A holistic review on application of green solvents and replacement study for conventional solvents

Abstract

The knowledge of green chemistry is instrumental in reducing the harmful and toxicity of the environment. The current environment demands that conventionally used petrochemical solvents should be replaced with the recently developed less harmful and less toxic green solvents. The potential applications of green chemical as solvents are required to study based on the green chemistry principles and the separation of solvents. In this review paper, the application of green chemicals was described for five green solvents such as cyclopentyl methyl ether (CPME), 2-methyl tetrahydrofuran (2-MeTHF), propylene carbonate, 1,3-propanediol, and ethyl lactate. The replacement study of conventional petrochemical solvents with these green solvents was discussed here. Based on the comparative studies, the green chemicals were found to be high potential solvents to replaced tetrahydrofuran (THF), dichloromethane (DCM), 1,4-dioxane, and diethyl ether in chemical industry.