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The addition of calcium carbonate to cigarette paper can enhance its combustion performance and apparent properties. However, it does come at the cost of reduced paper strength. In this study, a flexible calcium carbonate (FCC) was developed through the in-situ formation of calcium carbonate on nanocellulose surfaces. The incorporation of FCC into cigarette paper offered the potential to improve filler retention and combustion performance while maintaining high paper strength. The results of the study demonstrated that when compared to the addition of 30% precipitated calcium carbonate (PCC), the filler retention rate in cigarette paper increased by 31.5% when 30% FCC was used. Scanning electron microscopy images showed that only a minimal number of inorganic particles were observed between the fibers in the FCC-containing paper, indicating appropriate air permeability and fiber-fiber bond strength. Furthermore, when compared to PCC-containing paper, the FCC-containing paper exhibited an 8.8% increase in tensile strength and a 7.5% increase in folding resistance. Additionally, thermogravimetric analysis of the cigarette paper revealed that the incorporation of flexible calcium carbonate effectively lowered the thermal decomposition temperature, leading to a 10.3% increase in the combustion rate of FCC-containing paper. The inclusion of FCC into paper fibers has the potential to enhance air permeability and regulate cigarette burning performance. Consequently, the FCC developed in this study holds promise as a substitute for traditional calcium carbonate fillers in cigarette paper applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Conference proceedings are valuable sources for research, providing insights into individual or organisational projects. Australian library and information services (LIS) professionals have the opportunity to contribute to a robust conference culture, including the biennial library technology VALA conference. Practice-driven conferences can offer interpretations of LIS practitioner experiences, however, there is limited research focusing on Australian LIS conference proceedings. The VALA conference papers offer a unique record of technology's impact, influence, and implementation in Australian LIS organisations over the last forty years. This article will outline the objective and methodology of an ongoing research project undertaking historical analysis of VALA conference papers. The research project seeks to examine key themes, theories, and tools discussed in VALA conference papers and will attempt to identify if evolving technology influences the practices and attitudes of Australian LIS practitioners. The article will identify the research methods and the content analysis techniques that will be used in the project, and present preliminary results from a pilot study presented at the 2023 RAILS conference. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sea purslane (Sesuvium portulacastrum) was cultivated for two 90-day sequences at two spacings, and with various soil amendments, to evaluate its potential to arrest the increase in soil salinity and sodicity associated with irrigation using paper- and pulp-mill effluent. Its phytodesalination capacity (PDC) with respect to Na ranged from 162 to 226 kg/ha in the first sequence and 167 to 250 kg/ha in the second sequence; the PDC is reliable even under drought stress. Addition of amendments, in particular pressmud compost, increased the average Na+ uptake by 38%, leading to the highest PDC of 250 kg/ha for a single crop sequence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The complex mixture of pollutants found in industrial effluents creates a significant environmental challenge. Enzymatic treatment offers a promising alternative to traditional physiochemical techniques. With an emphasis on laccase enzymes, this review examines the potential of both free and immobilized biocatalysts for the treatment of industrial wastewater, especially from pulp and paper mills. Laccase has become one of the most popular options for bioremediation because of its broad substrate specificity and capacity to break down different kinds of organic pollutants. The different methods of laccase immobilization, including adsorption, encapsulation and cross-linking are examined, exploring their advantages and limitations. The benefits of immobilization for enzyme stability, reusability and operational efficiency in wastewater treatment processes are further discussed. By comparing the advantages and limitations of free and immobilized biocatalysts, this review aims to provide valuable insights for the development of efficient and sustainable enzymatic strategies for industrial wastewater treatment. Furthermore, this paper offers future possibilities for using biocatalyst in pulp and paper waste treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study evaluates the impact of sales promotions that are featured in store flyers distributed by prominent retailers and their capacity to attract consumers to their establishments. A distinctive conceptual framework is introduced that scrutinizes the influence of ethically-minded consumer behavior, digital citizenship/literacy, and a retailer's orientation toward environmental sustainability and explicit ecological concerns. A quasi-experimental design was used to formulate four distinct scenarios from a possible set of eight, stemming from the combinations of three variables: 2 Retailer Positioning (green vs. without explicit ecological claims) × 2 Flyer Mediums (paper vs. digital) × 2 Discount Levels (5% discount vs. 30% discount). Through an online survey, a sample of 269 responses was garnered to gauge consumer reactions to these store flyers, evaluating their attitudes and receptiveness. The findings suggest that attitudes toward paper flyers were more favorable when presented by non-green retailers compared to their green counterparts. This can be attributed to a perceived inconsistency between a green brand positioning and the use of paper flyers. Furthermore, the propensity to transition to digital flyers was notably stronger for green retailers compared to non-green retailers, but this inclination was most pronounced when higher discounts were offered. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

AbstractPublishing scientific articles is an expedition of tenacious efforts with patience and conscientious decision-making; however, even with such careful consideration, researchers may overlook the dubious activities of clandestine organizations or remain oblivious to the unethical aspects of publishing. Paper mills are the latest impediment to academic publishing’s integrity. The increasing number of paper mill publications damages the credibility of genuine journals and jeopardizes academic integrity, adding to the vulnerability of research. This paper deals with the tactics, activity, detection, impact, and solving the menace of such fraudulent practices. This paper is a summary of existing literature and analysis that aims to increase awareness of fraudulent practices like paper mills among researchers and academicians. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper pulp tank in Valkeakoski, Finland, collapsed on 27 March 1996. The volume and height of the steel tank was 6000 m3 and 35.5 m, respectively. The collapse occurred during test filling with water. During the test filling it was noticed that the tank was tilting. The time from first observation to final collapse was around 12 min. The tank collapsed onto a building next to it, causing the death of one person. During the collapse there was approximately 5000 m3 of water inside the paper pulp tank. The ambient temperature was −20°C during the collapse. The Safety Investigation Authority started an investigation because the incident was a major accident and there was loss of human life. Several reasons for the collapse were discovered. In addition, several recommendations were made for construction in general. This article presents a case study and details based on material that has already been published, but it also includes a structural analysis made in the study. The goal was to clarify the main reasons and form them into a timeline of the collapse. Also, lessons learnt are presented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Stanley Kubrick's project on the Holocaust, Aryan Papers, was dear to his heart. He worked on it for a long time, but he could not, in the end, bring himself to complete the planned film. This article canvasses some of the reasons other scholars have supplied for this film remaining unmade, including the notion that the Holocaust is unrepresentable. However, it points to a novel explanation. I argue that Kubrick's plot modifications, particularly to the conclusion, doomed the project. Specifically, Kubrick has a Jewish woman take revenge for war-time atrocities. Discussing revenge in relation to the Holocaust has until recently been as impious as representing the Holocaust itself. Jewish revenge was unfashionable in Holocaust films of all kinds when Kubrick was working on Aryan Papers in the early 1990s. Kubrick's planned film was generically ahead of its times. The vengeful Jewish woman had to wait for Inglourious Basterds in 2009. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article asks why Stanley Kubrick's longstanding wish to direct the film version of Louis Begley's 1991 novel Wartime Lies never came to fruition. In Begley's novel, the protagonist Maciek recounts the experience of living in hiding under a false identity in Nazi-occupied Poland. Kubrick drafted a series of quite different plotlines and conclusions for the film version, to be called Aryan Papers, in which Maciek's aunt Tania takes a highly dramatic role in their destiny. The more Kubrick changed Aryan Papers, in response to the pressure of Hollywood expectations and the cultural valorization of active Holocaust resistance, the less it resembled the very work he had chosen to adapt. This impasse shows why the director could not ultimately bring Aryan Papers to the screen. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives. This study aimed to investigate 12-month and 7-day prevalence of musculoskeletal symptoms among workers of the pulp and paper industry, and assess the contribution of age, gender, body mass index (BMI) and physical activity (PA). Methods. The sample comprised 904 workers. Musculoskeletal symptoms were assessed using the Nordic musculoskeletal questionnaire. χ2 tests assessed the association between musculoskeletal symptoms and age/gender/BMI/PA, and multivariate logistic regression models predicted the 12-month occurrence of symptoms in the five most prevalent regions. Results. The five most affected body regions were the lower back, shoulders, neck, knees and wrists/hands. Older workers presented more symptoms in all body regions, except dorsal; female gender was associated with neck symptoms (p = 0.001); overweight was associated with a higher prevalence of lower back (p = 0.01), knee (p = 0.017) and ankle/foot (p = 0.037) symptoms; and a moderate PA level was associated with thigh/hip symptoms (p = 0.006). Age was a significant predictor in all five most affected regions; gender was a significant predictor for shoulders, neck and wrists/hands; and BMI was a significant predictor for lower back symptoms. Conclusion. The 12-month and 7-day prevalence of musculoskeletal symptoms among workers of the pulp and paper industry is higher in the lower back, shoulders, neck, knees and wrists/hands. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ink-paper historical documents, which are an important part of cultural heritage, can be damaged by various materials on the outside and the inside of the paper. Cotton fiber sheets treated with iron gall ink and then treated with stabilization materials were studied. Nanosized Mg(OH)2 was used as a deacidification material and potassium bromide, tetrabutylammonium bromide, or propyl gallate as antioxidant materials were investigated as a stabilization system for iron gall ink-damaged paper. All samples were artificially aged in the air for 150 h at 65 °C in a UV/moisture chamber or 500 h at 90 °C. The pH and alkaline reserve (AR) measurements, monitoring of color change, and scanning electron microscopy analysis data confirm that the aging effect is more destructive to the iron gall inked paper. The experiment results show that using alkaline materials with antioxidants, such as nano-Mg(OH)2 and propyl gallate, positively affects color changes of ink-damaged paper. Treatment with a stabilization system such as nanosized Mg(OH)2, a binder hydroxypropyl cellulose (Klucel), and an antioxidant as propyl gallate is a suitable method for iron gall ink damaged paper stabilization and preservation, according to the study results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For many centuries, paper is the main material for recording cultural achievements all over the world. Infrared (IR) spectroscopy is an essential analytical tool for the structural analysis of paper and pulp chemistry. This review article introduced recent technical and scientific reports in terms of IR spectroscopy in the paper science and application, where interest had increased during the last couple decades (2000–2022). Five parts were described according to the application of IR spectroscopy: the analysis of cellulose and its derivatives, estimation the date of documents, identification the origins of fiber or paper, specification the chemical and physical properties of paper, and characterization the new materials of paper. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The pulp and paper industry has significant sustainability implications and necessarily requires a careful consideration of direct and lower-tier suppliers for effective sustainable supply chain management. This paper utilized an extensive literature review and semi-structured interviews of experts in the Chinese pulp and paper industry to unearth the factors that highly influence multi-tier supply chain sustainability. A Technological-Organizational-Environmental (TOE) and Human-Organizational-Technological (HOT-fit) based theoretical framework was employed to classify the identified factors. Then, an Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) based methodology was applied to determine the relative importance of the factors. A comparison analysis of the relative importance of the factors as determined by the experts in the focal companies, Tier-1 suppliers and Tier-2 suppliers of the Chinese pulp and paper industry is presented. The results show that institutional and technological factors are most critical to actualizing multi-tier supply chain sustainability. Thus, the study outcomes present relevant theoretical and practical implications for the managers and practitioners in the pulp and paper industry on how to facilitate multi-tier supply chain sustainability for increased competitiveness. Furthermore, this study provides guidelines for other industries as well and sets the stage for subsequent theorization and exploration of multi-tier supply chain sustainability for expected performance gains. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Journal of Natural Fibers is the property of Taylor & Francis Ltd and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Cellulose was isolated from recycled pulp and paper sludge and used to synthesize cellulose nanocrystals. Response surface methodology and Box-Behnken design model were used to predict, improve, and optimize the cellulose isolation process. The optimal conditions were a reaction temperature of 87.5 °C, 180 min with 4% sodium hydroxide. SEM and TEM results revealed that the isolated cellulose had long rod-like structures of different dimensions than CNCs with short rod-like structures. The crystallinity index from XRD significantly increased from 41.33%, 63.7%, and 75.6% for Kimberly mill pulp sludge (KMRPPS), chemically purified cellulose and cellulose nanocrystals, respectively. The TGA/DTG analysis showed that the isolated cellulosic materials possessed higher thermal stability. FTIR analysis suggested that the chemical structures of cellulose and CNCs were modified by chemical treatment. The cellulose surface was highly hydrophilic compared to the CNCs based on the high water holding capacity of 65.31 ± 0.98% and 83.14 ± 1.22%, respectively. The synthesized cellulosic materials portrayed excellent properties for high-end industrial applications like biomedical engineering, advanced materials, nanotechnology, sustainable packaging, personal care products, environmental remediation, additive manufacturing, etc. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

During the early Cold War, it was difficult for American intelligence to penetrate the Iron Curtain but a potential solution soon arose: émigré intelligence groups such as the Magyar Harcosok Bajtársi Közössége (MHBK) or 'Association of Hungarian Veterans'. This group, however, turned out to be an intelligence 'paper mill'. Attempts at trans-Atlantic cooperation with the MHBK and similar groups failed as they lost most of their good sources and were penetrated by communist security services. By the mid-1950s, US intelligence cut these groups off, took over their good sources, and established a source registry to prevent recurrence of the problem. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Thiophene sulfide is difficult to be removed by hydrodesulfurization. In this study, ZnCl2-waste paper fiber activated carbon was used as adsorbent to remove thiophene sulfide from simulated oil by hydrothermal modification. Under the optimum condition of ammonia modification, the adsorption capacity of modified adsorbent to BT is 14.8 mg S/g, 2.98 times that of unmodified. BET, FTIR and Boehm analysis showed that the mesopore volume of ammonia modified adsorbent increased by 96.62% and the mesopore ratio increased from 12.58% to 43.40%, which was conducive to improving the adsorption rate. After modification, the basic groups on the surface of the adsorbent increased by 44.3 times, and –NH3+, –OH and –NH2 enhanced the electron attraction and hydrogen bonding force between the adsorbent and BT molecule. Adsorption isotherms, adsorption kinetics and adsorption thermodynamics show that the adsorption process is spontaneous, entropic and exothermic. The pseudo-second-order kinetic rate constant increases with the increase of adsorption temperature, indicating that the increase of temperature is beneficial to accelerate the adsorption rate. The adsorption desulfurization process follows the mechanism of single and multilayer adsorption mixing. The results of this study can help to reveal more clearly that biobased activated carbon can be modified to adsorb thiophene sulfide. Ammonia modified adsorbents enhance the adsorption capacity for benzothiophene [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The pulp and paper industry stands out as an example of a technology based on a renewable resource, cellulose. The sludge, however, poses major environmental and public health problems. To effectively manage the sludge wastes, it is critical to fully evaluate its composition, possible environmental impacts, and the total amount of exploitable renewable resources. The study established the pH of the sludge to be 7.32 ± 0.98, an electrical conductivity (1.84 mS/cm), nitrogen concentration (2.65 ± 0.21%), and total organic matter (41.23 ± 3.11%). The cellulosic content was established to be 74.07 ± 2.71% which contributes to 53.07 ± 1.23% water holding capacity (WHC). The most abundant elements were C and O, followed by Cl, Si, Al, and Mg, with lower concentrations of S, Si, K, and iron. The polycyclic aromatic compounds (PAHs) levels ranged from 0.29 to 322.56 ng.g-1 with 1-methyl pyrene posting the highest concentration (322.56 ng.g-1. XRD peaks at 17.10°, 23.86°, 30.14°, and 36.57°, which imply the existence of CaCO3. SEM indicated that the sludge was majorly comprised of fibers materials with average particle sizes of 280 micrometers. TGA/DTG analysis showed that the sludge had the greatest cellulose and hemicellulose (64.7 wt. %). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article introduces a flexible and easy-to-implement open-ended scientific inquiry activity called the Paper Towels Challenge. After experimentally determining which of three unbranded paper towels is the most absorbent, students discuss their results and methods. The teacher facilitates the discussion of epistemological issues. This activity can be used regardless of the participants' age or country to promote science understanding, NGSS science and engineering practices, and twenty-first century skills, such as critical thinking and communication. The many uses, benefits, and possible adaptations of the activity are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Iron-impregnated filter paper (Fe-Pi) was evaluated as phosphorus (P) extractant in four soils of Ogun state, southwest Nigeria in a screenhouse experiment. The experiments lasted for 8 weeks. Soil P contents were extracted at 0, 4, and 8 weeks after the incorporation of amendments (cattle manure, poultry manure, and wood ash) using Fe-Pi, Bray-1, Bray-2, Mehlich-1, Hunter, and Olsen extractant. Agronomic variables were taken fortnightly from grown maize plants and later harvested at 8 weeks, residual effects of the treatments were also evaluated. Maize dry matter weight (DMW) and P uptake were also measured. Results indicated that a linear relationship existed among the extractants with significant coefficient at p ≤.001. Fe-Pi established a strong relationship with the conventional extractants in the following order: Bray-1 (R2 = 0.99) > Bray-2 (R2 = 0.98) > Hunter (R2 = 0.96) > Mehlich-1 (R2 = 0.86) > Olsen (R2 = 0.82). Fe-Pi had a significant relationship with P uptake and DMW. Phosphorus uptakes under the animal manure amendments were statistically higher than uptake in control and woodash amended soils. Therefore, the study concluded that Fe-Pi was a good predictor of plant available P and had significant relationship with Bray-1, thus it could be considered for the estimation of soil available P in soils of southwest Nigeria. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Xuan paper is one of the most famous handmade papers in China and is an important paper for conservation. However, the evenness of Xuan paper has not yet received much attention. In this study, the distribution of the in-plane grammage and mechanical properties of Xuan paper are measured. It is found that the distribution of the in-plane grammage and mechanical properties of Xuan paper is uneven. In the handmade direction, the grammage and mechanical properties of Xuan paper are overall largest in the lower area, followed by the upper and middle areas. The sheet forming process of Xuan paper has an important effect on the distribution of in-plane grammage, mechanical properties, and fiber orientation of Xuan paper. The folded state has a negative effect on the mechanical properties of the folded area of Xuan paper. This study will help raise awareness of the unevenness in physical properties of Xuan paper, which is important in both conservation and research applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

