Green chemistry and engineering a practical design approach

GREEN CHEMISTRY AND
ENGINEERING



GREEN CHEMISTRY AND
ENGINEERING
A Practical Design Approach

´ N JIME
´ LEZ
´ NEZ-GONZA
CONCEPCIO
DAVID J. C. CONSTABLE


Copyright Ó 2011 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Hoboken, New Jersey.
Published simultaneously in Canada.
No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by
any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning, or otherwise, except as permitted
under Section 107 or 108 of the 1976 United States Copyright Act, without either the prior written
permission of the Publisher, or authorization through payment of the appropriate per-copy fee to the
Copyright Clearance Center, Inc., 222 Rosewood Drive, Danvers, MA 01923, (978) 750-8400, fax (978)
750-4470, or on the web at www.copyright.com. Requests to the Publisher for permission should be
addressed to the Permissions Department, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 111 River Street, Hoboken, NJ 07030,
(201) 748-6011, fax (201) 748-6008, or online at />Limit of Liability/Disclaimer of Warranty: While the publisher and author have used their best efforts in
preparing this book, they make no representations or warranties with respect to the accuracy or completeness
of the contents of this book and specifically disclaim any implied warranties of merchantability or
fitness for a particular purpose. No warranty may be created or extended by sales representatives or written

sales materials. The advice and strategies contained herein may not be suitable for your situation. You should
consult with a professional where appropriate. Neither the publisher nor author shall be liable for any loss of
profit or any other commercial damages, including but not limited to special, incidental, consequential,
or other damages.
For general information on our other products and services or for technical support, please contact our
Customer Care Department within the United States at (800) 762-2974, outside the United States at (317)
572-3993 or fax (317) 572-4002.
Wiley also publishes its books in a variety of electronic formats. Some content that appears in print
may not be available in electronic formats. For more information about Wiley products, visit our web site
at www.wiley.com.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data:
Jimenez-Gonzalez, Concepcio´n Conchita.
Green chemistry and engineering : a practical design approach / Concepcio´n Conchita
Jimenez-Gonzalez, David J. C. Constable.
p. cm.
Includes index.
ISBN 978-0-470-17087-8 (cloth)
1. Environmental chemistry–Industrial applications. 2. Sustainable engineering. I.
Constable, David J. C., 1958- II. Title.
TP155.2.E58J56 2010
660–dc22
2010003431
Printed in Singapore
10 9 8 7

6 5 4 3

2 1

CONTENTS

PREFACE

PART I

1

2

3

xi

GREEEN CHEMISTRY AND GREEN ENGINEERING IN
THE MOVEMENT TOWARD SUSTAINABILITY

1

Green Chemistry and Engineering in the Context of Sustainability

3

1.1 Why Green Chemistry?
1.2 Green Chemistry, Green Engineering, and Sustainability
1.3 Until Death Do Us Part: A Marriage of Disciplines
Problems
References

3

6
13
15
15

Green Chemistry and Green Engineering Principles

17

2.1 Green Chemistry Principles
2.2 Twelve More Green Chemistry Principles
2.3 Twelve Principles of Green Engineering
2.4 The San Destin Declaration: Principles of Green Engineering
2.5 Simplifying the Principles
Problems
References

17
26
28
31
34
38
39

Starting with the Basics: Integrating Environment, Health,
and Safety

41

3.1
3.2

42
54

Environmental Issues of Importance
Health Issues of Importance

v


vi

4

CONTENTS

3.3 Safety Issues of Importance
3.4 Hazard and Risk
3.5 Integrated Perspective on Environment, Health, and Safety
Problems
References

62
68
70
70
73

How Do We Know It’s Green? A Metrics Primer

77

4.1

General Considerations About Green Chemistry and Engineering
Metrics
4.2 Chemistry Metrics
4.3 Process Metrics
4.4 Cost Implications and Green Chemistry Metrics
4.5 A Final Word on Green Metrics
Problems
References

PART II

5

6

7

THE BEGINNING: DESIGNING GREENER, SAFER
CHEMICAL SYNTHESES

77
79
89
101

101
102
103

107

Route and Chemistry Selection

109

5.1 The Challenge of Synthetic Chemistry
5.2 Making Molecules
5.3 Using Different Chemistries
5.4 Route Strategy
5.5 Protection–Deprotection
5.6 Going from a Route to a Process
Problems
References

