Challenges in the development of new green solvents for polymer dissolution

Abstract

As chemical legislation grows more strict and the UK moves towards a bioeconomy, acceptable solvents for industrial dissolution of polymers are growing scarce. An estimated 78% of solvent use in the EU is in sectors such as paints and coatings, printing inks and adhesives, in which polymer dissolution is a critical function. Academic research in safe, sustainable solvents is growing, but largely in the field of reaction solvents, leaving solvents for polymers underdeveloped by comparison. This challenge can be addressed through the adoption of computational tools, improved communication between industry and academia and increased research funding. Recent progress in green solvent development provides a number of models that can be adapted to the problem of polymer dissolution research. © 2020 Society of Chemical Industry

An oil‐contamination‐resistant PVP/PAN electrospinning membrane for high‐efficient oil–water mixture and emulsion separation

“…However, PVP/PAN membranes with high‐molecular weight PVP have lower water flux than PAN membrane. Despite the addition of hydrophilic PVP, but when contacted with water, PVP first swell and then dissolved 28 . The higher the molecular weight of PVP, the greater the volume changes during swelling, which hinder the passage of more water, resulting in a smaller water flux.…”

“…Comparison of four membranes with the same preparation conditions, and the test results are shown in Figure 2 first swell and then dissolved. 28 The higher the molecular weight of PVP, the greater the volume changes during swelling, which hinder the passage of more water, resulting in a smaller water flux. The reusability of the PVP/PAN membrane was tested by using an oil-water mixture (petroleum ether-water) as the example.…”

Tamisolve® NxG as an Alternative Non-Toxic Solvent for the Preparation of Porous Poly (Vinylidene Fluoride) Membranes

“…The document relies on sustainability, and in particular on toxic-free environment for protecting people and promoting production innovation towards targeted measures. For achieving this, one of the most successful strategies is to exclude the most harmful chemicals employed for the production with the concomitant boost of substances designed and developed ad hoc to satisfy the safety requirements [ 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 , 7 ]. Food and environmental sectors are primarily involved in the sustainable development and industries are widely adopting eco-friendly technologies to satisfy the balanced growth.…”

“…Food and environmental sectors are primarily involved in the sustainable development and industries are widely adopting eco-friendly technologies to satisfy the balanced growth. Among them, over time, special emphasis has been devoted to membrane technology, which allows to perform separation processes fully respecting the environment integrity and worker health [ 7 , 8 , 9 , 10 , 11 ]. Membranes, both organic and inorganic, are commercially viable and widely used in the most different and disparate sectors, including pharmaceutical and biotechnological fields [ 8 , 12 , 13 , 14 , 15 ].…”

Green Chemistry Approach for Fabrication of Polymer Composites

“…The chemical regulations are growing more strict nowadays, especially in the UK which restricts many of the solvents commonly used for polymer dissolution in fields like paints, coatings, printing, adhesives etc. [7]. Hence, it is imperative that greener techniques and benign solvents are developed for polymer processing.…”