Green Chemistry is a very promising investment area within the Environmental Technology sector. Battelle is the winner of this year's Presidential Green Chemistry Award for it's work on ways to make it easier to remove inks from papers during recycling.

The Battelle news release says this about its award:

With early-stage funding from the Ohio Soybean Council, Battelle's novel method uses soy oil and protein along with carbohydrates from corn as its chemical feedstock. The incorporation of chemical groups that are susceptible to breaking down during the standard de-inking process allowed Battelle to develop new bio-based inks that are significantly easier to remove from the paper fiber. The result is a higher quality of material recovered, which streamlines the recycling process.

Additionally, a preliminary life-cycle analysis shows significant energy savings and reduced carbon dioxide emission in the full value chain. With an expected 25% market penetration by 2010, Battelle estimates this technology could save 9.25 trillion British thermal units per year (Btu/yr) and eliminate over 360,000 tons of CO2 emissions per year.

Bio-toner technology is an excellent example of a green innovation that not only helps the enviroment but has the potential to make investors a considerable amount of money. Market penetration of green chemistry products is arguably better than status-quo products because consumers, businesses, and government are increasingly looking for green substitutes for existing products.