Life-Cycle Assessment and Costing of Fuels and Propulsion Systems in Future Fossil-Free Shipping.

Future ships need to operate with low or possibly zero greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions while ensuring low influence on other environmental impacts and that the operation is economically feasible. This study conducts a life-cycle evaluation of potential decarbonization solutions involving selected energy carriers (electrolytic hydrogen, electro-ammonia, electro-methanol, and electricity) in different propulsion system setups (engines, fuel cells, and carbon capture technologies) in terms of environmental impact and costs. The results of the study show that the assessed decarbonization options are promising measures to reduce maritime GHG emissions with low-carbon-intensive electricity. The same order of GHG reduction is shown to be possible independent of the propulsion system and energy carrier used onboard. However, the carbon abatement cost ranges from 300 to 550 €/tCO2eq, and there is a trade-off with environmental impacts such as human toxicity (cancer and non-cancer effects) and freshwater ecotoxicity mainly linked with the wind infrastructure used for electricity production. Electro-ammonia in fuel cells is indicated to be effective in terms of the carbon abatement cost followed by the so-called HyMethShip concept. The higher abatement cost of all options compared to current options indicates that major incentives and policy measures are required to promote the introduction of alternative fuel and propulsion systems.

The Healthcare Staffs' Perception of Parents' Participation in Critical Incidents at the PICU, a Qualitative Study.

BACKGROUND: Internationally, there are very few guidelines regarding how near relations can be taken care of on a children's intensive care unit. Despite knowledge about the positive effects of parental presence, staff frequently reject parents out of insecurity. This study aimed to investigate health professionals' understanding of letting parents be present throughout critical situations. A qualitative method with semi-structured interviews was used to answer the aim of his study. Nine persons participated in the study, both physicians and nurses. The result showed that health professionals' main view is that parents' presence is positive. However, their presence often has lower priority than the medical focus of the child and the health professionals' concern of failure. CONCLUSION: Health professionals have the power to decide if parents can be present in critical situations. Only when a parent demands to be present does that demand beat the decisions made by health professionals. Lack of resources within the team and fear of parents becoming a disturbance or a distraction are cited as the primary reasons not to let parents be present.