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A smart material possessed enhanced conductivity integrated in prevulcanized latex (PVL) film produced throughout this work. Also recognizing the synthesis route of PANI was vast and vary, choosing suitable method was great importance corresponding to the aim of study. PANI was prepared through chemical oxidative polymerization of aniline carried out in aqueous solution which aniline dissolved in strong acidic solution (1 M HCl) with the presence of Ammonium Persulphate (APS) as the oxidizing agent and Sodium Dodecyl Sulphate (SDS) as surfactant. However, PANI was readily in acidic condition while PVL in basic and consequently causes a state of immiscibility upon mixing. Hence, PANI formed then mixed with 0.1 – 0.5 % KOH via homogenizer to increase the pH and maintain the homogeneity as well as dispersion to be combined with PVL. Various studies on PANI synthesis and incorporation with latex had been reported but very limited in focusing the colloidal and dispersion stability of the mixture. Zeta potential measurements revealed an effective dispersion and the colloidal stability as the pH of PANI increases. Analysis of mechanical performance using Universal testing Machine revealed that addition of PANI improves greatly in novel film tensile strength and Young’s Modulus by 109 % and 230 %, respectively.

Sewage sludge containing a large number of lipids that can be recovered and utilised as a promising raw material in the production of biodiesel. Studies have been conducted to extract lipids from sludge using conventional solvent methods. However, all these conventional methods have some limitations such as extensive product separation and long extraction time (between 4 to 8 hours), which lead to high energy consumption. Supercritical carbon dioxide extraction (SFE) which utilises carbon dioxide (CO2) gas at its critical condition as solvent has been studied extensively in various fields for oil extraction especially for plant and vegetative. This is due to the shorter extraction time and the lipids can be easily separated from the extraction system. The present research has undertaken a comparison study of supercritical carbon dioxide (SC-CO2) utilisation in the extraction of lipids from sewage sludge against conventional soxhlet extraction of methanol and ethanol as solvent. The extraction of lipids from sewage sludge utilising SC-CO2 extraction was successfully being conducted with lipids yield of 0.69 % within 0.5 hours at the operating temperature of 50 °C and pressure of 20 MPa. The lipids were easily separated subsequently from the SFE system when CO2 is being released in gas form through the outlet valve during lipids collection. Whilst soxhlet extraction using methanol and ethanol as solvent (sludge: solvent ratio of 1:10) managed to extract 1.95 % and 2.81 % within 4 hours of extraction time at 60 °C, with the additional time needed to separate the lipids from solvent by evaporation.

This paper explore the mechanism of lipid extraction efficiency on Moringa oleifera seeds using Soxhlet extraction method. This present study essential to determine the effect of particle size of the sample, extraction time and type of solvent applied towards the efficiency in extracting the lipids from the material. Soxhlet extraction method utilizing Buchi B118 was use in this study and response surface method was applied to analysed the data and determine the optimum parameter condition to obtain the highest yield of Moringa oil extraction. Moringa oil derived from Moringa oleifera seeds was converted into biodiesel (FAME) via Transesterification process. Conversion of Moringa FAME was observed using three different alcohol oil to molar ratio by based-catalysed. This study shows significant strong correlations between particle size of the sample, extraction time and type of solvent use towards extraction yield. The Response surface analysis shows that 1.3611 mm particle size of sample, 3 hours of extraction time and hexane as extraction solvent was the optimum condition in order to get the highest yield of lipids extract from both Moringa oleifera samples. Authentication extraction based on RSM recommendation showed an average Moringa oil yield of 39.75 % by weight.

