bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
On-Chip Purification of Tetracyclines Based on Copper Ions Interaction
Authors: Lunelli Lorenzo , Germanis Martina , Vanzetti Lia , Tatti Roberta , Potrich Cristina , Pederzolli Cecilia
Published: November 2021

Antibiotics are widely used to both prevent and treat bacterial diseases as well as promote animal growth. This massive use leads to the presence of residual antibiotics in food with severe consequences for human health. Limitations and regulations on the tolerated amount of antibiotics in food have been introduced and analytical methods have been developed. The bioanalytical methods usually employed to detect antibiotic residues, however, are time-consuming, expensive and laboratory-based. Novel methods with improved rapidity, portability and cost that are easy-to-use and sustainable are therefore highly desirable. In the attempt to fulfill this need, a microfluidic system was set up herein for the purification and pre-concentration of tetracyclines from raw milk selected as the case-study. The system includes a polymeric microfluidic chip containing magnetic beads loaded with copper to exploit the preferential interaction of tetracycline with divalent ions. The microfluidic system was demonstrated to efficiently pre-concentrate tetracycline, oxytetracycline and chlortetracycline with similar performances and efficiently purify tetracycline from raw milk without any pre-treatment. The simplified method described in this paper could be easily integrated in a compact and portable device for the in-field detection of tetracyclines, with the economic advantage of preventing food wastes and guaranteeing food safety.
Fault-Tolerant and Data-Intensive Resource Scheduling and Management for Scientific Applications in Cloud Computing
Authors: Ahmad Zulfiqar , Jehangiri Ali Imran , Ala’anzy Mohammed Alaa , Othman Mohamed , Umar Arif Iqbal
Published: November 2021

Cloud computing is a fully fledged, matured and flexible computing paradigm that provides services to scientific and business applications in a subscription-based environment. Scientific applications such as Montage and CyberShake are organized scientific workflows with data and compute-intensive tasks and also have some special characteristics. These characteristics include the tasks of scientific workflows that are executed in terms of integration, disintegration, pipeline, and parallelism, and thus require special attention to task management and data-oriented resource scheduling and management. The tasks executed during pipeline are considered as bottleneck executions, the failure of which result in the wholly futile execution, which requires a fault-tolerant-aware execution. The tasks executed during parallelism require similar instances of cloud resources, and thus, cluster-based execution may upgrade the system performance in terms of make-span and execution cost. Therefore, this research work presents a cluster-based, fault-tolerant and data-intensive (CFD) scheduling for scientific applications in cloud environments. The CFD strategy addresses the data intensiveness of tasks of scientific workflows with cluster-based, fault-tolerant mechanisms. The Montage scientific workflow is considered as a simulation and the results of the CFD strategy were compared with three well-known heuristic scheduling policies: (a) MCT, (b) Max-min, and (c) Min-min. The simulation results showed that the CFD strategy reduced the make-span by 14.28%, 20.37%, and 11.77%, respectively, as compared with the existing three policies. Similarly, the CFD reduces the execution cost by 1.27%, 5.3%, and 2.21%, respectively, as compared with the existing three policies. In case of the CFD strategy, the SLA is not violated with regard to time and cost constraints, whereas it is violated by the existing policies numerous times.
Importance-Based Key Basic Event Identification and Evolution Mechanism Investigation of Hydraulic Support Failure to Protect Employee Health
Authors: Xu Qingwei , Xu Kaili
Published: November 2021

Background: Although hydraulic support can help enterprises in their production activities, it can also cause fatal accidents. Methods: This study established a composite risk-assessment method for hydraulic support failure in the mining industry. The key basic event of hydraulic support failure was identified based on fault tree analysis and gray relational analysis, and the evolution mechanism of hydraulic support failure was investigated based on chaos theory, a synthetic theory model, and cause-and-effect-layer-of-protection analysis (LOPA). Results: After the basic events of hydraulic support failure are identified based on fault tree analysis, structure importance (SI), probability importance (PI), critical importance (CI), and Fussell–Vesely importance (FVI) can be calculated. In this study, we proposed the Fussell–Vesely–Xu importance (FVXI) to reflect the comprehensive impact of basic event occurrence and nonoccurrence on the occurrence probability of the top event. Gray relational analysis was introduced to determine the integrated importance (II) of basic events and identify the key basic events. According to chaos theory, hydraulic support failure is the result of cross-coupling and infinite amplification of faults in the employee, object, environment, and management subsystems, and the evolutionary process has an obvious butterfly effect and inherent randomness. With the help of the synthetic theory model, we investigated the social and organizational factors that may lead to hydraulic support failure. The key basic event, jack leakage, was analyzed in depth based on cause-and-effect-LOPA, and corresponding independent protection layers (IPLs) were identified to prevent jack leakage. Implications: The implications of these findings with respect to hydraulic support failure can be regarded as the foundation for accident prevention in practice.
A Wireless Sensor Network Deployment for Soil Moisture Monitoring in Precision Agriculture
Authors: Lloret Jaime , Sendra Sandra , Garcia Laura , Jimenez Jose M.
Published: November 2021

