Green Chemistry Teaching Modules

Free Green & Sustainable Chemistry Resources for Undergraduate Instructors 

Human musculoskeletal diagram with chemical reactions, representing stereochemistry processes

Representation of chirality in stereochemistry

 

 

The ACS Green Chemistry Institute has partnered with chemistry instructors from over 45 institutions to develop green and sustainable chemistry education resources for undergraduate students studying general and organic chemistry. These teaching modules address standard curricular topics and draw connections between green and sustainable chemistry, systems thinking, and the U.N. Sustainable Development Goals. This approach to learning undergraduate chemistry centers around the foundational concepts of the core curriculum, while encouraging students to become systems thinkers who relate chemistry concepts to real-world systems. Green chemistry modules offer a way to teach chemistry through a systems-thinking lens and empower students to create innovations that help solve sustainability challenges.

 

 

Module Materials Contain:

  • An overview guide for all module contents
  • PowerPoint presentations
  • Printable activities for students
  • Instructor materials
  • Links to supplementary resources & articles

 

 

Green Chemistry & Sustainability

 

 

Explore the foundational concepts of chemistry through a systems thinking lens, with an emphasis on sustainability practices

 

 

General & Organic Chemistry

 

Lectures, activities and units that prepare students to advance and succeed in a rapidly changing and global chemistry landscape

 

 

U.N. Sustainable Development Goals

 

A curriculum aligned with the the U.N. Sustainable Development Goals

 

 

Modules by Discipline

 

General Chemistry

Organic Chemistry



Featured Modules

 

Ideal Gases and the Nitrogen Cycle

Explore the anthropogenic N2 cycle and ideal gas concepts to understand the environmental consequences, hazards, and risks of chemical reactions involving gas phase components.

Stereochemistry: Introduction to Chirality

Explore chirality in stereochemistry through the lens of the World Health Organization’s "Model List of Essential Medicines".

 

All Modules

 

Alcohols

This module uses simple alcohols as the primary examples to supplement the standard organic topics of physical properties, intramolecular forces, base stability, and an introduction to mechanism arrows. 

Amines in Pharmaceutical Synthesis

Learn about the synthesis of amines with a focus on the reductive amination reaction. Through this module, students will be able to evaluate the traditional methods using green chemistry principles and Systems Thinking approaches. 

Carbonyls Redox: Aldehydes and Ketones 

Explore aldehydes and ketones as the substrates and products of redox reactions. In this module, structure is explained with both Lewis structures and molecular orbitals to discuss mechanisms in the context of green chemistry.

Ethers and Sulfides

Explore the synthesis and reactivity of ethers and epoxides and understand the chemical properties, uses, sources, safety, and environmental considerations surrounding the use of ethers.

Hydrocarbons; Fuels and Feedstocks

This module uses transportation fuels as the theme to connect the organic concepts of hydrocarbon structure, intramolecular forces and physical properties to green and sustainable chemistry. 

Ideal Gases and the Nitrogen Cycle

Explore the anthropogenic N2 cycle and ideal gas concepts to understand the environmental consequences, hazards, and risks of chemical reactions involving gas phase components.

Kinetics

This module uses examples of water quality and water treatment to explore fundamental concepts in chemical kinetics for General Chemistry.

Pericyclic Reactions

Explore the fundamentals of pericyclic reactions and their role in pharmaceutical and agrochemical processes using examples of biocatalysis, biomimetic catalysis, and natural product total synthesis. 

SN1 and SN2
Reactions

Discover how solvent selection correlates to reaction mechanisms of SN1 and SN2 reactions and explore the environmental, health, safety and life cycle considerations of nucleophilic substitution reactions.

Stereochemistry: Introduction to Chirality

Explore chirality in stereochemistry through the lens of the World Health Organization’s "Model List of Essential Medicines".

Stoichiometry

Learn about the impacts of combustion reactions and the connections between combustion, fuels, and green chemistry metrics. This module helps first semester students evaluate a variety of reaction metrics, including yield and mass efficiencies.

Systems Thinking in Chemistry

Learn about the fundamental concepts of systems thinking and how systems thinking is essential to the the practice of green chemistry and key to solving the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs). 

Thermochemistry & Energy Use

This module helps first year general chemistry students apply thermochemistry concepts and calculations to evaluate energy changes for processes that have environmental and societal consequences.

 

The U.N. Sustainable Development Goals & Green Chemistry

These modules reference the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to highlight how green chemistry education supports the U.N's mission to address the many sustainability and systems thinking challenges facing our world.

 

SDG 1: Poverty
SDG 2: Hunger
SDG 3: Good Health and Well-being
SDG 2: Quality Education
SDG 5: Gender and equality
SDG 6: Clean Water
SDG 10: Reduced Inequalities
SDG 8: Work & Economic Growth
SDG 9: Industry, Innovation & Infrastructure
SDG 10: Reduced Inequalities
SDG 11: Sustainable Cities & Communities
SDG 12: Responsible consumption and production
SDG 13: Climate Action
SDG 14: Life Below the Water
SDG 15: Life on Land
SDG 16: Promote Peace & Justice
SDG 17: Global Partnerships
Sustainable Development Goals logo

More Green & Sustainable Chemistry Resources for Educators

ACS Sustainability Summits

The annual Sustainability Summit explores current challenges in green and sustainable chemistry.

Sustainable Chemistry Grants & Awards

Apply for grants and awards for early career faculty, undergraduate educators and scholars who have demonstrated achievements in green chemistry and sustainability education.

ACS GCI's Green Chemistry and Engineering Conference

The 2025 Green Chemistry & Engineering Conference will be held June 23-26 in Pittsburgh, PA, with the theme Good Health & Well-Being Through Sustainable Chemistry.

Learn More

Contact
ACS Green Chemistry Institute

Email Us

gci@acs.org

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+1 202-872-6102
1-800-227-5558, ext. 6102