bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
A Systematic Compilation of the Problems Encountered by Teachers and Students in Science and Arts Centers in Turkey
Authors: Şahin Harun , Karataş Süleyman , Özkan Muhammed Ali , Gök Ramazan , Eraslan Meriç , Köse Erdoğan , Azeken Nilgün
Published: February 2023

In Turkey, Science and Arts Centers (BİLSEM) were opened and put into practice in 1995 in order to support gifted and talented students who are different from their peers in academic, social, and artistic fields in addition to their formal education. However, as in every educational institution, many problems have emerged in BİLSEMs, which teachers and students try to overcome. In this research, we aim to address the problems that teachers and students in BİLSEMs face or experience. To this end, the study employed a systematic compilation method, a qualitative research method, and theses, articles, papers, and books that were published between 1995 and 2022 and could be accessed were included in the study. In accordance with the purpose of the study, the research data were compiled by entering the keywords “BİLSEM”, “Gifted”, and “Talented” in the databases and analyzed with content analysis. As a result of the reviews, 46 articles, 15 theses, 1 paper, and 1 book focusing on teacher and student problems were included in the study. In light of the results obtained in the study, it was concluded that the problems experienced by teachers include shortages in materials, physical conditions and infrastructure, insufficient professional development opportunities, the programs not being functional and adequate, and student absenteeism and that the problems experienced by students include the intensity of the program and participating in too many activities, insufficient infrastructure and a lack of materials, being excluded from their circle of friends, and high expectations.
Sustainable Path of Food Security in China under the Background of Green Agricultural Development
Authors: Deng Yinglei , Zeng Fusheng
Published: February 2023

In light of the increasing global food crisis, this study concentrated on the complex causality of sustainable food security in China. In the context of the agricultural green transformation, a comprehensive evaluation system of agricultural green development is constructed on China Yearbooks’ economic data and agricultural greening indices from 2012 to 2020. In addition, the coupling coordination degree model and fuzzy-set quantitative analysis are used to describe the path evolution of sustainable food security development in China. The results revealed that: (1) the comprehensive assessments were increased in recent years, and high score regions changed apparently, from the periphery to midland; (2) China’s green development and agricultural economic potential are currently in a transitional phase from basic to moderate synergy, and the higher coordinated degree is allocating to mid and southern areas during this period, and all of them keeps growing as well; and (3) under modern food security framework, the emphasis of China has gradually shifted from grain output and subsidy policies to high resources utilisation and human capital accumulation. Thus, China’s agricultural green transformation and sustainable food security are mutually reinforcing.
Water Reuse through Membrane Technologies for a Dairy Plant Using Water Pinch Simulation Software
Authors: Espíndola Jonathan Cawettiere , Mierzwa José Carlos , Amaral Míriam Cristina Santos , De Andrade Laura Hamdan
Published: February 2023

The main goal of this study is to evaluate possible reuse routes of effluents from adairy plant. First, the water flow in the plant was evaluated. All water consumed and effluents generated by the industrial process were quantified and characterized. In addition, the water quality parameters required for different industrial activities were assessed. Secondly, a treatment system using a membrane bioreactor and a nanofiltration reactor, from a study previously conducted by the authors, was considered. Then, a water pinch analysis was carried out through the application of the collected data using the Water Pinch software. Both direct reuse/recycle and regeneration schemes were investigated. In this context, although the direct reuse/recycle of effluents were shown to be able to reduce the freshwater use for the clean-in-place process (CIP) by 33.4%; the schemes with the regeneration of the effluents showed up to 66.7% and 95.4% of freshwater reduction for the CIP and general processes, respectively. Finally, four water reuse routes were proposed. The proposed route combining the most advanced treatment technologies studied showed the best performance in terms of reduction of the total freshwater consumption (69.5%) in the dairy plant.
The Development of Fintech and SME Innovation: Empirical Evidence from China
Authors: Li Hongyu , Lu Zhiqiang , Yin Qili
Published: February 2023

Innovation is the source of competitiveness among firms and the driver of economic growth. This paper examines the influence of fintech and firms’ innovation from the perspective of stakeholder financial support. To test the relationship, we collect data from Chinese small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) between 2011 and 2017. The results indicate that there is a strong positive effect of fintech development on firms’ innovative activities. This effect operates through fintech’s role in reducing information asymmetry: it increases the availability of funding support from stakeholders for firm R&D investment. Further, the funding supports are not only from investors and banks, but also from other stakeholders. In addition, this effect is larger for bigger and more opaque firms. These findings connect fintech with firm innovation and illuminate the unique roles and mechanisms of fintech development in promoting innovation inputs and outcomes.
Application of Target Detection Method Based on Convolutional Neural Network in Sustainable Outdoor Education
Authors: Yang Xiaoming , Samsudin Shamsulariffin , Wang Yuxuan , Yuan Yubin , Kamalden Tengku Fadilah Tengku , Yaakob Sam Shor Nahar bin
Published: February 2023

