1. Increasing profitability with Green
Chemistry
Nitesh H. Mehta
Green ChemisTree Foundation
Mumbai, India
www.industrialgreenchem.com
nitesh.mehta@newreka.co.in

2.  Realities of Chemical Industry – Past, Present & Future
 Magnitude of environmental challenge & its impact
 Approaches to address our environmental challenges
 Distinguishing “Green Chemistry”
 Strategies to implement Green Chemistry
 Increasing Profitability with Green Chemistry: Case Study of
Recycle@SourceTM
Solution
 Potential Impact of a Green Chemistry Solution
 Barriers to implement Green Chemistry
 Conclusions
Flow

3. • Population Explosion
• Last two decades, nature of expansion:
 mostly linear expansion of volumes
 linear expansion of hardware
 linear expansion of batch size
 linear expansion of labour
 linear expansion of effluent treatment facilities
• Developing countries like India, China, etc – outsourcing hub for
manufacturing activities & hence environmental load on us is higher
Increase in Demand
Need for expansionExpanded Capacities
Realities of Chemical Industry: Past

4. In the last two decades, direction of innovation:
 enhancing productivity & better material handling
 enhancing quality
 expanding & improving effluent treatment methods
Drivers for innovation:
 Cost
 Quality
 Productivity
Recent signals from nature:
 Earthquakes
 Cyclones
 Floods,
 Diseases, etc…
Impact on ENVIRONMENT???
Realities of Chemical Industry: Present
Our practices UNSUSTAINABLE

5.  Probable Future
 Environmental Norms – more stringent, more regulatory pressure
 Common man’s awareness about their rights – expand
 Customer’s / End User’s demand for “Green” products – increase
 Water – crisis
 Energy – short supply
 Managing Eco. & Environmental Competitiveness – big challenge
 raw material prices going up
 labor, power & overheads going up
 effluent treatment costs going up
 selling prices going down
Chemical Industry – tough times ahead (from the perspective of
environment), unless we intervene & do something different.
Realities of Chemical Industry: Future

6. Magnitude of environmental challenge
Industry
Sector
Producti
on (bn
kg)
No. of
Steps
E-Factor
(Ref: R.
Sheldon)
Aqueous
E-Factor
Vol. of
Liq. Eff.
(bn lits)
No. of
tankers
(mn)
COD
(lacs)
Toxicity
Pharma 0.75 - 1 7+ 50 - 100 20% 15 1.5 1.5 - 2 Very High
Agro 1 - 1.5 5+ 40 - 60 25% 15 1.5 1 - 1.5 Very High
Pigment 1.5 - 2 4+ 30 - 50 30% 20 2.0 0.5 - 1
Medium
High
Dyes 2 – 2.5 3+ 20 - 30 35% 20 2.0 0.25 - 0.5 High
Total volume of liquid effluents (world) = around 70 bn lits/year
= 7 million trucks/year
Indian Market 20 – 30 % of global
Total volume of liquid effluent (India) = 15 - 20 bn lits/year
= 1.5 – 2.0 million trucks/year
= 4,000 trucks/day
Total Organic Mass in effluents (India) = 875,000 TPA (avg. COD = 50K)

7. Impact: huge threat to water bodies & human health
 Quantity : approx. 50 - 70 bn kgs of liquid effluents
include solid & gaseous effluents
include all wastes from all other sectors (mining, steel, power,…..)
 Practice : End-of-pipe-treatment (converting one kind of effluent in to other)
 Issue : Toxicity not fully known (Ecotoxicity data available for less than
1% of human pharmaceuticals…Ref: journal “Regulatory
Toxicology Pharmacology, April’2004)”
 Degradation : very slow, impact unknown after degradation
Impact on Economics
 Direct Cost : loss of solvent, raw material & finished product, loss of utilities,
treatment cost, higher overheads, loss of business…
 Indirect Cost : unreliable supplies, loss of credibility in market, anxiety, etc.
Impact

