Cleaning with Citric Acid

Melaleuca, the maker of Ecosence, provides a tub and tile bathroom cleaner that delivers not only a product that’s green but does so in a green manner.  In their plants, they use reusable plastic bins to move their products from one facility to the next instead of using disposable corrugated materials. Along these green practices, they also recycle any material they can in their plants so it won’t go to waist.

Their products include biodegradable cleaning agents in their cleaners that include mainly citric acid with other detergents. In fact, the only ingredients other then these are solvent, fragrance, and T36-C5 Melaleuca Oil. 

Citric acid exists as a weak organic compound because it contains the element carbon. It is most common used for the sour tastes in foods and soft drinks but brings a different purpose for this green product. This organic compound works in ways that chelate the metals in hard water (water high in minerals) and involves no scrubbing to remove stains from hard water on surfaces. This organic compound is therefore used in a green process to successfully use less plastic, less water, and less cost but still gets the job done in the bathroom. 

In addition to all of this, Melaleuca also goes above and beyond by using concentrated formulas so their products last up to six times longer then competitors. Here, everyone wins!

For videos and other information, here is a link to their website:

http://www.melaleuca.com/

Plastic Bottles

           Many companies in the last few years have reduced the amount of plastic that is used to make their water bottles. This is a change to becoming more green but the use of oil to make these plastic bottles is still thought by many to be unacceptable, not to mention that many of the bottles still don’t make it to the recycling process to be reused (about 75% in the U.S.).

           

            In 2008, a man by the name of Danny Clark came up with a new type of water bottle, calling them Enso Bottles. He believes “bottles are a big issue. It’s talked about, and it’s visible”. With that being said, he came up with a real biodegradable, recyclable polyethylene terephthalate plastic bottle (PET for short). The original PET bottles would take hundreds of years to break down while his new type of bottle starts to break down in as little as 250 days.

           PET Chemical Reaction

            This above link is the chemical reaction used to create PET. In addition to this, Clark also has an extra additive in the process to make these bottles but isn’t specified. It was said, however, that the additive doesn’t affect the quality of the bottles in any way.

Sources:

http://www.google.com/imgres?q=polyethylene+terephthalate+chemical+reaction&um=1&hl=en&sa=N&biw=1440&bih=723&tbm=isch&tbnid=mjx2eTKlv7lgWM:&imgrefurl=http://myorganicchemistry.wikispaces.com/polyethylene%2Bterephthalate&docid=KXRQy6Rw14wLQM&w=340&h=233&ei=W7Z_TvPEHon20gH4oMDaDw&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=177&vpy=326&dur=765&hovh=186&hovw=271&tx=172&ty=77&page=1&tbnh=127&tbnw=185&start=0&ndsp=21&ved=1t:429,r:7,s:0

http://www.usatoday.com/money/industries/environment/2011-01-29-water-bottles_N.htm

Three of the Many Chemicals in Powerade

            Citric acid is known for its presence in citrus fruits such as grapefruit, oranges, lemons, and limes. As a weak organic acid, this chemical adds a more sour, or citric taste to beverages; it is mostly used in soft drinks. It also contains the elements carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen being close to the makeup of water. The drink states on the ingredients label “less then 0.5%” of certain chemicals, citric acid being one. Thus, citric acid is added in Powerade for the taste and doesn’t exist in the drink naturally (because it was added, not originally in it).

            Salt exists as an element and is present in this drink to add flavor to it also. This is a mineral that is mostly made of sodium chloride, which is a chemical and is necessary to life in small amounts. If an excess amount is consumed, the substance could cause dehydration. Hence, this is why they only put “less then 0.5%” of this chemical too because it’s a sports drink, not soda.

            Calcium disodium EDTA is a prime ingredient in Powerade as a color protector. Other then being a protector of the color, this chemical can also be used in other foods and drinks to protect their tastes as well as preserving them so they won’t go bad. It does so by protecting the food or drink’s molecular arrangements. This chemical isn’t exactly a healthy substance but in small doses the chemical remains harmless to humans.

What is Green Chemistry?

What is green chemistry exactly? It’s actually unlike the chemistry everyone is used to thinking about. It’s not only about the table of elements so to speak. It’s about how we use these elements to create alternative energy. This is a newer type of chemistry used in a way that not only reduces the negative effects on the environment, but also in a way that limits or completely eliminates waste.

In recent years, we have tended to watch what we do to lessen the chances of increasing damage to our atmosphere because it has added up over the years. This means our environment (mostly the atmosphere), has become weaker and to keep it from proceeding, the ways in which everything works each day must be adjusted. This is exactly why green chemistry has come around.

Not only does green chemistry concentrate on limiting damage to the planet, but it also saves a lot of money to the consumers in the market. For instance, CFL (Compact Fluorescent Lights) bulbs have grown to be popular in the market for saving money on electricity, which in turn also saves money on energy. Another type of bulb has also become popular, powered with LED (light emitting diode). This type of light, depending on brands, cannot only last 20+ years but saves $300+ in energy costs per bulb. Choosing either of these over a regular light bulb has many more positives in the long run.