bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Coverage Area Decision Model by Using Unmanned Aerial Vehicles Base Stations for Ad Hoc Networks
Authors: Majeed Saqib , Sohail Adnan , Qureshi Kashif Naseer , Iqbal Saleem , Javed Ibrahim Tariq , Crespi Noel , Nagmeldin Wamda , Abdelmaboud Abdelzahir
Published: August 2022

Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) deployment and placement are largely dependent upon the available energy, feasible scenario, and secure network. The feasible placement of UAV nodes to cover the cellular networks need optimal altitude. The under or over-estimation of nodes’ air timing leads to of resource waste or inefficiency of the mission. Multiple factors influence the estimation of air timing, but the majority of the literature concentrates only on flying time. Some other factors also degrade network performance, such as unauthorized access to UAV nodes. In this paper, the UAV coverage issue is considered, and a Coverage Area Decision Model for UAV-BS is proposed. The proposed solution is designed for cellular network coverage by using UAV nodes that are controlled and managed for reallocation, which will be able to change position per requirements. The proposed solution is evaluated and tested in simulation in terms of its performance. The proposed solution achieved better results in terms of placement in the network. The simulation results indicated high performance in terms of high packet delivery, less delay, less overhead, and better malicious node detection.
Understanding Physicochemical Mechanisms of Sequential Infiltration Synthesis toward Rational Process Design for Uniform Incorporation of Metal Oxides
Authors: Ham Jiwoong , Ko Minkyung , Choi Boyun , Kim Hyeong-U , Jeon Nari
Published: August 2022

Sequential infiltration synthesis (SIS) is a novel technique for fabricating organic–inorganic hybrid materials and porous inorganic materials by leveraging the diffusion of gas-phase precursors into a polymer matrix and chemical reactions between the precursors to synthesize inorganic materials therein. This study aims to obtain a fundamental understanding of the physicochemical mechanisms behind SIS, from which the SIS processing conditions are rationally designed to obtain precise control over the distribution of metal oxides. Herein, in situ FTIR spectroscopy was correlated with various ex situ characterization techniques to study a model system involving the growth of aluminum oxides in poly(methyl methacrylate) using trimethyl aluminum (TMA) and water as the metal precursor and co-reactant, respectively. We identified the prominent chemical states of the sorbed TMA precursors: (1) freely diffusing precursors, (2) weakly bound precursors, and (3) precursors strongly bonded to pre-existing oxide clusters and studied how their relative contributions to oxide formation vary in relation to the changes in the rate-limiting step under different growth conditions. Finally, we demonstrate that uniform incorporation of metal oxide is realized by a rational design of processing conditions, by which the major chemical species contributing to oxide formation is modulated.
IFFMStyle: High-Quality Image Style Transfer Using Invalid Feature Filter Modules
Authors: Xu Zhijie , Hou Liyan , Zhang Jianqin
Published: August 2022

Image style transfer is a challenging problem in computer vision which aims at rendering an image into different styles. A lot of progress has been made to transfer the style of one painting of a representative artist in real time, whereas less attention has been focused on transferring an artist’s style from a collection of his paintings. This task requests capturing the artist’s precise style from his painting collection. Existing methods did not pay more attention on the possible disruption of original content details and image structures by texture elements and noises, which leads to the structure deformation or edge blurring of the generated images. To address this problem, we propose IFFMStyle, a high-quality image style transfer framework. Specifically, we introduce invalid feature filtering modules (IFFM) to the encoder–decoder architecture to filter the content-independent features in the original image and the generated image. Then, the content-consistency constraint is used to enhance the model’s content-preserving capability. We also introduce style perception consistency loss to jointly train a network with content loss and adversarial loss to maintain the distinction of different semantic content in the generated image. Additionally, we have no requirement for paired content image and style image. The experimental results show that the stylized image generated by the proposed method significantly improves the quality of the generated images, and can realize the style transfer based on the semantic information of the content image. Compared with the advanced method, our method is more favored by users.
Circular Optical Phased Array with Large Steering Range and High Resolution
Authors: Benedikovič Daniel , Liu Qiankun , Sánchez-Postigo Alejandro , Atieh Ahmad , Smy Tom , Cheben Pavel , Ye Winnie N.
Published: August 2022