Many studies have been done on the natural adsorbent, natural/raw cellulose, modified cellulose and modified MCC as media for removing copper. However, the usage of unmodified microcrystalline cellulose (MCC) as an adsorbent to remove heavy metals contaminants such as copper from an aqueous solution is scarcely being explored. Thus, the current study was done to assess the performance of the MCC, without any modification, based on the adsorption capacity and the Cu removal efficiency under varied process parameters. The MCC was successfully used for Cu2+ or Cu (II) removal at pH < pH6. The adsorption parameters such as pH (1 to 6), contact time (0.5 to 24 hours), temperature (25 to 70 °C), initial Cu concentrations (1 to 5 mg/L) and MCC dosage (0.05 to 0.5 g) were significantly influenced the adsorption performance of the MCC. This study indicated the adsorption process occurred at pH ranging from pH 2.8 to 6 with 3 to 24 hours of duration were required to achieve the equilibrium condition. Lower temperature ranges (25 to 30 °C) were more favourable for adsorption than higher temperature ranges (40 to 70 °C). The increase in initial Cu concentration enhanced the adsorption capacity of MCC but decreased Cu removal. On the other hand, the increase in the MCC dosage resulted in the decreased adsorption capacity, however, increased Cu removal. MCC dosage of 0.225 g managed to remove Cu (II) with 95% efficiency at the initial Cu concentration of 1 mg/L, pH 5 and temperature 25 °C within 24 hours of contact time with 0.18 mg/g of adsorption capacity. Overall, high Cu removal efficiency (up to 95%) was achieved by the MCC which render its usage as adsorbent.

Interpretive Structural Modeling (ISM) is a technique to establish the interrelationships between elements of interest in a specific domain through experts’ knowledge of the context of the elements. This technique has been applied in numerous domains and the list continues to grow due to its simplistic concept, while sustainability has taken the lead. The partially automated or manual application of this technique has been prone to errors as witnessed in the literature due to a series of mathematical steps of higher-order computing complexity. Therefore, this work proposes to develop an end-to-end graphical software, SmartISM, to implement ISM technique and MICMAC (Matrice d’Impacts Croisés Multiplication Appliquée á un Classement (cross-impact matrix multiplication applied to classification)), generally applied along with ISM to classify variables. Further, a scoping review has been conducted to study the applications of ISM in the previous studies using Denyer and Tranfield’s (2009) framework and newly developed SmartISM. For the development of SmartISM, Microsoft Excel software has been used, and relevant algorithms and VBA (Visual Basic for Applications) functions have been illustrated. For the transitivity calculation the Warshall algorithm has been used and a new algorithm reduced conical matrix has been introduced to remove edges while retaining the reachability of variables and structure of digraph in the final model. The scoping review results demonstrate 21 different domains such as sustainability, supply chain and logistics, information technology, energy, human resource, marketing, and operations among others, numerous types of constructs such as enablers, barriers, critical success factors, strategies, practices, among others, and their numbers varied from 5 to 32, number of decision makers ranged between 2 to 120 with a median value of 11, and belong to academia, industry, and/or government, and usage of multiple techniques of discourse and survey for decision making and data collection. Furthermore, the SmartISM reproduced results show that only 29 out of 77 studies selected have a correct application of ISM after discounting the generalized transitivity incorporation. The outcome of this work will help in more informed applications of this technique in newer domains and utilization of SmartISM to efficiently model the interrelationships among variables.

Palm oil based polyester (POPE) reinforced with montmorillonite nano clays (MNCs) were investigated for curing kinetics and hydrolytic degradation analysis. Alcoholises and esterification process were followed to produce POPE. The prepared resins were cured thermally by using methyl ethyl ketone peroxide (MEKP), styrene and cobalt-naphthenate at 120°C. The curing kinetics was analysed by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). The rate of reaction, activation energy and degree of conversion were measured by this analysis. The activation energy and reaction order were found to be decreased due to increase of heating rate of the curing process. Alkali solution was used for the hydrolytic degradation for different samples prepared at different curing conditions such as low period-high temperature (LPHT) and high period-low temperature (HPLT). The properties were affected due to the variation of curing process as confirmed by degradation behaviours in terms of tensile strength, melting point and surface morphology. The degradation of the composites were influential and faster at LPHT condition compared to HPLT condition.

