The term green chemistry is defined as:The invention, design and application of chemical products and processes that reduce or eliminate the use and generation of hazardous substances.The twelve tenets that form the basis of designing green chemical products and processes are :
- Prevent waste
- Design safer chemicals and products
- Design less hazardous chemical syntheses
- Use renewable feedstock’s
- 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