Light detection and ranging systems based on optical phased arrays and integrated silicon photonics have sparked a surge of applications over the recent years. This includes applications in sensing, free-space communications, or autonomous vehicles, to name a few. Herein, we report a design of two-dimensional optical phased arrays, which are arranged in a grid of concentric rings. We numerically investigate two designs composed of 110 and 820 elements, respectively. Both single-wavelength (1550 nm) and broadband multi-wavelength (1535 nm to 1565 nm) operations are studied. The proposed phased arrays enable free-space beam steering, offering improved performance with narrow beam divergences of only 0.5° and 0.22° for the 110-element and 820-element arrays, respectively, with a main-to-sidelobe suppression ratio higher than 10 dB. The circular array topology also allows large element spacing far beyond the sub-wavelength-scaled limits that are present in one-dimensional linear or two-dimensional rectangular arrays. Under a single-wavelength operation, a solid-angle steering between 0.21π sr and 0.51π sr is obtained for 110- and 820-element arrays, respectively, while the beam steering spans the range of 0.24π sr and 0.57π sr for a multi-wavelength operation. This work opens new opportunities for future optical phased arrays in on-chip photonic applications, in which fast, high-resolution, and broadband beam steering is necessary.
Digitized Construction of Iontronic Pressure Sensor with Self-Defined Configuration and Widely Regulated Performance
Authors: Wang Honghao , Liang Chun , Zhang Haozhe , Diao Yan , Luo Hua , Han Yangyang , Wu Xiaodong
Published: August 2022

Flexible pressure sensors are essential components for wearable smart devices and intelligent systems. Significant progress has been made in this area, reporting on excellent sensor performance and fascinating sensor functionalities. Nevertheless, geometrical and morphological engineering of pressure sensors is usually neglected, which, however, is significant for practical application. Here, we present a digitized manufacturing methodology to construct a new class of iontronic pressure sensors with optionally defined configurations and widely modulated performance. These pressure sensors are composed of self-defined electrode patterns prepared by a screen printing method and highly tunable pressure-sensitive microstructures fabricated using 3D printed templates. Importantly, the iontronic pressure sensors employ an iontronic capacitive sensing mechanism based on mechanically regulating the electrical double layer at the electrolyte/electrode interfaces. The resultant pressure sensors exhibit high sensitivity (58 kPa−1), fast response/recovery time (45 ms/75 ms), low detectability (6.64 Pa), and good repeatability (2000 cycles). Moreover, our pressure sensors show remarkable tunability and adaptability in device configuration and performance, which is challenging to achieve via conventional manufacturing processes. The promising applications of these iontronic pressure sensors in monitoring various human physiological activities, fabricating flexible electronic skin, and resolving the force variation during manipulation of an object with a robotic hand are successfully demonstrated.
An Automated Machine Learning Approach for Real-Time Fault Detection and Diagnosis
Authors: Leite Denis , Martins Aldonso , Rativa Diego , De Oliveira Joao F. L. , Maciel Alexandre M. A.
Published: August 2022

This work presents a novel Automated Machine Learning (AutoML) approach for Real-Time Fault Detection and Diagnosis (RT-FDD). The approach’s particular characteristics are: it uses only data that are commonly available in industrial automation systems; it automates all ML processes without human intervention; a non-ML expert can deploy it; and it considers the behavior of cyclic sequential machines, combining discrete timed events and continuous variables as features. The capacity for fault detection is analyzed in two case studies, using data from a 3D machine simulation system with faulty and non-faulty conditions. The enhancement of the RT-FDD performance when the proposed approach is applied is proved with the Feature Importance, Confusion Matrix, and F1 Score analysis, reaching mean values of 85% and 100% in each case study. Finally, considering that faults are rare events, the sensitivity of the models to the number of faulty samples is analyzed.
Stand up and Fight: A Case Study of a Professional Rugby Club Negotiating a COVID-19 Crisis, a Talent Development Perspective
Authors: Costello Ian , Belton Sarahjane , MacNamara Áine
Published: August 2022

A wealth of literature examines the role of challenge from an individual psychological perspective, but research investigating how a talent development system can proactively support athletes to successfully meet the ever-increasing demands of top-level professional sport is less prevalent. This study takes advantage of a naturally occurring but highly atypical developmental challenge as a result of COVID-19 to examine factors influencing the efficacy and effectiveness of the talent development pathway at Munster Rugby. Players and staff (n = 12) took part in semi-structured interviews exploring their experiences of the build-up to the event, the game itself, and the impact post-event. The data were subsequently analysed using Reflexive Thematic Analysis. Players and coaches highlight the groundwork undertaken to establish alignment and coherence, both horizontally and vertically across the talent development environment, and how this contributed to navigating the challenge successfully. The findings support the necessity of both the player and the talent development system being prepared to enable players to perform at the highest level. The findings point to an overlap between the development and performance phases of a player’s journey and the need to integrate short- and long-term objectives within a talent development system.
Sustainable Digital Communication in Higher Education—A Checklist for Page Loading Speed Optimisation
Authors: Sumedrea Silvia , Maican Cătălin Ioan , Chițu Ioana Bianca , Nichifor Eliza , Tecău Alina Simona , Lixăndroiu Radu Constantin , Brătucu Gabriel
Published: August 2022

