Search results for: marketing theory and applications

Authors: Ghadir Hummeid

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Undoubtedly, our world is leading all the purposes and efforts to achieve sustainable development in life in all respects. Sustainability has been regarded as a solution to many challenges of our world today, materiality and immateriality. With the new consequences and challenges our world today, such as global climate change, the use of non-renewable resources, environmental pollution, the decreasing of urban health, the urban areas’ aging, the highly increasing migrations into urban areas linked to many consequences such as highly infrastructure density, social segregation. All of that required new forms of governance, new urban policies, and more efficient efforts and urban applications. Based on the fact that cities are the core of life and it is a fundamental life axis, their development can increase or decrease the life quality of their inhabitants. Architects and planners see themselves today in the need to create new approaches and new sustainable policies to develop urban areas to correspond with the physical and non-physical transformations that cities are nowadays experiencing. To enhance people's lives and provide for their needs in this present without compromising the needs and lives of future generations. The application of sustainability has become an inescapable part of the development and projections of cities' planning. Yet its definition has been indefinable due to the plurality and difference of its applications. As the conceptualizations of technology are arising and have dominated all life aspects today, from smart citizens and smart life rhythms to smart production and smart structures to smart frameworks, it has influenced the sustainability applications as well in the planning and urbanization of cities. The term "smart city" emerged from this influence as one of the possible key solutions to sustainability. The term “smart city” has various perspectives of applications and definitions in the literature and in urban applications. However, after the observation of smart city applications in current cities, this paper defined the smart city as an urban environment that is controlled by technologies yet lacks the physical architectural representation of this smartness as the current smart applications are mostly obscured from the public as they are applied now on a diminutive scale and highly integrated into the built environment. Regardless of the importance of these technologies in improving the quality of people's lives and in facing cities' challenges, it is important not to neglect their architectural and urban presentations will affect the shaping and development of city neighborhoods. By investigating the concept of smart cities and exploring its potential applications on a neighbourhood scale, this paper aims to shed light on understanding the challenges faced by cities and exploring innovative solutions such as smart city applications in urban mobility and how they affect the different aspects of communities. The paper aims to shape better articulations of smart neighborhoods’ morphologies on the social, architectural, functional, and material levels. To understand how to create more sustainable and liveable future approaches to developing urban environments inside cities. The findings of this paper will contribute to ongoing discussions and efforts in achieving sustainable urban development.

Keywords: sustainability, urban development, smart city, resilience, sense of belonging

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Authors: Vania Helena Tonussi Vidal, Ester Eliane Jeunon

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This article aims to analyze the change processes of management related bureaucracy and learning organization model. The theoretical framework was based on Beer and Nohria (2001) model, identified as E and O Theory. Based on this theory the empirical research was conducted in connection with six key dimensions: goal, leadership, focus, process, reward systems and consulting. We used a case study of an educational Institution located in Barbacena, Minas Gerais. This traditional center of technical knowledge for long time adopted the bureaucratic way of management. After many changes in a business model, as the creation of graduate and undergraduate courses they decided to make a deep change in management model that is our research focus. The data were collected through semi-structured interviews with director, managers and courses supervisors. The analysis were processed by the procedures of Collective Subject Discourse (CSD) method, develop by Lefèvre & Lefèvre (2000), Results showed the incremental growing of management model toward a learning organization. Many impacts could be seeing. As negative factors we have: people resistance; poor information about the planning and implementation process; old politics inside the new model and so on. Positive impacts are: new procedures in human resources, mainly related to manager skills and empowerment; structure downsizing, open discussions channel; integrated information system. The process is still under construction and now great stimulus is done to managers and employee commitment in the process.

Keywords: bureaucracy, organizational learning, organizational change, E and O theory

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Authors: Jonathan Kissi, Baozhen Dai, Wisdom W. K. Pomegbe, Abdul-Basit Kassim

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Protecting patient’s digital information is a growing concern for healthcare institutions as people nowadays perpetually live their lives through telemedicine services. These telemedicine services have been confronted with several determinants that hinder their successful implementations, especially in developing countries. Identifying such determinants that influence the acceptance of telemedicine services is also a problem for healthcare professionals. Despite the tremendous increase in telemedicine services, its adoption, and use has been quite slow in some healthcare settings. Generally, it is accepted in today’s globalizing world that the success of telemedicine services relies on users’ satisfaction. Satisfying health professionals and patients are one of the crucial objectives of telemedicine success. This study seeks to investigate the determinants that influence health professionals’ intention to utilize telemedicine services in clinical activities in a sub-Saharan African country in West Africa (Ghana). A hybridized model comprising of health adoption models, including technology acceptance theory, diffusion of innovation theory, and protection of motivation theory, were used to investigate these quandaries. The study was carried out in four government health institutions that apply and regulate telemedicine services in their clinical activities. A structured questionnaire was developed and used for data collection. Purposive and convenience sampling methods were used in the selection of healthcare professionals from different medical fields for the study. The collected data were analyzed based on structural equation modeling (SEM) approach. All selected constructs showed a significant relationship with health professional’s behavioral intention in the direction expected from prior literature including perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, management strategies, financial sustainability, communication channels, patients security threat, patients privacy risk, self efficacy, actual service use, user satisfaction, and telemedicine services systems securities threat. Surprisingly, user characteristics and response efficacy of health professionals were not significant in the hybridized model. The findings and insights from this research show that health professionals are pragmatic when making choices for technology applications and also their willingness to use telemedicine services. They are, however, anxious about its threats and coping appraisals. The identified significant constructs in the study may help to increase efficiency, quality of services, quality patient care delivery, and satisfactory user satisfaction among healthcare professionals. The implantation and effective utilization of telemedicine services in the selected hospitals will aid as a strategy to eradicate hardships in healthcare services delivery. The service will help attain universal health access coverage to all populace. This study contributes to empirical knowledge by identifying the vital factors influencing health professionals’ behavioral intentions to adopt telemedicine services. The study will also help stakeholders of healthcare to formulate better policies towards telemedicine service usage.

