Search Results (1,131)

In situ resource utilization (ISRU) and in situ fabrication and repair (ISFR) are critical research and technological paradigms for future space exploration. They aim to reduce reliance on Earth-supplied materials by utilizing resources available on celestial bodies, while enabling on-site fabrication and repair through the use and processing of local resources. ISRU and ISFR are strongly interconnected, with the shared objective of enabling more sustainable and autonomous long-duration missions to the Moon, Mars, and beyond. This work presents a comprehensive and critical review of scientific and patent literature published primarily between 2010 and 2025, complemented by selected earlier seminal contributions for context. The analysis provides an integrated perspective on major technological developments, key challenges, and emerging research directions in low-gravity and microgravity environments. Full article

Improving energy efficiency is critical for tackling environmental issues and achieving sustainable development. Understanding how digital technology affects energy efficiency and its underlying mechanisms can deepen our comprehension of the economic consequences of digital innovation. This study adopts a dictionary-based method to identify digital technology patents from a large-scale patent dataset and employs a comprehensive evaluation approach incorporating both subjective and objective weights to measure digital technology advancement. Building on this framework, the research uses city-level data from China and applies panel data models alongside mediation effect models as core analytical tools to investigate the impact mechanisms and effects of digital technology on energy efficiency. Key findings reveal that digital technology has developed rapidly, exhibiting distinct phase-specific characteristics, especially after 2010, though notable regional disparities remain. Robust tests confirm that digital technology significantly enhances energy efficiency. Nonlinear regression results indicate that the marginal effect of digital technology changes dynamically across different stages of energy efficiency development. Heterogeneity tests demonstrate that the impact of digital technology on energy efficiency exhibits typical heterogeneous characteristics. Mechanism analysis shows that digital technology enhances energy efficiency primarily through two pathways: green technology innovation and industrial structure upgrading. Further analysis suggests that regional convergence in energy efficiency is objectively present, and digital technology actively accelerates this convergence process. These findings offer practical insights to guide policymakers in designing and implementing digital technology-driven strategies aimed at enhancing energy efficiency. Full article

Alpinia oxyphylla Miquel is a perennial medicinal plant widely cultivated in the provinces of Fujian, Guangdong, and Hainan in China. The dried mature fruit of A. oxyphylla, officially recorded as Alpiniae Oxyphyllae Fructus in the pharmacopoeia of the People’s Republic of China (since 2012), is one of the four primary southern medicinal materials in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM). In TCM, the fruit is traditionally used to support kidney function, regulate urination, and alleviate gastrointestinal disorders such as diarrhea. Its continued use across Southeast Asia underscores its enduring ethnopharmacological relevance. The plant is rich in bioactive constituents, including terpenoids, flavonoids, diphenylheptanes, and sterols, which exhibit diverse biological activities, including antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anticancer, neuroprotective, and gastrointestinal protective effects. Information on Alpinia oxyphylla was collected from multiple databases, including Web of Science, Google Scholar, PubMed, Baidu Scholar, ScienceDirect, CNKI, and the Pharmacopoeia of the People’s Republic of China. The search strategy included keywords related to A. oxyphylla, its chemical constituents, biological activities, pharmacological effects, traditional medicinal uses, and safety. A bibliometric analysis of 217 English-language publications (2014–2025) using CiteSpace revealed a marked increase in global research interest, with keyword clustering and burst analyses highlighting oxidative stress, Alzheimer’s disease, and cognitive enhancement as emerging research hotspots. Moreover, 692 patents were identified, demonstrating substantial technological innovation related to A. oxyphylla, particularly in essential oil formulations, functional foods, and health-promoting applications. Overall, this review integrates phytochemical, pharmacological, bibliometric, and patent perspectives to provide a holistic understanding of A. oxyphylla and its medicinal fruit, offering a solid scientific foundation for future research, standardization, and translational development. Full article