The use of precision agriculture is becoming more and more necessary to provide food for the world’s growing population, as well as to reduce environmental impact and enhance the usage of limited natural resources. One of the main drawbacks that hinder the use of precision agriculture is the cost of technological immersion in the sector. For farmers, it is necessary to provide low-cost and robust systems as well as reliability. Toward this end, this paper presents a wireless sensor network of low-cost sensor nodes for soil moisture that can help farmers optimize the irrigation processes in precision agriculture. Each wireless node is composed of four soil moisture sensors that are able to measure the moisture at different depths. Each sensor is composed of two coils wound onto a plastic pipe. The sensor operation is based on mutual induction between coils that allow monitoring the percentage of water content in the soil. Several prototypes with different features have been tested. The prototype that has offered better results has a winding ratio of 1:2 with 15 and 30 spires working at 93 kHz. We also have developed a specific communication protocol to improve the performance of the whole system. Finally, the wireless network was tested, in a real, cultivated plot of citrus trees, in terms of coverage and received signal strength indicator (RSSI) to check losses due to vegetation.
Use of Force Feedback Device in a Hybrid Brain-Computer Interface Based on SSVEP, EOG and Eye Tracking for Sorting Items
Authors: Kubacki Arkadiusz
Published: November 2021

Research focused on signals derived from the human organism is becoming increasingly popular. In this field, a special role is played by brain-computer interfaces based on brainwaves. They are becoming increasingly popular due to the downsizing of EEG signal recording devices and ever-lower set prices. Unfortunately, such systems are substantially limited in terms of the number of generated commands. This especially applies to sets that are not medical devices. This article proposes a hybrid brain-computer system based on the Steady-State Visual Evoked Potential (SSVEP), EOG, eye tracking, and force feedback system. Such an expanded system eliminates many of the particular system shortcomings and provides much better results. The first part of the paper presents information on the methods applied in the hybrid brain-computer system. The presented system was tested in terms of the ability of the operator to place the robot’s tip to a designated position. A virtual model of an industrial robot was proposed, which was used in the testing. The tests were repeated on a real-life industrial robot. Positioning accuracy of system was verified with the feedback system both enabled and disabled. The results of tests conducted both on the model and on the real object clearly demonstrate that force feedback improves the positioning accuracy of the robot’s tip when controlled by the operator. In addition, the results for the model and the real-life industrial model are very similar. In the next stage, research was carried out on the possibility of sorting items using the BCI system. The research was carried out on a model and a real robot. The results show that it is possible to sort using bio signals from the human body.
Applicability of Physiological Monitoring Systems within Occupational Groups: A Systematic Review
Authors: Bustos Denisse , Guedes Joana C. , Baptista João Santos , Vaz Mário P. , Costa José Torres , Fernandes Ricardo J.
Published: November 2021

The emergence of physiological monitoring technologies has produced exceptional opportunities for real-time collection and analysis of workers’ physiological information. To benefit from these safety and health prognostic opportunities, research efforts have explored the applicability of these devices to control workers’ wellbeing levels during occupational activities. A systematic review is proposed to summarise up-to-date progress in applying physiological monitoring systems for occupational groups. Adhering with the PRISMA Statement, five databases were searched from 2014 to 2021, and 12 keywords were combined, concluding with the selection of 38 articles. Sources of risk of bias were assessed regarding randomisation procedures, selective outcome reporting and generalisability of results. Assessment procedures involving non-invasive methods applied with health and safety-related goals were filtered. Working-age participants from homogeneous occupational groups were selected, with these groups primarily including firefighters and construction workers. Research objectives were mainly directed to assess heat stress and physiological workload demands. Heart rate related variables, thermal responses and motion tracking through accelerometry were the most common approaches. Overall, wearable sensors proved to be valid tools for assessing physiological status in working environments. Future research should focus on conducting sensor fusion assessments, engaging wearables in real-time evaluation methods and giving continuous feedback to workers and practitioners.
Data Transmission Reduction in Wireless Sensor Network for Spatial Event Detection
Authors: Lewandowski Marcin , Płaczek Bartłomiej
Published: November 2021

