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A series of racemic nine o,o-dialkyl-2-benzyloxycarbonyl-aminoarylmethyl-phosphonate enantiomers has been separated by high performance liquid chromatography on cellulose tri(3,5-dimethyl-phenylcarbamate) and N-(3,5-dinitrobenzoyl) leucine (DNB-leu) chiral stationary phases. The chromatographic parameters, the capacity factor (k), separation factor (α), and the resolution factor (Rs) of all solutes are presented. The influence of the mobile phase composition on the enantioselectivity has been discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this paper is to enlarge the scope of existing EOQ-type models by incorporating uncertain product returns that may include time or quantity restrictions. In this inventory control problem, the item's demand is deterministic and occurs at a known constant rate over time. Product returns arrive according to a Poisson process. The amount returned to the seller at each return epoch is a random or fixed fraction of the accumulated number of units (net of previous returns) that have been demanded so far within a stock cycle. The ordering policy is a continuous review policy that orders a fixed quantity every time an order is placed. The replenishment lead time is instantaneous, and shortages are not allowed. The objective is to find optimal order quantities by minimising the long-run average total costs per unit time. Costs include a fixed plus proportional cost per order, and a holding cost per unit held in inventory per unit time. A level-crossing approach is used to derive a closed-form expression for the expected ordering and inventory holding costs as a function of the order size and other relevant parameters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Experience-in-store-and-buy-online (ESBO) is a popular omni-channel strategy. This paper studies the effects of inspection service provision on the interactions of a dynamic-pricing retailer and strategic consumers, i.e., the effects of the ESBO initiative on store operations. Selling a seasonal product over two periods, the omni-channel retailer may allow consumers to inspect this product offline only in the first period (first-period inspection) or in both periods (two-period inspection). First, we find that allowing first-period inspection makes the retailer better off. The retailer will price the product higher in the first period but probably lower in the second period. Even so, more consumers will purchase in the first period: that is, allowing first-period inspection can somewhat deter strategic deferral. Meanwhile, the seemingly negative intertemporal showrooming behavior (i.e., inspect the product offline in the first period but defer online purchase to the second period) benefits the retailer. Compared to first-period inspection, allowing two-period inspection increases the retailer's prices in both periods as well as profit, provided that inspection is definitely available in the second period. On the other hand, when inspection is possible in the second period, it may be profitable to allow inspection only in the first period.. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The relative permeabilities of oil-water two-phase flow in fractures attract increasing attention in reservoir engineering. In this work, two analytical models were developed for the relative permeabilities of oil-water flow in fractures. One of the models, developed without considering oil-water interface slip, demonstrates that the relative permeabilities of oil-water flow are only dependent on saturation and wetted perimeter. The other one, developed from considering oil-water interface slip, implies that the relative permeabilities of oil-water flow are not only related to saturation and wetting perimeter, but also related to interface coefficients. Comparative experiments were conducted to verify. The experimental rectangular fractures, which were made of polymethyl methacrylate, had different hydraulic diameters from 2.06 to 5.71 mm and height-width ratios from 0.115 to 8.696. The oil-water flow was horizontal and laminar in fractures, with oil-water viscosity ratios ranged from 7.3 to 29.6. Stratified flow and dispersed flow were observed in the experiments. The analytical models developed show that oil-water interface slip has little influence on the relative permeability of oil phase, but has significant effect on the relative permeability of water phase. Both analytical models and experimental results indicate that the sum of relative permeabilities can be greater than 1. Highlights: Two permeability models with and without considering oil-water interface are developed. Oil-water interface has little effect on the relative permeability of oil phase. Oil-water interface has significant effect on the relative permeability of water phase. Flow pattern influences the relative permeabilities of oil-water flow in fractures. The sum of relative permeabilities can be greater than 1 for oil-water flow in fractures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hydrofoil trailing edge shape directly influences its downstream flow state. Due to the non-streamlined shape, alternating vortices will form downstream, resulting in complex pressure pulsations. Different shapes of the trailing edge lead to varying pressure pulsations downstream. In this paper, four different trailing edge shapes were selected for numerical simulation based on the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics 0009 hydrofoil. The main difference lies in trimming one side of the trailing edge to different degrees, making it asymmetrical. Large Eddy Simulation was used and the results were accurate. The optimized multivariate variational mode decomposition was used to extract and reconstruct effective components of pressure pulsation in the flow, and satisfactory reconstruction results were obtained. This combined method effectively identifies key components influencing flow field and enables reasonable reconstruction. Results show that shedding vortices on both sides of an asymmetric hydrofoil's tailing edge exhibit noticeable differences in morphology. Pressure pulsation distribution in the trailing-edge flow field was primarily influenced by components near vortex-shedding frequency. With the deepening of the asymmetric trimming degree, the pressure pulsation influenced by this component on that side is gradually weakened, but the energy peak of pressure pulsation in the flow field is less reduced. