Worcester State College: Towards a Green Chemistry Center. Meghna Dilip, Margaret Kerr, Eihab Jaber Worcester State College

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1 Worcester State College: Towards a Green Chemistry Center Meghna Dilip, Margaret Kerr, Eihab Jaber Worcester State College

2 Worcester State College Located in Worcester, MA Evolved from the Worcester Normal School estd. in Student Enrollment (Fall 2007) Undergraduate (full time): 3,342 Undergraduate (part time): 1,260 Graduate (full time): 103 Graduate (part time): 653 Student Characteristics Women (undergraduate): 59% Men (undergraduate): 41% Residential students: 30% Average age (undergraduate): 24

3 The Chemistry Department 8 faculty members Currently 110 majors Major in Chemistry Concentration in nuclear medicine technology Concentration in biochemistry Concentration in environmental chemistry Number Chemistry Majors Year

4 Green Organic Chemistry Switched to green organic labs in The first college in the region at that time to go green

5 Environmental Chemistry Track Requirements for a Major in Chemistry, Concentration in Environmental Chemistry CH 320 Environmental Chemistry and any two of the following: CH 330 Environmental Toxicology CH 410 Biochemistry I CH 470 Instrumental Analysis GS 250 Hydrology GS 335 Hydrogeology

6 Green Chemistry Course Proposal A new course for undergraduates has been submitted and is going through the approval stages. 3 credit course with embedded laboratory Prerequisites: General chemistry I and II Will be offered every other semester. Will be part of the environmental chemistry track.

7 Green Chemistry Grant: Stoddard Grant The Stoddard Charitable Trust has awarded Worcester State College a three year, $200,000 grant. Will fund equipment purchases for the college s new green chemistry program. Equipment bought will help build research and teaching facilities.

8 Special Topics Course in Green Chemistry Was offered in the Spring of 2009 for the first time at WSC. 3 credit lecture cum lab course. Prerequisites for any special topics course: 18 credits of chemistry. Total enrolment : 5 (all seniors) Class met 2 ce a week for 1 ½ hr.

9 Special Topics in Chemistry : GREEN CHEMISTRY There was no prescribed textbook for the course. Topics covered included : Green metrics, alternate solvents, water as a reaction media, microwaves, photochemistry, catalysis, green analytical chemistry. Less organic chemistry knowledge based. Drew heavily from presidential green chemistry award winning examples.

10 More on the course Evaluation methods Periodic short quizzes 2 exams Review 2 articles from the journal green chemistry A presentation and paper on a chosen topic related to green chemistry Papers included Biomimicry and Green Chemistry, Biocatalysts, Advances in green metrics

11 Laboratory portion 4 labs were conducted during the course of the semester. Distribution of gentian violet in an aqueous biphasic system Water based alternative separation system PEG 1100/ (NH 4 ) 2 SO 4 system with the dye being partitioned from the salt rich phase to the PEG rich phase Spectrophotometric detection of dye Calculation of partition coefficient Discussion of how pollutant is transferred and not eliminated

Dissolution of Whatman Filter Paper in Ionic Liquid Dissolution of Whatman filter paper in ionic liquid Alternate route to dissolution of cellulose Advantages and disadvantages

12 Dissolution of Whatman Filter Paper in Ionic Liquid Dissolution of Whatman filter paper in ionic liquid Alternate route to dissolution of cellulose Advantages and disadvantages of IL Microwave and thermal comparison Simple gravimetry to determine recovered cellulose. WHATMAN FILTER PAPER RECONSTITUTION USING WATER Remsing et al. Chem. Commun. 2006, 1271.

More Green Labs How green are green cleaners Survey of market cleaners and green markers Collected MSDS of ingredients Comparison of ph and phosphate content of different cleaners and

13 More Green Labs How green are green cleaners Survey of market cleaners and green markers Collected MSDS of ingredients Comparison of ph and phosphate content of different cleaners and validation of claims. Process Life Cycle Analysis Chloride and Sulfate process for TiO 2 production Use of to calculate transportation and approximate energy costs.

14 Student Voice The green chemistry course offered at Worcester State opened my eyes to the idea that being green is not simply about cutting carbon emissions, cleaning up toxic waste, or recycling paper or plastic. The best thing about learning green chemistry is that it encouraged critical thinking solving decades old problems in the most efficient and least destructive manner possible, while preserving resources and the environment, is no easy task, but is entirely achievable

15 Computational Research Carbon monoxide molecules have been known to form polymeric likechains that consist of several molecules in length, with relative stabilities often referred to as polyketones. Understanding the stability of these molecules can help to predict how easily these polymeric forms of carbon monoxide can exist in the atmosphere. Destruction of ozone by bromine nitrate (BrONO 2 ). The Enthalpy of reaction (ΔH RXN ) will be calculated for the reaction of bromine nitrate with ozone.

The Thai Collaboration Erika Kubota, a senior in industrial management at Chulalongkorn University in Bangkok, accepted an invitation for an academic exchange in the Fall.

16 The Thai Collaboration Erika Kubota, a senior in industrial management at Chulalongkorn University in Bangkok, accepted an invitation for an academic exchange in the Fall. Worked with Dr Kerr researching ways to extract biodiesel from soybean oil using ferric chloride as a catalyst. Ferric chloride eliminates the use of potassium hydroxide. This fall 4 more students will be joining us from Thailand. Special Research Methods course setup to facilitate exchange and green chemistry research

College wide sustainability efforts Purchase of a biodiesel processor to convert waste cooking oil into fuel by fall of 2009.

Elimination of cafeteria trays and the installation of high efficiency valves, reducing hot water used in dishwashing by 166,000 gallons a year.

17 College wide sustainability efforts Purchase of a biodiesel processor to convert waste cooking oil into fuel by fall of Single stream recycling since October 2006, to double recycling. Elimination of cafeteria trays and the installation of high efficiency valves, reducing hot water used in dishwashing by 166,000 gallons a year. Every week since November 2008, 500 pounds of food waste has been diverted from the college s solid waste stream to feed pigs at Sayebrook Farms in Holden, Massachusetts. College purchasing now requires recycled content in paper products, trash bags, paper clips and staples

18 The Future Strengthen our environmental chemistry track. Target general chemistry and non major students. Organize college wide awareness events. Apply for more green chemistry related funding More independent research that is green oriented. New hires should have similar department values.

19 Acknowledgements Department of Chemistry Worcester State College Keith Dusoe Worcester State College

MEGHNA DILIP. Associate Professor Department of Chemistry Worcester State University 486 Chandler St., Worcester MA 01602

MEGHNA DILIP. Associate Professor Department of Chemistry Worcester State University 486 Chandler St., Worcester MA 01602 MEGHNA DILIP Associate Professor Department of Chemistry Worcester State University 486 Chandler St., Worcester MA 01602 Office: (508) 929 8691 Cell: (205) 886 9805 mdilip@worcester.edu PROFESSIONAL PREPARATION