Sustainable Technological Innovation Research Articles

Environmental hotspots and greenhouse gas reduction potential for different lithium-ion battery recovery strategies

The ever-growing demand for lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) and the shortage of metal minerals have led to urgent needs in battery recycling. Current recycling technologies cannot keep up with the exaltation of the LIB market and meet UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). A holistic assessment of environmental tradeoffs is critical for recycling technological innovation. We divided traditional hydrometallurgy and pyrometallurgy recycling into three generalized phases and identified stepwise environmental “hotspots” among different LIB recycling techniques using life cycle assessment (LCA). Greenhouse gas (GHG) emission and cumulative energy demand (CED) vary among recycling approaches from 67 to 286 kg carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2eq) and 1164–4349 MJ, respectively, for reproducing 1 kg LCO cathode from recovered cobalt. Comparatively, a direct “cathode-healing” process emits 21–154 kg CO2eq and utilizes 267–2251 MJ to regenerate 1 kg LCO. When substituting the stepwise recycling with the direct approach, 127 of 162 modeled scenarios show GHG reduction. Up to 36.5 million metric tons of CO2eq may be reduced if 100% stepwise recycling is replaced by the green direct approach by 2025. Our study provides insights into optimizing LIB recovery technologies to minimize environmental impacts and offer quantitative evidence for sustainable management and technological innovation for spent LIB recovery.

Definition of a Basic Design for Conversion of an Offshore Fixed Platform on a Depleted Reservoir Into a Sustainable Plant

Abstract In the framework of energy transition, a focus is given to the study of the conversion of offshore Oil&Gas (O&G) platforms at the end of their life due to the depletion of the reservoirs on which they operate. Their modular and versatile structure allows the implementation of new processes and innovative sustainable technologies for reducing the environmental impact of a complete decommissioning, especially on the subsea ecosystem that has grown around the jacket, and for guaranteeing cost-saving solutions. Among different conversion options, this paper focuses on the installation on the platform of a system for the production of photovoltaic (PV) energy to be used for seawater desalination and its delivery to other platforms operating in the same area. The project focuses on the definition of technical characteristics of the basic design, on the investigation of the technical feasibility of the conversion process, and on qualitative safety and environmental impact studies. Moreover, the old platform equipment to be decommissioned (i.e., the equipment necessary for hydrocarbons treatment) are identified, and the installation of new equipment is optimized, e.g., the number of PV panels and, therefore, the installed power are maximized. At the same time, decommissioning costs and impacts can be minimized. The basic design is completed with a preliminary structural verification to guarantee that critical situations do not rise, with an indication on the main maintenance activities for the preservation of plant good efficiency and with safety and environmental preliminary analyses for the identification of potential criticalities to be managed at different design levels.

The impact of economic growth on technological developments, emoneys and fluctuations interest rates and exchange rates in Indonesia

Technological developments have an impact on the payment system, namely Electronic Money moved very fast in 2018 and 2019, in 2018 it was 50.3% of the money in circulation and economic growth increased by 5.4% even though the interest rate in that year was at 6%. This means that some Indonesians have started to make changes to the payment system. Changes in digitalization in the financial sector, especially with new fundamental changes in the behavior of people's lives from the social and economic fields. The concept of Financial Technology is very good in the formation of digital financial infrastructure based on sustainable technological innovations that are considered effective in financial markets, including for small and medium-sized companies, this article focuses on three factors that affect economic growth, namely capital, labor, and technological developments. This study uses secondary time series data for the 2004-2019 quarter using Multiple Regression (OLS/One Least Square) and processed using the eviews 10 application. This study aims to determine the impact of technology on economic growth. And the results show that Emoney has a negative and significant effect on economic growth, interest rates and exchange rates have a negative effect on economic growth, and technology has a positive effect on economic growth.

A Brief Analysis of Sustainable Progress of Innovative Research & Development of Chinese Copper Processing Firms—With Japanese Furukawa Electric as a Standard

In comparison with copper processing industrial leader Furukawa Electric Co., Ltd., Chinese copper processing industry faces many shortcomings and difficulties including but not limited to outdated equipment and technologies, low degree of specialization, and unstable product quality. The review of Furukawa Electric’s development milestones reveals that Chinese copper processing industry has reached a stage in which it must rely on technological research and development (R & D) to promote sustainable productivity. Chinese copper processing firms have to invest in R & D to promote sustainable technological innovations and to improve the precisions of business practice in order to ensure the firms’ improvement.