The changes that universities must face nowadays, especially the need for sustainable development, imply the continuous readjustment of their performance in attracting more prospective students. For the improvement of digital assets in the enrolment process, much attention has been gained, and this has become the starting point for presenting the educational offers of European universities. The concern about attracting candidates more efficiently and with long-term positive effects by using the online environment has led authors to conduct a study on the management of page loading speeds to identify the best practices in communication in post-secondary settings. In this research, a data analysis was performed with Google PSI, which measured academic sites’ page loading times, and the QS 2021 ranking for European universities in order to identify the issues that universities must take care of to increase their digital performance, improve candidates’ experiences, and achieve sustainable development.
Investigating Regenerative Ideation within Sustainable Development Goals
Authors: Ibrahim Iman , Ahmed Nadia
Published: August 2022

The rapid deterioration of ecosystems and the growing impacts of climate change, which is expected to increase the average global temperature by 3–6 degrees Celsius by 2100 according to The Paris Agreement, reveals that sustainability is no longer an adequate solution to these ongoing challenges. As a result, a paradigm shift toward a more evolutionary approach has recently become a demand, where regenerative concepts have rapidly replaced current sustainable practices. Rather than minimizing human impacts on the environment, regenerative ideation aims to generate more than consume and tackles many shortcomings of conventional sustainability. Therefore, the study attempts to provide an answer for the debate on how far can regenerative ideation go beyond current sustainability, and to what extent does this concept deliver on the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Therefore, the study aims first to develop regenerative development goals that adopt an integrated approach and secondly to assure their compliance with the UN’s SDGs. The study employed a qualitative methodology and the case study approach to examine the applicability of the proposed principles. The findings provide clear criteria for architects and urban designers to use in spreading regenerative design to create a more responsible built environment. The study recommends further research on creating regenerative development and design metrics and indicators for practicing the concept within the built environment.
Uncovering the Structural Effect Mechanisms of Natural and Social Factors on Land Subsidence: A Case Study in Beijing
Authors: Zhao Bin , Yang Xuexi , Wu Qianhong , Xiao Weifeng , Yang Wentao , Deng Min
Published: August 2022

Understanding the effect mechanisms of various factors on land subsidence may help in the development of scientific measures to control land subsidence. Previous studies mainly focused on exploring local effect mechanisms, such as extracting hotspots and analyzing their spatiotemporal distribution characteristics and identifying the interaction mechanisms of the associated factors. However, the scarcely discussed structural effect mechanisms on a small scale suggests a need to further explore the effects on land subsidence. Therefore, in this paper, an analytical framework was proposed to elaborate the structural effect mechanisms of influencing factors on land subsidence. First, the local effect mechanisms were identified using the geographically and temporally weighted regression (GTWR) model, followed by a spatial clustering analysis and the detection of their aggregation pattern using the spatially constrained multivariate clustering (SCMC) model to show the structural mechanisms. Study datasets included the monitoring results of land subsidence during 2003–2010 and the related socioeconomic factors by using synthetic aperture radar (SAR) images from Beijing. Factors such as population, annual average rainfall, underground water, and static load were identified to measure the changes in land subsidence, and all of these had both negative and positive impacts. Among these, the annual average rainfall had the largest coefficient variation range. These four geographically associated factors revealed various spatiotemporal effects on land subsidence in Beijing, showing land subsidence changes resulting from the urbanization process of Beijing during that period.
Para Rubber (Hevea brasiliensis) Feedstock for Livelihoods Opportunities in Southern Thailand: Analysis of Socioeconomic Productivity Potentials and Security
Authors: Simon John Nyandansobi , Nuthammachot Narissara , Techato Kuaanan , Okpara Kingsley Ezechukwu , Channumsin Sittiporn , Kaewthongrach Rungnapa , Sarkar Md. Sujahangir Kabir
Published: August 2022

Para rubber feedstock production potential was explored in Hat Yai district. The study focused on the respondent’s socioeconomic status, feedstock production potential, and mapped the relevant actors along the supply chain. Structured questionnaires were administered to 117 respondents chosen through random and purposeful sampling. The descriptive statistics, linear regression models, feedstock potential model, and Simpson’s diversity index were used to analyze the data. The findings showed average ages of 54.4 and 48.4 for farmers and processors respectively, with above 40% literacy. Seventy-six percent of the plantations’ land belongs to the respondents with corresponding average yields of 9.5 tons/yr and 1082.5 logs for latex and parawood as the main products. Farmers and processors had a mean annual para rubber income of USD 6341.35 and 2.55 million USD, respectively. The analysis revealed a significant relationship between plantation size and feedstock supply; the theoretical feedstock potential is 831,630.91 tons and is highly diverse (Simpson’s diversity index of 0.75), indicative of high potential for sustainable production and consumption. The study highlights that low latex prices alone cannot account for the decline in rubber feedstock yield, due to the high cost of new land, the inability of farmers to expand plantations, and four interlinked feedstock supply lines existing in the study area.
Competences of Rural Women Entrepreneurs and Their Quality of Life
Authors: Othman Norasmah , Radin A Rahman Radin Siti Aishah , Kamaruddin Hanim
Published: August 2022

