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The nexus between customer equity and brand switching behaviour of millennial Muslim consumers
No full textPurpose: The purpose of this paper is to examine the influence of customer equity on the brand-switching behaviour of millennial Muslim consumers in Pakistan and Malaysia using the theory of planned behaviour framework. Design/methodology/approach: Data were collected from 706 millennial Muslim consumers from two universities in each country through a self-administered questionnaire using a multi-cluster probability sampling and were analysed using structural equation modelling. Findings: The findings demonstrate that the customer equity dimensions (awareness of American brands, perceived quality and image of American brands) are significantly different between the two countries, and moreover, customer equity strongly influences the brand-switching intention behaviour in both countries, and this consequently influences the actual brand-switching behaviour. Practical implications: This study is important for those firms who have many prospective switchers and Muslim consumers, because it is essential to understand why brand-switching behaviour occurs, and to what extent such firms can discourage such consumers from leaving the brand. Originality/value: This is the first paper of its kind to examine the brand-switching behaviour of millennial Muslim consumers in two different cultures. © 2019, Emerald Publishing Limited
Q-switched and mode-locked thulium doped fiber lasers with nickel oxide film saturable absorber
No full textA passively Q-switched and mode-locked fiber laser based on thulium-doped fiber laser (TDFL) cavity was demonstrated utilizing nickel oxide (NiO) nanoparticles as a saturable absorber (SA). The NiO synthesis was carried out by using a facile sonochemical method and the prepared NiO thin film was sandwiched between two optical fiber ferrule connectors in the TDFL ring cavity. By controlling the loss and gain in the cavity, stable Q-switching operation was obtained. The repetition rate and pulse width were tunable from 6.71 kHz to 19.58 kHz and from 9.16 μs to 4.24 μs respectively, at different pump powers, ranging from 528 mW to 711 mW. The Q-switched TDFL was centered at 1900.52 nm and had maximum pulse energy and slope efficiency of 0.31 μJ and 2.58%, respectively. On the other hand, self-starting mode-locked TDFL was achieved by employing 10 m scandium-doped fiber into the ring cavity and remained stable within a pump power range of 821–967 mW. The TDFL mode-locked had a central wavelength of 1928.81 nm, at a threshold pump power of 821 mW. The repetition rate and pulse width were 8.10 MHz and 61.27 ns, respectively, while the slope efficiency was measured to be 2.20 %. © 201
Plasma Platform to Investigate Error Structure in the Electronic Components
No full textThis program was designed to introduce a plasma platform to examine the field programmable gate array (FPGA) of the link boards typically used at the CERN's arge Hadron Collider (LHC). Pulsed plasma systems with accelerating gradient of 1 kV mu text{m} generate high-intensity, high-energy radiation beams. Single-event upset (SEU) is caused by radiation deposition in the FPGA. In FPGA, the SEU probability for 1-MeV protons and 10-keV X-rays are 0.1 and 2 × 10{-9} particle {-1}. The number of SEU induced in the Si by 1-MeV proton irradiation at 0.8-V bias computed from simulation in COMSOL Multiphysics was 1.8 × 10{5}. Although more experimental research is needed to identify the underlying mechanisms, pulsed plasma is perceived as being a smart alternative to investigate the error structure in FPGA. © 1973-2012 IEEE
Tocotrienols Modulate Breast Cancer Secretomes and Affect Cancer-Signaling Pathways in MDA-MB-231 Cells: A Label-Free Quantitative Proteomic Analysis
