Search results

The purpose of this study is to investigate the high-temperature behavior of newly developed high-impulse power magnetron sputtering system (HIPIMS) coatings and compare them to the standard TiAlCr system deposited on to a Ti–Al intermetallic alloy. The corrosion test was performed in air for 4,000 hours at 850°C.

In this study, air oxidation test was performed at high temperature. Design and methodology is described in detail in the methodology section in the submitted manuscript. The test was carried out by discontinuous exposure of the three different systems produced by different deposition technique. The exposed samples were investigated using scanning electron microscope coupled with energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy. The exposed samples were investigated from the surface and cross-sections.

The performed study shows that HIPIMS coatings had a much better oxidation resistance at a high temperature than that offered by the standard physical vapor deposition (PVD) system. HIPIMS costing developed Al–Cr oxide on the surface; however, cracks and detachments were found at the interface between the coating and the substrate. TiAlCr coating spalled off from the material due to the critical thickness reached; moreover, high brittleness and lack of adherence were found. Due to poor oxidation resistance, TiAlCr coating was discarded from the test after 3,000 hours of exposure.

The work performed in this study was designed for 4,000 hours oxidation at 850°C. The long-term exposures are not commonly met in the research work due to the cost and time. The work clearly shows differences between new type of coatings and standard PVD system applied on TiAl lightweight alloy.

This study aims to examine the corporate donations in response to the intensive outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in China in 2020 and proposes that the local spread of COVID-19 is negatively associated with corporate donations due to the non-trivial costs, but meanwhile, strong institutional pressures based on institutional theory are put on firms to donate, which thus creates a dilemma for firms. This study further argues that the dilemma is heterogeneous across different institutional fields.

Using a sample of Chinese listed companies during the intensive outbreak of this pandemic, a two-stage Heckman selection model is conducted to address the potential sample selection bias.

This study reveals a negative relationship between the local spread of COVID-19 and corporate donations, confirms the driving effect of various types of institutional pressure and finds that the intensity of the COVID-19 pandemic strengthens the effect of coercive pressure and mimetic pressure on philanthropic giving but weakens the effect of normative pressure.

This study extends the knowledge on firms’ philanthropic response to natural crises, as the COVID-19 pandemic has not only led to a public health crisis but also to a global economic crisis, and how the effects of institutional pressures are affected by a situational crisis. This work enriches the literature on corporate philanthropy and crisis management and has some implications for both policymakers and business practitioners.

This study aims to explore the internationalization of multinational enterprises (MNEs) from China and aims to examine the relationship between Chinese MNEs’ duration of internationalization and export intensity, and the contingent roles of the home country government.

By extending the springboard theory with institutional and cost-benefit analyses, the authors elaborate a two-phase framework of internationalization to explain how Chinese MNEs develop their international business under the influences of the home country government. Furthermore, the authors apply the Heckman two-stage method based on a panel data set of 19,994 firm-year observations of Chinese listed firms in 2008–2018 to test the hypotheses.

The research findings demonstrate an inverted U-shape relationship between the duration of internationalization and the export intensity of MNEs from China. The export intensity of MNEs from China increases during the initial phase of internationalization, and decreases during the subsequent. A further study reveals that the inverted U-shape of Chinese non-SOEs is steeper than that of SOEs, and this moderating effect is more salient after the Belt and Road Initiative. These results highlight the influence of the home government through state ownership and policies on the inverted U-shaped relationship.

This study helps to refine the understanding of Chinese MNEs’ global expansion by addressing time as an explicit dimension and revealing the mechanism of state ownership and the home country governmental policy in the dynamic internationalization process.

Open innovation enables firms to incorporate external expertise and resources into their innovations. However, it is far from easy to obtain sufficient support from external contributors due to potential concerns about the risks of opportunism and appropriation. This paper aims to investigate whether firms’ engagement in corporate social responsibility (CSR) contributes to their open innovation, considering the contingency factors of technological capability, environmental dynamism and state ownership based on capability and motivation perspectives.