109
110
119
122
124
126
127
130

Material Selection: Solvents, Catalysts, and Reagents

133

6.1 Solvents and Solvent Selection Strategies
6.2 Catalysts and Catalyst Selection Strategies
6.3 Other Reagents
Problems
References

133
154
168
168
173

Reaction Conditions and Green Chemistry

175

7.1
7.2
7.3
7.4
7.5
7.6
7.7
7.8

176
178
180

182
184
187
188
189

Stoichiometry
Design of Experiments
Temperature
Solvent Use
Solvents and Energy Use
Reaction and Processing Time
Order and Rate of Reagent Addition
Mixing


CONTENTS

8

Appendix 7.1: Common Practices in Batch Chemical Processing and Their
Green Chemistry Impacts
Problems
References

191
196
200

Bioprocesses

203

8.1 How Biotechnology Has Been Used
8.2 Are Bioprocesses Green?
8.3 What Is Involved in Bioprocessing
8.4 Examples of Products Obtained from Bioprocessing
Problems
References

203
204
205
216
226
232

PART III

9

vii

FROM THE FLASK TO THE PLANT: DESIGNING GREENER,
SAFER, MORE SUSTAINABLE MANUFACTURING
PROCESSES
233

Mass and Energy Balances

235

9.1

10

11

Why We Need Mass Balances, Energy Balances, and Process
Flow Diagrams
9.2 Types of Processes
9.3 Process Flow Diagams
9.4 Mass Balances
9.5 Energy Balances
9.6 Measuring Greenness of a Process Through Energy and Mass
Balances
Problems
References

261
265
272

The Scale-up Effect

273

10.1 The Scale-up Problem
10.2 Factors Affecting Scale-up
10.3 Scale-up Tools

10.4 Numbering-up vs. Scaling-up
Problems
References

273
276
283
289
290
293

Reactors and Separations

295

11.1 Reactors and Separations in Green Engineering
11.2 Reactors
11.3 Separations and Other Unit Operations
11.4 Batch vs. Continuous Processes
11.5 Does Size Matter?
Problems
References

296
296
307
321
323
323
327

236
237
238
241
250


viii

12

13

CONTENTS

Process Synthesis

331

12.1 Process Synthesis Background
12.2 Process Synthesis Approaches and Green Engineering
12.3 Evolutionary Techniques
12.4 Heuristics Methods
12.5 Hierarchical Decomposition
12.6 Superstructure and Multiobjective Optimization
12.7 Synthesis of Subsystems
Problems
References

331
333
334
343
346
349
354
355
359

Mass and Energy Integration

363

13.1

14

15

Process Integration: Synthesis, Analysis,
and Optimization
13.2 Energy Integration
13.3 Mass Integration
Problems
References

363
365
373

381
388

Inherent Safety

391

14.1 Inherent Safety vs. Traditional Process Safety
14.2 Inherent Safety and Inherently Safer Design
14.3 Inherent Safety in Route Strategy and Process Design
14.4 Conclusions on Inherent Safety
Problems
References

391
394
398
406
406
411

Process Intensification

413

15.1 Process Intensification Background
15.2 Process Intensification Technologies
15.3 Process Intensification Techniques
15.4 Perspectives on Process Intensification
Problems

References

413
416
435
437
437
442

PART IV
16

EXPANDING THE BOUNDARIES

447

Life Cycle Inventory and Assessment Concepts

449

16.1 Life Cycle Inventory and Assessment Background
16.2 LCI/A Methodology
16.3 Interpretation: Making Decisions with LCI/A
16.4 Streamlined Life Cycle Assessment
Problems
References

450
452
473

481
484
488


CONTENTS

17

18

19

20

Impacts of Materials and Procurement

493

17.1 Life Cycle Management
17.2 Where Chemical Trees and Supply Chains Come From
17.3 Green (Sustainable) Procurement
17.4 Transportation Impacts
Problems
References

493
495
500
511

515
517

Impacts of Energy Requirements

519

18.1
18.2

519

Where Energy Comes From
Environmental Life Cycle Emissions and Impacts
of Energy Generation
18.3 From Emissions to Impacts
18.4 Energy Requirements for Waste Treatment
Problems
References

525
537
540
540
542

Impacts of Waste and Waste Treatment

545

19.1
19.2
19.3

546
550

Environmental Fate and Effects Data
Environmental Fate Information: Physical Properties
Environmental Fate Information: Transformation and Depletion
Mechanisms
19.4 Environmental Effects Information
19.5 Environmental Risk Assessment
19.6 Environmental Life Cycle Impacts of Waste Treatment
Problems
References