In order to realize the intelligence of underwater robots, this exploration proposes a submersible vision system based on neurorobotics to obtain the target information in underwater camera data. This exploration innovatively proposes a method based on the convolutional neural network (CNN) to mine the target information in underwater camera data. First, the underwater functions of the manned submersible are analyzed and mined to obtain the specific objects and features of the underwater camera information. Next, the dataset of the specific underwater target image is further constructed. The acquisition system of underwater camera information of manned submersibles is designed through the Single Shot-MultiBox Detector algorithm of deep learning. Furthermore, CNN is adopted to classify the underwater target images, which realizes the intelligent detection and classification of underwater targets. Finally, the model’s performance is tested through experiments, and the following conclusions are obtained. The model can recognize underwater organisms’ local, global, and visual features. Different recognition methods have certain advantages in accuracy, speed, and other aspects. The design here integrates deep learning technology and computer vision technology and applies it to the underwater field, realizing the association of the identified biological information with the geographic information and marine information. This is of great significance to realize the multi-information fusion of manned submersibles and the intelligent field of outdoor education. The contribution of this exploration is to provide a reasonable direction for the intelligent development of outdoor diving education.
The Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Online Consumer Behavior: Applying the Theory of Planned Behavior
Authors: Theodorou Anastasia , Hatzithomas Leonidas , Fotiadis Thomas , Diamantidis Anastasios , Gasteratos Antonios
Published: February 2023

The present study applied the theory of planned behavior (TPB) to examine consumers’ intention to shop online during the COVID-19 pandemic and its influence on purchasing behavior. The fear of shopping in a physical store due to COVID-19 was added to the model’s key factors, which included attitudes towards e-shopping, subjective norms, and perceived behavioral control. The study involved 406 participants aged over 18, who were all residents of the Regional Unit of Thessaloniki. The findings indicated that during the pandemic, the factors that influenced online purchase intention differed from those that would affect future purchase intention, with the fear of shopping in a physical store being the most influential. In particular, the results revealed that attitudes towards e-shopping, subjective norms, perceived behavioral control and fear of shopping at a physical store positively affected the intention to make online purchases during the pandemic. In contrast, only attitudes toward e-shopping and perceived behavioral control affect future purchase intention. Furthermore, as expected, the intention to shop online influences actual online purchase behavior.
Revisiting the Environmental Kuznets Curve Hypothesis in the MENA Region: The Roles of International Tourist Arrivals, Energy Consumption and Trade Openness
Authors: Ghaderi Zahed , Saboori Behnaz , Khoshkam Mana
Published: February 2023

This paper employed advanced panel methods to examine the effects of international tourist arrivals on CO2 emissions in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region over the period of 1995–2018. To analyze the predictive power of tourist arrivals for CO2 emissions, the panel Granger non-causality test was employed. Employing the common correlated effects mean group estimator showed that tourist arrival reduces CO2 emissions, while energy consumption and trade openness are the main contributors of CO2 emissions. Results also showed that although first-generation estimators confirmed the Environmental Kuznets Curve (EKC) hypothesis, according to the CCE-MG estimator, an inverted U-shaped association between economic progress and CO2 emissions does not exist. Furthermore, the null hypothesis of non-Granger causality from tourist arrivals to CO2 emissions was rejected. The findings suggest taking a more sustainable approach to tourism development and energy conservation in the long run.
Twenty-Year Research on Out-of-School Education in China from a Sustainability Development Perspective
Authors: Lai Wen , Xu Yan , Chen Jing , Xie Jingzi
Published: February 2023

By using Citespace, an information visualization software, this paper analyses the hot content and evolution trend of China’s out-of-school education research in the last twenty years. The results show that the research hot spots in this field include the value and status of out-of-school education, the planning and institutional setup, and the policy and governance of out-of-school education. The hot spots in the weakening trend are leisure education and Children’s Palace, while the research frontiers in the increasing trend are quality education, Youth Palace, and research travel. China’s out-of-school education research should further consolidate the theoretical foundation of out-of-school education, pay attention to the research on the influence of out-of-school education, use information technology to carry out out-of-school education and evaluation, pay attention to the combination of qualitative analysis and quantitative research of out-of-school research, and improve the research validity. Only when the research results are rich and scientific can we achieve the goal of sustainability.
A Performance-Based Decision Support Workflow for Retrofitting Residential Buildings
Authors: Mangan Suzi Dilara
Published: February 2023

