The issue showcases the innovative research towards the substitution of volatile organic solvents in solution phase synthesis. The series of articles presented in this themed issue are based on the keynote presentations at an international conference organised by Dechema, held in October 2010 in Berchtesgaden, Germany.
You can read Guest Editor Walter Leitner’s editorial online here and the full issue online here.
Have you registered for the 15th Annual Green Chemistry Conference? With over 600 attendees expected, this premier Conference showcases innovations in all aspects of sustainable chemistry. From June 21-23, mingle with US government representatives, Business executives, R&D managers, marketing and communication experts, sustainability thought leaders, chemical engineers, chemists, international & local students. Attend numerous breakout sessions, networking events while exploring Washington D.C in the summer.
Visit the conference website, www.gcande.org, for updated conference information and to:
Posted on behalf of Shefali Algoo, ACS Green Chemistry Institute.
Green Chemistry has collated a number of ionic liquid research presented at the recent 2nd Asia Pacific Conference on Ionic Liquids and Green Processes held in Dalian, China, on 7-10 September 2010. The selection of articles below represents some of the best ionic liquid research from the Asia-Pacific region. You can access the web-themed issue online.
Fangmin Jin and co-workers demonstrate the reduction of NaHCO3 to formate using isopropanol as a reducing agent. Yields of about 70% were acheived.
Read more about Fangmin Jin’s work:
From NaHCO3 into formate and from isopropanol into acetone: Hydrogen-transfer reduction of NaHCO3 with isopropanol in high-temperature water
Zheng Shen, Yalei Zhang and Fangming Jin
Green Chem., 2011, DOI:10.1039/C0GC00627K , Advanced Article
A fruitful collaboration between the teams led by Changping Li and Urs Welz-Biermann resulted in the development of a microwave-assisted extraction of bioactive lactones from chinese herbal medicines using protic ionic liquids. The Dalian scientists concluded that the extraction mechanism of microwave-assisted ionic liquid extraction is the similar to traditional organic solvent extraction.
Microwave-assisted extraction of lactones from Ligusticum chuanxiong Hort. using protic ionic liquids
Chi Yansheng, Zhang Zhida, Li Changping, Liu Qingshan, Yan Peifang and Urs Welz-Biermann
Green Chem., 2011, 13, 666-670
In this web-themed issue, Li and Welz-Biermann also report a room-temperature method to desulfurise fuels employing an oxidation method combined with extraction using acidic ionic liquids. The method shows some promise level of sulfur removal from the model oil reached 99% in 180 min.
Interested in finding out more? Read the full article here:
Desulfurization by oxidation combined with extraction using acidic room-temperature ionic liquids
Chi Yansheng, Li Changping, Jiao Qingzhu, Liu Qingshan, Yan Peifang, Liu Xiumei and Urs Welz-Biermann
Green Chem., 2011, DOI: 10.1039/C0GC00745E, Advanced Article
Liu et al. showed that double SO3H-functionalized ionic liquids exhibited better catalytic activity for the esterification of glycerol compared to non-functionalizeds ionic liquids. Glycerol conversion was achieved in 95% within 30 min by using catalytic amounts of ionic liquids (only 0.1 mol% based on glycerol).
You can read the full paper online:
Esterification of glycerol with acetic acid using double SO3H-functionalized ionic liquids as recoverable catalysts
Xiumei Liu, Huiyuan Ma, Yue Wu, Chang Wang, Miao Yang, Peifang Yan and Urs Welz-Biermann
Green Chem., 2011, 13, 697-701
Kim et al. demonstrate an eco-friendly way of making polymers. The Korean scientists synthesized double metal cyanide (DMC) catalysts for the ring opening polymerization of propylene oxide, employing nontoxic lactate esters as complexing agents. “Highly pure polyol products that can be raw materials for high performance polymers like polyurethane are produced by using the resulting catalysts,” claim Kim and co-workers.
Double metal cyanide catalysts bearing lactate esters as eco-friendly complexing agents for the synthesis of highly pure polyols
Ji Hwan Yoon, In Kyu Lee, Hye Yoon Choi, Eun Ji Choi, Ju Ho Yoon, Sang Eun Shim and Il Kim
Green Chem., 2011, 13, 631-639
The first PACN Green Chemistry Congress took place in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, on the 15th –17th November 2010. The international event was organised by the RSC Pan Africa Chemistry Network (www.rsc.org/pacn) with support from Green Chemistry. The congress received fantastic media coverage in countries across the African continent and the rest of the world.
The Green Chemistry Congress was opened by the Ethiopian Minister for Water and Energy, H.E. Ato Alemaghu Tegenu. During the event, Tegenu wrote an opinion piece that highlighted the need for science and innovation to improve African people’s lives sustainably, and the important role of the RSC and the Pan Africa Chemistry Network in supporting these scientific developments. This piece was published both in print and online in 13 different newspapers across Africa. To read the piece online, click here.
Green Chemistry Advisory Board member, Yonas Chebude, chaired the local organizing committee. In addition to a number of distinguished scientists from all around the world, both the Chair of the Editorial Board, Martyn Poliakoff, and the Scientific Editor, Walter Leitner, spoke at the Congress, as well as Editorial Board members Buxing Han, Paul Anastas and Tom Welton. The Congress was very well attended with delegates from 22 countries.
One of the main outcomes of the Congress is the writing of a report which will include recommendations. Once the report is finalised we will announce it on the Green Chemistry website.
The Green Solvents for Synthesis conference started on Sunday the 10th October 2010 with a boat trip on Lake Königsee which I was told was absolutely spectacular with plenty of mountain landscape. The lake was described as the purest of all “green solvents” being a gorgeous emerald green in colour.