557
559
562
565
574
576

Total Cost Assessment

579

20.1
20.2

20.3

579
580

Total Cost Assessment Background
Importance of Total Cost Assessment
Relationship Between Life Cycle Inventory/Assessment and Total
Cost Assessment
20.4 Timing of a Total Cost Assessment
20.5 Total Cost Assessment Methodology
20.6 Total Cost Assessment in a Green Chemistry Context
Problems
References

PART V
21

ix

WHAT LIES AHEAD

582
583
583
589
594
597

599

Emerging Materials

601

21.1
21.2

601
602

Emerging Materials Development
Nanomaterials


x

22

23

CONTENTS

21.3 Bioplastics and Biopolymers
21.4 About New Green Materials
Problems
References

605
609

609
611

Renewable Resources

613

22.1 Why We Need Renewable Resources
22.2 Renewable Materials
22.3 The Biorefinery
22.4 Renewable Energy
Problems
References

613
616
621
625
630
632

Evaluating Technologies

635

23.1

24

25

Why We Need to Evaluate Technologies and Processes
Comprehensively
23.2 Comparing Technologies and Processes
23.3 One Way to Compare Technologies
23.4 Trade-Offs
23.5 Advantages and Limitations of Comparing Technologies
Problems
References

635
636
637
644
645
646
649

Industrial Ecology

651

24.1 Industrial Ecology Background
24.2 Principles and Concepts of Industrial Ecology and Design
24.3 Industrial Ecology and Design
24.4 Industrial Ecology in Practice
Problems
References

652

655
657
663
665
666

Tying It All Together: Is Sustainability Possible?

669

25.1 Can Green Chemistry and Green Engineering Enable Sustainability?
25.2 Sustainability: Culture and Policy
25.3 Influencing Sustainability
25.4 Moving to Action
Problems
References

670
671
672
674
674
675

INDEX

677


PREFACE

In the last decade, interest in and understanding of green chemistry and green engineering
have increased steadily beyond academia and into the business world. Industries within
different sectors of the economy have made concerted efforts to embed these concepts in
their operations. Given our experience with green chemistry and green engineering in the
pharmaceutical industry, we were initially approached by the publishers to edit a book on
green chemistry in the pharmaceutical industry. This was a worthy proposal, but we felt
that we had a greater opportunity and worthier endeavor to produce a book that would
attempt to fully integrate green chemistry and green engineering into the academic
curricula and that at the same time could serve as a practical reference to chemists and
engineers in the workplace.
Green chemistry and green engineering are still relatively new areas that have not been
completely ingrained in traditional chemistry and engineering curricula, but classes and
even majors in these topics are becoming increasingly common. However, most classes in
green chemistry are taught from an environmental chemistry perspective or a synthetic
organic chemistry perspective, with neither approach addressing issues of manufacturing or
manufacturability of products. Green engineering classes, on the other hand, tend to
emphasize issues related to manufacturing, but do not treat reaction and process chemistry
sufficiently, so these disciplines still seem to be disconnected. This lack of integration
between chemistry, engineering, and other key disciplines has been one of the main
challenges that we have had within the industrial workplace and in previous academic
experiences.
As a consequence of these experiences, we decided to write this book to bridge the great
divide between bench chemistry, process design, engineering, environment, health, safety,
and life cycle considerations. We felt that a systems-oriented and integrated approach was
needed to evolve green chemistry and green engineering as disciplines in the broader context
of sustainability. To achieve this, we have organized the book in five main sections.

xi

xii

PREFACE
.

Part I. Green Chemistry and Green Engineering in the Movement Toward Sustainability. Chapters 1 to 4 set the broader context of sustainability, highlighting the key
role that green chemistry and green engineering have in moving society toward the
adoption of more sustainable practices in providing key items of commerce.

.

Part II. The Beginning: Designing Greener, Safer Chemical Synthesis. Chapters 5 to 8
address the key components of chemistry that will contribute to the achievement of
more sustainable chemical reactions and reaction pathways. They also provide an
approach to materials selection that promotes the overall greenness of a chemical
synthesis without diminishing the efficiency of the chemistry or associated chemical
process.

.

Part III. From the Flask to the Plant: Designing Greener, Safer, More Sustainable
Manufacturing Processes. Chapters 9 to 15 provide those key engineering concepts
that support the design of greener, more sustainable chemical processes.

.