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper studies an event-triggered fault-tolerant tracking control strategy design of multiple quadrotor UAVs (MQUAVs) formation subject to the composite influence of external disturbance, tracking error constraints and actuator faults. A prescribed time prescribed performance function is employed to solve tracking error constraints and it ensures the tracking error enters into the constraint boundary in the prescribed time. A first-order filter is designed to solve the problem of computational explosion caused by reference trajectory and unknown external disturbance. The adaptive method is used to deal with the unknown parameters and the comprehensive uncertainty which contains actuator faults and external disturbance. Furthermore, the event-triggered controller is designed to achieve the formation tracking with the reduction of update number of controller to save resources. The bounded stability of the tracking error is proved via the Lyapunov theory. At last, the effectiveness of the control strategy is verified by simulation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this discussion paper, we aim to examine the key issues of logistics management in the Industry 4.0 era by addressing various major challenges. To be specific, we first establish an amended definition of logistics management, highlighting the new elements of cash flow, in both the cyber and physical worlds. We then review the highly relevant selected literature and propose a framework for future logistics management. Our proposed framework includes five critical areas, namely Industry 5.0, Joint-venture, Legal-concerns, Risk management, Automation and artificial intelligence (AI), and hence we call it the 'IJLRA' framework. For each area, we identify the major challenges that deserve further analyses. We believe that with proper logistics management under the IJLRA framework, organisations in the supply chain can achieve the crucial goals of logistics – achieving the right time, right place, right quality, and everything right – to satisfy customer needs. Finally, we also propose a future research agenda for logistics management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Agricultural practices such as extensive manure application (containing residual antibiotics) as fertilizer can also contribute to antibiotic pollution in soil, besides nitrous oxide (N2O) emissions. This dual impact designates certain agricultural soils as hotspots for heightened N2O emissions and antibiotic pollution. Nevertheless, our understanding of the repercussions of antibiotic residues on N2O emissions and the underlying mechanisms remain elusive. This comprehensive literature review investigated recent research findings regarding antibiotic contamination in agricultural soils and its influence on microbial N2O production and consumption. We scrutinized published data and field experimental monitoring results to analyze the prevalence and temporal variation of antibiotic residues in Chinese agricultural soils. By analyzing 482 log response ratio (lnR) datasets obtained from 41 independent articles, we established that quinolones (QNs) significantly (p < 0.05) boost N2O emissions. Conversely, cycloheximide and aminoglycosides (ARs) demonstrated notable inhibitory effects. Antibiotic pollution at concentrations within 1 ppm significantly promoted soil N2O emissions, whereas pollution at concentrations exceeding 10 ppm significantly (95% CI > 0) inhibited N2O emissions. Subsequently, we investigated the changes in oxidation-related microorganisms (AOM), nitrite-oxidizing bacteria (NOB), comammox bacteria, denitrifying bacteria as well as dissimilatory nitrate reduction to ammonium (DNRA) and anammox processes under antibiotic stress. Antibiotics unequally affect microbial N2O production and consumption. Our findings offer valuable insights into the complex relationship between antibiotics and N2O emissions, contributing to a better understanding of the environmental consequences of antibiotic contamination in agricultural systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research studies the vibrations and instability of a rotating three-layer beam under aerodynamic forces consisting of two functionally graded (FG) composite surfaces and a porous intermediate layer. Linear poroelasticity theory is used for modeling the porous layer while Young's modulus and density vary along the thickness. Equivalent coefficients of the graphene nanoplatelets-reinforced composite (GPLs) are extracted by modified Halpin-Tsai theory, according to five different configurations. The equations of motion in the GPL-porous multi-layered beam are derived using the Euler–Bernoulli beam (EBB), Timoshenko beam (TB), and Reddy's higher-order shear deformation theory (HSDT) theories, as well as the energy method and Hamilton's principle. The most important results show the effect of reinforcements and their different configurations, porosity and its distribution, speed of rotation on natural frequency, critical flutter point, and loss factor for a GPL-porous multi-layered beam. The unique properties of GPL-reinforced porous materials facilitate the design of components capable of effectively managing dynamic loads and resisting aeroelastic instabilities. This results in more efficient, reliable, and durable systems across various industries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The objective of this research was to study ADAS dampers and develop equations to calculate their seismic parameters. A model was used to analyze the dampers with various variables. The study proposed equations for stiffness, energy dissipation, and strength of the dampers. It also identified the variables with the most and least impact on the results. The effect of axial force on damper performance was investigated, including the calculation of critical load and examining its influence on stiffness, strength, and ductility. Reducing the opening area and height and increasing the width of the damper increased energy dissipation and effective stiffness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pesticide residues seriously impact food safety and environmental protection. Consequently, there is a pressing demand for the development of dependable and efficient methods for pesticide residues detection. In recent years, optical aptamer sensors have emerged as highly sensitive and fast-response sensing platforms for pesticide detection. These developed sensors rely on the selectivity and sensitivity of nucleic acid aptamer to specifically interact with the target pesticide, resulting in an observable signal response. Various optical aptamer sensors such as fluorescence, colorimetry, surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) methods, and chemiluminescence (CL) methods have been effectively employed for accurate and rapid detection of pesticides, encompassing a range of pesticide types including insecticides, fungicides, and herbicides. These sensors offer several advantages including quick response times, high selectivity and sensitivity, user-friendly operation, and enabling real-time monitoring. This paper provides a comprehensive review of recent advancements in the application and development of optical aptamer sensors for pesticide residue assay with the overarching goal of furnishing an invaluable reference point for forthcoming research and advancements in the realm of swift and highly sensitive pesticide residue detection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Arabidopsis nitrate transceptor NRT1.1/NPF6.3/CHL1 regulates physiological responses to nitrate. Several studies have reported that Arabidopsis plants lacking NRT1.1 show enhanced shoot growth under toxic levels of ammonium without nitrate, suggesting a nitrate-independent function for NRT1.1. To further investigate this nitrate-independent function and its impact on ammonium tolerance, we conducted genetic analysis, tissue-specific expression analysis, and transcriptome analysis using various NRT1.1-related lines. Transgenic plants expressing either nonphosphomimic or phosphomimic mutants of NRT1.1 exhibited similar ammonium tolerance to the wild-type. The chl1–9 mutant, in which NRT1.1 with the P492L substitution is localized intracellularly rather than at the plasma membrane and fails to transport nitrate, showed significantly improved ammonium tolerance. Confocal imaging revealed that the NRT1.1-GFP signal was detected in the plasma membrane of various tissues, including cotyledon pavement cells, hypocotyl epidermal cells, mesophyll cells, root cap cells, and epidermal cells near root tips. In early seedlings, the