AOCS wrap-up Day 1

So here's a snapshot of my days at the American Oil Chemists Society's (AOCS) 100th year meeting in Rosen Shingle Creek resort in Orlando, Florida. The meeting was attended by around 1,520 delegates, down from last year's 1,700 mostly because of the economic downturn (they assured me it's not because of the pig flu scare...)


Day 1: May 4 - Monday Morning
The Soap & Detergent (S&D) session started their green theme topic at 7:55a (yes, that early!) covering presentations such as Akzo Nobel's new biodegradable chelating agent from L-glutamic acid. The chelate L-glutamic acid, N,N-diacetic acid ("GL" for short) also allows formulators to reduce water content and thus also reduce packaging and transport impact of consumer goods, Akzo Nobel said.

GL is said to have around 53% bio-based content.

Cognis, meanwhile, explained how their green formulation classification works. One of the major problems in creating green formulation for home care and personal care, said Cognis, is the lack of national and international green standards. In cleaning products, the lack of green polymers and green foam stabilizers has also made it difficult [but not impossible] to develop superior-performance green cleaning chemicals.

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