Three different processing techniques, extrusion, injection, and compression, were followed to fabricate poly (lactic acid) (PLA) and Moringa oleifera fiber (MOF) based composites. Chopped fibers of length 3–5 mm were used for the extrusion followed by injection molding, whereas long-length fibers (~100 mm) were used for compression molding process. For compression molding, long-length fibers were spread in single and double layers. The interfacial shear strength of the composites was evaluated by fiber pull-out testing. Composites were characterized for fracture behavior and mechanical properties. Additionally, surface morphology was also observed by scanning electron microscopy, whereas crystalline properties were evaluated by X-ray diffraction analysis. Analyses revealed that compression molding with double layers of long-length fibers reinforcement showed better properties than other samples. Tensile strengths of extruded and compression processed samples (double-layered) were 75.5 and 81.1 MPa, which are approximately 33% and 44% higher respectively than neat PLA (56.5 MPa). The crack generation of PLA during applied load was observed and found eliminated for the double-layered sample processed via compression molding. It was found that compression molding with double layer can be considered as easy and less time-consuming method for composite preparation, with nearly 8 wt.% of less fiber consumption compared with extrusion/injection molding.

Oil palm trunk (OPT) is one of the alternative resources for building materials. This research investigated the drying characteristics of OPT blocks of dimension 43.91 mm × 19.73 mm × 15.82 mm by controlling the relative humidity under an isothermal condition. The isothermal temperature condition selected for this study were 25, 30, 35, and 40°C. The obtained drying data were applied to Logarithmic, Wang-Singh, Page, Midilli-Kucuk, Henderson-Pabis, Newton, and Nadhari models. The drying kinetics were evaluated through these models. The suitability of these models was assessed based on the sum of square error, the coefficient of determination (R2), the reduced chi-square (χ2), and root mean square error. The Nadhari model was found to be a suitable model for explaining the drying behavior of OPT at various isothermal temperature conditions. The effective diffusivity, drying rate, porosity, and shrinkage were found to be increasing with the increasing of isothermal drying temperature. The activation energy of OPT during drying was found to be 35.56 kJ/mol. © 2017 American Institute of Chemical Engineers Environ Prog, 36: 1244–1252, 2017

Smart city concept redefines the urban planning and development of the existing and new cities. It drives on economic, social, and environmental sustainability of a city and attracts citizens, professionals, and corporations to build sustainable living. It portrays a city that is operationally optimal and provides a space for innovation. This is achieved through state of the art physical, institutional, and digital infrastructure. This chapter addresses the challenges of the digital aspect of the smart city. Enterprise systems technology is widely used in the organizations and will be utilized in the Smart city systems conceptualization and implementation. Smart city systems definition has been derived by analyzing the smart city requirements. Enterprise systems technology has been explained and the latest ICT trends have been explored to develop the technological foundation of smart city systems. Finally, we introduce partial least square regression, a structural equation modeling method to explore interrelationships between different interdisciplinary constructs and show its application to studying smart city systems. From the digital perspective of smart city, it may be concluded that connectedness leads to integration and integration leads to dynamism and dynamism leads to smartness and cycle continues to realize the best in class smart city.

Currently Big Data is the biggest buzzword, and definitely, we believe that Big Data is changing the world. Some researchers say Big Data will be even bigger buzzword than the Internet. With fast-growing computing resources, information and knowledge a new digital globe has emerged. Information is being created and stored at a fast rate and is being accessed by a vast range of applications through scientific computing, commercial workloads, and social media. In 2018, over 28 billion devices globally, are connected to the internet. In 2020, more than 50 billion smart appliances will be connected worldwide and internet traffic flow will be 92 times greater than it was in 2005. The usage of such a massive number of connected devices not only increase the data volume but also the velocity of data addition with speed of light on fiber optic and various wireless networks. This fast generation of enormous data creates numerous threats and challenges. There exist various approaches that are addressing issues and challenges of Big Data with the theory of Vs such as 3 V's, 5 V's, 7 V's etc. The objective of this work is to explore and investigate the status of the current Big Data domain. Further, a comprehensive overview of Big Data, its characteristics, opportunities, issues, and challenges have been explored and described with the help of 51 V's. The outcome of this research will help in understanding the Big Data in a systematic way.