absence of functional NRT1.1 altered the expression of genes associated with aliphatic glucosinolate biosynthesis, ethylene signaling, and low pH stress. Genes predicted to encode products localized to the extracellular space were enriched among those differentially expressed due to NRT1.1 deficiency. Our data suggest that in the absence of nitrate, plasma membrane-targeted NRT1.1 reduces ammonium tolerance irrespective of its phosphorylation state with alterations of gene expression associated with stress and senescence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ammonium fertilization is of great interest for future agriculture, as unlike nitrate, ammonium use efficiency does not decrease in C3 plants, even in environments with elevated CO2 concentrations. However, excess ammonium often results in toxic effects such as growth suppression and chlorosis, i.e. ammonium toxicity. The addition of nitrate, a major source of nitrogen commonly found in soils, has been shown to alleviate these toxic effects. Understanding the mechanisms of ammonium toxicity in the presence of nitrate is crucial for the effective use of ammonium fertilizers in crop cultivation. To elucidate these responses, a time-course analysis of the transcriptome was performed on A. thaliana leaves treated with high concentrations of ammonium sulfate in the presence of sufficient nitrate. The expression of nitrate-inducible genes tended to be downregulated by the treatment. The expression of genes relating to abscisic acid (ABA), jasmonic acid (JA), salicylic acid (SA), and membrane trafficking was upregulated, whereas that of photosynthesis-, auxin-, and cytokinin-related genes involved in growth and development was downregulated. The induction of many osmotic stress-responsive genes and nitric oxide (NO)-inducible genes suggests the involvement of osmotic stress and NO signaling in the response. This study provides a novel and comprehensive overview of transcriptional changes occurring in response to high ammonium sulfate concentrations with sufficient nitrate, and sheds light on potential pathways involved in ammonium toxicity under these conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Blockchain is an emerging technology with the potential to radically transform logistics in the highly complex environment of the agri-food supply chain. The key challenges of the agri-food sector include overcoming the limitations (time, cost and quality) to developing global and efficient transparency and traceability of food, eliminating expensive intermediaries, and ensuring no disruption between suppliers and retailers. This paper describes a practical approach by not only using smart contracts to integrate various stakeholders but also incorporating a Public Participation Geographic Information System platform to ensure traceability of the operations conducted in an agri-food supply chain. As a factor in improving distribution and minimising intermediaries, third-party logistics participation is included in this research. Through a case study, the entities and interactions between processes within a blockchain system based on a smart contract are identified. The findings reveal an innovative blockchain approach to logistics in the agri-food supply chain. [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]

Platforms are giants in today's operations. Companies like Amazon and eBay are huge enterprises which belong to top enterprises in the world. In this article, we discuss platform supply chain innovations in the blockchain era. We first search the literature and identify the level of popularity of the topic over the past years. Next, we review some closely related studies in the literature and introduce the featured papers in this IJPR special issue. After that, we identify research gaps, present the ABCDE framework and propose a future research agenda. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper considers a retail platform selling a product to consumers and voluntarily discloses product quality information by using blockchain technology (BCT). Consumers decide whether to deliberate before making purchase decisions. We develop an analytical model to explore the effects of information disclosure strategies on the retail platform's pricing and consumers' deliberation decisions. Some interesting results are obtained. First, regardless of the information disclosure strategy, consumers' deliberation and purchasing decisions depend on the deliberation cost and product price. Consumers will only deliberate if the price is at the medium level and the deliberation cost is not too high. Second, when the disclosure cost is high, the retail platform either stimulates or prevents consumer deliberation; however, when the disclosure cost is at a medium interval, the retail platform's pricing decision depends on its information disclosure strategy. Specifically, when disclosing quality information, the retail platform will implement the stimulated deliberation (SD) or prevented deliberation (PD) strategy and will never adopt the sold at a low price (SL) strategy; however, when quality information is withheld, the retail platform will only adopt the PD strategy. Third, we identify the conditions under which the retail platform should disclose quality information when facing different disclosure costs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigates a supply chain comprising of a manufacturer and a retail platform, wherein the former decides the quality information transparency strategy of products and the latter determines whether or not to implement price parity clauses (PPCs). The manufacturer can directly sell the end-of-season product to the end-consumer market and indirectly via the retail platform. Specifically, this study considers two quality information transparency strategies (i.e. ex-ante blockchain-adoption and ex-post voluntary disclosure) that differ on whether the manufacturer's decision on quality information transparency strategy is made before or after observing the actual product quality. Results show that the manufacturer may prefer the ex-ante blockchain-adoption strategy in specific conditions but maintains the flexibility of information disclosure under ex-post voluntary disclosure strategy. Moreover, the implementation of PPCs significantly reduces the manufacturer's incentive to disclose a large extent of quality information transparency when the effort cost is high or the service effect coefficient is low. By contrast, the manufacturer is more likely to adopt information transparency strategies under PPCs when the effort cost is low and the service effect coefficient is high. More interestingly, contrary to theories of harm from PPCs, the implementation of PPCs may simultaneously benefit the manufacturer and retail platform, achieving a 'win-win' situation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research has called for firms to prioritize reducing carbon emissions, however strategies to do so with external partners through institutional conformity and integration are lacking in research and practice. Drawing upon the resource-based view and institutional theory, the study in this paper proposes and tests a series of research hypotheses with Chinese firms. Structural equation modelling was used to analyse data and findings reveal carbon emissions reduction and low carbon institutional pressures are crucial forces driving external low carbon supply chain integration with external suppliers and customers. Further, low carbon supply chain integration overall positively impacts a firm's environmental performance, external customer integration positively impacts a firm's financial performance, and environmental performance plays a mediating role between external low carbon supply chain integration and financial performance. This study contributes by shedding new light on two patterns of external low carbon supply chain integration compared to prior studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