Wireless sensor networks have found many applications in detecting events such as security threats, natural hazards, or technical malfunctions. An essential requirement for event detection systems is the long lifetime of battery-powered sensor nodes. This paper introduces a new method for prolonging the wireless sensor network’s lifetime by reducing data transmissions between neighboring sensor nodes that cooperate in event detection. The proposed method allows sensor nodes to decide whether they need to exchange sensor readings for correctly detecting events. The sensor node takes into account the detection algorithm and verifies whether its current sensor readings can impact the event detection performed by another node. The data are transmitted only when they are found to be necessary for event detection. The proposed method was implemented in a wireless sensor network to detect the instability of cargo boxes during transportation. Experimental evaluation confirmed that the proposed method significantly extends the network lifetime and ensures the accurate detection of events. It was also shown that the introduced method is more effective in reducing data transmissions than the state-of-the-art event-triggered transmission and dual prediction algorithms.
Kinematics and Singularity Analysis of a 7-DOF Redundant Manipulator
Authors: Shi Xiaohua , Guo Yu , Chen Xuechan , Chen Ziming , Yang Zhiwei
Published: November 2021

A new method of kinematic analysis and singularity analysis is proposed for a 7-DOF redundant manipulator with three consecutive parallel axes. First, the redundancy angle is described according to the self-motion characteristics of the manipulator, the position and orientation of the end-effector are separated, and the inverse kinematics of this manipulator is analyzed by geometric methods with the redundancy angle as a constraint. Then, the Jacobian matrix is established to derive the conditions for the kinematic singularities of the robotic arm by using the primitive matrix method and the block matrix method. Then, the kinematic singularities conditions in the joint space are mapped to the Cartesian space, and the singular configuration is described using the end poses and redundancy angles of the robotic arm, and a singularity avoidance method based on the redundancy angles and end pose is proposed. Finally, the correctness and feasibility of the inverse kinematics algorithm and the singularity avoidance method are verified by simulation examples.
Graph Theory on Brain Cortical Sources in Parkinson’s Disease: The Analysis of ‘Small World’ Organization from EEG
Authors: Vecchio Fabrizio , Pappalettera Chiara , Miraglia Francesca , Alù Francesca , Orticoni Alessandro , Judica Elda , Cotelli Maria , Pistoia Francesca , Rossini Paolo Maria
Published: November 2021

Parkinson’s disease (PD) is the second most common neurodegenerative disease in the elderly population. Similarly to other neurodegenerative diseases, the early diagnosis of PD is quite difficult. The current pilot study aimed to explore the differences in brain connectivity between PD and NOrmal eLDerly (Nold) subjects to evaluate whether connectivity analysis may speed up and support early diagnosis. A total of 26 resting state EEGs were analyzed from 13 PD patients and 13 age-matched Nold subjects, applying to cortical reconstructions the graph theory analyses, a mathematical representation of brain architecture. Results showed that PD patients presented a more ordered structure at slow-frequency EEG rhythms (lower value of SW) than Nold subjects, particularly in the theta band, whereas in the high-frequency alpha, PD patients presented more random organization (higher SW) than Nold subjects. The current results suggest that PD could globally modulate the cortical connectivity of the brain, modifying the functional network organization and resulting in motor and non-motor signs. Future studies could validate whether such an approach, based on a low-cost and non-invasive technique, could be useful for early diagnosis, for the follow-up of PD progression, as well as for evaluating pharmacological and neurorehabilitation treatments.
Application of Laser Scanning to Assess the Roughness of the Diaphragm Wall for the Estimation of Earth Pressure
Authors: Wyjadłowski Marek , Muszyński Zbigniew , Kujawa Paulina
Published: November 2021

The correct estimation of earth pressure is important for the design of earth retaining structures and depends, among others, on the surface morphology of retaining structures. The diaphragm wall created as a protection of a deep excavation located in an urbanized area was selected as a research object. Terrestrial Laser Scanning (TLS) was used for the investigation of the unique surface (in real-world dimension) obtained by tremieying the concrete in different soil layers. An original and innovative procedure for concrete surface description was developed, which includes steps from the TLS measurement to the determination of the roughness parameters. The tested samples from anthropogenic soil, medium sand, and sandy gravel, map the real diaphragm wall surface. The surface roughness parameters in different soil layers were compared with the reference surface obtained by cast against steel formwork. The following parameters: Sa, Sdr, and Vmc are indicated as being the most useful in numerical description of the concrete surface type and in allowing the determination of the soil surface friction. The novelty of this study is the estimation of the parameter δ (friction angle between the retaining wall surface and the soil), which is, among others, a function of the wall surface roughness. The influence of the type of surface on earth pressure are generally recognized in laboratory tests. Based on the estimated in situ values of δ, the more reliable active and passive pressure coefficients Ka, Kp were calculated for the tested soil layers. The conducted study has a practical significance for designing of retaining construction and makes progress in determination of surface roughness required in Eurocode 7.
Chemically Induced pH Perturbations for Analyzing Biological Barriers Using Ion-Sensitive Field-Effect Transistors
Authors: Goda Tatsuro
Published: November 2021

