bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Burkholderia cepacia Enhanced Electrokinetic-Permeable Reaction Barrier for the Remediation of Lead Contaminated Soils
Authors: He Yun , Yang Linlin , He Chiquan , Wang Feifei
Published: September 2022

The combination of electrokinetic (EK) and permeable reactive barrier (PRB) is a potentially effective technology for the remediation of heavy-metal-contaminated soils, but high energy expenditure limits its application in practice. In order to further improve the remediation efficiency and reduce the cost, some improvements were made in this study in terms of new PRB material, the spatial configuration of the rod electrode, and the microbial enhancement. Differently from previous powder PRB materials, six thin-film PRB materials were prepared using cheap natural attapulgite (ATP) and metal salts. PRB is a tough material that can be plugged and pulled out in engineering. The heavy metals adsorbed on it can be extracted from the soil, eliminating the risk of subsequent secondary pollution. Therefore, it has a strong operational ability. Among them, the FeMn-ATP material exhibited the best adsorption performance (2521 ± 377.1 mg/kg) for Pb. The results of the transmission electron microscope, X-ray diffractometer, and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy showed that iron and manganese were successfully loaded on the material. The Burkholderia cepacia pre-treatment led to soil pH decrease and the dissolution of Pb, and the morphological composition of Pb in the soil was also changed. In the microbial group, the adsorption amount of Pb by PRB at the anode and cathode increased by 69.1% and 42.1%, respectively. The concentration of the residual lead in the anode soil was significantly lower than that in the control group without microorganisms, and the removal rate of Pb was increased by 26%.
Research on Overburden Failure Characteristics Based on the Theory of Plates and Shells
Authors: Qin Hongyan , Zhang Jingui , Cheng Zhiheng , Ouyang Zhenhua , Chen Liang , Yi Haiyang , Zhao Xidong , Li Yang , Liu Hao
Published: September 2022

To reveal the overburden failure characteristics during backfill mining, theoretical analysis based on the theory of plates and shells and field measurements were combined. Based on the theory of plates and shells, a mechanical model for the overburden failure mechanism during backfill mining was established, through which the fracture conditions of overburden during backfill mining were judged. By analyzing the fracture process and revealing the fracture mechanism, the fractured zone in overburden during backfill mining was found not to develop uniformly, but changed in a leaping manner. Field measurement was conducted taking the 1327 working face in Xima Coal Mine (Shenyang City, Liaoning Province, China) as an example to monitor and analyze the roof-to-floor convergence (RFC), strata behaviors at the working face, and overburden failure during backfill mining. Monitoring results show that the distance between the monitoring points and the working face was highly consistent with the periodic weighting interval when the RFC increased in a leaping manner; the RFC grew in a leaping manner after each roof weighting, as well as the fractured zone. By monitoring and analyzing overburden failure, it was determined that the maximum height of the fractured zone was 10.7 m and a leaping phenomenon was present in the development process of the fractured zone. The conclusions of theoretical analysis were completely consistent with those of the field measurements, thus confirming the leaping development of the fractured zone in overburden during backfill mining.
Experimental Study on Strength Weakening of Gypsum Rock with Effect of Long-Term Overlying Strata Pressure
Authors: Wang Shuli , Liu Zhihe , Zhang Kaizhi , Zhu Guangli , Zheng Huaichang
Published: September 2022

A long time lag is the main characteristic of gypsum mined gob collapse disasters. With the coring of a gypsum rock specimen from the supporting pillars in gob, which formed over several years, the strength weakening effect of the gypsum rock with long-term overlying strata pressure is revealed by experimentation. The results show that: uniaxial compression stress–strain curves represent major differences in different lateral depths of the same supporting pillar. With the increase in lateral depth, peak strength increases and the corresponding strain decreases, which becomes more obvious as the age increases. As a function of time, peak strength decreases and the corresponding strain increases in the shallow part of the pillar as the age increases. Peak strength fluctuates in the middle part and increases in the deep part; the corresponding strain fluctuates in the middle and deep parts, but demonstrates the opposite changing law. Finally, the reason for the above law was comprehensively and thoroughly researched and demonstrated. The maximum strength weakening rate of gypsum rock in the shallow part of a supporting pillar of 0.5 m depth was 21.06% in the year 1996. The slow strength weakening effect of gypsum rock with long-term overlying strata pressure is the essential reason why gypsum mined gob collapses occur in subsequent years or even decades.
An Examination of Entrepreneurial Marketing Dimensions and Firm Performance in Small and Medium Enterprises
Authors: Hanaysha Jalal Rajeh , Al-Shaikh Mohammed Emad
Published: September 2022

