Carlos Magno Muniz e Silva, Antoˆnio Stellin Jnr, Edson Guedes da Costa and Wildor Theodoro Hennies
Conventional rock blasting promotes many negative environmental impacts including ground vibration, flying rock, air blast, and the emission of noise, dust and gases. An…
Abstract
Conventional rock blasting promotes many negative environmental impacts including ground vibration, flying rock, air blast, and the emission of noise, dust and gases. An unconventional alternative process is the application of electrohydraulic principles. Electrohydraulic blasting is able to create a state of fracturing and rupture in the rock, almost instantly. A high current impulse generator produces the energy, without the above environmental impacts caused by conventional explosives. It is particularly suitable for application in urban areas. The paper describes laboratory experiments, theoretical analysis, consideration of the geomechanical criteria of rock failure and analysis of the electrical parameters of impulse generators related to rock fragmentation. The laboratory experiments included geomechanical and electrohydraulic tests on limestone samples from 50kg up to 150kg. The test results show satisfactory efficiency and energy losses.
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Barbara de Lima Voss, David Bernard Carter and Bruno Meirelles Salotti
We present a critical literature review debating Brazilian research on social and environmental accounting (SEA). The aim of this study is to understand the role of politics in…
Abstract
We present a critical literature review debating Brazilian research on social and environmental accounting (SEA). The aim of this study is to understand the role of politics in the construction of hegemonies in SEA research in Brazil. In particular, we examine the role of hegemony in relation to the co-option of SEA literature and sustainability in the Brazilian context by the logic of development for economic growth in emerging economies. The methodological approach adopts a post-structural perspective that reflects Laclau and Mouffe’s discourse theory. The study employs a hermeneutical, rhetorical approach to understand and classify 352 Brazilian research articles on SEA. We employ Brown and Fraser’s (2006) categorizations of SEA literature to help in our analysis: the business case, the stakeholder–accountability approach, and the critical case. We argue that the business case is prominent in Brazilian studies. Second-stage analysis suggests that the major themes under discussion include measurement, consulting, and descriptive approach. We argue that these themes illustrate the degree of influence of the hegemonic politics relevant to emerging economics, as these themes predominantly concern economic growth and a capitalist context. This paper discusses trends and practices in the Brazilian literature on SEA and argues that the focus means that SEA avoids critical debates of the role of capitalist logics in an emerging economy concerning sustainability. We urge the Brazilian academy to understand the implications of its reifying agenda and engage, counter-hegemonically, in a social and political agenda beyond the hegemonic support of a particular set of capitalist interests.