Potentiometric pH measurements have long been used for the bioanalysis of biofluids, tissues, and cells. A glass pH electrode and ion-sensitive field-effect transistor (ISFET) can measure the time course of pH changes in a microenvironment as a result of physiological and biological activities. However, the signal interpretation of passive pH sensing is difficult because many biological activities influence the spatiotemporal distribution of pH in the microenvironment. Moreover, time course measurement suffers from stability because of gradual drifts in signaling. To address these issues, an active method of pH sensing was developed for the analysis of the cell barrier in vitro. The microenvironmental pH is temporarily perturbed by introducing a low concentration of weak acid (NH4+) or base (CH3COO−) to cells cultured on the gate insulator of ISFET using a superfusion system. Considering the pH perturbation originates from the semi-permeability of lipid bilayer plasma membranes, induced proton dynamics are used for analyzing the biomembrane barriers against ions and hydrated species following interaction with exogenous reagents. The unique feature of the method is the sensitivity to the formation of transmembrane pores as small as a proton (H+), enabling the analysis of cell–nanomaterial interactions at the molecular level. The new modality of cell analysis using ISFET is expected to be applied to nanomedicine, drug screening, and tissue engineering.
Analysis of the Possibility to Detect Road Vehicles via Bluetooth Technology
Authors: Gheorghiu Răzvan Andrei , Iordache Valentin , Cormoș Angel Ciprian
Published: November 2021

As road traffic networks become more congested and information systems are implemented to manage traffic flows, real-time data gathering becomes increasingly important. Classic detectors are placed in one point of the network and are able to provide information only from that area. As useful as this is, it lacks the big picture of the routes the vehicles usually travel. There are applications developed to help individuals make their way into the road network, but these are no solutions that deal with the cause of traffic; rather, they counteract the effects. It becomes obvious that a proper management system, with knowledge of all the relevant aspects will better serve all travelers. The detection solution proposed in this paper is based on Bluetooth detectors. This system is able to match detected devices in the road network, filter the results, and generate a vehicle count that is proved to follow RADAR detection results.
An Aerosol Extinction Coefficient Retrieval Method and Characteristics Analysis of Landscape Images
Authors: Kim Dukhyeon , Noh Youngmin
Published: November 2021

Images based on RGB pixel values were used to measure the extinction coefficient of aerosols suspended in an atmospheric state. The pixel values of the object-image depend on the target-object reflection ratio, reflection direction, object type, distances, illumination intensity, atmospheric particle extinction coefficient, and scattering angle between the sun and the optical axes of the camera, among others. Therefore, the imaged intensity cannot directly provide information on the aerosol concentration or aerosol extinction coefficient. This study proposes simple methods to solve this problem, which yield reasonable extinction coefficients at the three effective RGB wavelengths. Aerosol size information was analogized using the RGB Ångström exponent measured at the three wavelengths for clean, dusty, rainy, Asian dust storm, and foggy days. Additionally, long-term measurements over four months showed reasonable values compared with existing PM2.5 measurements and the proposed method yields useful results.
Postural Control Strategies and Balance-Related Factors in Individuals with Traumatic Transtibial Amputations
Authors: Kolářová Barbora , Janura Miroslav , Svoboda Zdeněk , Kolář Petr , Tečová Dagmar , Elfmark Milan
Published: November 2021

Mechanisms behind compromised balance control in people with transtibial amputation need to be further explored, as currently little is known specifically about postural control strategies in people with traumatic transtibial amputation (tTTA). The aim of this study is to assess automatic and voluntary postural control strategies in individuals with unilateral tTTA compared to those in control subjects and to define the effect of balance-related factors on these strategies. Automatic posture reactions and volitional motion toward given direction using standardized posturographic protocols (NeuroCom) of the Motor Control Test (MCT) and Limits of Stability (LOS) were assessed in eighteen participants with tTTA and eighteen age-matched controls. Compared to the controls, the participants with tTTA bore less weight on the prosthetic leg (p < 0.001) during the MCT and had reduced inclination toward the prosthetic leg (p < 0.001) within the LOS. In the tTTA group, the weight-bearing symmetry and the inclination toward the prosthetic leg (p < 0.05) was positively correlated with prosthesis use duration (p < 0.05). The current study indicates that decreased utilization of the prosthetic leg in tTTAs represents adaptive postural control strategy, but as prosthesis use duration increased, the engagement of the prosthetic leg improved.
Drain Structural Defect Detection and Mapping Using AI-Enabled Reconfigurable Robot Raptor and IoRT Framework
Authors: Palanisamy Povendhan , Mohan Rajesh Elara , Semwal Archana , Jun Melivin Lee Ming , Félix Gómez Braulio , Balakrishnan Selvasundari , Elangovan Karthikeyan , Ramalingam Balakrishnan , Terntzer Dylan Ng
Published: November 2021

