinks to ensure that the process is free of any kind of contamination and all the food resources are properly analyzed in terms of the healthiness of the food items (Brown, et.al, 2008). Packing of each food product is ensured by the food associations related to government and it is considered a crime to overlook the rules set by the food associations in terms of food security (Singer, 1997). The transporters and suppliers of food products are hired after assessing their details and after assuring that they are reliable people (Fogel, 2004) Water, other drinks and food products are analyzed by means of machines about their healthy state before making them available to public (Brown, et.al,

Global Financial Management & Summary Assignment

Global Financial Management & Summary - Assignment Example Increase in the price of oil is one of those major events. Oil is an important and essential raw material for running airline business service. Without it, the company will not be able to provide their airlines services to its domestic and international customers. In the last year 2013, increase in the high oil price also increased the operational costs of this company and as a result, price of flight ticket was comparatively higher than the normal situation and this price was not affordable to all income groups. As a result the company was starting to lose its competitive advantages in the global market. Again this is observed that salaries and bonuses paid to the senior level managers are more than the amount of dividends which the company distributed among its investors. This situation created some unsatisfactory issues among investors. The investors are now not interested for further investing their money in this business and they are moving to the other competitor companies whic h are existing in the same industry. So the company is going to lose its capital for further progress of its business activities. In the year 2014, El Al Airlines Ltd announced that it cannot provide security services to abroad as the Finance Ministry has approved less amount of budget than the required amount for the purpose of security. This will also decrease the amount of revenue in the business if competitors can provide the same facilities to the customers. As this company is doing business across the national borders so fluctuation of exchange rate and currencies in different countries will also affect the financial condition of this business. The recent Euro crisis is one of its examples which affect the activities of this business in a worst way (Madura, 2014). The competition of airline services is increasing in the global market and so many emerging and existing companies are providing more cost effective offers to the customers and through this

Health Care Reform and Nursing Profession Term Paper

Health Care Reform and Nursing Profession - Term Paper Example A study conducted by the World Health Organization (1999) revealed that the health care system in United States ranked 37th in overall performance and 72nd in overall level of health among 191 nations reviewed in the study. Again, according to the U.S. Census Bureau (2012), the number of people without health insurance coverage rose from 49.0 million in 2009 to 49.9 million in 2010. A recent study also revealed that more than 44,800 excess deaths occur annually in U.S. due to lack of insurance (Wilper, Woolhandler, Lasser, McCormick, Bor, & Himmelstein, 2009). These were the major driving factors that led to the release of the health care reform act, also called the patient protection and affordable care act or the PPACA. The U.S. Health care reform act extends healthcare coverage to nearly 32 million people by providing subsidies for people who cannot afford insurance on their own, developing consumer-friendly rules clamped on insurers, offering tax breaks and developing marketplace s to shop for insurance plans (Frellick, 2010). This act gives new opportunities to nurses to deliver care and play a vital role in leading change. It challenges nurses to do more to prevent diseases, provide chronic care management especially to the growing geriatric population and offer end-of-life care that focus on comfort and compassion. Following are some of the provisions in the healthcare reform that affect nurses: Reauthorization of Title VIII Nursing Workforce Development Programs The new healthcare reform reauthorized some of the major workforce development grant programs like advanced education nursing, workforce diversity grants, nursing education, practice and retention grants and nursing student and nurse faculty loan programs (Health Resources and Services Administration, n.d.). In 2010, $243 million was allocated towards Nursing Workforce Development Programs (Wood, 2011). These programs have been made available to promote nursing education through loan repayment an d scholarship programs and ensure that there are enough nurses to care for the growing healthcare needs in the future. These grant programs under the Public Health Service Act are the chief source of federal funding for nursing education (Frellick, 2010). Nurse-Managed Health Clinics The passage of the U.S. 2010 Health care reform act has resulted in the authorization of nurse-managed health clinics (NMHCs) which are nurse practice arrangements where advanced practice nurses serve as primary care providers, managers and administrators (Esperat, Hanson-Turton, Richardson, Debisette, & Rupinta, 2012). NMHCs provide health care services ranging from basic health promotion and disease prevention approaches to full service primary care including chronic disease management programs to the underserved populations and is associated with a school, college, university or department of nursing, federally qualified health center or an independent non-profit health or social service agency (Espe rat et al., 2012). These NMHCs provide a ‘safety net’ for medically underserved populations in crucial health care access points in areas where primary care physicians are in short supply (Frellick, 2010). In 2010, the Human Resources and Services Administration released $14.8 million in prevention fund dollars to support grants to 10 NHMCs, but this funding was not renewed in

