Our Cup of Tea: Sustainable Organometallic Chemistry

Abstract

What makes organometallic chemistry sustainable, or at least could make it more sustainable? A practical concept that allows us to set deliverable sustainability goals is Istvan Horváth’s sustainable definition of sustainability: Resources including energy should be used at a rate at which they are replaced naturally and the generation of waste cannot be faster than the rate of their remediation. (1) Significant conceptual and technological advances have been made in achieving sustainability in chemistry in academia, especially since the articulation of the field of green chemistry. (2) In industry, it has been recognized that pushing for more sustainable chemistries and processes has a strong business case─not only does it lower the cost of goods and environmental footprints but it also results in a stronger brand and enhanced customer loyalty and improves an organization’s position in the talent market.