The purpose of this study was to test the impact of entrepreneurial marketing dimensions on firm performance in small and medium enterprises. Required data was gathered using the quantitative research approach. Particularly, the primary data was obtained through a structured survey from 153 SMEs operating in Saudi Arabia. The obtained data was then analyzed through SPSS and partial least square (PLS-SEM) approach to calculate the validity and reliability for the measurement items, and also to verify the impact of entrepreneurial marketing dimensions on firm performance. The results showed that customer intensity and value creation have positive effects on firm performance. The findings also confirmed that innovativeness and resource leveraging are positively correlated with firm performance. However, the effect of risk taking on firm performance was found insignificant. Finally, it was found that proactiveness and opportunity focus have significant positive effects on firm performance. This paper contributes to resource-advantage theory and empirical literature by addressing existing research gaps between the selected dimensions of entrepreneurial marketing and firm performance. It also contributes to the theory by bringing new insights from a Middle Eastern country owing to the lack of research on this topic, particularly in this region.
Enhancing Biocultural Diversity of Wild Urban Woodland through Research-Based Architectural Design: Case Study—War Island in Belgrade, Serbia
Authors: Nikezić Ana
Published: September 2022

In the vortex of the environmental and ecological crises, it is clear that the cosmopolitan way of living is facing uncertainty with no easing in sight. Looking beyond the horizon at what the aftermath will yield, it is quite clear that the meaning of urbanity has to be transformed; the urban life has to support social and ecological well-being, and the city has to intertwine more closely with nature. Therefore, wild urban woodlands (WUWs), often morphologically exclusive, culturally contradictory, and biologically heterogeneous, are recognized together with the other informal wilderness of the city as catalyzers of a newly constructed identity and the first line of defense when the question of the socio-ecological resilience of the city is raised. The present study focuses on how the biocultural diversity of WUWs can be stimulated by architecture and on which principles and restorative components an architectural design should stand on. Taking War Island on the river Danube, in the very heart of Belgrade, Serbia, as the particular case study, a specific assignment was given to students of the Faculty of Architecture in Belgrade to affirm, recuperate, and stipulate the relationship between the nature and the culture of the site. On the threshold of interdisciplinarity, a net of coordinated values is set up based on a theoretical, analytic, and typo-morphological approach, gathering the eco-cultural aspects, components, and characteristics of the place. On the bases of the students’ research-based design propositions, the results show different design paths promoting accessibility and security, restoring social responsibility and awareness, and regaining the socio-ecological well-being of the place. The conclusions drawn from the study open the perspective of the alliance between nature and culture through an architectural infrastructure that heals the landscape and induces its therapeutic properties, enhancing the biocultural diversity of the place and proclaiming a kind of hedonistic sustainability for the future life of cities.
Valorization of Oil Palm Empty Fruit Bunch for Cellulose Fibers: A Reinforcement Material in Polyvinyl Alcohol Biocomposites for Its Application as Detergent Capsules
Authors: Tan Jia Ying , Tey Wah Yen , Panpranot Joongjai , Lim Steven , Lee Kiat Moon
Published: September 2022

Cellulose fibers isolated from oil palm empty fruit bunches (OPEFB) have been studied as a potential reinforcement for polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) biocomposite. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) showed that all three parameters—hydrolysis temperature, time and acid concentration, as well as their interactions—significantly affected the yield of cellulose. Moving Least Squares (MLS) and Multivariable Power Least Squares (MPLS) models demonstrated good fitness. The model also proved that acid concentration was the dominant parameter, supported by the Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) analysis. Hydrolysis using 54% acid at 35 °C and 15 min achieved the highest cellulose yield of 80.72%. Cellulose-reinforced PVA biocomposite films demonstrated better mechanical strength, elongation at break, moisture barrier properties, thermal stability and poorer light transmission rate compared to neat PVA due to the high aspect ratio, crystallinity and good compatibility of cellulose fibers. These findings suggested the potential of cellulose fibers-reinforced PVA biocomposite film as water-soluble detergent capsules.
Smart Transition to Climate Management of the Green Energy Transmission Chain
Authors: Borysiak Olena , Wołowiec Tomasz , Gliszczyński Grzegorz , Brych Vasyl , Dluhopolskyi Oleksandr
Published: September 2022

Climate challenges in recent decades have forced a change in attitude towards forms of environmental interaction. The International Climate Conference COP26 evidences the relevance of the climate issue at the global level in Glasgow (November 2021). A decrease in natural energy resources leads to a search for alternative energy sources. Given this, this article is devoted to studying the peculiarities of the transition to climate management of the green energy transmission chain based on the circular economy and smart technologies. This paper has used simulation modeling to develop an algorithm for applying a smart approach to climate management of the green energy transmission chain based on the work of Industry 4.0 technologies. The result of this modeling will be the importance of strengthening the ability to develop intersectoral partnerships to create climate-energy clusters based on a closed cycle of using energy resources and developing smart technologies. At the same time, it has been found that COVID-19 has changed the behaviour of energy consumers towards the transition to the use of energy from renewable sources that are carbon neutral. With this in mind, this article has assessed the climate capacity of industries to use green energy from renewable sources based on resource conservation (rational use of energy resources) and climate neutrality. The industries of Ukraine, which are the largest consumers of energy and, at the same time, significantly affected by climate change, were taken for the study: industry, transport, and agriculture. The methodology for determining the indicator of the climate capacity of sectors in the transition to green energy has been based on the correlation index (ratio) of the consumption indicator of various types of energy by industries (petroleum products; natural gas; biofuels and waste; electricity) and the indicator of gross value added of industries in pre-COVID-19 and COVID-19 conditions. The results have indicated that the use of energy from renewable sources (biofuels and waste) for the production of goods and services, as well as the economical nature of the provision of raw materials (biomass and faeces) are factors that ensure climate industry neutrality and enhance its climate capability. The prospects of such effects of assessing the climate capacity of sectors will be the basis for the rationale to develop intersectoral partnerships to create climate-energy clusters based on a closed cycle of using energy resources and developing smart technologies.
Impact Assessment of Morphology and Layout of Zones on Refugees’ Affordable Core Shelter Performance
Authors: Ibrahim Rojhat , Elhadad Sara , Baranyai Bálint , Katona Tamás János
Published: September 2022

