Introduction

The second International Conference on Sustainable Chemistry is reconvened following the success of the first meeting held at the University of Antwerp in 2011.

Chemical products make an irreplaceable contribution in every aspect of our modern day lives. Chemical processes and products play an essential role in industrial sectors as diverse as agriculture, automotive, clothing, communication, construction, food, health, leisure, mobility, plastics, space and transport. Our advanced society depends on the wealth creating aspects of industrial chemistry.

Societal expectations and the depletion of natural resources are pushing towards chemical processes becoming cleaner, more efficient, less consuming, safer and more secure. The ecological footprint of chemical products needs to be decreased.

Sustainable chemistry is concerned with the development of sustainable chemical products and processes and thereby integrating economic, environmental and social performance can provide an answer to these major challenges.

The technological and managerial objectives of scientific and industrial research and activities are quite straightforward; decrease the use of energy and fossil fuels, develop clean, safe and secured processes, produce useful, safe and sustainable products, develop a long-term scope for transportation activities, etc., always taking factors such as cost-effectiveness, eco-efficiency and inherent safety into consideration.

A clear interdisciplinary approach within technological areas, supported by cross-cutting managerial actions, is required for successfully tackling these new chemistry paradigms.

It is the aim of the conference to cover both technological and non-technological topics. Academic and industrial research on these topics is the key to advancing the chemical industry sector and it’s sustainability for years to come. The topics represent those related to sustainability and chemistry; papers are invited on these and other suitable topics.