AdvancedTopic 98 of 100Materials & Chemical
Green chemistry and sustainability
Reduce waste and hazards in design of processes.
In depth
Twelve principles of green chemistry: prevent waste, atom economy, safer solvents, energy efficiency, renewable feedstocks, catalysis, design for degradation, real-time analysis, inherently safer chemistry. E-factor (kg waste/kg product) and process mass intensity are metrics. Green hydrogen and CO₂ utilisation are growing areas.
Key points
- Atom economy=MW product/Σ MW reactants
- Solvent selection guides
- Circular chemistry
ExamplePharmaceutical routes are redesigned to cut solvent waste by orders of magnitude.
What is Green chemistry and sustainability?
Reduce waste and hazards in design of processes.
Why is it important to understand green chemistry and sustainability?
Green chemistry reduces waste and hazards at the design stage, which lowers cost and environmental impact at the same time.
What are the main principles of green chemistry?
Prevent waste, maximise atom economy, use safer chemicals, design for energy efficiency and use renewable feedstocks, among others.
What is atom economy?
The fraction of reactant mass that ends up in the desired product, which measures how much waste a reaction design produces.
How is Green chemistry and sustainability used in practice?
Typical applications include choosing a solvent-free route for a pharmaceutical synthesis, designing a process that uses renewable feedstocks and reducing by-products by changing the catalyst in a reaction.
What should I learn before Green chemistry and sustainability?
Study "Electrochemical engineering" first (topic 97 of 100 in Materials & Chemical). It covers the groundwork this topic builds on.
What are the key points of Green chemistry and sustainability?
Atom economy=MW product/Σ MW reactants. Solvent selection guides. Circular chemistry.
Can you give an example of Green chemistry and sustainability?
Pharmaceutical routes are redesigned to cut solvent waste by orders of magnitude.
What comes after Green chemistry and sustainability?
The next topic is "Metal additive manufacturing metallurgy", which builds directly on this one.
How difficult is Green chemistry and sustainability?
It is classed as Advanced in Materials & Chemical (topic 98 of 100). It is an advanced topic. It assumes you are comfortable with the intermediate topics in Materials & Chemical.