Green Chemistry Marj Jordan Department of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering

1. Green Chemistry Marj Jordan Department of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering South Dakota School of Mines and Technology Rapid City, SD 57701 Mission of Green Chemistry “To promote innovative chemical technologies that reduce or eliminate the use or generation of hazardous substances in the design, manufacture, and use of chemical products.” What is Green Chemistry? It is the design of chemical products and processes that are environmentally benign. In short, pollution prevention. History of Green Chemistry After the Pollution Prevention Act in 1990 the Office of Pollution Prevention and Toxics (OPPT) launched a model research grants program called “Alternative Synthetic Pathways for Pollution Prevention.” This evolved into the current Green Chemistry Program. The Green Chemistry Program provides grants for research projects that include pollution prevention in the design synthesis of chemicals. Further, it works in collaboration with academia, industry, and other government agencies to promote pollution prevention through completely voluntary and non-regulatory partnerships. 12 Principles of Green Chemistry Prevention It is better to prevent chemical waste than to clean it up Atom Economy Incorporation of all materials used in the process into the final project Less Hazardous Chemical Syntheses Synthetic methods should be designed to generate substances with little or no toxicity to humans and the environment Designing Safer Chemicals Chemicals should effect their desired function while minimizing their toxicity Safer Solvents and Auxiliaries The use of solvents and auxiliaries should be made unnecessary or innocuous when used Design for Energy Efficiency Energy requirements of chemical processes should be recognized for their environmental and economic impacts and should be minimized Use of Renewable Feedstocks A raw material should be renewable rather than depleting. Reduce Derivatives Unnecessary derivatization should be avoided to decrease the amount of waste generated Catalysis Catalytic reagents are better than stoichiometric reagents Design for Degradation Chemical products should be designed to degrade to innocuous substances Real-time Analysis for Pollution Prevention Analytical methods need to allow for real-time, in-process monitoring and control prior to the formation of hazardous substances Inherently Safer Chemicals for Accident Prevention Substances should be chosen to minimize the potential for chemical accidents To Learn More About the Green Chemistry Program Contact the United States Environmental Protection Agency at www.epa.gov or The American Chemical Society at www.acs.org Chemistry 292 Chemistry Outreach Drs. Boyles and McDowell Fall 2000