Human visual inspection of drains is laborious, time-consuming, and prone to accidents. This work presents an AI-enabled robot-assisted remote drain inspection and mapping framework using our in-house developed reconfigurable robot Raptor. The four-layer IoRT serves as a bridge between the users and the robots, through which seamless information sharing takes place. The Faster RCNN ResNet50, Faster RCNN ResNet101, and Faster RCNN Inception-ResNet-v2 deep learning frameworks were trained using a transfer learning scheme with six typical concrete defect classes and deployed in an IoRT framework remote defect detection task. The efficiency of the trained CNN algorithm and drain inspection robot Raptor was evaluated through various real-time drain inspection field trials using the SLAM technique. The experimental results indicate that robot’s maneuverability was stable, and its mapping and localization were also accurate in different drain types. Finally, for effective drain maintenance, the SLAM-based defect map was generated by fusing defect detection results in the lidar-SLAM map.
Clinician Delivery of Virtual Pivotal Response Treatment with Children with Autism during the COVID-19 Pandemic
Authors: White Devon M. , Aufderheide-Palk Claire , Gengoux Grace W.
Published: November 2021

This concept paper describes how the evidence-based Pivotal Response Treatment (PRT) model of autism treatment was adapted for delivery via telehealth during the COVID-19 pandemic. Multiple features of existing video conference technology were utilized for implementation of PRT motivational strategies with young children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). PRT is an empirically supported treatment for ASD which can be taught to parents and delivered directly by trained therapists. During the COVID-19 pandemic, when the majority of clinical care for children with ASD had to be transitioned to telehealth delivery, models for parent training had been previously established. However, no model for direct clinician delivery of virtual PRT existed. This manuscript outlines practical details of the model developed by our team and provided to a total of 17 families between April 2020 and May 2021. Key lessons from technological adaptations of the PRT motivational strategies are described in order to inform future empirical investigation of this approach. The virtual PRT delivery model can serve as a guide for engaging children in meaningful social interaction and communication practice via video conference software, with implications for expanding access to autism treatment as well as for motivating a wide range of children in distance learning activities.
Student’s Satisfaction of the Quality of Online Learning in Higher Education: An Empirical Study
Authors: Jiménez-Bucarey Carmen , Acevedo-Duque Ángel , Müller-Pérez Sheyla , Aguilar-Gallardo Luis , Mora-Moscoso Miguel , Vargas Elena Cachicatari
Published: November 2021

Higher education institutions (HEIs) have been facing a digital transformation in online learning as a result of the restrictions generated by COVID-19. Therefore, identifying which are the elements that influence student satisfaction will allow HEIs to establish strategies to ensure the quality of the digital transformation. This study proposes a model that measures student satisfaction considering three dimensions: teacher quality, technical service quality and service quality. Then, the impact of each dimension on student satisfaction is estimated using a Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Model (PLS-SEM), and finally an Importance-Performance Map Analysis (IPMA) was performed to identify the improvements that should be made to increase student satisfaction. When analyzing the responses of 1430 students at the School of Medicine, it was found that the quality of technical service should be improved, specifically training, and encouraging teachers to use strategies that allow student participation.
Digital Youth and Their Acquisition of Values When Using the Internet
Authors: Caldeiro-Pedreira Mari Carmen , Renés-Arellano Paula , Alvites-Huamaní Cleofé Genoveva , González-Larrea Belén
Published: November 2021

The ability to respond to complex demands in a hypermediated society such as the current one, in young people who navigate the digital world, demands a combination of practical skills, knowledge, values, and social components mobilized together to influence the ways of communicating, acquiring values, and training. Taking this context into account, the following research aims to discover if there is a relationship between the use of the Internet and the social values perceived by university students highlighting the variables of gender, age, and academic year. Regarding the methodology, the type of study is non-experimental with a correlational design, with a sample of 305 university students from the faculties of human and social sciences, as well as education in the Spanish and Chilean context. To collect data on the variable presence of social values, the “Social Values Questionnaire” was developed, and to collect data on variable Internet use, the “Internet Use Questionnaire” was constructed, considering reliability criteria. The results revealed that most university students that use the Internet can identify social values and use them when they communicate with classmates, friends, and family, although with certain differences when looking at the variables analyzed. In conclusion, it is important to promote the ethical and responsible use of the Internet and social networks among young university students because it promotes the development of personal skills and social values.
Corporate Sustainability, Ethics and Employee Satisfaction
Authors: Ruiz-Palomino Pablo , Morales-Sánchez Rafael , Martínez-Cañas Ricardo
Published: November 2021

Corporate sustainability has emerged as an important area of study recently [...]
Evaluation of a Public Technology-Based Traffic Enforcement Program
Authors: Albert Gila , Bukchin Dimitry , Toledo Tomer
Published: November 2021

