Overcoming barriers towards Sustainable Product-Service Systems in Small and Medium-sized enterprises: State of the art and a novel Decision Matrix

The Sustainable Product-Service Systems are a promising approach based on a Triple Bottom Line perspective of the sustainability. However, its practical and effective adoption is still very limited and addresses significant barriers for the manufacturing firms. Furthermore, this emergent topic has been discussed by literature mainly in large company's context, turning in a very limited and immature stage the current body of knowledge for the Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs). Thus, considering the significance of small companies to the global economy and their intrinsic difficulties, the purpose of this study was to identify the main barriers involving the transition towards Sustainable Product-Service Systems in manufacturing Small and Medium-sized Enterprises as well as the strategies to overcome them. A systematic literature review of the past two decades was organized capturing the state of the art of the area. Findings reveal that internal barriers associated with intrinsic characteristics of SMEs become still more sensitive during the transition (e.g., limited financial resources, the lack of competences, follower mentality and resistance to change). As well as, barriers related with the novelty of Sustainable Product-Service Systems models require new attitudes to small companies (e.g., changing mindsets from product ownership to use, replacing the value of exchange by value in use involving long-term relations, understanding the Product-Service Systems concept) and particularly highlight the lack of models/methods supporting this transition. The practical contribution of this study is in organise a comprehensive body of knowledge on strategies to overcome barriers towards Sustainable Product-Service offering. Moreover, an innovative decision matrix supporting decision-makers during the Sustainable Product-Service System development was proposed from the literature review findings. (C) 2019 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved

Influência do acondicionamento na retenção de ß-caroteno em chips de mandioca biofortificada.

Neste trabalho avaliou-se o uso de uma embalagem de BOPP met/BOPP, material utilizado no mercado para produtos similares sendo realizado o acondicionamento do produto no ar (21% de oxigênio) e com inertização com nitrogênio (2,7% de oxigênio) com posterior estocagem a 25 °C/75% UR. Na embalagem de BOPP/BOPP metalizado no ar a perda de 50% do teor de ß-caroteno ocorreu próximo aos 60 dias de estocagem, enquanto que na embalagem inertizada esta perda ocorreu próximo aos 90 - 100 dias de estocagem

Elaboração de óleo de soja enriquecido com carotenoides provitamínicos A para aplicação em snacks.

Os carotenoides são pigmentos naturais responsáveis pela cor amarela, laranja ou vermelha de muitos alimentos. Alguns são precursores de vitamina A e podem ser utilizados no combate à deficiência desta vitamina. A presença de lipídeos na dieta é fundamental para a absorção dos carotenoides. Neste trabalho foi descrito o processamento para a elaboração de óleo de soja enriquecido com carotenoides provitamínicos A para aplicação em snacks de milho obtidos por extrusão, visando contribuir para o atendimento à Ingestão Diária Recomendada para vitamina A. O óleo de soja comercial e o enriquecido com carotenoides provitamínicos A foram aplicados aos snacks. O teor de carotenoides totais nos snacks elaborados com óleo enriquecido e com óleo comercial foi de 2.294 ?g/100 g e 72 ?g/100 g, respectivamente. Portanto, houve um incremento de 3.186% no teor de carotenoides. Os resultados da análise sensorial revelaram que a adição do óleo enriquecido ocasionou um aumento significativo das notas de aceitação (de 5,78% para 6,29%) do snack. Assim, obteve-se um ingrediente com diferencial nutricional e sensorial. A aplicação do óleo em snacks de milho demonstrou a viabilidade de utilização do produto e o seu potencial em oferecer um alimento que contribua para o atendimento da Ingestão Diária Recomendada para vitamina A. Carotenoids are natural pigments responsible for the yellow, orange or red color of many foods. Some are precursors of vitamin A and can be used to combat vitamin A deficiency. The presence of lipids in the diet is essential for the absorption of carotenoids. In this work, the processing for the elaboration of soybean oil enriched with provitamin A carotenoids for application in corn snacks obtained by extrusion was described, aiming to contribute to meeting the Recommended Daily Intake for vitamin A. Commercial and enriched soybean oil with pro-vitamin A carotenoids were applied to snacks. The total carotenoid content in snacks made with oil enriched with pro-vitamin A and with commercial oil was 2,294 μg/100 g and 72 μg/100 g, respectively. Therefore, there was an increase of 3,186% in the carotenoid content. The results of the sensory analysis revealed that the addition of the enriched oil caused a significant increase in the acceptance value (from 5.78% to 6.29%) of the snack. Thus, an ingredient with nutritional and sensorial differential was obtained. The application of the oil in corn snacks demonstrated the feasibility of using the product and its potential to offer a food that contributes to meetingthe Recommended Daily Intake for vitamin