The trend towards high-performance residential buildings with new building regulations necessitates fundamental changes in the residential market, which is currently driven by low initial investment costs and dominated by weak innovative cycles. This change involves a difficult decision-making process that must consider the multiple and generally conflicting objectives regarding optimal retrofitting for residential buildings. This study aimed to develop an approach that would provide feedback about a building’s energy and economic performance in relation to the decision-making process to ensure that the complex residence retrofitting process is more efficient. For this purpose, a performance-oriented decision support workflow is recommended for a typical multifamily apartment block within a hypothetical settlement context in Istanbul Province, which includes (i) an automated parametric energy simulation through the coupling of EnergyPlus and MATLAB® to determine differences between retrofit alternatives in relation to the building envelope, energy systems and renewable energy systems, and (ii) a multiple-criteria decision analysis to determine the retrofit alternatives by which the optimal performance can be achieved, taking into account the conflicting nature of key performance indicators (primary energy saving and life-cycle cost saving). Architects and residence owners—who are the main decision makers—can use this proposed workflow to explore effective retrofit alternatives and to make informed decisions about performance-based retrofitting by comparing the energy and economic performance of these alternatives.
RETRACTED: Study on Mechanical Properties of Soil Stabilization by Different Vegetation Roots on High Steep Slope
Authors: Ding Heng , Zhang Hong , Liu Bing , Huang Haiyun
Published: February 2023

The tensile and shear properties of plant roots are important factors that determine their slope protection and are also direct indicators for evaluating plant roots for slope protection. In order to explore the soil-fixing properties of root system and root–soil composite of Indigofera amblyantha and Cassia bicapsularis, the high and steep slope of Zhaofu quarry in Wudang District of Guiyang City was taken as the research background. The effects of root diameter, tree species, root water content and normal pressure on the tensile properties of single root, direct shear friction of root system and shear properties of root–soil composite were investigated by an indoor mechanical test and a direct shear friction test. Results showed that under saturated water content, the tensile strength of C. longifolia decreased, and the tensile strength of C. bifolia also decreased. With the increase in water content from 10.3% to 22.3%, the friction strength of the root–soil interface increased gradually, and the friction strength of root–soil interface of Cassia bicapsularis was greater than that of Cassia longifolia. With the increase in root diameter, the root–soil interfacial friction strength of the two shrubs increased slightly. The normal pressure also increases the density of the soil, so that the roots give full play to the reinforcement effect. The greater the normal pressure, the greater the shear strength of the root–soil composite. When the water content increased from 10.3% to 22.3%, the shear strength of the two-shrub root–soil composites increased first and then decreased gradually, reaching the maximum at 14.3%, followed by the shear strength at 10.3%, reaching the minimum at 22.3%.
Mechanisms of How Private Equity Drives Industrial Upgrade: An Empirical Study Based on China’s Panel Data
Authors: Zhu Lin , Dong Fan , Hu Liangwen
Published: February 2023

In recent years, the investment of private equity funds in China has increased and has become an important tool to promote industrial structure upgrades. Therefore, it is of theoretical and practical significance to study how and why industrial upgrades are driven by private equity funds. First, we use the understanding of heterogeneity to study the differences between the use of private equity funds and other financial instruments to stimulate industrial upgrades, and we represent industrial growth from two perspectives: economic aggregate growth and economic efficiency improvement. Next, we use shift-share analysis to disaggregate industrial upgrades into static and dynamic transfer effects, showing that other financial instruments only promote production factor mobility but not production efficiency, while private equity funds significantly contribute to both mobility and efficiency. Finally, the mediating effect model is used to study how private equity funds drive industrial upgrades: mainly from efficiency improvement based on technological progress and innovation output, and to a lesser extent from the promotion of factor mobility. The findings have practical value and implications for the optimization of financial reforms and the sustainability of regional economies.
Regulatory Paradigm and Challenge for Blockchain Integration of Decentralized Systems: Example—Renewable Energy Grids
Authors: Barceló Ernest , Dimić-Mišić Katarina , Imani Monir , Spasojević Brkić Vesna , Hummel Michael , Gane Patrick
Published: February 2023