Part IV. Expanding the Boundaries: Looking Beyond Our Processes. Chapters 16 to
20 introduce a life cycle thinking perspective by providing background and context
for placing a particular chemical process in the broader chemical enterprise,

including its impacts from raw materials extraction to recycle/reuse or end-of-life
considerations.

.

Part V. What Lies Ahead: Beyond the Chemical Processing Technology of Today or
Delivering Tomorrow’s Products More Sustainably. Finally, Chapters 21 to 25 provide
some indication of trends in chemical processing that may lead us toward more
sustainable practices.

To help provide a practical approach, we have included examples and exercises that will
help the student or practitioner to understand these concepts as applied to the industrial
setting and to use the material in direct and indirect applications. The exercises are intended
to make the book suitable for both self-study or as a textbook, and most exercises are derived
from our professional experiences.
The book is an outgrowth of our experience in applied and fundamental research,
consulting, teaching, and corporate work on the areas of green chemistry, green engineering,
and sustainability. It is intended primarily for graduate and senior-level courses in chemistry
and chemical engineering, although we believe that chemists and engineers working in
manufacturing, research, and development, especially in the fine-chemical and pharmaceutical areas, will find the book to be a useful reference for process design and reengineering.
Our aim is to provide a balance between academic needs and practical industrial applications
of an integrated approach to green chemistry and green engineering in the context of
sustainability.
Acknowledgments
We thank all our colleagues who have contributed directly or indirectly to our journey
toward sustainability, and whose ideas and collaborations throughout the years have
contributed to our own experience in the areas of green chemistry and green engineering.
We also express our gratitude to GlaxoSmithKline, in general, and to James R. Hagan, in
particular, for their support and encouragement.

PREFACE

xiii

We also give special thanks to Rafiqul Gani and Ana Carvalho from the Computer
Aided Process-Product Engineering Center, Department of Chemical and Biochemical
Engineering at the Technical University of Denmark, for their comments, reviews, and
contributions to Chapter 12; to Mariana Pierobon and BASF for their helpful comments and
for allowing us to use one of BASF’s eco-efficiency assessments as an example in the life
cycle chapters; to Sara Conradt for allowing us to use a sample of her masters thesis as an
example of LCA outputs; and to Tom Roper and John Hayler at GSK for their feedback on
green chemistry throughout the years. Finally, we want to thank Chemical Engineering
magazine, the American Chemical Society, Springer Science and Business Media, Elsevier,
John Wiley & Sons, the Royal Society of Chemistry, and Wiley-VCH for permission to
reproduce some printed material.


-GONZALEZ
CONCEPCIO´N JIMENEZ
DAVID J. C. CONSTABLE

December 2009



PART I
GREEN CHEMISTRY AND GREEN
ENGINEERING IN THE MOVEMENT
TOWARD SUSTAINABILITY

1



1
GREEN CHEMISTRY AND ENGINEERING
IN THE CONTEXT OF SUSTAINABILITY

What This Chapter Is About Green chemistry and green engineering need to be seen as an
integral part of the wider context of sustainability. In this chapter we explore green chemistry
and green engineering as tools to drive sustainability from a triple-bottom-line perspective
with influences on the social and economic aspects of sustainability.
Learning Objectives

At the end of this chapter, the student will be able to:

.

Understand the need for the development of greener chemistries and chemical
processes.

.

Identify sustainability principles and associate standard chemical processes with the
three areas of sustainability: social, economic, and environmental.

.

Identify green chemistry and green engineering as part of the tools used to drive

sustainability through innovation.

.

Understand the need for an integrated approach to green chemistry and engineering.

1.1 WHY GREEN CHEMISTRY?
AỵB!C

1:1ị

Reactant A plus reactant B gives product C. No by-products, no waste, at ambient
temperature, no need for separation. Is it really that easy?
Green Chemistry and Engineering: A Practical Design Approach, By Concepcio´n Jimenez-Gonzalez and
David J. C. Constable
Copyright Ó 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

