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The purpose of this paper is to attempt to use two industrial wastes; waste foundry sands (WFS) and molasses (M) along with lime (L) to improve the strength characteristics of clayey soil.

In the first part of the study, the optimum percentages of materials (WFS, molasses, lime) have been found out by conducting differential free swell (DFS) and consistency limit tests on clayey soil by adding various admixtures. The second and third part of the study investigates the compaction behaviour and unconfined compressive strength (UCS) of clayey soil on addition of optimum amount of various materials alone and in combination with each other. Finally, the micro-structural behaviour of addition of optimum percentages of lime, WFS and molasses using Scanning electron microscopic technique has been discussed.

The laboratory results revealed that the addition of optimum content of lime along with WFS and molasses reduced DFS and plasticity index and increased maximum dry density and UCS values. The microstructural behaviour showed that the presence of lime and molasses filled the voids present in the soil and the addition of WFS helped in providing compact structure, thus improving the strength characteristics.

The study will be helpful in designing low-cost pavement designs for rural roads.

The adverse effect of waste materials on environment may be solved by using them in improving the strength characteristics of clayey soils, thereby providing healthy environment to living beings.

The study will help to provide low-cost methods to improve strength characteristics of clayey soil along with the use of waste materials; the disposal of whose is a challenging task.

The purpose of this paper is to provide a cost-effective foundation technique for the design of foundations of transmission towers, heavily loaded structures, etc.

Experimental model tests are conducted in a model test tank to find out the effect of length and diameter of geogrid encased granular pile anchors, the relative density of sand and the angle of inclination of the pile from the vertical on uplift behavior of granular pile anchors.

The uplift capacity of the geogrid encased granular pile anchor increased with increasing length and diameter of granular pile anchor. Further, increasing the relative density of surrounding soil increased uplift capacity of geogrid encased granular pile anchor system. Moreover, increasing the angle of inclination of loading also increased uplift capacity of whole system. Thus, the proposed system can be effectively used in field for further applications.

The paper is helpful for the engineers looking for cost-effective foundation techniques for heavily loaded structures.

This study describes a series of experiments investigating the upper hot layer temperature profile in a confined space under different ventilation conditions for porosity-controlled wood crib fires for pre-flashover conditions.

Full-scale compartment (4 m × 4 m × 4 m) experiments were carried out for four-door openings, i.e. 100%, 75%, 50% and 25% of the total vent area (2 m × 1 m) with the wood crib as a fuel load. The temperature of the upper hot smoke layers of the compartment was recorded with the help of four layers of thermocouples for varying vent areas.

The effect of ventilation on the properties, i.e. mass loss rate, enclosure temperature, heat release rate and carbon monoxide (CO) gas concentration, has been measured and analyzed. The effect of ventilation on heat flux and flame temperature has also been studied. Compartment gas temperature has been examined by five wood crib burning stages: Ignition, growth, steady burning, recess and collapse.

Findings demonstrate that the influence of vent openings varies for the burning parameters and upper layer temperature of the compartment. The current results are beneficial in analyzing thermal risks concerning compartment fire and fire safety engineering projects.

Stainless steel is widely used in different manufacturing sectors. The purpose of this study is to optimize the process parameters of machining while processing SS316L alloy. The optimization of machining characteristics in the case of SS316L alloy greatly improves the quality and productivity economically.

The machining variables in current research are depth of cut, spindle speed and feed rate. The optimization of response characteristics was carried out using the intelligent approach of grey, regression and teaching learning-based optimization (TLBO) and Taguchi-Grey approach. Planning of experiments was made using Taguchi’s based L27 orthogonal array. With the implementation of grey, the response characteristics were normalized and converted into a single response. The regression analysis was used for empirical modeling of the single response induced from the grey application. TLBO is further used to investigate the combinations of machining variables and compared with grey theory.

The grey-TLBO based multi-criteria decision-making approach suggests that the optimized setting for material removal rate, mean roughness depth (Rz) and cutting force (Fz) is spindle speed (N): 720 rpm; feed rate (F): 0.3 mm/rev; depth of cut (DoC): 1.7 mm. The grey theory suggests an optimized setting as N: 720 rpm; F: 0.2 mm/rev and DoC: 1.7 mm.

The parametric optimization during the turning of SS316L using grey-TLBO based intelligent approach is not performed till now. Thus, this intelligent approach will give a path to the researchers working in this direction. However, the grey theory performs better as compared to the grey-TLBO approach.

Oxidative rancidity is a major problem in chicken meat because of its higher content of polyunsaturated fatty acids. Besides this, microbial contamination is also one of the major problems of chicken meat which leads to deterioration in quality during storage. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to investigate anti-microbial and anti-oxidant effects of various blends of essential oils (EOs) on the quality of emulsion-based (ready-to-eat) chicken sausages.

