Environmental impacts, true costs

The efficiency and low relative environmental impact of the asymmetric chiral synthetic route to armodafinil (Scheme 7) is a significant process chemistry achievement by the Cephalon/Novasep team.34 It offers several advantages over the isomeric resolution processes The process begins with low-cost achiral raw materials and overall is a true catalytic process. Throughout the four-step process, only two intermediates are isolated, which not only saves operating costs and time but also simplifies the unit operation. From a process viewpoint, intermediates 25 and 10 are both liquids, and are therefore not ideal for purification. Thus, the formation of 25 and 10 must be carried out with sufficient control over purity to avoid additional purification steps. In this case, it appears that the process is sufficiently robust to use the intermediates on an as is basis and still produce the key intermediate 11 as a pure solid compound. In addition, the armodafinil isolated from the asymmetric oxidation is typically > 99% chemical purity and > 99.5% chiral purity, meeting the specification in every way for the API. 

The use of substitutes may appear to be more costly. However, the added safety provided by substitutes may make their use worthwhile and can, in some cases, actually lower the true cost of the project when the overall impact on the process, surrounding areas, and shipping is considered. Substitutes should be employed only if it is known that overall risk will be reduced. Inadequately tested processes and products may introduce unrecognized health, safety, and environmental problems. 

The reasons why the more, the better is not true, and how appropriate usage combines saving with best results, decreases environmental impacts and simultaneously lowers costs... 

On a societal level, it is clear that the true costs of the environmental impacts due to the manufacture, processing, use and disposal of all products have not been fully incorporated into the price of the goods. These costs are contained in site remediation, health care e nditures and ecosystem destruction. Therefore, from an economic standpoint, it is clear that we not only want to have sustainable technology but we want it to be cost neutral at a minimum and profitable when at all possible. 

How does one "measure greeimess" Is it based on the raw material, process, or product There are no clear quantitative metrics that connect the raw materials to various environmental issues at the individual, society, global, and ecological levels. Quantifying the true costs of waste and the potential savings offered by green chemical technology (GGT) is difficult. The impact of certain... 

The investment costs are intrinsically low due both to the simplicity of the process and to its operating conditions. This is however true for a limited interval of the inlet conditions, that is the total air flowrate and its TOC in other words the plant capacity is limited to an upper limit of about 20000 NmVh of treated air with a TOC < 1500. Whenever this uppo-limit is violated the plant cost is practically doubled being more effective to double the plant itself. Whenever this occasion occurs alternative technologies such as incineration arc more convenient from the economical point of view although less safe for the environmental impact and sustainability. 

In the present paradigm, the cost of a metal-containing product is based on the world market price, which depends on the availability of the alloy, the location of the deposits, and the cost of extraction, purification and shipping. A new paradigm is needed where the environmental burden associated with resource extraction is factored into the cost. There should also be a cost associated with depleting metals with scarce world reserves. Finally, there should be a credit associated with the use of recycled metal. Including these environmental impact factors represents the true cost. 

Companies are beginning to evaluate and account for nature and the true environmental costs and risks associated with chemical refining and manufacturing, the impact to natural capitalism. Natural capital refers to all of the resources used... 

EPDM/PP TPOs compete directly with styrenic TPEs as low-cost, low-specific-gravity (0.9 to 1.0) materials with fair to good mechanical performance and environmental resistance. They range in hardness (Table 4.15) from 60 Shore A up to 65 Shore D, with the harder products being more commonly found in commercial applications. The harder TPOs are essentially impact-modified thermoplastics and not true rubbers. The softer TPOs are rubbery at room temperature, but these characteristics are rapidly lost at elevated temperatures. EPDM/PP TPOs are therefore generally useful only below 70 to 80°C. 

---