8. Approaches to deal with environmental challenges

9. What is Green Chemistry?
 a science
 a philosophy
 an attitude
 a new domain or branch of chemistry
 “greener” way of doing the same chemistry
Way we look at Green Chemistry:
 an approach
 a way of thinking
 place to come from while designing or working on a product or process
Distinguishing Green Chemistry

10. Definition of Green Chemistry:
Chemistry & chemical engineering to design chemical products & processes that
reduce or eliminate the use or generation of hazardous substances while
producing high quality products through safe and efficient manufacturing
processes.
- “Green Chemistry” as defined by Green Chemistry Research & Dev. Act of 2005
Definition of Green Engineering:
Green Engineering is the development and commercialization of industrial
processes that are economically feasible and reduce the risk to human health &
environment.
Distinguishing Green Chemistry

11. 12 Principles of Green Chemistry
 Prevent waste
 Design safer chemicals and products
 Design less hazardous chemical syntheses
 Use renewable feedstocks
 Use catalysts, not stoichiometric reagents
 Avoid chemical derivatives
 Maximize atom economy
 Use safer solvents and reaction conditions
 Increase energy efficiency
 Design chemicals and products to degrade after use
 Analyze in real time to prevent pollution
 Minimize the potential for accidents
- Environmental Protection Agency, USA
12 Principles of Green Engineering
 Inherent Rather Than Circumstantial
 Prevention Instead of Treatment
 Design for Separation
 Maximize Efficiency
 Output-Pulled Versus Input-Pushed
 Conserve Complexity
 Durability Rather Than Immortality
 Meet Need, Minimize Excess
 Minimize Material Diversity
 Integrate Material and Energy Flows
 Design for Commercial "Afterlife"
 Renewable Rather Than Depleting
- Anastas P.T. & Zimmerman J. B., “Design through twelve principles
of Green Engineering”, Env. Sci. Tech. 2003, 37 (5), 94A – 101A
Distinguishing Green Chemistry

12. Some common myths about Green Chemistry:
 Its expensive, not worth it
 it is theory, doesn’t work in real life
 it takes long time to develop & implement
 it’s a cost center (biggest myth)
Green
Chemistry
Performance
Safety & Environment Cost/Economics
Distinguishing Green Chemistry

13. Where to start from? Basis of selection?
 Green Chemistry Metrices: may start with effluent stream with highest
E-Factor, PMI, or any other matrices
 Toxicity
 Internal Competency
 Cost pressures
 Regulatory pressures
 Demand from customer
 Resources available
 Management’s priority
 Ready availability of a particular technology in market place
Strategies for implementation of Green Chemistry

14. Short term
e.g. Immediate, workable solution
(reduce COD or reduce
effluent
load by recycling)
Medium term
e.g. Process Intensification of Unit
Processes & Unit Operations
(Greener catalyst, etc)
Long term
e.g. Paradigm shift in Engineering
like micro reactors
Very Long term
e.g. designing new route of
synthesis starting from
renewable feedstock, using
Biomimicry
Strategies for implementation of Green Chemistry

15. Short term
Time : 1 to 2 years
Resources: very low
Risk: very low
Medium term
Time: 2 to 4 years
Resources : low to medium
Risk: low to medium
Long term
Time: 4 to 8 years
Resources: high
Risk: high
Very Long term
Time : 8 to 16 years
Resources: very high
Risk: very high
Strategies for implementation of Green Chemistry

16. Case Study 1:
 Developed & commercialized by Newreka Team
 Running successfully as commercial scale at a Pharma Company – 3 years
 Transformed the was chemistry done to a “Greener Way”
 Also, used our concept of Recycle@SourceTM
to recycle aqueous stream
Case Study 2:
 Developed by Newreka Team, patented & under commercialization
 Most polluting dye intermediate called H-Acid
 Using the concept of Recycle@SourceTM
Increasing Profitability with Green Chemistry: Case Studies

