This report resulted from the event, "Scaling Sustainable Chemistry for an Industrial Transformation Forum and Roundtable," held in August 2024.
Three specific areas were addressed in the event and are summarized in the report:
1. Scaling Technologies: The development of new chemicals and processes is a fundamental task that has critical challenges for scaling.
Chitin, the most abundant aminopolysaccharide, can be found in the exoskeleton of crustacean shells, a major waste product of the fishing industry. The water-soluble derivative of chitin, chitosan, acquired through a process of deacetylation affords derivatization and processability of this natural biopolymer. Traditionally, deacetylation processes utilizing harsh chemical conditions and high energy inputs limiting scalability and sustainable practices. Furthermore, these methods result in depolymerization, presenting low molecular weight fragments.
This work focuses on the development of sustainable strategies for carbon capture and utilization (CCU), a key technology for mitigating global warming by using CO₂ as a renewable carbon source.
Here we explored the role of quaternary ammonium salts in enhancing CO₂ capture and activation with NaBH₄. The presence of these salts resulted in both shorter reaction times and improved efficiency.
The natural environment is facing several contaminants including hazardous metals, dyes, medicines, and plastics. In particular, plastics, one of the most sought-after synthetic materials, are widely used in a variety of applications, including electronics, building, and packaging, due to their ease of manufacture and low weight. One novel recycling method that has been introduced as a mild and sustainable technology for processing waste plastic is electrochemistry, particularly when driven by renewable energy sources.
The sustainability of agricultural practices is increasingly critical amid environmental challenges. While effective, traditional soil-based agricultural methods often contribute to soil degradation and resource depletion. The earth’s topsoil has eroded by 50% during the last 150 years. In addition to this, soil has also been affected by agricultural practices. These effects include compaction, loss of soil structure, nutrient degradation, and soil salinity [1].
Fluoropolymers, notably poly(vinylidene fluoride-co-hexafluoropropylene) (PH), are rendered to be an excellent choice for superior performance coatings attributed to their exceptional mechanical robustness, thermal resistance, and resistance to chemical attack. However, their low surface energy results in poor adhesion to metal substrates, limiting their application in critical corrosion-resistant systems. To address this challenge, PH was hydroxyl-modified (PHOH) to introduce active functional groups that enhance bonding capabilities.
Amine-based adsorbents are widely used for CO2 capture. However, one of the biggest hurdles for their further development is their limited oxidation stability. Moreover, methods developed to improve the oxidation stability often lead to significant decrease in their CO2 (HES) on the CO2 uptake. Here, we investigated the effect of hydroxyethyl starch uptake and oxidation stability of impregnated polyethylenimine (PEI) adsorbents. Performance of HES-PEI co-impregnated materials was evaluated under different oxidation conditions using CO2 uptake measurements, and mass spectrometry.