Nowadays, fossil fuels are used in a clearly unsustainable way that can bring potentially catastrophic consequences. Electricity is currently delivered to end users by generation and energy transmission companies. Previous research shows that the development of modern circular economy sets a need for the re-orientation of socio and economic development of decentralized systems, including energy basis. In addition to being ecological, the use of renewable energy sources also has economic significance by contributing to energy independence. Citizens, industries, local and national authorities become interconnected within emerging novel renewable energy sourcing communities, through which they establish trade of energy and, most importantly, models of investing and reshaping the distribution of renewable energy. The modern portfolio management of renewable energy networking is aiming toward decentralized systems of trade, where the consumer becomes a producer (prosumer) within the network, itself managed by users. Excess energy produced in the micro-grid nets within the over-arching national and transnational energy grid should be accounted for and managed with blockchain technology for financial and structural security. The decentralization of the energy market requires the establishment of strict norms that will regulate the market and taxation of profits arising. The extensive literature review on blockchain in the energy sector reflects a very pragmatic and narrow approach to the topic, although it is evident that the distribution of energy within the blockchain would enable economic development through reducing cost and ensuring more secure energy trade. Blockchain technology embeds the related digital codes, in which information will be visible to all, but also secured from hacking and duplicating. However, there are challenges to this paradigm, not least the energy consumption of the extensive nodal mesh required to perform the necessary protocols. This paper aims to provide an overview of the application of blockchain technology and the need for the development of the regulatory system and of potential solutions to the challenges posed. By undertaking an energy consumption analysis of blockchain implementation from first electronic principles, which has not been constructed before in the literature, this paper’s conclusion stresses the future demand for reducing energy consumption and considers the latest findings in the quantum coupling of light signals as a potential for solving the enormous ledger duplication structure problem.
Developments and Trends in Energy Poverty Research—Literature Visualization Analysis Based on CiteSpace
Authors: Song Mei , Zhang Jia , Liu Xiaohao , Zhang Liyan , Hao Xuguang , Li Mengxue
Published: February 2023

The purpose of this paper is to help better understand the problem of energy poverty; to grasp the research context, evolution trends and research hotspots of energy poverty; and to find clues from research on energy poverty. In this paper, we use the scientific quantitative knowledge graph method and CiteSpace software to analyze 814 studies in the WOS (Web of Science) and CNKI (China National Knowledge Infrastructure) databases, such as a literature characteristic analysis, a core author and research institution network analysis, a research hotspot analysis, research trends and a frontier analysis. The results show that the specific connotations of energy poverty are different between developed countries and developing countries. In developed countries, energy poverty is mainly manifested in the affordability of energy consumption, while in developing countries, energy poverty is manifested in the availability of energy. The causes, impacts and solutions of energy poverty are the focus of CNKI and WOS literature, and their perspectives of the impacts and solutions are relatively consistent. However, in terms of the causes, scholars of WOS discuss the energy supply side and the demand side, while scholars of CNKI mainly analyze the energy demand side. The quantitative evaluation system of energy poverty has not been unified, which restricts the depth and breadth of energy poverty research. Topics such as the expanding scope of research objects; the interaction among energy poverty, the “two-carbon” target and other macro factors; the complex and severe energy poverty situation following the COVID-19 pandemic and the outbreak of the war in Ukraine; and the ways to solve the energy poverty problem in the context of China may become the focus of research in the future. This study provides an overview for researchers who are not familiar with the field of energy poverty, and provides reference and inspiration for future research of scholars in the field of energy poverty research.
Evolutionary Game Analysis of the Utilization of Construction Waste Resources Based on Prospect Theory
Authors: Wang Yuling , Wang Chunfu , Deng Xiaopeng , Wu Zezhou
Published: February 2023

Strengthening the resource utilization of construction waste can improve the environment, alleviate resource shortage, and build a harmonious ecological environment between man and nature. Prospect theory was integrated into trilateral evolutionary game theory to analyze the processes of resource utilization of construction waste among local government, construction enterprises, and the public by establishing the perceived payoff matrix of the three players in the game and using the replication dynamic equation to analyze their strategy choices and evolution path. The results showed that the strategies of the three players depended on the strategies chosen by the other side, the perceived value of the relevant parameters, and the numerical relations among them. Under the conditions that the local government reasonably controlled the supervision cost and the degree of rewards and punishments, the construction enterprise promoted the resource-based technology and management means, and the public enhanced the sense of social responsibility, the game model would evolve toward the ideal state of (1,1,1), to realize the resource utilization of construction waste.
Experimental Approach for Enhancing the Natural Convection Heat Transfer by Nanofluid in a Porous Heat Exchanger Unit
Authors: Abdulateef Ammar M.
Published: February 2023

