The relatively new technique of solid phase microextraction (SPME) is an important tool to prepare samples both in the lab and on-site. SPME is a 'green' technology because it eliminates organic solvents from analytical laboratory and can be used in environmental, food and fragrance, and forensic and drug analysis. Solid-phase microextraction (SPME) is a solvent-free sample preparation technique that integrates sampling, isolation, and concentration. Its simplicity of use, relatively short sample processing time, and fiber reusability have made SPME. Handbook of solid phase microextraction pdf editor.

• Globalization Issues Article

At some point in the future—and in some ways we are already seeing this—the amount of physical stuff moving around the world will peak and begin to decline. By “stuff,” I am referring to liquid fuels, coal, containers on ships, food, raw materials, products, etc.New technologies are moving us toward “production-at-the-point-of-consumption” of energy, food, and products with reduced reliance on a global supply chain.The trade of physical stuff has been central to globalization as we’ve known it. “As these trends gain steam in coming decades, they’ll bleed into and fundamentally transform global supply chains.”An AI startup, for example, doesn’t need its own server farm to train its software and provide service to customers. The team can rent computing power from Amazon Web Services. This platform model enables small teams to do big things on the cheap. And it isn’t just in software.

Similar trends are happening in hardware too. Makers can 3D print or mill industrial grade prototypes of physical stuff in a garage or local maker space and send or sell designs to anyone with a laptop and 3D printer via online platforms.These are early examples of trends that are likely to gain steam in coming decades, and as they do, they’ll bleed into and fundamentally transform global supply chains.The old model is a series of large, connected bits of centralized infrastructure. It makes sense to mine, farm, or manufacture in bulk when the conditions, resources, machines, and expertise to do so exist in particular places and are specialized and expensive. The new model, however, enables smaller-scale production that is local and decentralized.To see this more clearly, let’s take a look at the technological trends at work in the three biggest contributors to the global trade of physical stuff—products, energy, and food. Products3D printing (additive manufacturing) allows for distributed manufacturing near the point of consumption, eliminating or reducing supply chains and factory production lines.This is possible because product designs are no longer made manifest in assembly line parts like molds or specialized mechanical tools.

Rather, designs are digital and can be called up at will to guide printers. Every time a 3D printer prints, it can print a different item, so no assembly line needs to be set up for every different product. 3D printers can also print an entire finished product in one piece or reduce the number of parts of larger products, such as engines. This further lessens the need for assembly.Because each item can be customized and printed on demand, there is no cost benefit from scaling production. No inventories. No shipping items across oceans. No carbon emissions transporting not only the final product but also all the parts in that product shipped from suppliers to manufacturer.

Moreover, 3D printing builds items layer by layer with almost no waste, unlike “subtractive manufacturing” in which an item is carved out of a piece of metal, and much or even most of the material can be waste.Finally, 3D printing is also highly scalable, from inexpensive 3D printers (several hundred dollars) for home and school use to increasingly capable and expensive printers for industrial production. There are also 3D printers being developed for, including houses and office buildings, and other infrastructure.The technology for is only now getting underway, and there are still challenges to overcome, such as speed, quality, and range of materials. But as methods and materials advance, it will likely creep into more manufactured goods.Ultimately, 3D printing will be a general purpose technology that involves many different types of printers and materials—such as plastics, metals, and even human cells—to produce a huge range of items, from human tissue and potentially human organs to household items and a range of industrial items for planes, trains, and automobiles. EnergyRenewable energy production is located at or relatively near the source of consumption.Although electricity generated by solar, wind, geothermal, and other renewable sources can of course be transmitted over longer distances, it is mostly generated and consumed locally or regionally.

It is not transported around the world in tankers, ships, and pipelines like petroleum, coal, and natural gas.Moreover, the fuel itself is free—forever. There is no global price on sun or wind. The people relying on solar and wind power need not worry about price volatility and potential disruption of fuel supplies as a result of political, market, or natural causes.Renewables have their problems, of course, including, and currently they work best if complementary to other sources, especially natural gas power plants that, unlike coal plants, can be turned on or off and modulated like a gas stove, and are half the carbon emissions of coal.Within the next decades or so, it is likely the intermittency and storage problems will be solved or greatly mitigated.

