Search Results (68)

Due to rapid population growth and industrialization, the demand for electrical energy and its consumption has reached a critical point where it is no longer sustainable or stable. Therefore, it is imperative to explore new and reliable energy generation alternatives considering technical and economic perspectives, regardless of whether the community is isolated or urbanized. The research introduces a mixed-integer non-linear programming model of an energy supply chain that combines the roles of a manufacturer and retailer within a dynamic solar energy framework. The study highlights the manufacturer’s significant efforts to sustain itself in a competitive market and emphasizes the importance of government subsidies to support this approach. To meet the demands of a dynamic environment, a non-continuous demand function is utilized to generate and transmit energy at a highly sustainable level, promoting ecological balance. The model’s validity is confirmed through experimental evaluation using two case studies. Furthermore, by increasing the demand by 50%, this study demonstrates the potential for economic growth, resulting in a 20% profit for the manufacturer in the retail sector. This research ensures improved energy efficiency and greener consumption practices and addresses the optimal distribution of renewable energy to minimize imbalances. Finally, it reveals a pathway to sustainable development that promotes technological advancements while minimizing costs, offering a cost-effective scenario for the foreseeable future. Full article

Several industries are facing many challenges in their production systems due to increasing customer demand. Customer demand is growing for products with innovative features that are flexible, good quality, and appealing. This paper presents a flexible production-inventory system that produces multiple parts of a product. Defective products may be produced during the production process. Those defective products are remanufactured immediately after inspection. Limited budget and space constraints are considered, along with product assembly. Based on different distribution functions, non-linear equations are calculated using the Kuhn–Tucker optimization technique. Numerical examples, a graphical representation, and sensitivity analysis are presented in this paper. The solution procedure evaluates the minimization of the total investment based on the ${\chi }^2$ distribution. This study examines electronic products those are more likely to be defective rather than perfect during production. Full article

Space and labor are the two internal resources within a warehouse or cross-dock center which seek attention. Meaningful efforts in optimizing these two resources can reduce the operational cost or time of the goods delivery. The timely allocation of resources to order picking not only reduces the makespan and operational time but can also evade delay. In decentralized settings, where all the information is not properly shared between the players of the supply chain, miscommunication results in delays in product delivery. In this study, efforts were made to determine the pallet quantity of different product types in an order quantify when there is a gap in information shared and, based on that, the allocation of material handling devices or pickers was conducted. Each handling device is bounded by a workload to eliminate the option of idle resources and ensure it is utilized properly. A mixed integer linear programming model was formulated for this study and was solved using Lingo. Numerical experiments were performed under varying resource numbers and pallet quantities to investigate the circumstances where the number of pallet types and allocation of machines have the highest benefit. The results confirm that a change in the pallet quantity of the products increases the total picking time. However, an increase in the number of handling devices minimizes the level of over-utilization of a particular machine. Full article

The present consumer behavior is manipulated by “fast fashion”, where purchasing new, trendy, affordable clothes is preferred over recycling old ones. This changing mannerism has escalated the GHG emissions from the fashion industry. Energy-intensive raw material production, preparation, and processing contribute to considerable emissions. The management of the returned goods from the primary market and further processing through the secondary outlets indulge in reverse logistics. In this paper, efforts are made to minimize the total cost and the carbon emission amount during the process of managing the return articles from the primary market to the reverse distribution center, further processing of the articles at the secondary outlet, and the return of the unsold or excess articles from the secondary outlet. Reverse cross-docking has been implemented in managing the return articles, while environmental concerns over GHG emissions have been addressed by investing in green technology under a strict carbon cap policy. In this research, return articles from the primary and secondary markets, rework of the returned articles, and disposal of the impaired returned articles have been considered. The carbon emission cost at all stages of transportation, rework, or disposal has also been incorporated into this model. A constrained mixed integer linear programming model is proposed and solved considering green investment. A numerical example has been formulated to investigate the effect of green technology on the total cost. The results portray that, though the total cost increases by nearly 2% due to investment in green technology, it ensures a considerable drop of 23% in the carbon emission amount. Also, the result is successful in establishing that reverse cross-docking is a better option than traditional warehousing in terms of minimizing the cost. Full article