Keywords: telemedicine service, perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, management strategies, security threats

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Authors: Asma Ammar

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Being different in theory and practice from their conventional counterparts, this research aims to assess the performance of Islamic banks beyond the financial performance by emphasizing their ethical and social identity based on the higher purposes of Islamic law, namely Maqasid al-Shariah. Using Imam al-Ghazali’s theory of Maqasid al-Shariah and Sekaran’s (2000) method, we develop a Maqasid-based index including the five objectives of Shariah (preservation of life, religion, intellect, posterity, and wealth). Our sample covers 9 Islamic banks considered among the largest Islamic banks in the world. For the five years of study (2017-2021), our results reveal that the highest score is performed by Bank Muamalat while the least score is given to Dubai Islamic Bank. The overall Maqasid performance of the sample is unimpressive, indicating that there is a lack of achievement in Maqasid al-Shariah performance of Islamic banks. Consequently, serious measures should be taken by Islamic banks to improve their Maqasid performance and thus contribute effectively to the socio-economic development of the countries in which they operate.

Keywords: Maqasid al-Shariah, Maqasid al-Shariah index, Islamic banks, performance assessment

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Authors: Jithin S. Kumar, Ramesh Kannan Kandasami

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Geomaterials are generally porous in nature due to the presence of discrete particles and interconnected voids. The porosity present in these geomaterials play a critical role in many engineering applications such as CO2 sequestration, well bore strengthening, enhanced oil and hydrocarbon recovery, hydraulic fracturing, and subsurface waste storage. These applications involves solid-fluid interactions, which govern the changes in the porosity which in turn affect the permeability and stiffness of the medium. Injecting fluid into the geomaterials results in permeation which exhibits small or negligible deformation of the soil skeleton followed by cavity expansion/ fingering/ fracturing (different forms of instabilities) due to the large deformation especially when the flow rate is greater than the ability of the medium to permeate the fluid. The complexity of this problem increases as the geomaterial behaves like a solid and fluid under certain conditions. Thus it is important to understand this multiphysics problem where in addition to the permeation, the elastic-plastic deformation of the soil skeleton plays a vital role during fluid injection. The phenomenon of permeation and cavity expansion in porous medium has been studied independently through extensive experimental and analytical/ numerical models. The analytical models generally use Darcy's/ diffusion equations to capture the fluid flow during permeation while elastic-plastic (Mohr-Coulomb and Modified Cam-Clay) models were used to predict the solid deformations. Hitherto, the research generally focused on modelling cavity expansion without considering the effect of injected fluid coming into the medium. Very few studies have considered the effect of injected fluid on the deformation of soil skeleton. However, the porosity changes during the fluid injection and coupled elastic-plastic deformation are not clearly understood. In this study, the phenomenon of permeation and instabilities such as cavity and finger/ fracture formation will be quantified extensively by performing experiments using a novel experimental setup in addition to utilizing image processing techniques. This experimental study will describe the fluid flow and soil deformation characteristics under different boundary conditions. Further, a well refined coupled semi-analytical model will be developed to capture the physics involved in quantifying the deformation behaviour of geomaterial during fluid injection.

Keywords: solid-fluid interaction, permeation, poroelasticity, plasticity, continuum model

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Authors: Aicha Bouhlala, Sabah Chettibi

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Doping CeO₂ with transition metals is an effective way of tuning its properties. In the present work, we have performed self-consistent ab-initio calculation using the full-potential linearized augmented plane-wave method (FP-LAPW), based on the density functional theory (DFT) as implemented in the Wien2k simulation code to study the structural, electronic, and magnetic properties of the compound Ce₁₋ₓCuₓO₂ (x=12.5%) fluorite type oxide and to explore the effects of dopant Cu in ceria. The exchange correlation potential has been treated using the Perdew-Burke-Eenzerhof revised of solid (PBEsol). In structural properties, the equilibrium lattice constant is observed for the compound, which exists within the value of 5.382 A°. In electronic properties, the spin-polarized electronic bandstructure elucidates the semiconductor nature of the material in both spin channels, with the compound was observed to have a narrow bandgap on the spin-down configuration (0.162 EV) and bandgap on the spin-up (2.067 EV). Hence, the doped atom Cu plays a vital role in increasing the magnetic moments of the supercell, and the value of the total magnetic moment is found to be 2.99438 μB. Therefore, the compound Cu-doped CeO₂ shows a strong ferromagnetic behavior. The predicted results propose the compound could be a good candidate for spintronics applications.