The number of migrants increases globally due to natural disasters, global warming, and war conflicts. Inefficient and unsustainable construction approaches for migrant shelters have resulted from improper planning and design systems regarding lifespan, materials and techniques, and socio-cultural aspects. Therefore, the study aim has an incentive to assess the impact of the morphological, siting, and layout of zones and shelters for the long-term displacement prototypes considering sustainability concepts from social context, affordability, adaptability, low-impact construction materials, and techniques. Furthermore, applying the dynamic simulation IDA ICE 4.8 tool was cardinal to justify the comprehensive reported outcomes based on the bottom-up construction method after assessing energy and thermal comfort performance in seven cases. The energy performance assessment regarding heating reveals the superiority of the compact layout plan system, while the open-layout plan system is superior for electric cooling assessment. Concerning thermal comfort performance for the number of accepted hours category, the open-layout plan system is superior. Fanger indicators for thermal comfort assessment demonstrated the superiority of the horizontal-compact layout plan scheme. The carbon dioxide (CO2) concentration level assessment shows that the open-yard layout cases have better results than other systems. To conclude, sustainable prototypes for displaced people should involve several aspects such as lifespan, socio-cultural and affordability, thermal performance and energy-efficient, and environmental impact. The beneficiaries from the methods and the results of this study would be firstly the Syrian refugees in the Middle East context, then various places and involved people affected by the displacement issue globally.
Does Land Certification Stimulate Farmers’ Entrepreneurial Enthusiasm? Evidence from Rural China
Authors: Zhao Min , Guo Weijian
Published: September 2022

Deepening the reform of rural land property rights and fully releasing the dividends of land policies to stimulate the vitality of rural development are important foundations for China’s Poverty Alleviation and Rural Revitalization strategies. Based on the data of the China Household Finance Surveys in 2013 and 2019, this study takes the new round of land certification launched in 2013 as the starting point for exploring the impact of rural land property rights reform on farmers’ entrepreneurship, using the difference-in-differences model. The results show that the implementation of the new round of land certification has significantly improved the development of agricultural entrepreneurship among farmers with certificates but has had no impact on non-agricultural entrepreneurship. The estimated results from the replacement explained variables, PSM-DID method, and placebo test verifies the robustness of the baseline results. Furthermore, it is shown that the improvement of labor allocation, land transfer, and financing and loan constraints are the main channels through which land certification affects farmers’ entrepreneurship; the impact is heterogeneous at province, community, and household levels. This study not only provides new evidence for using rural land property rights reform to spearhead poverty alleviation and rural revitalization strategies but also provides beneficial reference material for the continuous optimization of land property rights certificates to boost farmers’ entrepreneurship.
Staged Transition Process from Driving to Bicycling Based on the Effects of Latent Variables
Authors: Xu Dandan , Bain Yang , Shu Shinan , Zhang Xiaodong
Published: September 2022

With the worsening of urban traffic congestion and environmental pollution, cities around the world have become conscious of the importance of the bicycle. The key to promoting the transition from driving to bicycling for short-distance travel is to understand the transition process and the effect of latent variables. This paper divides the transition from driving to bicycling into five stages according to the transtheoretical model of behavior change and analyzes the staged transition process in terms of influences from latent variables. First, based on survey data from ten communities in Beijing, China, a multiple-indicator and multiple-cause (MIMIC) model of transition intention was developed, and then the influential relationships were analyzed between latent variables such as riding attitude and the causal relationships between latent variables and exogenous variables such as infrastructure characteristics. Subsequently, four transition behavior hybrid-choice models for different stages were developed to describe the phased transition process. Finally, the key influencing factors in different stages were identified. The findings reveal the mechanism of the transition from driving to bicycling, which can support policy makers’ decisions at the level of bicycle travel promotion, guidance and facility planning.
Performance-Oriented UWB RTLS Decision-Making Approach
Authors: Šinko Simona , Marinič Enej , Poljanec Blaž , Obrecht Matevž , Gajšek Brigita
Published: September 2022

