Green Chemistry

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Green Chemistry

• by Mina Marie Mitani

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Topics of Discussion

• Environmental Movement
• Green Chemistry
• Importance
• Areas of Research
• Programs and Partnerships
• Conclusions

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Environmental Movement

• Public Awareness
• No regulations
• Publications of effects and consequences
• Pattern
• Effects
• Outcry
• Laws and regulations

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Environmental Movement

• Dilution is solution
• Pollution Prevention Act
• option of first choice
• national policy of US
• Alternative Synthetic Pathways for Pollution
  Prevention
• design synthesis of chemicals for PP
• collaborations, voluntary partnerships

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Environmental Movement

• Approaches in recent past
• Reduction of risk of manufacturing and use
• Innovative chemistries to treat wastes and
  remediate sites
• New monitoring and analytical tools for
  detection in air, water, soils
• New handling and containment procedures to
  minimize exposure

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Green Chemistry

• Carrying out chemical activities, including
  chemical design, manufacture, use, and disposal,
  such that hazardous substances will not be used
  and generated
• Tool in accomplishing Pollution Prevention
• Encompasses all aspects and types of chemical
  processes to reduce impacts

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Green Chemistry

• Green chemistry is the use of chemistry for
  pollution prevention
• Design of chemical products and processes that
  are more environmentally benign
• Reduction or elimination of the use or generation
  of hazardous substances associated with a
  particular synthesis or process

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Importance of Green Chemistry

• 2 billion lbs. of chemicals were released to air
  land and water (USEPA) in 1994
• Data includes only 365 of 70,000 chemicals
  available in commerce
• Environmental and hazardous wastes operations gt
  economic burden
• environmental expenditures cost of doing
  business
• 100-150 billion / year for remediation in US
  alone
• shift financial resources from costs to research
  development
• Promise of Green Chemistry to lower overall costs
  associated with environmental health and safety

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Areas of Research

• Feedstocks / Starting Materials
• Reagents or Transformations
• Reaction Conditions
• Final Product
• inter-related, separated for incremental
  improvements

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Feedstocks / Starting Materials

• select and utilize more benign starting materials
• reduction in amount used
• reduction of intrinsic toxicity through
  structural modification / replacement
• risks can be reduced through protective gear and
  control techniques, but GC may be more cost
  effective and safer

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Examples

• Alternative Synthetic Pathways AwardFlexsys
  America L.P.New Process for 4-Aminodiphenylamine
  
• Academic AwardTerrence J. CollinsCarnegie
  Mellon UniversityTAML Oxidant Activators
  General Activation of Hydrogen Peroxide for Green
  Oxidation Technologies
• Eliminate use of acids to break initial bonds
• Phosgene replacement

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Alternative Reagents

• Assessment of the hazard of reagent
• Evaluation of synthetic transformation associated
  with use of specific reagents
• determine product sensitivity
• reaction efficiency
• Improve reaction efficiency
• Reduce needed quantity
• eg. Choose catalytic reagent to stoichiometric
  reagent

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Examples

• Use of visible light as reagent
• Alternative Synthetic Pathways AwardLilly
  Research LaboratoriesPractical Application of a
  Biocatalyst in Pharmaceutical Manufacturing
• Dr. Karen M. DrathsProfessor John W.
  FrostMichigan State UniversityUse of Microbes
  as Environmentally-Benign Synthetic Catalysts
• Academic AwardTerrence J. CollinsCarnegie
  Mellon UniversityTAML Oxidant Activators
  General Activation of Hydrogen Peroxide for Green
  Oxidation Technologies

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Alternative Reaction Conditions

• Reduce or eliminate solvents used in reaction
  media, separations, formulations
• use of supercritical fluids as solvents
• able to tune supercritical fluids by choosing
  critical region to conduct chemistry
• Use aqueous solvent systems in place of organic
  solvents in chemical manufacturing
• Use Supercritical CO2 as a solvent
• Reduce operating temperatures
• Must evaluate impact on case by case basis

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Alternative Reaction Conditions

• Alternative Solvents and Reaction Conditions
  AwardNalco Chemical CompanyThe Development and
  Commercialization of ULTIMER The First of a
  New Family of Water Soluble Polymer Dispersions
• Alternative Solvents/Reaction Conditions
  AwardArgonne National LaboratoryNovel
  Membrane-Based Process for Producing Lactate
  Esters. Nontoxic Replacements for Halogenated and
  Toxic Solvents
• Alternative Solvents/Reaction Conditions
  AwardImationDry View Imaging Systems
• Alternative Solvents/Reaction Conditions
  AwardThe Dow Chemical CompanyThe Development
  and Commercial Implementation of 100 Percent
  Carbon Dioxide as an Environmentally Friendly
  Blowing Agent for the Polystyrene Foam Packaging
  Market

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Alternative Products

• Identify part of molecule that is providing
  intended use and part of molecule responsible for
  toxicity or other hazards
• Reduce toxicity w/o sacrificing efficacy of
  function
• eliminate toxic functional groups
• make molecule less bioavailable
• Pharmaceutical and pesticide manufacturing
• Change or replace products

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Alternative Products

• Designing Safer Chemicals AwardRohm and Haas
  CompanyDesigning an Environmentally Safe Marine
  Antifoulant
• Small Business AwardLegacy Systems
  IncorporatedColdstrip, A Revolutionary Organic
  Removal and Wet Cleaning  Technology
• Designing Safer Chemicals AwardAlbright and
  Wilson AmericasTHPS Biocides A New Class of
  Antimicrobial Chemistry
• Designing Safer Chemicals AwardRohm and Haas
  CompanyThe Invention and Commercialization of a
  New Chemical Family of Insecticides Exemplified
  by CONFIRM Insecticide

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Program

• EPA Green Chemistry Program
• fosters research, development, implementation of
  innovative chemical technologies for pollution
  prevention in BOTH a scientifically sound and
  cost effective manner
• Supports fundamental chemical research,
  educational activities, international meetings
  and conferences, toll development, in partnership
  with academia, industry and other agencies

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Partnerships

• Scientific organizations
• Industry
• Trade associations
• Academia
• Government
• National Labs
• Research centers
• Environmental groups
• International organizations

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GCES

• Identifies opportunities to reduce or eliminate
  hazardous substances
• Suggests molecular modifications to minimize
  toxicity
• Technical information on green synthesis
• Database of useful green chemistry references

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Conclusion

• Goal of benign chemistry
• synthesizing classes of chemicals
• developing reaction types (stereo-specific)
• Dramatic increase in funding, with support
  expected to continue
• Green chemistry research conducted in labs in
  academia, industry, and government around the
  world