Clean chemicals

The Chemical Industry supports 25% of U.S. GDP but, simultaneously, it’s responsible for 40% of U.S. industrial waste. Clean chemicals, also known as green chemicals, promise to keep the same products on the market while dramatically lowering the environmental impact and decreasing the reliance on fossil fuels. Drawing from the recent learnings of biochemistry and synthetic biology such as CRISPR, new companies attempt to change the industry where the leading players have not changed since the beginning of the 20th century.

The Clean Chemicals seminar started with a brief overview of the forces shaping the chemical industry at large and a review of the 12 principles of green chemistry, especially the atom economy. We then focused on the aspect of competitiveness, and the ways in which we can use technological innovation and economies of scale to survive on the commodity-based market full of multibillion-dollar incumbents. The participants left the seminar knowing what clean chemicals are, what has shaped and defined the chemical industry at large, and if the chemical industry, where the main players have not changed since World War II, can be actually disrupted. Why now may be a good time? Which companies are challenging the status quo right now? How can you get involved in clean chemicals as an investor or an entrepreneur? We covered it all.