By Aurora Ginzburg, Ph.D., Education Program Specialist, ACS Green Chemistry Institute

As the year draws to a close we wanted to take the opportunity to highlight some of the significant green chemistry research, educational initiatives, and innovations from 2021. This list is not in any particular order and is limited to 15 entries. Awards recognizing individual scientists—of which there are many in 2021—were not included. We welcome your addition of other significant achievements in the comments on this post!

New Method of Extracting Metals from Raw Materials

June 7, 2017 | Science Daily

A team of chemists has developed a way to process metals without using toxic solvents and reagents. The system, which also consumes far less energy than conventional techniques,

European PET Recycling Streams to Begin Incorporating PEF

May 24, 2017 | Green Chemicals Blog

The European PET Bottle Platform (EPBP) – a voluntary initiative of industry organizations representing waste collectors, plastic recyclers, PET material producer

Researchers Create Anticancer Nanomaterials by Simulating Underwater Volcanic Conditions

May 12, 2017 | Phys.org

Researchers at Aalto University have developed a sustainable synthesis process for Zinc peroxide using biomimicry, which uses minimal amounts of

Sustainable Polymer Technologies for Controlling Mercury Pollution

May 3, 2017 | InDaily

Work at Flinders University to test and commercialize a new method to remove mercury pollution from land and water, using polymers that were recovered and repurposed to

A Circular Economy Approach to Business Growth

April 28, 2017 | Business Live

Circular economy actors need to collaborate with governments, customers and industry chains to create joint value and to innovate using new business models and technologies.

Resear

CVS to Remove Parabens, Phthalates & Formaldehyde from over 600 Products

April 20, 2017 | Drugstore News

CVS Pharmacy announced it will remove parabens, phthalates and the most prevalent formaldehyde donors across nearly 600 beauty and personal care product

Launch Circular Innovation Summit Gathers Sustainable Industry Leaders

April 4, 2017 | Huffington Post

At the LAUNCH Circular Innovation Summit at Nike World Headquarters in Portland, Oregon, LAUNCH innovators and industry leaders from companies like Nike,

American Chemical Society Expresses Concern over Executive Order on Climate Change​

March 29, 2017 | American Chemical Society

The ACS public policy statement on Global Climate Change specifically supports the importance of addressing Earth’s changing clima

Creating Nanodust from E-Waste Could Increase Ease of Recycling

March 21, 2017 | EurekAlert

Researchers at Rice University and the Indian Institute of Science have an idea to simplify electronic waste recycling: Crush it into nanodust. Specifically, they wa

Nestle and Danone are Investing in Biobaased Water Bottles

March 9, 2017 | C&EN

Nestlé Waters and Danone are the latest beverage makers to investigate biobased polyethylene terephthalate (PET). They are teaming up with the California-based start-up Origin M

French VC Has Raised the Largest Green Biotech Fund in Europe

March 3, 2017 | LabioTech

The largest biotech VC in France, Sofinnova Partners, is banking on the emerging sector of bio-based, sustainable alternatives to fossil fuels.  Its new fund of €106M wi

How Sustainability Efforts and Eliminating Waste Can Boost Brand Perception

February 23, 2017 | Green Biz

Perceptions of a company’s environmental record are intertwined with perceptions of a product and play a role in whether many of us buy Brand X or Bran

Timberland Partners with Thread International to Incorporate Plastic Waste into Fabrics

February 17, 2017 | GreenBiz

Thread transforms trash that has been collected and sorted by local workers in Haiti — where mounds of plastic bottles clogging waterways ar

Target Tightens Grip Over Chemicals in Bid to Make Goods Safer

January 25, 2017 | Bloomberg

Target Corp. introduced a sweeping new policy governing chemicals in products, a move that will push hundreds of suppliers to list ingredients in everything from fr

Green Chemistry Professor Among Victims of Quebec City Mosque Shooting

January 31, 2017 | Chemical and Engineering News

Khaled Belkacemi, 60, was a professor of soil and agri-food engineering at Laval University. He earned his bachelor of science in chemica

What's New in Cosmetic Green Chemistry?

February 9, 2017 | Cosmetics Design

Cosmetics Design interviews Dr. Barbara Olioso, founder of The Green Chemistry Consultancy, to get her take on the latest in green cosmetics chemistry.

Sodium Benzoate as an Alternat

The Importance of the Circular Economy in Business

January 9, 2017 | Green Biz

Rather than solely using a bottom line (even a triple bottom line) and largely linear approach to growth and development, we must imagine, analyze and quantify how circular growt

Can Bio-Based Chemicals Improve Products’ Performance and Sustainability?

January 4, 2016 | Environmental Leader

Driven largely by increasing concerns, government support for environmentally responsible sources and processes, and technological innovations,

Green Biologics Starts Shipments of Bio-Based n-Butanol & Acetone

December 14, 2016 | Business Standard

Green Biologics Ltd, the UK-based company that makes specialty chemicals from agricultural waste and sugar cane, has started commercial shipments of bio-

China increases hazardous chemical regulations

December 8, 2016 | C&EN

China’s highest decision-making body, the State Council, has unveiled a three-year plan to prevent accidents involving hazardous chemicals that may bring headaches to chemical producers

Start-up Green Distillation Technologies recycles 100% of rubber tires to be used as biofuels and raw materials

November 28, 2016 | ABC News

Green Distillation Technologies (GDT) can produce 3,000 liters of bio-oil from one giant seven-ton mining truck tire

Gary Spilman, Ph.D., Principal Scientist, Resinate Materials Group, Inc.

In 2013, the U.S. produced 9.4 billion pounds of plastic bottles, yet less than 31 percent of them were recycled. That means 6.5 billion pounds of plastic bottles are destined for lan

Turning Greenhouse Gas into Gasoline

November 15, 2016 | Phys.org

A new catalyst material developed by chemists at MIT provides key insight into the design requirements for producing liquid fuels from carbon dioxide, the leading component of greenhouse gas

Why We Must Design as if We're Part of Nature

November 4, 2016 | Green Biz

To simply design for sustainability is no longer enough, we need to design for regeneration! Collectively, as a species, we have already done too much damage to simply aim for sustai

Bio-based Cosmetic Start-up Amalie Beauty Inc Uses Natural Ingredients Grown in MIT Grad's Backyard Garden

October 27, 2016 | Indystar

MIT 2014 alumna Megan Cox created a line of “Farm to Face” products as a naturally-derived alternative to conventional cos

Two Tenure-Track Positions Open for Assistant Professor in Green Chemistry at McGill University

October 13, 2016 | McGill University

First Ever Commercial Flight to be Flown Using Bio-based Jet Fuel Derived from Cellulosic Sugars

October 11, 2016 | See News

New Fabric to Harness Energy from the Sun and the Wind
September 27, 2016 | The Engineer

Researchers from Georgia Tech have developed a new fabric that combines solar cells with triboelectric nanogenerators. These nanogenerators have the capability to harv

Foam Infused with Spent Coffee Grounds Cleans Contaminated Water

September 21, 2016 | Laboratory Equipment

U.S. researchers have found a way to recycle spent coffee grounds into filters. These filters are capable of removing heavy metal contaminants from gr

Turning Windows into Solar Power Generators

September 9, 2016 | Green Building Elements

Several start-ups, including Ubiquitous Energy, PolySolar, and SolarWindow Technologies, are finding ways to turn infrared and UV light from the sun into electricity usi