While police enforcement is a well-known means of reducing traffic violations, it is also recognized that other agents should be involved in creating sustainable deterrence. This paper describes and evaluates the Israeli Road Guards program, a new and unique type of traffic enforcement, which enables simple technology-based enforcement of traffic violations by citizens. In its 24 months of operation, more than 3400 volunteers who submitted over 64,000 violation reports were involved in this program. Each report went through a rigorous evaluation process. More than 80% of the submitted reports were rejected in the various stages of the procedure. In 13.7% of the cases a notice letter was sent, and in 4.3% of cases (reflecting the most severe offenses) a citation was issued by the police. The monthly rate of report submission by the volunteers was at its highest initially, then decreased and stabilized after about six months at 1.4 reports per month. The proportion of active volunteers also decreased over time to a level of 0.26 at the end of the study period. The violation types reported within the program differed substantially from those captured by police enforcement. These differences are likely due to the manner in which each mode of enforcement was performed. The most common violations reported by volunteers were lane deviations, red light running and driving on the roads’ shoulders, which are easily documented by means of video recordings. They are also associated with higher crash risks. Thus, the results show that such public technology-based traffic enforcement, which can be carried out during regular daily driving and does not require anyone to make extra trips, may efficiently complement traditional police enforcement.
Propagation of Mouth-Generated Aerosols in a Modularly Constructed Hospital Room
Authors: Suleiman Mutaz , Elshaer Ahmed , Billah Muntasir , Bassuony Mohammed
Published: November 2021

Modular construction methods have been widely used in the civil engineering industry due to ease of assembly, the convenience of design, and allowing for flexibility in placement while making the construction more sustainable. With the increasing number of COVID-19 cases, the capacity of the hospital is decreasing as more intensive care units (ICU) are allocated to COVID-19 cases. This limited capacity can be addressed by using modular construction to provide field hospitals. This paper adopts transient Lagrangian computational fluid dynamics simulations to investigate the importance of having an appropriate ventilation system in place to ensure sustainable infection control against airborne viruses and pathogens within a modular room. The performance of having a ventilation system using 10, 20, and 40 air changes per hour (ACH) was examined. In addition, different room configurations were also compared to provide useful guidelines for air conditioning units placement. It was determined that as the ACH rate increases while maintaining a direct flow field between the inlet and outlet, the rate of aerosol removal increases. Furthermore, the flowfield in which can be controlled by the placement of the inlet and outlet can impact the removal of aerosols, as it dictates how far the droplets travel before being removed from the enclosure.
Protecting Species by Promoting Protected Areas and Human Development—A Panel Analysis
Authors: Mance Davor , Krunić Katarina , Mance Diana
Published: November 2021

We analyze a panel of 147 countries over a 21-year period. We used the Generalized Method of Moments First Differences panel estimation method and found that there is a statistically significant positive association between terrestrial protected areas and protected species. There is strong evidence of a positive statistical relationship between the Human Development Index and protected species under the condition of efficient nitrogen use as an instrumental variable. We support the revision of the Environmental Kuznets Curve hypothesis by claiming that in the 21st century it need not be strictly U-shaped, but that a rise in environmental protection measures is present across the board. The final contribution of the paper is the idea that protecting the habitat of endangered species is commensurate with increasing human welfare through income, health and education.
COVID-19 Challenges: Can Industry 4.0 Technologies Help with Business Continuity?
Authors: Hussain Amjad , Farooq Muhammad Umar , Habib Muhammad Salman , Masood Tariq , Pruncu Catalin I.
Published: November 2021

The COVID-19 pandemic has halted economic activities and made business dynamics much more challenging by introducing several additional operational, structural, and managerial constraints. The problem has affected global supply chains in many ways, and has questioned their long-term continuity. On the other hand, Industry 4.0 is an emerging phenomenon. However, there is a need to investigate how Industry 4.0 technologies may play a potential role in sustaining business operations to ease unprecedented causalities. The current research aims to investigate the potentiality of Industry 4.0 technologies to solve the COVID-19 challenges for long term sustainability. From an exploratory literature analysis coupled with the Delphi method, keeping in view the situation of the pandemic, ten challenge groups that have affected global business dynamics were identified. A questionnaire was developed with the aim of accumulating industrial and academic experts to evaluate the degree of influence and interrelationship among the identified challenges. The Decision Making, Trial and Evaluation Laboratory (DEMATEL) approach was deployed to further analyze the challenges for the categorization of these into causes and effects, further prioritizing them for better decision making. The prioritized challenges from the list of causes were governmental policies and support, followed by real access to customers and a lack of infrastructure. Additionally, these challenges were further evaluated through the expert opinion of Industry 4.0 systems experts and strategic-level supply chain experts to potentially gauge the potency of Industry 4.0 technologies to solve COVID-19-induced challenges. The outcomes of this research (which used Delphi integrated with a DEMATEL approach) are expected to support businesses in formulating strategies with the aim of business continuity in combating future disruptions caused by COVID-19-like pandemics.
The Role of Corporate Social Responsibility Perceptions in Brand Equity, Brand Credibility, Brand Reputation, and Purchase Intentions
Authors: Wang Shu , Liao Ying-Kai , Wu Wann-Yih , Le Khanh Bao Ho
Published: November 2021

