Commercial Development Research Articles

The history of the US Starch Round Table

AbstractBackground and ObjectivesStarch and other carbohydrates are major products of commerce because of their abundant supply and diverse functionalities. They serve as the principal source of dietary energy for humans and animals and perform various functions in many food and nonfood products. Fundamental studies of their composition, structure, and properties led to practical applications and ultimately to their commercial development to serve the food and industrial sectors.FindingsThis paper provides a historical account of the US Starch Round Table, a scientific gathering of international scientists and researchers to discuss “cutting‐edge” research on starch and other carbohydrates. From its early beginning in 1940 to the present time, the Starch Round Table played a crucial role in advancing our knowledge of starch and other carbohydrates.ConclusionsThe concept of the Starch Round Table facilitated discovery, innovation, and progress in the field of carbohydrates with an emphasis on starch. From its genesis in the United States, its popularity has spread to other regions like Japan and Europe, which have been holding a similar event since 1961 and 2010, respectively.Significance and NoveltyNew knowledge was discovered, practical applications were achieved, and successful collaboration among starch and carbohydrate scientists across the globe was made possible through this biennial round table event. Commercial development of starch and other carbohydrate products has benefited immensely from the extraordinary progress made by brilliant and diligent scientists and researchers, past and present.

Overview on Current Selectable Marker Systems and Novel Marker Free Approaches in Fruit Tree Genetic Engineering

Selectable marker genes are useful for recognizing which cells have integrated specific sequences in their genome after genetic transformation processes. They are especially important for fruit trees genetic transformation to individuate putatively genetically modified events, because most of the protocols used to genetic engineer these species are often unsuccessful or with low efficiency. Traditional selectable marker genes, mainly of bacterial origin, confer antibiotics/herbicides-resistance or metabolic advantages to transformed cells. Genes that allow the visual recognition of engineered tissues without using any selective agent, such as morphogenic regulators and reporter genes, are also used as selection tools to in vitro identify genetically modified regenerated lines. As final step, genetic engineered plants should be tested in field conditions, where selectable marker genes are no longer necessary, and strongly unpopular especially for the commercial development of the new products. Thus, different approaches, mainly based on the use of site-specific recombinases and/or editing nucleases, are being now used to recover marker-free fruit crops. This review describes and comments the most used and suitable selection tools of interest, particularly for fruit tree genetic engineering. Lastly, a spotlight highlights the biosafety aspects related to the use of selectable marker genes exploited for fruit species genetic engineering.

Ethyl methanesulfonate (EMS) mediated dwarfing mutation provides a basis for CaCO3 accumulation by enhancing photosynthetic performance in Ceratostigma willmottianum Stapf.

Ceratostigma willmottianum Stapf is a unique chalk gland (salt-excreting) plant from China, with a salt gland structure that excretes white crystals of calcium carbonate (CaCO3), which has potential biomineralization and carbon sequestration functions. Due to the narrow distribution of wild germplasm resources, there is a lack of diversity of new varieties to satisfy commercial development and scientific exploration. Therefore, we used ethyl methanesulfonate (EMS) mutagenesis to obtain new dwarf mutant germplasm, and analysed it in terms of morphology, growth, photosynthesis, salt glands, and excretion traits. All four dwarfing mutant strains (DM1, DM2, DM3, and DM4) exhibited extreme dwarfing (62.28%, 62.28%, 74.55% and 61.68% reduction in plant height, respectively), faster growth, increased belowground root biomass, and earlier bud differentiation and flowering. Photosynthetic capacity was enhanced: chlorophyll content, maximum quantum yield of PSII (Fv/Fm), effective quantum yield of PSII (ΦPSII), photochemical quenching coefficient (qP), electron transfer rate (ETR), net photosynthesis (Pn), intercellular CO2 concentration (Ci), stomatal conductance (Gs), and transpiration (Tr), were significantly higher in leaves of DM mutants. The density of salt glands per unit leaf area and average Ca2+ excretion rate of individual salt glands increased significantly (especially in DM2), and CaCO3 accumulation per unit leaf area was 28.57% higher than that of the wild type. Pearson correlation analysis showed that photosynthetic capacity was significantly and positively correlated with CaCO3 excretion. The above study not only provided enriched new germplasm of C. willmottianum, but also important research material for studying the mechanism of CaCO3 excretion by salt glands and carbon sequestration capacity of biomineralization.

