Greener Products and Solutions

MilliporeSigma today launched Cyrene™ — a sustainable dipolar aprotic solvent, produced in two steps from a renewable cellulose source. The bio-derived alternative was created in response to the need for solvents to meet stricter regulation requirements for both employee safety and environmental sustainability. The new product targets the rising demand for greener alternatives to Dimethylformamide (DMF) and N-Methyl-2-pyrrolidone (NMP).

Published in Nature Communications, the team has found that using a material called dihydrolevogucosenone known as Cyrene is not only non-toxic but is environmentally- friendly and sustainable but can also provide higher concentrations and conductivity of graphene ink.

One of the latest advancements is Triumvirate Environmental’s process at its Jeannette, Pennsylvania facility. According to Jacqueline Ignacio, global manager, customer sustainability solutions, MilliporeSigma, the company’s procedure is a combination of a fully permitted and approved processing – known as sterilize and shred – with plastic lumber manufacturing.

“Other companies have started to address the biomedical waste from hospitals and medical clinics with front-end processes similar to sterilize and shred,” Ignacio said. “While these systems aren’t as robust and are more portable for smaller labs and clinics, they aren’t effective for the larger volumes produced in the biopharma manufacturing industry.”

How can you develop environmentally friendly chemicals that are just as effective as traditional substances? This question has been asked by the life science company, Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany. Through the company's "Green Chemistry" program, the Group develops and produces sustainable alternatives to the usual chemical products.

Jeffrey Whitford is Head of Global Corporate Responsibility and Life Science Branding at MilliporeSigma. While they are working on developing sustainable practices, in this episode he describes for us how his company took a more aggressive approach to start – they are driving sustainability into their products.

As I reflected on the unpredictable zigs and zags of my career, I thought back to that very confident (my mother would have said way too confident) and dare I say naive 22-year-old, and I’m still in awe of where I find myself today. My worldview, desire for inclusion and appreciation for experiences have grown. Although, a few things haven’t changed, including my belief that the power of possibility can be limitless, desire to be quicker and an unquenchable thirst for more information to power change. As a friend and colleague recently said to my team during an off-site meeting in York, U.K.: “It’s not just hard work, it’s knowing how our business works that leads to success.” In my mind, truer words have never been spoken, and that all started proofreading catalogs.

Wrapping up our bioprocessing category is MilliporeSigma’s Biopharma Product Recycling Program. The increase in single-use plastics waste is pushing biopharma manufacturers to address the environmental impact of currently utilized methods of disposal, such as landfilling and incineration, and question whether there is a better option.

In an exclusive partnership with Triumvirate Environmental, MilliporeSigma has developed this better option — a program that enables bioprocess manufacturing customers to fully recycle plastic single-use and disposable products, including bio-hazardous classified material, without requiring segregation or disassembly.

The shortlist for Ethical Corporation's 9th Annual Responsible Business Awards has been announced. The winners will be revealed and celebrated at a glamorous Awards Dinner ceremony on 9th October in central London.

Global industries are redefining their core business strategies by adopting greener chemistry practices that are reinventing supply-chain ecosystems to design models that create value for all stakeholders – including the planet. By simply adopting greener chemistry practices, whole industries have seen positive benefits ranging from novel innovations, reduced operational waste and costs, to increased market presence by differentiating themselves amongst their competitors.

Despite an impressive start, single-use technology recycling is still in its infancy in the biopharma industry. The MilliporeSigma/Triumvirate partnership is the only one of its kind in the industry and is focused primarily on East Coast facilities. As global disposable plastic production continues to exceed the ability of waste management to keep up, recycling is becoming imperative.