Reasons for Investing in Malaysia Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Reasons for Investing in Malaysia - Essay Example It has long coastlines on both peninsulas. 63.6% of the population is between the ages of 15-64 years. The currency is the ringgit whose value fluctuates seasonally at between 3.3 and 3.8 to the US dollar. Malaysia is a highly stable country. It takes on a Westminster democratic structure of governance with Sultan Mizan Zainal Abidin as the ceremonial monarch and head of State. The Prime Minister Mohammed Najib bin Abdul Razak is the current prime minister and head of government. The premier rises to power by virtue of leading the largest party in the lower House of Representatives. In the bicameral representation structure, there is an upper house consisting of 70 Dewan Negara (Senators) and (Dewan Rakyat) the lower house with 222 elected representatives. This structure has ensured stability and continuity. Before British rulers united it, Malaysia consisted of several autonomous states. The British joined them into the Federation of Malaya later to be known as Malaysia. After independence in 1963, there was a brief period of armed conflicts, which came to an end after the renegade state of Singapore was expelled from the federation. Since then, the country has been very stable. The majority of the population is made up of Malays with significant portions of Chinese and Indians. Malay is the official language while Islam is the official religion. However, Islamic law is only applied to the Muslims in matters concerning family and religious issues such as divorce, custody, and inheritance only. (Zainal et al 1994) Another obvious advantage is that the level of bureaucracy in Malaysia, especially when establishing a new business, is low and user-friendly. It takes about two or three licenses to invest depending on the nature of the intended business. Malaysia is classified as a medium developing country.  

High School Dropouts Essay Example for Free

High School Dropouts Essay It’s been known for years that young people who do not earn a high school diploma face many more problems later in life than people who graduate. Dropouts are more likely to be unemployed, have poor health, live in poverty, be on public assistance, and be single parents. It all began in the 1960’s when students started to drop out due to the racial discriminations and gang violence. . High school drop outs have been a very serious problem in the United States. Here in this essay I will clarify how high school dropouts is a problem that should be solved. High school dropouts have been a continuous matter for many generations. Pregnancy, poor grades, truancy, low income, and bad behavior are the main causes of dropouts. Which leads for young people to more likely to unemployed, live in poverty and be depending on the help of the government. Approximately 7,000 high school students drop out every school day, which translates to one in three students. Once students make the decision to drop out, they lack the tools to compete in todays society and diminish their chances for greater success in the future. Many years of failure and frustration can also lead for a person to dropout. The loss of motivation, source of support and encouragement lead students to not believe in them selves and only find the solution to drop out. Now in days, there are many options for high school dropouts. The government offers students to enroll themselves in vocational and trade school or non traditional schools. Which allow students to finish the rest of their credits or receive there GED. Vocational schools allow for students to study the field in which they are interested in. This is an effective option as most students that drop out struggle with some classes, but excel in a class that they enjoy. Of course the best solution is for students to stay in school, but if a student is going to drop out there are options to help him or her get the education and experiences to help him or her to succeed. There is defiantly many advantages in these programs. Dropouts have the opportunity at a second chance to be successful. The only disadvantage there can possibly be only relies on the individual. The person is the only responsible one and it is up to them if they truly want to commit themselves to an education. If the person does not commit themselves they will only loose the chance and go back to the possibility of being unemployed or getting paid minimum wage for the rest of there life. It is important for young people to take school seriously in order to prevent a very unfortunate future. In my opinion I think that the best solution is to stay in school. It will prevent people from having to deal with unemployment and poverty. Staying school will allow students to achieve there goals and most of all make others feel proud of you as well. High school can defiantly open many doors only if he or she is committed to their education and motivated. It is time for people to make a difference and speak to future generations regarding there education. Preventing dropouts can certainly change the world in the future.