Rare-earth elements are critical to a wide range of high-technology applications, and analyzing patents involving rare-earth elements is essential for understanding technological progress and innovation trends. Traditional topic models cannot fully exploit patent network structures and temporal information, limiting their ability to capture the dynamic evolution of technology topics. To overcome these limitations, we propose a novel multisource-fused framework (MFT-PTM), which integrates three types of multisource features: textual, network, and temporal features via the time-aware TemporalK-Means algorithm. Specifically, we use SciBERT to extract text embeddings, TransR to generate network embeddings, and derive temporal scalars from patent data. After fusing and reducing these features with Uniform Manifold Approximation and Projection (UMAP), we apply TemporalK-Means clustering with a time-decay mechanism to capture evolutionary trends. Experiments on 43,322 rare-earth-related patents indicate that the proposed framework achieves improved performance compared with traditional methods such as LDA and BERTopic in terms of topic coherence, cluster quality, and cluster separation. Furthermore, the analysis suggests a noticeable technological transition in rare-earth applications, gradually shifting from environmental catalysis toward advanced energy and biomedical domains. Overall, the framework provides a quantitative approach for integrating multisource patent information and exploring technological evolution patterns. Full article

Unpolluted water, both freshwater and saltwater, is essential for achieving several United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, particularly SDGs 6, 3, 2, 14, and 15. This study maps emerging water-quality monitoring technologies at intermediate technological readiness levels (TRLs 4–5) and their potential patent markets (TRL 9). A total of 40,469 patent families were retrieved from the Espacenet worldwide database using IPC G01N33/18 and used to analyze sensing parameters. A subset of 2146 water-pollution-related patents was analyzed in detail. The analysis covered sensing parameters, temporal trends, compound annual growth rates (CAGR), legal status, geographic distribution of patent origins and markets, and the technological landscape, including application domains and niche clusters. The results show pronounced exponential growth in patent filings since 2014 and a high share of active documents, indicating sustained global investment. Innovation leadership is concentrated in China, South Korea, India, the United States, and Japan, with export-oriented patents largely held by transnational corporations, while African participation remains limited. Technological trends prioritize multiparameter environmental and biological sensing, addressing pH, temperature, turbidity, dissolved oxygen, nutrients, heavy metals, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), and oxidation–reduction potential. Emerging solutions integrate autonomous platforms, remote sensing, Internet-of-Things architectures, and machine-learning-based analytics. Persistent bottlenecks include sensor robustness in harsh aquatic environments and the reliable discrimination between background variability and early pollution signals. Strengthening low-cost and scalable deployment remains essential to ensure water quality, support environmental sustainability, and minimize risks. Full article

This paper examines the relationship between artificial intelligence (AI) innovation and bank performance, the organizational channels through which these relationships operate, and the role of firm-wide adoption in shaping outcomes. Using patent-based measures of AI innovation for 31 large U.S. commercial banks from 2015 to 2024 based on the Federal Reserve’s Large Bank classification and employing panel regressions with bank and year fixed effects, we find that AI innovation is associated with improved asset quality but higher operating costs and lower profitability in the short run. Our two-step mediation analysis implies that AI innovation induces organizational changes through diminishing employee scale and branch networks, which mitigates management efficiency and profitability. Importantly, firm-wide AI adoption mitigates the adverse association between AI innovation and both management and profitability prior to adoption, suggesting that the realization of AI’s benefits requires organizational adaptation and coordinated deployment. Dynamic tests further support the productivity “J-curve” of AI innovation. Our findings suggest that bank managers should align AI investment with organizational restructuring and coordinated deployment, while regulators should account for short-term adjustment costs when evaluating the performance implications of AI adoption. Full article

