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Measuring the Economic Burden of Health Conditions among White?Collar Employees: A Cross?Sectional Study from Delhi? NCR
Background: In the past few decades, there has been a significant increase in healthcare expenditure due to the prevalence of health issues across the globe. This is primarily seen among white-collar employees due to the sedentary nature of their jobs, which affects their current earnings (Purchasing Power) directly due to the reallocation of their real income towards healthcare expenditure (Economic Burden) and indirectly by impacting work productivity through sick leaves. Aim: To measure the economic burden of disease(s) among white-collar employees, and to study the same across different socio-demographic variables. Methods: A cross-sectional study has been conducted in the region of Delhi-NCR among 357 white-collar employees. A random sampling method was adopted using a structured questionnaire. The questionnaire collected information regarding the direct and indirect costs of health conditions with a recall period of one month. The cumulative score of these monthly costs was converted to annual data to estimate the economic burden of the health conditions among the employees over a year. Results: As compared to Communicable diseases (16.24%), Non-communicable diseases (27.17%) were more prevalent among the respondents. Compared to other diseases, the employees suffering from Heart diseases (INR 7,62,237.50), Spinal health issues (INR 1,73,625.00), and Diabetes (INR 1,64,535.71) incurred more economic burden. At a 5% significance level, no significant difference was observed in economic burden for Gender and BMI. However, the economic burden was significantly different across the categories of Age and Monthly income. A positive association can be observed in economic burden with the increasing categories of age and monthly income. Conclusion: With the nature of sedentary work (desk jobs), white-collar employees are at a greater risk of exposure to various NCDs than CDs and incur a significant amount of out-of-pocket expenditure to manage their health status. 2023 Wolters Kluwer Medknow Publications. All rights reserved. -
Mechanical and abrasive wear behaviour of waste silk fiber reinforced epoxy biocomposites using taguchi method
The aim of this research article is to study the static mechanical properties and abrasive wear behavior of epoxy biocomposites reinforced with different weight percentage of waste silk fibers. The effect of parameters such as velocity (A), load (B), fiber loading (C) and abrading distance (D) on abrasive wear has been considered using Taguchi's L25 orthogonal array. The objective is to examine parameters which significantly affect the abrasive wear of biocomposites. The addition of silk fiber has resulted in improved flexural properties of the epoxy matrix. The results of ANOVA indicated that the parameter which played a significant role was abrading distance followed by fiber loading, load and sliding velocity. 2019 Trans Tech Publications Ltd, Switzerland. -
Mechanical and Dielectric Properties of InTe Crystals
Crystal Structure Theory and Applications, Vol-1, pp. 79-83. -
Mechanical and tribological investigation on al lm4/tic composite fabricated through bottom pouring method
In the present investigation LM4 reinforced 6 wt% Titanium Carbide particles composite was developed by stir casting bottom pouring method. The cast composite specimen was obtained in a cylindrical shape of dimensions 50 mm dia and 100 mm length. The composite specimens were prepared for mechanical and tribological test as per ASTM standards. The obtained results reveal that the mechanical properties are high as compared to the as cast LM4 alloy specimens. Microstructure analysis confirms that the uniform distribution of TiC particles. Tribological test was performed using pin-on-disc machine based on Taguchi's design of experiments. L27 orthogonal array was selected by changing test parameter like applied load (10, 20, 30 N), sliding distance (600, 800, 1000 m) and sliding velocity (1.5 m/s, 2.5 m/s and 3.5 m/s). The most influencing test parameters were identified by using S/N ratio and ANOVA. The wear results reveled that wear rate increases as applied load increases, and it decreases with decrease in velocity. Also wear rate decreases as sliding distance increases and at some point, it became linear. The applied load was found to be most dominating (77.61%), sliding velocity (10.44%) and sliding distance (4.47%) are less dominating factors. Worn surface morphology was studied to understand the type of wear. 2021 elsevier ltd. all rights reserved. -
Mechanical and tribological properties of polymer composites developed by FDM
