Nowadays, a large number of different cargoes are carried in maritime transport. The diploma thesis will focus only on dry bulk cargo. These are considered to be one of the most dangerous because, statistically, most seafarers have lost their lives in transporting them. Dry bulk cargo can endanger the safety of the ship and its crew, directly or indirectly. From a direct point of view, a ship may sink, and seafarers lose their lives precisely because of certain chemical and physical characteristics of the cargo during transport. One of the more common causes of a catastrophic outcome is cargo liquefaction. Due to the excess moisture content of the cargo, large quantities of water appear in the cargo hold, the main reason for the sinking of ships. In chemical processes, almost all phenomena are directly related to the death or poisoning of seafarers. Namely, such cargoes, which reduce oxygen levels, present a high possibility of suffocation, explosive atmosphere in the cargo hold is very common in the transport of dry bulk cargoes, spontaneous combustion is a very common occurrence, pesticides in the transport of grain cargo create a toxic atmosphere that has killed many seafarers and some pesticides have even been banned because of very high toxic concentrations, etc. Indirect dangers are also very present in seafarer's lives. The most common is dust. This one is almost always present. Dust does not have the same properties when transporting different cargoes, but the IMSBC Code specifies how long a worker may be exposed to a dusty environment. High dust exposure can lead to acute or chronic illnesses or even allergies. Its presence is very easy to limit, and measures are being taken around the world to reduce the presence of dust in the surrounding area. Other physical indirect hazards relate to damage to the ship's structure due to incorrect loading of very heavy loads. Stability must be constantly monitored, as the cargo shifting in the cargo holds poses a serious threat to dynamic stability. A typical example of cargo shifting is grain, which pose a high stability risk, which has created separate legislation for handling grains and stability calculations. The diploma thesis will also focus on stability computing, showing examples of what could happen in real life. Other hazards include work at heights, fatigue of the ship's material due to age, incorrect cargo loading, mismanagement of cargo during transportation, damage to cargo and other.
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