AbstractResearchers face the challenge of efficiently navigating vast scientific literature while valuing printed papers in the digital age. Printed materials facilitate deeper engagement and comprehension, leading to active reading engagement and enhanced retention. However, existing digital tools often need to pay more attention to the needs of researchers who value the tactile benefits of printed documents. In response to this gap, we introduce AR-PaperSync, a solution that leverages Augmented Reality (AR) and cross-device interaction technology. AR-PaperSync integrates the physical experience of printed papers with the interactive capabilities of digital tools. Researchers can navigate inline citations, manage saved references, and synchronize reading notes across mobile, desktop, and printed paper formats. Our user-centric approach, informed by in-depth interviews with six researchers, ensures that AR-PaperSync is tailored to its target users’ needs. A comprehensive user study involving 28 participants evaluated AR-PaperSync’s significantly enhanced efficiency, accuracy, and system usability and reduced cognitive load in academic reading tasks compared to conventional methods. These findings suggest that AR-PaperSync enhances the reading experience of printed scientific papers and provides a seamless integration of physical and digital reading environments for researchers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The primary heat transfer source in the conventional multi-cylinder drying of paper and board is conduction. Conduction is facilitated by high-tension contact with steam-heated cylinders, while convective drying, the main mass transfer source, operates as heated air flows over the article web in the pockets. This conduction process occurs at elevated temperatures and contact pressures to ensure effective contact between the wet paper web and the heated cylinders. The contact pressures and temperatures of the hot surface significantly influence the conductive drying characteristics. This research paper presents an experimental study that involves designing a simple lab-scale setup with in-situ and continuous sensing capabilities for various commercially available grades of paper and board. Embedded thermocouples measure the temperatures of the heated platen and the sheet, allowing the collection of flux data to determine heat transfer characteristics. The goal of this study is to ascertain the instantaneous contact coefficients for different basis weights as a function of moisture content. The acquired data will provide valuable insights and information toward process development, design, and simulation of the article drying process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Production planning and scheduling in the pulp and paper industry can be very challenging. In most cases, practitioners address the production planning process manually, which is time-consuming and sub-optimal. This study deals with production planning encountered in a pulp mill company involving different wood species, parallel heterogeneous lines, inventory limits, sequence-independent setup times and preventive maintenance. To tackle the problem, an efficient mixed-integer formulation is proposed that optimizes when, where and how much to produce of different wood species and schedules preventive maintenance to minimize the total setup times. Several computational experiments are conducted to solve a case study in a pulp mill company in Chile. The results show the capability of the model to support the decision-making process in the pulp and paper industry, providing an efficient tool for practitioners to solve the problem in a reasonable amount of time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Journal of the Institute of Conservation is the property of Routledge and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Lead pollution may cause serious damage to environment safety and human health, especially to children's growth. In this work, by using double stranded DNA (dsDNA) as the recognition element, a simple and effective electrochemical DNA sensor has been developed on a full carbon-based substrate, reduced graphene oxide/carbon paper (rGO/CP), to accomplish the rapid, sensitive and selective determination of Pb2+. Carbon paper (CP) provides a suitable substrate for the sensor with high portability and low cost, while rGO is easily electrodeposited onto CP and serves as both the signal amplification element and the molecular bridge between DNA and CP. Because of its high specific surface area and unique conjugated giant π structure, rGO tightly binds with DNA through π-π stacking and hydrophobic interactions, thereby providing loading of high quantities of DNA. The specific coordination between DNA and Pb2+ further improves the sensitivity of the sensor. The results demonstrate that rapid electrochemical enrichment of Pb2+ is achieved using the constructed CP/rGO/DNA electrode with a linear relationship between the peak current and the concentration of Pb2+ from 1 pM to 100 pM and a detection limit of 1 pM. In addition, this approach shows good selectivity and satisfactory repeatability for river water analysis. A promising sensitive, low-cost, simply-fabricated, and portable full carbon-based electrochemical biosensing platform has been therefore provided for lead determination. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Michael Hillard's Shredding Paper: The Rise and Fall of Maine's Mighty Paper Industry is both a labor history of the paper industry and a political economy of corporate governance and class struggle in the United States. As a labor historian, Hillard has compiled thousands of hours of interviews with paper-industry workers and managers. As a political economist, he persuasively argues that contests over the distribution of surplus from the 1960s forward and shifts in paper-industry ownership led to the strike wave that began in the '60s and spread to every paper mill in Maine by the late 1980s. Rapacious practices by out-of-state owners challenged workers' moral compass as much as their material existence. Responding, paper workers developed a folk political economy and even a folk Marxism, creating the foundation for challenging working-class support for regressive economics. This review provides context for Hillard's claim while partially challenging it in a different context, the United States steel industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The chemical oxygen demand (COD) emissions from the pulp and paper industry in China have declined continuously since the tighter COD discharge standards were implemented in 2008. Using firm-level data from 2003 to 2013, we investigate how China's pulp and paper firms would respond to the tighter COD discharge standards with a difference-in-differences design. We find that the tighter COD discharge standards have significant causal effects to induce the pulp and paper firms to reduce their COD emissions primarily through adopting cleaner production. However, the effectiveness of the tighter COD discharge standards depends on monitoring and enforcement activities as well as other regulations accompanying with the tighter COD discharge standards, all of which have become strengthened since China's 11th Five-Year-Plan (FYP, 2006–2010). While strengthened environmental regulations since the 11th FYP are from the top leadership of the Chinese government in order to deal with the increasing environmental degradation, the underlying driving force of the strengthened environmental regulations is from the household demand for better environmental quality as income increases. This study enriches literature not only on firms' responses to environmental regulations in developing countries but also on environmental regulations and technology adoption as well as environmental enforcement and compliance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