S-Arylation of nitro compounds-heterocumulene adducts with CuI as the catalyst, K2CO3 as the base, and highly efficient was successfully implemented without the help of an additional ligand under ultrasound irradiation in MeCN at room temperature. The use of simple and readily available starting materials, no need for column chromatography, mild copper-catalytic reaction conditions, good yields (70–89%), application of the sonochemical methodology, and short reaction times are remarkable specifications of this protocol. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In emerging economies like India, the focus of public health policies is shifting toward the treating non-communicable diseases to preventing communicable diseases. The public welfare demands appropriate targeted healthcare subsidies for non-communicable diseases. In this paper, we investigate whether out-of-pocket expenditure toward mitigating non-communicable diseases for the poorer section of the population is catastrophic by nature. In a representative futuristic scenario for an emerging economy, we have collected the cancer patients' expenditure data from the patients and hospital management in a not-for-profit cancer hospital located in the state of Kerala. We have analyzed the variation of expenditure categorized as government subsidy toward treatment, private expenditure toward medical goods and services, and private expenditure toward non-medical goods and services against different socio-economic variables. The analysis of catastrophic health expenditure data reveals that relatively lower income lower-income households face more risk of catastrophic health expenditure and are in greater need of government subsidy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sandstone deterioration is one of the main problems affecting historical monuments. Therefore, to protect cultural heritage structures, introducing conservation strategies is necessary. The study aimed to assess bacterial and fungal diversity of non-hydrophobized and hydrophobized areas in the historic tomb chapel of Karol Scheibler in Poland after 10 years of the conservation treatment. The applied conservation treatment included hydrophobization with the Polish impregnates Konsil Z. Next-generation sequencing (NGS) exhibited significant changes in the microbial communities of the treated sandstones. Members belonging to the phylum Acidobacteriota, Chloroflexi, and Verrucomicrobiota and genera Pseudonocardia, Synechococcus, Rubrobacter, Bryobacter, Blastocatella, and Truepera showed significantly lower relative abundance in hydrophobized area. Moreover, fungi Ascomycota, mainly class of Dothideomycetes, were significantly less abundant in the hydrophobized samples—could be due to hydrophobization. However, some groups of microorganisms enhanced their relative abundance in hydrophobized area. These groups of bacteria such as Proteobacteria, Gammaproteobacteria, Rhizobiaceae, and Nocardioides could have caused the appearance of a green bloom on the sandstone 10 years after the impregnation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Genus Panax is of great medicinal value, which has attracted worldwide attention due to its wide range of pharmacological action and chemical composition. Adulteration or damage to consumers is a common phenomenon, and traditional analytical techniques are expensive, destructive, complex and time-consuming. Vibrational spectroscopy possesses great application prospect in Panax, and due to its high accuracy, rapidity, convenience and effectiveness, it has become an effective way to elucidate the qualitative and quantitative analysis of the Panax. Chemometrics has been built for processing multivariate data generated by spectroscopy techniques that can overcome the limitations of vibrational spectroscopy. This paper showed a comprehensive and critical review of current trends and advances in the field of vibrational spectroscopy for the analysis of the Panax, presenting the geographical distribution, species classification, chemical composition, and pharmacological action of Panax, summarizing a variety of vibrational spectroscopy (infrared spectroscopy, Raman spectroscopy, hyperspectral image) and combining them with chemometrics for the qualitative and quantitative analysis of Panax. As a result, some challenges and future perspectives are proposed based on the current achievements, which provide reference values for in-depth research and practical applications of Panax and contribute to the development of new techniques for Panax. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study explores a Robust, Risk-aware, Resilient, and Sustainable Closed-Loop Supply Chain Network Design (3RSCLSCND) to tackle demand fluctuation like COVID-19 pandemic. A two-stage robust stochastic multiobjective programming model serves to express the proposed problems in formulae. The objective functions include minimising costs, CO2 emissions, energy consumption, and maximising employment by applying Conditional Value at Risk (CVaR) to achieve reliability through risk reduction. The Entropic Value at Risk (EVaR) and Minimax method are used to compare with the proposed model. We utilise the Lp-Metric method to solve the multiobjective problem. Since this model is complex, the Lagrange relaxation and Fix-and-Optimise algorithm are applied to find lower and upper bounds in large-scale, respectively. The results confirm the superior power of the model offered in estimating costs, energy consumption, environmental pollution, and employment level. This model and algorithms are applicable for other CLSC problems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The COVID-19 outbreak has revealed weaknesses in the supply chains (SCs) and how easily it can be influenced by these disruptions. Food supply chains (FSCs) is one of the most affected SCs, and it needs to be more resilient against SC disruptions because their vulnerable structure such as having perishable products. Therefore, this article aims to uncover the need for resilience in FSCs during the COVID-19 outbreak. For this purpose, the enablers of resilience on FSCs are determined after a detailed examination of the current literature. Then, the graph theory matrix approach has been used to reveal the relationships between these enablers and investigate importance of enablers of resilience in FSCs during COVID-19 outbreak. It is significant to determine preference of enablers and rank of importance to take actions effectively. Depending on the results, the rank orders of the enablers are classified as readiness, collaboration with stakeholders, IT alignment, risk aware, responsiveness, flexibility, appearance and sustainability, respectively. Suggested implications can be provided benefits for policymakers and managers in FSCs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Quality improvement and price-matching are two commonly used competing strategies by the retailers. However, it is still unclear how the retailers should deliberate over the two strategies when selling in both online and offline markets. In this paper, we consider two dual-channel retailers selling a