Nanotechnology Safety

Nanotechnology safety is the practice of handling engineered nanomaterials in production and manufacturing. Good practice consists of understanding and interpreting Material Safety Data Sheets, behaving safely when working with yet unknown nanomaterials, understanding health effects, and proactively creating safety measures against potential hazards. This book addresses nanotechnology risk management.

Nanotechnology is a new and emerging discipline that is multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary. The usage of nanosystems, nanomaterials, nano-devices, etc. permeates all aspects of society. Cancer targeting and curing nanosystems are being introduced into the biomedical and pharmaceutical industries; so are lightweight energy absorbing or blast-proof nanohybrid material in the aerospace, automotive and marine industries and high-efficiency energy harvesting nanomaterials, etc. Society has a vested interest in knowing how these new materials, devices and systems are changing the economy and similar landscapes. The book outlines the regulatory and environmental issues related to nanotechnology per industry, offers guidelines in assessing the risks and discusses the legal and socioeconomical issues involved. Case studies will be utilized to provide examples of the positive and negative impacts of nanotechnology. Provides an overview and the basis for understanding the critical importance of the reactivity and efficacy of nanomaterials and the emerging role of nanotechnology in society Explains the fundamentals, ethics, regulatory and environmental issues of nanosafety and how they shape the emerging nanotechnology industry and markets and includes extensive lists of glossary terms, terminologies and concepts needed for Material Data Safety Sheets Discusses the relevance and specificity of nanosafety issues per industry and includes discussions on the "Homeland Security and Infrastructure Industries" of interest to society in general Includes nanotechnology risk assessment and delineates and quantifies the risk assessment process for nanotechnology safety of paramount importance to most industries and systems Outlines the legal and intellectual property ramifications of nanotechnology and its impact on productivity and society

Nanotechnology safety is the practice of handling engineered nanomaterials in production and manufacturing. Good practice consists of understanding and interpreting Material Safety Data Sheets, behaving safely when working with yet unknown nanomaterials, understanding health effects, and proactively creating safety measures against potential hazards. This book introduces nanotechnology risk management to readers from academia and industry.

Nanotechnology is the fastest-growing technology in the world, and it is also called the Industrial Revolution of the twenty-first century. Many research, development, and manufacturing methods have been used globally to develop better and safer nanomaterials for various applications. Nanotechnology teaches us the critical properties of day-to-day materials and structures. The invention of the scanning tunneling microscope (STM), carbon nanotubes (CNTs), and fullerenes (or buckyballs) laid a path toward nanotechnology because atomic- and molecular-level studies could be performed using the STM and nanomaterials. Today this technology is employed in various fields such as engineering, technology, applied sciences, biomedical, pharmaceuticals, food and agriculture, and construction industries. The number of technical articles and patents related to nanotechnology and nanoproducts has been continuously increasing for nearly two decades. Within 10 or 15 years, it is expected that the industrial production of nanotechnology will be worth over $1 trillion. Thus, this technology will drastically change science, education, manufacturing, and the lifestyles of people around the world.

In this modern era, the science of safety mainly concerns all possible danger associated with the utilization of existing and/or developing technologies. Through development of the Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSH Act) of 1970, the U.S. Congress created the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) to assure safe and healthy working conditions for workers by setting and enforcing standards and providing necessary training, outreach, education, and assistance. Occupational safety and health (OSH) primarily deals with cross-disciplinary areas for the safety, health, and welfare of workers. The goal of OSH programs is to foster a safer and healthier work environment for workers, engineers, students, and other participants. This chapter focuses on the fundamental aspects of safety, accidents and their occurrence and prevention, accident recordings, and social and economic implications of accidents. With the advancement of nanotechnology, the exposure to nanomaterials, as well as to the packaging, transportation, handling, storage, and consumption of these materials, poses higher risks and hazards to people engaged in this and related technologies. This chapter emphasizes the possible dangers of nanomaterials and their harmful effects on human health. The guidelines for working with nanomaterials are also summarized in detail.

Nanotechnology Environmental Health and Safety tackles – in depth and in breadth – the complex and evolving issues pertaining to nanotechnology's environmental health and safety (EHS). The chapters are authored by leaders in their respective fields, providing thorough analysis of their research areas. The diverse spectrum of topics include nanotechnology EHS issues, financial implications, foreseeable risks including exposure, dosage and hazards, and the implications of occupational hygiene precautions and consumer protections. The book includes real-world case studies, wherever practical, to illustrate specific issues and scenarios encountered by stakeholders positioned on the front-lines of nanotechnology-enabled industries. These case studies will appeal to, and resonate with, laboratory scientists, business leaders, regulators, service providers, and postgraduate researchers. Reviews toxicological studies and industrial initiatives, supported by numerous case studies Covers new generation of nanoparticles and significantly expands on existing material from second edition Only edited volume to collect research on the regulatory and risk implications of a wide array of industrial, environmental and consumer nanomaterials

Nanotechnology is one of the ways of improving many properties of materials, including physical, chemical, physicochemical, and biological, which can be useful for various applications in biomedical, textile, aerospace, manufacturing, cosmetics, oil, defense, agricultural, and electronics industries. Nevertheless, nanotechnology products, or nanomaterials (e.g., nanotubes, nanoparticles, nanofibers, nanowires, nanocomposites, and nanofilms), can be unsafe to human health because of the way they are manipulated and treated at near atomic scale. Since these nanomaterials are produced with mainly new manufacturing techniques and have various sizes, shapes, and surface energies, they may also create some uncertainties because of the lack of specific rules and regulations governing their manufacture and manipulation. This study provides a detailed report on the safety and ethics of nanotechnology and related ethical, social, philosophical, environmental, biological, and other legal issues. The information provided here can be very useful for training and protecting scientists, engineers, students, policymakers, and regulators working in the nanotechnology and related technologies.

Nanotechnology a term encompassing nanoscale science, engineering, and technology is focused on understanding, controlling, and exploiting the unique properties of matter that can emerge at scales of one to 100 nanometers. A key issue before Congress regarding nanotechnology is how best to protect human health, safety, and the environment as nanoscale materials and products are researched, developed, manufactured, used, and discarded. While the rapidly emerging field of nanotechnology is believed by many to offer significant economic and societal benefits, some research results have raised concerns about the potential adverse environmental, health, and safety (EHS) implications of nanoscale materials. Stakeholders generally agree that concerns about potential detrimental effects of nanoscale materials and devices both real and perceived must be addressed to protect and improve human health, safety, and the environment; enable accurate and efficient risk assessment, risk management, and cost-benefit trade-offs; foster innovation and public confidence; and ensure that society can enjoy the widespread economic and societal benefits that nanotechnology may offer. Congressionally-mandated reviews of the National Nanotechnology Initiative (NNI) by the National Research Council and the President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology have concluded that additional research is required to make a rigorous risk assessment of nanoscale materials.