The 12 principles of Green chemistry

Prevention

It it better to prevent waste than to clean up waste after it has been created.

Safer Solvents and Auxiliaries

Minimize the total amount of solvents used and, if necessary, choose the safest solvent available.

Atom Economy

Product synthesis should maxmize incorporation of all materials used.

Design for Energy Efficiency

Choose the least energy-intensive chemical route.

Less Hazardous chemical syntheses

Chemical reactions should be designed to be as safe as possible, to both human health and environment.

Use of Renewable Feedstocks

When practical, use chemicals that are made from renewable sources.

Designing Safer Chemicals

The chemical products should be designed to preserve efficacy while reducing toxicity.

Reduce Derivatives

Minimize the use of temporary derivatives (e.g. protecting groups).

Catalysis

Use catalytic reagents to help increase selectivity and minimize waste.

Design for Degradation

Chemical products should be designed to be degraded easily.

Real-time analysis for Pollution Prevention

Real-time monitoring of the process should be developed to prevent formation of hazardous substances.

Inherently Safer Chemistry for Accident Prevention

Chemical process chosen should minimize the potential of chemical accidents.

In the United States, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) played an integral role in promoting green chemistry in its early days, by introducing funding and pollution prevention programs. The passing of the Pollution Prevention Act in 1990 boosted the growth of green chemistry, as it declared the need to lower pollution by improving the designs of products instead of their disposal. To this day, the EPA awards multiple “Green Chemistry Challenge” winners year-

830 million pounds of hazardous chemicals and solvents reduced each year

Chemicals to fill a train 47 miles long

Reduce use of 21 billion gallons of water each year ly to incentivize innovation for “greener” chemical processes.

According to the EPA, as of 2022, the 133 technologies that the agency has awarded for the “Green Chemistry Challenge” have eliminated significant amount of chemical waste. Their progress and the equivalent presentations are listed below:

Water used by 980,000 people annually

7.8 billion pounds of CO2 equivalent emission to air