A key technological challenge for automotive manufacturers is producing multiple vehicle variants on a single production line. At the body-in-white shop of Magna’s complete vehicle plant in Graz, this is addressed through transportable positioning devices that serve as part carriers and adapters between different products, while ensuring consistent geometric alignment throughout the process. Geometrical deviations in these devices can adversely impact product quality along the entire vehicle assembly chain. This paper presents the development and implementation of two patented use cases: a cyber-physical inspection system, fully operational in serial production, and a cyber-physical assembly system, tested successfully in the prototype phase. The first actively mitigates the effects of device deviations in real time, while the second enables the on-demand configuration of flexible, advanced positioning devices via precision part matching, effectively preventing systematic deviations. Challenges and insights from both systems are discussed. Four previously introduced building blocks for automating quality control processes are validated and generalized for broad applicability across manufacturing processes and project phases via cross-system comparative analysis: the integrated capture of process and product data, automated data analytics, automated decision-making, and autonomous process intervention. This work proposes a validated, scalable framework integrating the design and implementation of cyber-physical systems to support zero-defect manufacturing. Full article

Sustainable development has become an important global goal for environmental protection and economic growth. Promoting environmental sustainability and green development has become an inevitable trend for global economic transformation. The carbon emission trading market (carbon market) is a crucial market-based mechanism for pricing greenhouse gas emissions, where carbon trading prices signal the costs of emission reduction and drive firms to engage in green technology innovation for a low-carbon transition. Using a sample of A-share listed companies in China’s eight carbon pilot regions from 2013 to 2024, this study employs a two-way fixed effects model to examine how carbon prices affect both the quantity and quality of corporate green technological innovation. Baseline regressions show that a one-unit increase in carbon prices significantly boosts green patent quantity (GreNum) by 0.018 and quality (GreQua) by 0.361, both at the 1% significance level. Mechanism analysis reveals that financing constraints act as a partial mediator, while environmental regulation and media attention further amplify the positive impact of carbon prices on corporate green technological innovation. Heterogeneity analysis further indicates that this positive effect is more pronounced in non-high-tech enterprises, China’s northern and eastern regions, and state-owned enterprises. This study provides empirical evidence for optimizing carbon market allocation, supporting corporate low-carbon transition, and promoting global environmental sustainability and green development. Full article

This study aims to develop and characterize novel dermatocosmetic formulations designed to hydrate the skin, improve its appearance, reduce wrinkles, and provide antioxidant, anti-ageing, antimicrobial, and anti-inflammatory benefits, along with potential protection against UVA and UVB radiation. The formulations contain the following ingredients: xanthan gum (0.5%), Calendula officinalis oil (5%), Argania spinosa oil (5%), Helianthus annuus oil (5%), liposomes containing a hydroalcoholic extract of pomace from local red or white grapes (2%), an olive oil-based emulsifier (6%), vitamin E (0.5%), cetearyl alcohol (3%), propylene glycol (8%), and purified water (up to 100%). The natural ingredients used in these formulations, i.e., the red or white grape pomace extract from the aforementioned Romanian varieties, the oils of Calendula officinalis, Argania spinosa, and Helianthus annuus, xanthan gum, and the olive oil-based emulsifier (Olliva), promote the concept of ‘green cosmetics’. The use of liposomes to deliver bioactive substances from hydroalcoholic extracts allows the gradual release of active ingredients into the skin. An alternative for incorporating grape pomace extract into a cream-type matrix involves the use of liposomes. Liposomes loaded with red or white grape pomace extract were prepared using the thin-film hydration technique, followed by ultrasonication and extrusion. The obtained formulations were characterized using bio-physico-chemical analysis procedures in terms of consistency, colour, homogeneity, aroma, pH, stretch, texture, stability, and antioxidant activity/free radical scavenging capacity, as well as in vitro polyphenol release behaviour. These newly developed dermatocosmetic formulations were the subject of a patent application in Romania. Full article