substitutable product to consumers in both online and offline markets. Especially, the retailers compete in the online market, and their offline markets are exclusive to themselves. We establish a game-theoretical model to investigate the trade-off between quality improvement and price-matching in competition, and the impact on retailers' profits and consumer surplus in the dual-channel market structure. The analysis shows that, first, a retailer should choose to improve its quality to avoid price competition when the online market is small; second, when retailers engage in price competition, the retailer with larger offline market is more willing to adopt price-matching, while the retailer with a small share of offline market can be hurt; third, quality improvement can always increase the consumer surplus, while price-matching always hurts consumer surplus due to price collusion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Microplastics (MPs) are emerging contaminants that adversely affect environmental health. In this review, we discuss the uptake of MPs by plants via endocytosis and crack-entry pathways in the roots and stomata of leaves; the translocation of MPs via xylem and phloem; and the toxicity of MPs to diverse plant species through oxidative stress, inhibition of photosynthesis, cytotoxicity, and genotoxicity. It's difficult to assess the health risks of MPs because they directly cause toxicity and also change soil properties and the bioavailability of coexisting pollutants, such as plastic additives, in the plant rhizosphere, and bioaccumulate along the food chain. Moreover, compared to the uptake behavior and phytotoxicity effects of MPs in laboratory and hydroponic studies, MPs of various shapes, sizes, and types are likely to cause different effects on plants in complex natural environments. This review proposes potential phytoremediation strategies, including phytoextraction, immobilization, and rhizoremediation, for MP pollutants and provides guidelines for the bioremediation of MP-contaminated environments to enhance environmental sustainability. In the phytoremediation of MP pollution, the selection and disposal of plants used for phytoremediation and the optimization of functional microbes in the rhizosphere remain challenging. Future studies should address knowledge gaps in (i) methods for determining environmentally-relevant concentrations of MPs, (ii) the assessment of the ecological and human health risks of MPs in the natural environment, and (iii) the development of effective strategies for the phytoremediation of MP pollution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Foliage uptake of atmospheric elemental mercury (Hg0) and subsequent translocation by the phloem is the main pathway for Hg accumulation in tree rings. Tree rings have been used as the emerging natural archive to directly reconstruct centennial trends of atmospheric Hg0 level. The tree-ring Hg records in remote regions have successfully reconstructed the peak of anthropogenic Hg emissions in Europe and North America in 1960s − 1970s and the distinct increase of Hg emissions in Asia since 1980s. Combining the Hg concentrations and isotopic signatures would provide historical atmospheric Hg trends and Hg emission source shifts. The mechanisms for Hg translocation, specifically the radial translocation and impacts of environmental and tree physiological factors, are yet to be clarified to explain the nonlinear relation between atmospheric Hg0 concentration and Hg signals in tree rings. Thus, we recommend to trace Hg accumulation and translocation processes and their Hg isotopic fractionation in tree rings, and examine the relationship between tree-ring Hg profile and atmospheric pollution level in specific tree species. Finally, we suggest to develop more statistical models to quantify environmental and tree physiological impacts on Hg accumulation and translocation in tree rings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A generalised approach for the implementation of memristive two-terminal circuits with piecewise-smooth characteristics is proposed on an example of a multifunctional circuit based on a transistor switch. Two versions of the circuit are taken into consideration: an experimental model of the piecewise-smooth memristor (Chua's memristor) and a piecewise-smooth memristive capacitor. Physical experiments are combined with numerical modelling of the discussed circuit models. Thus, it is demonstrated that the considered circuit is a flexible solution for synthesis of a wide range of memristive systems with tunable characteristics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nitrate has been recognized as a key aerosol component in regional haze formation in China. However, reducing nitrate aerosol concentration remains a major challenge. Generally, the formation of particulate nitrate (NO3-) is mainly affected by two processes: oxidation (to generate gaseous HNO3 or particulate NO3-) and gas-particle partitioning (HNO3-NO3- partition). Here, we proposed a new method to explore the contributions of above two processes ( C Oxi obs (%) and C G / P obs (%)) to nitrate formation based on field observation, and combined theoretical calculation and modeling to verify it. Quantitative results showed that gas-particle partitioning process (average C G / P obs (%) was 64.90%) always contributed more than oxidation process (average C Oxi obs (%) was 35.10%) for particulate nitrate formation under different pollution scenarios in the ambient environment. We argued that this phenomenon was mainly caused by high aerosol pH (>4.5). Nevertheless, as pollution level rose, the C Oxi obs (%) will also increase (contributing to 32%, 38%, 40% and 41% under clean, light, medium and heavy pollution levels) which may be attributed to the increased HNO3 production rate and relatively enhanced heterogeneous reaction pathway. The results indicate future strategies for prevention and control of nitrate pollution should both consider reducing precursors emission and regulating aerosol acidity, in order to increase the effectiveness of reducing nitrate dominated pollution. Copyright © 2023 American Association for Aerosol Research [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Polyacrylamide (PAM) is one of the most critical materials in polymer flooding technology. However, the reservoir environment with high temperature, high pressure and high salinity will degrade PAM, which will reduce its viscosity and affect the recovery rate. In addition, previous studies lacked in-depth research on the PAM degradation mechanism and viscosity stabilization strategies. Therefore, the degradation mechanism of PAM solution in polymer flooding technology (including mechanical degradation, thermal degradation, free radical degradation, and biodegradation) and corresponding anti-degradation measures was introduced in this study, which provides a general strategy for effectively maintaining the viscosity of PAM solution. The conclusion shows that in order to maintain the viscosity of PAM solution, introducing functional monomer to modify PAM is the most essential and effective strategy. The combination of chemicals resistant to free radical degradation can further reduce viscosity loss and enhance oil recovery. The results of this study provide a comprehensive and systematic viscosity stabilization strategy that is important for PAM to reduce viscosity losses and enhance oil recovery in polymer flooding applications. In addition, modified PAM with low cost and resistance to free radical degradation should be developed