Search results

Silk and lyocell textiles are categorized as protein and cellulose polymer products of natural fibers. They have their unique uses in the textile, apparel and garment fields. Polyester (PET) is one of the most important synthetic textiles with very good resistance towards chemical and microbial attacks. The presence of PET in mixed silk fabric provides added value. In this study, a saree is developed with silk as the warp and lyocell and PET as the weft. The product is compared with a 100% silk saree with respect to tensile strength, elongation, drapeability, stiffness and antimicrobial activity. The developed saree gives good results that are close to that of the 100% silk saree, and the cost of the developed saree is less than half of that of 100% silk.

Any change in physical performance of the fibre corresponds to a change in its molecular structure. Basically polyester is hydrophobic in nature due to the absence of attracting polar groups and the dense packing in its polymeric structure. Due to the dense packing in polymeric structure and lack of hydroxyl groups of polyester it does not absorb water hence breathability is poor. The possibility of using air and oxygen plasma treatments for fibre surface activation to facilitate the improvement of hydrophilicity is attempted and has been improved. The purpose of this paper is to study the possibility of engineering the multifunctional of fabrics.

The treated fabric is evaluated through measuring the ultraviolet protection factor, thermal resistance, and antibacterial activity properties. Scanning electron microscopy and transmission electron microscopy graphs show deposition of nano particles (NPs) of Chitosan, TiO₂ and ZnO onto the fibre after washing several times.

Air plasma-nano Chitosan treatment affects positively the antibacterial activity, thermal resistance of the fibre and air plasma-nano TiO₂ and ZnO the fibre protection against ultraviolet rays. Furthermore, the plasma treatment solves an environmental problem which offers safe production process and working place and decreases the unit cost.

The authors are confident that textiles will adopt this technology in the future.

This paper aims to investigate construction site workers’ compliance with various coronavirus (Covid-19) protocols while working on construction sites.

This survey was conducted at the end of the imposed lockdown following Nigeria’s upsurge of the Covid-19 pandemic. The survey research method was adopted for the study using a structured questionnaire administered to 246 construction site workers under strict Covid-19 preventive measures. The data was complemented through personal observations of the study site activities. The results were analysed using frequency tables and a factor analytical approach.

The preventive measures in place on construction sites can be classified into personal protective measures, good etiquette/manners, contact precautions and prompt actions. Although the workers claimed to be aware of the Covid-19 pandemic, their disposition towards the preventive measures on construction sites is worrisome. Hence, their level of compliance with the protocols could mitigate the spread of the virus.

This paper fulfils an identified gap to study the need to promote public health by mitigating the global pandemic’s spread in areas where social distancing cannot be easily observed.

The pandemic has brought to light the importance of quickly adopting new technologies and building resilient organisations. Also, the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) can be addressed in large part through technological innovations. The development of smart systems which are linked with the Internet of Things (IoT) can create different opportunities to strategically face the barriers linked with the SDGs and make sure that there is an environmentally sustainable, equitable and healthy society. This study has utilised secondary and qualitative data and has adopted the interpretative and deductive approaches. It has given significance to several aspects of the SDGs and has linked them with digital technology such as accessibility to safe and clean portable water, production of sustainable food along with the generation of green energy and its utilisation. This study has evaluated the advantages of digitalisation so that it can catalyse the transition towards SDGs and improve the health of the citizens by giving digital accessibility specifically to the underserved community. The research has selected the most essential themes which are linked to the context of SDGs and has deeply evaluated a lot of information obtained from authentic secondary resources. At last, it provides a conclusion and recommendations where it has suggested several initiatives which could be made for enhancing the overall scenario and has also disguised the limitations that were identified while completing the study.

Today, the need for renewable energy is rising steadily. Various steps are being taken by nations to address the rising need. The developments occurring in proportion to the industrial structures and economic levels of the countries, these efforts, the political structure of the country, some established patterns from the past, and many other external factors affect the use of renewable energy and therefore sustainable development, which has been one of the most important agendas since the early 1990s. In this study, it is examined whether certain characteristics of the Scandinavian Welfare Model affect the background of this successful image of Finland, Denmark, and Sweden, which rank in the top three positions in both the Global Energy Innovation Index and the Sustainable Development Report. As a result, although the use of fossil fuels increases the ecological footprint in the Scandinavian countries, which are evaluated as in the rest of the world, continuing the principles of innovation, trust, equality, openness, and sustainability with determination, the Nordic approach has not departed from the welfare state principle compatible with its own codes, unlike the transformations experienced by other welfare regimes, and has become a distinctive factor.