Using a sample of Chinese listed firms covering the period from 2009 to 2018, instrumental variable and propensity score matching approaches were used to address the endogenous problems.

This paper obtains empirical results showing that firms engaged in higher levels of CSR produce more joint outputs (co-owned patents) and that this effect is strengthened by technological capability and environmental dynamism. Among state-owned enterprises, CSR engagement is less impactful with regard to open innovation. It is further shown that open innovation is a primary channel through which CSR engagement enhances innovative efficiency.

This study enriches the knowledge of the antecedents of open innovation and contributes to the debate regarding the relationship between CSR and innovation by establishing a relationship between CSR and open innovation, whereas most prior studies focus on how the input and output of innovation are affected by CSR initiatives.

Protecting the planet from unprecedented environmental crises in the presence of economic expansion has become a critical global concern. Hence, the current study aims to analyze the impact of nations’ green behaviors that they adopt to protect the planet while promoting economic expansion. Additionally, the study explores the moderating role of ES in the nexus of GI and green growth.

Data were collected over a period of 1990–2019. Analysis was conducted by employing panel data analysis techniques and various robustness tests, including multicollinearity, serial correlation and spatial correlation, for a sample of 33 nations by categorizing in Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa (BRICS) economies as well as in the pre- and post-financial crisis period.

Analysis of the composite sample reveals a significant positive impact of green investments and green innovations on green growth. Further analysis reveals a significant moderating role of environmental policy stringency in OECD economies, especially in the pre-financial crisis period. The interaction slope shows that the contribution of green innovations to green growth is positive at high and medium levels of ES. However, in the case of BRICS economies, this moderating role is insignificant.

Study findings signify the importance of stakeholder environment and urge governments to prioritize funds for sectors practicing environmentally friendly behaviors to foster green growth and stresses for more effective infrastructure of policy implementation, monitoring and evaluation.

The relationship of green investments, innovations and green growth has been established largely in existing literature; however, there is a dearth of studies to analyze the moderating role of ES. Hence the current study investigates this moderating role in the nexus of nations’ green behavior and green growth in different stakeholder environments and contexts.

Meta-model method has been widely used in structural reliability optimization design. The main limitation of this method is that it is difficult to quantify the error caused by the meta-model approximation, which leads to the inaccuracy of the optimization results of the reliability evaluation. Taking the local high efficiency of the proxy model, this paper aims to propose a local effective constrained response surface method (LEC-RSM) based on a meta-model.

The operating mechanisms of LEC-RSM is to calculate the index of the local relative importance based on numerical theory and capture the most effective area in the entire design space, as well as selecting important analysis domains for sample changes. To improve the efficiency of the algorithm, the constrained efficient set algorithm (ESA) is introduced, in which the sample point validity is identified based on the reliability information obtained in the previous cycle and then the boundary sampling points that violate the constraint conditions are ignored or eliminated.

The computational power of the proposed method is demonstrated by solving two mathematical problems and the actual engineering optimization problem of a car collision. LEC-RSM makes it easier to achieve the optimal performance, less feature evaluation and fewer algorithm iterations.

This paper proposes a new RSM technology based on proxy model to complete the reliability design. The originality of this paper is to increase the sampling points by identifying the local importance of the analysis domain and introduce the constrained ESA to improve the efficiency of the algorithm.

This study empirically examines the moderating role of geopolitical risk on the tourism–economic growth nexus by applying a recent geopolitical risk indicator developed by Caldara and Iacoviello (2022) in a cross-country panel data growth model context for a sample of 24 countries.

A Dummy Variable Least Squares panel data model, nonparametric covariance matrix estimator and SYS-GMM estimation techniques are employed for the analysis. The authors capture the GPR moderating effect by disaggregating the cross-country sample according to low versus high country GPR score and through a GPR interaction coefficient. Several controls are included in the models such as gross fixed capital formation and—consistent with Barro (1990)—government consumption. Trade openness is used to account for the export-led growth effect. In line with neoclassical growth theory (e.g. Barro, 1991), the authors also include the real interest rate, to account for policy makers' commitment to macroeconomic stability, financial depth, as a proxy for financial development, population growth and the level of secondary school education. The authors also control for unobserved country-specific and time-invariant effects.