3


4

GREEN CHEMISTRY AND ENGINEERING IN THE CONTEXT OF SUSTAINABILITY

If industrial chemical reactions were that straightforward, chemists and engineers would
have significantly more time on their hands and significantly less excitement and fewer long
hours at work. Chemists know that this hypothetical reaction is not the case in real life, as they
have less-than-perfect chemical conversions, competing reactions to avoid, hazardous
materials to manage, impurities in raw materials, and the final product to reduce. Engineers
know that in addition to conquering chemistry, there are by-products to separate, waste to

treat, energy transfer to optimize, solvent to purify and recover, and hazardous reaction
conditions to control. At the end of this first reality check, we see that our initial reaction is a
much more complicated network of inputs and outputs, something that looks more like
Figure 1.1.
Green chemistry and green engineering are, in a very simplified way, the tools and
principles that we use to ensure that our processes and chemical reactions are more efficient,
safer, cleaner, and produce less waste by design. In other words, green chemistry and green
engineering assist us in first thinking about and then designing synthetic routes and processes
that are more similar to the hypothetical reaction depicted in equation (1.1) than to the more
accurate reflection of current reality shown in, Figure 1.1.
What are the drivers in the search for greener chemistries and processes? Engineers and
scientists have in their capable hands the possibility of transforming the world by
modifying the materials and the processes that we use every day to manufacture the
products we buy and the way we conduct business. However, innovation and progress
need to be set in the context of their implications beyond the laboratory or the
manufacturing plant. With the ability to effect change comes the responsibility to ensure
that the new materials, processes, and designs have a minimum (or positive) overall
environmental impact. In addition, common sense suggests that there is a strong business
case for green chemistry and engineering: linked primarily to higher efficiencies, better
utilization of resources, use of less hazardous chemicals, lower waste treatment costs, and
fewer accidents.

Need to control exposure, separate,
recovery, not in salable product

Energy expenditure, potential for safety issues
Need separations train to purify product

solvent, heat

+ B

A

Loss of
reactant

A

catalyst

C +

D

Expensive,
heavy metals?

+ D

Creation of competing reactions

E

nonvaluable by-products = waste
Need for separation and
disposal. Toxic?

FIGURE 1.1 Simplified vision of some of the challenges and realities of designing a chemical
synthesis and process.

WHY GREEN CHEMISTRY?

5

Example 1.1 Potassium hydroxide is manufactured by electrolysis of aqueous potassium
chloride brine,1 as illustrated by the following net reaction:
2KCl ỵ 2H2 O ! 2KOH ỵ Cl2 ỵ H2

How is this simple inorganic reaction different from the more complex challenges of the real
world? Identify some of the green chemistry/green engineering challenges.
Solution The electrolysis reaction can be carried out in diaphragm, membrane, or mercury
cell processes. The complexity of the reactions depend on the process that is used. Let’s
explore the mercury cell process, which has, historically, been the most commonly used
method to produce chlorine.1,2 In this case, potassium chloride is converted to a mercury
amalgam in a mercury cell evolving chlorine gas. The depleted brine is recycled to dissolve
the input KCl. The mercury amalgam passes from the mercury cell to the denuder. In the
denuder, fresh water is added for the reaction and as a solvent for the KOH. Hydrogen gas is
evolved from the reaction and mercury is recycled to the electrolysis cell:
Mercury cell : KCl ỵ Hg ! K Hg ỵ 0:5Cl2
potassium
chloride

mercury

chlorine

potassium
mercury

amalgam

Denuder : K Hg ỵ H2 O ! KOH þ 0:5H2 þ Hg
potassium
mercury
amalgam

water

potassium
hydroxide

hydrogen

mercury

Our simple net reaction has become a bit more complex, but it does not end there. We’ve
not talked about a key input— energy. Electricity is required to drive the reaction forward;
it represents the major part of the energy requirement for these types of reactions, and there is
a need to optimize it. As a matter of fact, as of 2006 the chlor-alkali sector was the largest user
of electricity in the chemical industry.2
But energy is not the only thing that we need to worry about. In addition to energy inputs,
there is a need to eliminate impurities. To do that, the brine can be treated with potassium
carbonate3 to precipitate magnesium and heavy metals, and barium carbonate is often used to
precipitate sulfates.4 Also, hydrochloric acid needs to be added, as an acidic pH is required to
drive the reaction to produce the desired chlorine gas, which can then be recovered from the
solution, as shown in the following equilibrium reaction:
H ỵ ỵ OCl þ HCl > H2 O þ Cl2

Besides using a large quantity of electricity, we have to worry about potential emissions from

the reaction. Mercury is present in the reaction cell and the purged brine. Mercury emissions
from the cell and the brine have long been a target for significant reduction. The purged brine
is typically treated with sodium hydrosulfide to precipitate mercury sulfide, and the mercurycontaining solid wastes need to be sent for mercury recovery. Other emission concerns
include management of the environmental, health, and safety (EHS) challenges related to the
gases in the reactions. Both the chlorine and hydrogen gas streams must be processed further.
Chlorine is cooled and scrubbed with sulfuric acid to remove water, followed by compression
and refrigeration. The hydrogen gas is cooled to remove water, impurities, and mercury,