Background: Women entrepreneurs, especially those from the rural areas, often struggle to develop balance between business decisions and their well-being. Objective: To examine the relationship between rural women entrepreneurs’ competence and their quality of life. Methods: A questionnaire survey measuring life competencies and the quality of life was carried out on a group of 152 women entrepreneurs from rural Perak using the purposive sampling technique. The main research method was quantitative using survey design. The collected data were subjected to statistical analysis using frequency, mean, standard deviation and correlation coefficient were used to assess the relationship between entrepreneurial competence and quality of life. Results: Findings showed that rural women entrepreneurs have a higher level of life competencies and achieved a good quality of life. There is a strong relationship between their life competencies and quality of life and similarly, between rural women entrepreneurs’ entrepreneurial skills and spiritual skills and their quality of life. Implication: The applicability of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs and Spencer and Spencer’s theory is highly proven by the evidence of a relationship between life competencies and rural women entrepreneur’s quality of life. These findings have implications for enhancing the efficiency of rural women entrepreneurs through the implementation of competency development programs.
Can After-School Tutoring Sustainably Empower Preschoolers’ Development? —A Longitudinal Study
Authors: Shi Jin , Xue Haiping , Fang Chenchen , Luo Li
Published: August 2022

Participation in after-school tutoring is becoming increasingly prevalent among young children in China and worldwide. This study explores whether children aged 3 to 6 can achieve sustainable and empowered development by participating in after-school tutoring, using propensity score matching based on the data from 664 children on a baseline date and 367 children on a follow-up date. It is found that gender, age, and family socioeconomic status are major factors that affect preschool children’s participation in after-school tutoring. Baseline data reveals that participation in after-school tutoring has no significant impact on children’s learning and development. Follow-up study after one year shows that, except for the significant improvement in children’s language development, after-school tutoring has no significant impact on other areas. Further subsampled studies show that after the children in 3- to 4-year-old classrooms at baseline who have participated in after-school tutoring enter 4- to 5-year-old classrooms, they have significant improvement in social development, language, and learning quality. However, there is no such significant improvement for the children from 4- to 5-year-old classrooms to 5- to 6-year-old classrooms. In general, after-school tutoring has no immediate effect and limited lasting impact on preschool children’s learning and development. These findings suggest that parents should respect the laws of child development, and advanced or incorrect tutoring will only increase the pressure on children and the economic burden on family, without promoting the sustainable development of children.
Experimental Investigation on Waste Heat Recovery from a Cement Factory to Enhance Thermoelectric Generation
Authors: Gomaa Mohamed R. , Murtadha Talib K. , Abu-jrai Ahmad , Rezk Hegazy , Altarawneh Moath A. , Marashli Abdullah
Published: August 2022

This work investigated the potential for waste heat recovery from a cement factory using thermoelectric generation (TEG) technology. Several TEGs were placed on a secondary coaxial shell separated from the kiln shell by an air gap. The performance of the system was tested and evaluated experimentally. Two cooling methods, active water and forced air, were considered. A forced closed-loop water cooling system with a heat exchanger was considered for the active-water cooling method. A heat exchanger was inserted before the water tank to improve cooling efficiency by reducing the inlet temperature of the cooling water tank, in contrast to forced-air cooling, in which a heatsink was used. The obtained results indicated that the closed-loop water-cooled system equipped with a radiator, i.e., active water, has the highest conversion efficiency. The maximum absorbed heat for the forced-air and active-water cooling systems were 265.03 and 262.95 W, respectively. The active-water cooling method improves the power of TEG by 4.4% in comparison with forced-air cooling, while the payback periods for the proposed active-water and forced-air cooling systems are approximately 16 and 9 months, respectively.
Reaction Behavior and Transformation Path of Zinc in the Heating-Up Zone during Sintering Process
Authors: Lv Wei , Gan Min , Fan Xiaohui , Sun Zengqing , Zhang Rongchang , Ji Zhiyun , Chen Xuling
Published: August 2022

Iron ore sintering is a simple and sustainable way to treat zinc-bearing secondary resources. In this paper, the reaction behavior of zinc was studied by combining thermodynamic calculation and simulation tests under sintering temperature and atmosphere. The evolution law of Zn-containing phases during the heating process was also revealed. The results showed that Zn-containing substances were mainly converted to ZnO when the temperature reached 700 °C in the pre-drying zone, and ZnO started to combine with Fe2O3 to form ZnFe2O4 when the temperature reached 800 °C in the combustion zone. ZnFe2O4 remained stable at 1300 °C, and did not change in the atmosphere with low CO concentration. In conventional sintering conditions, the removal rate of zinc was about 5 wt%, zinc was mainly converted to ZnFe2O4 and stuck in the sinter. Therefore, to meet the zinc amount of the blast furnace load, pretreatment of raw materials or ore matching to control zinc content is necessary.
Exploring Generation Z’s Perceptions of Green Homes
Authors: Kota Bhavya Rathna , Debs Luciana , Davis Taylor
Published: August 2022