Growers’ adoption intention of innovations is crucial to establish a sustainable greenhouse horticultural industry: An empirical study in Flanders and the Netherlands

In a project funded by the European Union, six high-tech innovations were developed to improve the energy-efficiency and sustainability of the greenhouse horticultural industry in the border region Flanders (Belgium) and the Netherlands, in a collaborative effort with various stakeholders. Although there is reason to be optimistic about the feasibility of these innovations, past experiences and research bear witness to the lack of adoption of climate-friendly technologies in the greenhouse horticultural industry. The current study reports the results of a mixed-method research project that explores the motivational drivers and barriers of the adoption of sustainable technological innovations by growers. The conceptual model is an extension of the Theory of Planned Behavior and is empirically tested by means of qualitative interviews with 28 growers and an online survey with 152 growers. The results show that attitude and subjective norm, but also company reputation, past experience with innovations, and sustainable orientation give insights into the adoption intention towards sustainable innovations. Managerial implications are offered as well.

Shaping a View on the Influence of Technologies on Sustainable Tourism

To date, tourism is the fastest growing industry globally, but one of the least developed in terms of environmentally sustainable practices. However, only a small portion of documents elaborate on how the introduction of new technologies can impact a more sustainable development route for tourism. This study’s objective is to provide an overview on literature state-of-the-art related to sustainable tourism and technological innovations, offering insights for further advancing this domain. We employ a bibliometric analysis and a comprehensive review of 139 articles, collected from Web of Science and Scopus databases, for the purpose of: (i) exploring and discussing the most relevant contributions in the publication network: (ii) highlighting key issues and emerging topics; (iii) uncovering open questions for the future. Our findings reveal contradictory views on the risks and benefits of technology adoption. Artificial intelligence, internet of things, circular economy, big data, augmented and virtual reality emerge as major trends. Five work streams are identified and described, leading to a broader perspective on how technology can shape the future of sustainable tourism. Relevant theoretical and managerial implications are derived. Finally, a research agenda is proposed as guidance for future studies addressing the outcomes of digital disruption on sustainable tourism.

Industrial Buyer Innovation Adoption Model: A Focus on a Smartphone-Based Electrochemical Analytical Device for Toxic Heavy Metal Detection

Smartphone-Based Electrochemical Analytical Devices (SEAD) enable sophisticated toxic heavy metal quantification experiments to be conducted anywhere with high precision, selectivity, and sensitivity. However, a very limited number of such technologies are able to make the transition from the lab to the competitive B2B marketplace. The purpose of this paper is to examine the factors influencing SEAD adoption in the manufacturing industry using the Industrial Buyer Innovation Adoption (IBIA) model, which integrates B2B consumer behavior theories and technology acceptance models from the past 50 years. Analysis of data collected from 400 corporations in Thailand revealed that sellers, buyers, internal organization and invented technology advantage variables predicted industrial innovation adoption based on binary logistic regression. This research contributes to the understanding of SEAD transition from scientific knowledge to sustainable technology and diffusible innovation. The ambitious IBIA framework is potentially an alternative managerial tool for holistically assessing and creating adoptable innovative business models for new technologies.

The asymmetric nexus of entrepreneurship and environmental quality in a developing economy

In spite of the vital role entrepreneurship plays in an economy, recent observations especially from the perspective of climate-related economic activities are indications for the inclusive probe of other salient elements responsible for environmental challenges. Considering the aforementioned framework, therefore, this study explores the asymmetric impact of entrepreneurship on the environmental quality for a developing economy such as Turkey. In a unique dimension, this study utilizes the nonlinear autoregressive distributed lag model with the aid of yearly data from 1985–2016 while incorporating other related determinants of environmental sustainability. The estimation results depict the presence of asymmetric short-run and long-run impact of the explanatory variables on environmental quality. Interestingly, the results confirm a negative impact of entrepreneurial activities, energy utilization, financial development, and economic growth on the environmental quality irrespective of the nature (either positive or negative) of the shock in the short and long run. However, a positive (negative) shock in trade openness worsens (improve) environmental quality in the short and long run. Furthermore, the investigation affirms the existence of the environmental Kuznets curve (EKC) for Turkey. The main outcome from this paper shows that entrepreneurship has a crucial effect on the environment of Turkey. Generally, this study suggests the introduction of incentives to motivate the creation of sustainable businesses, technological innovation, and smart cities to mitigate its negative impact on the environment is far begging for critical attention in the country.