6

GREEN CHEMISTRY AND ENGINEERING IN THE CONTEXT OF SUSTAINABILITY

followed by further cooling or treatment with activated carbon for more complete mercury
removal.5 In addition, hydrogen is often burned as fuel at chlor-alkali plants.
The membrane process was introduced in the 1970s and it is more energy efficient and
more environmentally sustainable, which is making it the technology of choice. However, a
typical mercury-based plant can contain up to 100 cells and has an economic life span of 40 to
60 years. A long phase-out is required to convert an existing mercury plant. For example, as
of 2005, 48% of the European chlor-alkali capacity was mercury cell–based.2
Additional Point to Ponder Chemistries and processes described in most textbooks
normally don’t give you all the information you need to consider the mass and energy
inputs and outputs associated with a given reaction. In reality you won’t always have the data
you need and will have to use estimations to generate data, run experiments, perhaps use
“nearest neighbor” approaches and/or make assumptions based on your experience.
Sometimes, you will just have to use “simple” common sense.

1.2 GREEN CHEMISTRY, GREEN ENGINEERING, AND SUSTAINABILITY
The modern understanding of sustainability began with the United Nations World Commission on Environment and Development’s report Our Common Future,6 also known as the
Brundtland Report. The Brundtland Commission described sustainable development as

“development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future
generations to meet their own needs.” What does this actually mean? This definition doesn’t
give us many clues or supply much practical guidance as to how to implement sustainable
development or move toward more sustainable activities, but it does provide us with a
powerful aspiration. It has been up to society collectively and up to us as individuals to
develop guidance and tools that will help us to design systems and processes that have the
potential to achieve the type of development described in the definition.
The first thing to remember is that sustainability or sustainable development is a complex
concept with which many people are still attempting to come to terms. In 1998, John
Elkington, one of the early innovators of sustainable development, coined the phrase triple
bottom line.7 Elkington did this in an attempt to make sustainable development more
understandable and palatable to business people, to encourage them to see it as a logical
extension of the traditional business focus on economic performance. By using this term,
Elkington was trying to highlight the need to consider the intricate nterrelationships among
environmental, social, and economic aspects of human society and the world. In a way,
sustainability can be seen as a very delicate balancing act among these three factors, and not
always with a strong one-to-one relationship. Table 1.1 provides a summary of several
approaches to sustainable development principles. It should be noted that the Carnoules
statement includes an organizational principle framework, in addition to the overarching
social aspects widely recognized to be an integral part of sustainability. This organizational
principle is useful when relating the operational aspects of sustainability within the sphere of
controls defined by company culture and policy.
When talking about sustainability, one cannot focus on only a single aspect, as this
necessarily limits and biases one’s view. For a system to be sustainable, there is the need to
balance, insofar as possible, social, economic, and environmental aspects, ideally having
each area “in the black,” that is, with no single aspect optimized to the detriment of the others.


TABLE 1.1

Summary of Several Approaches to Sustainable Development Principles

Alcoa8
Supporting the
growth of
customer
businesses.
Standing among the
industrial
companies in the
first quintile of
return on capital
among S&P
Industrials Index
companies.
Elimination of all
injuries and
work-related
illnesses and the
elimination of
waste.
Integration of
EHS with
manufacturing.
Products designed for
the environment.
EHS as a core value.
An incident-free
workplace (an
incident is any

unpredicted event
with the capacity to
harm human
health, the
environmental, or
physical property).

International Chamber
of Commerce9
Corporate priority: To
recognize environmental
management as among the
highest corporate priorities
and as a key determinant to
sustainable development;
to establish policies,
programs, and practices
for conducting operations
in an environmentally
sound manner.
Integrated management:
To integrate these policies,
programs, and practices
fully into each business as
an essential element of
management in all its
functions.
Process of improvement:
To continue to improve
corporate policies,

programs, and
environmental
performance, taking
into account technical
developments, scientific
understanding, consumer
needs, and community
expectations, with legal
regulations as a starting
point; and to apply the same
environmental criteria
internationally.