La transición hacia el uso del papel para la enseñanza de la escritura en las escuelas elementales públicas en México no fue sencilla. Al finalizar el siglo XIX, se había cuestionado el uso de las pizarras por el riesgo que representaban para la salud, pues muchas veces los estudiantes borraban sus escritos con saliva y el material con el que estaban fabricadas no siempre guardaba las especificaciones necesarias, además el ruido al escribir era insoportable. En cambio, el papel, desde el punto de vista higiénico, pedagógico y estético, fue considerado un material superior frente a la dureza de la pizarra, el brillo de la superficie y la poca precisión que se obtenía en el trazo de las letras. Derivado de este planteamiento, se vislumbró seriamente la posibilidad de la adopción de papel en las escuelas oficiales. Sin embargo, este material era escaso y muy caro. Hacia el cambio de siglo, sólo dos fábricas de papel podían surtir a las escuelas y era necesario que abarataran el precio, que el sistema de distribución garantizara el abastecimiento y que el suministro fuera continuo. Este artículo analiza el inicio del proceso de reconversión de una tecnología para la enseñanza como era la pizarra por el papel. Analizo el gasto que significó y cómo esta modificación fue resultado de una multiplicidad de relaciones sociales, culturales, económicas y políticas que se entrecruzaron para dar una nueva configuración del tiempo, el ruido y los valores establecidos en el salón de clases. The transition to the use of paper in public elementary schools in Mexico was not easy. At the end of the nineteenth century, the use of slates had been questioned due to the health risk they represented since students often erased their writing with saliva and the material with which the slates were made did not always meet the necessary specifications. On the other hand, paper, from a hygienic, pedagogical and aesthetic point of view, was considered a superior material compared to the hardness of the slate, the shine of the surface and the lack of precision obtained in the tracing of the letters. Derived from this approach, the possibility of changing materials in official schools was seriously envisioned. However, the paper represented a very high cost. Only two paper mills could supply the schools and it was necessary to lower the price, and guarantee the supply by enhancing the distribution system. This article analyses the beginning of the conversion process of a technology for learning to write such as the slate for paper. I analyse the expense that it meant for the authorities and families, how the change was the result of a multiplicity of social, cultural, economic and political relations that intersected to give a new configuration of time, noise and established values in the classroom. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) analysis has become crucial due to their presence in the environment, their persistence and potential health risks. These compounds are commonly used in food contact materials (FCM) as a coating to provide water and grease-repellent properties. One of the pathways for PFAS to enter the human body is either through direct consumption of contaminated food or indirectly through migration from FCM into food. The purpose of this study was to investigate where the initial contamination of paper FCM occurs. We analysed paper material consisting of fresh fibre and secondary materials, intended to produce food packaging for the presence of PFAS. The samples were extracted and analysed for 23 different PFAS substances using the targeted approach with LC tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). This analytical technique detects specific, easily ionisable PFAS with high sensitivity. However, one drawback of this approach is that it allows the identification of less than 1% of the PFAS known today. For this reason, we used combustion ion chromatography (CIC) to determine the content of extractable organic fluorine compounds (EOF) and compare it to the total fluorine content. The targeted analysis using LC-MS/MS measured an average sum concentration of PFAS of 0.17 ng g−1 sample. Our research shows that the primary PFAS contamination happens during the recycling process since all of the samples in which the targeted PFAS were measured belonged to the secondary material. The most frequently detected analytes were PFOA and PFOS, detected in 90% and 62% of the samples, respectively, followed by PFBS (in 29% of the samples). CIC showed that measured PFAS via LC-MS/MS amount to an average of 2.7 × 10−4% of total fluorine content, whereas the EOF was under the LOD in all of the measured samples. This result highlights the complexity of the accurate determination of PFAS compounds, displaying what kind of information the chosen methods provide. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Here, we propose a sensing scheme based on an all-dielectric metamaterial with the smooth reflection and transmission spectral lines in 10-60THz, and verify the applications of the measuring the resonance characteristics of Xuan paper samples. The reflection and thermal conductivity of Xuan paper samples enhance with the concentration of alum water increasing and weaken due to the thickness increasing. These results provide a solid foundation for this metamaterials in measuring the reflective and thermal resonance properties of Xuan paper samples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present article provides a comprehensive analysis of the aging phenomenon of transformer insulation and the corresponding changes in insulation performance that occur over time. The present manuscript outlines diverse insulating materials that are employed in transformers, the fundamental aging mechanism of the insulation, the function of space charges in the aging of the insulation, and various simulation methodologies utilized for diagnosing the insulation status of the transformer. The primary focus of this paper is to examine the various numerical techniques employed in modeling and analyzing the aging characteristics of transformer insulation. The mechanisms underlying the accumulation of charge and distortion of electric fields in insulation are explained through the utilization of numerical modeling techniques. This paper focuses on understanding the mechanism of insulation aging, thereby facilitating the optimization and maintenance of insulation performance throughout its operational lifespan. