Medicinal herbs as a panacea for biogenic silver nanoparticles

Background Scientists created a new area known as "green nanotechnology" by combining the concept of sustainability with nanotechnology. Its goal is to eliminate the use of chemicals in nanoparticle manufacturing by replacing them with plant-based materials. Green synthesis is promoted as the best alternative to the traditional method of nanoparticle synthesis in this new domain. Plants that constitute a major portion of our biodiversity are embraced with inherent potentiality to be transformed as miracle medicine due to its phytochemicals. These phytochemicals efficiently replace the classical wet chemical ingredients involved in nanoparticle synthesis by upgrading to greener method for its synthesis. By incorporating plant-based sources as the chief ingredient of nanoparticle synthesis, we are able to reduce the hazards of greenhouse gas emissions and enlighten the insights of our scientific community with nanotechnology for green innovation. Hence, this review simultaneously aims at promoting plant extracts as the most efficient as well as renewable recipe for green synthesis of silver nanoparticles and preparing earth for a greener tomorrow. Methodology Scientific articles and publications were selected from reputed journals and sorted out with pertinent keywords of this review. Electronic sources like Google Scholar, PubMed, Research Gate, Science Direct, Wiley Online Library, Web of Science and Scopus were searched for potential articles and recent breakthroughs published in the area of silver nanoparticle synthesis via green chemistry and biological methods using plant extracts. Scientific names of medicinal plants were checked using botanical databases like Plant List and International Plant Names Index. Conclusion This review pinpoints on empowering better life on earth by protecting it from hazardous effects of conventional nanotechnological production through replacing the former with sustainable green synthesis approach. Ergo, it outlines that by incorporating plant-based sources as the chief ingredient of nanoparticle synthesis, we are able to reduce the hazards of greenhouse gas emissions in turn by slowing down increasing climate change disasters globally and enlighten the insights of our scientific community with nanotechnology for green innovation.

Operating Successfully on a New Technological Path: The Effect of External Search

Switching to a new technological path is often a serious economic challenge for companies. Incumbents, in particular, are often led by their organizational routines, traditional technological orientation, and experience, and run the risk of losing contact with new technologies, which can decrease their competitiveness. We analyze whether opening up the innovation process to external knowledge partners can help to overcome such path dependence and enable firms to operate successfully on a new technological path. We develop a theoretical concept that shows the potential of external knowledge sources for operating successfully on a new technological path and test it empirically using the example of green technologies. Green technologies are not only relevant for addressing the current environmental problems, but they are also an example of a new technological path that is proving difficult for companies to switch to. Overall, we find strong direct effects of external (green) knowledge on green innovation success. The results even indicate that the direct effect of external knowledge tends to be larger for green than for non-green innovation.

How to Enhance the Green Innovation of Sports Goods? Micro- and Macro-Level Evidence From China’s Manufacturing Enterprises

This study aims to explore the driving factors of green innovation, and uses the micro- and macro-data from China’s sports goods manufacturing industries. In particularly, sports goods manufacturing enterprises are identified by the textual analysis of information disclosure, and the competitive environment faced by each enterprise is built through their unique closest rivals. Empirically, this study finds that competition and policy can promote green innovation in sports goods manufacturing industries, and industrial policy can moderate the role of product market competition in promoting green innovation. Considering the characteristics of the Chinese market, more industrial policies may intensify the competition among manufacturing enterprises, forcing such enterprises to obtain competitive advantages through innovation outcomes. It is worth noting that the association between product market competition and green innovation changes as financial constraints increase, and this may be caused by the impact of industrial policy on the interactions among enterprises. After implementing the strict environmental policy, product market competition and industrial policy can both promote green innovation. In high-polluting industries, sports goods manufacturing enterprises get more social attention and suffer from higher penalties for environmental violations, so that such enterprises will get more motivations from industrial policies to support green innovation. In addition, we also find that there is a significant inverted-U shape relationship between industrial policy and green innovation in sports goods manufacturing industries. As financial constraints increase, the non-linear relationship between product market competition and green innovation converts from a U shape relationship to an inverted-U shape relationship. Our findings can provide a better understanding of the investment of sports goods manufacturing enterprises in green innovation.