Chemical Associations10

Carnoules Statement11

Responsible Care

Environmental Principles

Policy: We will have a health,
safety, and Environmental
(HS&E) policy that will
reflect our commitment and
be an integral part of our
overall business policy.
Employee involvement: We
recognize that the
involvement and

commitment of our
employees and associates
will be essential to the
achievement of our
objectives. We will adopt
communication and
training programs aimed at
achieving that involvement
and commitment.
Experience sharing: In
addition to ensuring that
our activities meet the
relevant statutory
obligations, we will share
experience with our
industry colleagues and
seek to learn from and
incorporate best practice
into our own activities.
Legislators and regulators:
We will seek to work in
cooperation with legislators
and regulators.

Protect ecosystems’ functions
and evolution.
Enhance (genetic, species,
and ecosystem)
biodiversity.
Reduce anthropogenic

resource throughput and
degradation of land and sea.
Minimize the burden for
the environment: Improve
resource productivity
(mass, energy, land).
Minimize the impacts on
health and environment:
minimize the outputs of
known (eco)toxics.
Minimize damage for the
economy: reduce costs
related to environmental
degradation (damage costs,
compliance costs,
administrative costs,
avoidance costs, etc.).

Social Principles
Social cohesion and social
security.

Hanover Principles12

Natural Step13

Insist on rights of
humanity and nature to
coexist in a healthy,
supportive, diverse,

and sustainable
condition.
Recognize
interdependence. The
elements of human
design interact with
and depend on the
natural world, with
broad and diverse
implications at every
scale. Expand design
considerations to
recognize even distant
effects.
Respect relationships
between spirit and
matter. Consider all
aspects of human
settlement, including
community, dwelling,
industry, and trade in
terms of existing and
evolving connections
between spiritual and
material
consciousness.

System condition 1:
Substances from the
Earth’s crust must not

increase in nature
systematically. In a
sustainable society,
natural resources
should not be extracted
at a faster pace than
their re-deposit into the
ground.
System condition 2:
Substances produced
by society must not
increase in nature
systematically.
In a sustainable society,
man-made substances
should not be produced
at a faster pace than
they can be naturally
degraded or
re-deposited into
the ground.
System condition 3: The
physical basis for the
productivity and
diversity of nature must
not be diminished
systematically.

UN Global Compact14
To support and respect the

protection of
internationally
proclaimed human
rights.
To avoid complicity in
human rights abuses.
To uphold freedom of
association and the
effective recognition of
the right to collective
bargaining.
To eliminate all forms of
forced and compulsory
labor.
To effectively abolish
child labor.
To eliminate
discrimination with
respect to employment
and occupation.
To support a
precautionary
approach to
environmental
challenges.
To promote greater
environmental
responsibility.

7

(continued )


TABLE 1.1 (Continued )
8
Alcoa8
Increased
transparency and
closer
collaboration in
community-based
EHS initiatives.

International Chamber
of Commerce9
Employee education: To
educate, train, and motivate
employees to conduct their
activities in an
environmentally
responsible manner.
Prior assessment: To assess
environmental impacts
before starting a new
activity or project and
before decommissioning a
facility or leaving a site.
Products and services: To
develop and provide
products or services that

have no undue
environmental impact and
are safe in their intended
use, that are efficient in
their consumption of
energy and natural
resources, and that can be
recycled, reused, or
disposed of safely.
Customer advice: To advise
and, where relevant,
educate customers,
distributors, and the public
in the safe use,
transportation, storage, and
disposal of products
provided; and to apply
similar considerations to
the provision of services.

Chemical Associations10

Carnoules Statement11

Hanover Principles12

Natural Step13

Process safety: We will assess
and manage the risks

associated with our
processes.
Product stewardship: We will
assess the risks associated
with our products and seek
to ensure that these risks are
properly managed
throughout the supply chain
through stewardship
programs involving our
customers, suppliers, and
distributors.
Resource conservation: We
will work to conserve
resources and reduce waste
in all our activities.
Stakeholder engagement: We
will monitor our HS&E
performance and report
progress to stakeholders;
we will listen to the
appropriate communities
and engage them in
dialogue about our
activities and our products.

Access to education.
Identity and self-realization.
Security.
Equitable access to food,

drinking water, and natural
resources.
Healthy and secure shelter.
Readjusted demand for
resource consumption, and
the environmental impact
of household consumption.
Secure environmental quality
for the health of human
beings.

Accept responsibility for
the consequences of
design decisions on
human well-being, the
health of natural
systems, and their right
to coexist.
Create safe objects of
long-term value. Do
not burden future
generations with
requirements for
maintenance or
vigilant administration
of potential danger due
to the careless creation
of products, processes,
or standards.
Eliminate the concept of

waste. Evaluate and
optimize the full life
cycle of products and
processes to approach
the state of natural
systems in which there
is no waste.
Rely on natural energy
flows. Human designs
should, like the living
world, derive their
creative forces from
perpetual solar income.
Incorporate this energy
efficiently and safely
for responsible use.