Natural convection heat transfer is a significant component in the energy transfer mechanism and plays an essential role in a wide range of scientific and industrial technologies. This research seeks to enhance the energy transfer by nanofluid, which is compatible with some applications, such as heat exchanger thermal energy storage (HXTES). For this purpose, a triplex tube heat exchanger (TTHX) is designed to receive the hot and cold flow by two pumps from two thermal baths, respectively. Samples of the Copper (Cu) nanoparticles were then carefully selected in a volume concentration range of 0.05 ≤ ∅ ≤ 0.5 to promote the thermal conductivity of the base fluid, which consists of 55% water and 35% ethylene glycol (EG), and to form nanofluid. On the other side, the effect of the porous medium of glass spheres inside a TTHX is considered. Experimentally, and after preparing the nanofluid, temperature readings of six various thermocouples locations have been investigated. The effects of Cu volume concentrations under different temperatures of 20 °C, 30 °C and 50 °C on nanofluid heat transfer are evaluated, respectively. One more result: the yields in the heat transfer coefficient of the hot tube were higher compared to those of the cold tube under Reynolds number (Re) between 200 and 7000. The efficiency of transition and turbulent flow through TTHX is clearly appointed. Overall, these findings support the supposition that the heat transfer enhancement is optimized by 0.05% nanoparticle volume concentration due to increasing thermal conductivity and fluid movement effectiveness. Ultimately, a natural progression of this work is to analyze more convective form using controlled trial applications, such as solar collectors.
Determination of Efficiency Factors for Closely Spaced Strip Footings on Cohesive–Frictional Soils
Authors: Noo-Iad Dulpinit , Shiau Jim , Chim-Oye Weeraya , Jamsawang Pitthaya , Keawsawasvong Suraparb
Published: February 2023

The bearing capacity of closely spaced footings has become one of the important topics in geotechnical engineering research owing to the rapid development in urban areas around the world. In this paper, we propose three efficiency factors that can be used to describe the bearing capacity effects of closely spaced footings using Terzaghi’s traditional bearing capacity equation. With an advanced finite-element limit analysis of upper and lower bounds, both the closely spaced strip footings and the multiple closely spaced strip footings on cohesive–frictional soil with a surcharge effect were investigated. The numerical results showed that the efficiency factors were significantly influenced by the internal frictional angle and the spacing ratio. Several comparisons were made with those published in the literature. Furthermore, the failure mechanisms of closely spaced footings are presented, while design charts were produced with a wide range of practical parameters. This study should be of great interest to foundation engineering practitioners.
Enriching Socio-Technical Sustainability Intelligence through Sharing Autonomy
Authors: Heininger Richard , Jost Thomas Ernst , Stary Christian
Published: February 2023

We suggest to extend scientific research on sustainability beyond its focus on interactions between natural and social systems to socio-technical systems and the ways in which those interactions affect the challenge of sustainability. In increasingly digitalized settings, socio-technical sustainability intelligence becomes critical for human-centered development of societies worldwide, including the achievement of future organizational success. Human-centered enablers, such as self-awareness, global perspective, and societal consciousness, lay foundation for reflective socio-technical practice in highly dynamic ecosystems that are increasingly backed by Cyber-Physical Systems (CPS). Socio-technical practice requires frameworks and architectures that support active stakeholder engagement throughout design and engineering. In this contribution, we propose sharing autonomy as inherent feature of sustainable socio-technical system development and operation. We introduce an architecture and mechanism for building and handling autonomy as part of socio-technical sustainability intelligence. We exemplify both with a system-relevant logistics use case to illustrate the enrichment of CPS-based socio-technical environments through active stakeholder participation.
Pathways toward the Transformation of Sustainable Rural Tourism Management in Central Java, Indonesia
Authors: Ariyani Nafiah , Fauzi Akhmad
Published: February 2023

Managing sustainable rural tourism requires a strategic transformation adapted to local conditions, the complexity of rural institutions, and the dynamics of future changes. In addition, it must be inclusive. This paper presents transformation pathways toward sustainable rural tourism management in developing countries. The general objective is to develop sustainable development strategies in the context of rural tourism. The specific objectives are to develop policy pathways and the best scenarios in this context. The study was conducted in the Kedung Ombo area in Central Java, Indonesia: a representative area involving several districts and other public organizations as stakeholders. Data analysis was performed using the MULTIPOL method. The results show that an integrated development policy that considers the interests of all stakeholders, the potential of rural resources, the infrastructure, and human resources capacity would be the optimal policy. Priority programs to be implemented are infrastructure development, strengthening private investment, strengthening governance, developing amenities, and developing information and communication technology. Furthermore, the “flight of the flamingos” and “leapfrogging” scenarios can be considered to achieve future tourism growth goals and objectives. This study is an essential resource for authorities in determining rural tourism development policies in the research location and can be applied in other areas with similar characteristics.
Energy Not Exchanged: A Metric to Quantify Energy Resilience in Smart Grids
Authors: Soualah Hassen , Jodin Gurvan , Le Goff Latimier Roman , Ben Ahmed Hamid
Published: February 2023

