Eye-safe UV stand-off Raman spectroscopy for explosive detection in the field

This project focused on maximising the detection range of an eye-safe stand-off Raman system for use in detecting explosives. Investigation of the effect on detection range through differing laser parameters in this thesis provided optimal laser settings to achieve the largest possible detection range of explosives, while still remaining under the eye-safe limit.

Social policy implications relating to road trauma in a rapidly motorising world : the example of China

The World Health Organization (WHO) identifies road trauma as a major public health issue in all countries, though most notably among low-to-middle income countries and particularly those experiencing rapid motorisation, such as China. As China transitions from a nation of bicycle riders and pedestrians to one where car ownership is increasingly desired, there is need to address the accompanying social policy challenges. With this increased motorisation has come an increased road trauma burden, shouldered disproportionately among the population. Vulnerable road users (i.e., pedestrians, cyclists, motorcyclists) are of primary concern because they are most frequently killed in road crashes, representing approximately 70% of all Chinese road-related fatalities. The aim of this paper is to summarise the scale of the road trauma burden, highlight the disparity of this burden across the Chinese population, and discuss the related social policy implications in dealing with the impact of deaths and of otherwise healthy lives diminished by injury and disability. Future research priorities are also discussed and include the need to strive to provide detailed information on the level of inequity of the road trauma burden across the population and identify appropriate social supports and healthcare services required, both preventative and post-crash, so these can be developed and implemented throughout China.

Male and female, cyclist and driver perceptions of crash risk in critical road situations

Male and Female, Cyclist and Driver Perceptions of Crash Risk in Critical Road Situations. Governments are promoting cycling but many Australians, particularly women, do not ride because they perceive it to be too risky. This research compared the risks perceived by female and male, cyclists and drivers in specific on-road situations, accounting for factors such as travel patterns and experience, perceived skill, and risk taking behaviours. Compared to their male counterparts, female cyclists and drivers gave similarly elevated perceptions of risk. These differences are not completely accounted for by cycling patterns or perceptions of skill. Thus, these gender differences are not specific to cycling, but may reflect wider differences in risk perception.

Sources and transport pathways of common heavy metals to urban road surfaces

Heavy metals that are built-up on urban impervious surfaces such as roads are transported to urban water resources through stormwater runoff. Therefore, it is essential to understand the predominant pathways of heavy metals to the build-up on roads in order to develop suitable pollution mitigation strategies to protect the receiving water environment. The study presented in this paper investigated the sources and transport pathways of manganese, lead, copper, zinc and chromium, which are heavy metals commonly present in urban road build-up. It was found that manganese and lead are contributed to road build-up primarily by direct deposition due to the re-suspension of roadside soil by wind turbulence, while traffic is the predominant source of copper, zinc and chromium to the atmosphere and road build-up. Atmospheric deposition is also the major transport pathway for copper and zinc, and for chromium, direct deposition by traffic sources is the predominant pathway.

Are we there yet? Australian road safety targets and road traffic crash fatalities

Background Road safety targets are widely used and provide a basis for evaluating progress in road safety outcomes against a quantified goal. In Australia, a reduction in fatalities from road traffic crashes (RTCs) is a public policy objective: a national target of no more than 5.6 fatalities per 100,000 population by 2010 was set in 2001. The purpose of this paper is to examine the progress Australia and its states and territories have made in reducing RTC fatalities, and to estimate when the 2010 target may be reached by the jurisdictions. Methods Following a descriptive analysis, univariate time-series models estimate past trends in fatality rates over recent decades. Data for differing time periods are analysed and different trend specifications estimated. Preferred models were selected on the basis of statistical criteria and the period covered by the data. The results of preferred regressions are used to determine out-of-sample forecasts of when the national target may be attained by the jurisdictions. Though there are limitations with the time series approach used, inadequate data precluded the estimation of a full causal/structural model. Results Statistically significant reductions in fatality rates since 1971 were found for all jurisdictions with the national rate decreasing on average, 3% per year since 1992. However the gains have varied across time and space, with percent changes in fatality rates ranging from an 8% increase in New South Wales 1972-1981 to a 46% decrease in Queensland 1982-1991. Based on an estimate of past trends, it is possible that the target set for 2010 may not be reached nationally, until 2016. Unsurprisingly, the analysis indicated a range of outcomes for the respective state/territory jurisdictions though these results should be interpreted with caution due to different assumptions and length of data. Conclusions Results indicate that while Australia has been successful over recent decades in reducing RTC mortality, an important gap between aspirations and achievements remains. Moreover, unless there are fairly radical ("trend-breaking") changes in the factors that affect the incidence of RTC fatalities, deaths from RTCs are likely to remain above the national target in some areas of Australia, for years to come.