Keywords: Cu-doped CeO₂, DFT, Wien2k, properties

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Authors: Jude Harrison

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Child protection is a complex and sensitive practice. The core responsibility is the care and protection of children and young people who have been subject to or who are at risk from abuse and neglect. The work involves investigating allegations of harm, preparing for and making representations to the legal system, and case planning and management across a continuum of complicated care interventions. Professionals’ learning for child protection practice is evident in a range of literature investigating multiple learning processes such as university preparation, student placements, professional supervision, training, and other post-qualifying professional development experiences at work. There is, however, very limited research into how caseworkers learn in and through their daily practice. Little is known, therefore, about how learning at work unfolds for caseworkers, the dimensions in which it can be understood or the ways in which it can be best facilitated and supported. Compounding this, much of the current child protection learning literature reflects an orthodox conception of learning as mentalistic and individualised, in which knowledge is typically understood as abstract theory or as technical skill or competency. This presentation outlines key findings from a PhD research study that explored learning at work for statutory child protection caseworkers from an alternative interpretation of learning using a practice theory approach. Practice theory offers an interpretation of learning as performative and grounded in situated experience. The findings of the study show that casework practice is both a mode and site of learning. The study was ethnographic in design based and followed 17 child protection caseworkers via in-depth interviews, observations and participant reflective journaling. Inductive and abductive analysis was used to organise and interpret the data and expand analysis, leading to themes. Key findings show learning to be a sociomaterial property of doing; the social ontological character of learning; and teleoaffectivity as a feature of learning. The findings contribute to theoretical and practical understandings of learning and practice in child protection, child welfare and the professional learning literature more broadly. The findings have potential to contribute to policy directions at state, territory and national levels to enhance child protection practice and systems.

Keywords: adiult learning, workplace learning, child welfare, sociomaterial, practice theory

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Authors: Shabnam Pashaei, Mohammadali Badamchizadeh

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This paper presents a new fractional-order terminal sliding mode control for synchronization of two different fractional-order chaotic systems with uncertainty and external disturbances. A fractional-order integral type nonlinear switching surface is presented. Then, using the Lyapunov stability theory and sliding mode theory, a fractional-order control law is designed to synchronize two different fractional-order chaotic systems. Finally, a simulation example is presented to illustrate the performance and applicability of the proposed method. Based on numerical results, the proposed controller ensures that the states of the controlled fractional-order chaotic response system are asymptotically synchronized with the states of the drive system.

Keywords: terminal sliding mode control, fractional-order calculus, chaotic systems, synchronization

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Authors: Malay Bhattacharyya, Saparya Suresh

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The Correlation Structure associated with a portfolio is subjected to vary across time. Studying the structural breaks in the time-dependent Correlation matrix associated with a collection had been a subject of interest for a better understanding of the market movements, portfolio selection, etc. The current paper proposes a methodology for testing the change in the time-dependent correlation structure of a portfolio in the high dimensional data using the techniques of generalized inverse, singular valued decomposition and multivariate distribution theory which has not been addressed so far. The asymptotic properties of the proposed test are derived. Also, the performance and the validity of the method is tested on a real data set. The proposed test performs well for detecting the change in the dependence of global markets in the context of high dimensional data.

Keywords: correlation structure, high dimensional data, multivariate distribution theory, singular valued decomposition

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Authors: Marwa Abdulsalam, Osamu Suzuki, Wirawan Dony Dahana

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One of the remarkable and unique industries in Japan is the food samples industry which can be noticed in most of the restaurants located around Japan. However, the market is getting saturated, which has pushed Japanese food sample manufacturers to start exploring new international markets. Most of the markets they explored were in the East Asian region, such as China or Korea. In this research, we examine the feasibility and the potential adoption rate of food samples in the international market outside the East Asian region. The main focus of this study is on the Saudi Arabian market. Nonetheless, since Saudi Arabia is a big market, the study results could possibly be applied to the international market as well. The study has conducted a quantitative survey to test the potential of the food samples industry in Saudi Arabia especially in 4 major cities: Jeddah, Mecca, Riyadh, and Dammam. The survey also tests the willingness to purchase, the average price point that the consumer is willing to pay for food samples, and the factors that drive restaurant owners to adopt the food samples system. The study created a correlation analysis between different factors, such as the geographic factor and the size of the restaurant factor, to examine the effect of different aspects on the purchasing decision. The study has found that the Japanese food samples system is predicted to adapt successfully in the Saudi Arabian market and in the international market alike due to the high importance of the food culture and the existence of the communication challenges that the food samples can solve. Additionally, the market survey stated in this study indicated that 83% of the restaurants’ managers are willing to adopt this system in their restaurants.