Global energy demand has unquestionably increased significantly in recent years. Nowadays, industries are very aware of global warming, and to save the environment, they produce green products with energy consumption. Day by day, energy use is increasing due to population, end-use markets of construction, transportation, industry, etc. But the energy limit is finite, whereas the daily use is rising, so the price is increasing. In this study, two situations have been shown in two models with renewable energy consumption. Model 1 analyzes the manufacturer and retailer’s optimal green quality and sales price in two-echelon supply chain systems with centralized and decentralized cases. In this case, the retailer sells their products through three different channels: online, offline, and buy-online-pickup-in store, with three different selling prices. In Model 2, Manufacturer 1 and Manufacturer 2 produce green and regular products with renewable energy consumption. In this case, both manufacturers sell their products through three different channels: online, offline, and buy-online-pickup-in store, with three different selling prices. There is competition between substitutable products with respect to green quality and the selling price of the products. A hybrid channel policy is studied here to maximize the total profit with considering corporate social responsibility under renewable energy consumption. The study has been analyzed mathematically. The classical optimization approach and game theory are applied here to find the optimal values of procurement cost, selling price, and green quality development cost. A numerical study shows that the centralized system gives a better result to the manufacturer than the decentralized system. When the demand is a power function of the selling price, the manufacturer producing eco-friendly products gains $0.99\%$ more profit than the conventional product. This result shows that manufacturers creating eco-friendly products motivate other manufacturers to make eco-friendly products. Full article

The growth of renewable energy actively takes part in decarbonizing the fossil-fuel-based energy system. It reduces carbon emissions, carbon footprint, and greenhouse gas emissions and increases clean energy. The usage of renewable resources reduces and solves several problems, such as increasing temperature, carbon footprint, greenhouse gas emissions, and energy waste. Every sector contributes to increasing the above-mentioned factors in the environment. One of the main reasons for this biodegradation and climate change is energy resources. Using renewable energy instead of fossil fuel can solve the problem. This paper aims to find open research problems about the application of renewable energy and to initiate new innovative ideas regarding renewable energy. A detailed state of the art includes trends for renewable energy resources, their theoretical evolution, and practical implementations. Methodologies used for decision analysis in renewable energy are discussed in detail. The time frame for this analysis of renewable energy is 2010 to >2022. An extensive literature review finds a huge research scope in applying renewable energy in other research, such as logistics, smart production management, and advanced inventory management. Then, major changes in the profit/cost of that system due to renewable energy can be analyzed. This research proposes some innovative new ideas related cost formulas for renewable energy for the corresponding open problems. Full article

In today’s digital age, industrial methods are shifting away from humans and toward machines. We choose automated systems for various jobs related to production systems, such as screening, manufacturing. A smart manufacturing system is one in which machines take the place of humans. Under the influence of inflation, this study proposes a smart production-inventory model with partial backlogging, and an imperfect manufacturing process where the deterioration rate is constant. Every production system, in reality, has a random defect rate. A screening procedure is required due to the manufacture of some defective items, which is carried out by machine, i.e., by an automated system. Carbon is released during the manufacturing process due to actions such as holding deterioration. As a result, carbon emissions are taken into account in the current study. The goal of this study is to reduce total inventory costs as much as possible. To demonstrate the proposed model’s practical application, many numerical examples and sensitivity assessments with graphs are provided. Full article

The aim of this study is to examine the learning and forgetting effect on a manufacturer’s production process with volume agility and carbon emission costs. During COVID-19, the learning rate becomes very low, and the forgetting rate becomes very high. That is why, the analysis of the learning and forgetting effects on the production process is very important. This research finds an effect of learning and forgetting on the manufacturer and on reducing the unit manufacturing cost. Here, the production rate is a function of the number of units produced, and it is taken as a decision variable through agile manufacturing. Here, the Weibull deterioration rate is used, and the production process is subject to the learn–forget–learn policy. Here, a carbon emission cost is introduced into the setup/ordering cost, holding cost, and item cost for the manufacturer. The effect of learning and forgetting is analyzed through numerical examples. Full article

