Lesson 11: The Nano World  there are 25,400,000 nanometers in an standard designs when converting

inch sunlight into electricity

Nanotechnology  a sheet of newspaper is about 100,000  Nanotechnology is used in batte-ries,
 science, engineering, and technology nanometers thick nanomaterials may improve hydrogen
conducted at the nanoscale (1 to 100  if a marble were a nanometer, then one storage materials and catalysts for fuel
nanometers) meter would be the size of the Earth cells
 by creating more surface area and lighter
Nanoscience and Nanotechnology Nanoscience and Nanotechnology storage units, nano-technology can
 the study and application of extremely  involve the ability to see and to control enhance energy generation, conversion
small things and can be used across all individual atoms and molecules and sto-rage for:
the other science fields (chemistry,  everything on Earth is made up of atoms o fuel cell, solar cell, thermo-to-
biology, physics, materials science, and — food, clothes, buildings and houses, electric, biomass ener-gy,
enginee-ring) and our own bodies hydrogen storage, secondary
 started with a talk entitled “There’s  something as small as an atom is batteries, super-capacitors, and
Plenty of Room at the Bottom” by impossible to see with the naked eye thermal storage fluids
physicist Richard Feynman at an  the microscopes needed to see things at 2. Protecting the Human Right to Clean
American Physical Society mee-ting at the nanoscale were invented relatively Water
the California Institute of Technology recently —about 30 years ago  Nanotechnology offers inex-pensive
(CalTech) on Decem-ber 29, 1959 water purification due to rapid, low
 Feynman described a process in which The age of nanotechnology was born once cost impurity detection
scientists would be able to manipulate scientists had the right tools, such as the  magnetic interactions using ultra small
and control individual atoms and scanning tunneling microscope (STM) and the rust can help remove arsenic from
molecules atomic force microscope (AFM). drinking water
 Professor Norio Taniguchi coined the Today's scientists and engineers are finding a  Nanotechnology may also im-prove air
term nanotechnology wide variety of ways to deliberately make and water quality monitoring, by
 it wasn't until 1981, with the materials at the nanoscale to take advantage of developing more sensitive detection
development of the scanning tunneling their enhanced properties: higher strength, devices that can measure a broad range
microscope that could "see" individual lighter weight, increased control of light of pollutants and toxic agents simul-
atoms, that modern nanotechnology spectrum, and greater chemical reac-tivity (than taneously
began their larger-scale counter-parts)
3. Clean-Up of Brownfields
Fundamental Concepts in Nanoscience and BENEFITS OF NANOTECHNOLOGY FOR  antimicrobial properties of nano-silver
Nanotechnology THE ENVIRONMENT AND HUMAN may clean up oil spills and hazardous
One nanometer is a billionth of a meter, or HEALTH chemicals
−9 1. Cheap and Clean Energy
10 of a meter.
 prototype solar panels incorpo-rating 4. Pollution Reduction and Environmen-tal
Examples: nanotechnology are more efficient than Progress
  lighter cars and machinery that require understand the potential impact of nanoparticles the OECD Working Party on
less fuel; alternative fuel and energy upon ecosystems. Manufactured Nano-materials
sources; and materials that detect and  their collaboration established a
clean up environmental contaminants all Nanotechnology and Human Health NIOSH-led project to raise aware-ness
seem possible  Nanomedicine about (and harmonise ap-proaches for)
 the University College of Dublin  application of nanotechno-logy to exposure measure-ment and risk
(UCD) Center for Bio-Nano medicine will allow probes and mitigation when using nanomaterials
Interactions (CBNI) studies the impact pharma-ceuticals to move into
of nanoparticles dispersed in tissues by traversing cell Research about air pollution suggests that cells
environmental milieu, where decaying membranes, thereby disrupting the and organs may demonstrate toxic responses
plant and animal matter becomes disease process even to apparently non-toxic substances when
natural organic matter  will enable doctors to diagnose, treat they are exposed to a sufficient dose at the
 typically composed of polysac- and cure diseases and illnesses that nanoscale.
charides, interact with nano-particles, were previously considered
and examines how this interaction untreatable NOTE: This notion is intuitively logical,
affects organic stabi-lity, dispersability,  lighter and stronger medical although empirically hard to prove.
environmental fate and behaviour implants could be created using
nanotechnology  the source of nanoparticles that cause
5. Reducing the Global Disease Burden harm could allow some types of
 improvements in health care through FRIEND OR FOE? nanoparticles to be exempted or held to
enhanced diagnosis and treatment will  the same ability to traverse the cell wall a higher standard
increase personal wellbeing worldwide or to cling to the protein corona at the  methods for determining which types of
exterior of the cell membrane in order to nanoparticles make an important
6. Mitigating Economic Crisis heal difference from the standpoint of
 investment in nanotechnology will  some scientists worried about the ability liability, unless legislators determine
stimulate economic growth that of unwanted nanoparticles to do the that a duty exists to protect against all
otherwise might not exist during the same thing: disrupt the ongoing types of nanoparticles
economic crisis biological process in humans or the A paper published in the European Respiratory
 support development of ancillary larger ecosystem Journal claims to be the first to document cases
industries, such as marketing for new  uncontrolled mass doses of toxic of ill health caused by nanoparticles in humans.
products, recycling and disposal of nanoparticles could have catas-trophic
waste and litigation regarding: effects, thus inadvertently causing harm The study described seven women, aged 18–47
intellectual property and liability years, who worked in an unidentified printing
 the Organisation for Economic factory in China; two of them later died.