In the coming years, researchers and manufacturers will be more concerned with the demand for products that are easy to construct and can be rendered seamlessly, even at complicated geometries, with the touch of a button. These requirements will be met by the advent of additive manufacturing. This will serve as the catalyst for a revolution. Additive layer manufacturing (ALM), also known as additive manufacturing (AM) or more commonly referred to as 3D printing, is a modern fabrication technology that uses a variety of raw materials to produce items such as medical implants and aircraft wing components by printing layers of material based on 3D digital models. In this chapter, the authors provide a comprehensive overview of the mechanical and tribological behaviour of ceramic, metallic, and fiber-reinforced polymer composites that are made by a range of additive manufacturing (AM) techniques. These composites can be used in a variety of applications, including aerospace, automotive, and medical. 2023, IGI Global. All rights reserved. -
Mechanical and Wear Behavior of Aluminium Metal Matrix Composites Reinforced Ceramics Materials for Light Structures
Aluminium Alloy based Metal Matrix Composites (AAMMCs) has widely used in defense, aircraft and automobile applications because of their enhanced engineering properties with light weight metals. Nano sized silicon nitride (80 ?m) is used as a reinforcement in this study, whereas aluminium alloy 8011 is selected as the matrix material. Using the stir casting method, metal matrix composites made of aluminium alloy 8011 with varying weight percentages of Si3N4(0, 4, 8, 12, and 16) are created. The stir casted AL 8011/Si3N4composites further heated under T6 condition. The AL 8011/Si3N4 T6 composites are further subjected to Energy Dispersive X ray Analysis (EDAX) and Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) to identify by the presence of elements and study the microstructure characterization, respectively. The density, microhardness and wear test are conducted by employing Archimedes principle, Vickers hardness tested and pin on disc equipment, respectively. The wear test is done at different sliding distances like (500, 1000, 1500 and 2000 m), applied load like (10, 20, 30 and 40 N) and kept sliding at a speed of 1 m/s. The increasing weight percentage of silicon nitride expands the increasing of density and Vickers hardness up to 12 wt % of silicon nitride and decreasing by 16 wt % addition. The wear resistances of AL 8011/12 wt % Si3N4T6 composite exhibits higher wear resistance than other Al8011 based composites. 2024, Informatics Publishing Limited. All rights reserved. -
Mechanical and Wear Behavior of Halloysite Nanotubes Filled Silk/Basalt Hybrid Composites Using Response Surface Methodology
The aim of this study is to develop bio-friendly light weight polymer nanocomposites for load bearing applications and to evaluate the influence of halloysite nanotubes (HNTs) on mechanical as well as wear behavior of silk fiber (SF) and basalt fiber (BF) reinforced epoxy (Ep) composites. HNT filled biocomposites were fabricated using vacuum bagging technique. The Box-Behnken design (BBD) of experiment with Response surface methodology (RSM) was used to conduct the dry-sliding wear tests on a pin on disc apparatus. Tribo-mechanical properties and worn surface micrographs of hybrid composite samples were analyzed. Hardness, tensile strength and wear resistance behavior of SF + BF/Ep hybrid composites were substantially improved with the incorporation of HNTs. It was observed from the confirmation test that there is a strong agreement between the experimental findings as well as the predicted values, with a minimum reported error of <5% for HNT-SF + BF/Ep hybrid nanocomposites. SEM micrographs of the worn-out surface of HNT filled SF + BF/Ep composite exhibited fiber breakage, pulverized matrix, good interfacial bonding and fractured fibers. The novelty of the current research work is the development of eco-friendly polymeric composites for wear resistant and structural applications. The effect of hybridization (fiberssilk and basalt, fillersHNTs) on the tribo-mechanical properties of polymeric composites were investigated for the first time. The study showed that the mechanical as well as the tribological properties of SF and BF reinforced epoxy composites were enhanced with the addition of nanofiller. The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd. 2023. -
Mechanical Properties and Analysis of Two-body Abrasive Wear Behaviour of Graphene Modified Carbon/Epoxy Composites Using Taguchis Technique
