A Decision Model for E-commerce-enabled Partial Market Exit

Struggling retail chains often try to recover profitability by closing some of their stores. The challenge in this strategy lies in determining how many stores to close, as store exit has implications for both the customers and the supply chain. After a store closes, its customers are lost forever to the competition, unless there is a surviving open store nearby or an electronic alternative such as an e-store. From the supply chain perspective, after a store closes, its supporting regional distribution center is left with less business, and thus reduced viability. This paper develops a decision support model to study the profitability of alternative retail network structures by varying the proportion of stores that are closed, the average price sensitivity of demand, the price difference between the online store and the traditional retailers, and customer retention rates

Mathematical Modeling for Demurrage Reduction in Coal Transportation for an Indian Thermal Power Plant

Competitive pressures on power plants have seen them attempting to reduce their operating expenses for profitable operations. In India, the plants use wagons of the Indian Railways to transport coal from the mines (in case of domestic coal) or from the ports (in case of imported coal). Once these loaded railway wagons have reached the power plant, they need to be unloaded and released within a stipulated time frame. If there is any delay beyond the stipulated time, the power plant has to pay penalty cost to the Indian Railways. In this paper, we describe an analysis of the underlying causes behind these delays. We use correlation analysis, queuing theory and simulation to mathematically model the coal arrival process in the company. The recommendation suggested by the study is currently under implementation.

Online market entry: the motivations for imitation across retailer types

This study examines the motivations for imitation in retailers’ online channel entry. Extant literature suggests that legitimacy and efficiency are the primary motivators for firms to imitate. We develop hypotheses which center on the belief that not all firm types would use the same motivator for deciding to imitate and enter the online market; legitimacy would be the driving force for some retailer types while efficiency would be the motivator for others. We test our hypotheses on a unique data collected from multiple sources. Our findings confirm that the motivators for imitation vary across retailer types. Bhatnagar, Amit and Nikolaeva, Ralitza and Ghose, Sanjoy, Online Market Entry: The Motivations for Imitation Across Retailer Types (November 2014). Managerial and Decision Economics, Forthcoming. Available at SSRN: http://ssrn.com/abstract=252208

Photocatalytic degradation of antibiotic and hydrogen production using diatom-templated 3D WO3-x@mesoporous carbon nanohybrid under visible light irradiation

Synthesis of highly efficient 3D photocatalysts offers unique abilities for hydrogen production and chemical conversion to find a solution for energy shortage and environmental pollution issues. However, current strategies for production of ordered nanohybrid photocatalysts usually involve complex procedures and the use of expensive templates, which limit their practical applications. In this work, 3D WO3-x@mesoporous carbon photocatalyst was fabricated through one-pot evaporation-induced self-assembly (EISA) process using Cyclotella sp. as natural template. During heat-treatment, the precursor of carbon could partially reduce tungsten oxide under N-2 atmosphere leading to the embedding of WO3-x in conductive mesoporous carbon structure. The diatom templated WO3-x@mesoporous carbon (DTWO3-x@MC) nanohybrid exhibited high surface area (195.37 m(2) g(-1)) and narrowed band gap (2.67 eV). Integration of tungsten oxide with mesoporous carbon and formation of oxygen vacancies enhanced the absorption of visible light using DT-WO3-x@MC and limited the recombination of electron-hole pairs. 98.7% of cefazolin (CFZ) degradation efficiency and 85.5% of total organic carbon (TOC) removal efficiency were observed within 90 and 180 min under visible light irradiation, respectively. Scavenger quenching tests and electron spin resonance (ESR) analysis demonstrated that O-2(center dot-) played a main role in photocatalysis. CFZ degradation pathway was proposed via identification of conversion intermediates using GC-MS analysis. Photocatalytic hydrogen production rates of the pure WO3 and the DT-WO3-x@MC nanohybrid were determined as 746 and 1851 mmol g(-1) h(-1), respectively. This study presented a way to develop a high-performance and stable photocatalyst using diatom frustules as natural template which works under practical conditions for environmental remediation and energy production. (C) 2020 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.Peer reviewe

Online market entry: the motivations for imitation across retailer types

This study examines the motivations for imitation in retailers’ online channel entry. Extant literature suggests that legitimacy and efficiency are the primary motivators for firms to imitate. We develop hypotheses which center on the belief that not all firm types would use the same motivator for deciding to imitate and enter the online market; legitimacy would be the driving force for some retailer types while efficiency would be the motivator for others. We test our hypotheses on a unique data collected from multiple sources. Our findings confirm that the motivators for imitation vary across retailer types. Bhatnagar, Amit and Nikolaeva, Ralitza and Ghose, Sanjoy, Online Market Entry: The Motivations for Imitation Across Retailer Types (November 2014). Managerial and Decision Economics, Forthcoming. Available at SSRN: http://ssrn.com/abstract=252208

Where children construct knowledge

Work is inextricably linked to learning. If our education system pretends to have something to do with learning (not just creating a work force for industry) then it has to incorporate work in its curriculum. It is a must

Synthesis of N-Doped Magnetic WO3–x@Mesoporous Carbon Using a Diatom Template and Plasma Modification : Visible-Light-Driven Photocatalytic Activities

Synthesis of three-dimensional photocatalysts offers great potential for chemical conversion and hydrogen generation as appropriate solutions for environmental protection and energy shortage challenges. In this study, the magnetic WO3–x@mesoporous carbon (M-WO3–x@MC) was synthesized through the evaporation-induced self-assembly method applying diatom frustules as a natural template. Then, plasma modification was used to prepare the N-doped M-WO3–x@MC (NM-WO3–x@MC) with enhanced photocatalytic activity and durable performance. The WO3–x was embedded in the conductive MC, which was also partially reduced by the carbon precursor within the heat-treatment procedure. The obtained M-WO3–x@MC was treated by the plasma under an N2 atmosphere for the production of the final photocatalyst containing both the N-doped WO3–x and MC. As a result, the NM-WO3–x@MC had larger surface area (208.4 m2 g–1), narrower band gap (2.3 eV), more visible light harvesting, and confined electron–hole pairs recombination. The H2 generation rates of net WO3 nanorods and NM-WO3–x@MC nanocomposite were estimated as 532 and 2765 μmol g–1 h–1, respectively. Additionally, more than 90% of antibiotics (cephalexin, cefazolin and cephradine) degradation and 76% of total organic carbon elimination were obtained after 120 and 240 min of photocatalytic process under visible light irradiation. Eventually, more than eight intermediates were detected for each antibiotic degradation using the gas chromatography–mass spectrometer method, and based on the obtained results, the possible degradation pathways were suggested.Peer reviewe