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Sadeen Ghafoor,1 Muhammad Zulfiqar,2 Man Wang,1 Chunlin Wang,3 Md Rashidul Islam4 1School of Accounting, Dongbei University of Finance and Economics, China and China Internal Control Research Center, Dalian, Liaoning, People’s Republic of China; 2Department of Management Sciences, Khwaja Fareed University of Engineering and Information Technology, Rahim Yar Khan, Pakistan; 3School of Economics, Management & Law, Shenyang Institute of Engineering, Shenyang, Liaoning, People’s Republic of China; 4Department of Business Administration, East West University, Dhaka, BangladeshCorrespondence: Chunlin Wang, Email wangchunlin0227@126.comPurpose: The novel study describes the behXavioural phenomena of family firm types and explores the relationship between the family firm types of control diversity and Research and Development (R&D) investments. Acquiring controlling rights is a psychological phenomenon for family firm owners. The moderating effect of CEO compensations on R&D investments is investigated.Methodology: We collected data of listed A-share family firms in China from 2011 to 2020 in the China Stock Market and Accounting Research database. We used Tobit regression for data analysis.Results/Finding: The study concludes that lone-controller family firms (LCFFs) are less willing to invest in R&D and multi-controller family firms (MCFFs) have positive behaviour towards R&D. The moderating role of CEO compensation deviates the willingness and behaviour to invest in R&D.Conclusion/Originality: To the best of our knowledge, this study is the first to outline the paradoxical empirical evidence on family firms and R&D investments by analysing control diversity and how the moderating role of CEO compensation nexus can alter willingness towards R&D. The study is a novel attempt following De Massis et al’s framework to test the willingness and ability of LCFFs and MCFFs. Previous studies based on agency theory have tacitly assumed that ability and willingness exist in family-controlled firms. However, this study challenges this implicit assumption.Keywords: family firms, control diversity, R&D investment, CEO compensation, behavioural agency model

By employing first-principles calculations that integrate self-consistent phonon theory and the Boltzmann transport equation, we have delved into the thermal transport characteristics of hexagonal anisotropic materials A2B (A = Cs, Rb and B = Se, Te). Our computational results have disclosed that these A2B materials exhibit ultralow lattice thermal conductivity (κL) at room temperature. Specifically, in the case of Cs2Te, the κL values are a mere 0.15 W m−1 K−1 in the a(b) direction and 0.22 W m−1 K−1 in the c direction, both markedly less than the thermal conductivity of quartz glass, a conventional thermoelectric material (0.9 W m−1 K−1). Importantly, our calculations encompass higher-order anharmonic effects while computing the lattice thermal conductivities of these materials. This is essential since pronounced anharmonicity leads to a decrease in phonon group velocity, and consequently, lowers the κL values. Our results establish a theoretical foundation for exploring the thermal transport characteristics of anisotropic materials with substantial anharmonicity. Furthermore, the binary compounds A2B proffer a gamut of possibilities for a wide range of applications in thermoelectrics and thermal management, owing to their ultralow lattice thermal conductivity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Electric vehicles are anticipated to be essential components of future energy systems, as they possess the capability to assimilate surplus energy generated by renewable sources. With the increasing popularity of plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs), conventional internal combustion engine (ICE)-based vehicles are expected to be gradually phased out, thereby decreasing greenhouse gases and reliance on foreign oil. Intensive research and development efforts across the globe are currently concentrated on developing effective PHEV charging solutions that can efficiently cater to the charging needs of PHEVs, while simultaneously minimizing their detrimental effects on the power infrastructure. Efficient PHEV charging strategies and technologies are necessary to overcome the obstacles presented. Forecasting PHEV charging loads provides a solution by enabling energy delivery to power systems based on anticipated future loads. We have developed a novel approach, utilizing machine learning methods, for accurately forecasting PHEV charging loads at charging stations across three phases of powering (smart, non-cooperative, and cooperative). The proposed Q-learning method outperforms conventional AI techniques, such as recurrent neural and artificial neural networks, in accurately forecasting PHEV loads for various charging scenarios. The findings indicate that the Q-learning method effectively predicts PHEV loads in three scenarios: smart, non-cooperative, and cooperative. Compared to the ANN and RNN models, the forecast precision of the QL model is higher by 31.2% and 40.7%, respectively. The Keras open-source set was utilized to simulate three different approaches and evaluate the efficacy and worth of the suggested Q-learning technique. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Half-metallic ferromagnetic materials have attracted a lot of attention due to their probable technological applications in spintronics. In this respect, doping plays a crucial role in tailoring or controlling the physical properties of the system. Herein, the impact of both hole and electron doping on the structural, electronic and magnetic properties of the recent high pressure synthesized non-magnetic insulator Ba2CaMoO6 double perovskite oxide are investigated by replacing one of the Mo ions with Nb and Tc. The structural and mechanical stability of the undoped/doped materials are analyzed by calculating the formation energies and stiffness tensors, respectively, which confirm the system's stability. Interestingly, our results revealed that Nb- and Tc-doped systems display an electronic transition from insulating to p- and n-type half-metallic ferromagnetic states, respectively. The most striking feature of the present study is that oxygen ions become spin-polarized, with a magnetic moment of ∼0.12 μB per atom, and are mainly responsible for conductivity in the Nb-doped system. However, the admixture of Tc 4d non-degenerate orbitals are primarily contributing to the metallicity in the Tc-doped structure, with a moment of ∼0.59 μB. It is also found that Nb and Tc ions remain in the 5+ and 7+ states with electronic configurations of t 22g ↑t 22g ↓e 0g ↑e 0g ↓ and t 32g ↑t 22g ↓e 0g ↑e 0g ↓, with spin states of S = 0 and S = 1/2 in the individual doped systems, respectively. Hence, the present work proposes that a doping strategy with a suitable candidate could be beneficial to tune the physical properties of the materials for their potential utilization in advanced spin-based devices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Byline: M. Rizwan, P. Gaba, M. Zulfiqar, A. Gaba Sir, Lymphoma in Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is associated with frequent involvement of extra-nodal sites, rapid clinical progression and diffuse aggressive [...]

For improving efficiency of photovoltaic system, this paper proposed a maximum power point tracking (MPPT) system using a drift free modified perturb and observe (P&O) algorithm with ant colony optimization (ACO) based proportional integral (PI) controller. The anticipated MPPT system overcomes the disadvantages of conventional P&O and tracks maximum power point (MPP) accurately with no oscillations. The modified P&O algorithm mitigates the drift effect of usual P&O with correct decision making in its algorithm. The ACO based PI controller decreases the steady state error and MPP is achieved after very short transient time. An evaluation is made with different algorithms for proposed MPPT technique using Matlab/Simulink. Simulation results show that MPP is achieved rapidly without drifting and oscillations. Feasibility of the presented system is confirmed with changing irradiance and more energy is captured from PV panel on respective irradiance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The solvothermal synthesis of multiwalled TiO2 nanotubes (MWTNTs) with the reaction of titanium dioxide (TiO2) nanoparticles and sodium hydroxide aqueous solution at moderate temperature is presented. The kinetic and isotherm studies were investigated for Orange II removal mechanism. MWTNTs were prepared in length 70-200 nm, average diameter 4-10 nm, and inter-shell spacing 0.78 nm. Different characterizations were performed to confirm anatase and mesoporous structure of MWTNTs. An improvement in properties as compared to commercial TiO2 was observed; specific surface area 244.81 m2/g and band gap 3.0 eV. An excellent photocatalytic activity for Orange II removal was exhibited using synthesized MWTNTs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]