Are road traffic crash fatality rates converging among OECD countries?

This article examines the trends of road traffic crash (RTC) fatality rates in OECD countries over the past four decades. Based on recent developments in the economic growth literature we propose and test the hypothesis that RTC fatality rates initially increase with economic development, peak, and then gradually decrease. The theory predicts that, as a result, the RTC fatality rates of different countries will tend to converge over time. Our results for the period 1961–2007 reveal no evidence of the convergence of RTC fatality rates across the OECD as a whole for that time period. Nevertheless, there is evidence of convergence among sub-groups of countries. This evidence may assist policymakers as an additional way of benchmarking their country's performance against that of its peers and to identify the next-closest peer in country sub-groups with superior road safety performance.

Young drivers' perceptions of road safety messages and a high performance vehicle advertisement : a qualitative exploration

While road safety messages that focus on physical threats have shown some effectiveness, messages that include social threats and gains/rewards may be an alternative approach to encourage safer driving behaviours. In addition to message frame and type, motor vehicle advertising exposure may also influence the persuasiveness of road safety messages. Using qualitative methods this preliminary study explored young drivers’ (N = 17, 11 males) perceptions of the persuasiveness of four anti-speeding messages and a fictional high performance vehicle advertisement. The majority of males perceived the social loss/gain-framed messages to be more persuasive (sense of responsibility and personal relevance themes), whereas females tended to perceive the physical loss/ gain-frame messages (social esteem theme) to be more persuasive. Males appeared to be, while females appeared not to be, persuaded by the vehicle advertisement. The findings suggest that a range of road safety messages may be required to reach and influence young drivers.

Ecosystem management along ephemeral rivers: Trading off socio-economic water supply and vegetation conservation under flood regime uncertainty

In ecosystems driven by water availability, plant community dynamics depend on complex interactions between vegetation, hydrology, and human water resources use. Along ephemeral rivers—where water availability is erratic—vegetation and people are particularly vulnerable to changes in each other's water use. Sensible management requires that water supply be maintained for people, while preserving ecosystem health. Meeting such requirements is challenging because of the unpredictable water availability. We applied information gap decision theory to an ecohydrological system model of the Kuiseb River environment in Namibia. Our aim was to identify the robustness of ecosystem and water management strategies to uncertainties in future flood regimes along ephemeral rivers. We evaluated the trade-offs between alternative performance criteria and their robustness to uncertainty to account for both (i) human demands for water supply and (ii) reducing the risk of species extinction caused by water mining. Increasing uncertainty of flood regime parameters reduced the performance under both objectives. Remarkably, the ecological objective (species coexistence) was more sensitive to uncertainty than the water supply objective. However, within each objective, the relative performance of different management strategies was insensitive to uncertainty. The ‘best’ management strategy was one that is tuned to the competitive species interactions in the Kuiseb environment. It regulates the biomass of the strongest competitor and, thus, at the same time decreases transpiration, thereby increasing groundwater storage and reducing pressure on less dominant species. This robust mutually acceptable strategy enables species persistence without markedly reducing the water supply for humans. This study emphasises the utility of ecohydrological models for resource management of water-controlled ecosystems. Although trade-offs were identified between alternative performance criteria and their robustness to uncertain future flood regimes, management strategies were identified that help to secure an ecologically sustainable water supply.

Double star chopper cell converter for battery electric vehicles with inter-module SoC balancing and fault tolerant control

A modularized battery system with Double Star Chopper Cell (DSCC) based modular multilevel converter is proposed for a battery operated electric vehicle (EV). A design concept for the modularized battery micro-packs for DSCC is described. Multidimensional pulse width modulation (MD-PWM) with integrated inter-module SoC balancing and fault tolerant control is proposed and explained. The DSCC can be operated either as an inverter to drive the EV motor or as a synchronous rectifier connected to external three phase power supply equipment for charging the battery micro-packs. The methods of operation as inverter and synchronous rectifier with integrated inter-module SoC balancing and fault tolerant control are discussed. The proposed system operation as inverter and synchronous rectifier are verified through simulations and the results are presented.