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This study aims to produce composite pigments, including SHS/ZnAl-LDHs, IDS/ZnAl-LDHs and SNND/ZnAl-LDHs, with improved coloration, enhanced photostability and thermostability and biocompatibility.

The chemical structures of the composite pigments were characterized by X-ray diffraction spectroscopy and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. Photostability and thermal stability were assessed using ultraviolet-visible spectroscopy and colorimetry. The coverage of the dyes was determined through black-and-white tile testing, and specific RGB values were used to indicate color expressiveness. Finally, a four-color eyeshadow was formulated, and safety tests were conducted via human patch test and cellular assays to confirm the safety and reliability of the samples.

The experimental results demonstrate an enhancement in the photo and thermal stability of the SHS/ZnAl-LDHs, IDS/ZnAl-LDHs and SNND/ZnAl-LDHs composites, along with their superior performance in terms of covering power and color saturation. These composite pigments also exhibit high safety, making them well-suited for cosmetic applications.

The composite pigments based on hydrotalcite can be used in the cosmetic industry without causing any harm to the environment and human health.

The addition of hydrotalcite enables better application of pigments in cosmetics.

This study aims to examine the mediating effects of corporate governance mechanisms like the board of directors on the association between disruptive technology adoption by audit clients and the risk of material misstatements, including inherent risk and control risk. In particular, the authors study the mediating effects of board characteristics such as board size, independence and gender diversity.

Based on a sample of 100 audit clients listed on the FTSE 100 from 2015 to 2021, this study uses structural equation modelling to test the research objectives.

The findings indicate a significant and negative association between disruptive technology adoption by audit clients and inherent risk. However, there is no significant evidence observed for control risk. The utilisation of disruptive technology by the audit client has a significant impact on the board characteristics, resulting in an increase in board size, greater independence and gender diversity. The authors also find strong evidence that board independence mediates the association between disruptive technology usage and both inherent risk and control risk. In addition, board size and gender exhibit distinct and differential mediating effects on the association and across the two types of risks.

The study reveals that the significant role of using disruptive technology by audit clients in reducing the risk of material misstatements is closely associated with the board of directors, which makes audit clients place greater emphasis on the construction of effective corporate governance.

This study offers essential primary evidence that can assist policymakers and standard setters in formulating guidance and recommendations for board size, independence and gender quotas, ensuring the enhancement of effective governance and supporting the future of audit within the next generation of digital services.

With respect to relevant stakeholders, it is imperative for audit clients to recognise that corporate governance represents a fundamental means of addressing the ramifications of applying disruptive technology, particularly as they pertain to inherent and control risks within the audit client.

This study contributes to the existing literature by investigating the joint impact of corporate governance and the utilisation of disruptive technology by audit clients on inherent risk and control risk, which has not been investigated by previous research.

This study investigates the role of interlocking director networks (IDN) in driving corporate digital transformation (CDT) and explores the moderating role of agency costs, diversification and financial distress.

The analysis uses data from Chinese A-share listed companies on the Shanghai and Shenzhen stock exchanges from 2006 to 2021. A two-way fixed-effects model is employed to assess the impact of IDNs on CDT.

The results indicate that IDNs positively affect CDT. Furthermore, this effect is enhanced by agency costs and financial distress, while diversification acts as a negative moderator.

Informal institutions such as IDNs play a significant role in corporate governance in China’s relational society. This study focuses on the influence of informal institutions on digital transformation, expanding the understanding of the economic consequences of IDNs and enriching the literature on factors influencing digital transformation.

Supply chain revamping (SCR) is an important strategy for firms to improve their supply chain operations in a rapidly changing environment. The purpose of this study is to shed light on the impact of SCR on shareholder value.

Based on Signaling Theory and 184 SCR announcements published by US-listed firms from 2013 to 2018, this study employs event study methodology and empirically examines three issues: Antecedents of SCRs; Primary purposes and actions of SCRs; In addition to the impact of SCRs on shareholder value using stock returns, we also examined the factors that can influence the extent of stock returns.

Firstly, our results indicate that SCRs are primarily driven by firms’ poor prior performance, CEO turnover and external control threats (ECTs). Secondly, the stock market favors SCRs aiming to meet customer needs and those accomplished through network remodel. However, the market reacts negatively to SCRs aiming at cutting costs, improving poor performance, and those implemented through network trim. Finally, the cross-sectional analysis indicates that shareholders prefer firms operating in more competitive or faster-growing industries and those adopting an expansionist strategy than those adopting a streamlining strategy.

Our study provides managers with valuable insights into when firms can benefit from initiating SCRs not only by examining the purposes and actions of SCRs but also by examining the industry- and strategy-specific moderators. Our study illuminates the conditions under which SCR will positively affect shareholder value. Additionally, this study contributes to the existing literature by deepening the understanding of the impact of supply chain decisions on firm performance and identifying the marginal conditions under which the stock market will react positively to SCR announcements.

To reduce the wheel maintenance costs caused by wheel wear and to transition from traditional periodic maintenance to condition-based maintenance for railway freight wagons, it is necessary to investigate the prediction of wheel wear and understand the evolution rule of wheel profile wear.

This paper established a wheel wear prediction model for railway freight wagons based on Archard’s wear theory and proposed a prediction method that combines vehicle system dynamic, interpolation iteration and intelligent simulation. The wear coefficients in the model were obtained through wheel wear tests by using the roller rig. The model’s effectiveness was further verified through line testing and simulation models, and the corrected wear coefficient can be used for wear prediction of heavy-haul freight wagons in China.

The wheel wear prediction showed that the results of the wheel wear prediction model by adopting the wear coefficients obtained from the roller rig tests are close to the actual wheel wear, with the difference of the maximum in wear depth at the nominal rolling circle being within 7%.

This paper proposed a method that can establish a database of wheel wear coefficients for predicting wheel wear of railway freight wagons under similar operating conditions. The revised wear coefficient can be used for wear prediction of heavy-haul freight wagons in China.

The peer review history for this article is available at: https://publons.com/publon/10.1108/ILT-09-2024-0329/

This article analyses the effect of bank concentration on women's political empowerment in 80 developing countries over the period 2004–2020.

Banking concentration (BC) is measured by the assets held by the three largest commercial banks as a percentage of total commercial bank assets in a country. We use several indices to measure political empowerment, namely: the political empowerment index, composed of three indices (i.e. the women's civil liberties index, the women's participation in civil society index and the women's political participation index). The empirical evidence is based on the Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) and Fixed Effects (FE) techniques.

The following findings are established. Banking concentration reduces women's political empowerment. Furthermore, information sharing offices (i.e. public credit registries and private credit bureaus) mitigate the negative effect of bank concentration on women’s political empowerment. Information sharing thresholds that are needed to completely dampen the negative effect of bank concentration on women’s political empowerment are provided. Policy implications are discussed, notably: (1) that governments in developing countries increase competition by easing barriers to entry for potential banks, to facilitate the transition from confiscatory concentration to distributive concentration favorable to all stakeholders; and (2) information sharing offices should be consolidated beyond the established thresholds in order to completely crowd-out the unfavorable effect of bank concentration of women’s political empowerment.

The paper provides new empirical evidence that helps to advance the debate on the effects of banking concentration and information sharing in the banking sector on women's political empowerment in developing countries.