The current study works with an inventory management strategy under the discount cash flow approach for perishable commodities with expiry dates, price-sensitive demand, and investment in preservation technology. In addition, this study examines the probable influence of price-increase on the replenishment strategy of the retailer where specific delivery units can be purchased. Furthermore, in this model, two circumstances are deliberated: (I) when the time of the specific delivery matches with the reordering time of the retailer or (II) when the time of the specific delivery emerges within the duration of the sale. Before the price increase, the supplier provides two payment policies to the retailer from which they can choose one. The policies are either: (1) a permissible delay in payment on regular orders or (2) a discount in payment for the specific delivery. The key goal is to optimize the overall profit for the retailer with respect to the sales price, investment in preservation technology, and cycle time during the depletion time of the specific delivery. In addition, an algorithm is created to optimize the results and seven numerical illustrations are discussed to explain the results along with the special case. Finally, to display the pertinence of this model, a sensitivity analysis of the main parameters is performed with important managerial implications. The key findings of this research are (1) before the price increase, the retailer gets the maximum profit if the retailer chooses a discount in payment policy on the specific delivery; (2) how much to order from the supplier and when to place a specific delivery to generate a maximum profit; and (3) the price-sensitive demand and assumption of future price increase negatively affect the retailer’s overall profit, and the retailer gets maximum benefits if the retailer initially orders the maximum number of units from the supplier before the price increase. Full article

Sustainable development and environmental pollution have become valuable stimulating factors for the resource recovery of end-of-life products through reverse logistics. E-waste is considered in reverse logistics. Electronic waste is solely responsible for environmental hazards and contains valuable raw materials that can be recycled/repaired, so reverse logistics is essential to minimizing their inappropriate disposal. This paper presents the mathematical model for multi-electronic products, considering multi-manufacturers and multi-retailers. After the end-of-life product, the reverse logistics network collects the e-waste in return processors where testing, sorting, and disassembling are carried out and then sent to the repair and recycling units. Components that are not repaired/recycled are shipped to the secondary manufacturer as raw materials. An electronic product’s reverse supply chain is employed to incorporate the idea of e-waste nullification. The fixed point iteration technique is used to solve the proposed model. A numerical example is analyzed to demonstrate the model’s efficacy where the total cost is minimized. The model’s validity and usefulness in reducing e-waste are validated through managerial insights into the model and sensitivity analysis of the key factors. The proposed policy suggests that the e-waste nullification strategy might be a useful apparatus for managers in ensuring long-term sustainability. Full article

A business can be properly managed globally when it is under a supply chain. When it is a global supply chain, inflation has a huge effect on supply chain profit. Another important factor is the deterioration of products. Products can deteriorate during storage or transportation, which badly affects each supply chain player. This study develops a three-echelon supply chain model through which products can be delivered to customers easily. In this model, one producer and multiple buyers are considered, and each buyer has a separate group in which multiple suppliers have been taken. Inflation is also added to the model for inflationary fluctuations. To understand this model in real life, a numerical example is discussed and the total profit from the supply chain is extracted. Sensitivity analysis is also shown at the end of the model to find out the effect on the model due to changes in some parameters that affect this model highly. After developing this model, it was found that if the inflation rate falls, then the total profit will increase continuously. On the contrary, if the inflation rate increases, then, in this situation, the total profit will decrease continuously. At present, vaccine makers’ total profit can support the economy of any country, and in this model, the inflation rate decreases as profit increases. Full article

The waste of energy in the present era is a dangerous signal for the future. All categories of consumers should come forward to moderate energy use and prevent wastage. This study focuses on a controllable energy consumption-based sustainable inventory model incorporating variable production rates, improved service, partial outsourcing planning, defective production, restoring reworkable items, disposing of non-reworkable items, and energy-saving steps. Reducing unusual energy consumption in production systems reduces carbon emissions and maximizes the system’s profit. An improved service level attracts customers, increases demand, and improves product reputation. Separate holding costs of reworked, defective, and perfect-quality items are considered for every lot delivered and reworked. The demand in the market is related to price and service. A traditional optimization technique examines the global optimization for the profit function and decision variables. Numerical illustrations as well as concave 3D graphs validate the analytical results and provide a sensitivity analysis for different parameters. The model is validated through special cases and comparison graphs. Full article