Corporate social responsibility (CSR) is becoming one of the most critical challenges that firms must address to survive in the competitive market. This study investigates the impact of customers’ CSR perceptions on their purchase intentions as mediated by brand equity, brand credibility, and brand reputation in order to identify the benefits of CSR integration for business development. The study employs a quantitative approach to collect data from customers who purchase cosmetics through an online survey. PLS-SEM software is used to analyze the data from the 380 responses. The results indicate that customers’ perceptions of the CSR of a firm affect their intention to purchase its brands in the future. Brand equity, brand credibility, and brand reputation mediate the impact of CSR perceptions on purchase intentions. Since previous studies have not employed a comprehensive approach to verifying the influence that CSR exerts through brand credibility, brand reputation, and brand equity, the results provide an essential reference for academics who conduct empirical research on the subject. This paper is also particularly beneficial for marketers and managers who wish to develop marketing strategies and brand management techniques that boost business efficiency.
Validating Italian General Ecological Behaviour Questionnaire of Travellers Using Dichotomous Rasch Model
Authors: Kumawat Pinky , Pronello Cristina
Published: November 2021

Ecological behaviour and its impact on the environment are subjects of public concern and understanding individual behavioural measures to induce sustainable lifestyles is of extreme importance for policy makers to assess and promote sustainable mobility. To this end, a questionnaire with highly reliable items, evaluations of determinants and accurate measurements of ecological behaviour is a precondition for understanding the levers of behavioural change. This paper aims at an understanding of whether the dichotomous Rasch model provides a legitimate measurement of General Ecological Behaviour (GEB) using a 26-item questionnaire as a valid tool to assess the pro-environment behaviour of a large sample of users. A web questionnaire was administered using the snowball sampling plan in the Piedmont region (Italy), with a sample of 4473 respondents. The results suggest that using the dichotomous Rasch model, the proposed questionnaire is able to effectively measure the pro-environment behaviour of travellers. Unidimensionality, the perfect level of item reliability of 1, the very high item separation of 34.22, the absence of larger differential item functions, and the local independence are all good indicators of a valid model. This research shows how a good, validated, and reliable measurement of ecological behaviour would support public bodies in planning environment-focused transport policies thanks to the knowledge of which variables determine pro-environment behaviour. In addition, the proposed approach also allows us to measure the efficacy of the adopted policies.
Environmental Footprint and Economics of a Full-Scale 3D-Printed House
Authors: Abdalla Hadeer , Fattah Kazi Parvez , Abdallah Mohamed , Tamimi Adil K.
Published: November 2021

3D printing, is a newly adopted technique in the construction sector with the aim to improve the economics and alleviate environmental impacts. This study assesses the eco-efficiency of 3D printing compared to conventional construction methods in large-scale structural fabrication. A single-storey 3D-printed house was selected in the United Arab Emirates to conduct the comparative assessment against traditional concrete construction. The life cycle assessment (LCA) framework is utilized to quantify the environmental loads of raw materials extraction and manufacturing, as well as energy consumption during construction and operation phases. The economics of the selected structural systems were investigated through life cycle costing analysis (LCCA), that included mainly the construction costs and energy savings. An eco-efficiency analysis was employed to aggregate the results of the LCA and LCCA into a single framework to aid in decision making by selecting the optimum and most eco-efficient alternative. The findings revealed that houses built using additive manufacturing and 3D printed materials were more environmentally favourable. The conventional construction method had higher impacts when compared to the 3D printing method with global warming potential of 1154.20 and 608.55 kg CO2 eq, non-carcinogenic toxicity 675.10 and 11.9 kg 1,4-DCB, and water consumption 233.35 and 183.95 m3, respectively. The 3D printed house was also found to be an economically viable option, with 78% reduction in the overall capital costs when compared to conventional construction methods. The combined environmental and economic results revealed that the overall process of the 3D-printed house had higher eco efficiency compared to concrete-based construction. The main results of the sensitivity analysis revealed that up to 90% of the environmental impacts in 3D printing mortars can be mitigated with decreasing cement ratios.
Assessing Land Cover and Ecological Quality Changes under the New-Type Urbanization from Multi-Source Remote Sensing
Authors: Shi Fang , Li Mingshi
Published: November 2021