In the current scenario E-Learning faces two major challenges, first to ensure the interoperability of ELearning (IEL) and secondly, developing quality learning through e-Learning. This research studies the concept, scope and dimensions of interoperability of E-Learning in education with special reference to King Khalid University then the connection and interdependence between with quality development. To impart learning and teaching through E-learning, KKU has adopted Learning Management Services (LMS) through Blackboard. The university has three types of learning and teaching methods; full online, Blended and Supportive. In this paper we have described the dimensions of quality and the standards of E-Learning for the objectives of IEL and quality development (QD) in KKU. The research is based principally on secondary data observed from KKU E-Learning deanship. Also sample of 20 E-Learning experts at KKU were given closed ended as well as semi closed questionnaires for evaluating the assurance of IEL and QD. These experts are mainly certified online facilitators and admin staff. Results provide the verification of application and presence of IEL and assured the QD process in KKU in imparting knowledge.

The aim of this paper is to optimize the treatment cost of brain tumor patients. In our proposed approach, application of optimality of operation research (OR) have been introduced to develop an effective OR models in healthcare. OR and its applications are powerful decision making tools. We have used OR tools as a resource to optimize the cost in healthcare. The optimization approach has been applied over diagnosis of brain tumor patients. The objective is to present how the existing approach of feasibility and optimality techniques of OR are applied. In the healthcare to minimize the cost of patient treatment, that is accomplish in two parts, first we introduced the existing three methods (North-west corner cell method, Minimum cost method, and Vogel’s approximation method) of getting initial basic feasible solution. Secondly we applied the stepping stone method that is used to optimize the treatment cost.

E-Learning has proven to be the only resort as a replacement of traditional face-to-face learning methods in the current global lockdown due to COVID-19 pandemic. Academic institutions across the globe have invested heavily into E-Learning and the majority of the courses offered in traditional classroom mode have been converted into E-Learning mode. The success of E-Learning initiatives needs to be ensured to make it a sustainable mode of learning. The objective of the current study is to propose a holistic E-Learning service framework to ensure effective delivery and use of E-Learning Services that contributes to sustainable learning and academic performance. Based on an extensive literature review, a proposed theoretical model has been developed and tested empirically. The model identifies a broad range of success determinants and relates them to different success measures, including learning and academic performance. The proposed model was validated with the response from 397 respondents involved with an E-Learning system in the top five public universities in the southern region of Saudi Arabia through the Partial Least Squares regression technique using SmartPLS software. Five main factors (Learner’s Quality, Instructor’s Quality, Information’s Quality, System’s Quality and Institutional Quality) were identified as a determinant of E-Learning service performance which together explains 48.7% of the variance of perceived usefulness of ELS, 71.2% of the variance of use of the E-Learning system. Perceived usefulness of ELS and use of ELS together explain 70.6% of learning and academic performance of students. Hence the framework will help achieve the sustainable and successful adoption of E-Learning services.

There is an interest in the sustainable utilization of waste cotton cloths because of their enormous volume of generation and high cellulose content. Waste cotton cloths generated are disposed of in a landfill, which causes environmental pollution and leads to the waste of useful resources. In the present study, cellulose nanocrystals (CNCs) were isolated from waste cotton cloths collected from a landfill. The waste cotton cloths collected from the landfill were sterilized and cleaned using supercritical CO2 (scCO2) technology. The cellulose was extracted from scCO2-treated waste cotton cloths using alkaline pulping and bleaching processes. Subsequently, the CNCs were isolated using the H2SO4 hydrolysis of cellulose. The isolated CNCs were analyzed to determine the morphological, chemical, thermal, and physical properties with various analytical methods, including attenuated total reflection-Fourier transform-infrared spectroscopy (ATR-FTIR), field-emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), energy-filtered transmission electron microscopy (EF-TEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). The results showed that the isolated CNCs had a needle-like structure with a length and diameter of 10-30 and 2-6 nm, respectively, and an aspect ratio of 5–15, respectively. Additionally, the isolated CNCs had a high crystallinity index with a good thermal stability. The findings of the present study revealed the potential of recycling waste cotton cloths to produce a value-added product.

