Preface
Quality of life in today’s industrialized world is relying increasingly on intensifying
the production and use of synthetic chemicals. Behind this development is an
enormous global consumption of natural resources and energy as well as an
immense production of waste and emissions. Further, many of these chemicals pose
acute and chronic risks along their entire life cycle to the well-being of human health
and the environment. To contribute to a sustainable future and considering this
anticipated growth, a rigorous and environmentally oriented (re-)design of chemical
technology is urgently needed.
Achieving such a fundamental paradigm shift requires bringing together knowledge and tools from across disciplines and teaching them to a wide range of
scientists, engineers, and decision-makers. This book aims to provide readers with
this transdisciplinary, comprehensive foundation of the environmentally oriented
design of chemical products and processes. Divided into three parts, it first provides
a normative foundation introducing the concepts of technology, risk, sustainability,
and legislation and the guiding principles of integrated development. The second
part then helps readers build a technical foundation, guiding them through the use
of the methods of life cycle assessment, product and process risk assessment, and
risk-benefit dialogue. Finally, the last part of this book provides practical guidance
on implementing these methods and tools through a fully workable case study
developed with industry that investigates several aspects of a real crop protection
product.
Throughout the chapters, the concept of integrated development is used, and
emphasis is placed on applying its guiding principles beginning in the earliest design
stages, which benefit from a high degree of freedom but are often limited by the
scarcity of needed data. Development is encouraged as an iterative process where
critical scenarios are modeled, and variability and uncertainty are considered using
both qualitative and quantitative treatments.
The most important audience for this book is perhaps simply best described as
anyone interested in helping to develop or make use of safer and more responsible
chemical technology—with the aim to ensure that terms such as “green” and
“sustainable” are applied to comprehensive solutions, rather than just being used
as catchwords. This includes professionals from research and development within
the chemical industry, academia, national laboratories, civil society organizations, or
ix
Quality of life in today’s industrialized world is relying increasingly on intensifying
the production and use of synthetic chemicals. Behind this development is an
enormous global consumption of natural resources and energy as well as an
immense production of waste and emissions. Further, many of these chemicals pose
acute and chronic risks along their entire life cycle to the well-being of human health
and the environment. To contribute to a sustainable future and considering this
anticipated growth, a rigorous and environmentally oriented (re-)design of chemical
technology is urgently needed.
Achieving such a fundamental paradigm shift requires bringing together knowledge and tools from across disciplines and teaching them to a wide range of
scientists, engineers, and decision-makers. This book aims to provide readers with
this transdisciplinary, comprehensive foundation of the environmentally oriented
design of chemical products and processes. Divided into three parts, it first provides
a normative foundation introducing the concepts of technology, risk, sustainability,
and legislation and the guiding principles of integrated development. The second
part then helps readers build a technical foundation, guiding them through the use
of the methods of life cycle assessment, product and process risk assessment, and
risk-benefit dialogue. Finally, the last part of this book provides practical guidance
on implementing these methods and tools through a fully workable case study
developed with industry that investigates several aspects of a real crop protection
product.
Throughout the chapters, the concept of integrated development is used, and
emphasis is placed on applying its guiding principles beginning in the earliest design
stages, which benefit from a high degree of freedom but are often limited by the
scarcity of needed data. Development is encouraged as an iterative process where
critical scenarios are modeled, and variability and uncertainty are considered using
both qualitative and quantitative treatments.
The most important audience for this book is perhaps simply best described as
anyone interested in helping to develop or make use of safer and more responsible
chemical technology—with the aim to ensure that terms such as “green” and
“sustainable” are applied to comprehensive solutions, rather than just being used
as catchwords. This includes professionals from research and development within
the chemical industry, academia, national laboratories, civil society organizations, or
ix