in the future to meet the trend of future oil and gas resource development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Poverty has always been a global concern that has restricted human development. The first goal (SDG 1) of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) is to eliminate all forms of poverty all over the world. The establishment of a scientific and effective localized SDG 1 evaluation and monitoring method is the key to achieving SDG 1. This paper proposes SDG 1 China district and county-level localization evaluation method based on multi-source remote sensing data for the United Nations Sustainable Development Framework. The temporal and spatial distribution characteristics of China's poverty areas and their SDG 1 evaluation values in 2012, 2014, 2016, and 2018 have been analyzed. Based on the SDGs global indicator framework, this paper first constructed SDG 1 China's district and county localization indicator system and then extracted multidimensional feature factors from nighttime light images, land cover data, and digital elevation model data. Secondly, we establish SDG 1 China's localized partial least squares estimation model and SDG 1 China's localized machine learning estimation model. Finally, we analyze and verify the spatiotemporal distribution characteristics of China's poverty areas and counties and their SDG 1 evaluation values. The results show that SDG 1 China's district and county localization indicator system proposed in this study and SDG 1 China's localized partial least squares estimation model can better reflect the poverty level of China's districts and counties. The estimated model R2 is 0.65, which can identify 72.77% of China's national poverty counties. From 2012 to 2018, the spatial distribution pattern of SDG evaluation values in China's districts and counties is that the SDG evaluation values gradually increase from western China to eastern China. In addition, the average SDG 1 evaluation value of China's districts and counties increased by 23% from 2012 to 2018. This paper is oriented to the United Nations SDGs framework, explores the SDG 1 localized evaluation method of China's districts and counties based on multisource remote sensing data, and provides a scientific and rapid regional poverty monitoring and evaluation program for the implementation of the 2030 agenda poverty alleviation goals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Many industrial process optimisation methods rely on empirical models that relate output responses to a set of design variables. One of the most crucial problems in process optimisation is how to efficiently implement model selection and model estimation. This paper presents a Bayesian hierarchical modelling approach to process optimisation based on the seemingly unrelated regression (SUR) models. This approach can estimate a set of predictors to be included in a model based on a Bayesian hierarchical procedure (i.e. model selection) and then give model prediction based on a Bayesian SUR model (i.e. model estimation). Meanwhile, a two-stage optimisation strategy considering practitioners' preference information is proposed in process optimisation, which initially finds a set of non-dominated input settings and then determines the best one based on the similarity to an ideal solution method. The performance and effectiveness of the proposed method are illustrated with both simulation studies and a case study. The comparison results demonstrate that the proposed method can be a good alternative to existing process optimisation methods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Long delivery lead times and costly transportation postage are significant characteristics of B2C cross-border e-commerce and logistics. They engender preference inconsistencies and reversals in customers, which can lead to product returns. The aim of this study is to enable retailers to select the optimal cross-border logistics mode that fulfils their marketing strategies while taking product returns into consideration. We propose a novel way to describe customer utility by incorporating customer time preferences, and construct three cross-border logistics models. The theoretical and numerical analyses indicate that, if retailers want to eliminate or reduce their product return rates, they can adjust their delivery lead times in each logistics mode under various product procurement and sales prices, commodity tariffs, international and domestic postage and operating costs. In particular, the O2O mode is always a better option for retailers than the O2D mode, and under certain conditions, the D2D mode is better for retailers than the O2O mode. To increase market demand, the O2O mode is optimal for retailers selling high-priced products, while the O2D mode is optimal for retailers selling low-priced products. This study also provides suggestions for overseas manufacturers. These findings are applicable to B2C cross-border e-commerce, cross-border logistics, and overseas production. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Examines the role of biomarkers as indicators for risk of leukemia. Comparison between the Chinese and American benzene workers; Correlation between the peak exposure to benzene and leukemia development; Mortality among benzene-exposed workers.

Silk fibroin (SF) film/porous SF-nanohydroxyapatite (nHA) double-layer composite scaffolds were fabricated by a combination of electrospinning, casting and freeze-drying. The results showed that the tensile strength and elongation of the SF film layer were significantly improved through the bridging effect of SF/(ε-caprolactone) fibers in the SF matrix. The pore size in SF-nHA porous scaffold layer was approximately 213 μm, and nHA enhanced the compressive strength of the scaffold. CCK-8 assay showed that the SF/SF-nHA scaffold not only had no obvious cytotoxicity but also significantly promoted cell proliferation. The scaffold has the potential to be used for periodontal tissue regeneration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Twenty-five azole compounds (P1–P25) were synthesised using regioselective base-metal catalysed and microwave-assisted approaches, fully characterised by high-resolution mass spectrometry (HRMS), nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), and infrared spectra (IR) analyses, and evaluated for anticancer, anti-tyrosinase, and anti-oxidant activities in silico and in vitro. P25 exhibited potent anticancer activity against cells of four skin cancer (SC) lines, with selectivity for melanoma (A375, SK-Mel-28) or non-melanoma (A431, SCC-12) SC cells over non-cancerous HaCaT-keratinocytes. Clonogenic, scratch-wound, and immunoblotting assay data were consistent with anti-proliferative results, expression profiling therewith implicating intrinsic and extrinsic apoptosis activation. In a mushroom tyrosinase inhibition assay, P14 was most potent among the compounds (half-maximal inhibitory concentration where 50% of cells are dead, IC50 15.9 μM), with activity greater than arbutin and kojic acid. Also, P6 exhibited noteworthy free radical-scavenging activity. Furthermore, in silico docking and absorption, distribution, metabolism, excretion, and toxicity (ADMET) simulations predicted prominent-phenotypic actives to engage diverse cancer/hyperpigmentation-related targets with relatively high affinities. Altogether, promising early-stage hits were identified – some with multiple activities – warranting further hit-to-lead optimisation chemistry with further biological evaluations, towards identifying new skin-cancer