Introduction Applied Performance Practices Business Essay

Introduction Applied Performance Practices Business Essay Financial Rewards is the most fundamental applied performance practice in organizational settings. Pay has multiple meanings, such as symbol of success, reinforcer and motivator, reflection of performance, reduce anxiety and so on. The meaning of money also varied. There are four types of rewards in the workplace: Membership and Seniority Based Rewards -Represent the largest part of most pay checks and fixed wages, seniority increases. Job Status-Based Rewards -Include job evaluation and status perks. Competency-Based Rewards -Pay increases with competencies acquired and demonstrated. Performance-Based Rewards -An overview of some of the most popular individual, team, and organizational performance based rewards. Besides that, company will have their own way to increase the job effectiveness and improving the company performances. Below are the type of way: Job Design- The process of assigning tasks to a job, including the interdependency of those tasks with other jobs. Job Specialization The result of division of labor in which work is subdivided into separate jobs assigned to different people. Job Rotation- The practice of moving employees from one job to another. Background of the Coca-Cola Company Soft drinks are getting popular nowadays. There are so many soft drinks company around the world. One of the most popular beverage company is Coca-Cola Company. The Coca-Cola Company, produces a variety of soft drinks and consumer products. Coca-Cola was founded in May 1886 by Dr. John S. Pemberton in Atlanta, Georgia, a pharmacist. There was a time when Pemberton actually trying to concoct a headache remedy, but once he mixed his special syrup with carbonated water, a brand new taste drink is created. He let some of his customers tasted the result, and they praised for the awesomeness of the drink. He realized that he has successfully created something new and it is the popular soda fountain beverage. The name of Coca-Cola was coined by his bookkeeper, Frank Robinson. Later on, a businessman, Asa Griggs Candler has purchased it and introduced it as a carbonated soft drink in the market. Then Coca-Cola dominated the market of carbonated soft drinks throughout the 20 century. Coca-Cola has also became one of the global market leaders in the beverage industry. The branch of Coca-Cola has spread all over the world, such as North America, Eurasia, Africa, Europe, Latin America, and Pacific. There are approximate more than 500 non-alcoholic beverage brands owned or licensed by the Coca-Cola company, mainly sparkling beverages but also a variety of still beverages, such as waters, enhanced waters, juices and juice drinks, ready-to-drink teas and coffees, and energy and sports drinks. Being the worlds largest beverage distribution system, there are more than 200 consumers enjoy their beverages at a rate of more than 1.8 billion servings a day. Coca-Cola also rank among the worlds top 10 private employees with more than 700,000 system employees. The Company competes with PepsiCo, Inc., Nestle, Dr Pepper Snapple Group, Inc., Groupe Danone, Kraft Foods Inc. and Unilever. Mission Vision There are many challenges faced by the company. Competitors are making brand new strategies to defeat the company. Therefore, the company need to clear and understand the direction of the business in the market and predict the future. Their vision for next ten years is about to create a long term destination program for their business which will also provide them a Roadmap for winning from their bottling competitors. Mission Our Roadmap starts with our mission, which is enduring. It declares our purpose as a company and serves as the standard against which we weigh our actions and decisions. To refresh the world To inspire moments of optimism and happiness To create value and make a difference. Vision Our vision serves as the framework for our Roadmap and guides every aspect of our business by describing what we need to accomplish in order to continue achieving sustainable,  quality growth. People:  Be a great place to work where people are inspired to be the best they can be. Portfolio:  Bring to the world a portfolio of  quality  beverage  brands  that anticipate and satisfy peoples desires and needs. Partners: Nurture a winning network of customers and suppliers, together we create mutual, enduring value. Planet:  Be a responsible citizen that makes a difference by helping build and support sustainable communities. Profit:  Maximize long-term return to shareowners while being mindful of our overall responsibilities. Productivity:  Be a highly effective, lean and fast-moving organization. Content Part Theory and Concept Coca-Cola Company relies on prudent systems, offers employee jobs with high motivation potential, expects staff to manage themselves, and delegates power to branches, resulting in high levels of employee empowerment and performance. The most common elements of reward using by Coca-Cola Company are based on long term incentives reward, annual incentives reward and base salary reward. All the rewards given to the employees based on membership and seniority -based rewards, competency-based rewards and Job status based-rewards. All middle and senior management, excluding our executive team, participate in the CocaCola Hellenic Long- Term Incentive Plan. Starting from the 2011-2013 Long-Term Incentive Plan, they operate under a new format aimed at linking employee performance to short- and long-business priorities and rewarding employees