The research finds that the interaction term of geopolitical risk significantly contributes to the predictive ability of the regression and provides empirical evidence that confirms that only in low geopolitical risk countries international tourism positively and significantly contributes to economic growth. Important theoretical and policy implications flow from these findings.

The study not only contributes to advancing academic knowledge on the tourism–growth nexus, it also has impact beyond academia. Many countries have in the past pursued and many continue to pursue, tourism specialization and/or tourism-led growth strategies based on the theoretically well-established and empirically validated positive link between inbound tourism and economic growth. The findings alert policy makers in such countries to the significant moderating role that geopolitical risk plays in affecting the above-mentioned relationship and to the importance of prioritizing geopolitical stability as a policy precursor for the successful implementation of such strategies.

The purpose of this study is to examine the impact of green bonds on common prosperity in China. Green bonds have gained significant attention as a means to address financial challenges and promote environmental protection. This research aims to investigate the influence of green bonds on common prosperity by utilizing the system-generalized method of moments (SYS-GMM) and analyzing panel data from prefecture-level cities. The study also explores the theoretical mechanisms and heterogeneous relationships between green bonds and common prosperity, providing valuable guidance for advancing economic and social well-being in China.

This study employs a system-generalized method of moments (SYS-GMM) as the methodology to investigate the influence of green bonds on common prosperity in China. Panel data from prefecture-level cities for the period 2014 to 2020 are utilized for analysis. The SYS-GMM approach allows for the examination of dynamic relationships and control of endogeneity issues. By utilizing this methodology, the study aims to provide robust and reliable findings on the impact of green bonds on common prosperity, considering the specific context of China's ecological civilization development and financial challenges faced by energy-saving and environmental protection enterprises.

The findings of this research indicate several important outcomes. Firstly, common prosperity in China experienced substantial growth between 2014 and 2020. Secondly, green bonds have demonstrated a clear and positive impact on common prosperity. They contribute to the enhancement of common prosperity by driving industrial structure upgrading and fostering green technology innovation. Lastly, the study reveals that the positive influence of green bonds on common prosperity is particularly pronounced in the western region of China. These findings highlight the significance of green bonds in promoting sustainable economic development and societal well-being.

This study contributes to the existing literature by examining the impact of green bonds on common prosperity in China, utilizing the system-generalized method of moments (SYS-GMM) and panel data analysis. The research not only adds to the understanding of the relationship between green bonds and economic well-being but also provides insights into the theoretical mechanisms and heterogeneous relationships involved. The findings showcase the positive influence of green bonds on common prosperity, emphasizing their role in addressing financial challenges, promoting environmental protection, and driving sustainable development. The study's conclusions offer valuable guidance for policymakers, financial institutions, and stakeholders in advancing common prosperity in China.

This study aims to respond to the latest research calls to precisely revisit the nexus between corporate green innovation (CGI) and financial decisions through deeply investigating the mediating effect of corporate environmental performance measured by the effectiveness of emission reduction.

This study analyzes nonfinancial-listed firms on the Australian Securities Exchange from 2002 to 2019 using multiple regression analysis on a panel data set. Initially, different static panel data approaches were used. To account for the potential endogeneity issue and generate robust outcomes, the authors apply the one-step system generalized method of moment, two-stage least squares and lagged model approaches.

The results provide a clear indication that the practices of green innovation can favorably contribute to the level of environmental performance, which in turn affect the firm’s ability in opening the new financial doors and shape solid capital structure. In this context, the effective environmental performance fully mediates the nexus between CGI and capital structure of a firm. More importantly, the outcomes are robust and coherent across different estimation techniques.

The originality of this study lies in its utilization of mediation analysis to explore the relationship between CGI and a firm's financial structure. This approach distinguishes it from previous research by offering a thorough and nuanced understanding of how green innovation practices influence the financing decisions of a firm.