Sustainable solvents in chemical synthesis: a review

Almost 20 million tons of solvents are released in the nature per year. Solvents represent about 80% of the total volume of chemicals employed in chemical synthesis. Solvents are often flammable or toxic, calling for the replacement of conventional solvents by sustainable solvents. Recent sustainable solvents can be recovered and reused easily, and can efficiently support catalysts. Here we review key synthetic procedure using supercritical liquid CO2, polyethylene glycol, glycerol, ionic liquids and deep eutectic solvents.

Automated summary

Solvents make up about 80% of the chemicals used in chemical synthesis, with many of them being flammable or toxic. Sustainable solvents can be easily recovered and reused, and can support catalysts effectively.