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Risk and Safety of Maritime Transportation

A special issue of Applied Sciences (ISSN 2076-3417). This special issue belongs to the section "Transportation and Future Mobility".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 20 May 2025 | Viewed by 3433

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
Department of Water Transport, University of Zilina, Zilina, Slovakia
Interests: safety (maritime and IWT); human error; transportation of dangerous goods; logistics

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Guest Editor
Department of Water Transport, University of Zilina, Zilina, Slovakia
Interests: maritime transport; inland navigation; maritime and inland ports; safety

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Guest Editor
Maritime Department, University of Dubrovnik, Dubrovnik, Croatia
Interests: traffic safety; accident analysis; safety management; risk analysis

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Guest Editor
Department of Finance and Financial Management, University of Zilina, Zilina, Slovakia
Interests: statistical methods in transport

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Guest Editor
LGP-ENIT, Université de Toulouse, Tarbes, France
Interests: decision analysis; risk management; artificial intelligence; Bayesian network; bipolar analysis

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

This journal is dedicated to enhancing safety and managing risks in maritime transportation. With maritime transportation playing a crucial role in global trade and economic development, the need for advancing safety in this sector has never been more pressing. The complexity of maritime operations, along with the tough conditions they often face, exposes this sector to a variety of significant risks resulting from operational and environmental hazards.

Safety in maritime transportation is crucial for several key reasons. Firstly, it prioritises human life by preventing accidents and protecting crew members and passengers. Secondly, it plays a critical role in environmental protection, as maritime activities can lead to pollution and ecosystem damage. Additionally, safety measures are essential for economic stability, preventing costly disruptions and ensuring efficient global trade. Compliance with stringent regulations is necessary in the maritime industry, and effective risk assessment helps to achieve this, avoiding legal issues and fines. Together, these factors underscore the importance of maritime safety for sustainability, resilience, and global well-being.

We are therefore interested in articles that provide insight into the issues of hazards, risk assessment, causal factor identification and safety of maritime transportation in general. Potential topics include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • Risk analysis and risk management in maritime transportation.
  • Human factors and crew resource management in maritime operations.
  • Examining the causal factors that contribute to shipping accidents.
  • Hazardous material handling in maritime transport.
  • Safety management and compliance in the maritime domain.
  • Insight into the latest innovations in ship design that prioritise safety.
  • The role of artificial intelligence in maritime risk management.
  • Lessons learned and preventative strategies.
  • Analysis of environmental impacts of shipping on the marine environment.
  • Implementing and monitoring safety cultures in maritime organisations.
  • Development and implementation of new technologies for navigation, communication, and operations at sea.
  • Research into crew management, fatigue, training, and human error.

Dr. Andrea Maternová
Dr. Andrej Dávid
Dr. Nermin Hasanspahic
Dr. Lucia Švábová
Dr. Ayeley Tchangani
Dr. Grzegorz Karoń
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Applied Sciences is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • maritime
  • risks
  • hazards
  • safety
  • challenges

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Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

