Green chemistry

The depletion of world fossil fuel reserves and the involvement of greenhouse gases in the global warming has led to change the industrial and energy policies of most developed countries. The goal is now to reserve petroleum to the uses where it cannot be substituted, to implement renewable raw materials obtained from plants cultivation, and to consider the biodegradability of molecules and of manufactured objects by integrating the lifetime concept in their expected cycle of use. The green chemistry includes the design, development and elaboration of chemical products and processes with the aim of reducing or eliminating the use and generation of harmful compounds for the health and the environment, by adapting the present day operation modes of the chemical industry to the larger framework of the sustainable development. In addition to biofuels, this book reviews the applications of green chemistry in the different industrial processes in concern. Part 1 presents the diversity of the molecules coming from renewable carbon, in particular lignocellulose and the biotechnological processes. Part 2 is devoted to materials and treats of the overall available technological solutions. Part 3 focusses on functional molecules and chemical intermediates, in particular in sugar- and fats-chemistry. Part 4 treats of biofuels under the aspects of their production and use in today's technologies. The last part deals with the global approaches at the environmental and agricultural levels. (J.S.)