Watch Out for the Inherent Vulnerabilities in Developing Multi-tenant Cloud-FPGA: Communication Protocols

As FPGAs are being deployed in the cloud infrastructure for acceleration, the technology of multi-tenant FPGA has emerged as a topic of interest. This development has drawn considerable attention to its security issues. While previous research primarily focused on the security of applications, there has been limited exploration of the vulnerabilities inherent in FPGA IPs. In our work, we examine the vulnerabilities of two widely used data transmission protocols in modern FPGAs: the Advanced eXtensible Interface (AXI) and Peripheral Component Interconnect Express (PCIe). Our experiments, conducted with commercial FPGA development kits, launched fault injection attacks through the shared power distribution network (PDN). Through non-invasive electromagnetic (EM) trace measurement, we characterize the voltage fluctuation across various attack patterns. Subsequently, we simulate real-world data transfers using two crafted datasets with different statistical characteristics. The experimental results demonstrate the unique security vulnerabilities of the current AXI and PCIe protocols in the context of a multi-tenant cloud-FPGA. In response to such vulnerability, we further propose two defense strategies: InChAXI that utilizes integrity checking for AXI-based data, and FCPCIe that employs frequency scaling for PCIe-based data. The performance evaluation demonstrates that our proposed defenses can significantly reduce the fault injections on the AXI-based data transmission by 705 times with small overheads – 0.5% in hardware footprint and 7.9% in latency, respectively. On the other hand, FCPCIe effectively prevents the fault injection attack during the PCIe-based data transmission by reducing the user clock frequency, while incurring a 10.13% overhead on data throughput.

Effectiveness-MTU modeling approach for hydrogen separation with dense metallic membranes

As hydrogen gains interest as energy vector, so it happens for its purification techniques. In particular, dense metallic membranes are a promising technology for many high-temperature applications. Modeling of hydrogen permeation is a fundamental support to their commercial development. Permeation through metallic membranes, in particular Pd-alloys, is regulated by a generalized form of the Richarson’s equation, where driving force for permeation is due to the difference in hydrogen partial pressure at the membrane surfaces. From the flux expression it is possible to develop a model for a mass exchanger, in analogy with the mathematical description of heat exchangers. For the latter, a well-known method, called , is used to simplify heat transfer problem. The same approach applies to mass exchangers, where the method had already been transferred to reverse osmosis. In this article, method is applied to ideal mass exchangers for hydrogen separation. Effectiveness showed to be influenced by inlet hydrogen fraction, exponent of partial pressures and pressure ratio. Moreover, a procedure to include concentration polarization losses is presented. A rule-of-thumb approach is proposed for an estimation of hydrogen recovery, validated to reproduced an experimental result with less that 7% relative error. shows to be a fundamental support to membrane module design.

Serious Games for Serious Pain: Development and Initial Testing of a Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Game for Patients With Advanced Cancer Pain.

Cancer-related pain is prevalent among people with advanced cancer. To improve accessibility and engagement with pain-cognitive behavioral therapy (pain-CBT), we developed and tested a serious game hosted within a mobile health intervention that delivers pain-CBT and pharmacologic support. The game focuses on teaching and practicing cognitive restructuring (CR), a central pain-CBT intervention component. The pain-CBT game was developed through partnerships with commercial and academic game developers, graphic designers, clinical experts, and patients. Patients with metastatic cancer and pain participated in iterative, semistructured interviews. They described their experience playing each level and reflected on relevance, clarity, usability, and potential changes. Content codes captured patients' suggestions and informed game refinements. The final game includes five levels that prompt players to distinguish between adaptive and maladaptive thoughts that are pain- and cancer-specific. The levels vary in objective (eg, hiking and sledding), interaction type (eg, dragging and tapping), and mode of feedback (eg, audio and animation). Fourteen participants reviewed the game. Patients appreciated the pain- and cancer-specific thought examples, with a few noting that the thoughts made them feel less alone. Many stated that the game was fun, relatable, and an engaging distraction. Others noted that the game provided helpful CR practice and prompted reflection. For example, one 40-year-old woman said the game "brings [a thought] to the forefront so you can acknowledge it, and then maybe you could let it go or… do something about it." Patients coping with cancer pain found the CR game helpful, enjoyable, and satisfactory. Serious games have the potential to increase engagement while facilitating learning and rehearsal of psychological skills for pain. Future testing will evaluate the efficacy of this serious game.

