TQM and environmental uncertainty levels: profiles,fit, and firm performance

That a manufacturer should align its implementation of Total Quality Management (TQM) to the external environment it faces has been indirectly argued for long. Theoretical and empirical evidence for this argument has, unfortunately, been lacking. Our research remedies this knowledge gap. Borrowing structural contingency theory and the concept of fit, we hypothesised and report three findings. First, we found contrasting normative TQM profiles between a high vs. a low level of environmental uncertainty. Second, we identified significant detrimental impact on firm performance when a firm deviates its TQM implementation from the normative TQM profile prescribed for a specific level of environmental uncertainty. Third, we also discovered discernible differences in the deterioration in firm performance between a positive vs. a negative deviation from the normative TQM profile. These robust findings were derived from analysing secondary survey data from 330 Chinese manufacturing firms via profile deviation analysis, MANOVA, MANCOVA and OLS regression. Contrary to the literature, manufacturers operating in a volatile external environment should pursue and benefit from TQM implementation. Manufacturers should, however, not seek to implement TQM to the fullest extent nor implement TQM half-heartedly. Instead, manufacturers should benchmark best performers as to what the normative TQM profile is and pursue their own TQM implementation to minimise deviations from the normative TQM profile.     

Silicon Decorated Cone Shaped Carbon Nanotube Clusters for Lithium Ion Battery Anodes

In this work, we report the synthesis of an three‐dimensional (3D) cone‐shape CNT clusters (CCC) via chemical vapor deposition (CVD) with subsequent inductively coupled plasma (ICP) treatment. An innovative silicon decorated cone‐shape CNT clusters (SCCC) is prepared by simply depositing amorphous silicon onto CCC via magnetron sputtering. The seamless connection between silicon decorated CNT cones and graphene facilitates the charge transfer in the system and suggests a binder‐free technique of preparing lithium ion battery (LIB) anodes. Lithium ion batteries based on this novel 3D SCCC architecture demonstrates high reversible capacity of 1954 mAh g^?1 and excellent cycling stability (>1200 mAh g^?1 capacity with ≈100% coulombic efficiency after 230 cycles).     

Comorbidity of substance dependence and depression: Role of life stress and self-efficacy in sustaining abstinence.

The authors examined life stress and self-efficacy as predictors of time to relapse for 113 adults with comorbid major depressive disorder and alcohol and/or substance dependence in a randomized clinical trial comparing 2 psychotherapy interventions (integrated cognitive- behavioral therapy and 12-step facilitation therapy). Life stress, self-efficacy, and substance use were assessed at treatment entry, 12 weeks (mid-treatment), and 24 weeks (end of treatment). Time to relapse was defined as the number of days from treatment initiation until first alcohol and/or drug use. Half of the sample relapsed within the study period of 24 weeks. There was no significant difference between treatment groups. Individuals experiencing life stressors were more likely to relapse early than those not experiencing life stressors. Lower self-efficacy also predicted earlier relapse. Chronic stress levels and self-efficacy were stable across time for most individuals. In contrast, acute stress events occurred at differing times, and survival analyses provided evidence of heightened relapse risk in the month following acute stressors. The interaction of self-efficacy and life stress was not significant. The results highlight the significance of life stress and self-efficacy as predictors of early relapse. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effects of BaO–SiO2 glass particle size on the microstructures and dielectric properties of Mn-doped Ba(Ti,Zr)O3 ceramics

The sintering behavior, microstructures and dielectric properties of Mn-doped Ba(Ti, Zr)O₃ (BTZ) ceramics with different particle sizes of BaO–SiO₂ glass (D50 ranging between 185 and 1200 nm) were investigated. From the metallographic observation, adding finer glass frit revealed more homogeneous compositional distribution. It was found that better spreading of the glass phase could be achieved by adding finer glass particles that could penetrate the BTZ ceramic interface more easily, thus enhancing the grain growth. The extent of the incorporation between glass and ceramic increased with smaller glass particles, and the Curie temperature was altered accordingly. Microstructural evaluation conducted by using X-ray diffraction (XRD) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) with an energy-dispersive X-ray spectrometer (EDS) indicated the glass particle size has a dramatic influence on the sintering behavior and microstructure of Mn-doped BTZ ceramics. The relationship between microstructures and dielectric properties was also discussed in this study.     

900 keV gold ion sputter etching of silicon and metals

Au ions (900 keV) have been used to directly sputter etch microstructures in silicon, aluminum, copper and silver. The results presented clearly demonstrate that high energy heavy ions can be used to fabricate microstructures in selected metals and silicon in a single step process.     

Occurrence and removal of priority pollutants by lamella clarification and biofiltration

This study investigates the occurrence of all priority substances (n = 41) listed in the Water Framework Directive and additional substances (n = 47) in raw sewage, as well as the removal performance of lamella clarification and biofiltration techniques. Once the efficiency of both types of techniques has been assessed for typical wastewater parameters, the differences in each technique's ability to remove pollutants becomes obvious; nevertheless, pollutant removal in quantitative terms still depends on the physico-chemical properties of the compounds used and operating conditions within the selected facility. For lamella clarification, the removal of organic chemicals was found to be primarily correlated with their sorption potential and, hence, strongly dependent upon log K_ow of the compound under study. Compounds with a strong hydrophobic character (log K_ow > 4.5) are removed to a significant extent (approx. 85%), while hydrophilic compounds (log K_ow < 3.5) are poorly removed (<20%). For biofiltration, the removal of chemicals appears to be compound-dependent, although this outcome involves several mechanisms, namely: i) physical filtration of total suspended solids, ii) volatilisation, iii) sorption, and iv) biotransformation of substances. Even if the complex processes within a biofilter system do not yield an accurate prediction of pollutant removal, two groups of chemicals can still be clearly identified: i) hydrophobic or volatile compounds, for which moderate to high removal rates are observed (from 50% to over 80%); and ii) hydrophilic, non-volatile and refractory compounds for which a low removal rate would be expected (<20%).     

Multi-scale Discontinuous Galerkin Method for Solving Elliptic Problems with Curvilinear Unidirectional Rough Coefficients

In this paper, we propose a multi-scale discontinuous Galerkin (DG) method for second-order elliptic problems with curvilinear unidirectional rough coefficients by choosing a special non-polynomial approximation space. The key ingredient of the method lies in the incorporation of the local oscillatory features of the differential operators into the approximation space so as to capture the multi-scale solutions without having to resolve the finest scales. The unidirectional feature of the rough coefficients allows us to construct the basis functions of the DG non-polynomial approximation space explicitly, thereby greatly increasing the algorithm efficiency. Detailed error estimates for two-dimensional second-order DG methods are derived, and a general guidance on how to construct such non-polynomial basis is discussed. Numerical examples are also presented to validate and demonstrate the effectiveness of the algorithm.     

Characterization of an Ecuadorian crude using a vibrating-tube densimeter and a vibrating-wire viscometer

Abstract

Two accurate experimental techniques have been used to characterize a sample of crude from an oil field of the Ecuadorian Amazon Region. An automated Anton Paar DMA HPM vibrating-tube densimeter was used to measure densities. A vibrating-wire viscometer was developed to accurately measure viscosities for pure compounds and mixtures. The experimental data on density were correlated with the Tait equation. The experimental data on viscosity were fitted using an empirical representation of Vogel-Fulcher-Tamman (VFT) combined with the Tait equation, as well as the Mehrotra equation.