Researchers from the University of Cambridge and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology have made a breakthrough by using supercritical carbon dioxide (scCO2) as a reaction medium for the preparation of molecules of interest to the pharmaceutical industry.
Many industries throughout the world have begun using the non-toxic, environmentally friendly scCO2 as a solvent, replacing harsher volatile organic solvents, such as chlorinated hydrocarbons and chlorofluorocarbons.
Until now it was not considered possible to make certain classes of molecules in CO2 because it was thought that they would react with the CO2.
Cambridge University’s Professor Andrew Holmes, Director of the Melville Laboratory, together with MIT’s Professors Rick Danheiser and Jefferson Tester, have changed all that by figuring out how to use scCO2 for reactions without it reacting with the reagents.
Since the 1990s, scCO2 has emerged as an environmentally benign substitute for more conventional solvents used for organic synthesis, such as those that enter the atmosphere from sprays and similar products. Dry cleaners, plastics manufacturers, food producers and various industries involved in the extraction of flavours and fragrances are already using the ‘benign’ solvent, resulting in more environmentally friendly industrial practices. Using scCO2 as the extractive agent to remove caffeine selectively and leave the flavour of fresh coffee, for example, produces decaffeinated coffee beans.
Although a greenhouse gas, scCO2 can be obtained in large quantities as a by-product of fermentation and combustion. The ready availability, coupled with its ease of removal and recycling, makes scCO2 an exciting prospect for synthetic and industrial applications.
Supercritical carbon dioxide is a supercritical fluid, so called because it is taken beyond its critical temperature, to a point where it’s neither a liquid nor a gas but retains both liquid-like solvent properties and gas-like densities.
Pharmaceutical companies have begun using scCO2 for processing drugs into powder consistently, but the researchers’ findings may soon mean that the entire manufacturing process can be integrated, using scCO2 for both synthesis and processing them into powders.