Fifthy Shades of Green - a chemist's perspective on the transition from brown to green chemistry

In the new jargon of environmentally sustainable - aka green - chemistry, the impact of chemical synthesis is colour-coded: green is good, and brown is bad. This lecture will critically discuss common preconceived ideas on what is and what isn't green.

It will become apparent that some apparently green chemicals and processes aren't as green as they appear on the surface, while some compounds that have fallen from grace might not be as brown as they seem on first glance.

Chemists are covering a continuous spectrum ranging from brown to green, but rarely ever reach those extremes. Future efforts need to push the needle to the greener side, and this will depend on the way we tackle two major challenges: the use of fertile land and the production of energy.

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