Discovering the core stakeholders in the Nigerian urban water supply system

Core stakeholders’ engagement and involvement are now a sine qua non of resources administration and management. This followed the emergence of pluralistic forms of governance, which call for greater democracy and emphasises transparency, accountability, inclusivity, and engagement as credentials for sustainable resource management. Nigeria has embraced these pluralistic forms of governance in its water sector as part of efforts to promote sustainable water resource management. However, to successfully engage and involve core stakeholders in the face of myriad urban water supply challenges and achieve optimal outcomes remain a challenge as it is unclear who the core stakeholders are. This study examines Nigerian’s urban water supply system and the extent of the interests of the stakeholders to identify the core stakeholders as an input towards facilitating sustainable water resources management in the country based on a survey of urban water supply experts in the country. The study finds 15 core or primary stakeholders out of 25 stakeholders and note that their core stakeholder status is linked to their direct involvement or connection with the water supply system and its successful running, which is rooted in them being customers or investors or regulators and enforcers of regulation, funders, supervisors, and the need to respect community and social interests. The study concludes that whilst the engagement of all stakeholders is good for sustainable water resources management in Nigeria, engagement, and involvement of the 15 core stakeholders is paramount to the sustainable and successful operations of the country’s urban water supply system

Balance of payments cycles

In this study, I investigate and analyze debt-credit relations among major countries within the framework of the stage hypothesis. This analysis pays particular attention to the interaction between stage movements and nation\u27s indebtedness position. For this purpose, both a theoretical model and empirical evidence will be presented. Chapter one describes the dynamic nature of the stages in the balance of payments. First, dynamic models introduced by Neher (1970), Fischer and Frenkel (1974) and Onitsuka (1974) are reexamined and critically reviewed. Their small open economy models integrate a dynamic theory of investment into modern growth theory and provide evidence for the stage hypothesis. In contrast, the dynamic optimization model of Bazdarich (1978) reaches different conclusions. Bazdarich\u27s model is based on the infinite time horizon assumption, he thus argues that stage tendencies are not optimal. The model developed in this chapter stems from two major changes made in Bazdarich\u27s model. First, utilization of a finite horizon model enables the investigation of three different consumption paths when the time preference rate and the interest rate are not equal. Secondly, introducing an installation cost of investment affects the nature of capital formation. The combined effect of the above modifications allows for a model that describes full stage movement in the balance of payments when the interest rate is higher than the time preference rate. Chapter two studies recent trends in current accounts imbalances from the perspective of the balance of payments stages hypothesis. It investigates and analyzes the systems that would lead to changes in a nation\u27s debt position along with stage movements. To this end, real GDP is employed as an index of a nation\u27s economic development, and the relationship between changes in the level of income and the corresponding changes in stages in the balance of payments is estimated. This chapter also performs OLS regressions and probit tests; the results suggest a dissenting view of the role of income level as a major determinant of stages. Chapter three introduces the life cycle hypothesis of saving in open economies. It first develops a model and then examines the significance of the demographic variables for aggregate savings by providing cross country empirical evidence. This study contributes significantly to our understanding of balance of payments cycles because it is the first to analyze the effect of the demographic structure on external balances. In general, empirical tests suggest that population structure plays an important role in determining a nation\u27s indebtedness position. This study\u27s application of the four-generation life cycle model provides a basis for long term prediction of the balance of payments accounts. The validity of the above analysis is heavily dependent on the age structure of the populations

Influence of Wetting on Morphology and Core Content in Electrospun Core-Sheath Fibers

Coaxial electrospinning allows easy and cost-effective realization of composite fibers at the nano- and microscales. Different multifunctional materials can be incorporated with distinct localization to specific regimes of the fiber cross section and extended internal interfaces. However, the final composite properties are affected by variations in internal structure, morphology, and material separation, and thus, nanoscale control is mandatory for high-performance application in devices. Here, we present an analysis with unprecedented detail of the cross section of liquid core-functionalized fibers, yielding information that is difficult to reveal. This is based on focused ion beam (FIB) lift-out and allowing HR-TEM imaging of the fibers together with nanoscale resolution chemical analysis using energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS). Unexpectedly, core material escapes during spinning and ends up coating the fiber exterior and target substrate. For high core injection rate, a dramatic difference in fiber morphology is found, depending on whether the surface on which the fibers are deposited is hydrophobic or hydrophilic. The latter enhances postspinning extraction of core fluid, resulting in the loss of the functional material and collapsed fiber morphology. Finally, in situ produced TiO2 nanoparticles dispersed in the polymer appear strikingly different when the core fluid is present compared to when the polymer solution is spun on its own

