Overview on microwave synthesis - Important tool for green Chemistry

Abstract

Green chemistry is also called sustainable chemistry. The term green chemistry is defined as “the invention, design and application of chemical products and processes to reduce or to eliminate the use and generation of hazardous substances”. The major applications of green chemistry principles and practice renders control, regulation, and remediation, hence resultant environmental benefit can be expressed in terms of economic impact. The main three developments in the concept of green chemistry involves use of aqueous hydrogen peroxide as an oxidizing agent , super critical carbon dioxide as green solvent as well as use of hydrogen in asymmetric synthesis. It also involves replacement of traditional methods of heating with that of modern methods of heating such as microwave radiations which helped to reduce carbon footprint as low as possible. This review emphasize on the concept of Microwave assisted organic synthesis which is an important tool for green chemistry. Microwave radiation, an electromagnetic radiation, which is widely use as a source of heating in organic synthesis. Microwave assisted organic synthesis has emerged as a new “lead” in organic synthesis which makes the chemistry to go green. This technique has provided the excellent momentum for many chemists to switch to microwave assisted chemistry.