In high-impact, low-probability (HILP) events, resilience is defined as the ability of a system to return to a normal operating state after a failure. The generalization of information technologies and distributed renewable production is transforming the power grid into the so-called smart grid, thus allowing for new mitigation methods to address failures. After illustrating the limits of currently existing metrics, this paper proposes a method to quantify the resilience of smart grids during physical line faults while identifying the most impactful failures. For this purpose, a new resilience metric is defined in order to quantify Energy Not Exchanged (ENE). The calculation of this metric in a power grid via the optimal power flow (OPF) serves, therefore, to quantify the extreme resilience of the grid. In addition, various mitigation strategies, which enable maintaining a high level of resilience, despite the presence of failure, are simulated and then compared to one another (tie switch and microgrid formation).
Effects of a Telehealth Stretching Exercise Program on Pain, Sleep, Depression, and Functionality of Women with Fibromyalgia during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Randomized Clinical Trial
Authors: Costa Bruna Ornelas da , Andrade Luana Siqueira , Botton Cíntia Ehlers , Alberton Cristine Lima
Published: February 2023

The purpose of the research was to verify the effects of a supervised telehealth stretching exercise program on pain, sleep, depression, and functionality of women with fibromyalgia during the COVID-19 pandemic. This randomized clinical trial comprised 28 participants allocated into 2 groups. The experimental group (EG; n = 13; 49.9 ± 8.0 years) received a stretching exercise program with remote supervision for 12 weeks; the active control group (CG; n = 15; 47.0 ± 6.5 years) received counseling for stretching via an exercise guide and videos to be performed without supervision for 12 weeks. The following outcomes were assessed online: pain index, sleep quality, symptom severity, the impact of fibromyalgia on daily activities, depressive symptoms, pain intensity at rest and after movement, and flexibility. Data analysis was performed by intention to treat (ITT) and per protocol (PP) using generalized estimating equations (α = 0.05). Significant improvements were observed post-intervention for all outcomes in both groups, except for the flexibility by ITT (p = 0.136) and depressive symptoms by PP analysis (p = 0.065). In addition, the impact of fibromyalgia on daily activities presented better responses for EG than CG (ITT: p = 0.027). It was concluded that the telehealth stretching program, supervised or not, was effective in promoting the improvement in the main symptoms in women with fibromyalgia.
Response Characteristics of Weak Current Stimulated from Coal under an Impact Load and Its Generation Mechanism
Authors: Li Dexing , Wang Enyuan , Jin Dianqi , Wang Dongming , Liang Wei
Published: February 2023

Understanding the response law and mechanism of weak currents stimulated from coal under an impact load is significant for the prediction of coal bumps in deep coal mines. In this paper, the system for the weak current measurement of coal under an impact load is established and the response characteristics of weak currents induced by the deformation of coal under an impact load are investigated. Physical models are established to describe the process of charge transfer and explain the generation mechanism of those currents. The results show that a transient current is stimulated from the coal sample when an impact load is applied, and then, the current decays slowly, tending to be a stable value that is slightly greater than the background current. The weak current flows from the loaded volume to the unloaded volume of the coal and increases with the impact velocity in a negative exponential form. Analysis of weak currents using non-extensive entropy shows that the attenuation of the weak current obeys non-extensive statistical mechanics and the non-extensive parameter q is greater than 2. The carriers are mainly electrons, of which the distribution obeys the tip effect that electrons tend to enrich towards the tip of a crack. The generation mechanism of those weak currents induced by coal deformation is the instantaneous movement of electrons under a density difference caused by the tip effect. Research results can provide a new perspective to understand the electric phenomena of coal under an impact load as well as a new method for coal bump prediction.
Research on the Influence of Tax Incentives and Financing Constraints on NEEQ Enterprises’ Innovation
Authors: Li Yang , Wang Yuanzhu , Rasiah Rajah
Published: February 2023

This paper adopts the two-way fixed effect model to analyze the listed enterprises on the New Third Board (NEEQ) from 2014 to 2021. In the process of analysis, to ensure the rationality of the regression results, the missing core data and related data of financial enterprises are excluded. Through empirical analysis, this paper draws the following conclusions: (1) Tax incentives can promote enterprise innovation. (2) Internal and external financing constraints inhibit enterprise innovation. (3) Internal and external financing constraints play an intermediary role in tax incentives and enterprise innovation. (4) The intermediary effect of internal financing constraints is significant in both the fundamental layer and the innovation layer, while the external financing constraints are only significant in the fundamental layer. (5) Compared with state-owned enterprises, the intermediary effect of internal and external financing constraints is more significant in non-state-owned enterprises.
ESG Maturity: A Software Framework for the Challenges of ESG Data in Investment
Authors: Cruz Carolina Almeida , Matos Florinda
Published: February 2023