Organic Vegetable Sustainability Strategies of Youth Farmer Groups

Sustainability simply focuses on meeting present needs, while considering future generations. Several organizations are passionate in providing adequate structures to drive this fundamental concept. In agriculture, youth farmer groups play a significant role in promoting sustainable technology adoption and innovation. Moreover, the success of these entities depends greatly on vital accomplishment as local institutions. This study was aimed at examining the internal and external factors influencing youth farmers’ performance and effective development strategies, using IFE, EFE, IE, and SWOT matrix. The results of internal factors showed the greatest contribution of human resources was dominated by productive youth farmers, while inadequate use of technology to disseminate information and promotion occurred as the major weakness. However, the outcomes of external factors reported an above average position, based on EFE matrix analysis, due to increased demand for organic vegetable products. Furthermore, the maximum threat faced by these persons is assuming agriculture as not a lucrative sector. Overall, the conditions of youth farmer groups demonstrated a robust importance in maximizing potential opportunities and minimizing the existing threats.

The Impact of the Exchange of Sustainable Technological HR Innovation Knowledge within Chaebols on the Performance of Global Subsidiaries

The Impact of the Exchange of Sustainable Technological HR Innovation Knowledge within Chaebols on the Performance of Global Subsidiaries

Impact mechanism of corporate social responsibility on sustainable technological innovation performance from the perspective of corporate social capital

Based on social capital and stakeholder theories, this study examined the impact mechanism of corporate social responsibility (CSR) on technological innovation performance from the mediating effect of corporate social capital (CSC) and the moderating effect of market competition intensity. Moreover, with the development of environmentalism, the sustainable impact of environmental responsibility in the process of technological innovation is examined. First, Poisson panel regression is used to investigate the non-linear impact of CSR on technological innovation performance based on the data of 277 manufacturing companies in China from 2013 to 2018. Our results show that CSR has an inverted U-shaped impact on technological innovation performance and effectively promote technological innovation performance at a certain critical threshold. However, it will negatively influence technological innovation performance when the critical threshold is exceeded. Second, based on social capital theory, CSC is regarded as a mediator variable in the impact of CSR on technological innovation performance. Enterprises can accumulate CSC by implementing CSR, which then promotes technological innovation performance. Third, market competition intensity negatively regulates the effect of CSR on technological innovation performance. The impact of CSR in promoting technological innovation is further weakened when market competition intensity is high. Finally, given that the sustainable development of environment and technological innovation, the research demonstrated that the impact of environmental CSR on technological innovation is consistent with the impact of CSR.

Performance of Sustainable Development and Technological Innovation Based on Green Manufacturing Technology of Artificial Intelligence and Block Chain

The powerful advanced manufacturing industry is the most powerful driving force for economic development and growth, and it is also the main source of environmental pollution. Artificial intelligence and blockchain technology are recognized as a breakthrough technology that can be widely used, changing the way the entire society and economy operate. The main constraints affecting the sustainable development of the manufacturing industry are ecological deterioration and resource shortage, but the development of artificial intelligence and blockchain technology provides new ideas for solving manufacturing problems. Based on this, this paper proposes a research on the sustainable development performance of green manufacturing technology innovation based on artificial intelligence and blockchain technology. This paper deeply grasps the essence and connotation of artificial intelligence and blockchain technology, analyzes its specific application form and research background, searches for the effective effect of manufacturing technology innovation and green manufacturing performance path, and clarifies the mechanism between the two. All measurement items in the questionnaire used in this article use Likert5 scale and use 1–5 options to indicate the degree of conformity with the actual situation of the enterprise. The results show that the average green manufacturing capacity of each measurement item is between 3.18∼3.97, indicating that the company's green manufacturing capacity is relatively high. Among them, the ability of green technology innovation is relatively high, indicating that most companies have noticed that the improvement of the ability of green technology innovation plays a vital role in the future sustainable development of enterprises. Moreover, more and more companies are paying attention to the latest applications of blockchain technology, which can effectively promote the development of enterprises.

Research on the design and application of capillary heat exchangers for heat pumps in coastal areas

This study investigated the optimal design of a capillary heat exchanger device for the heat pump system and its innovative engineering application in a building. The overall aim was to use a capillary heat exchanger to obtain energy in coastal areas for promoting renewable energy in low-carbon building design. Initially, the main factors affecting the efficiency of the capillary heat exchanger were identified, a mathematical model was then established to analyse the heat transfer process. The analysis showed the flow rate and the capillary length are the key factors affecting the efficiency of the capillary heat exchanger. Secondly, to optimize the structural design of the capillary heat exchanger, the heat energy transfer is calculated with different lengths of the capillary under various flow rates in summer and winter conditions, respectively. Thirdly, a typical building is selected to analyse the application of the capillary heat exchanger for extracting energy in the coastal area. The results show the performance of the selected capillary heat exchanger heat pump system, in winter, the heat energy transfer rate is 60 W/m2 when the seawater temperature is 3.7 °C; in summer, the heat energy transfer rate is 150 W/m2 when the seawater temperature is 24.6 °C. Finally, the above field test results were examined using a numerical simulation model, the test and simulation results agree with each other quite well. This paper is conducive in promoting the development of the capillary heat exchanger heat pump as an innovative sustainable technology for net-zero energy and low carbon buildings using renewable energy in coastal areas. Practical application: A recently proposed capillary heat exchanger is used as an energy extraction and utilisation device to obtain energy in coastal areas for promoting renewable energy in low-carbon building design. This paper explores the application of a capillary heat exchanger as both cold and heat sources for application in typical low-rise buildings. The analysis of the heat energy transfer rate of a typical low-rise building located in a coastal area in summer and winter provides guidance for the application of capillary heat exchangers.