In recent years, there has been an increase in environmental awareness in the United States, leading to steady growth in environmentally conscious consumerism. Looking specifically at green home marketing, understanding the consumer behavior of the next generation of homebuyers, Generation Z (GenZ), is important for environmental and business reasons. This study surveyed 116 university students to explore the influence of specific barriers and types of motivation (intrinsic, instrumental, and non-normative) on their perceptions of green homes. Our findings suggest certain barriers have more influence on GenZ consumers than others, with the perceived lack of choice in selecting Green Home Features (GHFs) as the top barrier, followed by a lack of information about GHFs, and then the perceived effort to analyze GHFs. Furthermore, for GenZ consumers, intrinsic and non-normative motivations seem to significantly affect their willingness to buy green homes, whereas instrumental motivation does not. Our findings expand on previous studies on green consumer behavior to provide a new benchmark for understanding GenZ’s consumer behavior, specifically towards green homes. Our results can be used by marketers and policymakers to study future home trends, attract more potential buyers to green homes, and help create a sustainable environment for future generations.
Interplay of External and Internal Knowledge: Business Model Innovation Analysis in Chinese Publicly Traded Film Companies
Authors: Hou Caihong , Nie Zhengnan
Published: August 2022

The application of business model innovation (BMI) generally creates more competent and flexible enterprises in changeable markets and helps to achieve competitive advantages. Especially in a post-pandemic age, BMI has a particular significance. As such, in this study, based on the resource-based view theory, we aimed to explore how Chinese publicly traded film companies apply BMI from the perspective of the interplay of external and internal knowledge acquisition. Our focus was examining the influence of the search for external knowledge and the creation of internal knowledge on the BMI of Chinese film companies. On the basis of interviews and field observation, we selected environmental volatility and management attention as the independent variables in the study model. We analyzed the data collected from 36 Chinese publicly traded film companies by correlation and regression. The results showed that external knowledge search and internal knowledge creation substantially influenced the BMI of Chinese film companies. In addition, environmental volatility and management attention positively influenced BMI. The findings provide practical information motivating Chinese publicly traded film companies to apply BMI in the post-pandemic era.
A Hesitant Fuzzy Method for Evaluating Risky Cold Chain Suppliers Based on an Improved TODIM
Authors: Zhang Yongzheng , Ye Chunming , Geng Xiuli
Published: August 2022

Enterprises need sustainable development in order to reduce costs and increase income. The cold chain logistics industry needs to promote sustainable supply chains more. As the beginning of the supply chain, the choice of suppliers is particularly important. Considering the risky attitude of decision-makers, an improved hesitant fuzzy TODIM approach is adopted to select suppliers. In order to calculate a more objective indicator weight, the generalized Shapley function of the hesitant fuzzy measure is adopted by analyzing the relationships among indicators. The uncertain supplier evaluation information given by decision-makers is obtained by using hesitant fuzzy information. The improved Interactive and Multi-criteria Decision-Making (TODIM) method based on hesitant fuzzy numbers is used to analyze the psychological behavior of decision-makers under different market prospects and comprehensively rank the candidate suppliers. Finally, a case study of selecting cold chain logistics suppliers is provided to verify the effectiveness and feasibility of the method in this paper.
Research on the Influence of Technological Innovation Enthusiasm on Innovation Performance from the Perspective of Nonlinearity—Empirical Evidence from Chinese Listed Firms
Authors: Bai Guiyu , Wang Wenjuan , Wang Xinxin
Published: August 2022

Taking Chinese listed companies from 2010 to 2019 as research samples, in this paper, the authors empirically analyze the impact of technological innovation enthusiasm on innovation performance from a nonlinear perspective. The research finds that an inverted, U-shaped relationship exists between technological innovation enthusiasm and innovation performance, that is, to a certain extent, the improvement of the enthusiasm for technological innovation can improve the innovation performance of companies. However, when the enthusiasm for technological innovation reaches a certain degree, the innovation performance declines with the improvement of technological innovation enthusiasm. In addition, the moderating effect of CEO succession on the relationship between technological innovation enthusiasm and innovation performance is investigated from the perspective of corporate governance, and the research conclusions show that CEO succession strengthens the inverted, U-shaped relationship between technological innovation enthusiasm and innovation performance. This study further enriches the theoretical framework of technological innovation and corporate governance, and the relevant conclusions can provide certain theoretical reference for the innovation performance improvement of listed companies in China.
Study on Green Building Promotion Incentive Strategy Based on Evolutionary Game between Government and Construction Unit
Authors: Li Xiaojuan , Wang Chen , Kassem Mukhtar A. , Liu Yishu , Ali Kherun Nita
Published: August 2022