Keywords: food samples, innovative marketing, international market, marketing method

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Authors: Mohit Kalra, Varun S., Mayuri Gandhi

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CeF3 nanophosphors has been extensively investigated in the recent years for lighting and numerous bio-applications. Down conversion emissions in CeF3:Eu3+/Tb3+ phosphors were studied with the aim of obtaining a white light emitting composition, by a simple co-precipitation method. The material was characterized by X-ray Diffraction (XRD), High Resolution Transmission Electron Microscopy (HR-TEM), Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FT-IR) and Photoluminescence (PL). Uniformly distributed nanoparticles were obtained with an average particle size 8-10 nm. Different doping concentrations were performed and fluorescence study was carried out to optimize the dopants concentration for maximum luminescence intensity. The steady state and time resolved luminescence studies confirmed efficient energy transfer from the host to activator ions. Different concentrations of Tb 3+, Eu 3+ were doped to achieve a white light emitting phosphor for UV-based Light Emitting Diodes (LEDs). The nanoparticles showed characteristic emission of respective dopants (Eu 3+, Tb3+) when excited at the 4f→5d transition of Ce3+. The chromaticity coordinates for these samples were calculated and the CeF3 doped with Eu 3+ and Tb3+ gave an emission very close to white light. These materials may find its applications in optoelectronics and various bio applications.

Keywords: white light down-conversion, nanophosphors, LEDs, rare earth, cerium fluoride, lanthanides

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Authors: Neha Verma, Manik Rakhra

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Statement of the Problem: Nowadays, a tremendous increase in population and advanced industrialization augment the problems related to air and water pollutions. Growing industries promoting environmental danger, which is an alarming threat to the ecosystem. For safeguard, the environment, detection of perilous gases and release of colored wastewater is required for eutrophication pollution. Researchers around the globe are trying their best efforts to save the environment. For this remediation advanced oxidation process is used for potential applications. ZnO is an important semiconductor photocatalyst with high photocatalytic and gas sensing activities. For efficient photocatalytic and gas sensing properties, it is necessary to prepare a doped/co-doped ZnO compound to decrease the electron-hole recombination rates. However, lanthanide doped and co-doped metal oxide is seldom studied for photocatalytic and gas sensing applications. The purpose of this study is to describe the best photocatalyst for the photodegradation of dyes and gas sensing properties. Methodology & Theoretical Orientation: Economical framework has to be used for the synthesis of ZnO. In the depth literature survey, a simple combustion method is utilized for gas sensing and photocatalytic activities. Findings: Rare earth doped and co-doped ZnO nanoparticles were the best photocatalysts for photodegradation of organic dyes and different gas sensing applications by varying various factors such as pH, aging time, and different concentrations of doping and codoping metals in ZnO. Complete degradation of dye was observed only in min. Gas sensing nanodevice showed a better response and quick recovery time for doped/co-doped ZnO. Conclusion & Significance: In order to prevent air and water pollution, well crystalline ZnO nanoparticles were synthesized by rapid and economic method, which is used as photocatalyst for photodegradation of organic dyes and gas sensing applications to sense the release of hazardous gases from the environment.

Keywords: ZnO, photocatalyst, photodegradation of dye, gas sensor

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Authors: Daniela Istrati, Alina Morosan, Maria Stanca, Bogdan Purcareanu, Adrian Fudulu, Laura Olariu, Alice Buteica, Ion Mindrila, Rodica Cristescu, Dan Eduard Mihaiescu

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Our present work is related to the synthesis, characterization and applications of new nanocomposite materials based on silica mesoporous nanocompozites systems. The nanocomposite support was obtained by using a specific step–by–step multilayer structure buildup synthetic route, characterized by XRD (X-Ray Difraction), TEM (Transmission Electron Microscopy), FT-IR (Fourier Transform-Infra Red Spectrometry), BET (Brunauer–Emmett–Teller method) and loaded with Salvia officinalis plant extract obtained by a hydro-alcoholic extraction route. The sustained release of the target compounds was studied by a modified LC method, proving low release profiles, as expected for the high specific surface area support. The obtained results were further correlated with the in vitro / in vivo behavior of the nanocomposite material and recommending the silica mesoporous nanocomposites as good candidates for biomedical applications. Acknowledgements: This study has been funded by the Research Project PN-III-P2-2.1-PTE-2016-0160, 49-PTE / 2016 (PROZECHIMED) and Project Number PN-III-P4-ID-PCE-2016-0884 / 2017.

