The H-acid Effluent Problem

H-acid is one of the leading dye intermediates in the world, used in manufacture of black dyes. India is the second largest manufacturer of H-Acid in the world after China. However, H-acid is responsible for the most polluting industrial effluent in the dye and dye intermediate sector.

 

Did you know that manufacturing 1 kg of H-acid, results in the generation of 50 kg waste ?

 In other words, it has an E-Factor of 50. In fact, the final isolation step is responsible for 50% of the overall waste generated. The waste is of dark color, strong acidity and contains substituted derivatives of naphthalene compounds. These organic substances are toxic, non-biodegradable, difficult to decolorize and resistant to conventional treatment. It has a very high COD of 1,50,000.

China and India – The hubs of H-acid manufacturing

Having considered the ill effects of H-acid manufacturing process, the developed countries of the world, with their strict environmental norms, gradually phased it out. Currently most of the developed world has banned it. However, the demand for H-acid continues – there is no other alternative on the horizon. For this reason, the manufacturing was outsourced to countries like China and India where environmental norms are not as strict.

The Bichhri Industrial Pollution Incident

 The extent of the damage possible due to the generated waste is evident from the Bichhri industrial pollution incident. Bichhri, a small town near Udaipur was home to several H-acid plants. However, the toxic wastewater from the plants was left untreated and left to be absorbed into the earth, badly damaging the groundwater and soil, rendering it unfit for cultivation. H-acid plants in Jaitpur and Ratlam were also closed down for similar reasons.

What is the way ahead ?

In India, the bulk of the manufacturing happens in the states of Gujarat and Maharashtra by small and medium enterprises (SMEs) which are considered employment generators. Most of the H-acid is exported, bringing in valuable foreign exchange to our country. Considering these realities in mind, it is necessary to find a balance between environment protection and economic development. To achieve this objective, it is essential to incorporate the principles of green chemistry and green engineering in this process.

Green Chemistry & You – Promises and impact

The future of the world is dependent on ‘going green’, we cannot agree any less. The need of the hour is environmental consciousness.

The revolution has begun at a consumer level, and as manufacturers we need to be aware as well. How often have we asked our ‘sellers’ while buying our soaps and shampoos or while shopping heavily dyed apparels or ever intervened our doctors who prescribe us medicines- “what is the ecological footprint of my choice”, or to simply put what is the e-factor of the product in my shopping cart. E-factor is one of the most obvious matrices, which helps calculate the Kgs of waste that got generated while manufacturing one Kg of the finished product. How often to we want to know about the toxicology of the chemicals that have gone into the making of our detergents, plastics, foam?

This awareness will bring us closer to the world of Green chemistry. It may sound dichotomous at first but it is possible. Green Chemistry ensures that our manufacturing process uses environmentally friendly, sustainable chemicals and processes. The aim is reduced waste, non toxic outputs, and zero or at least highly reduced pollution and of course, hopefully, zero environmental damage. Green chemical processes is the now and the future. It innovates and encourages products and processes that can sustain the environment while enabling us to make inherently safe choices.

Yes, as a buyer, we can drive what is being sold to us and thus demand our priorities, which must include environmental safety and ecological inclusiveness. The processes that are used for the manufacture of generic APIs or Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients and its intermediates already generate substantial pollution. This pollution is what leads to an unhealthy environment and therefore unhealthy human beings. This leads to the need for newer types and quantities of APIs that consequently result in more pollution! The cycle needs to be stopped and even reversed! More and more companies are now legally and morally obliged to uphold the principles of green chemistry, but there is rarely a formal policy. So are we truly on a path to achieve sustainable green chemistry practices?

The way forward to encourage implementation of green chemistry in real world conditions requires it to work closer with real world engineering. 

Safer practices and products will give manufacturingan edge when it comes to

• Reducing the cost of waste management
• Simplifying compliance with environmental law
• Creating safer workplaces, and
• Curbing pollution.

Imagine the energy that can be saved, the water that will not get wasted, the tonnes of waste that will not be created. To cause this, we simply have to ask and voice our choices.