Is Anybody Thinking About the Environmental Risks of Nanotube Technology?
If you follow materials science, not a day goes by without another novel use for nanotube technology. Carbon and other basic material nanotubes have become ingredients in a variety of products (for instance there are over 300 sunscreen products containing titanium oxide nanoparticles). However, the risk assessment model being used is based upon the untested theory that particles are just smaller units of their corresponding macro materials. That is, if carbon won’t kill you in your pencil, how bad could it be for you in your bloodstream? This is internally inconsistent with the whole premise of nanotechnology which is that the materials have significantly different properties from their bulk counterparts. There’s an interesting article in Science Daily that describes recent research activity in this area. It’s a field worth watching by anyone concerned about health, environment, and advances in new materials.
