1st International Worldwide Universities Network Meeting

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WUN Green Chemistry Professor James H Clark Clean
Technology Centre, University York
http//www.wun.ac.uk/research/greenchem/index.html
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What is WUN?

• A worldwide alliance of research-leading
• universities of international standing
• Committed to working together to take
• advantage of research and educational
• opportunities
• Focused on rapidly moving interdisciplinary
• areas of global significance.

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Who is part of WUN GC?
The Pennsylvania State University University of
Illinois University of Leeds University of
Washington, Seattle University of York University
of Manchester University of Southampton University
of Wisconsin-Madison Utrecht University
Members of the Working Party
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Achievements and Activities

• Working Party established
• First WUN International Symposium Excellence in
  Green Chemistry successfully run in San
  Francisco in October 2003
• Research projects and exchange programmes
• Leeds Illinois
• Student exchanges and publication
• York - Penn State
• Staff exchanges
• 4 year joint collaborative project submitted
  under EPSRC-NSF materials initiative for 2M
• Preparation of a new WUN GC brochure based on
  expert database, priority areas, etc. (to assist
  PR, fund-raising and to attract new members)
• Expertise Database containing expertise areas and
  research interests of over 160 individuals in
  relevant disciplines (chemistry, engineering,
  environmental science, social policy, economics,
  transport, etc.).
• assist in the planning of research bids
• available on the web shortly

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Ongoing Activities of the Green Chemistry
Partnership

• Grand Challenge Proposal
• Development of a Postgraduate Certificate in
  Green Chemistry
• Activities to include involvement in GEP,
  Outreach work, completion of approved (including
  virtual) courses etc.
• Virtual Seminar Series
• Further research projects and exchange programmes
• Current bid led by Illinois in collaboration with
  Leeds and York to NSF Partnerships for
  International Research and Education
•  

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The Green Chemistry Grand ChallengeSustainable
chemical manufacturing at a local level through
international collaborative research
Named as one of the three front-running Grand
Challenge areas, alongside Wireless
Communications and Earth Systems
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Objectives of the Grand Challenge

• Waste biomass represents a sustainable and carbon
  neutral source of valuable chemicals
• Potential can only be realised through
  multidisciplinary and multinational team of
  technical and socio-economic experts
• Overall objective to prove the economic,
  environmental and social value of agricultural
  and forestry wastes for manufacture of valuable
  chemical products at a local level
• 5 year integrated multi-theme research structure
  is proposed
• Need transatlantic multi-agency funding and/or
  coordinated multiple research projects

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3D Diamond Model for the Grand Challenge
Project Overall research framework set within
economic, social and environmental axes
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Future Plans

• Continuing to work with the WUN Executive to
  promote the full Grand Challenge to major
  national funding agencies in the UK and US
• Virtual seminar series has been developed as a
  means to stimulate collaborative research

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Virtual Seminar Series

• New multi-centre, multinational seminar series
  organised by the University of York
• Topics will be based around key scientific and
  technological themes - subsets of the Grand
  Challenge
• Will assist with smaller scale applications,
  which will support the Grand Challenge and for
  which securing funding should be more
  straightforward
• Relevant to multidisciplinary audience
• Educational value open to students as well as
  academics

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Virtual Seminar SeriesFormat

• Short presentation (ca. 30 mins)
• QA session
• Discussion between interested parties on possible
  collaboration and funding opportunities

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Forthcoming seminars
28 April Chris Rayner and Tony Clifford,
University of Leeds Selective extractions using
CO2 and water, and related processes. From
academic research to commercialisation.26
May Martin Patel, Utrecht University Assessing
future impacts and benefits of bio-based
chemicals.30 June Pat Shapley, University of
Illinois Selective Oxidations in Green
Chemistry28 July Barbara Krieger-Brockett,
University of Washington, Seattle Title TBC
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Polylactic acid (PLA) A short case study
http//www.chemsoc.org/networks/gcn/

• Dr. Jeff Hardy
• Green Chemistry Education Associate

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UK Consumer Plastic Recycling
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Plastics are building up in landfill
Increase plastic recycling and/or Use
biodegradable plastics and/or Use less plastics
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Polylactic acid (PLA) for plastics production
Polymer Production
PLA
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(No Transcript)
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Fermentation route to lactic acid
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Electrodialysis separation
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Polymerisation of lactic acid
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Environmental impact of chemicals from RRMs
?
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PLA
(a) Fossil energy requirement for PLA and bottle
grade PET. The black area represents the gross
fossil resource used for energy. The grey area
represents the fossil energy used as a chemical
feedstock (the fossil resource to build the
polymer chain).
(b) Gross water usage by PLA and bottle grade PET
.
(c) Contributions to global climate change for
PLA and bottle grade PET
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Biorefinery concept
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• Questions and Answers
• Discussion of collaboration and funding
  opportunities. Any interested parties are
  invited to participate in further discussion
  after the QA session.