The present work emphasizes the effect of graphene nanoplatelets (G) filler loading on mechanical and abrasive wear behavior of carbon fibre reinforced epoxy (C/E) composites. Graphene nanoplatelets were mixed with epoxy framework using a temperature-controlled magnetic stirrer and then ultrasonically treated. The parameters considered for the abrasive wear study are the applied load in N (5, 10 and 15), abrading distance in m (75, 150, and 225) and weight percentage of reinforcement (0, 1, and 1.5). The incorporation of 1 wt. % G into C/E composites increases hardness by 14 % and interlaminar laminar strength by 19 % when compared to C/E composites. According to the Taguchi design of tests, a filler loading of 1 wt. % G, an abrading distance of 225 m, and an applied load of 15 N are ideal. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) was done to establish the dominant parameter, and the filler loading with abrading distance was shown to be significant. With 36.4 %, the filler loading had the biggest influence on the composite specific wear rate. The combination of filler loading with 1 wt. %, load of 15 N, and abrading distance of 225 m yields the lowest specific wear rate. The involved wear mechanisms during the abrasive wear process have also been explained with scanning electron micrographs. 2024 Published by Faculty of Engineering. -
Mechanical Properties of FSW Joints Magnesium Alloy at Different Rotational Speeds
Magnesium (Mg) has become a focus in the transportation industry due to its potential in reducing fuel consumption and gas emissions while improving recyclability. Mg alloys are also known for their low neutron absorption, good resistant of carbon dioxide as well as thermal conductivity which makes them suitable for use in industrial equipment for nuclear energy. there has been an increasing interest in the research and development of Mg alloys. These are the lightest of all metallic structural materials and are approximately 33% lighter than aluminium (Al) and 75% lighter than ferrous (Fe) alloys and have excellent specific mechanical properties. In this work, FSW of AZ31B Alloy was examined at the various rotational speeds of 900 -1440 rpm, with fixed welding speed of 40mm/min and 2 tool tilt angle using an HSS tool. The mechanical properties were compared for the different rotational speeds. The quality of FSW joints is dependent on input value of heat and material flow rate, which are prejudiced by process parameters., higher rotation speeds may cause abnormal stirring, resulting in a tunnel defect at the weld nugget due to increased strain rate and turbulence. 2024 E3S Web of Conferences -
Mechanical strength and impact resistance of hybrid fiber reinforced concrete with coconut and polypropylene fibers
This experimental study investigates the mechanical properties and resistance to impact of concrete reinforced with coconut fibers (CF) and polypropylene fibers (PPF). The fiber proportions were decided based on the results obtained from the tests on coconut fiber reinforced concrete (CFRC) and polypropylene fiber reinforced concrete (PPFRC), tested individually. PP fibers of 12 mm and 24 mm of 0.1%, 0.2%, and 0.3% of the volume of concrete were used in PPFRC. Coconut fibers having 50 mm and 75 mm of 0.2%, 0.3%, and 0.4% of the volume of concrete were used in CFRC. Based on test results, PPF (12 mm) and CF (50 mm) were selected for hybrid fiber reinforced concrete (HyFRC). By varying both PPF and CF content, three different proportions with a total fiber content of 0.2% and 0.3% of the volume of concrete were selected. The improvement in strength was observed to be maximum when the total fiber content in the hybrid fiber reinforced concrete was 0.3%. The increase in impact resistance of HyFRC was almost double that of individual FRC and three times that of plain concrete. 2022 -
Mechanical Strength and Microstructure of GGBS-SCBA based Geopolymer Concrete
This paper deals with the attempt to develop and study the performance of ground granulated blast furnace slag (GGBS) and sugarcane bagasse ash (SCBA) based sustainable geopolymer concrete. NaOH (8M, 10M, and 12M) and Na2SiO3 were used as alkaline activators with a ratio of 2.5. SCBA mainly acted as amorphous silica and has been utilized as a substitute material for GGBS. The effect of SCBA contents (0%, 5%, 10%, 15% & 20% by the mass of binder) in terms of fresh, hardened, microstructural, and correlation properties of geopolymer concrete developed have been evaluated. Different tests such as the slump cone test, compression test, split tensile test, flexure test, and ultrasonic pulse velocity test were conducted. Scanning electron microscopy, Energy dispersive analysis, and X-ray diffraction analysis were investigated for understanding the microstructural properties. The research findings have shown that with an increase in molarity from 8M to 12M there is an increase in the strength properties of geopolymer concrete. The results in this current study show that 28 days compressive strength was found to increase by 415% when the NaOH molarity was increased from 8M to 10M and 821% when the NaOH molarity was increased from 8M to 12M. The geopolymer concrete developed with 20% SCBA and 80% GGBS with 8M NaOH solution and SS/SH ratio of 2.5 can be used for a target strength of 3035 MPa. Scanning electron microscope images show a packed and dense matrix, which clearly outlines the reason behind the attainment of higher strength in higher molarity of GGBS-SCBA based geopolymer concrete samples and the presence of CASH gel confirmed this in the geopolymer matrix. Furthermore, there is a strong correlation between the experimental findings and the model equations proposed. These presented models will be useful in improving the strength of geopolymer concrete incorporating agricultural and industrial wastes. 2023 The Authors -