Given the rising demand for more transparent, consistent, and comprehensive non-financial information in investment, there is a need to provide more reliable, meaningful, and measurable ESG metrics, in a way that most frameworks cannot. Most established frameworks face difficulties and challenges in providing sustainability information to investors in a significant way, lacking in areas such as transparency, reliability, consistency, materiality, and particularly, their focus on the “S” dimension of ESG. The present article purposes to review the challenges associated with several frameworks and to present a solution to overcome them, by giving an overview of a new and innovative software as a service framework, ESG Maturity. This software presents itself as a solution for both reporting companies and their respective investors, by providing both with an assessment of the ESG maturity index of the companies, and delivering a report containing relevant initiatives, strategies, and action plans tailored to each one of them, within different sectors, dimensions, and geographic areas and consequently, their financial and non-financial implementation impact. ESG Maturity is considered a possible answer to the challenges in ESG reporting, having the potential to revolutionize the way companies report their non-financial information and how investors receive it.
Synthesis of Floral-Shaped Nanosilica from Coal Fly Ash and Its Application for the Remediation of Heavy Metals from Fly Ash Aqueous Solutions
Authors: Yadav Virendra Kumar , Amari Abdelfattah , Wanale Shivraj Gangadhar , Osman Haitham , Fulekar M. H.
Published: February 2023

Every year a large amount of coal fly ash (CFA) is generated and dumped in fly ash ponds. Fly ash has numerous toxic heavy metals, which leads to water pollution due to the percolation of these heavy metals. Heavy metal toxicity has become a major issue for the whole globe. Moreover, CFA has several value-added minerals, such as silica, alumina, and ferrous in large amounts. Therefore, the synthesis of silica nanoparticles from CFA and their application for the removal of toxic heavy metals from fly ash aqueous solution will prove to be an economical and efficient approach. Here, in the present research work, investigators synthesized nanosilica from CFA by alkali dissolution and sol-gel methods and applied them for heavy metal removal. Firstly, CFA was treated with high molar NaOH, along with stirring and heating. Further, the sodium silicate leachate from CFA was treated with dilute HCl till the formation of a white gel at neutral pH. Purification of the nanosilica was achieved by treating with 1M HCl along with stirring followed by calcination at 400 °C for 4 h. The synthesized nanosilica was characterized by UV-Vis, Fourier transform infrared (FTIR), particle size analyzer (PSA), X-ray diffraction (XRD), field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), electron diffraction spectroscopy (EDS), and high-resolution transmission electron microscope (HR-TEM). The sizes of the floral-shaped nanosilica particles were 20–70 nm, and the purity was 90–95%, as confirmed by microscopy and EDS, respectively. The XRD and FTIR revealed the amorphous nature of nanosilica. Finally, the potential of the nanosilica was assessed for the removal of heavy metals from 20% CFA aqueous solutions in batch experiments. The nanosilica showed about 40–90% removal of heavy metals (Al, Pb, Cd, Cu, Cr, Ni, Co, Zn, Mn) from the fly ash aqueous solution.
SOLFI: An Integrated Platform for Sustainable Urban Last-Mile Logistics’ Operations—Study, Design and Development
Authors: Teixeira Leonor , Ramos Ana Luísa , Costa Carolina , Pedrosa Dulce , Faria César , Pimentel Carina
Published: February 2023

Sustainable urban logistics has an important impact on the cities, which emphasizes the need for better management of logistics activities, including the usage of environmentally friendly transportation. The sustainability of cities, a concern that is on the agenda, is a very important topic pertaining to current political and societal issues. In this sense, although collaboration among urban logistics stakeholders on projects can be challenging, this effort pays off when there is a significant result for the sustainability of cities. This paper aims to present an Information System, named SOLFI (Sistema de Otimização para a Logística urbana com Fluxos Integrados), for planning management and control of urban logistics based on sustainability that integrates the transport of passengers and freight, using the city bus network and bicycles to perform last-mile deliveries. To develop the SOLFI solution and to ensure co-creation through a participative design approach, an agile methodology was used. In terms of results, the SOLFI integrates different agents in the movement of goods in urban centers with less polluting and small vehicles, in particular buses and bicycles. It represents a decision support system that is intended to operate in real-time, managing the entire process from the request until the load delivery to the final destination, to simplify, automate, and improve the urban logistics process. Thus, the main characteristics of SOLFI are to manage all the information required for this process in order to: (i) request quotation and acceptance management; (ii) deliver plan development to all the agents involved; (iii) manage the loads along the network; (iv) allow the tracking and control of requests along the network; and (v) enable replanning due to various possible disruptions that may occur during the process. SOLFI’s distinctive characteristic and main contribution result from the integration of all the transportation network and all agents in the same platform while considering synchronization among involved agents. The SOLFI solution allows for the reduction of traditional flows of goods, taking advantage of the availability of public passenger transport (buses) to perform the main travel distance within the city and the use of bicycles as a last-mile step. In this way, there is a reduction in the number of polluting vehicles in the city, meeting sustainability practices.
Land Suitability Planning for Sustainable Mango Production in Vulnerable Region Using Geospatial Multi-Criteria Decision Model
Authors: Salunkhe Sanjani , Nandgude Sachin , Tiwari Mukesh , Bhange Harshal , Chavan Sangram B.
Published: February 2023