BACKGROUND This analysis of the myeloproliferative neoplasm (MPN) Landmark survey evaluated gaps between patient perceptions of their disease management and physician self‐reported practices. METHODS The survey included 813 patient respondents who had MPNs (myelofibrosis [MF], polycythemia vera [PV], or essential thrombocythemia [ET]) and 457 hematologist/oncologist respondents who treated patients with these conditions. RESULTS Greater proportions of physician respondents reported using prognostic risk classifications (MF, 83%; PV, 59%; ET, 77%) compared with patient recollections (MF, 54%; PV, 17%; ET, 31%). Most physician respondents reported that their typical symptom assessments included asking patients about the most important symptoms or a full list of symptoms, whereas many patient respondents reported less specific assessments (eg, they were asked how they were feeling). Many patient respondents did not recognize common symptoms as MPN‐related. For example, approximately one‐half or more did not believe difficulty sleeping resulted from their MPN (MF, 49%; PV, 64%; ET, 76%). Physician respondents underestimated the proportion of patients who had symptomatic PV or ET at diagnosis compared with patient respondents. There was discordance regarding treatment goals: among patient respondents with MF or PV, “slow/delay progression of condition” was the most important treatment goal, whereas physician respondents reported “symptom improvement” and “prevention of vascular/thrombotic events,” respectively. Finally, more than one‐third of patient respondents were not “very satisfied” with their physician's overall management/communication. CONCLUSIONS The care and satisfaction of patients with MPN may be improved with increased patient education and improved patient‐physician communication. Cancer 2017;123:449–458. © 2016 The Authors. Cancer published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. on behalf of American Cancer Society., This analysis of data from the myeloproliferative neoplasm (MPN) Landmark survey identified important gaps in patient and physician respondent perceptions about MPNs. Discordance in patient and physician respondent perceptions was observed in MPN‐related prognostic risk assessment, symptom burden, treatment goals and expectations, and treatment satisfaction.

Future cities are driven by the developments in Information and Communication Technology to support the triple bottom line requirements of sustainability. Logistics will play a critical role in future cities due to the increasingly micro-dynamic nature of socio-economics of these cities and globalised production and consumption patterns. Enterprise systems (ES), the founding applications to automate and integrate different business processes, will be the key enablers for providing the necessary support required by the future city logistics. However, the implementation of ES and realisation of proposed benefits within the estimated time frame is challenging due to the huge resource requirements in terms of manpower, budget and time. This study takes the antecedent (critical success factors) approach for the implementation process to establish a success predictive model for the realisation of ES benefits. The partial least square regression has been used to test the model. Moreover, this study explo...

UniCITI Alam is a mixed development of commercial buildings and medium rise apartments. The whole development was designed based on the integration of student residential community with the combined commercial centre and temporary campus. The lecture rooms are located at the second floor of the triple-storey shop house. To improve the indoor environmental quality and comfortability of the teaching and learning activities, physical measurements of the indoor environment parameters (air temperature, relative humidity and carbon dioxide (CO2) concentration) and light intensity are the main methods applied in the presented case study. Data collected will be compared with Malaysian Standard MS 1525: 2007 (Code of Practice on Energy Efficiency and Use of Renewable for Non Residential Building) and DOSH. The finding will be used for improving the environmental quality of the lecture rooms and enhancing the ecology circle.

A graphene nanoplatelet (GNP)-supported Ir–Zn catalyst (Ir–Zn/GNP) was fabricated by H2 reduction to discover an alternative for non-platinum and non-palladium catalysts as an anode catalyst in direct formic acid fuel cell (DFAFC). The obtained Ir–Zn/GNP catalyst with ratio of Ir:Zn = 50:50 (Ir50Zn50/GNP) exhibited better electrocatalytic activity than GNP-supported iridium catalyst (Ir/GNP) for formic acid oxidation. Although the oxidation peak current density of Ir50Zn50/GNP was slightly lower than that of Ir/GNP, the oxidation peak potential shifted more negatively (193 mV) than Ir/GNP with higher value of the ratio of forward scan to reverse the scan peak current (If/Ib). The presence of Zn also enhanced the power density and current generation with increased performance stability in a passive DFAFC cell tests. The improvement of the electrochemical performance was ascribed to the ensemble effect where the addition of Zn could modify the Ir atom arrangement, thereby promoting the oxidation through dehydrogenation pathway. However, extremely high Zn content would inhibit oxidation capability because Zn atoms might reduce the Ir catalytic sites. A new alternative for non-Pt and non-Pd anode catalysts for DFAFC applications was successfully achieved.