accordingly. Incentive payouts are based on business performance against three-year objectives which are set on an annual basis. Exceptional business performance may result in awards in excess of individual target payouts. The performance of the plan will be measured against selected KPI performance over a three-year period; that KPI s includes volume market share, net sales revenue per unit case and Group ROIC. The target payout for the plan is determined for each individual based on their performance, potential and level of responsibility and the plan payout takes places at the third anniversary of the plan. Coca-Cola Company awards the employees by using performance-based rewards. The employees will receive their reward based on their performance. Besides, Coca-Cola Company also using types of reward like annual incentive reward. The reward will be given to the employees based on the Job-status-based reward. While their goal is long-term sustainable growth, the Compensation Committee chooses annual incentives to pay to reward Named Executive Officers for individual performance and operational results for an operating group and/or overall Company performance on an annual basis. The annual objectives are carefully chosen to ensure integration and alignment with our overall long-term objectives. At the start of the incentive period, Compensation Committee designs the target amount, based on a percentage of base salary. Total benefits package is highly regarded and is designed to meet employees basic and life-changing  benefits  needs. As market dynamics evolve, the Company regularly assesses our benefits programs to ensure employees receive those benefits they value and are provided with diverse options that address the issues of individuals and families and promote healthy lifestyles. As  to fetch information on the part of employees problems, Cola-Cola Company makes  close collaborative  or communication  system  with them to satisfy them all to increases their efficiency and effectiveness. Because need and wants of employees are changing day by day to satisfy meaningful needs and wants are very important in the behalf of organization so as to use best potential of both physical and mental competencies is very important. Thats why defining criteria of rewarding them have a significant importance for the mutual  benefits  of  both  employees  and  organization.  Rewards  have  greater  importance  and effectiveness in Pakistani cultures, because people have more demand of them. What do you think is the most important emerging issue in the design of work? Diversity and limitlessness are the factors that stand out in the case study about the Coca-Cola Company.    With Coca-Cola being a worldwide company that offers such an array of products, they must hire flexible and diverse employees to support the needs of the still-growing company.    The employees reviews reaffirmed that by hiring a diverse group of employees and task them with different challenges in different countries; their choice to staff the company in this way has been successful.    By working with other unique individuals, they are enlightened by new methods of thinking and working.   The work specialization of Coca-Cola Company is high, as each Manager is made responsible for only a particular function, which is his expertise. There is no boredom or monotony as each salesman is meeting the different sort of person and the work is challenging and promotions are based on performance there is no monotony and boredom. Real Life Example The Coca-Cola Company rewards programs are regularly benchmarked against a select peer group of the major competitors and key players in the local market. The rewards management teams are based on the rewards programs that set by the company to give rewards. There are many ways to rewards the employees and one of the rewards ways that the company rewards the employees is based on the performance-based rewards. First the Coca Colas management team prefers grade for defining pay. Before there prepare the performance reward level there will do the research by conducting survey for the top five companies. There will conduct minimum three year rewards ranges of those top five companies and take average of them. Then there will decide their performance rewards system according to their management grades. The each year inflation rate has to be included no matter the employees individual performance increase or not. The Coca Cola human resource management also looking forward to performance ratings has mentioned. It will help the team to define a system in an organization systematic from to remove biases and ambiguity. Besides that the examples of the company use the competency-based rewards. The Coca Cola Company is a beverage industry which is focus more on the product with high quality, sell more and also get more customer satisfaction. So the management team creates more opportunities for the sales people to sell more and get more. By generating high work performance and make more profits, the company are able to utilize full potential of sales people. Because of that rewards system, the sales people have more opportunities to get rewards of both intrinsic and extrinsic ones. The table below is the example of the competency based rewards. Ares under consideration Sales% H.R% Account% Analysis Performance to organization goals 60-70 65-75 50-60 Average Performance of workers A achieve 40-55 50-60 40-50 Unsatisfied Performance of workers B achieve 75-85 60-70 60-70 Good Acceptance Thus, the Coca Cola Company also have use the job status based