In addition, unlike coal and natural gas power plants, solar is scalable, from solar panels on individual homes or even cars and other devices, to large-scale solar farms. Solar can be connected with microgrids and even allow for autonomous electricity generation by homes, commercial buildings, and communities.It may be several decades before fossil fuel power plants can be phased out, but the development cost of renewables has been falling exponentially and, in places, is with coal and gas. Solar especially is expected to continue to and decline in cost.Given these trends in cost and efficiency, renewables should become obviously cheaper over time—if the fuel is free for solar and has to be continually purchased for coal and gas, at some point the former is cheaper than the latter. Renewables are already cheaper if externalities such as carbon emissions and environmental degradation involved in obtaining and transporting the fuel are included. FoodFood can be increasingly produced near the point of consumption with and eventually with printed food and even.These sources bring production of food very near the consumer, so transportation costs, which can be a significant portion of the cost of food to consumers, are greatly reduced. The use of land and water are reduced by 95% or more, and energy use is cut by nearly 50%.

In addition, fertilizers and pesticides are not required and crops can be grown 365 days a year whatever the weather and in more climates and latitudes than is possible today.While it may not be practical to grow grains, corn, and other such crops in vertical farms, many vegetables and fruits can flourish in such facilities. In addition, cultured or printed meat is being developed—the big challenge is —that is based on cells from real animals without slaughtering the animals themselves.There are currently some 70 billion animals being raised for food around the world and livestock alone counts for about. Moreover, livestock places huge demands on land, water, and energy. Like vertical farms, cultured or printed meat could be produced with no more land use than a brewery and with far less water and energy. A More Democratic Economy Goes Bottom UpThis is a very brief introduction to the technologies that can bring “production-at-the-point-of-consumption” of products, energy, and food to cities and regions.What does this future look like?

Globalization Issues Article

Here’s a simplified example.Imagine a universal manufacturing facility with hundreds of 3D printers printing tens of thousands of different products on demand for the local community—rather than assembly lines in China making tens of thousands of the same product that have to be shipped all over the world since no local market can absorb all of the same product.Nearby, a vertical farm and cultured meat facility produce much of tomorrow night’s dinner. These facilities would be powered by local or regional wind and solar. Depending on need and quality, some infrastructure and machinery, like solar panels and 3D printers, would live in these facilities and some in homes and businesses.The facilities could be owned by a large global corporation—but still locally produce goods—or they could be franchised or even owned and operated independently by the local population. Upkeep and management at each would provide jobs for communities nearby. Eventually, not only would global trade of parts and products diminish, but even required supplies of raw materials and feed stock would decline since there would be less waste in production, and many materials would be recycled once acquired. “Peak globalization could be a viable pathway to an economic foundation that puts people first while building a more economically and environmentally sustainable future.”This model suggests a shift toward a “bottom up” economy that is more democratic, locally controlled, and likely to generate more local jobs.The global trends in democratization of technology make the vision technologically plausible.

Much of this technology already exists and is improving and scaling while exponentially decreasing in cost to become available to almost anyone, anywhere.This includes not only access to key technologies, but also to education through digital platforms available globally. Online courses are available for free, ranging from advanced physics, math, and engineering to skills training in 3D printing, solar installations, and building vertical farms. Social media platforms can enable local and global collaboration and sharing of knowledge and best practices.These new communities of producers can be the foundation for new forms of democratic governance as they recognize and “capitalize” on the reality that control of the means of production can translate to political power. More jobs and local control could weaken populist, anti-globalization political forces as people recognize they could benefit from the positive aspects of globalization and international cooperation and connectedness while diminishing the impact of globalization’s downsides.There are powerful vested interests that stand to lose in such a global structural shift. But this vision builds on trends that are already underway and are gaining momentum. Peak globalization could be a viable pathway to an economic foundation that puts people first while building a more economically and environmentally sustainable future.This article was originally posted on.

The version above was edited with the author for length and includes additions. See Jeremy Rifkin, The Zero Marginal Cost Society, (New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2014), Part II, pp. 69-154.Image Credit: /.

The key factors seem to underlie the trend towards the increasing globalization of markets and production are the decline of barriers to trade and investment and the role of technological changes.1. Decline of Barriers to Trade and Investment Decline in Trade BarriersMany of the took the form of high tariffs on imports of manufactured goods. However, this depressed world demand and contributed to the great depression of the 1930’s.After World War II, the industrialized countries of the West started a process of removing barriers to the free flow of goods, services, and capital between nations. Under GATT, over 140 nations negotiated even further to decrease tariffs and made significant progress on a number of non-tariff issues (e.g. Intellectual property, trade in services). The most recent round of negotiations known as Uruguay round was competed in December 1993.