When introducing new technologies, companies are repeatedly faced with choosing between solutions from different providers. Regardless of all the good technical characteristics of the technology, if it is chosen inappropriately, it can prove to be a cost driver instead of something that brings added value to the system. Aware of this, we considered selecting a real-time location system (RTLS) based on Ultra-wideband technology in the indoor work environment. In practice and theory, it has been proven that the introduction of the RTLS can have highly positive effects on performance and business sustainability indicators. When reviewing the literature, it was noticed that authors solely focus on the technical properties of the systems and prices when giving guidelines on selecting the optimal RTLS. This article aims to provide advanced guidelines for UWB RTLS selection, proposing a phased selection process which is the main novelty proposed and investigated in this research. The guidelines are based on fragmented recommendations in the scientific literature that have been identified, gathered, considered, and reasonably allocated to the advanced performance-oriented phased selection process. In practice, this approach enables decision-makers to choose the most efficient and most appropriate UWB RTLS for specific logistics systems.
Environmental Performance of Deconstructable Concrete Beams Made with Recycled Aggregates
Authors: Menegatti Lucas Caon , Castrillon Fernandez Letícia Ikeda , Caldas Lucas Rosse , Pepe Marco , Pittau Francesco , Zani Giulio , Rampini Marco Carlo , Michels Julien , Toledo Filho Romildo Dias , Martinelli Enzo
Published: September 2022

The construction sector is one of the most energy-intensive and raw-material-demanding human activities and, hence, contributes a significant share of greenhouse gas emissions. As a matter of principle, making the construction sector “greener” is one of the main challenges for policy makers, private companies and the scientific community. For this reason, one of the most promising actions is based on recycling Construction and Demolition Waste (CDW) and converting them into secondary raw materials for the construction sector itself. Moreover, the reduction of the environmental impact can be further amplified through the optimization of the production, assembly and deconstruction/reuse procedures and through the maximization of the service life. In this aim, the present work aims at analyzing the environmental performance of duly sized and designed prefabricated Decontructable and Reusable Beam (DRB) incorporating with Recycled Concrete Aggregates (RCA) assembled by means of an innovative system based on a memory®-steel prestressing technique. The environmental performance is evaluated through Life Cycle Assessment with a cradle-to-gate approach: the analysis of 16 midpoint impact categories was conducted using the methodology proposed by EN15804. In this context, three allocation scenarios for avoided impacts due to reuse (100-0, 50:50 and 0-100) were considered, and a sensitivity analysis was performed. It was verified that due to the higher amount of post-tensioning required for the innovative shape memory alloy steel bars, the DRBs present inferior environmental performance than the Ordinary Beams (ORB). However, when analyzing the reuse scenarios, it was observed that the DRB could have considerably lower impacts, depending on the type of allocation procedure adopted in LCA modeling. This study brings as the main contribution an evaluation and some design guidelines for the development of circular concrete structures based on the principles of Design for Deconstruction (DfD) and the prefabricated process.
Impact of Extreme Heatwaves on Population Exposure in China Due to Additional Warming
Authors: Wang Leibin , Rohli Robert V. , Lin Qigen , Jin Shaofei , Yan Xiaodong
Published: September 2022

Extreme heatwaves are among the most important climate-related disasters affecting public health. Assessing heatwave-related population exposures under different warming scenarios is critical for climate change adaptation. Here, the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project phase 6 (CMIP6) multi-model ensemble output results are applied over several warming periods in the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change AR6 report, to estimate China’s future heatwave population exposure under 1.5 °C and 2.0 °C warming scenarios. Our results show a significant increase in projected future annual heatwave days (HD) under both scenarios. With an additional temperature increase of 0.5 °C to 2.0 °C of warming, by mid-century an additional 20.15 percent increase in annual HD would occur, over 1.5 °C warming. If the climate warmed from 1.5 °C to 2.0 °C by mid-century, population exposure would increase by an additional 40.6 percent. Among the three influencing elements that cause the changes in population exposure related to heatwaves in China–climate, population, and interaction (e.g., as urbanization affects population redistribution)–climate plays the dominant role in different warming scenarios (relative contribution exceeds 70 percent). Therefore, considering the future heat risks, humanity benefits from a 0.5 °C reduction in warming, particularly in eastern China. This conclusion may provide helpful insights for developing mitigation strategies for climate change.
The Oasis of Peace? Social Perception of Urban Parks from the City-Dwellers’ Perspectives
Authors: Binka Bohuslav , Čech Martin , Činčera Jan
Published: September 2022