Green buildings are considered to be an effective way to save energy, reduce emissions, and protect the environment. As one of the main bodies of green building construction, the construction unit’s willingness to build seriously affects the promotion of green building. Therefore, based on the viewpoints of natural persons and bounded rationality, this study constructs an evolutionary game analysis model, analyzes the impact of local government subsidy policies on the application strategies of construction units, and analyzes the steady-state and selection strategies. The system dynamics model is established using a flow chart, and the simulation results show that, in the long run, increasing the government subsidy and inspection cost cannot improve the application probability of the construction unit. Furthermore, the inspection intensity of the government and the indirect income of the construction unit has a direct influence on the application probability of the construction unit. The results show that the government should adjust the amount of the subsidy reasonably, improve the penalty mechanism, reduce development costs, strengthen publicity, and encourage construction units to actively apply for green buildings, so as to realize the transformation and upgrade of China’s construction industry.
Numerical and Experimental Investigation of Photovoltaic/Thermal Systems: Parameter Analysis and Determination of Optimum Flow
Authors: Yan Bin , Wu Qiuxuan , Chi Xiaoni , Wu Chenxi , Luo Ping , Luo Yanbin , Zeng Pingliang
Published: August 2022

The emergence of photovoltaic/thermal (PV/T) technology has effectively solved the problem of high temperature and low electrical efficiency of photovoltaic cells, and significantly improved the utilization rate of solar energy. At present, improving the thermoelectric performance of PV/T systems is a research hotspot. The effects of operating parameters such as inlet temperature, solar radiation, ambient temperature, and coolant mass flow rate, are investigated through numerical simulations. An experimental platform is built to verify the effectiveness of the three-dimensional numerical model. It is found that when the solar radiation changes from 800 W/m2 to 1000 W/m2, the increase rate in thermal efficiency will obviously slow down. When the coolant mass flow rate is increased from 60 to 320 L/h, the thermal efficiency is raised by 8.24%. For each 40 L/h increase in mass flow rate, the electrical efficiency increased by 0.047%. However, when the mass flow rate is too large, the increase in electrical and thermal efficiency gradually decreases. Orthogonal experiments and analysis of variance (ANOVA) are used to study the effects of each parameter and parameter combination on overall efficiency. The results show that ambient temperature has the greatest effect, followed by inlet temperature. Finally, the mathematical model of overall efficiency is established, and the coolant mass flow control formula is proposed. This formula can determine the optimal flow rate according to different environmental conditions, so that the system can operate under the optimal flow rate at all times and maximize the thermoelectric efficiency. Experimental results show that flow control increases the overall energy gain by 2.5% compared with the optimal constant mass flow.
Can Horizontal Ecological Compensation Improve the Water Environment in Cross-Provincial Watersheds?
Authors: Hu Dongbin , Lin Mei , Chen Yang
Published: August 2022

Horizontal ecological compensation is an important institutional innovation to promote ecological civilization and is the main functional area strategy in China under the current management mechanism. In this paper, we use contract theory to analyze the advantages of horizontal ecological compensation in cross-provincial watershed governance issues based on the basis of the case of Xin’anjiang River Basin, which is the first pilot horizontal ecological compensation in cross-provincial watersheds in China. We select panel data from 2004 to 2020 and use the synthetic control method (SCM) from the perspective of the water environment to assess the horizontal ecological compensation on the intensity of water pollution in the Xin’anjiang River basin. It is found that: (1) The horizontal ecological compensation can effectively respond to the failure of traditional ecological compensation methods in cross-provincial watershed governance, and, to some extent, solve the problem of lacking of incentives for upstream and downstream governments to participate; (2) The horizontal ecological compensation can reduce the water pollution intensity and improve the water environment in the Xin’anjiang River Basin; (3) However, the impact on the upstream is significantly lower than that of the downstream, and the policy effect on the upstream tends to be zero after the central government removes the subsidies to the upstream in 2018; and (4) The policy shows an expected effect two years ahead of the implementation. The findings of this paper have important implications for the promotion of the horizontal ecological compensation policy and the management of the water environment in cross-provincial watersheds.
Concept Mapping: An Effective and Rapid Participatory Tool for Analysis of the Tourism System?
Authors: Leven Chelsea L. , Bosak Keith
Published: August 2022

Sustainable tourism has grown rapidly in the last 35 years, both on the ground and as an area of academic study. However, the results of sustainable tourism development have proven to be mixed, with many unwanted outcomes stemming from its development in destinations around the world. Recent academic approaches to studying sustainable tourism development are increasingly turning towards social–ecological systems (SESs) thinking in order to embrace the inherent complexity and rapid change found in today’s world. This stems partly from an understanding that tourism is a complex social–ecological phenomenon, and that its success relies on understanding its dynamics in a given location. While SES approaches to understanding complex phenomena such as tourism are well-developed, they tend to be resource-intensive and unwieldy in rapidly changing environments, such as those found in sustainable tourism destinations. Therefore, we hypothesized that a novel form of concept mapping based on an SES perspective and the paradigm of resilience thinking could address limitations in conceptualizing and understanding sustainable tourism as part of a larger SES. In this paper, we outline our method thoroughly, then evaluate concept mapping by assessing its effectiveness as a rapid assessment tool that enhances systems understanding while being easy to use in the field, privileging local knowledge, and emphasizing relationships within the SES. We focus on the method and its applicability rather than the results of the maps themselves. Through a case study in Ometepe, Nicaragua, our results showed that concept mapping revealed key drivers and values within the SES and emphasized the value of participatory and transdisciplinary tourism research. Our study demonstrates that concept mapping is an effective method for rapidly assessing the complexity of a tourism destination in a manner that is accessible, adaptable, and achievable.
Understanding Smart City Policy: Insights from the Strategy Documents of 52 Local Governments
Authors: Micozzi Nancy , Yigitcanlar Tan
Published: August 2022