rewards. There are many country Coca Cola Company is providing such rewards likes Great Britain, Luxembourg, Netherlands and Belgium. Those countrys company are depending on the job and grade the employees could be offered a company car, mobile phone, laptop, private health insurance, financial planning or free internet at home. Besides those countries, Norway and Sweden are offering the company car with free fuel. Furthermore, different job status of employees can choose different type of rewards, perks or benefits. Beside the reward, The Coca Cola Company also has a different way of conducting business than most companies. There has used the job design for the work or job management. There start with looking for secret ingredients that potential employees may have that will help grow the recipe for success for the individual and the company. At the each level and location, The Coca Cola Company will use the best combination of diverse individuals to fill the different positions in a way that benefits the team at the location. The main objective there focus which is on diversity of their employees as well as their products and markets can continues being successful. By using the diversity, it has great success as one of the main criteria for employee searches. Besides that, there also dont limit their employees position in the company in order to allow them to grow within the organization as well as personally, which allows them to take the job as far as they want it to go. The Coca Cola Company also will think about or consider the idea and suggestions from all level, again can using their diversity to improve the company and also the individual. The mutual respect and appreciation within the workplace nurtures the individuals so that there grow within the company and that in turn reduces turnover, boosted employee morale, productivity, teams work and company loyalty. Lastly, because of that, the Coca Cola Company is still growing more every year. Disadvantages of Coca-Cola Company rewards system We all know the concept of nothing is perfect and same goes to Coca-Cola Company. It sounds so sweet on what rewards Coca-Cola Company has given to the employees, but there is a lot of weaknesses hidden and left unseen. First and for most, Coca-Cola Company rewards the employees based on their performance. However, using the performance based reward may only reward those who apparently contributed to company and neglected the others employees that contributed silently. This may pop-up the feeling of jealousy among the employees. The discrimination or dissatisfaction among employees may affects their morale and companys reputation. Besides, performance based reward system may bring out the problem that the employees will have focusing on individual rewards and abandoned the teamwork. Competition can be good but if its too aggressive it can be detrimental. The employees may lose sight of their customers needs and allow service or satisfaction to suffer in lieu of achieving good performance. Unity is strength, there are works that couldnt be done individually. Therefore, performance based reward should paying attention on team reward but not individual reward. Due to the reason of humans judgment might be bias, a system is necessary to evaluate the employees job performance. The KPI is one of the system generally used by the company. However, there are some disadvantages when measure the employees performance based on KPI. KPI couldnt measure long term performance of the employees. As if the appraisal is only measure the recent performance, hence it is not conducted fairly. It may cause animosity in the office. In addition, KPI only focus on the outcome and it lose the creativity from the employees. This may discourage employees from experimenting with innovative solutions that might produce a better result. Moreover, the employees loyalty couldnt be measured. Employees loyalty represented how much can he scarified for the company which is also a main point to lead company to success. Aside from that, the annual or monthly incentives given by the company shouldnt be equal to everyone, because it might demotivated the employees from working hard. They might have a thought that nor matter they did anything right or wrong they will still rewarded the same by the company. Giving different base rewards may motivate the employees from working harder. Coca-Cola Company rewarding their customers based on monthly too. A company giving rewards too often might leads to huge expectation of employees. The employees may expect to receive same value of rewards in future, then any potential motivation of reward will be lost. The gift will act as a regular compensation but not an additional bonus for motivation. When a bigger pay-out doesnt happen, employees can become disgruntled, which can hinder work performance or, in a worst-case scenario, leave the company. Therefore, there must be a good balance of incentives for these admin/support staff or else they will not feel appreciated. Last but not least, Coca-Cola Company should have paying greater reward to those who hardworking and overtime always. Some of the employees are dissatisfied on the pay of overtime since the half hour of working is not counted. It shows that Coca-Cola Company is not treating fair to their employees. While talking about job specialization, one of the key disadvantages of specialization is that jobs often become monotonous. Employees do not like to focus on one specific job because it may increase employees boredom and they will become tedious, empty and unsatisfying. With