The article focuses on the social perception of urban parks, from the perspective of city dwellers. For the analyses, eight focus groups with N = 48 participants were organized. The findings indicated urban parks as a meaningful part of the city dwellers’ place identity, who interpret them as an “oasis of peace” or “places for meeting”. The article further analyzes the conflicts emerging from the clashes of different perspectives on how urban parks should be used, what functions they should fulfil, or what characteristics they should have. The article discusses the possible implications of some of these contradictions, connected with the changing nature–culture understanding in contemporary society and the unresolved marginalization of some of the social groups.
Crowdsourcing Public Engagement for Urban Planning in the Global South: Methods, Challenges and Suggestions for Future Research
Authors: Diop El Bachir , Chenal Jérôme , Tekouabou Stéphane Cédric Koumetio , Azmi Rida
Published: September 2022

Crowdsourcing could potentially have great benefits for the development of sustainable cities in the Global South (GS), where a growing population and rapid urbanization represent serious challenges for the years to come. However, to fulfill this potential, it is important to take into consideration the unique characteristics of the GS and the challenges associated with them. This study provides an overview of the crowdsourcing methods applied to public participation in urban planning in the GS, as well as the technological, administrative, academic, socio-economic, and cultural challenges that could affect their successful adoption. Some suggestions for both researchers and practitioners are also provided.
One-Dimensional Numerical Simulation of Pt-Co Alloy Catalyst Aging for Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cells
Authors: Yang Yunjie , Bai Minli , Su Laisuo , Lv Jizu , Hu Chengzhi , Gao Linsong , Li Yang , Li Yubai , Song Yongchen
Published: September 2022

The service life of catalysts is a key aspect limiting the commercial development of proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs). In this paper, a one-dimensional degradation model of a Pt-Co alloy catalyst in the cathode catalytic layer (CCL) of a PEMFC is proposed, which can track the catalyst size evolution in real time and demonstrate the catalyst degradation during operation. The results show that severe dissolution of particles near the CCL/membrane leads to uneven aging of the Pt-Co alloy catalyst along the CCL thickness direction. When the upper potential limit (UPL) is less than 0.95 V, it does not affect the catalyst significantly; however, a slight change may cause great harm to the catalyst performance and service life after UPL > 0.95 V. In addition, it is found that operating temperature increases the Pt mass loss on the carbon support near the CCL/membrane side, while it has little effect on the remaining Pt mass on the carbon support near the CCL/GDL side. These uncovered degradation mechanisms of Pt-Co alloy provide guidance for its application in PEMFCs.
An Evaluation of Hospital Cleaning Regimes—Microbiological Evaluation and LCA Analysis after Traditional and Sustainable/Green Procedures
Authors: Fontana Riccardo , Buratto Mattia , Marzola Marco , Trioschi Giulia , Bandera Beatrice , Buffone Cesare , Vogli Luciano , Marconi Peggy
Published: September 2022

The development of sustainable processes has a significant role in balancing social productivity demands, environmental protection, and natural resources. The control of microbial contamination has so far been concentrated on the use of chemical-based sanitation procedures, which may have various limitations, as testified by the persistence of contamination itself, by the growing antimicrobial resistance (AMR) of hospital microbes, and by chemical-related pollution. This communication aims to present a comparative analysis between the use of traditional and green sanitation products and processes in hospital environments. The sampling campaign was conducted in a day hospital ward of a general hospital (Imola, Santa Maria della Scaletta Hospital). Each sample comes from a specific surface, furniture or sanitary, and was taken using RODAC contact plates and swabs with a neutralizing agent in order to standardize the result of the microbiological evaluation. Sampling occurred before and after traditional and green cleaning procedures. The green experimental protocol using 100% natural and biodegradable products in sanitization procedures of hospital areas at a medium-high health risk was found to be a technique of relevant interest. From CAM requirements, the green protocol must give equal or better results than the traditional protocol. It can be concluded that the green experimental system meets this criterion and has shown better antimicrobial activity performance than the traditional system; all findings are in an acceptable state of sanitation, with no evidence of pathogenic micro-organisms specified in the guideline.
Pelvetia canaliculata as an Aquafeed Supplement for Gilthead Seabream Sparus aurata: A Biorefinery Approach for Seaweed Biomass Valorisation
Authors: Pires Damiana , Passos Ricardo , do Carmo Beatriz , Tchobanov Carolina F. , Forte Sara , Vaz Mariana , Antunes Madalena , Neves Marta , Tecelão Carla , Baptista Teresa
Published: September 2022

For sustainable and economically viable aquaculture, it is necessary to search for alternative sources of aquafeeds. Algae have been studied because of their bioactive compounds with several activities such as antioxidants. The direct incorporation of the macroalgae Pelvetia canaliculata in sunflower oil to increase oxidative stability and biological value results in waste with high nutritional value that may be used as an ingredient in aquaculture feed. This study aimed to evaluate the effect of incorporating algae powder (PEL 1%, PEL 10%) and algae waste obtained after sunflower oil supplementation (WO 1%, WO 10%) in aquafeeds for gilthead seabream. We studied the growth performance, haematological profile, oxidative stress and metabolic parameters, and intestine histomorphology. Experimental diets did not influence growth performance or somatic indexes, and barely affected the haematological profile. Catalase showed higher activity in seabream fed with PEL10 than with control diet. Total glutathione had a higher activity in fish fed with both WO diets. Plasmatic levels of cholesterol were higher in PEL1 and WO10. Triglyceride levels were higher in WO1 and total lipids were higher in both WO diets. The histomorphology of the intestine was slightly modulated by experimental diets but was not affected negatively. In general, supplementation with Pelvetia powder and algal waste oil may be used as an aquafeed for gilthead seabream according to the results obtained for growth, some haematological parameters, catalase and total glutathione, intestinal villi length, and the number of total and acid goblet cells.
Evaluation and Selection of Cement Suppliers under the Background of New and Old Driving Energy Conversion in China
Authors: Wu Xiuguo , Meng Yibai
Published: September 2022