Mechanical strength and water penetration depth of palmyra fibre reinforced concrete
Natural fibre reinforced composites are replacing the conventional fibre reinforced composites for several applications due to natural fibre availability, variety and lesser raw material cost. Using natural fibres in composites also reduces the issue of agricultural residue disposals, which are in abundance. Different natural fibres exhibit unique properties when it is used in composites and hence there is a need to study the behaviour of scarcely used natural fibres. Indian palmyra trees (Borassus flabellifer) are fast growing commonly found trees in Southern India. From the base of these palm tree leaves, palmyra fibres are taken out. Though these fibres are locally available in huge quantities, these are very rarely used as reinforcing material in concrete compared to other natural fibres like coir, sisal, jute etc. Palmyra fibre reinforced cement composite specimens were prepared by varying the fibre content (0.5%, 1% and 2% by weight of cement) and length of fibre (25 mm and 50 mm). Plain concrete and palmyra fibre reinforced concrete specimens of identical size were tested for mechanical strength and also for its depth of water penetration. The work carried out revealed that the water penetration of palmyra fibre reinforced concrete increased with fibre content increase. The compressive strength of palmyra fibre reinforced concrete improved up to 1% of fibre content and further increase in fibre content upto 2% resulted in compressive strength reduction for both the fibre lengths. However, split tensile strength, flexure strength and shear strength increased with fibre content increase in the mix. Based on the mechanical strength properties investigated, increase in shear strength was found to be more significant with the inclusion of palmyra fibres in concrete. 2022 -
Mechanics of SH and anti-plane SH waves in orthotropic piezoelectric quasicrystal with multiple surface effect
Significant restrictions have been found in the selection of piezoelectric materials and the direction of wave propagation in earlier studies on surface acoustic wave sensors. The primary goal of the current work is to investigate how wave propagation direction influences the performance of SAW macro- and nano-sensors in an effort to remove such barriers in the technological revolution of SAW sensors. A proposed model is established to study Shear Horizontal (SH) and anti-plane SH wave propagation in piezoelectric materials with surface effects. The theoretical forms are constructed and used to present the wavenumber of surface waves in any direction of the piezoelectric medium, based on the Extended Stroh formalism. In addition, we take into account surface elasticity theory in order to obtain the phase velocity equation based on the wavenumber expression. The model incorporates surface elasticity, piezoelectricity, and permittivity to account for nanoscale surface phenomena. Two configurations are examined: an orthotropic piezoelectric material layer over an elastic framework and a piezoelectric material half-space with a nano substrate. Analytical expressions for frequency equations are derived for both symmetric and anti-symmetric waves. Numerical results highlight the critical thickness of the piezoelectric layer, where surface energy significantly influences dispersion properties. The effects of surface elasticity and density on wave velocity are analyzed, revealing a spring force-like influence on boundaries. The research investigates SH wave transmission in anisotropic, transversely isotropic piezoelectric nanostructures. The findings could aid in designing SAW devices and piezoelectric sensors, as well as producing more effective surface acoustic wave sensors, based on recent theoretical work summaries. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH Austria, part of Springer Nature 2024. -
Mechanisms towards enhanced quality of experience (QoE) in fog computing environments