Keywords: biomedical, mesoporous, nanocomposites, natural products, sustained release

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Authors: Aurora Sheehy, Caitlin Prince

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Within current orthodox medical protocols, trauma and mental health issues are deemed to reside within the realm of cognitive or psychological therapists and are marginalised in these areas, in part due to limited drugs option available, mostly manipulating neurotransmitters or sedating patients to reduce symptoms. By contrast, this research presents examples from the clinical practice of how trauma can be assessed and treated physiologically. Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) are a tally of different types of abuse and neglect. It has been used as a measurable and reliable predictor of the likelihood of the development of autoimmune disease. It is a direct way to demonstrate reliably the health impact of traumatic life experiences. A second assessment tool is Allostatic Load, which refers to the cumulative effects that chronic stress has on mental and physical health. It records the decline of an individual’s physiological capacity to cope with their experience. It uses a specific grouping of serum testing and physical measures. It includes an assessment of neuroendocrine, cardiovascular, immune and metabolic systems. Allostatic load demonstrates the health impact that trauma has throughout the body. It forms part of an initial intake assessment in clinical practice and could also be used in research to evaluate treatment. Examining medicinal plants for their physiological, neurological and somatic effects through the lens of Polyvagal theory offers new opportunities for trauma treatments. In situations where Polyvagal theory recommends activities and exercises to enable parasympathetic activation, many herbs that affect Effector Memory T (TEM) cells also enact these responses. Traditional or Indigenous European herbs show the potential to support the polyvagal tone, through multiple mechanisms. As the ventral vagal nerve reaches almost every major organ, plants that have actions on these tissues can be understood via their polyvagal actions, such as monoterpenes as agents to improve respiratory vagal tone, cyanogenic glycosides to reset polyvagal tone, volatile oils rich in phenyl methyl esters improve both sympathetic and parasympathetic tone, bitters activate gut function and can strongly promote parasympathetic regulation. Auricular Acupuncture uses a system of somatotopic mapping of the auricular surface overlaid with an image of an inverted foetus with each body organ and system featured. Given that the concha of the auricle is the only place on the body where the Vagus Nerve neurons reach the surface of the skin, several investigators have evaluated non-invasive, transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS) at auricular points. Drawn from an interdisciplinary evidence base and developed through clinical practice, these assessment and treatment tools are examples of practitioners in the field innovating out of necessity for the best outcomes for patients. This paper draws on case studies to direct future research.

Keywords: polyvagal, auricular acupuncture, trauma, herbs

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Authors: Christopher E. A. Ramsey, Halia Valladares Montemayor

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This study examined whether the dissemination of information about the circular economy (CE) has any bearing on the likelihood of the implementation of its concepts on an individual basis. Specifically, the goal of this research study was to investigate the impact of consumer knowledge about the circular economy on their behavior in applying such concepts. Given that our current linear supply chains are unsustainable, it is of great importance that we understand what mechanisms are most effective in encouraging consumers to embrace CE. The theoretical framework employed was the theory of planned behavior (TPB). TPB, with its analysis of how attitude, subjective norms, and perceived behavioral control affect intention, provided an adequate model for testing the effects of increased information about the CE on the implementation of its recommendations. The empirical research consisted of a survey distributed among university students, faculty, and staff at a Canadian University in British Columbia.

Keywords: circular economy, consumer behavior, sustainability, theory of planned behavior

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Authors: S. Larbi, R. Bensaada, S. Djebali, A. Bilek

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The manufacture of composite parts is a major issue in many industrial domains. Polymer composite materials are ideal for structural applications where high strength-to-weight and stiffness-to-weight ratios are required. However, exposition to extreme environment conditions (temperature, humidity) affects mechanical properties of organic composite materials and lead to an undesirable degradation. Aging mechanisms in organic matrix are very diverse and vary according to the polymer and the aging conditions such as temperature, humidity etc. This paper studies the hygrothermal aging effect on the mechanical properties of fiber reinforced plastics laminates at 40 °C in different environment exposure. Two composite materials are used to conduct the study (carbon fiber/epoxy and glass fiber/vinyl ester with two stratifications for both the materials [904/04] and [454/04]). The experimental procedure includes a mechanical characterization of the materials in a virgin state and exposition of specimens to two environments (seawater and demineralized water). Absorption kinetics for the two materials and both the stratifications are determined. Three-point bending test is performed on the aged materials in order to determine the hygrothermal effect on the mechanical properties of the materials.

Keywords: FRP laminates, hygrothermal aging, mechanical properties, theory of laminates

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Authors: Sy, Melecio Jr

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The decision to adopt vertical integration (VI) is firm-specific, but there is a common practice among businesses in an industry to maximize the massive potential benefits of VI. This study aims to determine VI adoption in the restaurant industry in Davao City. Using a two-step sampling process, the study used a validated survey questionnaire among 264 restaurant owners and managers randomly selected and geographically classified. It is a quantitative study where the data were subjected to a structural equation model (SEM). The results revealed that VI is present but limited to procurement, production, restaurant services, and online marketing. Raw materials were outsourced while delivery to customers through third-party delivery services. VI slowly increased over ten years except for online marketing, which has grown significantly in a few years. The endogenous and exogenous variables were correlated and established the linear regression model. The SEM's best fit model revealed that strategic motives (SMOT) and market factors (MFAC) influenced VI adoption while MFAC is the best predictor. Favorable market factors may lead restaurants to adopt VI. It is, thus, recommended for restaurants to institutionalize strategic management, quantify the impact of double marginalization in future studies as a reason for VI and conduct this study during the new normal to see the influence of business efficiencies and firm economies on VI adoption.

