CHAPTER 10

THE NANO WORLD

(MODULE)

By: Rayne Kyla P. Intia

BSMA 2

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 I. INTRODUCTION

Nano World is the global market leader for tips for Scanning Probe Microcopy and

Atomic Force Microcopy. It is a sphere of influence of Nanotechnology.

It has a great impact on technology and science since it improves a lot of inventions

and enables researchers to find new ways to create a product that is cost efficient, stronger

and long lasting and more sustainable.

The Nano world talks about those small and tiny elements which cannot be seen by

our naked eye. These elements helps us a lot in certain fields like Medicine and Health,

Economy, Agricultural, Energy storage.

In this Chapter, you will learn about:

 The impact of nano world to the society

 The Nano Technology and Nano Science

 Why Nano World

 Analyze nano technology and nano science through the conceptual lenses of STS

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 II. DISCUSSION

NANO WORLD

Nano World is the global market leader for tips for Scanning Probe Microcopy and

Atomic Force Microcopy. It is a sphere of influence of Nanotechnology.

It has a great impact on technology and science since it improves a lot of inventions and

enables researchers to find new ways to create a product that is cost efficient, stronger and

long lasting and more sustainable.

The Nano world talks about those small and tiny elements which cannot be seen by our

naked eye. These elements helps us a lot in certain fields like Medicine and Health,

Economy, Agricultural, Energy storage.

NANOTECHNOLOGY

What is Nanotechnology?

Nanotechnology is a field of research and innovation concerned with building

'things' - generally, materials and devices - on the scale of atoms and molecules. A

nanometer is one-billionth of a meter: ten times the diameter of a hydrogen atom.

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 Nanotechnology allows people to alter materials at their most basic level. Organic

and inorganic products can be improved using this technology, but it takes an advanced

education to gain an actionable understand the fundamental aspects of nanoscience.

Through a master’s of electrical engineering, engineers can deepen their comprehension of

how effective nano-sized electronic components are designed, manufactured, and used.

What Can Nanotechnology Do?

Nanotechnology is hailed as having the potential to increase the efficiency of

energy consumption, help clean the environment, and solve major health problems. It is

said to be able to massively increase manufacturing production at significantly reduced

costs. Products of nanotechnology will be smaller, cheaper, lighter yet more functional and

require less energy and fewer raw materials to manufacture, claim nanotech advocates.

Concerns About Possible Effects on Human and Society and Environmental Health

Others, however, are as cautious as Smalley is enthusiastic. Eric Drexler, the

scientist who coined the term nanotechnology, has warned of developing "extremely

powerful, extremely dangerous technologies". In his book Engines of Creation, Drexler

envisioned that self-replicating molecules created by humans might escape our control.

Although this theory has been widely discredited by researchers in the field, many concerns

remain regarding the effects of nanotechnology on human and environmental health as well

as the effect the new industry could have on the North-South divide. Activists worry that the

science and development of nanotechnology will progress faster than policy-makers can

devise appropriate regulatory measures.

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What are the Potential Benefits for Developing Countries?

Nanotechnology holds the promise of new solutions to problems that hinder the

development of poor countries, especially in relation to health and sanitation, food security,

and the environment. In its 2005 report entitled Innovation: applying knowledge in

development, the UN Millennium Project task force on science technology and innovation

wrote that "nanotechnology is likely to be particularly important in the developing world,

because it involves little labor, land or maintenance; it is highly productive and inexpensive;

and it requires only modest amounts of materials and energy".

Effects of Nanotechnology on Health and Sanitation

Nanotechnology is already useful as a tool in health care research. In January 2005,

researchers at the US Massachusetts Institute of Technology used 'optical tweezers' - pairs

of tiny glass beads are brought together or moved apart using laser beams - to study the

elasticity of red blood cells that are infected with the malaria parasite. The technique is

helping researchers to better understand how malaria spreads through the body.

How Nanotechnology Might Improve Drug Delivery

But nanotechnology could also one day lead to cheaper, more reliable systems for

drug-delivery. For example, materials that are built on the nanoscale can provide

encapsulation systems that protect and secrete the enclosed drugs in a slow and controlled

manner. This could be a valuable solution in countries that don't have adequate storage

facilities and distribution networks, and for patients on complex drug regimens who cannot

afford the time or money to travel long distances for a medical visit.

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Nanoscale Filters for Improved Water Purification Systems

Filters that are structured on the nanoscale offer the promise of better water

purification systems that are cheap to manufacture, long-lasting and can be cleaned. Other

similar technologies could absorb or neutralise toxic materials, such as arsenic, that poison

the water table in many countries including India and Bangladesh.

Food Security

Using Nanosensors on Crops and Nanoparticles in Fertilizers Tiny sensors offer the

possibility of monitoring pathogens on crops and livestock as well as measuring crop

productivity. In addition, nanoparticles could increase the efficiency of fertilizers. However,

the Swiss insurance company SwissRe warned in a report in 2004 that they could also

increase the ability of potentially toxic substances, such as fertilisers, to penetrate deep

layers of the soil and travel over greater distances.

WHY NANOTECHNOLOGY?

How Does Nanotechnology Work?

Nanotechnology is the understanding and control of matter at the nanometer scale,

where unique phenomena enable novel applications. Encompassing nanoscale science,

engineering, and technology, nanotechnology involves imaging, measuring, modeling, and

manipulating matter at this length scale.

Nanotechnologies involve the design, characterization, production, and application of

nanoscale structures, devices, and systems that produces structures, devices, and systems

with at least one novel/superior characteristic or property.

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 At the core of nanotechnology is the fact that the properties of materials can be

different at the nanoscale for two main reasons:

First, nanomaterials have a relatively larger surface area when compared to the

same mass of material produced in a larger form. This can make materials more chemically

reactive (in some cases materials that are inert in their larger form are reactive when

produced in their nanoscale form), and affect their strength or electrical properties.