34 pages, 4779 KiB  
Article
Fishing Vessel Risk and Safety Analysis: A Bibliometric Analysis, Clusters Review and Future Research Directions
by Soon Hyun Lee, Hyungju Kim and Sooyeon Kwon
Appl. Sci. 2024, 14(22), 10439; https://doi.org/10.3390/app142210439 - 13 Nov 2024
Viewed by 366
Abstract
This study conducts a bibliometric analysis to evaluate the current research landscape and identify future directions in fishing vessel safety. Using the Scopus database, 285 relevant documents were collected and analyzed using the Biblioshiny app version 4.1 in the bibliometrix R package and [...] Read more.
This study conducts a bibliometric analysis to evaluate the current research landscape and identify future directions in fishing vessel safety. Using the Scopus database, 285 relevant documents were collected and analyzed using the Biblioshiny app version 4.1 in the bibliometrix R package and VOSviewer version 1.6.20. The analysis generated an authors’ collaboration network, a three-field plot, and a keyword Thematic map, which were used for citation analysis, while VOSviewer was utilized to build networks between journals, articles, affiliations, countries, and keywords, enabling bibliographic coupling. The results identified four primary research clusters: Accident/Risk Analysis, Human Errors, Stability, and Operation. A detailed review of selected studies within these clusters was conducted, focusing on accident and risk factors, analytical methods, their strengths and weaknesses, and potential improvements. Based on these findings, a discussion was provided on future research directions in fishing vessel safety. The results suggest that future research should prioritize the integration of advanced technologies, enhancement of real-time monitoring capabilities, and promotion of international collaboration to ensure the safety of fishermen in hazardous environments. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Risk and Safety of Maritime Transportation)
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21 pages, 2064 KiB  
Article
Estimating the Human Error Probability during Lifeboat Drills
by Tonći Biočić, Nermin Hasanspahić, Miho Kristić and Ivica Đurđević-Tomaš
Appl. Sci. 2024, 14(14), 6221; https://doi.org/10.3390/app14146221 - 17 Jul 2024
Viewed by 835
Abstract
Lifeboats are life-saving equipment used when it is necessary to abandon a ship or, in some ships, for man-overboard situations (to collect persons from water). Every seafarer onboard a ship has a task related to lifeboat operation in an emergency. In order to [...] Read more.
Lifeboats are life-saving equipment used when it is necessary to abandon a ship or, in some ships, for man-overboard situations (to collect persons from water). Every seafarer onboard a ship has a task related to lifeboat operation in an emergency. In order to master and practise the assigned tasks, be ready to react at any moment, and efficiently use life-saving equipment and appliances, seafarers on ships perform drills at prescribed intervals. Effective drill performance is of paramount importance, as it improves safety and enables crew members to practise lifeboat operations. However, although their primary role is life-saving, lifeboat drills have resulted in numerous accidents, causing injuries and fatalities, besides equipment damage. Therefore, it is necessary to prevent such unwanted events and discover their root causes. As the human factor is considered a significant cause of marine accidents, this paper aims to quantify human error probability (HEP) during lifeboat drills. In addition, because lifeboat drill accident data are scarce, this study adopted the Success Likelihood Index Method (SLIM) for human reliability analysis (HRA). Based on expert judgments, the tasks with the highest probability of human error and factors significantly influencing human performance during lifeboat drills are identified. According to the study results, the recovery of the lifeboat is the most hazardous phase with the highest HEP. In addition, the BN-SLIM is adopted to estimate the probability of human error during the recovery of the lifeboat. The task with the largest HEP is confirming the release lever is properly rested and hooks locked (HEP = 4.5%). Furthermore, the design and condition of equipment and Crew Competence are identified as the most important Performance-Shaping Factors (PSFs) that affect crew members’ performance. The BN-SLIM model was verified utilising a sensitivity analysis and validated by analysing real-life lifeboat drill accidents that occurred during lifeboat recovery. The results confirmed that the model could be used to analyse lifeboat accidents and for proactive preventive measures because most influencing factors are recognised, and acting on them can significantly reduce the HEP of the overall task, improve lifeboat safety, and save lives at sea. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Risk and Safety of Maritime Transportation)
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15 pages, 8489 KiB  
Article
Investigation Lubricity Performance of Lubricating Oil Used in Marine Diesel Engine—Fuel Injection Pump
by Piotr Kaminski
Appl. Sci. 2024, 14(14), 6148; https://doi.org/10.3390/app14146148 - 15 Jul 2024
Viewed by 1197
Abstract
Diesel engines commonly suffer from oil contamination by fuel and other chemicals during operation and maintenance. This contamination alters the oil’s lubricating properties, leading to increased wear, corrosion, and other potential problems. Therefore, it is crucial to understand how oil degrades and becomes [...] Read more.
Diesel engines commonly suffer from oil contamination by fuel and other chemicals during operation and maintenance. This contamination alters the oil’s lubricating properties, leading to increased wear, corrosion, and other potential problems. Therefore, it is crucial to understand how oil degrades and becomes contaminated due to different replacement strategies is crucial for both engine operators and manufacturers. This study focuses on the impact of fuel dilution on specific properties of engine oil under real-world operating conditions in a marine diesel engine. Oil samples were collected regularly from the crankcase of the engine fuel injection pump and tribological tests were performed. These tests aimed to assess how marine gas oil affects the oil lubricity performance and how it maintains its useful life. The results confirm that diesel dilution primarily affects the oil lubricating abilities as well as overall performance. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Risk and Safety of Maritime Transportation)
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