Liquid crystal-functionalization of electrospun polymer fibers

A recently introduced new branch of applied polymer science is the production of highly functional and responsive fiber mats by means of electrospinning polymers that include liquid crystals. The liquid crystal, which provides the responsiveness, is most often contained inside fibers of core-sheath geometry, produced via coaxial electrospinning, but it may also be inherent to the polymer itself, for example, in case of liquid crystal elastomers. The first experiments served as proof of concept and to elucidate the basic behavior of the liquid crystal in the fibers, and the field is now ripe for more applied research targeting novel devices, in particular in the realm of wearable technology. In this perspective, we provide a bird’s eye view of the current state of the art of liquid crystal electrospinning, as well as of some relevant recent developments in the general electrospinning and liquid crystal research areas, allowing us to sketch a picture of where this young research field and its applications may be heading in the next few years

Influence of Wetting on Morphology and Core Content in Electrospun Core–Sheath Fibers

Coaxial electrospinning allows easy and cost-effective realization of composite fibers at the nano- and microscales. Different multifunctional materials can be incorporated with distinct localization to specific regimes of the fiber cross section and extended internal interfaces. However, the final composite properties are affected by variations in internal structure, morphology, and material separation, and thus, nanoscale control is mandatory for high-performance application in devices. Here, we present an analysis with unprecedented detail of the cross section of liquid core-functionalized fibers, yielding information that is difficult to reveal. This is based on focused ion beam (FIB) lift-out and allowing HR-TEM imaging of the fibers together with nanoscale resolution chemical analysis using energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS). Unexpectedly, core material escapes during spinning and ends up coating the fiber exterior and target substrate. For high core injection rate, a dramatic difference in fiber morphology is found, depending on whether the surface on which the fibers are deposited is hydrophobic or hydrophilic. The latter enhances postspinning extraction of core fluid, resulting in the loss of the functional material and collapsed fiber morphology. Finally, in situ produced TiO₂ nanoparticles dispersed in the polymer appear strikingly different when the core fluid is present compared to when the polymer solution is spun on its own

Morphology and Core Continuity of Liquid-crystal-functionalized, Coaxially Electrospun Fiber Mats Tuned Via the Polymer Sheath Solution

By electrospinning liquid crystals coaxially inside a polymer sheath, responsive fibers with application potential, e.g., in wearable sensors can be produced. We conduct a combined scanning electron/polarizing microscopy study of such fibers, concluding that a match between the properties of the sheath solution and that of the core fluid is vital for achieving well-formed and well-filled fibers. Problems that may otherwise arise are fibers that are continuously filled, but partially collapsed; or fibers in which the core breaks up into droplets due to a mismatch in elongational viscosity between inner and outer fluids

CNT/High Mass Loading MnO2/Graphene-Grafted Carbon Cloth Electrodes for High-Energy Asymmetric Supercapacitors

CNT/MnO2/graphene-grafted carbon cloth electrode is designed and achieves high MnO2 mass loading (9.1 mg cm−2). The electrode with favorable electronic/ionic conductivity delivers a large areal capacitance and rate capability. The assembled asymmetric supercapacitor yields a large energy density of 10.18 mWh cm−3.Flexible supercapacitor electrodes with high mass loading are crucial for obtaining favorable electrochemical performance but still challenging due to sluggish electron and ion transport. Herein, rationally designed CNT/MnO2/graphene-grafted carbon cloth electrodes are prepared by a graft-deposit-coat strategy. Due to the large surface area and good conductivity, graphene grafted on carbon cloth offers additional surface areas for the uniform deposition of MnO2 (9.1 mg cm−2) and facilitates charge transfer. Meanwhile, the nanostructured MnO2 provides abundant electroactive sites and short ion transport distance, and CNT coated on MnO2 acts as interconnected conductive highways to accelerate the electron transport, significantly improving redox reaction kinetics. Benefiting from high mass loading of electroactive materials, favorable conductivity, and a porous structure, the electrode achieves large areal capacitances without compromising rate capability. The assembled asymmetric supercapacitor demonstrates a wide working voltage (2.2 V) and high energy density of 10.18 mWh cm−3.This research was supported by the Basic Science Research Program through the National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF) funded by the Ministry of Education (NRF2018R1D1A1B07051249), Nano Material Technology Development Program (NRF-2015M3A7B6027970) of MSIP/NRF and Center for Integrated Smart Sensors funded by the Ministry of Science, ICT, and Future Planning, Republic of Korea, as Global Frontier Project (CISS-2012M3A6A6054186)