Sausages were incorporated with optimum level of four different blends of EOs containing six different EOs (Clove oil, Holybasil oil, Thyme oil, Cassia oil, Ajowan oil and Beetel oil), namely, Blend-1 (0.25 per cent), Blend-2 (0.25 per cent), Blend-3 (0.25 per cent) and Blend-4 (0.125 per cent); vacuum packaged and stored at −18±1°C for 60 days. Duplicate samples were taken for each parameter, and three trials were conducted for each experiment, total being six observations (n=6) for consistency of the results.

Significant decrease (p<0.05) in pH of control products was observed at each interval of storage period; however, in case of treatment products, significant decrease (p<0.05) was noticed from day 30 onwards. Blend-2 was observed with significantly lower (p<0.05) thio-barbituric acid reacting substances followed by Blend-1. Significantly lower (p<0.05) total phenolics content was observed in Blend-4 products as compared to other treatments. Regarding DPPH activity, control products showed significant decrease (p<0.05); however, in case of treatment products, DPPH activity showed significant (p<0.05) decrease after day 15 of storage. Microbial count increased with progressive storage period; however, the counts were well below the permissible limit of frozen meat products. All the blend incorporated products received very good sensory scores in consistent manner.

The work under this study would be very useful for the meat processing industries dealing with the perishable meat products. Use of natural anti-oxidants will also restore faith towards the consumers who are becoming more health conscious day by day.

The research work is original.

The objective of this research work is to study the artificial intelligence (AI)-based product benefits and problems of the agritech industry. The research variables were developed from the existing review of literature connecting to AI-based benefits and problems, and 90 samples of primary data from agritech industry managers were gathered using a survey of a well-structured research questionnaire. The statistical package of IBM-SPSS 21 was utilized to analyze the data using the statistical techniques of descriptive and inferential statistical analysis. Results show that better information for faster decision-making has been ranked as the topmost AI benefit. This implies that the executives of agritech units have a concern about the quality of decisions they make and resistance to change from employees and internal culture has been ranked as the topmost AI problem.

Flaxseed is considered as a source of functional ingredients because it contains alpha-linolenic acid and high amount of dietary fiber which provides potential health benefits. Therefore, this paper aims to evaluate the effect of flaxseed flour on the quality of mutton nuggets.

Mutton nuggets were incorporated with three different levels of hydrated flaxseed flour (1:1), namely, 4, 8 and 12 per cent to optimize the level of incorporation. Detailed profile analysis was carried out to study various physico-chemical parameters, texture profile analysis and color values in the product with optimum level and compared with control product.

There was no significant difference (p > 0.05) in sensory attributes of product with 4 and 8 per cent level of incorporation except for binding; however, significantly lower (p < 0.01) scores were observed for 12 per cent incorporation level. On the basis of sensory scores, 8 per cent level of incorporation was adjudged as optimum. Incorporation of flaxseed flour resulted in significantly lower (p < 0.01) moisture content, but higher (p < 0.01) fat and dietary fiber content. Texture profile analysis showed increased hardness of the product but resulted in decreased springiness and chewiness parameters. Incorporation of flaxseed flour significantly increased (p < 0.01) redness and yellowness of the product which improved overall acceptability.

The research work is original.

Purpose. This chapter discusses the challenges and different strategies to increase skill development for the future workforce.

Methodology. Multiple sources on the topic were studied and reviewed in this chapter. The idea of skill and its development is discussed in the literature review.

Findings. Different nations’ governments have promoted human capital development by providing up-skilling and retraining programs to balance supply and demand. Skills gaps need to be brought to the attention of stakeholders, such as governments, businesses, and the educational system. Teachers, employers, and other stakeholders need to develop strategies and action plans to ensure that the skills gaps are appropriately identified and adequately addressed. These initiatives must be developed with input from various stakeholders.

Practical Implications. The research results would inform the curriculum, incorporating skill development processes tailored to various scenarios. These findings would aid business organisations in crafting skill development programs that address identified skill gaps. Challenges in skill development would be taken into account during course development, and relevant teaching–learning materials would be created. Key stakeholders, such as accrediting organisations, employers, and students, should exert more influence on academic institutions to prioritise societal demands for economic development.

Originality/Value. The uniqueness and significance of this chapter lie in its concise summary of the strategies to tackle the hurdles in skill development.

In keeping with global developments rendering online shopping as an emerging trend among consumers, the present study extends the unified theory of use and acceptance of technology (UTAUT2) comprising the digital payment mode (DPM) as a new driver of online shopping and with the mediation of attitudes toward technology (ATTs) to gauge a better and deeper understanding of behavioral intention (BI).

This study used a survey instrument with snowball sampling from 600 consumers in northern India. Partial least squares structural equation modeling was used to find the association between drivers using UTUAT2, along with DPM and ATTs. The data were divided into a test group (20%) and validated through a training group (80%).

DPM was shown to be directly associated with BI. The mediation of ATTs was also validated through the model. The predictability of the model was 67.5% for the test group (20%) and 69.6% for the training group (80%). The results also indicated that facilitating conditions is a critical driver of BI.

This study enhances the understanding of the roles that DPM and ATTs play in BI during online shopping, suggesting that Indian managers need to adopt DPM as a support service to make online shopping a worthwhile experience.