It’s a nano world after all
Last month Canadian researcher Ted Sargent was named one of Scientific American magazine’s 50 award winners for his groundbreaking work in nanotechnology. The University of Toronto professor has developed a sprayable material that can capture far more sunlight than conventional flexible solar cells—an innovation that could help make green energy viable.
As scientists push the boundaries of technology‚ nanotechnology in particular holds promise for revolutionizing the way we live. By building materials from the bottom up—designing molecules atom by atom—it is possible to tailor–make materials with new and sometimes unexpected properties.
Nanomaterials can be far stronger‚ lighter‚ more electrically conductive‚ elastic‚ and magnetic than conventional materials. Scientists have created extraordinary products with nanotechnology: LCD flat screens‚ stain–resistant fabrics‚ and self–cleaning windows‚ just to name a few.
And now researchers are realizing the environmental potential of nanotechnology. Already‚ nanoparticles have been shown to render PCBs non–toxic‚ and injecting them into contaminated soils or polluted groundwater could remove a host of dangerous chemicals.
Nanotechnology can also bring safer alternatives to the products we still use. LCD flat screens‚ for example‚ are helping to reduce our use of lead‚ of which conventional television sets still contain several kilos.
But‚ like with any technology‚ nanotechnology is not without environmental risks—nanoparticles have the potential to disrupt biological systems in ways that their larger counterparts can not. They can penetrate cell membranes‚ and may be able to interfere with our own molecules‚ like DNA and proteins‚ and there is no toxicological data for many of the nanomaterials that are already on the market.
However‚ as scientists increasingly turn to technology to salvage our planet from ecological disaster‚ it may be that the smallest designs will make some of the biggest contributions.