This systematic review evaluates recent scientific and technological advances in water quality monitoring and pollution alarms for ports, based on records retrieved from seven databases following the PRISMA protocol. A total of 414 documents were screened, resulting in 141 articles (TRL 3) and 56 patents (TRL 4–5). Bibliometric, patentometric, and thematic analyses were conducted using Bibliometrix and ORBIT^®. Results show sustained growth in both academic and technological outputs, with a patent Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 32%, compared with 13% for scientific publications, indicating accelerated translation from research to innovation. The conversion rate from scientific research to patenting increased from 14% (2010–2015) to 47% (2020–2023). Analysis of patent legal status reveals that 52% of patent families remain valid (48% granted; 4% pending), while 33% are lapsed, 13% revoked, and 2% expired, reflecting the dynamic and emerging character of the field. Technological ownership is highly concentrated, with China accounting for nearly all active patents, whereas scientific production is more geographically distributed. Thematic analysis identifies four main scientific clusters: environmental monitoring, chemical pollutants, seashore hazards, and eutrophication. The main technological domains of the patents are analysis of biological materials, control, and environmental technologies. Emerging areas of focus at TRL 3 and TRL 4–5 include microplastics, climate-change impacts, aquaculture risks, real-time sensing, IoT-enabled platforms, machine-learning analytics, autonomous monitoring systems, and bioindicator-based early-warning tools. This review provides a quantitative roadmap to support sustainable port operations, coastal ecosystem protection, and progress toward multiple synergistic United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Full article

Sustained innovation is pivotal for establishing long-term technological advantages and ensuring corporate sustainability, which holds particular significance for “specialized, refined, unique, and innovative” (SRUI) enterprises that concentrate on niche segments and are innovation-intensive. Grounded in signaling theory and principal–agent theory, and situated within the practical context of financing constraints, this paper investigates how environmental, social, and governance (ESG) performance contributes to sustaining innovation in such firms. Using panel data from Chinese SRUI enterprises between 2010 and 2023, we measure sustained innovation along two dimensions: sustained innovation input and sustained innovation output. The results demonstrate that ESG performance significantly enhances sustained innovation among SRUI enterprises. Mechanism analysis reveals that ESG operates through three pathways: optimizing talent structure, mitigating managerial myopia, and strengthening working capital management. Heterogeneity tests further indicate that the positive effect of ESG on overall innovation sustainability is stronger with a younger management team and lower government subsidies. Moreover, in firms with heightened climate risk perception, ESG strongly promotes the sustained innovation input but exhibits a weaker effect on the continuity of innovative output. In enterprises with stronger big-data technology application capabilities, ESG significantly improves the continuity of patent output yet does not significantly affect the continuity of innovative input. This study extends the literature on the economic consequences of ESG from the perspective of sustained innovation, while providing new mechanistic evidence for understanding how highly specialized small and medium-sized enterprises build long-term innovation capacity. Full article

Background: Breast cancer is the most common malignancy in women, and sentinel lymph node (SLN) biopsy is essential for accurate nodal staging while avoiding unnecessary axillary dissection. Aim: This study aimed to compare SLN detection rates between two dual-tracer techniques: indocyanine green plus patent blue (ICG + PB) and technetium-99m plus patent blue (99mTc + PB), and to identify factors associated with detection failure for each tracer. Methods: All clinically node-negative breast cancer patients undergoing SLN biopsy between January 2014 and December 2024 were retrospectively evaluated. SLN detection was considered successful when at least one node was identified intraoperatively and confirmed histologically. Multivariate analysis assessed clinical and tumor-related predictors of failure. Results: A total of 269 procedures (258 patients) were analyzed, including 152 ICG + PB and 117 99mTc + PB procedures. Detection rates were comparable between groups (95.4% vs. 94.9%, p = 0.96), with no significant differences in the number of SLNs retrieved or nodal positivity. Multivariate analysis identified increasing patient age as the only independent predictor of PB failure, while no variables were associated with ICG failure. Tumor location in the upper-inner quadrant was the sole predictor of 99mTc failure. Conclusions: ICG + PB and 99mTc + PB provide equivalent and high SLN detection rates. ICG appears to be a robust, radiation-free alternative with no identifiable predictors of failure, supporting its role as an effective mapping strategy, particularly in centers aiming to optimize workflow and patient safety, despite the limited available data on its efficacy. Full article