Keywords: business efficiencies, business management, davao city, firm economies, market factors, philippines, strategic motives, structural equation model, supply chain, vertical integration adoption

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Authors: Razieh Arian, Hadi Adibi-Asl

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This paper investigates an efficient combustion modeling for cycle simulation of internal combustion engine (ICE) studies. The term “efficient model” means that the models must generate desired simulation results while having fast simulation time. In other words, the efficient model is defined based on the application of the model. The objective of this study is to develop math-based models for control applications or shortly control-oriented models. This study compares different modeling approaches used to model the ICEs such as mean-value models, zero dimensional, quasi-dimensional, and multi-dimensional models for control applications. Mean-value models have been widely used for model-based control applications, but recently by developing advanced simulation tools (e.g. Maple/MapleSim) the higher order models (more complex) could be considered as control-oriented models. This paper presents the enhanced zero-dimensional cycle-by-cycle modeling and simulation of a spark ignition engine with a two-zone combustion model. The simulation results are cross-validated against the simulation results from GT-Power package and show a good agreement in terms of trends and values.

Keywords: Two-zone combustion, control-oriented model, wiebe function, internal combustion engine

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Authors: Hamed Khezrzadeh

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Many investigations on the micromechanical structure of materials indicate that there exist fractal patterns at the micro scale in some of the main construction and industrial materials. A recently presented micro-fractal theory brings together the well-known periodic homogenization and the fractal geometry to construct an appropriate model for determination of the mechanical properties of particle reinforced composite materials. The proposed multi-step homogenization scheme considers the mechanical properties of different constituent phases in the composite together with the interaction between these phases throughout a step-by-step homogenization technique. In the proposed model the interaction of different phases is also investigated. By using this method the effect of fibers grading on the mechanical properties also could be studied. The theory outcomes are compared to the experimental data for different types of particle-reinforced composites which very good agreement with the experimental data is observed.

Keywords: fractal geometry, homogenization, micromehcanics, particulate composites

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Authors: Josephine Wanja Nyatia

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The relationship between vegetation and soil erosion deserves attention due to its scientific importance and practical applications. A great deal of information is available about the mechanisms and benefits of vegetation in the control of soil erosion, but the effects of soil erosion on vegetation development and succession is poorly documented. Research shows that soil erosion is the most important driving force for the degradation of upland and mountain ecosystems. Soil erosion interferes with the process of plant community development and vegetation succession, commencing with seed formation and impacting throughout the whole growth phase and affecting seed availability, dispersal, germination and establishment, plant community structure and spatial distribution. There have been almost no studies on the effects of soil erosion on seed development and availability, of surface flows on seed movement and redistribution, and their influences on soil seed bank and on vegetation establishment and distribution. However, these effects may be the main cause of low vegetation cover in regions of high soil erosion activity, and these issues need to be investigated. Moreover, soil erosion is not only a negative influence on vegetation succession and restoration but also a driving force of plant adaptation and evolution. Consequently, we need to study the effects of soil erosion on ecological processes and on development and regulation of vegetation succession from the points of view of pedology and vegetation, plant and seed ecology, and to establish an integrated theory and technology for deriving practical solutions to soil erosion problems

Keywords: soil erosion, vegetation, development, seed availability

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Authors: Mohammad Ehsani, Iman Zarei, Soudabeh Moazemigoudarzi

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The aim of this study is to determine Pro-Environmental Behavioral Intention of Mountain Hikers to the Theory of Planned Behavior. According to many researchers nature-based recreation activities play a significant role in the tourism industry and have provided myriad opportunities for the protection of natural areas. It is essential to investigate individuals' behavior during such activities to avoid further damage to precious and dwindling natural resources. This study develops a robust model that provides a comprehensive understanding of the formation of pro-environmental behavioral intentions among climbers of Mount Damavand National Park in Iran. To this end, we combined the theory of planned behavior (TPB), value-belief-norm theory (VBN), and a hierarchical model of leisure constraints to predict individuals’ pro-environmental hiking behavior during outdoor recreation. It was used structural equation modeling to test the theoretical framework. A sample of 787 climbers was analyzed. Among the theory of planned behavior variables, perceived behavioral control showed the strongest association with behavioral intention (β = .57). This relationship indicates that if people feel they can have fewer negative impacts on national resources while hiking, it will result in more environmentally acceptable behavior. Subjective norms had a moderate positive impact on behavioral intention, indicating the importance of other people on the individual's behavior. Attitude had a small positive effect on intention. Ecological worldview positively influenced attitude and personal belief. Personal belief (awareness of consequences and ascribed responsibility) showed a positive association with TPB variables. Although the data showed a high average score in awareness of consequences (mean = 4.219 out of 5), evidence from Damavand Mount shows that there are many environmental issues that need addressing (e.g., vast amounts of garbage). National park managers need to make sure that their solutions result in awareness about proenvironmental behavior (PEB). Findings showed that negative relationship between constraints and all TPB predictors. Providing proper restrooms and parking spaces in campgrounds, strategies controlling limiting capacity and solutions for removing waste from high altitudes are helpful to decrease the negative impact of structural constraints. In order to address intrapersonal constraints, managers should provide opportunities to interest individuals in environmental activities, such as environmental celebrations or making documentaries about environmental issues. Moreover, promoting a culture of environmental protection in the Damavand Mount area would reduce interpersonal constraints. Overall, the proposed model improved the explanatory power of the TPB by predicting 64.7% of intention compared to the original TPB that accounted for 63.8% of the variance in intention.