Electronic Learning (E-Learning) has become a new well recognized approach in the field of education. It provides great flexibility of time and space in teaching and learning process. E-Learning provides opportunity to educate in a very cost-effective fashion and to the society that doesn’t have access to traditional education system. On the other hand, Online Social Media Networks have bridged the digital divide and made the lower strata of the society tech-savvy. In this paper Factors of Online Social Media Networks (OSN) that enhance the E-Learning performance have been identified through systematic literature review using framework of Denyer and Tranfield (2009) [1]. The results of this research will be helpful for policymakers and practitioners of E-Learning in implementing Online Social Media Networks (OSN) in E-Learning successfully.

Student satisfaction with the courses taught in various programs is one of the main factors affecting student achievement and overall success of educational programs. Technology has added significant improvement to the quality of delivery, resulting in a performance equivalent to traditional face-to-face delivery modes. This paper is intended to evaluate the satisfaction of female students taught by means of interactive television (ITV) in Saudi Arabia and determining the factors that may predict the satisfaction in this medium. A sample of 108 undergraduate students pursuing various undergraduate programs were studied to measure their satisfaction on four facets of satisfaction in distance learning (course management; instructor; technology; and overall). The paper will be of significance to the various universities where students are being taught using ITV in understanding the aspects of delivery that need to be improved. The results of the study will also contribute to the extant empirical research on distance education.

The cost of enterprise IT is growing due to nonlinear expansion of IT resource’s requirements. Cloud computing, a new paradigm of flexible and cost-effective computing, is being explored as the possible solution to make enterprise IT sustainable. Cloud computing also offers new cutting edge cloud native-platform to develop application composed of microservices. This paper investigates the strategies and procedures for migration to the cloud computing environment. Literature has been reviewed to illustrate upon the current state of the art strategies and procedures for cloud computing migration including tools provided by cloud service providers and application vendors. The tasks of cloud migration and procedures have been grouped into five phases and five generic strategies for migration have been identified. Future research directions have also been proposed in this area. The findings will help to stimulate the research in this direction and help cloud adopting organizations to analyze various issues and options for making informed decision for the cloud migration.

The field of Internet of Things (IoT) is progressing in a fashion that will transform the complete landscape of future internet. It will further provide opportunities into new domains for automation and integration of real word objects. Medical field is always at the forefront of innovation adoption. There are currently numerous applications of the concept in the medical field such as e-Health and m-Health. This paper has reviewed and proposed the architectural model to implement Internet of Medical Things (IoMT). Moreover using Carley's eight step content analysis technique, motivational factors for the adoption of IoMT have been identified. Finally the paper sheds light on the major impediment such as security and privacy issues. This work will help the medical professionals to smoothly integrate the IoMT in their domain and avoid the major pitfalls.

The present study was conducted to determine the influence of the chemically modified kenaf bast fiber (KBF) on the mechanical, morphological, and thermal properties of fiber-reinforced polypropylene composites. The KBF was modified via the in situ sol-gel silica process through soaking the KBF in tetraethyl orthosilicate (TEOS) at a pH of 11, room temperature (25 °C ± 1 °C), and a KBF to TEOS ratio of 1:10 for 24 h. Silica successfully formed on the surface of the KBF. Subsequently, the sol-gel silica-modified KBF was utilized to produce sol-gel silica-modified KBF-reinforced polypropylene (PP-KBF-S) composites. Several analytical methods were utilized to determine the mechanical, morphological, and thermal properties of the PP-KBF-S composites, which were then compared with those of the untreated KBF-reinforced polypropylene composite. The findings revealed that sol-gel silica modification of the KBF reduced the void content and enhanced the mechanical properties and thermal stability of the PP-KBF-S.