Deepwater drilling operations face critical challenges including narrow pore-fracture pressure windows, wellbore instability, and environmental concerns from drilling discharge. This paper presents a comprehensive systematic review of Riserless Mud Recovery (RMR) technology, tracing its evolution from its conceptual origins to its current applications, critically analyzing its technical limitations, and identifying future research directions. A systematic literature review was conducted covering peer-reviewed journals, SPE/IADC conference proceedings, industry technical reports, and independent academic studies from 1990 to 2025. Databases searched included Web of Science, Scopus, OnePetro, and Google Scholar, supplemented by Derwent Innovation Index for patents. After screening over 100 publications, approximately 60 references were selected following a two-step process excluding vendor-only promotional materials. Key findings reveal the following: (1) RMR technology has evolved through three distinct hardware generations—flexible hose systems, steel-pipe return lines with tandem pumps enabling deepwater breakthrough to 1419 m, and hybrid riser configurations for conceptual designs beyond 3000 m; (2) documented field benefits include 70% drilling fluid reduction, 9 days’ time savings per well, and successful mitigation of shallow geohazards across more than 1000 global well applications; (3) integration with casing-while-drilling and managed pressure cementing has enabled record-breaking performance of 1710 m in a single run; (4) independent academic validation confirms fatigue mechanisms affecting mud return lines; (5) systematic failure mode analysis identifies critical reliability issues in suction hoses, seals, and control systems; (6) quantitative economic analysis shows RMR cost-effectiveness depends on water depth, geological conditions, and environmental regulations. RMR technology has matured into a reliable drilling solution, yet its continued evolution requires addressing hardware limitations, developing dedicated well-control protocols, expanding to ultra-deepwater and emerging applications, and integrating digitalization for real-time optimization. Full article

Natural pasture, the primary feed source in sheep production, often provides insufficient levels of essential minerals and vitamins required for proper metabolic regulation during pregnancy and early development. This study aimed to analyze patent developments of mineral and vitamin complexes (MVCs) for pregnant ewes and lambs and to evaluate the biochemical and molecular relevance of their components based on scientific evidence. A search of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) database using the keywords “vitamins for sheep” and “minerals for sheep” identified 120 patents related to sheep feed additives, including 23 specifically formulated for pregnant ewes and lambs. Comparative analysis revealed that calcium, selenium, iron, copper, cobalt, sodium, manganese, zinc, and vitamins A, D, and E were the most frequently included components. These micronutrients play critical roles in enzymatic activity, regulation of gene expression, antioxidant defense systems, and mineral homeostasis. In particular, zinc and selenium function as structural and catalytic cofactors for antioxidant enzymes such as superoxide dismutase and glutathione peroxidase, while vitamins A and D regulate cellular differentiation and calcium–phosphorus metabolism through transcriptional control mechanisms. Additionally, functional additives, including amino acids and plant-derived bioactive compounds, contribute to improved mineral bioavailability and modulation of metabolic pathways. The analyzed formulations demonstrate a consistent focus on correcting mineral deficiencies, enhancing antioxidant protection, and supporting metabolic adaptation during pregnancy and early postnatal development. Overall, the findings indicate that modern MVCs are rationally formulated to improve mineral utilization, physiological stability, and reproductive outcomes, highlighting their critical role in optimizing maternal health and offspring viability in sheep production systems. Full article

The conflict between rapid industrialization and ecological deterioration constitutes a critical bottleneck for developing regions, particularly concerning industrial wastewater governance. The primary purpose of this study is to investigate whether industrial robotization (IR) can break this deadlock. This study proposes the central hypothesis that adopting IR significantly mitigates industrial wastewater emissions (IWE). Utilizing comprehensive panel data from 30 Chinese provinces from 2013 to 2022, this proposition is rigorously tested using fixed effects models. The main results clearly demonstrate that IR acts as a robust suppressant against IWE. Importantly, mechanism verification shows that this pollution reduction effect is propelled by stimulating green patents and amplifying technical expenditure. The empirical evidence reveals distinct nonlinear features regarding how IR affects IWE. Crucially, heterogeneity analysis indicates that the emission reduction utility of IR becomes significantly more pronounced in territories with robust financial depth and targeted policy backing. Consequently, this study provides vital strategic blueprints for policymakers to leverage industrial automation to navigate the sustainability crisis. Full article