Today, many cities around the globe are interested in developing or adopting smart city policy frameworks; however, the complexity of the smart city concept combined with complicated urban issues makes it a highly challenging task. Moreover, there are limited studies to consolidate our understanding of smart city policymaking. The aim of this study was to bridge this knowledge gap by placing a set of official smart city policy frameworks under the policy analysis microscope. The study approached the analysis by, firstly, internationally collating the smart city policy frameworks of 52 local governments from 17 countries. The methodology then progressed to a deductive content analysis of the identified policies with a thematic data analysis software. The investigation employed the main themes to identify common urban issues in smart city policies—i.e., smart economy, smart environment, smart governance, smart living, smart mobility, and smart people. The results revealed the targeted key planning issues, goals, and priorities, and the ways that smart city policies address these key planning issues, goals, and priorities. The study findings inform policymakers, planners and practitioners on the smart city policy priorities and provide insights for smart city policymaking.
The Evolution of Ireland’s Medical Device Cluster and Its Future Direction
Authors: McKernan David , McDermott Olivia
Published: August 2022

Ireland has developed a highly successful medical device cluster. Most of the industry started from USA multinationals that moved to Ireland in the 1990s. An ecosystem has now developed with strong linkages between universities, start-ups, multinationals, venture capital, suppliers, and supporting industries. This paper explores the Medical Device cluster in Ireland. It characterizes the industry through the companies, innovation, products, markets, and regulatory framework. It concludes that the Irish MedTech industry is successful but has been highly dependent on USA multinationals that established themselves here in the 1990s. Based on this, we summarize the opportunities and threats the industry now faces. This is one of the first studies that categorized the MedTech industry in Ireland. This study will provide valuable insights to aid government policy to sustain the medical device cluster in Ireland as well as provide insights into other countries.
A Grey-Fuzzy Programming Approach towards Socio-Economic Optimization of Second-Generation Biodiesel Supply Chains
Authors: Kanan Mohammad , Habib Muhammad Salman , Shahbaz Anam , Hussain Amjad , Habib Tufail , Raza Hamid , Abusaq Zaher , Assaf Ramiz
Published: August 2022

This study aims to develop a multi-objective second-generation-based socially responsible supply chain (SGB-SRSC) network design model that considers all dimensions of sustainability: economy, environment, and social. The dynamic nature of the biodiesel supply chain (SC) impairs the SGB-SRSC model decisions; thus, a grey-fuzzy solution approach is developed. Biodiesel is a promising renewable energy resource produced from a variety of easily accessible domestic wastes. For a swift transition towards commercially feasible biodiesel production, integrated optimization of the biodiesel SC system is critical. Using the latest social impact assessment tools, this study provides a decision-support system for developing a biodiesel SC network. A comprehensive computational analysis is performed on a case study to validate the proposed model. The results show that significant investment is required to achieve social well-being goals and secure decisions against uncertainty associated with SGB-SRSC model parameters. Further, it is observed that the expenses of biodiesel production and biodiesel plant installation accounted for a large portion of the overall SC cost. As a result, finding more cost-effective biodiesel production methods is critical to the industry’s economic viability. Regulators and policymakers involved in biodiesel production projects may find the framework useful in obtaining a compromise solution for socio-economic goals based on their preferences.
Virtual Reality and Metacognition Training Techniques for Learning Disabilities
Authors: Drigas Athanasios , Mitsea Eleni , Skianis Charalabos
Published: August 2022

The current research aims to investigate the effectiveness of brain-rewiring techniques applied in virtual reality environments as a pioneer intervention for people with learning disabilities and various disorders. In addition, we examine whether these VR-assisted techniques can improve metacognitive skills. Specifically, we emphasize the advantage of VR clinical hypnosis, VR neurolinguistic programming, VR subliminal training, VR fast learning, VR mindfulness, and VR breathing training. The results of this review study revealed that virtual reality provides a fertile ground for the practice of therapeutic metacognitive techniques. In addition, experimental research revealed beneficial effects on learning disabilities, cognitive impairments, autism, ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder), depression, generalized anxiety disorder, phobias, and behavioral and emotional disorders. It was revealed that VR brain-rewiring techniques constitute effective metacognitive strategies for people with various disorders. Therapists, educators, parents, and even patients could utilize VR brain-rewiring techniques at home, at school, or in the workplace to train the 21st-century meta-abilities. This study also highlights the need to create virtual metacognitive training environments to accelerate inclusion, equity, and peak performance.
Assessing RAP Multi-Recycling Capacity by the Characterization of Recovered Bitumen Using DSR
Authors: Antunes Vítor , Moreno Fernando , Rubio-Gámez Maria , Freire Ana Cristina , Neves José
Published: August 2022

