Green Chemistry and
Hazardous Waste
Heinz Leuenberger
Director, Environmental Management Branch
UNIDO
THE CHALLENGE
Business as usual is no longer an option
Provide more value with fewer negative consequences
Improve economic and ecological efficiency; do more with less
Decouple Growth from Natural Resource Consumption and Negative Environmental Impacts
Resource decoupling
Human well-being
Economic activity (GDP)
Resource use
Time
Environmental impact
Impact decoupling
Source: International Resource Panel
Decoupling Natural Resource Use and Environmental Impacts from Economic Growth, UNEP, 2011
THE GREEN INDUSTRY INITIATIVE
Processes
Benefits
Economic
Social
Environmental
More Innovation and Growth; Increased
Resilience…
More Employment, Rising Incomes and
Empowerment…
More Efficient Resource Use; Less Waste
and Pollution…
Increase resource productivity
Bring down production costs
Foster technology development and
innovation
Improve competitiveness
Open up new markets
Develop new businesses
Create new jobs and make existing jobs
more secure
Reduce poverty
Develop new skills and capacity
Improve occupational health and safety
conditions
Safeguard health and safety of
communities
Lower risks to consumers
Reduce environmental pollution
Counteract resource depletion
Prevent degradation of ecosystems
Mitigate climate change
Combat water scarcity
HAZARDOUS WASTE
• 200 million people at risk from toxic pollution in 49 low and
middle income countries
• Top 10 industrial sources:
Lead-acid battery recycling,
Lead smelting,
Mining and ore processing,
Tannery operations,
Industrial/municipal dump sites,
Industrial estates,
Artisanal gold mining,
Product manufacturing,
Chemical manufacturing,
Dye industry
Source: Green Cross Switzerland &
Blacksmith Institute, 2013
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EXAMPLES OF HAZARDOUS
WASTE
Wastes from the production of many chemicals
Chlorinated hydrocarbons
Compressed gas cylinders and spray cans
Expired paints, dyes and solvents
Infectious hospital waste
Mercury and mercury compounds
Pesticides, herbicides and insecticides
Spent chemical solutions
Used batteries
Waste oil from cars/ machine maintenance
Waste containing PCBs
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HAZARDOUS WASTES FROM SELECTED INDUSTRIES
Chemical
Strong acids and bases, reactive and ignitable wastes, discarded
commercial chemical products
Cleaning & Heavy metal dusts & sludge, ignitable wastes, solvents, strong
Cosmetic
acids and bases
Food and
Beverages
Animal waste (not always hazardous), cleaning wastes, CFCs
(refrigerants)
Furniture
& Wood
Ignitable wastes, spent solvents, paint wastes
Leather &
Textiles
Tanning liquor and effluent, treatment containing, chromium,
dyestuffs and pigments containing dangerous substances
Metals
Paint wastes containing heavy metals, strong acids and bases,
cyanide wastes, sludge containing heavy metals
Paper and
Printing
Ignitable and corrosive wastes, Ink wastes, including solvents
and metals, photography waste with heavy metals solutions
HAZARDOUS WASTE MANAGEMENT
PREVENTION FIRST!
• Hazardous waste management should prioritize reducing or eliminating the
generation of hazardous waste in the first instance.
Resource Efficient and Cleaner Production (RECP):
– Increases the resource productivity in production processes
– Promotes greater occupational safety by reducing the exposure of
workers to hazardous materials
– Helps avoid spills and accidental releases of hazardous waste
– Reduces costs of treatment and disposal of hazardous materials
GREEN CHEMISTRY
… Going One Step Further
– “Design and application of chemical products
and processes to reduce or to eliminate the use
and generation of hazardous substances.”
• From 12 Principles of Green Chemistry by Paul Anastas and
John C. Warner
“Pharmaceutical plants typically generate 25 to 100 kilograms of waste
per kilogram of product”
Source: Nature 469, 18-20 (2011) | doi:10.1038/469018a
GREEN CHEMISTRY IN ACTION
Example: Supercritical CO2
• Above its critical temperature (304.25 K)
and critical pressure (72.9 atm or
7.39 MPa), CO2 adopts properties
midway between a gas and a liquid
• Uses
Industrial and domestic solvent replacement
Production of silica, carbon and metal-based aerogels.
Supercritical fluid extraction - is fast and offers selectivity through varying
pressure and temperature
Decaffeination of coffee beans
Extraction of essential oils
GREEN CHEMISTRY IN ACTION
Example: Hydrogen Peroxide to Propylene Oxide (HPPO)
• Innovative process for production of P0
Industrial success story
• PO is top 30 chemical intermediate – used in variety of
applications
• Traditional process uses organic peroxides and produces organic
byproducts, requiring disposal or recycling
• New process uses hydrogen peroxide and produces water as
byproduct
• High selectivity and efficiency
» 25% lower capital expenditure – no waste treatment facility
required
» 70-80 reduction of waste water
» 35% reduction of energy
– Developed and commercialized by Dow-BASF
» First commercial plant in 2008 in Belgium
» Second commercial plant in 2011 in Thailand
2010 Winner Presidential Green Chemistry Award
GREEN CHEMISTRY IN ACTION
Example: New Reactions - Catalysis
Catalysts increase reaction yield and specificity and
reduce its energy requirement and waste generation
• Nano-technology provides new possibility to design and construct
effective catalysts
For example: Fisher Tops synthesis of liquid fuels from synthesis gas produced
from biomass
• Bio-catalysis is based on use of enzymes to catalyse reactions
For example: cellulase enzymes to break down woody biomass as source for
bio-ethanol production
RESOURCE EFFICIENT AND CLEANER PRODUCTION (RECP)
RECP accelerates the application of preventive environmental strategies to processes, products and
services to increase efficiency and reduce risks to humans and the environment.
RECP addresses the three sustainability dimensions individually and synergistically:
1.Production Efficiency:
2.Environmental
3.Human
optimization of the productive use of natural resources;
management: minimization of wastes and emissions; and
Development: minimization of risks to people and communities.
Global Network of Resource Efficienct and Cleaner
Production Centres (RECPnet)
Key Services:
1.Technical Assistance and In-plant Assessments
2.Training
3.Information Dissemination and Awareness Creation
4.Policy Advice
5.Technology and Investment Promotion
WAY FORWARD - CHALLENGES
Change in mindsets needed first
Achieving technical feasibility
Subsidies and perverse incentives3
Technology lock-in
Many plants/equipment etc. may be in use 20-30+ years
FUTURE ACTIVITIES AT UNIDO
Pilot Project Formulation
Based on provision of technical assistance to industries via CPCs
Involve business organizations, private sector, research and academia
Identify high-impact sectors
Examples: Bio plastics, Enzymes in textile, Organic solvents based on bio waste
Capacity Building
Train CPC staff in Green Chemistry principles
Launch training courses on Green Chemistry approaches in industry
Stimulate further innovation and research
Roll-Out of Capacity Building Activities
Select pilot countries with active RECP centers
Replicate training program at national and regional level
Thank You
Heinz Leuenberger
Director, Environmental Management Branch
UNIDO
www.unido.org/greenindustry
www.greenindustryplatform.org