The Uruguay round further, covering services as well as manufactured goods provided enhanced protection for patents, trade marks and copyrights and established WTO to police the international trading system. With the establishment of the WTO, a mechanism now exists for dispute resolution and the enforcement of trade laws. Average tariff rates have fallen significantly since 1950’s, and under the Uruguay agreement, they have approached 3.9 percent by 2000. This has taken place in conjunction with increased trade, world output,.

Decline in Investment BarriersThe growth of is a direct result of nations liberalizing their regulations to allow foreign firms to invest in facilities and acquire local companies. With their investments, these foreign firms often also bring expertise and global connections that allow local operations to have a much broader reach than would have been possible for a purely domestic company.The evidences also suggests that FDI is playing an increasing role in the global economy as firms increase their cross border investments. Between 1985 and 1995 the total annual flow of FDI from all countries increased nearly six fold to $135 billion, a growth rate in the world trade The major investors has been U.S, Japanese, and Western European Companies investing in Europe, Asia, (particularly in China, and India). For example, Japanese auto companies have been investing rapidly in Asian, European, and U.S auto assembly operations.This also shows that firms around the globe are finding their home markets under attack from Foreign competitors. For example, in Japan, has taken market share from Fuji recent years. In the United States, Japanese firms have taken away market share from General motors, and Chrysler and in Western Europe where the once – dominant Dutch company Philips has seen its market share taken by Japan’s JVC, Matsushita and Sony.The growing integration into a single huge market place is increasing the intensity of in a wide range of manufacturing and service industries.

These trends facilitate both the. The lowering trade and investment barriers also allows firms to base individual production activities at the optimal location for that activity, and serving the world market from that location.

Thus, a firm might design a product in one country, produce component parts in two another country, assemble the product in yet another country, and then export the finished product around the world. Role of Technological ChangesWhile lowering trade barriers has made the a possibility, technological changes have made it a reality.“Telecommunications is creating a global audience.

Transport is creating a global village. From Buenos Aires to Boston to Beijing, ordinary people are watching MTV, they are wearing Levi’s jeans, and they are listening to Sony Walkman as they commute to work.” Renato Ruggiero, Former Director General of World Trade Organization.Improved and communication allow firms to have better information about distant markets and coordinate activities worldwide. The explosive growth of the World Wide Web and the Internet provide a means to rapid communication of information and the ability of firms and individuals to find out about what is going on worldwide for a fraction of the cost and hassle as was required only a couple of years ago.

Microprocessor and telecommunications: The single most important innovation has been the development of the microprocessor, which enabled the explosive growth of high power, low cost computing, increasing the amount of information that can be processed by individuals and firms. Over the past 30 years, global communications have been revolutionized by the developments in satellites, optical fiber, and wireless technology, and internet and World Wide Web. All these technologies rely on the microprocessor to encode, transmit and decode the vast amount of information that flows along these electronic highways. A phenomenon known as Moore’s law, which predicts that the power of microprocessor technology doubles and its cost of production falls in half of every 18 months.

That means the cost of coordinating and controlling a global organization will reduce phenomenally. The Internet and World Wide Web: this is the latest expression of this development. There are more than 150 million users of the Internet. This will develop into the information backbone of tomorrow’s global economy.

Real time video conferencing and commercial transactions can be transmitted through World Wide Web (WWW). WWW will reduce the costs of global communications and it will create a truly global electronic market place of all kinds of goods and services. Such as the soft wares and bulldozers, and this will make it easier for firms of all sizes to enter the global marketplace. Transportation technology: Improvements in transportation technology, including jet transport, temperature controlled containerized shipping, and coordinated ship-rail-truck systems have made firms better able to respond to international customer demands.As a consequence of these trends, a manager in today’s firm operates in an environment that offers more opportunities, but is also more complex and competitive than that faced a generation ago. People now work with individuals and companies from many countries, and while communications technology, with the universality of English as the language of business, has decreased the absolute level of cultural difficulties individuals face, the frequency with which they face inter-cultural and international challenges has increased.