Green Chemistry: Principles, Applications, and Disadvantages

This work provides an overview on applicability of 12 principles of green chemistry. Green chemistry is a term that indicates the creation of chemical products and procedures that reduces the use and production of harmful materials. The goals of green chemistry for protecting the environment can be achieved via several main directions. Some of them are bio-catalysis, use of alternative repeatable raw materials (biomass), alternative reaction solution (such as ionic liquids, supercritical fluids, water), alternative reaction circumstances (microwave activation) as well as to new photocatalytic reactions. Moreover, keep natural resources on earth without using harmful materials is the main objective of green chemistry. By changing patterns of consumption and production, steps are being taken to decrease the pollution and harmful waste, which considered being one of the important goals of green chemistry. Also, it was found that, it is so serious to develop alternative technologies that are safer for both human health and the environment to prevent any further damage to human health and the environment such as reducing release of dangerous chemicals to air leading to reduce damage to lungs. In addition, design safer chemical found to be a good opportunity to improve some chemical methods via producing cleaner and cheaper products in industrial processes when harmful chemicals are replacing with biological enzymes. For all the reasons outlined here, in this review, 12 principles of green chemistry are outlined with their applications, where shows how green chemistry reduces the impact of chemical processes on the environment and how their benefit can be achieved. And, also disadvantages of 12 principles are discussed, as well.