ABSTRACT
This article aims to investigate whether differences in ESG ratings have an impact on corporate green innovation behavior. A high-order fixed effects model was established using panel data from Chinese companies from 2009 to 2022 to empirically test the impact of ESG rating divergence in the Chinese market on corporate green innovation behavior.The study demonstrates that ESG rating disparity raises the quantity but lowers the quality of businesses' green innovation efforts because of the short board effect. After a series of robustness tests, the results are still valid.The mechanism investigation reveals that both an external pressure channel and an internal strategy adjustment channel are responsible for the impact of ESG rating disparity on green innovation efforts. The asymmetry of corporate green innovation activities is exacerbated by managers' self-interest, whereas the asymmetry of green innovation is mitigated by the caliber of government. According to the heterogeneity analysis, the divergence of a business's ESG rating between large-scale, non-heavy polluting, and places with strong environmental regulations can effectively slow down the asymmetric behavior of enterprise innovation activities. Additional investigation reveals that the phenomenon of ESG rating divergence spreads across industries and geographical areas. The short board effect of ESG rating divergence can be effectively mitigated by improving the quality of enterprise information disclosure and speeding up the digital transformation of businesses. The research conclusion provides marginal contributions on how to improve China's ESG rating system and how enterprises can identify ESG rating differences and make scientific decisions.
ABSTRACT
The effects of Al deoxidation and Zr deoxidation on the microstructure and properties of sulfide stress corrosion resistant high-strength steel have been investigated. The feasibility of the Zr deoxidation instead of Al deoxidation was confirmed by the thermodynamic analysis of the deoxidation of various elements. The experimental results indicate that the average diameters of the inclusions in Al-Steel and Zr-Steel were 2.45 µm and 1.65 µm, respectively. The Al-Steel and Zr-Steel contained 22.38% and 68.77% inclusions per unit area, respectively, and the fraction of inclusions in the Al-Steel and Zr-Steel with diameters less than 2 µm was about 73.46% and 89.63%, respectively, indicating that the Zr deoxidation process could effectively refine inclusions and promote dispersion. The average diameters of austenite grain for the Al-Steel and Zr-Steel were about 9.1 µm and 8 µm, respectively. The fine particles in Zr-Steel could pin the austenite grain boundaries and clearly refine the grains. The average grain size of tempered martensite was 8.2 µm and 3.8 µm, respectively. The yield strength of the Al-Steel and Zr-Steel was 922 MPa and 939 MPa, respectively; the impact energy was 60 ± 6 J and 132 ± 6 J, respectively. Moreover, the fracture time of the NACE-A was from 28 h (Al-Steel) to 720 h (Zr-Steel) without fracture. The experimental steel deoxidized by Zr achieved a simultaneous improvement in strength, toughness and sulfide stress corrosion resistance, and the effect of inclusions on the fracture of the sulfide stress corrosion resistant high-strength steel can be explained by the Griffith theory.
ABSTRACT
An accurate prediction of temperature and stress evolution in work rolls is crucial to assess the service life of the work roll. In this paper, a finite element method (FEM) model with a deformable work roll and a meshed, rigid body considering complex thermal boundary conditions over the roll surface is proposed to assess the temperature and the thermal stress in work rolls during hot rolling and subsequent idling. After that, work rolls affected by the combined action of temperature gradient and rolling pressure are investigated by taking account of the hot strip. The accuracy of the proposed model is verified through comparison with the calculation results obtained from the mathematical model. The results show that thermal stress is dominant in the bite region of work rolls during hot rolling. Afterwards, the heat treatment residual stresses which are related to thermal fatigue are simulated and introduced into the work roll as the initial stress to evaluate the redistribution under the thermal cyclic loads during the hot rolling process. Results show that the residual stress significantly changed near the roll surface.
