Adsorption of asphaltenes at the water-oil interface contributes to the stability of petroleum emulsions by forming a networked film that can hinder drop-drop coalescence. The interfacial microstructure can either be liquid-like or solid-like, depending on: i) initial bulk concentration of asphaltenes, ii) interfacial aging time, and iii) solvent aromaticity. Two techniques: interfacial shear rheology and integrated thin film drainage apparatus provided equivalent interface aging conditions, enabling direct correlation of the interfacial rheology and droplet stability. The shear rheological properties of the asphaltene film were found to be critical to the stability of contacting droplets. With a viscous dominant interfacial microstructure, the coalescence time for two drops in intimate contact was rapid, on the order of seconds. However, as the elastic contribution develops and the film microstructure begins to be dominated by elasticity, the two drops in contact do not coalescence. Such step-change transition in coalescence is thought to be related to the high shear yield stress (~10 4 Pa), which is a function of the film shear yield point and the film thickness (as measured by quartz crystal microbalance), and the increased elastic stiffness of the film that prevents mobility and rupture of the asphaltene film which when in a solid-like state provides an energy barrier for the droplets to coalescence.

Several economic, institutional, technical and socio-cultural barriers hinder countries from moving from the high to the low emission pathway. The objective of this research is to find out the impacts of social, economic, technological and regulatory barriers in the deployment of renewable energy. Data were collected through an online questionnaire responded to by 223 professionals working in the energy sector all over the globe. This research shows that social, technological and regulatory barriers have a strong influence on the deployment of renewable energy, while economic barriers significantly influence it indirectly. By breaking research and development-related barriers, organizations will be able to invest greatly in developing advanced technologies that can optimize usage of renewable energy and make renewable energy appear more lucrative. With less polluting and lower tariff energy solutions being made available to local people, and higher profits for manufacturers, this will create an atmosphere where all stakeholders are satisfied.

Many telecommunication companies in Malaysia have been attracted to invest significantly in the development of mobile commerce due to the explosive growth in the usage and market penetration of mobile devices. Eventhough generation X is characterized with high earning power, as they are reluctant on technological advancements, the mobile commerce adoption rate is remaining low in Malaysia. Therefore, this study is intended to explore the resistance factors to understand the reasons for this low adoption among generation X in Malaysia. Innovation Resistance Theory (IRT) and Valence Framework have been employed to examine the barriers, including usage, value, risk, tradition, image, and perceived cost barriers. The results of this study have been derived from data collected from 227 generation X consumers through questionnaire survey. The findings of this study show that, except the cost barrier, all other barriers significantly affect the mobile commerce adoption. These results enable local businesses to develop solutions to eliminate the resistance barriers and act as a means of understanding how to possibly enhance the rate of mobile commerce adoption in Malaysia. This research provides an extended Innovation Resistance Theory model by adding the perceived cost barrier construct, a negative valence factor, for the adoption intention of mobile commerce.

The aim of this study is to examine the extended model of Theory of Planned Behaviour in predicting tourists' intention in seeking medical tourism in Malaysia. The additional variables in this model are perceived risks, perceived benefits and resource availability whereby it is predicted to have influences to the model of Theory of Planned Behaviour. Sample is drawn using a quota sampling technique. A total of 380 completed questionnaires are collected. The partial least square approach is employed so as to conduct a comprehensive and vigorous structural equation modelling analysis. The results show that perceived benefits and perceived costs are significantly related to attitude; resource availability is significantly related to perceived behavioural control; and attitude and subjective norm are significantly related to intention for medical tourism in Malaysia; however, the perceived behavioural control is found to be insignificant to intention. Attitude and subjective norm are also significantly related to intention for medical tourism in Malaysia. However, the perceived behavioural control is found to be not insignificant related to intention. The findings of this study can serve as the blueprint for future research in the similar area with reasonable modification on the model construction in order to enhance and improve the theoretical extension model of Theory of Planned Behaviour.

Mobile learning has become a common experience in higher education and in the professional workforce. However, the readiness of accounting students to engage in such learning appears to be weaker than in other disciplines. Therefore, this study set out to identify the factors affecting accounting students’ behavioural intention (BI) to accept mobile learning. The participants of this study were 358 accounting students of public universities in Malaysia. The study  was anchored in the unified theory of acceptance and use of technology 2 (UTAUT2) (Venkatesh, Thong & Xu, 2012), which has been employed by researchers in various research areas such as mobile payments, e-learning, mobile banking, and online shopping. The study revealed that habits have the most influence on accounting students’ intention to adopt mobile learning through an investigation of technology acceptance in the domain of mobile learning. From the perspective of universities, the study posits that consistent usage of mobile learning could be encouraged through processes to nurture students’ habits when using mobile learning system as a tool to complete tasks. Findings provide a reference for the future UTAUT2 and mobile learning related studies.

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