“She does a good job for a woman” – the challenges for women enablers in the era of internet histories

This article explores issues of gender imbalance in the historical record of the period of technological development of the internet. It revisits the approach by authors, mostly women, who have criticised the lack of representation of women in the recorded history of technologies. It suggests that women in the period 1980s – 2000s may have been considered as not relevant to the technological record of that period because they were mostly working in invisible support roles, or leading on governance and commercial development matters. Overcoming centuries of discriminatory treatment women enablers have made significant contributions to the growth of new technology organisations but their involvement has been largely hidden from view by gatekeepers seeking to focus on and celebrate the mostly male led engineering and information technology achievements. Illustrated with exemplars from women collected especially for this article, it recommends further study about the roles of the women enablers to complement the already well documented histories in the era of the internet.

Boron doped Fe3S4/Co3S4 decorated with multi-wall carbon nanotubes as an efficient electrocatalyst for oxygen evolution reaction in alkaline media

Designing an exceedingly active and universal electrocatalyst for oxygen evolution reaction is utterly essential for commercial development. Herein, boron-doped cobalt-iron bimetallic sulfide synthesized through an easy single-step hydrothermal route is reported as electrocatalyst. The B-Fe3S4/Co3S4 was further decorated with the multi-wall carbon nano-tubes (MWCNT). The morphology of B-Fe3S4/Co3S4 was sphere like and it was converted to marigold flower-like after decorating it with MWCNT. The catalytic efficiency of Fe3S4/Co3S4 increased by doping with Boron and further increased by decorating with MWCNT. The prepared catalyst B-Fe3S4/Co3S4/MWCNT was tested for oxygen evolution reaction (OER) in alkaline solution and offered 319mV as overpotential and 60mV/decas Tafel slope value. In addition to it, the catalyst shows good stability, large Brunauer - Emmett-Teller (BET) surface area (30.24 m2/g), and low value of charge transfer resistance (6.5Ω), indicating that it is efficient catalyst and its high efficiency is associated with its morphology and ternary composite structure. The investigated low cost catalyst is as good as the commercially used high cost noble metal RuO2 catalysts.

PRESUMED CREDIT: CASE OF A TECHNOLOGY INDUSTRY IN SANTA CATARINA

This study aims to analyze the impact of the presumed credit of Tax on the Circulation of Goods and Services (ICMS) on a technology company located in the State of Santa Catarina, focusing on the year 2023. The presumed credit, granted by the state government according to RICMS/SC, aims to reduce the tax burden of companies in the sector, promoting technological and commercial development. This is a qualitative and descriptive approach, based on a case study of the company, analyzing financial documents such as balance sheets, ICMS declarations (DIME), and other accounting reports. The results show that, in 2023, the company obtained significant tax savings. Of the total recoverable ICMS on incoming goods, 13.61% were reversed, while 86.39% were used, resulting in a recovered credit of R$ 1,085,242.39. Regarding ICMS on outgoing goods, the presumed credit reduced the amount payable by 75.45%, generating savings of 92.12% in the total ICMS due to the state government. This allowed the company to allocate more resources to Research, Development and Innovation (RD&I) activities and market expansion. From this, it was possible to conclude that the presumed credit brought clear financial benefits to the company in the short term, encouraging innovation and expansion. However, the study highlights that, for more consistent and lasting results, tax incentives need to be complemented by other policies.

Parametric Analysis of a Novel Array-Type Hydrogen Storage Reactor with External Water-Cooled Jacket Heat Exchange

