Design for Energy Efficiency

Chemical synthesis should be designed to minimise the amount of energy it consumes, and it is generally better to run reactions at, or close to, room temperature and pressure rather than under energy-intensive heating or high-pressure conditions. This can be achieved through several routes: using a proper catalyst (which lowers the energy barrier a reaction has to overcome), using microorganisms for organic synthesis (biocatalysis), and using renewable materials, among other approaches. The chapter's illustration is biocatalysis: biocatalysts (enzymes or whole microorganisms used as catalysts) are able to work under ambient conditions, avoiding the need for the harsh heating or pressurising that a purely chemical route might otherwise require. Similarly, in ordinary chemical synthesis, running a reaction under reflux conditions requires comparatively less energy than more extreme alternatives, and further energy savings come from improving the technology of the heating system itself or …