17. Step 1 Step 2 Step 3 Step 4
Step 1
2 - 3 Raw Materials
Reaction Medium
Extraction Medium
Intermediate/Product
Effluents
Reaction & Extraction
Medium
Intermediate/Product
By-products
Organic Impurities
Inorganic Impurities
Reality of our processes

18. Reality of our processes
Step 1 Step 2 Step 3 Step 4
4 - 5 different
chemicals
4 - 5 different
chemicals
4 - 5 different
chemicals
4 - 5 different
chemicals
No option except
Effluent Treatment Plant or
Incineration
Cocktail of 15 - 25
different chemicals
Impossible
to separate,
recover or
recycle

19. Manufacturing Site
Reality of our plants
Mfg. Block for
Campaign
Products
Mfg. Block for
Dedicated
Products
Dedicated
Product
Step 1 Step 2 Step 3
Product 1 Product 2 Product 3
Step 1 Step 2 Step 3
Step 1 Step 2 Step 3 Step 4
Step 1 Step 2

20.  Each effluent stream has its own:
• Physical properties
• colour, pH, temperature
• Chemical composition
• organics, inorganics
• Volume
• Characteristics
• COD, BOD, TDS, etc.
• Toxicity & hazard
 What we have is:
• multiple effluent streams with widely differing quantities &
characteristics
Reality of our effluent streams

21. Current industrial practice
Effluent stream from
dedicated products
Effluent stream
from product 1
Effluent stream
from product 2
Effluent stream
from product 2
Cocktail of 40 - 50
different chemicals
End-of-the-pipe Treatment
(primary & secondary treatment, triple effect evaporator,
incineration, solid waste disposal sites, land fill, etc.)
Our Environment

22. Step 1 Step 2 Step 3 Step 4
2 - 3 Raw Materials
Reaction Medium
Extraction Medium
Finished Product
EffluentsStep 1
Reaction & Extraction
Medium
Product/Intermediate
Organic Impurities
Inorganic Impurities
Recycle@Source
TM
Recycle@Source
TM
Solution: Concept

23. AQUEOUS EFFLEUNT STREAMS SOLVENT STREAMS
(acidic, neutral, alkaline)
Raw Finished Organic
Inorganic
Materials Product Impurities Impurities
Recycled back to process selectively removed
“RCat
TM
” (customized proprietary catalytic formulation for Recycle @ Source)
selectively & effectively removes undesired org. & inorg. impurities such
that the streams can be recycled back in the process.
Recycle@Source
TM
Solution: Concept

24. Conventional Technology: High pressure catalytic hydrogenation with Raney Ni
Chemistry: Nitro to Amine Reduction
Recycle@Source
TM
Solution: Case Study 1

25. Feedback from customer: Recycling mother liquor for over 3 years now.
Over 800 batches (at times on campaign basis)
Just make-up for Water loss (saved millions of lit of fresh water)
Amine Quality – 99%+ on HPLC, 10% Yield improvement
Recycle@Source
TM
Solution: Case Study 1

26. Impact:
• Increase in profitability:
1. Yield improved by 10%
2. Batch Times reduced – 20% Higher productivity
3. Two solvents eliminated
4. Energy savings – distillation & purification avoided
5. Effluent treatment cost reduced (E-Factor down by 90%)
6. Safer process (H2, Ni, Chloroform, EDC, MeOH avoided)
• Customer got breakeven on their investment in < 3 months.
• Enhanced Quality is a Bonus.
26
Recycle@Source
TM
Solution: Case Study 1

27. H – Acid (1-Amino-3-Hydroxy Naphthalene 3,6 Disulphonic Acid):
 One of the oldest & biggest volume Dye Intermediates (goes mainly in to Black Dyes)
 High volume product (India alone makes over 20,000 TPA)
 Known in the industry for it’s high E-Factor (over 50 kgs waste / kg H-Acid)
 Uses mostly conventional technologies
 Theoretical yield 2.4 kgs H-Acid/kg naphthalene, Industry yield is 1.28 (53%)
 Last innovation happened 5 years back – solvent based Fusion, yield increased from
1.1 to 1.28
 Lot of efforts put in by private companies, government bodies, academic & research
institution to change the process & reduce E-Factor
Recycle@Source
TM
Solution: Case Study 2