In a sustainable society,
nature’s productivity
should not be
diminished in either
quality or quantity, nor
should more be
harvested than can be
recreated.
System condition 4:
We must be fair and
efficient in meeting
basic human needs.
In a sustainable society,

basic human needs
must be met with the
most resource-efficient
methods possible,
including the just
distribution of
resources.

Economic Principles
Sufficient supply and goods
and services
Efficient wealth creation
Economic system’s evolution
and competitiveness
Enhance the distributional
justice (equity principle)
Efforts (paid and unpaid)
should be devoted fairly to
generate sustainable
incomes.
Provide opportunities for paid
labor to all willing and able
to work.
Increase knowledge intensity.
Refocus innovation and adapt
its speed to societal
demands.

UN Global Compact14
To encourage the

development and
diffusion of
environmentally
friendly technologies.


Facilities and operations: To
develop, design, and
operate facilities and
conduct activities taking
into consideration the
efficient use of energy and
materials, the sustainable
use of renewable resources,
the minimization of adverse
environmental impact and
waste generation, and the
safe and responsible
disposal of residual wastes.
Research: To conduct or
support research on the
environmental impacts of
raw materials, products,
processes, emissions, and
wastes associated with the
enterprise and on the means
of minimizing such adverse
impacts.
Precautionary approach: To
modify the manufacture,

marketing, or use of
products or services or the
conduct of activities,
consistent with scientific
and technical
understanding, to prevent
serious or irreversible
environmental degradation.

Management systems: We
will maintain documented
management systems
which are consistent with
the principles of
responsible care and which
will be subject to a formal
verification procedure.
Past, present, and future:
Our responsible care
management systems will
address the impact of both
current and past activities.
Social Principles
Ethical trade: to ensure that
all business, wherever
companies trade, is
conducted to the highest
global ethical standards.
Public understanding: to play
their part in helping people

understand and appreciate
relevant science and
technology.
Part of the community: to play
an active role in their
communities by interacting
with schools, local
government, and other
bodies.

Organizational Principles
Ensure structural change to
reflect the need for societal
development.
Improve societal interchange,
communication, and
intercultural learning.
Protect cultural diversity
Achieve distributional
fairness and justice, equity
and sufficiency.
Develop anticipatory
capacities for the
democratic process.

Understand the limitation
of design. No human
creation lasts forever
and design does not
solve all problems.

Those who create and
plan should practice
humility in the face of
nature. Treat nature as
a model and mentor,
not as an
inconvenience to be
evaded or controlled.
Seek constant
improvement by the
sharing of knowledge.
Encourage direct and
open communication
among colleagues,
patrons,
manufacturers, and
users to link long-term
sustainable
considerations with
ethical responsibility,
and reestablish the
integral relationship
between natural
processes and human
activity.

(continued )

9

TABLE 1.1 (Continued )
10
Alcoa8

International Chamber
of Commerce9
Contractors and suppliers: To
promote the adoption of
these principles by
contractors acting on behalf
of the enterprise,
encouraging and, where
appropriate, requiring
improvements in their
practices to make them
consistent with those of the
enterprise; and to
encourage the wider
adoption of these principles
by suppliers.
Emergency preparedness: To
develop and maintain,
where significant hazards
exist, emergency
preparedness plans in
conjunction with the
emergency services,
relevant authorities, and the
local community,

recognizing potential
transboundary impacts.
Transfer of technology: To
contribute to the transfer of
environmentally sound
technology and
management methods
throughout the industrial
and public sectors.

Chemical Associations10
Employability: to ensure that
all employees have access to
training and development
opportunities to enable
them to fulfill their role in
the organization and to keep
them up to date with the
labor market.
Equality of treatment and
opportunity: to ensure that
all employees are free from
discrimination and have the
opportunity to develop their
careers and themselves,
subject only to business
needs and personal ability.
Participation: to ensure that
all employees have access to
the information needed for

them to do their job, be
consulted about matters that
affect them, and have the
opportunity to participate, to
the appropriate level, in the
management of their company.
Balance between work and life:
to provide all employees with
the opportunity to balance the
requirements of their work and
their life outside work so as to
enhance work effectiveness
and personal well-being.

Carnoules Statement11

Hanover Principles12

Natural Step13

UN Global Compact14