No full textTocotrienols (T3), a family of vitamin E, are reported to possess potent anti-cancer effects but the molecular mechanisms behind these effects still remain unclear. The aim of this study was to investigate how T3 exert anti-cancer effects on MDA-MB-231 human breast cancer cells. The MDA-MB-231 cells were chosen for this study as they are triple-negative and highly metastatic cells, which form aggressive tumors in experimental models. The MDA-MB-231 cells were treated with varying concentrations (0–20 µg mL−1) of gamma (γ) or delta (δ) T3 and the secretome profiles of these cells treated with half maximal inhibitory concentration (IC50) of γT3 (5.8 µg mL−1) or δT3 (4.0 µg mL−1) were determined using label-free quantitative proteomic strategy. A total of 103, 174 and 141 proteins were identified with ProteinLynx Global Server (PLGS) score of more than 200 and above 25% sequence coverage in the untreated control and T3-treated cell culture supernatant respectively. A total of 18 proteins were dysregulated between untreated control and T3 (δT3 or γT3) treated conditions. The results showed that T3 treatment downregulated the exogenous Cathepsin D and Serpine1 proteins but upregulated Profilin-1 protein, which play a key role in breast cancer in the MDA-MB-231 cells. These findings strongly suggest that T3 may induce differential expression of secreted proteins involved in the cytoskeletal regulation of RHO GTPase signaling pathway. © 2019, © 2019 Taylor & Francis Group, LLC
A qualitative exploration on the awareness and knowledge of stakeholders towards Urban Heat Island phenomenon in Greater Kuala Lumpur: Critical insights for urban policy implications
No full textDespite its notable role in the exacerbation of urban climate, Urban Heat Island (UHI) was poorly addressed, communicated and integrated into local urban policies of many developing countries. Such scenario often queried the level of UHI understanding amongst the key players who were involved in urban policy formulation. Hence, a qualitative study using Focus Group Discussions (FGD) was designed to investigate the awareness and knowledge level of stakeholders such as policy makers and practitioners in Greater Kuala Lumpur (GKL), an expanding socio-economic hub of a developing tropical country. The findings demonstrated a variable lack of awareness and knowledge about the concept of UHI, its status in GKL as well as organizational engagement in adaptation and mitigation initiatives among the study participants. Essentially, policy makers illustrated a facile awareness and knowledge towards UHI issues whereas practitioners displayed a more robust portfolio of factual understanding regarding the corresponding issues. In line with National Urbanization Policy's (NUP) aspiration to optimize urban developments that provide high quality of life, this study sheds some light on the exigency for UHI awareness creation and capacity building among the policy makers. This study also provides impactful prepositions for the articulation of necessary actions towards evidence-based urban policy formulation in future. © 201
A waste to worth approach in preparing Ferric vanadate Nanoparticles using peel extract for photocatalytic dye degradation induced by UV light
No full textPhotocatalytic decolorization of methylene blue dye (MB) under obvious light has been examined utilizing Ferric Vanadate nanoparticles (FV NPs). The photocatalyst was prepared by using various natural product peel waste (Pomegranate, Apple, Grapes, Orange and Banana (PAGOB)). The physico- and opto-chemical properties of prepared Ferric Vanadate nanoparticles (FV NPs) were determined using X-ray diffraction (XRD) and High-resolution Scanning Electron Microscope (HRSEM). UV–vis spectrophotometric analysis was used to study the rate of photocatalytic degradation of the dye measuring the optical density at regular time intervals. The factors influencing the photocatalytic degradation viz. effect of pH, the concentration of the dye, the quantity of photocatalyst (FV NPs) and the effect of light intensity on the rate of photocatalytic response was investigated under ideal conditions. The outcome demonstrates that degradation achieved 99% under ideal conditions. © 2019 Elsevier Gmb
Elastomeric biocomposite of silver-containing mesoporous bioactive glass and poly(1,8-octanediol citrate): Physiochemistry and in vitro antibacterial capacity in tissue engineering applications
No full textA novel series of silver-doped mesoporous bioactive glass/poly(1,8-octanediol citrate) (AgMBG/POC) elastomeric biocomposite scaffolds were successfully constructed by a salt-leaching technique for the first time and the effect of inclusion of different AgMBG contents (5, 10, and 20 wt%) on physicochemical and biological properties of pure POC elastomer was evaluated. Results indicated that AgMBG particles were uniformly dispersed in the POC matrix and increasing the AgMBG concentration into POC matrix up to 20 wt% enhanced thermal behaviour, mechanical properties and water uptake ability of the composite scaffolds compared to those from POC. The 20%AgMBG/POC