This study aims to present an innovative sandbox platform that implements a decision support system (DSS) to assess the sustainable development goals (SDGs) addressed at the municipal level. It intends to determine the relative importance of each SDG in municipalities and explore the synergies that can be discovered among them.

Participatory action research is used to develop a DSS and an algorithm designated as discrete heavy fuzzy was also developed, which extends the Apriori algorithm to include discrete quantitative assessments of the level of SDG compliance by each project. A scenario consisting of three municipalities in Portugal (i.e. Porto, Loulé and Castelo de Vide) was chosen to demonstrate the implementation of the sandbox platform and to interpret the observed results.

The results reveal significant differences in the typology of SDGs addressed by each municipality. It was found that municipal sustainable projects are strongly influenced by the contextual factors of each municipality. Porto has projects that address the first five SDGs. Loulé appears projects that promote innovation, the fight against climate change and the development of sustainable cities. Castelo de Vida has initiatives related to innovation and infrastructure and decent work and economic growth.

This study provides knowledge about the relative importance of the SDGs in Portuguese municipalities and explores the synergies among them. The proposed sandbox platform fills the gaps of the ODSlocal Webtool by proposing a dynamic and interactive approach for the exploration of quantitative indicators regarding the implementation status of the SDGs established in the 2030 Agenda.

This study provides knowledge about the relative importance of the SDGs and the various synergies that exist between them considering the Portuguese municipalities. The sandbox platform presented and developed within this study allows filling the gaps of the ODSlocal Webtool that gathers essentially qualitative information about each project and offers a dynamic and interactive exploration with quantitative indicators of the implementation status of the SDGs established in the 2030 Agenda.

The purpose of this study is to analyze the technological change under development linked to the convergence of the Internet of Things (IoT) and digital transformation (DT) from the perspective of a scientific mapping in a context marked by the occurrence of an unexpected event that accelerated this process such as the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic and its variants.

The study was developed under the longitudinal scientific mapping approach and considered the period 1990–2021 using as a basis the descriptors DT and IoT. The steps followed were identification and selection of keywords; design and application of an algorithm to identify these selected keywords in titles, abstracts and keywords using terms in Web of Science (WoS) to contrast them; and performing a data processing based on the journals in the Journal Citation Report during 2022. The longitudinal study uses scientific mapping to analyze the evolution of the scientific literature that seeks to understand the acceleration in the integration of technology and its impact on the human factor, processes and organizational culture.

This study showed that the technologies converging around IoT form the basis of the main DT processes being experienced on a global scale; furthermore, it was shown that the pandemic accelerated the convergence and application of new technologies to support the major changes required for a world with new needs. Finally, China and the USA differ significantly in the production of scientific knowledge with respect to the first eight followers.

The knowledge gap addressed by this study is to identify the production of scientific knowledge related to IoT and its impact on DT processes at the scale of individuals, organizations and the new way of delivering value to society. This knowledge about researchers, institutions, countries and the derivation is multiple indicators allows improving decision-making at multiple scales on these issues.

The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the antioxidant and type II diabetes related enzyme inhibition properties of phenolic extract from raw and traditionally processed Indian under‐utilized food legume grains, Bauhinia purpurea L. (purple camel's foot seeds).

The methanolic extract was prepared from the raw and traditionally processed seed samples and analyzed for total phenolic content. The antioxidant activity and type II diabetes related enzyme inhibition properties of methanolic extract and their relationship with phenolic content was demonstrated.