The land suitability in the Ratnagiri district (India) for mango crop has been assessed using a combination of multi-criteria decision making (MCDM) with GIS-based analytic hierarchy process (AHP), and sensitivity analysis. Five criteria are applied in this study to analyze land suitability affecting the mango production, viz., topography, climate, soil properties, soil erosion risk, and soil and water conservation practices, all affecting mango production. To prepare the land suitability maps for the mango plants, weights of criteria were identified through expert opinions and a pairwise comparison matrix. A weighted overlay tool available in ArcGIS software was applied in this study for the weighted overlay analysis. The most sensitive parameters were identified by developing and testing a total of 26 weighting schemes. After analyzing the sensitivity of parameters, the parameters related to soil and erosion such as terracing, contour trenching, stone bund, etc. were found as the most significant factors, before and after implementing the conservation measures. As a result, it was observed in this study that after conservation practices were implemented, the area in the highly suitable (19.4%) and moderately suitable (68.8%) classes was expected to rise, while the area in the marginally suitable (7%) class was expected to decrease. This research revealed that combining MCDM with GIS-based AHP as well as sensitivity analysis techniques increased the reliability of MCDM output for each criterion.
Comparison of the Thermal Environment by Local Climate Zones in Summer: A Case Study in Suwon, Republic of Korea
Authors: Jo Sangman , Kong Hakyang , Choi Nakhoon , Shin Youngkyu , Park Sookuk
Published: February 2023

The thermal environments of five local climate zones (LCZs) in summer were investigated using all measured microclimatic data collected from 9:00 on 3 August until 15:30 on 4 August, 2017. The physiological equivalent temperature (PET) and universal thermal climate index (UTCI) of the human thermal environment were highest in LCZ EB (paved with scattered trees) and lowest in LCZ 2B (compact mid-rise with scattered trees) and LCZ 4 (open high-rise) during the daytime, and highest in LCZ 4 and lowest in LCZ D (low plants) during the nighttime. LCZ D and LCZ EB in the park and LCZ 5 (open mid-rise) revealed similar thermal environments, and LCZ 2B and LCZ 4 showed higher PET and UTCI values for the thermal environment. The maximum mean difference by location was 6.7 °C for PET and 3.7 °C for UTCI during the daytime, a one-level difference in PET and a two-thirds level in UTCI. During the nighttime, the maximum mean difference was 2.3 °C for PET and 1.9 °C for UTCI, a one-third-level difference. Compared to LCZ 2B, the PET showed a maximum difference of 11 °C and UTCI of 6 °C, showing a difference of two levels for PET and one level for UTCI.
The Antecedents of Hotels’ Green Creativity: The Role of Green HRM, Environmentally Specific Servant Leadership, and Psychological Green Climate
Authors: Alyahya Mansour , Aliedan Meqbel , Agag Gomaa , Abdelmoety Ziad H.
Published: February 2023

As a consequence of climate change, hotels are under mounting pressure to cut their carbon emissions, reduce their waste, and overall become more responsible in their operations. Given this context, experts claim that organisational human resources practices have immense ability to mould the behaviours of individuals. On the basis of w theory, we used a configuration of green human resources management, environmentally specific servant leadership, and psychological green climate to develop causal recipes for stimulating green creativity in hotel employees. Data were collected from 418 employees and analysed using an fsQCA to test the proposed model. Findings revealed that no single construct was sufficient to predict employees’ green creativity, but three causal recipes (i.e., green human respurces management, environmentally specific servant leadership, and psychological green climate) can be demonstrated to produce high green creativity. The study findings show that green human resources managment practices influence individual green creativity. It also indicated that environmentally specific servant leadership is a key driver of green creativity. Moreover, psychological green climate has a signifcant influence on green creativity. Our study has meaningful implications for hotel managers that can help them to develop new approaches and strategies to improve the employees’ green creativity by paying attention to green human resources managment practices, environmentally specific servant leadership, and psychological green climate.