About the iSUSTAIN™ Green Chemistry Index
The iSUSTAIN™ Green Chemistry Index is a tool which provides a methodology to generate a sustainability-based score for chemical products and processes. It contains a set of sustainability metrics based on the Twelve Principles of Green Chemistry and takes into account factors like waste generation, energy usage, health and environmental impact of raw materials and products, and the safety of processing steps.
The Index was developed with two goals in mind:
- Afford a measure of the sustainability for products/processes to both develop an initial sustainability baseline and provide guidance for process improvement
- Act as a learning tool for the scientific community to provide increased familiarity with the Twelve Principles of Green chemistry and help scientists gain an appreciation of the factors within their control that can affect the overall sustainability of their processes
the iSUSTAIN™ Green Chemistry Index Application in Use
To use the iSUSTAIN™ Green Chemistry Index Application, the user generates a scenario. The scenario contains information on the materials going into a process (the Bill of Materials In or BOM In), the materials out of a process (the product and any waste streams - the Bill of Materials Out or BOM Out) and the conditions used for the various steps in a process (the Process Steps). Several alternative scenarios can be generated for the same product/process, making changes within them to evaluate their effect on the overall sustainability score, thus allowing the user to do a "what-if" analysis.
This application is not a life cycle assessment (LCA). Rather, it is designed to provide evaluation of a product and/or process using readily available information and requiring much less time than a full LCA. As such, the tool currently provides a "gate-to-gate" assessment, looking upstream in a process to impacts of raw materials and then into the laboratory or production facility at the process being used to prepare the product under consideration. It is designed to allow use from a very early stage in the product development cycle (even before laboratory trials have begun), through to the later stages of commercial production. Over time, it is planned to evolve the application to utilize more detailed impact information as it becomes more readily available.
the iSUSTAIN Alliance
The iSUSTAIN™ Green Chemistry Index has been developed through an alliance between Cytec Industries Inc., Sopheon PLC and the Beyond Benign Foundation as an aid to determining how sustainable a chemical product or process may be.
- Cytec Industries Inc. is a leading manufacturer of specialty chemicals with business in Aerospace, High Performance Industrial Materials, Coating Resins, Industrial Process Chemicals and Additive Chemicals.
- Sopheon is an international provider of product lifecycle management solutions that automate and govern the innovation process, enabling companies to increase revenues and profits from new products.
- Beyond Benign is a non-profit educational organization that promotes green chemistry education in order to create an environmentally, socially and economically prosperous world.
Goals & Means:
Sustainability & Green Chemistry
Green chemistry is one of the most fundamental and powerful tools in our pursuit of a sustainable society because the science of chemistry impacts every material and product society uses. Medicines, plastics, paints and adhesives are some of the most discussed beneficiaries of chemistry, but the truth is that chemistry touches everything that modern society uses. If it's a product of modern society, you can bet that a chemist was involved in it's design, enhancement and production. Because of chemistry's ubiquity, the successful implementation of green chemistry is essential if the expanding global population is to enjoy an increased standard of living.
Principle Centered Design
The principles of green chemistry provides a framework for scientists and engineers to use when designing new materials, products, processes, and systems. The principles focus on sustainable design criteria and have proven to be the source of innovative solutions to a wide range of problems. Green chemistry embraces this power of design. If we use it wisely, we can make significant contributions in the drive toward sustainability for the simultaneous benefit of the environment, economy, and society.
the 12 Principles in short
- Pollution Prevention
- Atom Economy
- Less Hazardous Synthesis
- Design Safer Chemicals
- Safer Solvents & Auxiliaries
- Energy Efficiency
- Renewable Feedstocks
- Reduce Derivatives
- Catalysis
- Design for Degradation
- Real-Time Analysis
- Accident Prevention
Anastas, Paul T. and John C. Warner. Green Chemistry: Theory and Practice. Oxford University Press: 1998.
Green Chemistry
Letters & Reviews
Visit Taylor & Francis' Site to review the current issue of Green Chemistry Letters & Reviews' table of contents:
Listen to Editor, Doctor John Warner, talk about the journal: Listen on Taylor &Francis
The peer-reviewed journal, "Green Chemistry Letters & Reviews," with John Warner as Editor-in-Chief, is accepting submissions!