Two procedures to evaluate fracture resistance of notched components are proposed in this contribution: the Strain Energy Density (SED) over a control volume and the Cohesive Zone Model (CZM). With the aim to simplify the application of the two fracture criteria, the concept of the ‘equivalent local mode I’ is presented. The control volume of the SED criterion and the cohesive crack of the CZM, have been rotated along the notch edge and centered with respect to the point where the elastic principal stress is maximum. Numerical predictions are compared with experimental results from U and V shaped notches under three point bending with notch root radius ranging from 0.2 to 4.0 mm. In parallel the loading conditions vary, from pure mode I to a prevailing mode II. All specimens were made of PMMA and tested at -60°C. The good agreement between theory and experimental results adds further confidence to the proposed fracture criteria.

Nowadays the use of fossil fuels as a non-renewable energy source has become a major challenge because of the pollution and the environmental impact. Substitution of biomass as an energy source and its supply chain design is the main question. Because of difficulties such as supply chain complexity, uncertainty in variables and selecting the site of bio-refineries many studies have been conducted in this regard. Studies in the field of biomass and biofuel production are described and classified. Also the strategic decisions such as choosing the sites, selecting energy conversation technology, ensuring economic, environmental, technical, and social sustainability and tactical decisions including allocating resources to productive plants, selecting transport modes, and types of warehouses are addressed in the reviewed papers. We have reviewed 140 papers in the interval between 1997 and 2016 and classified them based on the objective functions. The articles are classified based on their being single or multi objectivity, linearity or nonlinearity. Finally, a classification based on the regions in which the studies have been done.

Two potential energy surfaces 1 ²A1 and 1 ²B1 for linear geometry of F-H-Br system have been computed with aug-cc-pVQZ basis set using dynamically weighted state averaged MCSCF followed by MRCI-F12 method. State 1 ²A1 has smaller barrier height (3.49 kcal/mol) than 1 ²B1. (13.6 kcal/mol). The latter has deep van der Waals well in Br-HF valley (2.12 kcal/mol).

The teaching-learning-based optimization (TLBO) algorithm is finding a large number of applications in different fields of engineering and science since its introduction in 2011. The major applications are found in electrical engineering, mechanical design, thermal engineering, manufacturing engineering, civil engineering, structural engineering, computer engineering, electronics engineering, physics, chemistry, biotechnology and economics. This paper presents a review of applications of TLBO algorithm and a tutorial for solving the unconstrained and constrained optimization problems. The tutorial is expected to be useful to the beginners.

This paper aims to examine the joint impact of Enterprise Resource Planning systems (ERP systems) and Non Financial Performance Indicators (NFPI) on corporate financial performance. Our study is based on a comparative analysis between firms that adopt ERP only, firms that use NFPI only and firms that combining both strategies (ERP and NFPI) during the period from 2001 to 2006.The implementation process remains highly uncertain. In fact, the use of Non Financial performance indicators is an important determinant of corporate financial performance. At the operational level, combining ERP systems with NFPI reflects a long-term business strategy to improve business process. In summary, the ERP and NFPI literatures demonstrate the vital importance of aligning business process, information technologies and key performance indicators with the strategic objectives of the firm. Results support the hypothesis in which firms that combining ERP and NFPI have significantly higher ROA than either ERP-only or NFPI-only firms.

The present work proposes a multi-objective improved teaching-learning based optimization (MO-ITLBO) algorithm for unconstrained and constrained multi-objective function optimization. The MO-ITLBO algorithm is the improved version of basic teaching-learning based optimization (TLBO) algorithm adapted for multi-objective problems. The basic TLBO algorithm is improved to enhance its exploration and exploitation capacities by introducing the concept of number of teachers, adaptive teaching factor, tutorial training and self-motivated learning. The MO-ITLBO algorithm uses a grid-based approach to adaptively assess the non-dominated solutions (i.e. Pareto front) maintained in an external archive. The performance of the MO-ITLBO algorithm is assessed by implementing it on unconstrained and constrained test problems proposed for the Congress on Evolutionary Computation 2009 (CEC 2009) competition. The performance assessment is done by using the inverted generational distance (IGD) measure. The IGD measures obtained by using the MO-ITLBO algorithm are compared with the IGD measures of the other state-of-the-art algorithms available in the literature. Finally, Lexicographic ordering is used to assess the overall performance of competitive algorithms. Results have shown that the proposed MO-ITLBO algorithm has obtained the 1st rank in the optimization of unconstrained test functions and the 3rd rank in the optimization of constrained test functions.

With the focus on calculating the equilibrium constant (Ka) of arsonic acids (RAsO(OH)2) in aqueous media, the behavior of both neutral and negatively charged species of some arsonic acids have been considered through the isodesmic reaction scheme with polarized continuum model of solvation. The relative pKa values of a number of arsonic acids were calculated using density functional theory (DFT), with methylarsonic acid (CH3AsO(OH)2) used as a reference molecule. Various basis sets such as (6-31G(d), 6-31+G(d), 6-311++G(d,p) and 6-311++G(2d,2p)) in conjunction with B3LYP computational method were examined. Finally the latter one was found to give better results. The results of applied B3LYP 6-311++G(2d,2p) method for pKa values of 25 arsonic acids in aqueous media showed good agreement with corresponding experimental pKa values. In this level of theory the average error was less than 0.3 pKa units. The type of substituent affected the acid strength, with electron withdrawing substituents lowering the pKa and electron releasing groups increasing it.

Application of cooling slope in casting is a relatively simple process with low equipment and processing costs, which is able to produce semi-solid slurries with different parameters such as pouring temperature, length and angle of slope plate, and plate type. In this study, the effect of angle and length of copper made slope plate on the microstructure of A360-Aluminum alloy is investigated. Microstructure study of metallographic samples in different conditions revealed that for 400mm slope length and 60° slope angle the optimum sphierized and homogenized microstructure is achieved. Also, under these conditions, the most hardness (77HB) was obtained, which might be because of suitable solidification conditions namely time and rate of shear stress. After finding the suitable conditions of slope length and angle, the effect of the circulation cooling system was examined; and the method with cooling system was found to result in more homogenized microstructure compared to ordinary method.

The frequently discussed topic of job satisfaction is not new in the field of organizational behavior research. Job satisfaction is related to customer satisfaction; however, there is a scarcity of empirical evidence regarding this link. The current piece of research examines the said relationship in the context of the online call center. In addition, this study investigates the effect of human resources (HR) practices on job satisfaction within the online call center context. The sample of the study consists of 275 employees who were working as an online call center. SMARTPLS 3 was used to analyze the data. The findings of the study indicated a positive relationship between HR practices with job satisfaction. Furthermore, a positive impact of job satisfaction on customer satisfaction is observed. The mediation of customer interaction quality is also found to be significant in the relationship between job satisfaction and customer satisfaction.

Since strategy planning describes organization strategy and helps people understand it, it has a significant role in strategic management by drawing cause-and-effect relations; this plan provides the management more power to correct administrating of strategies. In this paper, Interpretive Structural Modeling (ISM) approach is used to produce a strategic planning for tile and ceramic industry. In the method introduced in this paper, after identifying the key measure of function assessment in case study of tile and ceramic by using ISM stages, cause-and-effect relations among the measures have been identified and finally the diagraph which is the strategic plans in four dimensions (BSC) has been drawn.