Accompanied by the concept of supply-side structural reform and conversion of new and old driving energy to create a new round of economic development in China, cement supplier evaluation and selection are increasingly crucial for concrete production plants, ensuring not only raw material supply with high quality and at a reasonable price but also sustainable and long-term cooperation with suppliers. Given the limitations of the existing approaches, this study proposes a cement supplier evaluation and selection framework based on the combination of the improved FAHP-CRITIC method and VIKOR method. We first develop a cement supplier evaluation and selection index system under the background of new and old driving energy conversion, including eight first-level indicators and twenty-one second-level indicators. The proposed model then uses triangular fuzzy numbers AHP (TFN-AHP) and the improved CRITIC method to calculate subjective and objective weights by replacing the coefficient of variation with standard deviation, uses the ideal solution-based method to determine their combination weights, and combines the VIKOR method to calculate the comprehensive evaluation values of candidate cement suppliers. After that, the proposed approach is applied to evaluate and select ten cement suppliers for concrete production plants, and the results are compared and analyzed with those using the traditional method. The results of the comparison show that the proposed strategy can be scientific and reliable, helping managers to make the right decision under the background of new and old driving energy conversion in China.
Untapped Aspects of Waste Management versus Green Deal Objectives
Authors: Bucea-Manea-Țoniș Rocsana , Zecheru Teodora
Published: September 2022

Smart waste management is an important tool for energy and resource conservation, and the related recycling and reuse policies are conducive to a positive impact on the ecological footprint. Since waste treatment is a very expensive process, the principle of prevention should be implemented increasingly at the European level to meet the Green Deal’s objectives and related eco-friendly approaches more easily and cost-effectively. Therefore, the rationale of the present work was to statistically study, for the first time, from a waste management viewpoint, the waste categories and quantities produced in the past decade, and mainly eight waste categories were compared at the Romanian versus the European level, including on the level of European regulation implementation. For that, assumptions were made and ANOVA and path analysis were performed. The results of ANOVA emphasize the differences between the eight types of waste collected, to understand the challenges and the weak points of the member states in their approach to meeting the Green Deal’s objectives and gaining sustainable development. Furthermore, the causes of differences in the European Union’s member states were analyzed in clusters, based on three criteria: total waste, waste management, and waste treatment, and the results are discussed here. The study revealed that Romania proved an increased efficiency in waste treatment and the path analysis proves that waste management is better implemented than treatment management. The study concludes that, regardless of the results obtained so far, further endeavors are necessary at the Romanian governmental level to meet the waste-related European goal.
Between Tradition, Strategies and Taste: Understanding Fish Consumption Habits in Togo
Authors: Che Bin , N’Souvi Kodjo , Sun Chen , Leibrecht Markus , Nantob Bingainkiya
Published: September 2022

Factors and motivations that drive individuals’ decisions on seafood consumption vary by population group and geographical locations. These factors may differ from one particular species to the other. The purpose of this study is to understand fish/shrimp consumption frequency and consumers’ willingness to pay (WTP) more for shrimp locally farmed in Togo. We used a Poisson model to investigate the socioeconomic factors determining fish/shrimp consumption frequency, and a Heckman Selection model to analyze the extent to which consumers are willing to pay extra for locally produced shrimp. To this end, data on fish consumption were collected through a cross-sectional study that analyzed a quantitative survey of consumers (N = 308). Our results show that the populations sampled attach great importance to the quality of fish they consume. The econometric results indicate that the quality of the fish is positively related to fish consumption frequency while the monthly income and proximity of the sea show negative relationships with the outcome variable. In addition, the factors that influence the WTP for shrimp were consuming shrimp and the amount for expenditure on fish/shrimp consumption. Moreover, consumers are willing to pay, on average, 1.2 U.S Dollars (USD) as an extra amount relative to the average price per kilogram, and the extent of their WTP is positively related to the quality of the fish. However, the age of the respondents shows a negative relationship with the value they are willing to pay. In order to fulfill consumers’ needs and preferences, these findings jointly suggest that exceptional steps by the government are needed to value fish/shrimp in a way that persuades and encourages consumers to consume seafood at any age. More importantly, promoting the consumption of fish and shrimp requires action to help improve their quality. Government should: (a) be communicating and raising awareness more among the population on the nutritional value and health benefits of fish/shrimp consumption; (b) support fish/shrimp production through cost reduction actions for the fishermen who in turn can supply fish/shrimp at reasonable prices that encourage fish and shrimp consumption; (c) take appropriate measures to develop a logistics system as an effort to support fish, especially shrimp, supply in a timely way that might help to keep their good appearance and freshness for the consumers’ benefit.
Management Framework for Sustainable Nautical Destination Development: The Case of Montenegro
Authors: Kovačević Zoran , Šekularac-Ivošević Senka
Published: September 2022

