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Expanding GREENSCOPE beyond the Gate: A Green Chemistry and Life-Cycle Perspective
Citation:
Ruiz-Mercado, G. J., M. A. Gonzalez, AND R. L. Smith. Expanding GREENSCOPE beyond the Gate: A Green Chemistry and Life-Cycle Perspective. CLEAN TECHNOLOGIES AND ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY. Springer Berlin-Heidelberg, , Germany, 16(4):703-717, (2012).
Impact/Purpose:
To inform the public
Description:
Industrial processes, particularly those within the chemical industry, contribute products and services to improve and increase society’s quality of life. However, the transformation of raw materials into their respective final goods involves the consumption of mass and energy and the possible generation of by-products and releases. The new approach for chemical processing is in sustainable production, which minimizes raw material consumption and energy loads, while minimizing/eliminating releases, and maintaining the economic feasibility of the process. To evaluate these advances, a sustainability assessment methodology, GREENSCOPE, has been developed into a tool to evaluate and assist in the synthesis of chemical processes. Each indicator, represented on a dimensionless sustainability scale, allows for quantitative identification if changes or modifications to the original process improve or detract from its sustainability performance. The data needs for the evaluation of each sustainability indicator and a methodology explaining its application in the design, evaluation, and improvement of chemical processes is explained. New process sustainability indicators have been proposed based in input/output process data, and the base-case ratio approach is implemented to predict process changes from known process performance data and design relationships. Additionally, a discussion regarding the implications of using sustainability evaluations beyond the process boundaries, applying the green chemistry principles in all steps of chemical process development, and a description of their benefits on the life-cycle inventory and the subsequent life-cycle assessment is included. Finally, a new approach to integrate GREENSCOPE into a life-cycle inventory to develop sustainable systems is introduced.
