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EPA Award

Innovating Everyday Chemicals with Green Chemistry: More Sustainable Lubricants, Solvents, and Fertilizers

Free Live Webinar

Chemists across the industry and academia are driving innovation by integrating green chemistry and engineering principles into the design, manufacturing, and processes of chemicals. Join three recipients of the 2024 Green Chemistry Challenge Awards—a collaboration between the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention and the American Chemical Society’s Green Chemistry Institute—as they share their impactful scientific achievements.

Bioforge™

AI-engineeered enzymes for the production of chemicals without fermentation. This company uses AI to engineer enzymes and metal catalysts that do not require fermentation, allowing for the production of molecules at room temperature without toxins and waste. This process uses safe feedstocks, such as sugars, air, and carbon dioxide. It is also scalable and cost efficient. This process also eliminates fermentation, costly immobilization, air emissions, and wastewater emissions. Their factory, Bioforge™, produces one ton of product per ton of feedstock.

Rhamnolipids JBR Series Biosurfactant

Natural rhamnolipids, or co-surfactant systems, for bioremediation applications and crude oil recovery. These rhamnolipid biosurfactants can facilitate the removal of hydrocarbons and heavy metals, making them effective in remediating soil and sludge. These rhamnolipids also contain a synergistic activity with many synthetic surfactants, resulting in a reduction in synthetic surfactant components. They are also biodegradable, with decompositions that are non-persistent and safe for the environment.

RE-HEALING™ RF Foam

Halogen-free firefighting surfactant. RE-HEALING™ RF3 is a fluorosurfactant and fluoropolymer-free foam concentrate that effectively extinguishes Class B hydrocarbon fuel fires. It can be used in fresh, salt, or brackish water. These surfactants have a high rate of degradation and perform equal or superior to those in conventional firefighting foams. It is also easy to integrate into existing systems. Conventional firefighting foams use fluorinated surfactants, which are persistent, toxic, and bioaccumulative. 

Atom Transfer Radical Polymerization (ATRP)

Atom Transfer Radical Polymerizatoin (ATRP) for manufacturing polymers. ATRP is the most effecting method of controlled radical polymerization (CRP). The ATRP process allows for the easy formation of polymers by assembling monomors in a piece-by-piece fashion. This allows for the production of a wide range of polymers with specific functions and properties. The ATRP process uses enviromentally friends chemicals, such ascorbic acid, and requires less transition metal catalysts.

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