This paper examined ten main components of a nautical destination and the level of satisfaction with them by the nautical tourists visiting Montenegro. The goal is to propose the strategic management directions for sustainable development of Montenegro as an attractive, new Adriatic and Mediterranean nautical destination. A sample of 609 nautical tourists was examined on different dimensions of Montenegro as a destination; their obtained responses used exploratory factor analysis. All categories of respondents expressed the greatest level of satisfaction with the natural beauties of Montenegro, while being least satisfied with the nature protection. Given that strategic decision-makers are still in the process of considering the options for the development of the researched destination, and that foreign investors have recognised its attractiveness, this paper aims to offer to all stakeholders—the central government, local self-governments, investors, managers and tourism organisations—a framework for sustainable nautical destination management. The survey focuses on satisfaction defined quite broadly, since the aim is to gain an insight into crucial elements threatening the destination’s sustainability to be able, in the next steps, to examine the specificities of the problems detected. An added value is the applicability to similar nautical destinations, which very much like Montenegro, invest considerable efforts in boosting the development of this segment of tourism supply.
Evaluation of Machine Learning Algorithm on Drinking Water Quality for Better Sustainability
Authors: Kaddoura Sanaa
Published: September 2022

Water has become intricately linked to the United Nations’ sixteen sustainable development goals. Access to clean drinking water is crucial for health, a fundamental human right, and a component of successful health protection policies. Clean water is a significant health and development issue on a national, regional, and local level. Investments in water supply and sanitation have been shown to produce a net economic advantage in some areas because they reduce adverse health effects and medical expenses more than they cost to implement. However, numerous pollutants are affecting the quality of drinking water. This study evaluates the efficiency of using machine learning (ML) techniques in order to predict the quality of water. Thus, in this paper, a machine learning classifier model is built to predict the quality of water using a real dataset. First, significant features are selected. In the case of the used dataset, all measured characteristics are chosen. Data are split into training and testing subsets. A set of existing ML algorithms is applied, and the results are compared in terms of precision, recall, F1 score, and ROC curve. The results show that support vector machine and k-nearest neighbor are better according to F1-score and ROC AUC values. However, The LASSO LARS and stochastic gradient descent are better based on recall values.
Siamese Convolutional Neural Network-Based Twin Structure Model for Independent Offline Signature Verification
Authors: Sharma Neha , Gupta Sheifali , Mohamed Heba G. , Anand Divya , Mazón Juan Luis Vidal , Gupta Deepali , Goyal Nitin
Published: September 2022

One of the toughest biometrics and document forensics problems is confirming a signature’s authenticity and legal identity. A forgery may vary from a genuine signature by specific distortions. Therefore, it is necessary to continuously monitor crucial distinctions between real and forged signatures for secure work and economic growth, but this is particularly difficult in writer-independent tasks. We thus propose an innovative and sustainable writer-independent approach based on a Siamese neural network for offline signature verification. The Siamese network is a twin-like structure with shared weights and parameters. Similar and dissimilar images are exposed to this network, and the Euclidean distances between them are calculated. The distance is reduced for identical signatures, and the distance is increased for different signatures. Three datasets, namely GPDS, BHsig260 Hindi, and BHsig260 Bengali datasets, were tested in this work. The proposed model was analyzed by comparing the results of different parameters such as optimizers, batch size, and the number of epochs on all three datasets. The proposed Siamese neural network outperforms the GPDS synthetic dataset in the English language, with an accuracy of 92%. It also performs well for the Hindi and Bengali datasets while considering skilled forgeries.
Donor-Site Morbidity after Osteocutaneous Free Fibula Transfer: Longitudinal Analysis of Stair Climbing Asymmetry and Functional Outcome
Authors: Zago Matteo , Di Giuli Riccardo , Beltramini Giada , Bolzoni Alessandro , Baj Alessandro , Galli Manuela , Giannì Aldo Bruno , Sforza Chiarella
Published: September 2022