The traditional rapid urbanization process is the result of a strong focus on economic development, while its ecological and environmental aspects are less focused upon. The “new-type urbanization” (NTU) concept considers ecological conservation during the urbanization process. The different impacts of the two processes on regional ecological environment evolutions remain insufficiently investigated and still draw significant attention from urban planners and land managers when formulating proper land use policies. Thus, this study was designed to fill the gap by evaluating and comparing different effects of the traditional urbanization and NTU on urban land cover (LC) and ecological quality changes in the Jiangbei New Area, Nanjing, China. We first established a LC database using an object-oriented classification of multi-source high-resolution satellite images. Next, we quantified changes in ecological quality using the remote sensing ecological index (RSEI) model. Subsequently, spatial auto-correlation analysis was conducted to detect the clustering trend of the changing ecological quality in the study area over time. The results showed that the overall accuracy of the LC maps was 90.75% in 2009, 91.75% in 2015, and 92.04% in 2019. The average RSEI values of the study area were 0.583, 0.559, and 0.579, respectively. The spatial auto-correlation analysis indicated a strong positive correlation between the ecological qualities. However, the spatial distribution changed slightly from a clustered trend to a more random and dispersed trend as the Moran’s I decreased. The observed changes are attributed to the strict implementation of ecological conservation and restoration policies by the local government in the NTU process, as well as an increased residents’ awareness of protecting natural resources, indicating that the traditional urbanization has a stronger negative disturbance on regional ecological conditions than NTU. The proposed evaluation method can be applied to other similar regions for sustainable urban management.
Circular Public Procurement through Integrated Contracts in the Infrastructure Sector
Authors: Lingegård Sofia , Havenvid Malena I. , Eriksson Per-Erik
Published: November 2021

Public clients’ procurement strategies are central in facilitating innovation towards sustainability. In the infrastructure sector, the three main project activities—design, production, and maintenance—are traditionally not procured in an integrated way, which results in sub-optimizations and a lack of life cycle perspective. As project actors are accustomed to traditional, non-integrated forms of contract, implementing integrated contracts imposes fundamental changes to the interdependencies among actors, resources, and activities. This study analyzes the interfaces among key project actors and the related interdependencies across design, production, and maintenance in Design–Build–Maintain contracts, and initiates a discussion on how to manage these interdependencies when implementing integrated contracts. This study of circular public procurement (CPP) focused on three infrastructure projects using integrated contracting and applied the industrial network approach (INA) to analyze interdependencies in how they may influence innovation and sustainable development. The study found significant obstacles to clients obtaining the benefits of integrated contracting and concludes that understanding interdependencies is necessary to implement integrated contracts successfully. The study contributes to the construction management literature by adapting the INA to contracting, and to the CPP literature by providing empirical evidence of sustainability and circularity in infrastructure projects.
A Network Maturity Mapping Tool for Demand-Driven Supply Chain Management: A Case for the Public Healthcare Sector
Authors: Bvuchete Munyaradzi , Grobbelaar Sara Saartjie , van Eeden Joubert
Published: November 2021

The healthcare supply chain is a complex adaptive ecosystem that facilitates the delivery of health products to the end patient in a cost-effective way. However, low forecast accuracy and high demand volatility in healthcare supply chains have resulted in an increase in stockouts, operational inefficiencies, poor health outcomes, and a significant increase in supply chain costs. To cope with these challenges, organisations are trying to adopt demand-driven supply chain management (DDSCM) operating practices which have been established in other sectors such as the telecommunications, fruit, and flower industries. However, previous studies have not considered these practices in the healthcare industry, and hence no methodologies exist that support the implementation of these practices in this context. Moreover, current studies present cases where the focus has been on improving and expanding individual organisational performance, but no supply chain network-level studies exist on the healthcare industry. Therefore, this paper provides a network-level analysis when addressing DDSCM in the healthcare industry. A grounded theory-based approach coupled with a conceptual framework analysis process was used to leverage a systematized literature review methodology with the development of a network maturity mapping tool for DDSCM which was validated in the public healthcare sector.
Integrated Environmental Risk Assessment of Major Accidents in the Transport of Hazardous Substances
Authors: Bernatik Ales , Rehak David , Cozzani Valerio , Foltin Pavel , Valasek Jarmil , Paulus Frantisek
Published: November 2021

At present, the environmental risk assessment of major accidents is mainly carried out for stationary risk sources. Only marginal attention is paid to mobile risk sources, while the currently available methodologies require a relevant expertise and time for their application, which is only partially possible in most scenarios. In the present study, an integrated approach to environmental risk assessment in the transport of hazardous substances (iTRANSRISK) was developed. The approach proposed is based on the principle of index-based assessment of leakage scenarios involving toxic and flammable substances during transport, in the context of indexing environmental vulnerability. The key point of the method is the conversion of local-specific data concerning the risk potential of the transported substance, the consequences and the probability of a major accident, and environmental vulnerability assessment into a single entity. The created integral approach is proposed for the needs of carriers of the hazardous substances and the state administration bodies. The proposed approach is determined for the screening risk assessment at the beginning of the process of the planning a suitable transport routes and the results are for information only. An example of the application of the iTRANSRISK integrated approach is demonstrated considering an explosion scenario following a propane tanker leak (18 t) in a forested area, with moderately susceptible soils and no surface water or groundwater affected.