Measurement of the cosmic ray spectrum above 4×10184{\times}10^{18} eV using inclined events detected with the Pierre Auger Observatory

A measurement of the cosmic-ray spectrum for energies exceeding $4{\times}10^{18}$ eV is presented, which is based on the analysis of showers with zenith angles greater than $60^{\circ}$ detected with the Pierre Auger Observatory between 1 January 2004 and 31 December 2013. The measured spectrum confirms a flux suppression at the highest energies. Above $5.3{\times}10^{18}$ eV, the "ankle", the flux can be described by a power law $E^{-\gamma}$ with index $\gamma=2.70 \pm 0.02 \,\text{(stat)} \pm 0.1\,\text{(sys)}$ followed by a smooth suppression region. For the energy ($E_\text{s}$) at which the spectral flux has fallen to one-half of its extrapolated value in the absence of suppression, we find $E_\text{s}=(5.12\pm0.25\,\text{(stat)}^{+1.0}_{-1.2}\,\text{(sys)}){\times}10^{19}$ eV.Comment: Replaced with published version. Added journal reference and DO

Energy Estimation of Cosmic Rays with the Engineering Radio Array of the Pierre Auger Observatory

The Auger Engineering Radio Array (AERA) is part of the Pierre Auger Observatory and is used to detect the radio emission of cosmic-ray air showers. These observations are compared to the data of the surface detector stations of the Observatory, which provide well-calibrated information on the cosmic-ray energies and arrival directions. The response of the radio stations in the 30 to 80 MHz regime has been thoroughly calibrated to enable the reconstruction of the incoming electric field. For the latter, the energy deposit per area is determined from the radio pulses at each observer position and is interpolated using a two-dimensional function that takes into account signal asymmetries due to interference between the geomagnetic and charge-excess emission components. The spatial integral over the signal distribution gives a direct measurement of the energy transferred from the primary cosmic ray into radio emission in the AERA frequency range. We measure 15.8 MeV of radiation energy for a 1 EeV air shower arriving perpendicularly to the geomagnetic field. This radiation energy -- corrected for geometrical effects -- is used as a cosmic-ray energy estimator. Performing an absolute energy calibration against the surface-detector information, we observe that this radio-energy estimator scales quadratically with the cosmic-ray energy as expected for coherent emission. We find an energy resolution of the radio reconstruction of 22% for the data set and 17% for a high-quality subset containing only events with at least five radio stations with signal.Comment: Replaced with published version. Added journal reference and DO

Measurement of the Radiation Energy in the Radio Signal of Extensive Air Showers as a Universal Estimator of Cosmic-Ray Energy

We measure the energy emitted by extensive air showers in the form of radio emission in the frequency range from 30 to 80 MHz. Exploiting the accurate energy scale of the Pierre Auger Observatory, we obtain a radiation energy of 15.8 \pm 0.7 (stat) \pm 6.7 (sys) MeV for cosmic rays with an energy of 1 EeV arriving perpendicularly to a geomagnetic field of 0.24 G, scaling quadratically with the cosmic-ray energy. A comparison with predictions from state-of-the-art first-principle calculations shows agreement with our measurement. The radiation energy provides direct access to the calorimetric energy in the electromagnetic cascade of extensive air showers. Comparison with our result thus allows the direct calibration of any cosmic-ray radio detector against the well-established energy scale of the Pierre Auger Observatory.Comment: Replaced with published version. Added journal reference and DOI. Supplemental material in the ancillary file

Eco-bio-social determinants for house infestation by non-domiciliated Triatoma dimidiata in the Yucatan peninsula, Mexico

Background Chagas disease is a vector-borne disease of major importance in the Americas. Disease prevention is mostly limited to vector control. Integrated interventions targeting ecological, biological and social determinants of vector-borne diseases are increasingly used for improved control. Methodology/principal findings We investigated key factors associated with transient house infestation by T. dimidiata in rural villages in Yucatan, Mexico, using a mixed modeling approach based on initial null-hypothesis testing followed by multimodel inference and averaging on data from 308 houses from three villages. We found that the presence of dogs, chickens and potential refuges, such as rock piles, in the peridomicile as well as the proximity of houses to vegetation at the periphery of the village and to public light sources are major risk factors for infestation. These factors explain most of the intra-village variations in infestation. Conclusions/significance These results underline a process of infestation distinct from that of domiciliated triatomines and may be used for risk stratification of houses for both vector surveillance and control. Combined integrated vector interventions, informed by an Ecohealth perspective, should aim at targeting several of these factors to effectively reduce infestation and provide sustainable vector control