The delegates were then gathered for a welcome reception in the evening and an opening lecture delivered by Phil Jessop (Queen’s University, Canada) where he described the progress made in green solvents and categorised them in three areas: Replacement green solvents, Really green solvents, and Revolutionary green solvents. His comments were that the replacement solvents may not be enough to cover the different needs. Some solvents have been assessed thoroughly and found to be really green, but most “green” solvents have not been assessed.
On the first day of the conference, Peter Dunn of Pfizer Ltd gave us a broad overview of organic reactions carried out in water. Other talks of interest were by Takao Ikariya (Tokyo institute of Technology) on the use carbon dioxide as green solvent and reactant for organic reactions and Tadafumi Adschiri (Tohoku University) who brought along samples of the super hybrid materials made in his lab via supercritical routes. This was followed by a lecture by Andreas Jess (University of Bayreuth, Germany) on the evaporation and thermal decomposition of ionic liquids by thermogravimetry at ambient pressure and UHV. The afternoon ended with an inspiring lecture by Peter Wassercheid (University of Erlangen-Nuremberg) on ionic liquids and heterogeneous catalysis and his recent progress on supported ionic liquid phase (SILP) and supported catalyst with an ionic liquid layer (SCILL). A poster session then followed with winners to be announced shortly.
The highlights of the second day were talks by Dieter Vogt (TU Eindhoven) on homogeneous catalysis and amine formations, followed by Alberto Puga (QUILL, Belfast) on new 6-membered piperidine and 7-membered azepane derived ionic liquids. It became clear that toxicity is an important factor in determining the “greenness” of new ionic liquids. Other talks of interest were algae lipids for biodiesel production delivered by Lindsay Soh (PhD student at Yale University) and fluorous solvents for catalyst recovery, activation and product protection given by John Gladysz (Texas A&M University).
The delegates were spoilt for choices for lunch at either traditional Bavarian style restaurants or small cafes with plenty of outdoor seating to soak up the sun and the magnificent mountain views. The afternoon session resumed with an awe-inspiring talk by Steve Howdle (University of Nottingham, UK) where he used supercritical fluids to synthesize green polymers which were used in bone grafting and drug delivery. We later learnt that Steve, who is a keen footballer, had been invited to take a penalty shoot at half-time during the England-Montenegro qualifying match at Wembley Stadium and he had declined the FA invitation to be with us at the Green Solvents conference. Biocatalysis was also on the agenda with a talk from Udo Kragl (University of Rostock, Germany).
The day ended with a traditional Bavarian buffet and music. The atmosphere was light-hearted and spirits high. Walter Leitner, Steve Howdle, Istvan Horvath, Peter Wassercheid and Helen Olivier-Bourbigou grouped on stage for an excellent rendition of the “green chemistry song”, lyrics below:
Always Use Green Chemistry Tools
Music: guitar by Walter Leitner
Lyrics: Walter Leitner and Steve Howdle
Some syntheses are bad
They can really make you mad
Other chemistry just smells and makes a mess!
If the molecule’s a hassle
Don’t crumble- give a whistle
Green Chemistry will change things for the best!
Chorus:
And Always use the Green Chemistry tools
— whistle —
They make science fun and scientists cool
— whistle —
If the process seems absurd
And “waste” is the final word
Green Chemistry will show a better way!
Just save energy and steps
Of course, catalysis can help
And your profits will shoot up to the sky!
Chorus:
And Always use the Green Chemistry tools
— whistle —
They make science fun and scientists cool
— whistle —
Using carbon dioxide
Makes the future look so bright!
And with biomass we make the stuff we need
All the solvents are replaced
There is no more toxic waste
The business model is extremely neat!
Chorus:
And Always use the Green Chemistry tools
— whistle —
They make science fun and scientists cool
— whistle —
Unfortunately, I was unable to attend the last day of the conference but I am sure that the lectures were as inspiring as the previous days. Green solvents 2012 is a must and well done DECHEMA for organising this excellent conference!
15-17 November 2010
UN Economic Commisssion for Africa
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
Africa is vastly abundant in natural resources and the richness offers valuable opportunities to pursue novel routes to sustainable processes and products. However, the concept of Green Chemistry for Sustainability is still at its infancy in most African countries.
Focusing on the search for such routes, and expanding on their benefits, is an exciting challenge that can render African countries extremely competitive at international levels. Sustainable chemistry will contribute to the spreading of knowledge in such a frontier area of chemistry.
Sessions at the conference will include:
Read more about this conference: http://www.rsc.org/ConferencesAndEvents/RSCEvents/International/Africa/GreenChem/Index.asp
We invite you to contribute to a web-themed issue on ionic liquid and green processes.
Contributors to the 2nd Asia Pacific Conference on Ionic Liquids and Green Processes (APCIL-2) are invited to submit their work to Green Chemistry and those that are accepted for publication will be collated in a Green Chemistry SCI-indexed web themed issue dedicated to the conference.
We welcome the submission of primary research full papers, communications, critical reviews or perspectives within the scope of the Journal. If you would like to submit a review article based on the work presented at the conference, please do contact us to discuss this further.
The deadline for the submission of articles for the themed issue is 30th of September2010.
All articles will be peer-reviewed and will be published as Advance Articles online as soon as they are ready. All manuscripts will have a conference footnote added upon publication and all accepted papers will be collated as a web-themed issue dedicated to the conference.
If you have any questions regarding the submission process please contact us: green-rsc@rsc.org.
Manuscripts can be submitted online: http://mc.manuscriptcentral.com/gc .
