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Purification

MedChem Tips and Tricks

Produced by the medicinal chemistry focus team of the ACS GCI Pharmaceutical Roundtable, this quick tips guide covers purification, solvent selection, reagents, energy, and resources to make medicinal chemistry more sustainable.

PhosRox™

Biodegradable sorbent that captures nutrients in water. Phosphorus and nitrogen are nutrients in water that act as fertilizers for aquatic plants. Eutrophication occurs when there is an overabundance of these nutrients. Nutrient pollution occurs when eutrophication produces an excessive amount of algae. These algae disrupt ecosystems by lowering the amount of dissolved oxygen in water, reducing water quality, turning the water green, causing a foul smell, blocking sunlight, and harming animals and humans who consume it.

Forward Water Technologies; Forward Osmosis System

Three-step process for reverse osmosis that achieves high-rate water extraction within a low-energy continuous process. Water and salt separation is accomplished with a draw solution called Switchable Water Salt (SWS) and heat. This system extracts the greatest amount of water from the most challenging process streams while using the least amount of energy. Reduced greenhouse gases by up to 40% compared to conventional disposal methods. The process also reclaims up to 90% of the freshwater from the waste stream.

Zero Discharge System for Cooling Towers

Water treatment system designed to control corrosion, deposition, and biological fouling without "bleed-off." Significant reduction in water usage compared to conventional methods because this system does not require makeup water in cooling systems. Bleed-off is the process of flushing water with high mineral concentrations down the drain and diluting the system water mineral concentrations with fresh water in order to prevent precipitation. From current data in Philadelphia, treating 30,000 tons of cooling water with this system saved about 132 million gallons of water.

West Fork Biotreatment Project

Large scale anaerobic biotreatment system. Asarco's biotreatment system consists of a settling basin and two anaerobic bioreactors discharged into a rock filter polishing cell that are followed by a final aeration polshing pond. Heavy metal pollution occurs when excavated rocks or exposed underground mines get into water. The West Fork Biotreatment plant does not require conventional chemicals that are often associated with sludge formation nor constant human monitoring and frequent sludge disposal.

NEXAR® Polymer Membrane Technology

Sulfonated polymer membrane technology for cheaper and less energy-intensive water desalination. This technology can withstand higher pressures, allowing for higher water flux and transport rates. These higher rates increase efficiency while lowering costs. The membrane's structure gives it ion selectivity, low electrical resistance, wet and dry mechanical strength, and good dimensional stability in wet and dry conditions. The membrane's resistance to chlorine also makes it a better option than conventional materials that lack chlorine resistance because it avoids the pretreatment process.

An Improved Peptide Manufacturing Platform for the Production of Etelcalcetide

Improved peptide manufacturing process of etelcalcetide, the active ingredient in, Parsabiv™— a drug for the treatment of secondary hyperparathyroidism in adult patients with chronic kidney disease. This novel process reduces chemical solvent use by 71%, manufacturing operating time by 56%, and manufacturing costs by 76%. This could eliminate over 14,400 cubic meters of waste, including 750 cubic meters of aqueous waste, while increasing profits.

Novasep's Custom Molecules

Custom techniques for manufacturing products. By utilizing custom techniques for their products, Novasep is able to make their processes more efficient, cost-effective, and environmentally friendly by enabling synthesis through shorter routes with improved purity and yield. This also allows for solvent recycling, which lowers costs and reduces consumption.

Zeta Fraction™

Separates live plants or algae into various bioactive components. This technology uses colloidal chemistry to gently separate live plants or algae into various bioactive components (Zeta Fractions) without solvents and with minimal energy consumption.
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Innosyn's Flow Chemistry

Biocatalysis, chemocatalysis, flow chemistry, crystallization, and photochemistry for the development of fine chemicals. Biocatalysis has high selectivity. Chemocatalysis enables efficient, customized synthesis of complex molecules while reducing waste. Flow chemistry allows for control of extreme reaction conditions and hazardous reactants. Due to its superior mass and heat transfer ability, flow chemistry has easy quality control and higher production. This company developed 3D metal-printed flow reactors and mixers using selective laser melting.