Photocatalytic CO 2 reduction is an appealing approach for producing value-added chemicals and fuels from greenhouse gases. However, it faces challenges because of low activity, poor selectivity, and catalyst instability. Heterojunction engineering is a viable approach to improve charge-carrier separation and transfer and enhance light absorption in CO 2 -reduction photocatalysts; however, incomplete mechanistic understanding and inconsistent evaluation often hinder this strategy. This review covers research progress on CO 2 reduction from a heterojunction perspective. First, it reviews thermodynamic and kinetic challenges, including limited CO 2 activation, the multielectron nature of the reduction reactions, and competition from the hydrogen evolution reaction. Subsequently, the review discusses different heterojunction structures, including Type II, Z-scheme, S-scheme, and Schottky or p–n junctions, in the context of charge transfer and separation, emphasizing the internal electric fields induced at the heterojunction interface and charge transfer through junction defects after Fermi-level alignment. The review also compares structure–activity relationships across major material systems and practical challenges related to stability, scalability, and environmental impact. It also reviews issues and inconsistencies in benchmarking and reports as current challenges in heterojunction engineering for photocatalytic CO 2 reduction.
In the digital economy, artificial intelligence (AI) is reshaping how firms create value and pursue sustainability, yet how small and medium-sized enterprises in emerging markets convert AI capability into sustainable outcomes remains insufficiently understood. Drawing on the Resource-Based View and Institutional Theory, this study examines whether eco-innovation mediates the relationship between AI capability and the economic, environmental, and social dimensions of sustainable performance, and whether market turbulence conditions these relationships. Survey data from 350 respondents in small and medium-sized hotels in Pakistan were analyzed using partial least squares structural equation modeling. The results show that AI capability strongly fosters eco-innovation, which in turn improves all three performance dimensions and partially mediates the effect of AI capability on sustainable performance. Market turbulence strengthens the contribution of eco-innovation to economic and social performance, but not to environmental performance, and does not alter the link between AI capability and eco-innovation. The study contributes to the digital economy and sustainability literature by identifying eco-innovation as the mechanism that converts AI capability into sustainable value, and market turbulence as a boundary condition on that conversion in resource-constrained service firms. For managers and policymakers, the findings indicate that AI investments yield sustainability gains when they are embedded in eco-innovation strategies, particularly in volatile markets.
The corrosion risk of methanol fuel on engine components primarily arises from its hygroscopic nature and impurities such as formaldehyde, formic acid, and water produced during combustion. To investigate this, the study focused on gray cast iron, commonly used in engine cylinder blocks and heads, employing potentiodynamic polarization, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), atomic force microscopy (AFM), and orthogonal experiments to analyze its surface corrosion behavior in different methanol-based fuels. Potentiodynamic polarization showed that methanol containing 1% formic acid reduced the corrosion resistance of gray cast iron surface by 11.53 times compared to pure methanol, while methanol containing 2% formaldehyde and 5% water is 1.93 times and 1.64 times, respectively. SEM analysis showed that gray cast iron surface exposed to methanol containing 1% formic acid will form grooves and pits, compromising structural integrity and durability. AFM data indicated that corrosion drastically increased surface roughness, rising from 87 & micro;m initially to 777 & micro;m in formic acid-containing fuel, while remaining below 200 & micro;m in pure methanol. Furthermore, increased surface roughness of the metal samples led to a larger reactive area, accelerating corrosion rates. This indicates that there is a positive feedback mechanism between surface roughness and corrosion rate. This study clarifies fuel composition's impact on metal corrosion and offers valuable insights for engineering design and material selection in related applications.
Abstract The construction industry plays a vital role in Pakistan’s economy, yet it continues to face persistent challenges in claim administration that hinder project performance, transparency, and trust among stakeholders. This study addresses these challenges by identifying the principal shortcomings of conventional claim management systems and developing a blockchain-based claims management application to improve security, traceability, and procedural efficiency. A three-stage research design was adopted. First, a systematic literature review was conducted to identify deficiencies in traditional claim management practices. This was followed by semistructured interviews with fifteen contract specialists involved in extension of time (EOT) claims to validate and refine the identified issues. Second, a decentralized application (DApp) was developed using React.js front-end and Solidity-based smart contracts and deployed on the Polygon test network to enable faster and more cost-effective transactions. Third, the developed system was evaluated through expert review involving 32 participants drawn from contracting, consulting, client organizations, and academia, followed by statistical analysis. The findings indicate that the proposed blockchain-based claims management system (B-CMS) improves data integrity, transparency, traceability, and timeliness in claim administration compared with traditional approaches. However, the system is not intended to replace professional judgment in highly subjective claim situations and is not suitable for capturing oral instructions or unstructured design and work-pattern changes. Despite these limitations, the study demonstrates the feasibility of B-CMS for construction claim administration in Pakistan and offers insights that may be relevant to comparable project environments internationally.
Lack of psychological wellbeing and deterioration of mental health of the personnel is currently becoming an emerging issue in the corporate sector of Pakistan, due to the exceeding work demands as well as the hostile working environment in most organizations. To cater to this apparent issue, this study investigates the impact of decent work and socially sustainable HRM practices on the psychological wellbeing of workforce, incorporating both hedonic and eudaimonic perspectives, while examining the moderating role of employee voice. A survey was conducted based on the banking sector of Islamabad, Pakistan. A total of 203 responses were collected and analyzed via SPSS and Smart PLS. The findings of this study confirmed decent work to have a positive relationship with psychological wellbeing of employees and socially sustainable HRM to mediate the relationship between decent work and psychological wellbeing. However, the findings of the study did not support employee voice to be playing a moderating role in the relationship. This study educates managers regarding the importance of the protection of psychological wellbeing of their workforce, improves their understanding regarding the concepts of decent work and socially sustainable HRM, and conveys information about how these notions may be incorporated into their organization’s HR policies.