Pricing and Profit Management Models for SaaS Providers and IaaS Providers

Cloud computing has rapidly penetrated enterprise and user computing markets with three prominent service models: software as a service (SaaS), platform as a service (PaaS), and infrastructure as a service (IaaS). Cloud computing has also proven to be one of the most important environmentally sustainable technological innovations in the year of Industrial Revolution 4.0. While SaaS and IaaS are the two largest revenue generating services in the cloud service market, the pricing and profit generating mechanisms of the SaaS and IaaS providers have not yet been well understood. Unless the SaaS providers’ profit-maximizing decision is considered, any pricing decision by the IaaS providers is likely to be suboptimal. Hence, this paper proposes a Stackelberg game pricing decision model with the aim of maximizing the profit of the IaaS provider, given the best response of the SaaS provider. This paper develops an analytical closed-form solution to the pricing problem and presents sensitivity analyses to give valuable insights into the pricing dynamics and negotiation between the SaaS provider and IaaS provider. Finally, implications of these findings and future research directions are discussed.

The influences of incentive policy perceptions and consumer social attributes on battery electric vehicle purchase intentions

The global diffusion of battery electric vehicles (BEVs), a sustainable technological innovation, has been challenging, and thus, it has attracted a considerable amount of academic research interest. Previous studies have investigated the mechanism of government policies and consumer psychological factors, but they have neglected consumers' perceptions of incentive policies and consumer social attributes. Therefore, the current study integrates incentive policy perceptions and consumer social attributes into the research model. The model constructs a “perception-attitude-behavior” research framework for analyzing the influence of these factors on consumers' BEV attitudes and purchase intentions. The results of structural equation modeling analysis based on 261 potential buyers show the heterogeneity of the influence of consumers' perceptions of financial incentive policies, perceptions of information provision policies and perceptions of convenience policies on BEV attitudes and purchase intentions. In addition, three variables of consumer social attributes (environmental concerns, social norms, and face consciousness) are more influential than policy perceptions. BEV attitudes are the most important predictor of BEV purchase intentions. In addition, based on a multigroup test, a moderating effect of gender is found. Finally, this paper discusses theoretical and practical implications and future research.

Capacity Reduction Pressure, Financing Constraints, and Enterprise Sustainable Innovation Investment: Evidence from Chinese Manufacturing Companies

Resolving the problem of excess production capacity through sustainable technological innovation is an important issue facing the Chinese economy in achieving high-quality development. The Guiding Opinions of the State Council on Resolving the Contradiction of Severe Overcapacity promulgated by the government in 2013 undoubtedly had a huge external impact on the traditionally competitive manufacturing market. This paper uses 6680 company-year sample observations of 1609 A-share manufacturing listed companies in China from 2010 to 2017 to examine the impact of capacity reduction pressure on ‘corporate sustainable innovation’ (the strategic response made by the enterprise administrator to cope with the impacts of the external environment including economic, social and environmental aspects) investment and the moderating role of financing constraints on this relationship. The research shows that after the promulgation of the Guiding Opinions, the degree of overcapacity had a significant positive effect on the R&D investment of enterprises, indicating that the policy to resolve overcapacity promoted their sustainable innovation investment. Such a phenomenon indicates that, to a certain extent, in the context of capacity reduction, companies have strong pressure and motivation to seek a way out through sustainable innovation. However, financing constraints have a significant inhibitory influence on the anti-forcing effect of the capacity reduction policy, indicating that the ability of enterprises to respond to external capacity reduction policies is subject to their own limited financing. Further investigation shows that capacity reduction pressure mainly promotes the sustainable innovation investment of private enterprises and has no significant impact on that of state-owned enterprises. This may be because private enterprises struggled more for survival during the transition period. The results of this paper provide a theoretical basis and reference value for the formulation of government policies and the development of enterprises.