additionally showed higher degradation rate in Tris(hydroxymethyl)-aminomethane–HCl (Tris–HCl) compared with pure POC and lost about 26% of its initial weight after soaking for 28 days. The AgMBG phase incorporation also significantly endowed the resulting composite scaffolds with efficient antibacterial properties against Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus bacteria while preserving their favorable biocompatibility with soft tissue cells (i.e., human dermal fibroblast cells). Taken together, our results suggest that the synergistic effect of both AgMBG and POC make these newly designed AgMBG/POC composite scaffold an attractive candidate for soft tissue engineering applications. © 2019 Elsevier B.V
Ejection of Double Knots from the Radio Core of PKS 1510–089 during the Strong Gamma-Ray Flares in 2015
No full textPKS 1510-089 is a bright and active γ-ray source that showed strong and complex γ-ray flares in mid-2015 during which the Major Atmospheric Gamma Imaging Cerenkov telescopes detected variable very high energy (photon energies >100 GeV) emission. We present long-term multifrequency radio, optical, and γ-ray light curves of PKS 1510-089 from 2013 to 2018, and results of an analysis of the jet kinematics and linear polarization using 43 GHz Very Long Baseline Array data observed between late 2015 and mid-2017. We find that a strong radio flare trails the γ-ray flares in 2015, showing an optically thick spectrum at the beginning and becoming optically thin over time. Two laterally separated knots of emission are observed to emerge from the radio core nearly simultaneously during the γ-ray flares. We detect an edge-brightened linear polarization near the core in the active jet state in 2016, similar to the quiescent jet state in 2008-2013. These observations indicate that the γ-ray flares may originate from compression of the knots by a standing shock in the core and the jet might consist of multiple complex layers showing time-dependent behavior, rather than of a simple structure of a fast jet spine and a slow jet sheath. © 2019. The American Astronomical Society. All rights reserved
Annual performance analysis of a single-basin passive solar still coupled with evacuated tubes: comprehensive study in climate conditions of Mahesana, Gujarat
No full textA solar still is very simple device to convert available brackish or saline water into drinkable water by use of solar energy. But due to its lower distillate output, it is not used widely for industrial and domestic potable water application. In the present research paper, annual performance analysis of a single-basin passive solar still with vacuum tubes (SBSWVT) is carried out in climate conditions of Mahesna, Gujarat, India, during July 2011–June 2012. From constant research work of 1 year, energy payback time of 176 days and cost of water produced of around 0.716 Rs per litre have been found. © 2017, © 2017 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group
A novel investigation into the application of non-destructive evaluation for vibration assessment and analysis of in-service pipes
No full textFlow-induced vibrations are a major problem in all oil and gas processing industries, so all piping systems which work non-stop for 24/7 require regular condition monitoring and inspection to assess changes in their dynamic characteristics and structural integrity in order to prevent catastrophic failures. A novel method of non-destructive testing and evaluation of these pipes, while in service, is proposed in this paper. The method enables early detection of the root causes and pinpoints the location of the impending failure due to excess vibration as a result of cyclic force induced by the flow prior to condition-based maintenance procedures. The technique relies on the combined application of Operating Deflection Shapes (ODS) analysis and computational mechanics utilizing Finite Element Analysis (FEA), i.e. linear elastic stress analysis. The effect on vibration levels on the in-service pipes is assessed and verified. The effect of any change in the forces corresponding to changes in the Differential Pressure (DP) at a constant flow rate through the pipes can then be estimated. It was concluded that maintaining the differential pressure above some “critical” threshold ensures the pipe operates under the allowable dynamic stress for a theoretically “indefinite” life cycle. © 2019, © 2019 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group