Hydrogen energy is a green and environmentally friendly energy source, as well as an excellent energy carrier. Hydrogen storage technology is a key factor in its commercial development. Solid hydrogen storage methods represented by using metal hydride (MH) materials have good application prospects, but there are still problems of higher heat transfer resistance and slower hydrogen absorption and release rate as the material is applied to reactors. This study innovatively proposed an array-type MH hydrogen storage reactor based on external water-cooled jacket heat exchange, aiming to improve the heat transfer efficiency and absorption reaction performance, and optimize the absorption kinetics encountered in practical applications of LaNi5 hydrogen storage material in reactors. A mathematical model was built to compare the hydrogen absorption processes of the novel array-type and traditional reactors. The results showed that, with the same water-cooled jacket, the hydrogen absorption rate of the array-type reactor can be accelerated by 2.78 times compared to the traditional reactor. Because of the existence of heat transfer enhancement limits, the increase in the number of array elements and the flow rate of heat transfer fluid (HTF) has a limited impact on the absorption rate improvement of the array-type reactor. To break the limits, the hydrogen absorption pressure, as a direct driving force, can be increased. In addition, the increased pressure also increases the heat transfer temperature difference, thereby further improving heat transfer and absorption rate. For instance, at 3 MPa, the hydrogen absorption time can be shortened to 147 s.

Commercial Space Industry Development from the Perspective of the Triple Helix: Evidence from China and the United States

Abstract: The university-industry-government triple helix has been an ideal approach to interpret the growth of innovative industries, especially in the context of todays technological leap. This study examines the commercial space sectors in United States and China, the two leading space powers, to analyze how the triple helix structures evolve and synergize to shape their respective industries. It is found that in the United States, the helix is rooted in legislation and procurement support, spurred by a well-developed industrial system, and reinforced by extensive enterprise-university collaboration programs. In contrast, the Chinese triple helix formation trajectory begins with experimental policies and space infrastructure construction, evolves through enterprises considered positioning in reusable rocket and satellite internet, and is potentially propelled by an expanding scale of talents exiting state-owned space institutions or fostered by emerging academies. After that, a lateral comparison between the two triple-helix models is undertaken to unveil the characteristics, similarities, and disparities within the commercial space industries of these two nations. This paper concludes that, for nations aiming at establishing a commercially sustainable space industry, the essence lies in a fully developed triple helix where efforts of government, industry, and academia can systematically converge without significant lag in any aspect. The paper also mentions the potential benefits of commercial space cooperation between the United States and China.

Regulating the Helmholtz plane by trace ionic liquid additive for advanced Al-air battery

Al-air batteries (AABs) are the next generation of alternative energy sources due to their high theoretical energy density, low cost, and environmental friendliness. Researchers have been interested in AABs with stable discharge in alkaline solution, long discharge time, and high conductivity. However, the uncontrolled self-corrosion of the Al anode and the severe hydrogen evolution reaction in alkaline electrolytes have been two major drawbacks hindering the commercial development of AABs. These shortcomings reduce the Al anode's utilization and significantly shorten the battery's service life. Herein, the Helmholtz plane structure was reconstructed using an ionic liquid additive called 1-aminopropyl-3-methylimidazolium bromide (AMIB) to regulate the electrochemical interface between the electrolyte and the Al anode. Electrochemical tests found that when 3 mM AMIB was added, the corrosion inhibition efficiency could reach up to 60 %. Further surface analysis and theoretical calculations showed that AMIB can form a dense and uniform protective layer on the surface of the Al anode substrate, which reduces the anode corrosion, lowers the active centers for hydrogen evolution on the Al surface, and reduces the hydrogen evolution rate. The full-cell studies found that the specific capacity of the cell increased from 1227 to 2564 mAh g−1, the energy density increased from 1546 to 3359 Wh kg−1, and the Al anode utilization increased from 41.2 % to 86.1 % as the AMIB addition to the alkaline electrolyte risen from 0 to 3 mM. This method of electrolyte regulation provides an efficient strategy for the commercial development of AABs.

Prediction of Commercial Street Location Based on Point of Interest (POI) Big Data and Machine Learning

Identifying optimal locations for sustainable commercial street development is crucial for driving economic growth and enhancing social vitality in cities. This study proposes a data-driven approach to predict potential sites for commercial streets in Foshan City, China, utilizing Points of Interest (POI) big data and machine learning techniques. Decision tree algorithms are employed to quantitatively assess and predict optimal locations at a fine-grained spatial resolution, dividing the study area into 9808 grid cells. The analysis identifies 2157 grid cells as potential sites for commercial street development, highlighting the significant influence of Medical Care, Shopping, and Recreation and Entertainment POIs on site selection. The study underscores the importance of considering population base, human activity patterns, and cultural elements in sustainable urban development. The main contributions include providing a novel decision-support method for data-driven and sustainable commercial street site selection and offering insights into the complex interplay between urban land use, human activities, and commercial development. The findings have important implications for urban planning and policy-making, showcasing the potential of data-driven approaches in guiding sustainable urban development and fostering vibrant commercial areas.