Emerging natural-based polymers and materials progress and new technology innovations open the way for unique food products with high nutritional value development. In this regard, oleogel may be essential in replacing fatty acids from food products. In this study, we researched the effects of varied soy lecithin (SYL) concentrations on the various physicochemical characteristics of soy wax (SW)/refined soybean oil (RSO) oleogels. These oleogels had a soft texture. The microscopic analysis of the oleogels suggested that the thickness, length, and density of the wax crystals (needle-shaped) varied as the SYL content was changed. Colorimetric analysis indicated that the oleogels were slightly yellowish. FTIR spectrometry helped analyze the functional groups of the raw materials and the oleogels. All the functional groups present in the raw materials could be accounted for within the oleogels. The only exception is the hydrogen-bonding peak in SW, which was not seen in the FTIR spectrum of the oleogels. It was found that at a critical SYL content, the oleogel showed a stable and repeatable wax network structure. This can be described by the presence of the uniformly distributed fat crystal network in the sample. The DSC analysis revealed that the oleogel samples were thermo-reversible, with their melting and crystallization temperatures ~43 °C and ~22 °C, respectively. In gist, it can be concluded that the incorporation of SYL can impact the color, wax crystal network characteristics, thermal characteristics, and mechanical characteristics of the oleogels in a composition-dependent manner. Full article

Cancer is a disorder that rigorously affects the human population worldwide. There is a steady demand for new remedies to both treat and prevent this life-threatening sickness due to toxicities, drug resistance and therapeutic failures in current conventional therapies. Researchers around the world are drawing their attention towards compounds of natural origin. For decades, human beings have been using the flora of the world as a source of cancer chemotherapeutic agents. Currently, clinically approved anticancer compounds are vincristine, vinblastine, taxanes, and podophyllotoxin, all of which come from natural sources. With the triumph of these compounds that have been developed into staple drug products for most cancer therapies, new technologies are now appearing to search for novel biomolecules with anticancer activities. Ellipticine, camptothecin, combretastatin, curcumin, homoharringtonine and others are plant derived bioactive phytocompounds with potential anticancer properties. Researchers have improved the field further through the use of advanced analytical chemistry and computational tools of analysis. The investigation of new strategies for administration such as nanotechnology may enable the development of the phytocompounds as drug products. These technologies have enhanced the anticancer potential of plant-derived drugs with the aim of site-directed drug delivery, enhanced bioavailability, and reduced toxicity. This review discusses mechanistic insights into anticancer compounds of natural origins and their structural activity relationships that make them targets for anticancer treatments. Full article

The present research aimed to synthesize ketoprofen prodrugs and to demonstrate their potentiality for oral treatment to treat chronic inflammation by reducing its hepatotoxicity and gastrointestinal irritation. Methyl 2-(3-benzoyl phenyl) propanoate, ethyl 2-(3-benzoyl phenyl) propanoate and propyl 2-(3-benzoyl phenyl) propanoate was synthesized by esterification and identified by nuclear magnetic resonance (¹HNMR) and infrared (IR) spectrometric analysis. In silico SwissADME and ProTox-II analysis stated methyl derivative as ideal candidate for oral absorption, having a >30-fold LD50 value compared to ketoprofen with no hepatotoxicity. Moreover, in vivo hepatotoxicity study demonstrates that these ester prodrugs have significantly lower effects on liver toxicity compared to pure ketoprofen. Furthermore, ex vivo intestinal permeation enhancement ratio was statistically significant (* p < 0.05) compared to ketoprofen. Likewise, the prodrugs were found to exhibit not only remarkable in vitro anti-proteolytic and lysosomal membrane stabilization potentials, but also significant efficiency to alleviate pain induced by inflammation, as well as central and peripheral stimulus in mice model in vivo. These outcomes recommend that ketoprofen ester prodrugs, especially methyl derivative, can be a cost-effective candidate for prolonged treatment of chronic inflammatory diseases. Full article