28. Fusion &
Evaporation
Isolation
Vessel
CENTRIFUGE
Amine
Methanol
Caustic
Acidic Mother Liquor
H-Acid
Representative diagram of Conventional Process
Dilute
Sulphuric Acid
Characteristics
Colour Deep Red
pH 1.5 - 2.0
COD 150,000
TDS 15 - 20%
Toxicity Not Known
Recycle@Source
TM
Solution: Case Study 2

29. Fusion &
Evaporation
Isolation
Vessel
CENTRIFUGE
Amine
Methanol
Caustic
Acidic Mother Liquor
Storage
Vessel
Mother Liquor Recycle
H-Acid
More than 25 recycles
E-Factor = 90%
Patented Technology
Yield = 10%
RCat
Treatment
Recyle CatTM
FilterFilter
Spent
RCat
Representative diagram to explain the concept of Recycle@SourceTM
solution as applied to H-Acid
Recycle@Source
TM
Solution: Case Study 2

30. Batch No.
Product
Colour
Product
Appearance
H-Acid
Obtained (gm)
Product
Purity
Fresh
Off white to
Light Pink
Powder 59 > 80.0%
Recycle 1
Off white to
Light Pink
Powder 62 > 80.0%
Recycle 2
Off white to
Light Pink
Powder 63 > 80.0%
Recycle 3
Off white to
Light Pink
Powder 65 > 80.0%
Recycle 4
Off white to
Light Pink
Powder 65 > 80.0%
Recycle 5
Off white to
Light Pink
Powder 65 > 80.0%
Product Characterization & Impact on Yield (Basis: 90 gm batch size)
Recycle@Source
TM
Solution: Case Study 2

31. In the face of challenges that chemical industries face today, like:
market competition, further shrinking of already “thin margins”, tighter environmental
regulations, lower level of permissible discharge, tough stance of government & regulatory
bodies, volatile market & fluctuating raw material & finished product prices
Benefits of Recycle@SourceTM
Solutions:
 Freedom from treatment of huge quantities of effluents
 Lower effluent treatment cost
 Enhanced yields & productivity
 Lower cost of production
 Saving of time & energy which otherwise goes in dealing with regulatory bodies
 Wide applicability – diverse industry sectors, wide range of reactions
Benefits of Recycle@SourceTM
Solutions

32. Impact of Recycle@SourceTM
Solutions that are ready with Newreka:
Total Impact on environment : effluent discharge to environment & fresh
water consumption of industry reduced by over 50,000 MT per month.
Potential Impact of a Green Chemistry Solution
No. Product
Total
Production
in (TPM)
E-Factor *
(kgs
waste/kg
product)
Effluent Quality
Minimu
m No. of
Recycles
Effluent quantity before & after
implementing NRS (litres per month)
before after
1 Nevirapine 20 4 Mixture of solvents 500+ 80,000 0
2 Sildenafil Citrate 25 14 Neutral effluent 25 3,50,000 14,000
3 Omeprazole 50 8 Highly alkaline effluent 10 4,00,000 40,000
4 Albendazole 100 8 Highly alkaline effluent 25 8,00,000 32,000
5 Quietiapine 20 6 Neutral effluent 10 1,20,000 12,000
6 H-Acid 2000 26 Acidic effluent 15 5,20,00,000 35,00,000
7 OAPSA 75 13 Acidic effluent 15 9,75,000 65,000
8 FC Acid 50 10 Acidic effluent 15 5,00,000 33,000
9 4-ADAPSA 40 10 Acidic effluent 15 4,00,000 26,000
10
m-Phenylene
Diamine
Sulphonic Acid
(MPDSA)
100 5 Acidic effluent 15 5,00,000 33,000

