Reflection

The field of green chemistry is learning cleaner and more effective ways to produce things that are needed. To be green is to utilize your materials and discard those materials in a way as not to add to the land fills or harm the environment. A green chemist's job is to find these ways and preform them with their own labs and products.

The most intriguing examples at work that I found out about was the cogeneration plant at UNH Durham. I was really impressed that a NH university can be called a leader in something that is green and benefits the environment. By doing this they are not only being greener but saving the state money. The plant is a major contributor to the University's heating and without that the University would have to find that money else where. Either by asking for more funds from the state or by raising tuition prices.

Prevention because green chemistry is all about lessening the impact on the environment.
Use Renewable feedstocks. The earth doesn't have an endless supply of fossil fuels and it is so important to find rewable resoucres to take their places.
Design of degradation is so important so landfills don't become huge and start to take up too much space .Biodegrable products are essential.

corn is cool

Corn is used as a chemical feedstock. It is clear that fossil fuels have a limitation. There is not an endless supply that will bring the world energy forever. So about 30 or 40 years ago scientists looked further into renewable sources of energy and for products, that is when they found corn.

Through advances in biotechnology corn can be used to in many ways and for multiple products:

-Ethanol which is an additive to gasoline for vehicles

-Acetone and butanol which is a solvent (a liquid, gas, or solid that dissolves another liquid solid or gas)

-Lactic Acid which is used in moisturizers as well as helps fabric accept dyes, and more commonly in the dairy industry

-Acetic acid which is used in the textile industry for neutralization in dying, IT is also used when producing vitamins, antibiotics, and hormones. The acid is also the main chemical in vinegar

-Citric Acid which is used for flavoring foods

   

 With everything in life nothing is perfect. Making these products from corn is can be very time consuming and going along with that isn’t always cost effective.

https://netfiles.uiuc.edu/mcheryan/www/feedstoc.htm

http://science.jrank.org/pages/3782/Lactic-Acid-Uses-lactic-acid.html

making UNH the first

 In operation since 2006, the UNH Durham cogeneration plant brings the campus 85% of their electricity and heat. First the plant preserves waste heat that would be lost during the production of electricity and uses it to heat the campus’s building. Incredibly the plant would pay for itself within 20 years.

Later in 2009 UNH joined with Waste Management's Turnkey Recycling and Environmental Enterprise in Rochester and developed the ECOline which brings from purified methane gas.  The pipeline is almost 13 miles long. The ECOline would be paid by within 10 years.

UNH is the first university to have this much of their total energy be produced from recycled resources. It is also amazing that this can be said for a campus that is 5 million square feet.

"making UNH the first"

Pesticide Free

Pesticides used for agricultural purposes are extremely harmful to the environment. A pesticide it used to get rid of or prevent "pests" whether that be insects, rodents, birds, or bacteria on a agricultural product.
But many pesticides are toxic and when used pollutes the soil, air, and water. The United States has some regulations for pesticides to lessen the affect they have on the environment. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is used to to this. This agency studies and tests the pesticide's toxicity to mammals, birds, and fish. As well as the pesticide's environmental impact on non target plants, water sources, and animals.

In my research looking at pesticides I found a company that is trying to do their part greening their pesticide process. Go Green Agricultural is a company that prides itself in doing everything in the greenest way they can find. Their speciality product is lettuce or what they call it Happy Lettuce. It is grown in a greenhouse. They use hydroponic  farming where the plants aren't grown in soil but in nutrient-rich water (that they recycle). When ready they are picked and packaged living (with the roots still attached) to maximize the self life and the amount of nutrients in the lettuce. Packaging for them is also green. They use a recyclable plastic and the packaging also acts like a mini greenhouse to help keep the lettuce fresh.

All of this is very impressive but what I found particular interesting was that they don't use a pesticide! They use ladybugs! They ladybugs eat the insects that traditional pesticides on other farms kill. Lady bugs are a predatory insect that keeps the lettuce pest free and the plants and environment pesticide free.

http://www.gogreenagriculture.com/Technology/index2.php
http://www.pollutionissues.com/Na-Ph/Pesticides.html

DDT

A specific example of a biological interaction with environmental cheimcals would be DDT. The process of DDT is pretty simple. A foreign substance to an environment works its way up the food chain and as it moves up it becomes for conentrate and more harmful to the larger speices. For example a bottom feeder in a lake or pond would eat the foreign substance then a small fish would eat the bottom feeder. Next a larger fish would eat the small fish and after that a bird would eat the larger fish. As the foreign substance makes its way into all of these organisms it would become more and more concentrated and leaving bigger damage. It would kill most of the birds that eat the infected fish.
         When the effects of DDT were first seen in the 1950s it was among robins in the United States. Toxic spray to control beetles was ingested by worms and the worms were then eaten by the robins and killed large amounts of robins in that area.

WE ALL HAVE ONE

Vehicles are the leading air pollute. It is not only the use of cars but the production as well as the disposal that causes the smoggy skies and dirty air we breath. Major pollutes that are put into the air during these processes are

Particulate matter  that are tiny pieces of metal that are release into the air.

Hydrocarbons that react with nitrogen oxides when in sunlight and form ground level ozone(ingredient in smog)

Nitrogen Oxides which as we know combined with sunlight and hydrocarbons form ground level ozone

Carbon Monoxide  formed by the combustion of fossil fuels (gasoline)  and is emitted primarily from cars and trucks. It is also odorless, colorless, and poisonous which makes it deadly when inhaled in big amounts
Sulfur Dioxide created by power plants and vehicles because they burn sulfur containing fuels like diesal


When these compounds are released into the air we get a combination that creates harmful gases which are linked to cancer, respiratory problems, and various other health problems with young children.


Electric, hydrids and more fuel efficient motor vehicles have been made to help lessen the impact on the environment. In 2012 these are the new cars that will lower the impact on the environment:

Electric BMW ActiveE,  Ford Focus Electric, Honda Fit EV, Mitsubishi i MiEV

Hybrid Honda Civic Hybrid,  Infiniti M Hybrid, Buick Lacrosse, Chevy Malibu

Fuel Efficient Chevrolet Sonic Hatchback , FIAT 500, Ford Focus, Honda Civic, Hyundai Accent