M9.3 Green Chemistry

Green Chemistry

BLOG about your thoughts on green chemistry. Have you heard of or seen any examples of green chemistry in your work or in daily life? What are your thoughts on the 12 principles of green chemistry? 

Although there is a revolution for "going green," I have not heard any details about "green chemistry." I have heard of products such as solar panels and hybrid/electric vehicles as components of the green movement. Unfortunately, in my work life in the hospital, I observe so much waste of resources and a lack of staff education and training on proper disposal of biohazardous waste! It appals me that we discard plastic urinals in regular trash. Plastic lasts forever...and it goes into our oceans. When I mention it to management, they say that it is for patient safety, yet they do not understand that disposing plastic urinals in regular trash affects our ecosystem and global health. There must be a better way, but upper managment refuses to take the lead and sometimes I feel helpless, because I am just a staff nurse and my opinions do not matter.

GREEN CHEMISTRY'S 12 PRINCIPLES

These principles demonstrate the breadth of the concept of green chemistry:

1. Prevent waste: Design chemical syntheses to prevent waste. Leave no waste to treat or clean up.

Prevention is the most effective intervention.

1. Maximize atom economy: Design syntheses so that the final product contains the maximum proportion of the starting materials. Waste few or no atoms.

To prevent waste and leave no waste, it is important to educate the public and instill a sense of "thriftiness" or public responsibility to be more conscious about consumerism...only take and use what you need.

1. Design less hazardous chemical syntheses: Design syntheses to use and generate substances with little or no toxicity to either humans or the environment.

Products need to be designed to be more biodegradable or recyclable.

1. Design safer chemicals and products: Design chemical products that are fully effective yet have little or no toxicity.

Eliminate unnecessary chemicals in products, such as flame retardants that are not event shown to be effective in increasing fire safety.

1. Use safer solvents and reaction conditions: Avoid using solvents, separation agents, or other auxiliary chemicals. If you must use these chemicals, use safer ones.
2. Increase energy efficiency: Run chemical reactions at room temperature and pressure whenever possible.

Reform in the powerplant/nuclear plant industry.

1. Use renewable feedstocks: Use starting materials (also known as feedstocks) that are renewable rather than depletable. The source of renewable feedstocks is often agricultural products or the wastes of other processes; the source of depletable feedstocks is often fossil fuels (petroleum, natural gas, or coal) or mining operations.
   

Global investment on research, development and implementation of renewable, sustainable and safer sources/processes of energy.

1. Avoid chemical derivatives: Avoid using blocking or protecting groups or any temporary modifications if possible. Derivatives use additional reagents and generate waste.
2. Use catalysts, not stoichiometric reagents: Minimize waste by using catalytic reactions. Catalysts are effective in small amounts and can carry out a single reaction many times. They are preferable to stoichiometric reagents, which are used in excess and carry out a reaction only once.
3. Design chemicals and products to degrade after use: Design chemical products to break down to innocuous substances after use so that they do not accumulate in the environment.
4. Analyze in real time to prevent pollution: Include in-process, real-time monitoring and control during syntheses to minimize or eliminate the formation of byproducts.
5. Minimize the potential for accidents: Design chemicals and their physical forms (solid, liquid, or gas) to minimize the potential for chemical accidents including explosions, fires, and releases to the environment.