Keywords: theory of planned behavior, pro-environmental behavior, national park, constraints

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Authors: Aymen Gammoudi, Hamza Labbaci, Nizar Messai, Yacine Sam

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Web Service Composition (Mash-up) has been considered as a new approach used to offer the user a set of Web Services responding to his request. These approaches can return a set of similar Mash-ups in a given context that makes users unable to select the perfect one. Recent approaches focus on computing the skyline over a set of Quality of Service (QoS) attributes. However, these approaches are not sufficient in a dynamic web service environment where the delivered QoS by a Web service is inherently uncertain. In this paper, we treat the problem of computing the skyline over a set of similar Mash-ups under certain dimension values. We generate dimensions for each Mash-up using aggregation operations applied to the QoS attributes. We then tackle the problem of computing the skyline under uncertain dimensions. We present each dimension value of mash-up using a frame of discernment and introduce the d-dominance using the Evidence Theory. Finally, we propose our experimental results that show both the effectiveness of the introduced skyline extensions and the efficiency of the proposed approaches.

Keywords: web services, uncertain QoS, mash-ups, uncertain dimensions, skyline, evidence theory, d-dominance

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Authors: Ovett Nwosimiri

Abstract:

Historically the concept of race has played a significant part in the existence of African philosophy. Race, as part of the historical events, has been used as a reason for colonization. In recent years, there has been a numerous work on the concept of race. Some philosophers have devoted their time to the discourse of race and to understand the ascription of the race. These philosophers have dedicated their time and energy to the concept of race. Philosophers, like Joshua Glasgow, W. E. B. Du Bois, Lucius Outlaw, Kwame Anthony Appiah, Naomi Zack, Emmanuel C. Eze and many others took up the task to explain the concept of race, and also to explain in their view whether the concept of race should be conserved or eliminated. According to the eliminativists, the concept of race should be eliminated. According to the conservationists, the concept of race should be conserved. The aim of this paper is to look at the possibility of transcending the concept of race. In order to do this, the paper will briefly explain Joshua Glasgow’ idea theory of ‘racial reconstructionism’, and it will propose a theory of ‘racial transcendentalism’ as a way of transcending the concept of race. The paper will argue that we should see the concept of race as a concept that has a future beyond the mere meaning and ideas that call for its elimination or conservation.

Keywords: conservationists, eliminativists, race, transcending

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Authors: T. Zergoug, S. E. H. Abaidia, A. Nedjar, M. Y. Mokeddem

Abstract:

Physical properties of uranium di-nitride (UN2) were investigated in detail using first principles calculations based on density functional theory. To treat the strong correlation effects caused by 5f Uranium valence electrons, on-site Coulomb interaction correction via the Hubbard-like term, U (DFT+U) was employed. The UN2 structural, mechanical and thermodynamic properties were calculated within DFT and Various U of DFT+U approach. The Perdew–Burke–Ernzerhof (PBE.5.2) version of the generalized gradient approximation (GGA) is used to describe the exchange-correlation with the projector-augmented wave (PAW) pseudo potentials. A comparative study shows that results are improved by using the Hubbard formalism for a certain U value correction like the structural parameter. For some physical properties the variation versus Hubbard U is strong like Young modulus but for others it is weakly noticeable such as the density of state (DOS) or bulk modulus. We noticed also that up from U=7.5 eV, elastic results become not conform to the cubic cell elastic criteria since the C44 values turn out to be negative.

Keywords: uranium diNitride, UN2, DFT+U, elastic properties

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Authors: Bakhtiar Ul Haq, R. Ahmed, A. Shaari, Mazmira Binti Mohamed, Nisar Ali

Abstract:

The capability of exploiting the electronic charge and spin properties simultaneously in a single material has made diluted magnetic semiconductors (DMS) remarkable in the field of spintronics. We report the designing of DMS based on zinc-blend ZnO doped with Cr impurity. The full potential linearized augmented plane wave plus local orbital FP-L(APW+lo) method in density functional theory (DFT) has been adapted to carry out these investigations. For treatment of exchange and correlation energy, generalized gradient approximations have been used. Introducing Cr atoms in the matrix of ZnO has induced strong magnetic moment with ferromagnetic ordering at stable ground state. Cr:ZnO was found to favor the short range magnetic interaction that reflect the tendency of Cr clustering. The electronic structure of ZnO is strongly influenced in the presence of Cr impurity atoms where impurity bands appear in the band gap.

Keywords: ZnO, density functional theory, diluted agnetic semiconductors, ferromagnetic materials, FP-L(APW+lo)

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Authors: Aouaouche Elmaouhab, Hassina Beggar

Abstract:

Solving multi-objective discrete optimization applications has always been limited by the resources of one machine: By computing power or by memory, most often both. To speed up the calculations, the grid computing represents a primary solution for the treatment of these applications through the parallelization of these resolution methods. In this work, we are interested in the study of some methods for solving multiple objective integer linear programming problem based on Branch-and-Bound and the study of grid computing technology. This study allowed us to propose an implementation of the method of Abbas and Al on the grid by reducing the execution time. To enhance our contribution, the main results are presented.

