Penn State

Research: Environmental

Nanotechnology Poses Problems and Solutions for the Environment

Environmental degradation of water, land, and air are critical problems for the 21st Century. Over the next 50 years, global economic activity is expected to grow by 500%, while world population will increase by 50%. Nanotechnology has the potential to mitigate the impact of human activity on the environment by creating new methods to detect, prevent, and remove pollution, as well as by improving industrial processes through new environmentally friendly materials, more selective catalysts, and nanotechnology based green engineering that reduces waste products.

Understanding industrial processes at the nanoscale can lead to reduced pollution and reduced use of raw materials. In this area, Penn State researchers are using nanoscale characterization techniques to improve metal casting techniques in US foundries. Other Penn State scientists are finding ways to create cheaper and more efficient solar cells using nanotubes and nanospheres, thereby reducing the need for fossil fuels.

Penn State chemists have modified the surface of nanoparticles to greatly increase their ability to pass through porous material, such as soil, to deliver reducing agents for environmental contaminants. Supported forms of zero-valent iron have been developed that are effective in mitigating the environmental damage of chlorinated hydrocarbons, heavy metal ions, and Tc04.

At the Penn State Animal Diagnostic Laboratory, researchers are developing Molecular Beacon-based methods for detecting both human and animal pathogens, including E.coli, Salmonella, and Anthrax. Several other groups in biochemistry and molecular biology are using nature as a model to build molecular recognition machinery for cell- based biosensors.

The introduction of nanomaterials on a wide scale offers both opportunities and risks for the environment. Unlike most prior technologies, considerable forethought and funding are going into the introduction of nanotechnology, though government regulation has yet to emerge. The Federal Drug Administration, for example, regulates products and not technologies. As a result, products such as cosmetics and medical devices containing nanoparticles go through a similar regulatory process as items using bulk materials.

The National Nanotechnology Initiative that coordinates federal agencies involved in nanotechnology spent $82 million in 2006 to study and address the societal, environmental, and health implications of nanotechnology. Of immediate concern is the potential for harm to workers in labs and industry. In this case the threat comes from handling or breathing toxic nanomaterials rather than from nanomaterials escaping into the environment. For most products containing nanomaterials, the exposure of released nanoparticles is expected to be low.

Overall, the environmental benefits of nanotechnology appear to far outweigh the potential risks. To find out more about nano and the environment, click on the links below:

The Woodrow Wilson Project on Emerging Technologies has searchable databases of nano products and nano environmental research: www.nanotechproject.org

The Environmental Protection Agency website on nanotechnology: es.epa.gov/ncer/nano

Visit the Penn State Institutes of the Environment: www.environment.psu.edu

EPA report on Penn State faculty research on Green Engineering of Nanoparticles:cfpub.epa.gov/ncer_abstracts/index.cfm/fuseaction/display.abstractDetail/abstract/2373/report/0

For a draft white paper from the Environmental Protection Agency see:www.nano-and-society.org/NELSI/documents/EPAwhitepaper120205.pdf

Faculty: Environmental

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