Application of pectin hydrolyzing bacteria in tobacco to improve flue-cured tobacco quality.

To study the relationship between the diversity of the surface microbial community and tobacco flavor, and to improve tobacco quality using microorganisms. The microbial community composition and diversity of 14 samples of flue-cured tobacco from tobacco-producing areas in Yunnan with varying grades were analyzed by high-throughput sequencing. PICRUSt was used for predicting microbial functions. A strain of Bacillus amyloliquefaciens W6-2 with the ability to degrade pectin was screened from the surface of flued-cured tobacco leaves from Yunnan reroasted tobacco leave. The enzyme preparation was prepared through fermentation and then applied for treating flue-cured tobacco. The improvement effect was evaluated by measuring the content of macromolecule and the changes in volatile components, combined with sensory evaluations. The bacterial communities on the surface of flue-cured tobacco exhibited functional diversity, consisting primarily of Variovorax, Pseudomonas, Sphingomonas, Burkholderia, and Bacillus. These bacterial strains played a role in the aging process of flue-cured tobacco leaves by participating in amino acid metabolism and carbohydrate metabolism. These metabolic activity converted complex macromolecules into smaller molecular compounds, ultimately influence the smoking quality and burning characteristics of flue-cured tobacco. The pectinase preparation produced through fermentation using W6-2 has been found to enhance the aroma and sweetness of flue-cured tobacco, leading to improved aroma, reduced impurities, and enhanced smoothness. Additionally, the levels of pectin, cellulose, and hemicellulose decreased, while the levels of water-soluble sugar and reducing sugar increased, and the contents of esters, ketones, and aldehydes increased, and the contents of benzoic acid decreased. The study revealed the correlation between surface microorganisms and volatile components of Yunnan tobacco leaves, and the enzyme produced by the pectin-degrading bacteria W6-2 effectively improved the quality of flue-cured tobacco.

Understanding evolutionary process of public participation leveraging agent-based simulation: The case of waste incineration power projects.

Public participation, as a vital way for conflict management, has attracted increasing attention. Although previous studies have examined the determinants of public participation, the evolutionary process of the participatory behavior has seldom been investigated. Based on the motivation-opportunity-ability theory, a concept model was constructed to illustrate individual behavior of participation in waste incineration power (WIP) projects. Data collected from a questionnaire survey was used to examine the important factors involved in the concept model that significantly influence public's willingness to participate in WIP projects. Thereafter, an agent-based simulation within a social network based on the opinion propagation dynamics was developed to simulate the change of the agents and several simulation experiments were implemented. It was found that with the dissemination of information and the interaction of opinions, the whole network tends to converge to a few central nodes, and the difference of degree of each node also increases gradually. The increase of interaction threshold and moral incentive significantly enhance average participation intention and the proportion of participants. The findings advocate for promoting information disclosure, strengthening opinion interaction between individuals, and emphasizing the internalization of moral sense into the individual's own sense of obligation. This study could enhance the understanding of evolutionary process of public participation in WIP projects and provide valuable suggestions for the promotion of sustainable development of environmental projects.

Construction and demolition waste management in Australia: A mini-review.

Construction and demolition activities generate huge quantities of waste with substantial impacts on environment. This mini-review article covers the literatures relating to construction and demolition waste management practice in Australia. The Scopus search engine was used in literature search and 26 journal articles relating to construction and demolition waste management in Australia were targeted for analysis. Additionally, various government acts, regulations, policies, and strategy documents were collected and analyzed. This review indicated that the inconsistencies in legislation and landfill levies across states and territories contributed to the cross-jurisdiction waste movement. Given the stakeholders' attitude and project life cycle, this review reported that the design phase had the greatest potential to minimize waste and that the role of designers had been highlighted in various empirical studies. This review provides practitioners and academics with an understanding of the current construction and demolition waste management research in Australia and recommends directions for future research.

Work-Family Conflict and Job Outcomes for Construction Professionals: The Mediating Role of Affective Organizational Commitment.

This study developed and tested a model, which involves the effects of work-family conflicts on job satisfaction and job performance of construction professionals, with a focus on the mediating role of affective organizational commitment. A structured questionnaire survey was conducted among construction professionals in China, resulting in 317 valid responses. The results, generated from structural equation modelling, revealed two interrelated dimensions of work-family conflicts, work's interfering with family life and family life's interfering with work. We found these two types of work-family conflicts directly, negatively affected affective organizational commitments and job satisfaction but not job performance. Additionally, affective organizational commitment positively affected job satisfaction and job performance, and mediated the effects of work-family conflicts on job satisfaction. This study advances our understanding of how or why work-family conflicts produce dysfunctional effects on employees' job outcomes in the context of construction projects.

Social Risk Factors of Transportation PPP Projects in China: A Sustainable Development Perspective.

Public-private partnerships (PPPs) have become increasingly important in improving the sustainability of society in China, with transportation being the largest investment area. However, the Social Risk Factors (SRFs) of transportation PPPs in China, which serve as a useful tool for distinguishing strengths and weaknesses for effective social risk management (SRM), have not been clearly identified. A conceptual model including 3 risk dimensions and 15 SRFs was proposed to mitigate social risks and improve the social sustainability of transportation PPP projects. A questionnaire survey conducted to investigate stakeholders’ opinions on the proposed SRFs demonstrated that all the SRFs were important. The SRFs can be used to evaluate social risks from economic, environmental, and social dimensions. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) verified the classification of the SRFs and indicated that all the risk dimensions contributed to social risks. The social and environmental impacts on social sustainability may contribute more to the generation of social risks. Furthermore, the concept of people-first PPPs was proposed to reduce social risks from the perspective of different stakeholders, with the interactions among different stakeholders being prioritized. The identified SRFs and their relationships can improve our understanding of SRM in the delivery of social sustainability and improve social resilience.