Table S2. Correlation Between WPAI-SHP Scores and MPN-SAF Symptom Scores. (DOCX 54 kb)

Table S1. Survey Questions Reported in This Analysis. (DOCX 55 kb)

Purpose – This paper aims to revisit the adoption reasons of enterprise systems (ES) and supply chain management systems (SCMS) and to explore the new dimensions of sustainability required to be added in the whole process of adoption of these systems. Moreover, it aims to explore the benefits of ES to organizations and to relate these benefits to the ES adoption in future sustainable city settings. Future cities will have micro-industries requiring dynamic interactions and will be dependent on efficient supply chains. The recent developments in information and communications technology (ICT) such as cloud computing through its dynamic, on-demand and service-based delivery are making it possible to achieve those goals for supply chains. The ES in general and more specifically SCMS have integrated organizations into one seamless mesh. Design/methodology/approach – This paper presents a framework for adoption of sustainable ES in a smart city setting. The framework, firstly, is presented at a macro-level, particularly incorporating the relative significance of motivational factors for sustainable ES adoption. Subsequently, The authors study the benefits of ES as perceived by large and small and medium enterprise (SME) organizations using 100 case studies and discuss how these benefits can be realized for smart cities by projecting the ES benefits onto the proposed framework. The benefits are estimated with the Shang and Seddon’s (2002) framework. Findings – The adoption of ES initiated with environmental factors and mediated with business and technical factors will bring benefits in all the dimensions of triple bottom line in addition to the firm’s performance. ES will have pivotal role in future smart city settings and will be able to offer social, environmental and economic sustainability in addition to traditional organizational performance indicators. Originality/value – The proposed framework for ES adoption will bring ES packages (particularly, the required relative significance of adoption reasons) into the perspective of sustainable development. Moreover, the study of its benefits in relation to the proposed sustainable ES adoption framework presented in this paper will help in motivating organizations to incorporate social, economic and environmental sustainability into their core business objectives.

Nowadays, E-Learning becomes a preferable medium for learning. Digital technology has made it more attractive and useful with additional user-friendly features. Basically, E-Learning involves massive infrastructural resources to operate. It also includes the effective combination of hardware and software along with the involvement of individuals to make the system successful for the students. Since the students and teachers have become agile using state-of-the-art communication technology in teaching learning process, they look for the efficient and smooth knowledge transfer. Many researches have encountered the barriers for the successful implementation of E-Learning in the universities. There is little research that uncovers the interaction of E-Learning barriers. The present study aims to provide the Interpretive Structure Modelling (ISM) and Matrice d'Impacts Croises Multiplication Applique'e a' un Classement (MICMAC) based analysis to study such barriers of E-Learning. A digraph representing ISM model has been established to help the stakeholders to understand the barriers to successful implementation of E-Learning.

Analyses of total phenolic compounds were carried out for oil palm empty fruit bunches (EFBs) vermicomposting in oyster mushrooms cultivation. The oyster mushrooms (Pleurotus sajor-caju) were cultivated according to the large-scale vermicomposting trial (LSVT) methods. Both oyster mushrooms cultivation and vermicomposting of EFB with earthworms enhanced the lignin degradation of EFB. Analysis of total phenolic compounds EFB vermicomposting treated with earthworms showed a decrease in total phenolics concentration from 31.1 GAE/100g extract (raw EFB) to 5.66 g GAE/100g extract (after oyster mushroom cultivation) and to less than 1.5 g GAE/100g extract at the end of vermicomposting. Gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC-MS) analysis of the mushroom fruiting body, spent mushrooms, and vermicompost showed no trace of phenolphenol, pyrocatechol, 4-hydrobenzoic acid, or antioxidant and flavonoid phenolics, e.g., phenol, 3,4-dimethoxy-, vanillic acid, and cinnamic acid. This indicates that the mushroom fruiting body is fit for human consumption and the final vermicompost is a useful agricultural product without the detrimental effects of spreading phenolics-loaded EFBs on the land.

The concept of cloud computing can be traced back to almost the middle of last century. Cloud paradigm offers scalable, portable, platform-independent, ubiquitous, shared resilient, sustainable, and near-utility computing. The cloud computing is implemented as a software-only solution or based on advanced hardware supported virtualization technology. This paper presents the fundamental technology behind the cloud computing. Cloud computing posit as a utopia to solve multitudes of challenges of the current time. But in practice security is a major road block to its widespread adoption. This paper discusses the security issues of the cloud computing. Further the paper illustrates upon the security solutions for the virtualization and web services, two major enabling technologies of cloud computing. It also explains the novel concept of integrating the multi-level security in all of the cloud offerings in contrast to the security-as-a-service concept. Finally paper mentions the important guidelines for the development of service level agreements.