The autologous vascularised free fibula flap is currently considered the best option for facial reconstruction after oncological surgery, but its donor-site morbidity has not been fully examined. The purpose was to evaluate donor-site changes in temporal and spatial kinematic gait parameters during stair climbing, as well as the gait symmetry. Fourteen patients (48 ± 16 years) were evaluated before and six months after harvest of a vascularised free fibula flap. Temporal gait variables for both the ascent and descent phases did not change after surgery (2-way ANOVA, p > 0.05). During stair ascent, ankle flexion (healthy side, increased; donor side, reduced; low effect size) had a significant time × side interaction. During stair descent, hip flexion was significantly larger on the donor side (medium effect size). Significant time × side interactions were observed for ankle inversion (healthy side, reduced; donor side, increased; and low effect size) and knee flexion (healthy side, increased; donor side, unchanged; and low effect size). Medium effect sizes were found for hip flexion side differences (significant). No relevant spatio-temporal nor kinematic asymmetry emerged apart from ankle joint kinematics. Overall, only the side effect of hip flexion during descent was both statistically significant and practically meaningful. Considering the slight modifications of the gait variables, no major functional limitations were found following vascularised free fibula flap reconstruction during stair climbing and descent.
Examples on the Non-Uniqueness of the Rank 1 Tensor Decomposition of Rank 4 Tensors
Authors: Ballico Edoardo
Published: September 2022

We discuss the non-uniqueness of the rank 1 tensor decomposition for rank 4 tensors of format m1×⋯×mk, k≥3. We discuss several classes of examples and provide a complete classification if m1=m2=4.
ConvLSTM Coupled Economics Indicators Quantitative Trading Decision Model
Authors: Qi Yong , Jiang Hefeifei , Li Shaoxuan , Cao Junyu
Published: September 2022

Time series prediction methods based on deep learning have been widely used in quantitative trading. However, the price of virtual currency represented by Bitcoin has random fluctuation characteristics, which is extremely misleading for time series prediction. In this paper, a virtual currency quantitative trading model is established, which uses a convolution long short term memory (ConvLSTM) deep learning method to predict the transaction price, and uses the evaluation model composed of Chandler momentum oscillator (CMO), percentage price oscillator (PPO), stop and reverse(SAR) and other economic indicators to make further decisions. The model quantitatively classifies the random wandering characteristics by fusing economic indicators and extracts the symmetric economic laws among them, making full use of deep learning methods to extract spatial and temporal features within the data. The 2016–2021 Bitcoin value dataset published on Kaggle was used for simulated investment. The results show that compared with other existing decision models, it shows better performance and robustness, and shows good stability in dealing with the interdependence of long-term and short-term data. Our work provides a new idea for short-term prediction of long time series data affected by multiple complex factors: coupling deep learning methods with prior knowledge to complete prediction and decision making.
On (Unknowingly) Using Near-Square RSA Primes
Authors: Ruzai Wan Nur Aqlili , Abd Ghafar Amir Hamzah , Salim Nur Raidah , Ariffin Muhammad Rezal Kamel
Published: September 2022

The invention in 1978 of the first practical asymmetric cryptosystem known as RSA was a breakthrough within the long history of secret communications. Since its inception, the RSA cryptosystem has become embedded in millions of digital applications with the objectives of ensuring confidentiality, integrity, authenticity, and disallowing repudiation. However, the generation of the RSA modulus, N=pq which requires p and q to be random primes, may accidentally entail the choice of a special type of prime called a near-square prime. This structure of N may be used unknowingly en masse in real-world applications since no current cryptographic implementation prevents its generation. In this study, we show that use of this type of prime will potentially lead to total destruction of RSA. We present three cases of near-square primes used as RSA primes, set in the form of (i) N=pq=(am−ra)(bm−rb); (ii) N=pq=(am+ra)(bm−rb); and (iii) N=pq=(am−ra)(bm+rb). Although (ii) and (iii) are quite similar, p and q must be within the same size range of n-bits, which results in different conditions for both cases. We formulate attacks using three different algorithms to better understand their feasibility. We also provide an efficient countermeasure that it is recommended is adopted by current cryptographic libraries with RSA implementation.
Modification of the Peck Formula for a Double-Track Shield Tunnel under Expressway Subgrade
Authors: Li Yuxiang , Lin Juncen , Yan Songhong , Du Jiaxuan
Published: September 2022

In practice, asymmetric formation disturbance occurs due to the sequence of excavation though parallel double-track tunnel is a typical symmetrical engineering. Based on a shield tunneling project of a section of the Suzhou Rail Transit under the subgrade of the Shanghai–Nanjing Expressway, a finite element model was established to obtain a numerical solution that was validated by the measured data to guarantee reliability. According to the construction characteristics of the shield method, two correction coefficients—namely the soil loss rate correction coefficient α and the settlement trough width correction coefficient β—were introduced. A modified Peck formula suitable for the preceding tunnel and the subsequent tunnel was proposed. The applicability of the modified Peck formula was verified by another similar project. The results showed that the numerical solution can better reflect the actual settlement of the highway subgrade under shield tunneling. The results calculated by the classic Peck formula had a large error in comparison with the measured data. The modified empirical formula could more accurately predict the settlement of the expressway subgrade caused by the shield method when α1 = 0.38 and β1 = 2.08 for the preceding tunnel and α2 = 0.29 and β2 = 1.99 for the subsequent tunnel.