Literature Trend Identification of Sustainable Technology Innovation: A Bibliometric Study Based on Co-Citation and Main Path Analysis

In the past 20 years, there have been increasingly more studies on sustainable technology innovation (STI), possessing a significance for sustainable development. This paper aims to provide a research landscape, since the systematic understanding of STI is still inadequate. Through bibliometric analysis, it explores the literature distribution characteristics and the literature citation network. Based on the relevant literature data in the Web of Science (WOS), the study visually analyzes the development trend, topic distribution, burst literature, and co-citation network of the research literature, and extracts the evolution path of literature citation by using the main path analysis method. Through the analysis of co-citation and main path, 13 clusters in the co-citation network are found, which are further extracted as the main path network containing 82 nodes. Furthermore, this paper summarized the bibliometric landscape and discussed the frontier STI research topics. The comprehensive framework contributes to the understanding of STI themes and identifying future research agenda.

100 Opportunities for More Inclusive Ocean Research: Cross-Disciplinary Research Questions for Sustainable Ocean Governance and Management

In order to inform decision making and policy, research to address sustainability challenges requires cross-disciplinary approaches that are co-created with a wide and inclusive diversity of disciplines and stakeholders. As the UN Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development approaches, it is therefore timely to take stock of the global range of cross-disciplinary questions to inform the development of policies to restore and sustain ocean health. We synthesized questions from major science and policy horizon scanning exercises, identifying 89 questions with relevance for ocean policy and governance. We then scanned the broad ocean science literature to examine issues potentially missed in the horizon scans and supplemented the horizon scan outcome with 11 additional questions. This resulted in an unprioritized list of 100 general questions that would require a cross-disciplinary approach to inform policy. The questions fell into broad categories including: coastal and marine environmental change, managing ocean activities, governance for sustainable oceans, ocean value, and technological and socio-economic innovation. Each question can be customized by ecosystem, region, scale, and socio-political context, and is intended to inspire discussions of salient cross-disciplinary research directions to direct scientific research that will inform policies. Governance and management responses to these questions will best be informed by drawing upon a diversity of natural and social sciences, local and traditional knowledge, and engagement of different sectors and stakeholders.

Can innovative knowledge management platforms lead to corporate innovation? Evidence from academician workstations in China

Purpose This paper aims to analyse the role of government-led innovative knowledge management platforms in innovation knowledge management, social network effects and innovative resource clusters in the context of academician workstations in China. Specifically, this paper empirically studies the impact of academician workstations on corporate innovation capabilities and the mechanisms behind this impact. Design/methodology/approach This study uses the propensity matching score method and difference-in-differences method to test the relationship between academician workstations and corporate innovation capabilities. Baron and Kenny’s (1986) mediation method is used to test two potential mechanisms. Findings Academician workstations significantly improve corporate innovation capabilities because of their contribution to knowledge and innovation management. The facilitation effects are stronger in non-state-owned firms, high-tech firms and firms in industries with low levels of competition. Further, academician workstations enhance corporate innovation capabilities through their funding effect. Practical implications This paper encourages policymakers to create a better market environment and stable support policies to facilitate sustainable scientific and technological innovation. Originality/value To the best of authors’ knowledge, this study is among the first to empirically analyse the impacts of innovative knowledge management platforms on corporate innovation. It enriches the theoretical perspective of innovation platforms and provides an excellent research perspective for effectively analysing the impacts of innovation platforms. This study also contributes to the literature on the determinants of innovation.

Does de-capacity policy enhance the total factor productivity of China's coal companies? A Regression Discontinuity design

China's overcapacity in the coal industry has become increasingly prominent since 2013, with a severe negative impact on resource allocation and the national economy. The Chinese government has implemented a series of de-capacity policies to resolve overcapacity and improve the total factor productivity (TFP) in the coal industry. In this study, we aim to explore whether the de-capacity policy enhances the TFP growth of China's coal companies. We firstly apply the Super-SBM-Malmquist index method to measure the TFP and its decomposition items (e.g., technical change, efficiency change) of China's coal industry. We then construct the Regression Discontinuity (RD) design to examine the impact of de-capacity policy on the TFP growth of the coal companies. The main results are as follows: (1) After the implementation of the de-capacity policy in 2016, the average TFP growth and technical change of the coal companies have increased significantly. (2) The de-capacity policy can dramatically promote TFP growth and technical change of the coal companies. In contrast, it has a significant and negative effect on efficiency change. (3) The positive impact of de-capacity policy on technical change is more significant than its adverse effects on efficiency change, which is the main reason for the increase in TFP growth. Therefore, the government should give full play to the positive role of administrative means in resolving overcapacity, and promote sustainable technological innovation of the coal industry.