An Approach to Discovering Product/Service Improvement Priorities : Using Dynamic Importance-Performance Analysis

This research was funded by the National Natural Science Foundation of China grant numbers 71772075, 71302153, and 71672074; the Technology R&D Foundation of Guangzhou, China grant number 201607010012; the Social Science Foundation of Guangzhou, China grant number 2018GZYB31; and the Foundation of Chinese Government Scholarship grant number 201806785010. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this paper are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the above funding agencies.Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Thermosensitive Nanocables Prepared by Surface-Initiated Atom Transfer Radical Polymerization

Thermosensitive nanocables consisting of Au nanowire cores and poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) sheaths (denoted as Au/PNIPAAm) were synthesized by surface-initiated atom transfer radical polymerization (SI-ATRP). The formation of PNIPAAm sheath was verified by Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) and hydrogen nuclear magnetic resonance (1H NMR) spectroscopy. Transmission electron microscope (TEM) results confirmed the core/shell structure of nanohybrids. The thickness and density of PNIPAAm sheaths can be adjusted by controlling the amount of cross-linker during the polymerization. Signature temperature response was observed from Au/cross-linked-PNIPAAm nanocables. Such smart nanocables show immense potentials as building blocks for novel thermosensitive nanodevices in future

Study of a strong inhibitory solid-free drilling fluid

The study on the problem of hydration and dispersion expansion of shale and the poor high temperature resistance and lubrication performance of mud with soil is carried out. The selection of viscosity enhancer, filter loss reducing agent, lubricant and inhibitor in solid-state drilling fluid was carried out through experiments. The formula of solid-free drilling fluid was 0.2% 1831+1% xanthan gum+1% phenolic resin and 1% sodium benzenesulfonate. The linear expansion rate of bentonite is less than 20%, which shows that the formulation has good inhibition performance. The mud ball in the drilling fluid after 48 h of storage did not undergo hydration expansion, which indicated that the formulation had strong inhibition on the hydration expansion of clay. Finally, after heating the formula in a roller heating furnace at 120 °C for 16 h, the plastic viscosity, dynamic shear force and apparent viscosity of the formula were determined as 14.00 mPa·s, 24.00 Pa and 39.50 mPa·s respectively, while FL (filtration loss) was 17 mL. In conclusion, the strong inhibition solid-phase drilling fluid formula is superior in both the inhibition of hydration expansion and the high temperature resistance of clay

A Model and Empirical Study on the User’s Continuance Intention in Online China Brand Communities Based on Customer-Perceived Benefits

Many Chinese companies have recently joined a trend to build their own online brand community, which is good for their corporate strategy and even for innovation, but with a high failure rate due to the low continuance intentions of users. In addition, related research is rare, especially for studies on the relationships between customer-perceived benefits, satisfaction, and the continuance intention of users. The objective of this study was to examine the existing relationships between three constructs: customer-perceived benefits, satisfaction, and user’s continuance intention, in the context of Chinese online brand communities from the perspective of the process. An online questionnaire surveyed 153 online brand community users to understand the relationship between customer-perceived benefits, customer satisfaction, and user’s continuance intention. The data analysis shows that customer-perceived benefits as an antecedent variable have an important influence on the satisfaction and continuance intention of users. Customer satisfaction as a mediator variable also makes a significant positive impact on the user’s continuance intention. At a practical level, the result provides further insight into online brand community operation strategies, and provides managers with new ideas and suggestions for business innovation models

A deeper investigation of different types of core users and their contributions for sustainable innovation in a company-hosted online co-creation community

Online co-creation allows companies to leverage external sources of knowledge to sustain product or service innovation. Users knowledge is regarded as such a potential source. Understanding user behaviors and innovation types is vital to improving a companys sustainable innovation. Many prior studies mainly categorized online community members into core and peripheral members based on their posting frequencies. However, little research has gone beyond that categorization and examined whether there may be different types of core members who may contribute to product or service innovation differently, especially in the context of co-creation. The objectives of this study are three-fold: (1) to identify core members of a company-hosted online co-creation community automatically by considering several dimensions of individual members, including posting behavior, the generated content, and social network features; (2) to categorize and compare the contributions of different types of core members in the community, aiming to identify community members who may play leadership roles in sustainable innovation; and (3) to investigate the influence of those different types of core members on other community members. The data collected from a company-hosted online co-creation community in China were analyzed. Through analysis, we developed a novel innovation-oriented topology of core community members consisting of eight types. Based on Practice Theory, we also explored how those different types of core community members may influence other members behavior. Finally, based on the findings, we propose strategies and guidelines for practitioners to keep different types of community members actively engaged in online co-creation and to manage sustainable innovation practice better. (C) 2020 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.Funding Agencies|National Natural Science Foundation of ChinaNational Natural Science Foundation of China [71772075, 71672074]; Social Science Foundation of Guangzhou, China [2018GZYB31]The accepted version of this article is available on the author's personal web page.</p

Electrostatic complex of didodecyldimethylammonium and DNA: Langmuir monolayer, Langmuir–Blodgett film and dye recognition at air/water interface

DNA&ndash;didodecyldimethylammonium (DNA&ndash;DDDA) electrostatic complex was prepared and characterized through Fourier transformation infrared (FT-IR), 1H NMR and circular dichroism (CD) spectroscopy. When the dye molecule aqueous solutions were used as the subphase, the interaction between three dye molecules, acridine orange (AO), ethidium bromide (EB) and 5,10,15,20-tetrakis(4-N-methylpyridyl)porphine tetra(p-toluenesulfonate) (TMPyP) and the complex at air/solution interface were investigated through the surface pressure&ndash;area (&pi;&ndash;A) isotherms, Brewster angle microscopy and UV-Vis spectroscopy, respectively. Our investigation indicates that the interaction capabilities of the three dyes to DNA&ndash;DDDA complex are different and present an order of TMPyP&gt;AO&gt;EB. For the interaction forms, we believe that TMPyP intercalates into the double helix of DNA, and AO adsorbs onto the surface of the DNA. As for EB, the measured signal is too weak to give a definite interaction form in the present experiment.<br /

UCST-Type Soluble Immobilized Cellulase: A New Strategy for the Efficient Degradation and Improved Recycling Performance of Wastepaper Cellulose

This paper reports an innovative study that aims to address key issues in the efficient recycling of wastepaper cellulose. The research team utilized the temperature-responsive upper critical solution temperature (UCST) polymer P(NAGA-b-DMA) in combination with the LytA label’s affinity for choline analogs. This innovative approach enabled them to successfully develop a novel soluble immobilized enzyme, P(NAGA-b-DMA)-cellulase. This new enzyme has proven highly effective, significantly enhancing the degradation of wastepaper cellulose while demonstrating exceptional stability. Compared with the traditional insoluble immobilized cellulase, the enzyme showed a significant improvement in the pH, temperature stability, recycling ability, and storage stability. A kinetic parameter calculation showed that the enzymatic effectiveness of the soluble immobilized enzyme was much better than that of the traditional insoluble immobilized cellulase. After the immobilization reaction, the Michaelis constant of the immobilized enzyme was only increased by 11.5%. In the actual wastepaper degradation experiment, the immobilized enzyme was effectively used, and it was found that the degradation efficiency of wastepaper cellulose reached 80% of that observed in laboratory conditions. This novel, thermosensitive soluble immobilized cellulase can efficiently catalyze the conversion of wastepaper cellulose into glucose under suitable conditions, so as to further ferment into environmentally friendly biofuel ethanol, which provides a solution to solve the shortage of raw materials and environmental protection problems in the paper products industry