The Fog or Edge computing emerges as one of the important paradigms for setting up and sustaining smarter environments across industry verticals. Our everyday environments are being meticulously advanced and accentuated through a bevy of edge and digital technologies and tools in order to be situation-aware and sophisticated. On the other side, we have powerful Cloud environments contributing as the one-stop IT solutions not only for business automation but also for people empowerment. Compared to the number of prospective Cloud environments, the number of Fog environments is going to be quite large with the availability of billions of connected devices. The scope of Fog environments, which are being touted as the most crucial for empowering people and in their everyday activities, is bound to escalate in the days to unfurl. The immediate challenge for Fog environments is to drastically enhance the quality of experience (QoE) for users. Academic professors and industry professionals have come out with a number of solution approaches and algorithms. This chapter is being specially prepared and presented in this book to tell all about the role and responsibility of Fog computing environments, the unique use cases and the various challenges, etc. Furthermore, the significance of QoE is described in detail and how that requirement can be attained by smartly applying various proven and potential technologies. This chapter also aims to motivate the readers and researchers to dig deep into this new critical requirement to unearth pioneering solutions towards enhanced QoE. Springer International Publishing AG, part of Springer Nature 2018. -
Media and Urban Governance: The Quest for Sustainable Cities and Communities
Connectivity becomes the hallmark of network society facilitated by digital technologies. Cities are fundamentally well-connected, fast-growing, communicative, and global in outlook. Cities are also known for media concentration, as the structures and people there extensively create and exchange messages - social, political, economic, and cultural. The urban communication landscape is very complex, and therefore, a robust media and communication infrastructure is required to form, reform, and transform urban communities from a sustainable development perspective. Media not only perform the responsibilities of information dissemination and community building but also facilitate urban governance and public discourses on policies. The policy-making process that consists of policy inputs, policy processes, and policy outputs - is heavily influenced by the public discourses triggered by the media. Media can establish a policy issue at the center of the public sphere, set the policy agenda, and create public opinion. It inevitably leads to the mediatization of public policy. Media can effectively place SDGs at the center of the policy discourse and serve as a tool for urban governance by enhancing citizens' participation and helping to solve complex urban problems. This research paper explores various aspects of the governance-media interface in an urban landscape to create sustainable cities and communities. The Electrochemical Society -
Media Framing of Indian Green Fiscal Policy: A Survey of Environmental Policies Across Online News Portals
This research undertakes a framing analysis of news coverage from five leading Indian news portals, focusing on the environmental provisions of India's fiscal budgets for 2022-23 and 2023-24. These budgets marked a significant shift, being the first to prioritize "Energy Transition and Climate Action" and "Green Growth" as central themes. The analysis uncovers a spectrum of portrayals: from highlighting government initiatives and the potential economic windfalls of green policies to critical evaluations and concerns about their real-world implications. Specifically, the Times of India, with its 27 stories, leans heavily towards business and economic perspectives. The Hindu, through its five stories, both praises the government's green initiatives and critiques certain infrastructure projects. Hindustan Times offers a balanced view in its nine stories, juxtaposing government action plans against critiques of infrastructure spending. In contrast, The Scroll and The Wire, each with three stories, delve deeper, providing incisive, critical analyses of the government's environmental commitments. The study underscores that while independent news portals present nuanced insights, their narratives often stand in the shadow of mainstream portals that echo the government's perspective. Given the escalating global importance of environmental challenges, the findings strongly advocate for media outlets to establish dedicated environmental news sections. Such focused coverage could enhance public awareness and pressurize effective governmental action in the domain of green fiscal policies. 2023 by authors, all rights reserved. -
Media in everyday life: review of the series Reply 1988
[No abstract available] -
Media's influence on suicide: Building a safer online world for all
In 1999, World Health Organization (WHO) initiated a global campaign focused on suicide prevention. In collaboration with International Association for Suicide Prevention, WHO compiled recommendations and resources intended to educate various societal and groups with the potential to impact suicide prevention, and this included the media. In order to combat the alarmingly high incidence of suicides (Tandon and Nathani, 2018), it is imperative to institute guidelines outlining how the social media forums ought to disseminate altruistic, essential educational content while. This work is a step toward achieving the same by laying down guidelines that could potentially reduce the suicide rate. 2023 Elsevier B.V. -