From urban heat islands to intra-urban heat islands: Role of urban fabric in redefining microclimates of tomorrow’s compact cities

A compact city is a urban area characterized by high density, mixed land use, and limited sprawl, designed to promote sustainable development, reduce urban sprawl, and enhance quality of life. This investigation focuses on the Intra Urban Heat Island (IUHI) effect, an intensified progression of the Urban Heat Island (UHI) phenomenon, specifically within a compact city transitioning from urban sprawl. The study employed advanced spatial analytics, which employed the concept of “space-time cube”, incorporating Getis Ord Gi*, and per pixel, Mann Kendall tests for the space–time pattern mining on a time series of high-resolution Remote Sensing data spanning from 1999 to 2023. The findings reveal distinctive spatial and temporal patterns in IUHI, identifying a total of 693,900 m2 of intensifying hot-spot areas in the selected compact city characterized by industrial, warehousing, and commercial developments. The detailed examination of urban fabric at a finer resolution (7.5 cm × 7.5 cm) identified rooftops with specific spectral characteristics (red/copper hue) as significant contributors to the IUHI phenomenon, inducing surface temperature increases above 5 °C compared to neighboring cells. Furthermore, high-rise developments emerge as land use forms that create cold spots in the urban fabric, improving the city’s thermal environment. The implications underscore the necessity for future urban planning to consider IUHI as a concentrated development of the UHI effect, urging a holistic understanding of the complex interconnections among various factors influencing microclimates in urban environments.

Interactive Marketing Measurement According To Sustainable Competitive Advantage Goals: A Scale Development

Purpose: The objective of this study is to create an interactive marketing model that aligns with the commercial development strategies of mobile phone operators in Iraq. Theoretical framework: Recent literature has reported good results on the new design of the interactive marketing model that is compatible with the development of work in the Iraqi mobile phone companies in the research sample. Design/methodology/approach: Mobile phone companies in Iraq (Asia Cell, Zain, Korek) were chosen as a field for the application, and a purposive research sample consisting of (35) people was chosen from the human resources of the aforementioned companies. Questions prepared for this purpose were adopted as a tool for obtaining data, while the (Atlas-ti) program was used. Statistician in entering and analyzing research data. Findings: The volume of research has been increasing over the past 20 years, although there are only a few reference authors, institutions and journals contributing to the unification of topics. The researchers were able to design an interactive marketing model that simulates the environment and reality of mobile phone companies in Iraq. Research, Practical & Social implications: We suggest a future research agenda by highlighting the contributions made to designing marketing models to suit the environment in which companies of various types operate. Originality/value: Originality/value: The results indicated a proposal for a new interactive marketing model through which we hope to contribute to adding marketing services to companies operating in the Iraqi telecommunications sector.

Application Analysis of Supply Chain Finance in Construction Industry -Take A Platform as an Example

With the development of globalization, competition between enterprises has increased, and supply chain management has become an important means for enterprises to gain competitive advantages. At present, the research on supply chain finance mainly focuses on risk management and effect analysis, and the research objects are concentrated on commercial banks and agricultural development, while the application of the construction industry is relatively small. This article uses case analysis and SWOT-PEST analysis method. Take A supply chain platform as an example to analyze the impact of the internal and external environment on the construction industry supply chain platform. Studies have found that many factors such as policy support, technological updates, economic fluctuations, and competition affect the development of the A platform. The development of the construction industry supply chain platform needs to grasp the direction of government strategy, fully understand user needs, seek technological innovation and establish a risk prevention mechanism.

