Green chemistry.. the chemistry of the future with an environmental flavor
In 2005, the Nobel Prize in Chemistry was awarded to three scientists - two Americans and one French - for developing a new chemical reaction technique called "exchange reaction", which has wide applications in the chemical industry, uses much less energy and has the ability to reduce greenhouse gas emissions for many main operations.
Specialists considered this the culmination of a new branch of chemistry that emerged in the early nineties of the last century and is called "green chemistry" or sustainable chemistry, aiming to develop chemical practices that protect the environment and humans from the potential harm of chemical products and reduce the use and production of hazardous materials.
| In order for chemistry to be described as green, it must adopt manufacturing methods that do not produce highly toxic substances for humans and other living organisms, and limit chemical residues whose mass in some traditional manufacturing processes exceeds hundreds of times the volume of the product itself< /td> |
Principles of green chemistryBut what is green chemistry? In answer to this question, the American chemists Paul Anastas and John Warner, in their book "Theoretical and Applications of Green Chemistry," put 12 principles that are conditions that must be met in order for chemistry to be "green." Among these principles is the need to adopt manufacturing methods that do not produce highly toxic materials for humans and other living organisms, and to limit chemical residues whose mass in some traditional manufacturing processes exceeds hundreds of times the volume of the product itself.
For example, according to a study completed in 2003, making one computer chip requires materials up to 630 times the size of the chip itself, while cars require twice their weight of different materials.
One of the principles of green chemistry is also the use of renewable primary resources and the reduction of dependence on non-renewable resources such as oil, for example, while making sure that manufacturing processes take place at normal temperature and pressure to reduce energy consumption.
Manufactured chemicals must also be easily biodegradable by natural factors into compounds that are not harmful to the environment to prevent the conversion of these manufactured materials into environmental pollutants, as is the case with plastic products whose accumulation as a result of their slow decomposition has led to severe environmental damage from which the oceans have not been spared. It poses a threat to living organisms whose effects extend over decades.
ApplicationsIn application of the principles of green chemistry, with the aim of reducing waste production, depleting natural resources and preserving a healthy environment, researchers have come up with the design of new manufacturing methods that respond to these conditions.
Including finding a natural alternative to polymers extracted from oil products that are widely used to produce materials harmful to the environment and human health, such as plastic bags, which are polysaccharides (polysaccharides) that can be extracted from potatoes, grains and many plants, and these natural polymers will enable Manufacture of biodegradable materials without harming the environment.
For the manufacture of food coloring and flavoring materials, researchers have developed a new technology based on glucose extracted from starch to replace the chemicals currently used on a large scale, which are not without risks to human health, in addition to the fact that their manufacturing process generates many pollutants.
Researchers in the field of green chemistry have invented new techniques for conducting chemical reactions, including the technique of using ultrasound in chemical manufacturing.