Mediating and moderating variables of employee relations and sustainable organizations: a systematic literature review and future research agenda
Purpose: This study aims to perform a systematic literature review to organize the abundance of information on employee relations (ER) and sustainable organizations. Moreover, this study identifies the research gaps by investigating the review of ER mediating and moderating variables and the relationship between ER and sustainable organizations. Design/methodology/approach: This study is based on the systematic literature review methodology involving 257 studies in the final stage. The Scopus and Google Scholar databases with search criteria employee relations and employee relations and sustainable organization were used to achieve the research objective. After applying inclusion and exclusion criteria, researchers come to the distribution of the articles based on the subthemes, geographical region, types of methods, top authors with affiliation and complete research articles based on the citation. In the final stage, this study concluded with the conceptual model comprising mediators and moderators of ER as well as the mediating and moderating variables of the relationship between ER and sustainable organizations. Findings: The reviewed literature shows that employee relation is an optimal strategy for retaining employees via proper disclosure of human resources (HRs) and ER Index. This study included the top six publishers, namely, Emerald, Elsevier, Sage, Springer, Taylor and Francis and Wiley Online Library, to do an exhaustive review on a specific topic. The findings indicate that after COVID-19, the ER index, HR disclosures and the sustainability of ER are among the new and required paradigm shifts needed to manage a crisis impact and perform productively. The mediator and moderator variables that can improve employeeemployer relationships are organizational trusts, organizational justice, perceived job satisfaction, organizational structure and firm ownership. On the other hand, variables that mediate and moderate the relationship between ER and sustainable organizations are organizational climate, organization trust, organization culture, perceived organization support, psychological empowerment, firm ownership, leadership behavior and attitude, respectively. The findings concluded that harmonious and cordial ER are pertinent in building sustainable organizations and accomplishing organizational goals. Practical implications: The mediating and moderating variables that have been identified can be helpful for enthusiastic researchers in contributing to empirical research. Practitioners and managers can use the findings in making an effective organizational model that develops good employeeemployer relationships and helps create a culture of trust and harmony. This study focuses on exploring the variables of ER, which strengthens employeeemployer relationships and supports organizations to stay agile and attain sustainability to endure in the future. Originality/value: This study insights on the specific mediating and moderating variables of ER and sustainable organizations. Till date, studies exploring constructs of ER and sustainable organizations are still in deficit. Better employee relation reflects and leads to a more resilient organization. Future researchers should explore the connection between pandemics and ER which is done insufficiently in the present time. 2022, Emerald Publishing Limited. -
Mediating Effect of Brand Relationship Quality on Relational Bonds and Online Grocery Retailer Loyalty
The current study aims to identify how brand relationship quality mediates the relationship between different online relational bonds, and attitudinal and behavioral loyalty. A total of 316 valid questionnaires from respondents aged 2035 were collected using quota sampling from five different clusters in Bangalore, India. Hypotheses were tested using structural equation modeling. This study finds that convenience bonds and structural bond have no impact on brand trust and attitudinal and behavioral loyalty. All five relational bonds namely, convenience, structural, financial, empathy, and social bonds are seen to influence their sense of community and attitudinal attachment. Sense of community is the primary influencer of brand loyalty. This study reveals that brand dimensions of brand quality relationship mediate the effect of financial, empathy, and social bonds on attitudinal and behavioral loyalty. It also illustrates the role of different relational bonds as a stimulus, and relationship quality dimensions as an organism that lead to improved customer loyalty in online grocery retailing. Managers of online grocery stores can consider these new relational bonds, along with the traditional bonds, to develop positive emotions and achieve competitive advantage. 2021 Taylor & Francis Group, LLC.