March 2011

SAFETY ISSUES OF NANOMATERIALS ALONG THEIR LIFE CYCLE is a two day Symposium that will be held on May 4-5, 2011, at LEITAT Technological Center, Barcelona (Spain).  It is jointly organized by the coordinators of three European Community nanotechnology safety research projects: NANOPOLYTOX, NEPHH and HINAMOX.  

The aim of the Symposium is to discuss the human and environmental impacts of nanomaterials along their life cycle from their production through their processing, use, and end of life (recycling and/or disposal).   Therefore, the tools and methodologies proposed for the risk assessment (RA) and Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) of nanomaterials will be one of the main topics of discussion in this symposium.

A panel of international experts have been invited as speakers and the lectures will be organized into six different sessions:

Session 1. International, national and regional initiatives on Nanotechnology / Nanosafety
Session 2. Nanomaterials: Synthesis, characterization and applications
Session 3. Human health impact of Nanomaterials
Session 4. Environmental impact of Nanomaterials
Session 5. Risk assessment of Nanomaterials
Session 6. Life cycle assessment of Nanomaterials

At the core of research efforts to determine the impact of synthetic nanoparticles on the environment and living systems is a fundamental understanding of the interactions between man-made nanoparticles and natural living systems that have evolved over millions of years.

A March 2011 article in Physical Chemistry Chemical Physics, 

"A biophysical perspective of understanding nanoparticles at large"

presents an interesting discussion from a biophysical perspective that describes the fate of nanoparticles in both the aqueous phase and in living systems.

Authors Pu-Chun Ke, Associate Professor of Physics at Clemson University, and Monica H. Lamm, an Associate Professor at Iowa State University, suggest that to better describe nanoparticles at large it is necessary to acknowledge that:  1) the behavior of nanoparticles in biological systems and in the ecosystem are intertwined and often correlated; and 2) collaborations are essential for such interdisciplinary research.

This conference on Monday, March 21, 2011, in Phoenix, promises to be interesting.

After several years of studying the risks of nanotechnologies, federal agencies such as EPA, FDA and NIOSH are now moving forward with more aggressive regulation, and a variety of other non-regulatory risk management and safety initiatives have been proposed or implemented.

The 2011 conference will examine recent trends and challenges in regulation and risk management of nanotechnology. Top national and international nanotechnology experts from government, industry, non-governmental organizations, the insurance industry, and academia will be featured.

The American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) Nanotechnology Institute has published a new podcast as part of its educational outreach initiative on all aspects of nanotechnology developed by society.

The podcast, "Nano Environmental Health & Safety", with Dr. Andrew Maynard, Chair of the University of Michigan Risk Science Center, deals with environmental, health and safety aspects of nanotechnology.

Maynard, of course, is one of the most prolific nanorisk speakers and writers, and this latest ASME-sponsored discussion is worthwhile.  

The podcast is available via download on a complimentary basis at http://nano.asme.org/, where you can also sign up to be added to the Nanotechnology Institute mailing list to get announcements and information on ASME's Nanotechnology Institute endeavors.