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to identify reasons for the enterprise systems adoption, their relevance to the Indian organizations and their relationship with industry and size among the Indian organizations. Design/methodology/approach – Through the content analysis of 12 research papers reasons of enterprise systems adoption have been identified. With the resultant framework of variables, 288 Indian cases have been scanned to identify and contrast adoption reasons in India with other countries. Also through χ2 test their associations have been studied with respect to industry and size among Indian organizations. Findings – All the adoption reasons are present in Indian organizations. All the adoption reasons are indifferent to the industry of organization. Similarly it is found that all the adoption reasons but one is indifferent to the size of organization. Only organizational change is found to be significantly related with the size. Research limitations/implications – The scope of study is limited to the Indian organizations that have implemented enterprise systems software. All the manifest variables have been marked with only two values 0 for absence and 1 for presence while omitting the information on relative strength. There is potential possibility of bias toward ES implementation benefits and relative comfort in implementing the target vendor's product. This research has utilized secondary data that might not have been created to address the current problem therefore may be limited in relevancy and accuracy. Practical implications – Adoption motivations are a good starting point to see the need for the ES. Occurrences of adoption motivations advocate the change in the application infrastructure. Following 12 motivations for the adoption of ES have been identified in the literature review. Moreover they have not varied much with respect to the size and industry of the organizations. However, some factors are showing stronger presence in Indian context than the global counterparts and some are showing weaker presence. Originality/value – Content analysis of the literature review has resulted in 12 reasons for the enterprise systems adoption after three iterations. These variables have been explained with the help of literature. Second, component of this research studies the relationship of these variables with industry and size among Indian organizations. It is established that enterprise systems are being adopted globally for the identical reasons. These reasons are also almost uniform with respect to industry and size of the Indian organizations.

Utilisation and conversion of carbon dioxide into valuable chemicals and fuels are the promising ways to reduce carbon dioxide concentration in the atmosphere. In addition, the conversion of carbon dioxide into fuels, such as methane, methanol and formic acid has been proven a good method for hydrogen storage. In this work, the catalyst structure plays an important role in the production of formic acid and acetic acid at low temperature. Nickel oxide supported alumina catalysts were synthesised by using the solid-state fusion method at 550 °C and 700 °C. Calcined catalysts were characterised by X-ray diffraction, Brunauer-Emmett-Teller surface area, high-resolution field emission scanning electron microscopy, Auger electron spectroscopy with X-ray photoelectron spectrometer and transmission electron microscopy. Carbon dioxide hydrogenation was performed in the batch reactor. The products obtained were analysed by using high-performance liquid chromatography and gas chromatography with a thermal conductivity detector. The highest levels of formic acid and acetic acid production were 4.08 and 1.58 mmol/L, respectively.

E-learning, a technology-mediated learning approach, is a pervasively adopted teaching/learning mode for transferring knowledge. Some of the motivational factors for its wide adoption are time and location independence, user-friendliness, on-demand service, resource richness, and multi-media and technology driven factors. Achieving sustainability and performance in its delivery is of paramount importance. This research utilizes the critical success factors (CSFs) approach to identify the sustainable E-learning implementation model. Fifteen CSFs have been identified through the literature review, expert opinions, and in-depth interviews. These CSFs have been modeled for interdependence using interpretive structural modeling and Matriced&rsquo, Impacts Croise&rsquo, s Multiplication Appliqu&eacute, e a UN Classement (MICMAC) analysis. Further, the model has been validated through in-depth interviews. The present research provides quantification of CSFs of E-learning in terms of their driving and dependence powers and their classification thorough MICMAC analysis. The E-learning system organizers may focus on improving upon the enablers such as organizational infrastructure readiness, efficient technology infrastructure, appropriate E-learning course design, course flexibility, understandable relevant content, stakeholders&rsquo, training, security, access control and privileges, commitment, and being user&ndash, friendly and well-organized, in order to enhance the sustainability and performance in E-learning. This study will also help E-learning stakeholders in relocating and prioritizing resources.