33.  Inertia to New Paradigm against the gravity of existing paradigm
 Technical Barriers: no ecosystem for knowledge-based entrepreneurship
 Seed capital & funding barriers
 IP Barriers: protecting IP
 Market Barriers: awareness, business model
 Human Barriers: Inertia to change, culture, language
 Scale-up Barriers: same result in lab as in plant, availability of plant, risk
 Barriers created by “Old Nexus”
 Regulatory Barriers: changes in DMF, FDA & Customer approvals
 Financial Barriers: working capital for growth
Barriers to implementation of Green Chemistry

34.  Human Barriers
 inertia to change from old paradigm to New Paradigm
 decades of shop-floor experience becomes barrier instead of resource
 Scale-up Barriers
 want to see same result in lab as that expected in plant
 availability of plant to take trials with new technology
 risk of scale-up – who will bear?
 Market Barriers
 Lack of awareness about potential of Green Chemistry tool box
 Some myths like it’s expensive, it will increase cost, etc
 IP Barriers
 challenge to protect IP
 little respect for IP in the industry – no hesitation in copying idea
Key Barriers to implementation of Green Chemistry

35.  The question now, is no longer – Whether Green Chemistry or not?
The question now is – How can we develop & implement Green Chemistry?
 Each of us have a role to play here – Academic & research institutes, Students,
Industry, Government & Regulatory bodies, Financial Institutions, etc
 Academic & Research Institutes – working on real, relevant & critical environmental
challenges faced by the Industry
 Industry: Start wherever you want to or can. But let’s START. Create short
term & long term strategy to implement Green Chemistry & Green Engineering in to
operations.
 Government & Regulatory Bodies – Facilitate, incentives to those taking risk
 Shift from a cost centre approach to a profit-centric approach.
 Environmental challenges are opportunities to make PROFITS
Conclusions

36. Magnitude of
Environment
Challenges
Magnitude of
Environment
Challenges
ScaleScale
UrgencyUrgency
??
?
?
??
Green Chemistry : Our key challenge

37. Universities:
1. Limitations to
Customize, Scale-up &
Commercialize
2. Limitations to Market
their Innovations
Industry:
1. Profit Driven Approach
2. Limitation to approach &
define their problems
3. Mindset of not investing
on Green R&D
Common Man &
Society:
1. Lack of Awareness
2. Mindset of not investing
on Education &
Research
Govt. Bodies & NGO’s:
1. Formulations of practical
policies.
2. Carrot & Stick Approach
3. Limitations of paperwork
& bureaucracy
Key Roadblock in Implementation of GC

38. Universities:
1. Limitations to
Customize, Scale-up &
Commercialize
2. Limitations to Market
their Innovations
Industry:
1. Profit Driven Approach
2. Limitation to approach
& define their problems
3. Mindset of not investing
on Green R&D
Common Man &
Society:
1. Lack of Awareness
2. Mindset of not investing
on Education &
Research
Govt. Bodies & NGO’s:
1. Limitations of paperwork &
bureaucracy
2. Carrot & Stick Approach
Industrial
Green
Chemistry
World
(IGCW)
Attempt to bridge the gap

40. MNC or Large or Small Organization: Partner with us & express your commitment
to Sustainability by being a Sponsor & share your initiatives
Working on Green Chemistry: Present your case study & be a speaker
Exhibit your “Green” Products & Services: Exhibit your Green Chemistry or Green
Engineering based product, technology or services
Apply for an Award: Apply for an award under various categories
Participate in IGCW’2013 Symposium: Opportunity to meet pioneers and senior
scientists from the field of Green Chemistry & Engineering
IGCW2013: Invite you to be a stakeholder
www.industrialgreenchem.co
Event: IGCW2013 – Convention & Ecosystem
Date: 6, 7 & 8 December’13
Venue: Hotel Renaissance & Conventional Center, Powai, Mumbai
For more details and to participate, please contact: krishna.dave@newreka.co.in

41. Thank you
For resources on Green Chemistry Please visit
& Green Engineering: www.industrialgreenchem.com