NANOTECHNOLOGY AND RISKS Cooperation and Development
CBNI has begun research regarding plants, (OECD) in November 2007 established They had pleural granulomas: ball-like
animals, and micro-organisms in order to collections of immune cells in the lining of the
lung that form when the immune system is
unable to remove a foreign body. a. Everday Materials and Processes Magnetic Random Access Memory (MRAM)
 using nanotechnology, materials can  using magnetic random access memory
They also had excessive, discolored fluid in the effectively be made stronger, lighter, (MRAM), computers will be able to
lung lining. Particles around 30 nanometers in more durable, more reactive, more “boot” almost instantly
diameter were found in lung fluid and tissue in sieve-like, or better electrical  enabled by nanometer‐scale magnetic
the lung. conductors, among many other traits tunnel junctions and can quickly and
 many everyday commercial products are effectively save data during a system
Impact on the Environment and Non-human currently on the market and in daily use shutdown or enable resume‐play
Species that rely on nanoscale materials and features
 no one knows the effect of nanoparticles processes
on animals, plants or micro-organisms c. Medical and Healthcare Applica-tions
once the particles come into contact with  Nanotechnology is already broa-dening
cell membranes or the proteins that Nano-bioengineering of Enzymes the medical tools, know-ledge, and
surround the cell  aiming to enable conversion of cellulose therapies currently available to
 According to the Rapporteur, "Various from wood chips, corn stalks, clinicians
impacts were observed on crustaceans unfertilized perennial gras-ses, etc., into
and fish in several studies: alterations of ethanol for fuel Nanomedicine
embryonic development in zebrafish  the application of nanotech-nology in
(Danio rerio), alterations in the Cellulosic Nanomaterials medicine, draws on the natural scale of
respiratory capacity of rainbow trout  have demonstrated potential applications biological phenomena to produce
ex-posed to single wall carbon nano- in a wide array of industrial sectors: precise solutions for disease prevention,
tubes, mortality events in amphi-bians electronics, con-struction, packaging, diagnosis, and treatment
exposed to high concen-trations of food, ener-gy, health care, automotive,
carbon nanotubes with double walls." and defense d. Energy Applications
 projected to be less expensive than many  Nanotechnology is finding appli-cation
NANOTECHNOLOGY: BENEFITS AND other nanomaterials and, among other in traditional energy sources and is
APPLICATIONS characteristics, tout an impressive greatly enhancing alternative energy
Nanotechnology strength-to-weight ratio approaches to help meet the world’s
 is helping to considerably im-prove, increasing energy demands
even revolutionize, many technology b. Electronics and IT Applications  Many scientists are looking into ways to
and industry sectors:  Nanotechnology has greatly contributed develop clean, afforda-ble, and
o information technology, to major advan-ces in computing and renewable energy sour-ces, along with
homeland security, me-dicine, electronics, leading to faster, smaller, means to reduce energy consumption
transportation, e-nergy, food and more portable systems that can and lessen toxicity burdens on the
safety, and environmental manage and store larger and larger environ-ment
science amounts of information
e. Environmental Remediation (3) Alerting societies to technological risks cultural field studies, case studies, modeling, and
 in addition to the ways that and failures flow charts.
nanotechnology can help improve (4) Developing informed and ethical
energy efficiency, there are also many personal decision-making and leadership Such approaches promote not only concept and
ways that it can help detect and clean up to solve problems in a technological practical awareness but also lead to
environmental contaminants world constructivist understanding of macro and micro
 Researchers are investigating particles problems of present and future technologies and
such as self-assembled monolayers on Advances in Nanotechnology also present issues.
mesoporous supports (SAMMS™), numerous challenges and risks in health and
dendrimers, and carbon nanotubes to environmental areas.
determine how to apply their unique
chemical and physical properties for Nanotechnology risk assessment met-hods and
various kinds of toxic site remediation protocols need to be developed and implement
by the regulatory bodies.
f. Future Transportation Benefits
 Nanotechnology offers the promise of Eric Drexler, author of Engines of Creation
developing multifunctional materials has identified four challenges in dealing with the
that will contribute to building and development, impact and effects of
maintaining lighter, safer, smarter, and Nanotechnology on society:
more efficient vehicles, aircraft,
spacecraft, and ships 1. The Challenge of Technological
 In addition, nanotechnology offers Development (control over the structure of
various means to improve the matter)
transportation infrastructure 2. The Challenge of Technological Foresight
(sense of the lower bounds of the future
possibilities)
3. The Challenge of Credibility and
SOCIAL IMPLICATIONS OF Understanding (clearer understan-ding of
NANOTECHNOLOGY what these technological possibilities)
It is essential for the Nanotechnology 4. The Challenge of Formulating Public
stakeholders to strive to achieve four social Policy (formulating polices based on
objectives: understanding)
(1) Developing a strong understan-ding of
local and global forces and issues which Using nanotechnology as an urgent example for
affect people and societies responsible decision making, a number of
(2) Guiding local/global societies to teaching and learning tools are used including:
appropriate uses of technology