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The International Paper Conservation Seminar has now been held as four face-to-face events and four online events. It is a three-day international event delivered in Spanish and Portugese with keynote talks from national and international conservation professionals from Mexico to Chile presenting projects covering works on paper in diverse formats including documents, photographs historic books, and artworks. Countries such as Argentina, Chile, Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador, Mexico, Paraguay, Uruguay, Colombia, Brazil, Spain and Costa Rica have sent delegates to discuss both the social and cultural aspects of conservation work. The seminar is a completely free event for its attendees. It is intended to be suitable for all, with high-level talks addressing issues of management, preservation, conservation, restoration and disaster recovery among many others. From the third event onwards, training workshops for basic treatments have been developed, with the participation of recognized conservation professionals from universities and international institutes, allowing the number of attendees to remain constant since the Covid-19 pandemic. It creates networks and fosters collaboration for professional and institutional projects. The seminars have generated a connected and active community of paper conservators in the region, aware of our limitations, and capable of solving problems collaboratively and according to local resources. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present study investigated the phycoremediation efficacy of two freshwater green microalgae Chlorella ellipsoidea and Desmodesmus opoliensis for treatment of water of Ellenga beel, a wetland located in the vicinity of Nagaon paper mill and into which effluents of the paper mill are drained-off. After inoculation of water samples with the two freshwater green microalgae, the culture medium were analyzed for various physicochemical parameters such as pH, electrical conductivity, total dissolved solids, phosphate, nitrate, potassium, chloride, phenol, cyanide, biological oxygen demand, chemical oxygen demand and heavy metals at every seven days interval for a period of 42 days. A reduction of phosphate (85%), sulfate (96%), nitrate (76%) and chloride (48%) was observed after 42 days of incubation in the tested beel water. The micro algal incubation also resulted in decrease of heavy metal such as Pb (54%), Zn (98%), Cr (59%), and Cu (61%). Comparison of Fourier transform infrared spectra of beel water samples (control) with those inoculated with the test micro algal species showed presence of binding sites for certain functional groups like phosphate, amide, carbohydrate and alkyl halides in inoculated samples. D. opoliensis exhibited higher phycoremediation efficiency than C. ellipsoidea in removal of pollutants from the beel water samples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As cousins, we discovered a treasure trove of family papers, revealing the intricate relationship between precarity and privilege of our family from Salonica navigating the post-Ottoman transition. Recognising the potential of family history to provide a more intimate and complex historiography, this article offers our initial study of these family papers. By highlighting the challenges posed by the scarcity of such documents in Middle Eastern studies, emphasising women’s roles in preserving family memory and focussing on the interplay between personal and political domains, we identify the preparation of a family tree as a gendered and socioeconomic project of preserving the past and shaping the present. By tracing our family's origins, including unsettling discoveries, we address matters of identity and memory before embarking on our analysis. By reconstructing the biographies of two generations, we characterise the family’s socioeconomic struggle to sustain their precarious privilege amid shifting frontiers and along their journey from Ottoman Salonica to Kemalist Turkey. Ultimately, this article underscores the significance of family history as a transnational, intergenerational, intersectional and social history that enriches our understanding of the post-Ottoman transition through the lives of ordinary (and some extraordinary) Ottomans. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This discussion of two related papers on political activism by Bettina von Lieres and Afarin Kohan focuses on the mechanism of transformation from psychic experience into political action. In both papers, the move to political action is seen as a consequence of collectivization, politics being understood as a function of groups, but a distinction is made between brute politics and the elaboration of the political as a psychoanalytic process. The original papers are seen as furthering the aims of social psychoanalysis and community psychoanalysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Scientific papers and patents are reliable sources of knowledge carriers for measuring science and technology advances, predicting technological trends, and formulating technology strategies. Although the idea of entirely using the two knowledge carriers is rapidly emerging in academic discussion, a theoretical framing of the comparisons is still not present in literature. This study conducts bibliometrics on 2986 patent families and 4755 scientific papers related to silicon carbide metal–oxide-semiconductor field-effect transistor (SiC-MOSFET) to identify its technological trends and compare the similarities and differences in knowledge generation and diffusion in science and technology. Our methodological framework consists of a combination of geographic distribution (identifying the research developments and distribution), cooperation networks (analyzing organisation collaboration and individual research cooperation), noun phrase co-occurrence clusters (discovering hot research topics), and the global main path analyses of citation networks (tracking the trajectory of knowledge flows). Ultimately, our results contribute to recent bibliometric paradigms beyond discovering the role of scientific papers and patents in promoting science and technology integration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Washi is paper made by hand from the bark of native Japanese shrubs. Washi is a common medium used for printmaking and paper crafts. Artists who have studied nagashi-zuki, a sheet-forming method unique to washi, often import Japanese fibers because alternatives with similar properties have not been identified. We propose Dirca L. (leatherwood), a shrub endemic to North America, as a source of fibers with properties similar to those plants traditionally used to make washi. The thinness and strength of the leatherwood paper allows it to withstand repeated bending, folding and creasing better than paper made from species of Wikstroemia (Japanese fiber), suggesting an alternative for use with various printmaking techniques and paper arts and crafts that involve folding, such as origami. We engaged printmakers and origami artists in creating original pieces using our leatherwood paper and evaluated how the paper responds to various printmaking techniques and complex folding. We identified Dirca mexicana as a source of fibers with similar properties to species of Wikstroemia used to make gampi washi. Handmade D. mexicana bark paper was successfully used as a paper medium for intaglio, lithography, relief, digital, and screenprinting printmaking techniques, as well as, complex folding origami sculptures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The effect of bamboo virgin pulp addition to the recycled pulp in enhancing the recycled paper's mechanical properties was evaluated. Malaysian bamboo virgin pulp used in this research were Bambusa vulgaris (Aur bamboo), Gigantochloa levis (Beting bamboo), and Gigantochloa scortechinii (Semantan bamboo). The addition of 2.5, 5, 7.5, and 10 wt% of bamboo virgin pulp improved the burst index, folding endurance, tearing index, and tensile index of the recycled paper from 2.27 to 3.17 kPa.m2/g, 7 to 15 double folds, 5.98 to 8.27 mN.m2/g, and 24.86 to 32.40 Nm/g, respectively. These were equivalent to the increment percentage for burst index, folding endurance, tearing index, and tensile index at the range of 6.61 to 39.65%, 28.57 to 114.29%, 15.72 to 38.59%, and 10.50 to 33.87%, respectively. The application of bamboo virgin pulp is very promising in improving the recycled paper's mechanical properties and this could be further extended in enhancing the other properties such as physical and optical paper properties. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The main objective of this work was to explore the prospects of producing pulp and paper from leftover lignocellulosic fibers. In this study discarded Cocos nucifera fibers were collected from an abandoned site and were washed thoroughly. FTIR analysis, chemical composition and fiber morphology studies were conducted. FTIR showed the presence of holocellulose and lignin in the fibers. Chemical analysis showed the holocellulose content as 37.8 wt%. Fiber length, fiber diameter, lumen diameter and cell wall thickness were observed using microscope and derived fiber indices that determine the possibility of producing paper were evaluated. The derived indices such as Runkel index, slenderness ratio, co-efficient of rigidity, flexibility coefficient, Luce’s shape factor and Solids factor of the fibers were evaluated as 67.9%, 44.11, 58.83%, 0.199, 0.49 and 278.53x10³ respectively. All these indices are in good agreement with fibers recommended and used for pulp and paper production. High lignin content present in the fibers is a limitation and it can be removed through appropriate delignification techniques. Thus the study showed that discarded fibers can be used for producing pulp, paper and allied products. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In her 'Manifesto to Decentre Theatre and Performance Studies' (2021), Swati Arora explores the intangible and invisible borders that function to exclude certain people and knowledges, usually indexed by race, gender, class, and geography, from the academy. As a new working group convenor, I'm interested in thinking through what hidden borders might operate through the Call for Paper and panel selection process. What are prospective panellists really being asked to demonstrate? What unofficial knowledges are privileged and who has access to these? How can we reorient this process towards questioning and away from demonstration of knowledge? In this short provocation I reflect my own experience of selecting abstracts and ask what work might be done to develop a more transparent and empowering model of panel curation. This is a short provocation that was prepared for the roundtable discussion on 'Decolonisation and Solidarity' as part of the conference, Borderlines IX: Seeking Solidarity and Wonder Through Performance, which took place at De Montfort University in Leicester, UK, on 30 June and 1 July 2022. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nano-ZnO has the characteristics of photocatalytic performance and excellent transparency and conductivity. Because of its many excellent properties, it also occupies a very important position in the types of semiconductor materials. Nano-ZnO film preparation technology has been researched and developed and applied in many fields, but there are few applied researches on the protection of paper artworks. The main content of this article is the study of the application and enhancement effect of nano-ZnO film preparation technology on the protection of paper cultural relics. In this paper, the sol-gel process is selected in the common film preparation process, and the configured sol is dipped and lifted. By comparing the paper covered with nano ZnO film and the paper not covered with nano ZnO film in the anti-aging performance test, anti-ultraviolet aging performance test, aging appearance change and the experimental results of the mechanical performance test of the application effect of different papers, the results are investigated. The application and enhancement effect of nano-ZnO film preparation technology in the protection of paper art works. Experimental studies have shown that under the same aging time, the mechanical properties of rice paper covered with nano-Zno film are higher than those of blank rice paper without nano-Zno film. The transverse tensile strength of the paper is increased by 5.88 m/N, an increase of 98%. The vertical tensile strength increased by 3.93 m/N, an increase of about 87%, the vertical folding resistance increased by 16 times, the horizontal folding resistance increased by 15 times, and the vertical tearing strength increased by 4.15 m/N, an increase of about 125%, and the transverse tearing degree is enhanced by 2.21 m/N, which is about 64%. The two kinds of rice paper were subjected to warm-heat aging, and the final results showed that the mechanical properties of the two kinds of rice papers showed a decreasing trend, but the mechanical properties of the rice paper covered by the nano-Zno film decreased at a slower rate, and the final mechanical properties were also lower than that of untreated rice paper. Blank rice paper covered with film is better. The experimental results of ultraviolet light on paper aging show that the nano-Zno film covering the paper will delay the paper aging, and the appearance of the nano-Zno film after ultraviolet light does not change significantly. Under the mechanical performance test of nano Zno film on different types of paper application, the tensile strength, folding resistance and tearing degree of the three papers participating in the experiment have been improved, which shows that the nano Zno film has the advantage of strengthening paper. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study seeks to profile the shoppers' propensity to reuse shopping bags and the type of shopping bags they reuse on the basis of demographics. The study used an observation method to record the consumers' shopping habits and a short questionnaire to record the participants' demographics. A binary regression analysis and a multinomial regression analysis were used to analyse data. The results indicated that the mature aged, women, and low income shoppers were more likely to practice reuse of plastic shopping bags than their respective counterparts. There were no statistically significant differences in the likelihood of young aged shoppers compared to mature aged shoppers and low income shoppers compared to high income shoppers using cotton bags than plastic bags. There were also no statistically significant differences in the likelihood of young aged shoppers compared to mature aged shoppers and male shoppers compared to female shoppers using paper bags than plastic bags. However, the results indicated a statically significant result in how males compared to females differed in their using of cotton bags than plastic bags and a statistically significant result in how low income shoppers compared to high income shoppers differed in their use of paper bags than plastic bags. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the current strategy, a highly sensitive and fast one-step colorimetric assay for trace determination of Cu2+ in water is presented. The planned assay was based upon the use of varnish polish-modified filter paper printed with 2-[5-(2-hydroxy-5-sulfophenyl)-3-phenyl-1-formazyl] benzoic acid monosodium salt, commercially named zincon. Under optimal conditions, the designed assay readily recognised the formation of blue–purple-coloured Cu–ZI chelate in less than 10 min. The proposed probe was able to detect Cu2+ in the concentration range from 0.04 to 10 μg/mL (6.34 × 10−1 to 1.59 × 103µM), with low limit of detection (LOD) of 0.01 μg/mL (1.59 × 10−1 µM). The LOD was 10-fold lower than the allowable level for Cu2+ in drinking water set by WHO legislation. The assay was applied for Cu2+determination in water with acceptable recoveries (89.6–102.1%) and precision (<3%). Therefore, the proposed sensing assay might be considered as a potential rapid and low-cost candidate for total determination and speciation of Cu2+in water samples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The book "ChatGPT and healthcare: Unlocking the potential of patient empowerment" by Harvey Castro MD, MBA explores the application of ChatGPT, an AI language model developed by OpenAI, in the healthcare industry. The book discusses the benefits of ChatGPT for patients, such as generating concise summaries of medical histories and providing professional abstracts of research papers. It also highlights the importance of cautious utilization of ChatGPT due to potential risks and limitations, including non-intuitive responses and sensitivity to data alterations. The author emphasizes the need for enhanced medical and healthcare literacy to maximize the utility of ChatGPT. The book also addresses legal and ethical issues surrounding ChatGPT usage in healthcare, including privacy concerns and the need for clinical validation. Overall, the book presents ChatGPT as a tool that has the potential to transform healthcare services and improve patient experiences, but also acknowledges the challenges and limitations associated with its use. [Extracted from the article]

A core assumption in the current neurosemantic research is that meanings of concrete words (object nouns, action verbs) are at least partially grounded in modality-specific representations implemented by perceptual and motor cortices. Nevertheless, increasing evidence from the multisensory research suggests that extensive portions of what are traditionally considered modality-specific cortices are in fact supramodal in nature – that is, they can process specific information in multiple sensory modalities and in both normal and sensory-deprived individuals. My central argument in this paper is that the amount of data collected within the supramodal paradigm, although certainly not conclusive, is already robust enough to foster reflections about the role of modality-specificity in the semantic brain and to prompt considerations about the possibility of promoting a property-specific and modality-invariant turn in neurosemantics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aimed to enhance the physical properties and the weak heat transmission of the core layer, which are the weak points of particleboard produced using melamine-impregnated paper waste (MIPW) as an adhesive. Alkyl-ketene dimer (AKD) and paraffin were used as water-repellent chemicals. MIPW was used as an adhesive, and no additional resin was used. As a result of this study, the samples' physical properties improved with AKD and paraffin's existence. Moreover, it has been approved that AKD is more effective than paraffin in improving the physical properties of the particleboard because AKD improves ester bonding with hydroxyl groups of cellulose fibers. The usage of water repellents resulted in the improvement of internal bond (IB) properties. It was determined that the type and amount of water-repellent chemicals significantly affected the mechanical and physical properties and formaldehyde content of the produced particleboards, except for bending properties. Just the chemical type was found to be significantly effective on bending strength (BS) and modulus of elasticity (MOE) properties. Overall, the study findings suggested that AKD might be successfully utilized as a water-repellent chemical in particleboard manufacturing, while MIPWs used as an adhesive. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Gas chromatography – tandem mass spectrometry (GC-MS/MS) using formic acid as a protective agent is reported for the determination of acrylic resin monomers in food contact packaging paper. The analytes were extracted by ethanol mixed with formic acid with 2-phenylethyl propionate as the internal standard. The extract was separated by a 6% cyanopropylbenzene-94% dimethylsiloxane ultra-inert chromatographic column and analyzed by GC-MS/MS in multiple reaction monitoring (MRM) mode. 13 acrylic resin monomers including acrylic acid, styrene, and acrylic ester were separated. The procedure was successfully applied for the analysis of real samples. The procedure provided a linear calibration range with detection limits from 0.16 to 0.46 mg kg−1. The mean recoveries were from 88.1% to 100.9% with relative standard deviations less than 5.4%. The residual acrylic resin monomers in packaging paper were primarily from printing base paper and varnish. Of the acrylic resin monomers, the monomers except for butyl acrylate and 2-ethylhexyl acrylate showed low migration rates. The method provides high sensitivity and good reproducibility with simple pretreatment, demonstrating application for monitoring acrylic resin monomers in food contact packaging paper. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article engages with discard studies scholarship to interrogate findings from a study that set out to deliberately follow wastepaper in an early childhood setting. The study, which used participatory methods positioning teachers and children as research partners, began with purposeful noticing and attunement to paper's movements and materiality. This attentiveness defamiliarized paper and the ways in which it is known and experienced. It led to questions about the wider systems in which paper is entangled. In this article, thinking with discard studies provokes us to consider the relational systems that involve paper in early learning settings and leads us to question the reduce-reuse-recycle maxim which allows some systems to flourish by diverting attention away from them. The article concludes by suggesting that if we are to discard well, we must become aware of systems that are maintained by taken-for-granted waste practices such as reducing, reusing, and recycling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Influenced by the academic work of Stephen A. Resnick and Richard D. Wolff, the author and his close collaborator Richard McIntyre have spent four decades closely reading and contributing research to adjacent radical literatures on the empirical history of workers and capitalism. In this response to Richard McIntyre's review of Shredding Paper, the author reveals how his own research into the story of Maine's paper mills has developed since the 1980s, drawing out the class implications of the details embedded in a history that stretches back to the origins of Maine's paper industry. Hillard highlights the efficacy of reading capitalist histories of focusing on subsumed classes, i.e., a "volumes 2 and 3 [of Capital] approach," alongside the much more common "volume 1" methodology common to most radical political economy and labor history. For better and worse, this story has culminated in two generations of rural Mainers rejecting the sensibilities of neoliberal capitalism. This local class formation and particular consciousness of class contains many lessons for those who see capitalism problematically, but in the absence of an established U.S. Left, and given the cultural forces and propaganda acting upon them, this critical culture appears to have moved on. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]