Green Chemistry

Green Ocean™ formulas are based on the relatively new discipline of green "colloidal" chemistry, defined below.

Definition: Also known as sustainable chemistry or design chemistry, green chemistry is "the design of new products and processes that reduce or eliminate the use and generation of hazardous substances," says Paul Anastas, one of the field's pioneers.

Some of the advantages of this approach includes:

• 1. Safer, more responsible to use
• 2. No dyes or fragrances to mask
• 3. Pollution prevention; eliminates toxins, no harmful VOCs
• 4. No contamination or spill problems, no residue
• 5. Easier cleanup, decreased liability and regulatory hassle

Overall, the goal is to assure safety in the products that go to market. In Europe, there are already laws in place, such as REACH, that require advance registration and assurance of safety, but in the US, such safety comes from following the precautionary principle and volunteer efforts for testing and registration.

Another design principle, resource efficiency, calls for products that require less energy to make, use, store and recycle. Green OceanTM colloidal products have the added advantage of being highly concentrated and effective. Concentrated formulas weigh less and take up less space (less packaging), thus they use less energy for transportation, further reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.

Further Reading: Review these twelve principles of Green Chemistry, summarized from the work of Paul Anastas and John Warner:

Twelve Principles of Green Chemistry*

• 1. Prevent waste: Design chemical syntheses to prevent waste, leaving no waste to treat or clean up.
• 2. Design safer chemicals and products: Design chemical products to be fully effective,yet have little or no toxicity.
• 3. Design less hazardous chemical syntheses: Design syntheses to use and generate substances with little or no toxicity to humans and the environment.
• 4. Use renewable feedstocks: Use raw materials and feedstocks that are renewable rather than depleting. Renewable feedstocks are often made from agricultural products or are the wastes of other processes; depleting feedstocks are made from fossil fuels (petroleum, natural gas, or coal) or are mined.
• 5. Use catalysts, not stoichiometric reagents: Minimize waste by using catalytic reactions. Catalysts are used in small amounts and can carry out a single reaction many times. Catalysts are preferable to stoichiometric reagents, which are used in excess and work only once.
• 6. Avoid chemical derivatives: Avoid using blocking or protecting groups or any temporary modifications if possible. Derivatives use additional reagents and generate waste.
• 7. Maximize atom economy: Design syntheses so that the final product contains the maximum proportion of the starting materials. There should be few, if any, wasted atoms.
• 8. Use safer solvents and reaction conditions: Avoid using solvents, separation agents, or other auxiliary chemicals. If these chemicals are necessary, use innocuous chemicals.
• 9. Increase energy efficiency: Run chemical reactions at ambient temperature and pressure whenever possible.
• 10. Design chemicals and products to degrade after use: Design chemical products to break down to innocuous substances after use so that they do not accumulate in the environment.
• 11. Analyze in real time to prevent pollution: Include in-process real-time monitoring and control during syntheses to minimize or eliminate the formation of byproducts.
• 12. Minimize the potential for accidents: Design chemicals and their forms (solid, liquid, or gas) to minimize the potential for chemical accidents including explosions, fires, and releases to the environment.

* Originally published by Paul Anastas and John Warner in Green Chemistry: Theory and Practice, Oxford University Press: New York, 1998

" This new technology can replace millions of tons of toxic chemicals… "