This paper addresses the changes in bitumen properties during multi-recycling cycles, both before and after ageing. The rheology of recovered bitumen was characterized using the dynamic shear rheometer. The softening point and penetration value were also determined. The analysis showed that the bitumen’s properties could be recovered even after more than one recycling cycle. The bitumen recovered from the second recycling cycle presented an average reduction of 45% in terms of complex modulus when compared with the first recycling cycle. The bitumen from the RAP mixtures presented a similar susceptibility to ageing. The analysis clearly showed that RAP has the potential to be multi-recycled.
Statistical Analysis of Design Variables in a Chiller Plant and Their Influence on Energy Consumption and Life Cycle Cost
Authors: Torres Yamile Díaz , Gullo Paride , Herrera Hernán Hernández , Torres del Toro Migdalia , Guerra Mario A. Álvarez , Ortega Jorge Iván Silva , Speerforck Arne
Published: August 2022

An appropriate design of a chiller plant is crucial to guarantee highly performing solutions. However, several design variables, such as type of systems, total cooling capacity, and hydraulic arrangement, need to be considered. On the one hand, at present, different technical criteria for selecting the most suitable design variables are available. Studies that corroborate the influence of the design variables over the operational variables are missing. In order to fill this knowledge gap, this work proposes a statistical analysis of design variables in chiller plants operating in medium- and large-scale applications and evaluates their influence on energy consumption and life cycle cost (LCC) under the same thermal demand conditions. A case study involving 138 chiller plant combinations featuring different arrangements and a Cuban hotel was selected. The results suggested that the total chiller design and cooling capacity distribution among chillers have a significant influence on the energy consumption of the chiller plant with a Spearman’s Rho and Kendall Tau (τ) correlation index value of −0.625 and 0.559, respectively. However, with LCC, only the cooling capacity distribution among the chillers had a certain influence with a Kendall Tau correlation index value of 0.289. As for the considered total cooling capacity, the applied statistical test showed that this design variable does not have any influence on performing the chiller plant.
Evolutionary Relationship between Tourism and Real Estate: Evidence and Research Trends
Authors: Kabil Moaaz , Abouelseoud Mohamed , Alsubaie Faisal , Hassan Heba Mostafa , Varga Imre , Csobán Katalin , Dávid Lóránt Dénes
Published: August 2022

With the growing number of academic studies being published each year, scientific knowledge is expanding at an unparalleled rate. Therefore, analyzing the scientific production in a particular research area to identify future research directions and streams has become inevitable. This study adopted a two-step methodological approach—bibliometric (294 articles) and content-based analyses (63 articles)—to dissect tourism and real estate literature. Using different analytical modules and software to answer the six proposed research questions, the study findings reveal that the tourism and real estate literature still does not follow a specific research direction but is rather intertwined with many other research areas. Additionally, the results highlight some distinctive points in the tourism and real estate literature, including how it is predominantly composed of practical studies based on primary data and applied in various spatial units as case studies (e.g., coastal areas, cities and national and international units). Finally, this study explains how the findings will be beneficial for identifying the future research agenda in the tourism real estate scientific field by providing a clear roadmap for the research streams of this field.
Developing an Integrated and Contextualized Planning and Design Framework for Livable Patterns of Urbanization in Chennai
Authors: Suresh Kavya , Forgaci Claudiu , Stead Dominic
Published: August 2022

This article analyses the urban conditions of Chennai, India, and takes a critical look at its planning framework by considering four main aspects: the ecological structures, urban morphology, mobility, and livability. To do so, the article examines policy documents, urban form, public perceptions, and daily mobility patterns. Specific attention is focused on three layers of the urban fabric: water and ecology, transport infrastructure, and housing. First, the city’s river restoration is critically assessed, with a focus on integrating the social dimension into the process. Second, the metro network is analyzed, specifically understanding its usage with respect to different user groups. Third, the densification pattern in different parts of the city is analyzed. Considering the layers of water, transport infrastructure, and housing together, the article sets out an alternative integrated approach to strategic design and planning in the city towards the goal of creating a more livable public realm. The proposed integrated framework, termed “supergrids” is a city-scale strategy that enables a large reconfiguration of the existing networks in the city, integration of ecological systems into the public space network, and a restructuring of movement patterns by upscaling the vehicular network, and aligning pedestrian connections with green networks, public transit, and important functions.