and skin-pigmentation renormalising agents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Routing is the key issue for Vehicular Networks since each node in the network has mobility. The dynamic nature of vehicular networks increases with mobility and the consequence is reflected in controlling traffic overhead. As a result, the routing technique and the type of node mobility information are completely dependent on building dependable end-to-end communication links. To address these challenges, a Reliable Cluster-based Multi-Hop Cooperative Routing (RCCR) strategy was proposed by using velocity, distance, and link quality parameters. This algorithm obtains the tradeoff between Quality of Service (QoS) and mobility constraints over link parameters. It improves routing scalability by electing cluster heads and selecting Multi-Point Relays (MPRs) while considering mobility constraints and QoS needs. The proposed technique determines the link quality for every pair of nodes based on values of signal strength and distance parameters. The relay vehicles are chosen based on the highest possible QoS value, which is calculated to assure route stability, reliability, and durability. The heuristic limitations of the multi-point relay selection strategy are handled by considering the link quality, distance from the source vehicle, and cluster-head coverage area to enhance the performance of the multi-hop network with tolerable End-to-End transmission delay. Further, we obtained an optimal number of cooperative vehicles in every hop. Finally, simulation results demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed algorithm compared to other state of art algorithms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A new 2D manganese(II) coordination polymer, namely [Mn(L)0.5(2,2′-bipy)]n·nH2O (1), has been constructed hydrothermally based on manganese acetate and the mixed ligands including the 5.5′-(benzene)-1,4-diyl)-bis(oxy) diterphthalic acid (H4L) and auxiliary 2,2′-bipyridine (2,2′-bipy). The compound was characterized by elemental analyses, was characterized by elemental analysis, infrared spectrum and single-crystal and powder X-ray diffractions, and thermal analyses. Single-crystal X-ray diffraction analyses revealed that compound 1 crystallize in the triclinic system, space group P-1. The adjacent Mn(II) ions are bridged by µ6-L4− ligands, producing a 2D layer. Magnetic studies for compound 1 demonstrate an antiferromagnetic coupling between the adjacent Mn(II) centers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Coix is a minor cereal crop with various applications in Traditional Chinese Medicine. Coix seed is called "Green Food", because of its high unsaturated fatty acid content with minimal toxic residues and heavy metals. Coix can be an excellent choice as a dietary supplement because of diverse bioactive compounds including phenols, flavonoids, polysaccharides, fibers, lipids, proteins, vitamins, and minerals with significant therapeutic effects such as anticancer, antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anti-allergic, and immunomodulatory, among others. The least attention has been given to the improvement of new elite cultivars of coix with high nutritional values and nutraceutical effects. To date, very few genomic studies, in particular, draft genome and de novo sequencing have been conducted to discover the genes responsible for nutritional traits and their molecular mechanisms that are insufficient for the efficient use of existing germplasms for molecular breeding of coix. Therefore, this review article attempts to highlight bioactive compounds identified from coix with their medicinal uses as well as the recent progress in coix genomic studies which will create research scope for the development of nutrient-rich coix varieties with high therapeutic values. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Edible fungus polysaccharide (EFP) is mainly extracted from the fruiting body, mycelium and fermentation broth of fungi. As one of the main bioactive components, EFP has potential health promoting effects. Its extracted polysaccharide has biological activities such as enhancing immunity, anti-tumor, anti-radiation, delaying aging and antioxidation. It has been widely used in food, health products, medicine and other industries. The biological activity of EFP is related to its radical group. The isolation, purification and structure identification are the premise of the bioactivity research and application of EFP. At present, the research on polysaccharides and their structures is helpful to guide and develop their pharmacological effects, biological activities and products. This paper reviews the research status of extraction, purification and structure determination of EFP, such as NMR, methylation analysis and some other methods used in carbohydrate chemical characterization. In addition, the research progress of EFP functional activity and its application in other fields were described, so as to provide basis and reference for the further study of EFP. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The use of energetic nanoparticles to tailor the properties of a base liquid fuel has attracted attention due to the possibility of decreasing fuel consumption and increasing control over the combustion process. In this study, the role of nanomaterials in the consumption of hydrocarbon fuel vapor is investigated using reactive molecular dynamics. Simulations are performed with aluminum and iron nanoparticles inside an n-heptane and oxygen gas mixture. The role of atomic charges on the dynamics of nanoparticle-hydrocarbon interactions is also investigated using different charge equilibration methods. Results show that both nanomaterials act as catalysts and enhance fuel decomposition. The decomposition of fuel molecules is initiated by dehydrogenation at the particle's surface. This reaction path occurs significantly faster than the oxidation and pyrolysis paths observed for n-heptane in absence of nanoparticles. The oxidation in the presence of aluminum is characterized by more rapid particle heating and fragmentation compared to iron. Metal fragments further enhance the reactivity of the system due to a higher surface area available for reactions. The atomic charge distribution was found to affect the kinetics and reactivity of the system, showing that the non-bonded interactions influence the oxidation process. This study confirms that the use of nanomaterials is beneficial to accelerate the decomposition of fuel and that the combustion behavior of the selected hydrocarbon is strongly dependent on the type of nanomaterial used in combination with the base fuel. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Quantum cellular automata (QCA) is the emerging technology for designing arithmetic and logic circuits at nanoscale. Because of their tremendous cell density, the analysis of the energy behavior of QCA circuits is of great importance. The present study presents a detailed review of how energy is dissipated in QCA cells. For that, two formalisms of the energy behavior of QCA circuits are examined and used to obtain the energy model of the main building blocks in the QCA paradigm. In the first formalism, using the previously developed coherence vector formalism, we propose a complete model for the energy dynamics of the majority voter and wire straight gates. In the second formalism, metal QCA circuits' energy behavior based on the particle-wave duality of the electrons is proposed. The energy model of the majority voter and wire straight gates in this formalism is compared to that of the first formalism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Encouraging consumers to adopt a new shopping model is always challenging for a retailer. With the fierce competition in the retail industry, retailers aim to actively reach more consumers, especially on the internet. The Try-Before-You-Buy (TBYB) e-commerce shopping model has been emerging and rapidly developing recently. This study examines the antecedents of consumers' acceptance of the TBYB model. We find that tailoring to consumers' preferences—namely, implementing a customization strategy—is beneficial to enhance consumers' perceived quality of the TBYB model, however, it also increases their perceived risk of the model. Additionally, offering a flexible forward transaction process is more important than the backward transaction flexibility because while both increase consumers' perceived quality, only the forward transaction flexibility reduces consumers' perceived risk of the TBYB model. Further, we find while the perceived quality is a facilitator for consumers to have the intention to accept the TBYB model, higher perceived risk is not a preventer. This reveals the asymmetric role of consumers' perceived quality and perceived risk in generating their TBYB model acceptance intention. Our study helps retailers to implement the corresponding improvement policies and designs to better optimize the operations of the TBYB model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Multivariate process pattern recognition (MPPR) is essential towards continuous quality control task. A challenging problem is to extract effective features from complex process signals with high-dimensional and nonlinear characteristics. This affects effectiveness of various classifiers in process fault detection and diagnosis significantly. In this paper, we propose a hybrid deep learning model (i.e. 1-DCNN + SDAE) that integrates one-dimensional convolutional neural network (1-DCNN) and stacked denoising auto-encoders (SDAE) to extract high level features from complex process signals. In comparison with two-dimensional images, one-dimensional process signals allow not only to extract spatial features, but also reduce calculation cost. 1-DCNN is capable of extracting representative features from one-dimensional process signals and then improves MPPR performance of classifiers significantly. SDAE is embedded after fully connected layer of 1-DCNN for further dimension reduction and feature extraction. 1-DCNN + SDAE preserves advantages of 1-DCNN and SDAE for feature learning from high-dimensional data. This makes it be flexible for those process fault detection and diagnosis tasks. The effectiveness of 1-DCNN + SDAE is validated on a complex numerical process, two process benchmarks i.e. Tennessee Eastman process (TEP) and Fed-batch fermentation penicillin process (FBFP), and a real-life manufacturing case of industrial conveyor belt. The experimental results illustrate effectiveness of the proposed method for feature learning and fault diagnosis on multivariate manufacturing processes. The comparison between 1-DCNN + SDAE and other typical DNNs on these processes, indicates the effectiveness of the proposed method for process fault detection and diagnosis. This study will provide the guidance for development of hybrid deep learning-based multivariate control models. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Market disruptions are commonly seen nowadays which directly affect demand. However, in logistics service supply chains, service capacity suppliers and service providers usually have to prepare logistics-service-capacity before demand is known. In this paper, we explore a logistics service supply chain with which the logistics-service provider (LP) has to decide the quantity of capacity to reserve to satisfy future demand in the upcoming season, which depends on whether market disruption occurs or not. The optimal capacity planning policy is determined and the impacts brought by the chance of market disruption are uncovered. Then, we consider the scenario with 'elastic logistics' in which capacity can be adjusted after the market state is known. We analytically establish the corresponding optimal dynamic policy and prove that it helps to stop the ripple effect from appearing. We explore the value of elastic logistics and propose conditions and measures to achieve Pareto improvement in the supply chain upon the adoption of elastic logistics. We extend the analysis to the case with the risk-averse LP and uncover that our qualitative findings remain robust, irrespective of the LP's risk attitude. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, topics such as sharing economy and circular supply chains have emerged in production research and operations management. To explore them and tackle the associated challenges, we need to acquire a full understanding of decision makers' strategic behaviours as well as the deployment of sophisticated analytical methods such as game theory. In this article, we concisely examine the meanings of sharing economy and circular supply chains in production research. We then introduce the featured papers of the special issue and highlight the major insights developed. Future research directions are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Online consumers being allowed to return unsatisfied products to any store prevails in the omnichannel retailing context. Retailers increasingly implement a store return option to offer consumers a seamless shopping experience. This paper develops a newsvendor model of a retailer selling its products to consumers through both online and offline channels. Consumers can return unsatisfied products to the retailer for a full refund, and the returned items can be resold as refurbished products in the circular economy era. Utilising the game theory, the retailer's optimal ordering and pricing decisions are obtained under the benchmark scenario and omnichannel strategy. From the analytical results and numerical analysis, we examine the effects of implementing a store return option on the retailer under omnichannel retailing. The main results show that after implementing store return, (i) the optimal price of the new product remains unchanged, while the price of refurbished items may decrease in a certain condition; (ii) the optimal order quantity of the online channel increases, while that of the store decreases; (iii) in most conditions, store return strategy can achieve a win-win outcome. Specifically, consumers can enjoy more services without paying extra costs and retailer makes higher profit by implementing this strategy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article studies the estimation of correlation coefficient between unobserved variables of interest. These unobservable variables are distorted in both multiplicative and additive fashion by an observed confounding variable. We propose several estimators for the correlation coefficient. Some of estimators are shown to be asymptotically efficient as if there are no distortions in the variables. Moreover, we suggest an asymptotic normal approximation and an empirical likelihood-based statistic to construct the confidence intervals. An improved estimation method for no additive distortion scenario is also considered. We conduct Monte Carlo simulation experiments to examine the performance of the proposed estimators and test statistics. These methods are applied to analyze a real dataset for an illustration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]