specialization, people rarely meet the final product and  are merely selling their labor for a price as if it were a commodity. Their job satisfaction decreases and the quality of job performance will fall. At the same time, it may cause unemployment. This happen when there is no similar job offered if you are fired. Also it limit the freedom of the choice of work. Lesser flexibility; in the absence of a worker, it is hard to shift workload to any of the available workers because they do not have variety of skills. Greater chances of workers getting local muscular fatigue because the same muscles are used in doing the task. As job rotation promote employees to perform different task, if they discover it as a weakness, the task would not be performed well as those is specialize is stronger at it. Another disadvantage is that staff could be rotated away from a task that they enjoy, or perform very well to a high standard which could lead to other staff members not performing the same tasks as well. Furthermore, a huge amount of money is needed to train the employees, to make sure the employees able to handle the task given through job rotation strategy. When the employees are moving around into multiple positions, you must invest time and money into training the workers in all those positions. Not only cost, but also the time of the managers  and others who must train the employees in each area. Recommendation For the performance-based reward use by the Coca-Cola company, our team share the same thoughts that performance-based reward does not fully motivate employees to enhance their best performance practices, which doesnt flexible enough to cover all kind of peoples motivation. Peoples have different values, beliefs or motivation. Some doesnt seek for monetary rewards only, but they also looking for higher job satisfaction, the relationship with the people together and participation in value creation. Besides that, different cultures can influence the meaning and value of money. After go through the disadvantages of current reward system, we suggest Coca-Cola to evaluate their own reward system effectiveness rather than giving more reward to ensure performance and rewards can reach the balance level. First of all Coca-Cola company must ensure their rewards given are valued by the employees. Delivered rewards have to drive the specific employee behaviors to achieve business strategies. Every rewards given will be appreciate by employees and push themselves to achieve higher productivity and performance. Make sure the company and staffs alike understand the value of each reward to ensure transparency. Therefore it is better to have combination of reward system to provide the workforce from different races and cultures can gain their values. Secondly, Coca-Cola must ensure rewards are relevant to attract and retain the staff who can contribute well to the company either way in intrinsic rewards or extrinsic rewards. Last but not least, watch out for unintended consequences too. Some employees may take rewards for granted and company have to make confirmation on rewards given must be make good use by them. For multinational company like Coca-Cola, although they had decentralized the management decision making, job analysis and designing follows the same international structure. Although some deviations may be found on some regions, the company adapts a similar job description and analysis structure. Therefore, Coca-Cola should encourage employees to have self-leadership to perform better in every task. It helps to apply self-motivation and self-direction to accomplish task and cope with company business strategies. The elements of self-leadership included with setting personal direction, construct thoughts pattern, design natural rewards, self-monitoring and self-reinforcement. It trains employee to have higher levels of conscientiousness and extroversion, and positive self-evaluation too. In organizational factor, it turns to more job autonomy, employees tend to have participative leadership and able to build measurement-oriented culture. When employees capable of doing their jobs wel l, organization will require less man power and save more cost on human resources. Well-trained employees will be more productive when theyre more directly involved in decision making process, rather than closely supervised by many layers of management. Empowerment also recommended in Coca-Cola. Empowerment is based on the idea that giving employees  skills,  resources,  authority,  opportunity,  motivation, as well  holding  them responsible and  accountable  for outcomes of their  actions that will  contribute  to their  competence  and  satisfaction. When employees believe they have the authority to make decision, it can improve task significance and task identity. They feel that they have more freedom and discretion and their action influence the companys success. They dont have much excuse to escape from their responsibilities. They know more options, limits, or have experience that helps them make good decisions for the company and the customer.  Ã‚  They have been trained.  Ã‚  That same training can easily be delivered to the frontline employees so they can make better decisions, quickly, and accurately. In a nut shell, if Cola-cola wants to be more competitive in the market, they need to keep up with the changes in management. They need to concern about the organization directions and business strategies. Employees run the company and Coca-Cola must know how to reward his employees and restructure their organization structure whenever the time has come.