The methanolic extract of raw seed materials contained total free phenolic content of 14.45±1.62 g catechin equivalent/100 g extract DM. Encouraging levels of ferric reducing/antioxidant power (FRAP, 1203 mmol Fe[II]/mg extract), inhibition of ß‐carotene degradation (45.37 percent) and scavenging activity against DPPH (63.60 percent) and superoxide (42.14 percent) radicals were exhibited by the raw samples. Further, it also recorded 80.69 percent of α‐amylase and 63.74 percent of α‐glucosidase enzyme inhibition characteristics under in vitro starch digestion bioassay. Sprouting+oil‐frying caused an apparent increase on the total free phenolic content, antioxidant and free radical scavenging capacity, while soaking+cooking as well as open‐pan roasting treatments show diminishing effects.

Identification of suitable processing technique offered a good strategy to improve the phenolic content and health relevant functionality of B. purpurea seeds, which could be envisaged as a dietary ingredient in the formulation of supplementary foods with therapeutic value to manage type II diabetic patients.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the contribution of each food group from the typical Indonesian diet to the daily intake of micronutrients and to the micronutrient deficiency status of different age groups of the Indonesian population, and also to formulate a healthier diet using linear programming.

Data on typical Indonesian diet, food items and serving sizes were obtained from the Indonesian Socio Economic Survey. Each food item of the diet and its serving size were noted and their iron (mg.day⁻¹), zinc (mg.day⁻¹) and vitamin A (Retinol Equivalent, RE.day⁻¹) contribution were calculated. Adequacy of typical diet was determined in comparison to RDA. Linear programming calculations were performed using POM‐QM for windows version 3.

The highest iron and zinc contributor in each age group was white rice and for vitamin A was the chicken and meat group. Iron deficiency in young adults was 38 per cent, children (26 per cent) and adult group (11 per cent). Zinc deficiency in young adult was 64 per cent children (60 per cent) and adult groups (45 per cent). Vitamin A deficiency in children was 57 per cent, adult (29 per cent) and young adult group (16 per cent). Linear programming can be used to formulate balanced diet.

Varieties of foods used to formulate the balanced diet in this paper were limited. For future research, more detailed formulation can be proposed.

The paper shows that Indonesians needs to consume more vegetables to achieve the micronutrient requirement.

The recommended dietary formulation can improve the micronutrient deficiency status among different age groups in Indonesia and the approach of the research can be implemented in other countries.

The aim of this study is to explore the characteristics of a group of patients over 50 years old who are entering a substitution treatment programme for opioid dependence and to compare the characteristics of this group with those aged under 50 who are enrolled in the same substitution treatment programme.

This is a cross sectional survey involving 92 cases in the 50 and above age group and 194 cases in the under 50 age group from community drug and alcohol services. Data were collected on demographic details, substance misuse and treatment history and progress with treatment. All the data were analysed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS), version 1.1. Statistical significance between fewer than 50 and 50+ groups were assessed using Fisher's exact test.

Amongst the 92 in the group 50 years and above, 67 (average dose=63.25 mg) were on methadone maintenance (average dose=63.25 mg) and 19 (average dose=10.37 mg) on buprenorphine. In total, 11 per cent started using opiates after the age of 50. Sixty per cent used other substances out of which 31 per cent used multiple substances. Benzodiazepines, cocaine and amphetamines were the common substances of misuse. Thirty seven were infected with HCV. Comorbid rates for physical and mental illnesses were 64 per cent and 62 per cent, respectively. Nearly 86 per cent achieved good compliance with the treatment programme. Statistically higher rates of being single, lacking stable accommodation, prescription of buprenorphine, high dose prescriptions and lower rates of blood‐borne viruses, physical health and mental health, past forensic history were found in the under 50 age group compared with the 50+ age group.

There are a considerable number of patients above the age of 50 in maintenance treatment and they differ from the less than 50 age group. Old age and substance misuse psychiatrists should be aware of the prevalence of comorbid substance misuse, physical (including blood borne viruses) and psychiatric disorders in this population. Further research is required in this neglected area and a service provision should be based on such robust research.

This is the first study to the authors' knowledge that compares the demographic and treatment profiles of under 50 and over 50 years by age of patients in a methadone maintenance treatment programme. It clearly points to significant differences in the profiles based on age which will have implications for service provision which will have to take into account these age‐related differences in particular related to physical health and social needs.