Keywords: multi-objective optimization, integer linear programming, grid computing, parallel computing

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Authors: Asyraf Abdul Halim, Mohd Edil Abd Sukor, Obiyathulla Ismath Bacha

Abstract:

This paper attempts to investigate the capital structure behavior of Shariah compliant firms of various levels as well those firms who are consistently Shariah non-compliant in Malaysia. The paper utilizes a unique dataset of firms of the heterogeneous level of Shariah-compliancy status over a 20 year period from the year 1997 to 2016. The paper focuses on the effects of dynamic forces behind capital structure variation such as the optimal capital structure behavior based on the trade-off, pecking order, market timing and firmly fixed effect models of capital structure. This study documents significant evidence in support of the trade-off theory with a high speed of adjustment (SOA) as well as for the time-invariant firm fixed effects across all Shariah compliance group.

Keywords: capital structure, market timing, trade-off theory, equity risk premium, Shariah-compliant firms

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Authors: Abdelheq Boukarkar, Omar Guermoua

Abstract:

In this paper, we propose a miniaturized and wideband patch antenna for C-band applications. The antenna miniaturization is obtained by loading shorting vias along one patch edge. At the same time, the wideband performance is achieved by combining two resonances using one feed line. The measured results reveal that the antenna covers the frequency band 4.32 GHz to 6.52 GHz (41%) with a peak gain and a peak efficiency of 5.5 dBi and 87%, respectively. The antenna occupies a relatively small size of only 26 x 22 x 5.6 mm³, making it suitable for compact wireless devices requiring a stable unidirectional gain over a wide frequency range.

Keywords: miniaturized antennas, patch antennas, stable gain, wideband antennas

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Authors: Frederick M. Dumisani Xaba, Nokuthula G. Khanyile

Abstract:

There is a growing demand for greater accountability, transparency and ethical conduct based on sound governance principles in the developing world. Funders, donors and sponsors are increasingly demanding more transparency, better value for money and adherence to good governance standards. The drive towards improved governance measures is largely influenced by the need to ‘plug the leaks’, deal with malfeasance, engender greater levels of accountability and good governance and to ultimately attract further funding or investment. This is the case with the Non-Profit Organizations (NPOs) in South Africa in general, and in the province of KwaZulu-Natal in particular. The paper draws from the good governance theory, stakeholder theory and systems thinking to critically examine the requirements for good governance for the NPO sector from a theoretical and legislative point and to systematically looks at the contours of governance currently among the NPOs. The paper did this through the rigorous examination of the vignettes of cases of governance among selected NPOs based in KwaZulu-Natal. The study used qualitative and quantitative research methodologies through document analysis, literature review, semi-structured interviews, focus groups and statistical analysis from the various primary and secondary sources. It found some good cases of good governance but also found frightening levels of poor governance. There was an exponential growth of NPOs registered during the period under review, equally so there was an increase in cases of non-compliance to good governance practices. NPOs operate in an increasingly complex environment. There is contestation for influence and access to resources. Stakeholder management is poorly conceptualized and executed. Recognizing that the NPO sector operates in an environment characterized by complexity, constant changes, unpredictability, contestation, diversity and divergent views of different stakeholders, there is a need to apply legislative and systems thinking approaches to strengthen governance to withstand this turbulence through a capacity development model that recognizes these contextual and environmental challenges.

Keywords: good governance, non-profit organizations, stakeholder theory, systems theory

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Authors: Băilă Diana Irinel, Păcurar Răzvan, Păcurar Ancuța

Abstract:

Although the volumes of fibre reinforced polymer composites (FRPs) used for aircraft applications is a relatively small percentage of total use, the materials often find their most sophisticated applications in this industry. In aerospace, the performance criteria placed upon materials can be far greater than in other areas – key aspects are light-weight, high-strength, high-stiffness, and good fatigue resistance. Composites were first used by the military before the technology was applied to commercial planes. Nowadays, composites are widely used, and this has been the result of a gradual direct substitution of metal components followed by the development of integrated composite designs as confidence in FRPs has increased. The airplane uses a range of components made from composites, including the fin and tailplane. In the last years, composite materials are increasingly used in automotive applications due to the improvement of material properties. In the aerospace and automotive sector, the fuel consumption is proportional to the weight of the body of the vehicle. A minimum of 20% of the cost can be saved if it used polymer composites in place of the metal structures and the operating and maintenance costs are alco very low. Glass fiber-epoxy composites are widely used in the making of aircraft and automobile body parts and are not only limited to these fields but also used in ship building, structural applications in civil engineering, pipes for the transport of liquids, electrical insulators in reactors. This article was establish the high-performance of composite material, a type glass-epoxy used in automotive and aeronautic domains, concerning the tensile and flexural tests and SEM analyzes.

Keywords: glass-epoxy composite, traction and flexion tests, SEM analysis, acoustic emission (AE) signals

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