Evolution of Information Technology: A Comprehensive Review

Pervasive computing, wireless sensor networks, and M2M communication have fuelled the Internet of Things. The IoT connects and interacts with many physical items using unique internet addresses. This article covers the structure and technologies of the Internet of Things (IoT). The Internet of Things (IoT) needs a standard structure. Thus, it begins with a complete explanation of architectural designs and then discusses communication protocols and standards. The article also includes a succinct review of common IoT protocols and standards, helping the reader comprehend the topic. It also provides concrete solutions and tactics for addressing Internet of Things issues. The essay culminates by demonstrating the practical applications of the Internet of Things (IoT). Nolan's Stages Theory offered a new perspective on commercial IT development in 1973. The rapid digital revolution has changed its underlying foundation, despite its continuous use. The initial idea focused on IT in production. Later, it expanded to include the complex relationship between IT and organisational strategy. Since its inception, the methodology has helped business and IT leaders navigate IT adoption without technical details. Nolan's Stages Theory still applies, but cloud computing, artificial intelligence, big data, and the Internet of Things require a more evolved approach. The rapid progress of technology has blurred the barriers between IT and other company functions, requiring a complete digital transformation strategy. Information systems and organisational structures have grown in importance and interconnection. As firms gained independence and flexibility, IT systems developed. IT integration into key company activities has transformed it into a strategic enabler. Nolan's strict methodology provides valuable insights into history, but it limits understanding of the dynamic and transformational forces altering the digital landscape. Contemporary studies emphasise the need for flexible and adaptive frameworks to accommodate the rapid pace of technological advances and their impact on organisational structures and business models. Nolan's Stages Theory is still significant in IT administration, although it has limitations in today's networked and data-driven business contexts. Future research should develop sophisticated and forward-thinking models to help organizations navigate the digital transition.

Silicon-based quantum random number generator with untrusted sources and uncharacterized measurements

Random numbers are essential resources in science and engineering, with indispensable applications in simulation, cybersecurity, and finance. Quantum random number generators (QRNGs), based on the principles of quantum mechanics, ensure genuine randomness and unpredictability. Silicon photonics enables the large-scale deployment of integrated QRNGs due to its low cost, miniaturization, and compatibility with CMOS technology. However, current integrated QRNGs are typically based on perfect or partially perfect device models, deviating from real-world devices, which compromises the unpredictability of quantum random numbers. In this study, we implemented a silicon-based QRNG that makes no assumptions about the source and only uses trusted but uncharacterized measurement devices. In experimental demonstration, we show that our setup can generate secure random numbers with different choices of intensities of laser light, and achieve an optimized random number generation rate of up to 4.04 Mbps. Our work significantly advances the security, practicality, and commercial development of QRNGs by employing imperfect devices.

Simulation and analysis of proppant transportation and distribution rules under multi-cluster perforation in horizontal wellbore

Unconventional reservoirs require segmented multi-cluster fracturing technology for commercial development. Due to the settling and inertial effects of proppant particle flow, even if the fracturing fluid is evenly distributed among each perforation, the proppant may still be unevenly distributed. However, the uniform distribution of proppant in multi-fracture is a favorable condition for high-yield gas wells. Based on the proppant dynamics model in the wellbore, coupled with the non-uniform fracture propagation model, a mathematical model of proppant wellbore transportation flow under multi-fracture is established. Through numerical calculations, the proppant transport and distribution mechanism are studied. The study shows that due to gravity, distribution in the upstream is more uniform, and the proppant in the downstream gradually settles and most particles flow toward the bottom. Proppant distributed in each cluster is affected by the flow rate of slurry to a certain extent, and is also controlled by its own properties. The turning efficiency determines the inflow of proppant in perforations. Increasing the pump rate can alleviate gravity but reduce turning efficiency. The perforation azimuth primarily regulates the flow of proppant into downstream perforations. The research results can provide theoretical guidance for the design of proppant transport and cluster perforation in hydraulic fracturing.

MAIN DIRECTIONS OF BANK LOANS IN CREDIT MARKET

Financial analysis in credit market and commercial banks, which have been an important factor of economy and human life and activity currently, study of financial-economic results of activity of a bank, determination of main directions of development of the bank and main factors of financial business processes, determination of purpose-oriented special knowledge and growth rates, etc. Different economic sources, internet materials have been applied as a theoretical and methodological basis. As systematization of loans in bank lending system is a theme of the research, methods such as analysis, induction and deduction have been used. Main scientific innovation that has been put forward: In this field, one of the most important issues is, certainly, organization of organization system of information issues, which have the most significant role in determining and implementation of successful demand and supply of bank loans in credit market and main directions of bank loans in credit market. Results of the research: Finding perspective improvement ways of commercial banks Development of credit system, directly improved by banks, significantly positively effects progress of country economy Information tools and technology play the most important role in improving credit market now.