Second, so-called quantum effects can begin to dominate the behavior of matter

at the nanoscale - particularly at the lower end – affecting the optical, electrical and

magnetic behavior of materials.

THE ADVANTAGES OF NANOTECHNOLOGY TO THE SOCIETY AND ECONOMY

Nanotechnology and the future of advanced materials

Nanotechnology future products are based on the present and future developments

of a large spectrum of nanomaterials. The development of a huge variety of nanomaterials

will lead to a radically new approach to manufacturing materials and devices.

Basically, every aspect of our lives will be impacted. Faster computers, advanced

pharmaceuticals, controlled drug delivery, biocompatible materials, nerve and tissue repair,

crackproof surface coatings, better skin care and protection, more efficient catalysts, better

and smaller sensors, even more efficient telecommunications, these are just some areas

where nanomaterials will have a major impact.

They also compiled a brief overview of some current applications of nanomaterials

such as nanocomposites, nanoclays, nanocoatings and nanostructured surfaces, and

nanolubricants. Most of them represent evolutionary developments of existing technologies.

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Nanomedicine

Take for example nanotechnology in medicine. The medical advances that may be

possible through nanotechnology range from diagnostic to therapeutic. In dianostics, the

ultimate goal is to enable physicians to identify a disease as early as possible. Nanomedicine

is expected to make diagnosis possible at the cellular and even the sub-cellular level.

In terms of therapy, the most significant impact of nanomedicine is expected to be

realized in drug delivery and regenerative medicine. Nanoparticles enable physicians to

target drugs at the source of the disease, which increases efficiency and minimizes side

effects. They also offer new possibilities for the controlled release of therapeutic substances.

Nanoparticles are also used to stimulate the body’s innate repair mechanisms. A major focus

of this research is artificial activation and control of adult stem cells.

However, as with nanotechnology in general, there is danger of derailing

nanomedicine if the study of ethical, legal and social implications does not catch up with

scientific developments: nanotechnology applications in medicine face a range of ethical

issues.

Nanobiotechnology

Physicists, chemists and biologists each view nanotechnology as a branch of their

own subject, and collaborations in which they each contribute equally are common. One

result is the hybrid field of nanobiotechnology (also used are the terms bionanotechnology,

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biomedical nanotechnology or nanomedicine) that uses biological starting materials,

biological design principles or has biological or medical applications.

Combining nanotechnology with biotechnology could for instance lead to molecular

prosthetics – nanoscale components that can repair or replace defective cellular components

such as ion channels or protein signaling receptors. Another result will be intracellular

imaging to highlight early disease markers in routine screening.

Manufacturing Advantages

Nanotechnology is already making new materials available that could revolutionize

many areas of manufacturing. For example, nanotubes and nano particles, which are tubes

and particles only a few atoms across, and aerogels, materials composed of very light and

strong materials with remarkable insulating properties, could pave the way for new

techniques and superior products. In addition, robots that are only a few nanometers in

length, called nanobots, and nanofactories could help construct novel materials and objects.

Energy Advantages

Nanotechnology may transform the ways in which we obtain and use energy. In

particular, it's likely that nanotechnology will make solar power more economical by

reducing the cost of constructing solar panels and related equipment. Energy storage

devices will become more efficient as a result. Nanotechnology will also open up new

methods of generating and storing energy.

EXAMPLES OF NANOTECHNOLOGY INVENTION THAT WE ARE USING NOW

Solar Panels

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Solar power allows people to harness electricity from the

sun without directly creating waste, but the process of

creating solar cells is energy-intensive and can produce

large amounts of waste. Photovoltaic solar cells are made

using layers of expensive crystalline silicon that are treated using caustic chemicals, so

researchers have been searching for ways to lower the cost of producing efficient solar cells

through nanotechnology. The Graetzel cell, which uses a layer of material coated with highly

porous titanium dioxide nanoparticles as its surface material instead of silicon, is less

expensive to produce and allows cells to collect the sun’s rays across a wider surface area.

Food products and packaging

Nanoscientists are developing new techniques to precisely tailor the smallest particles of

food to provide a specific taste, texture, and nutrient density. Some companies are

researching ways to improve perishable product packaging using nanotechnology. l

Bandages

Bandages are normally applied to protect wounds from further contamination, but engineers

are now studying new ways to enhance their antimicrobial properties using nanotechnology.

Incorporating noble metals, which have natural antimicrobial properties, into bandages has

been proven to help combat bacterial [Link] bandages are commonly used to

dress injuries that are resistant to treatment and prone to infection, like burn wounds.

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Aerogels

Aerogel is a synthetic porous ultralight material derived

from a gel, in which the liquid component for the gel has

been replaced with a gas. The result is a solid with

extremely low density and extremely low thermal

conductivity.

Carbon Fibers

Carbon fibers or carbon fibres are fibers about 5–10

micrometers in diameter and composed mostly of carbon

atoms. Carbon fibers have several advantages including

high stiffness, high tensile strength, low weight, high

chemical resistance, high temperature tolerance and low

thermal expansion.

Cosmetics

Nanotechnology applications in cosmetics and skin care

include: Sunscreen that uses zinc oxide nanoparticles to block

ultraviolet rays while minimizing the white coating on the

skin. Skin care lotions in which nutrients are encapsulated in

nanoparticles suspended in an liquid, making up a

nanoemulsion.

Nanofabrics

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Nanofabrics are textiles engineered with small particles that

give ordinary materials advantageous properties such as

superhydrophobicity (extreme water resistance, also see

"Lotus effect"), odor and moisture elimination, increased

elasticity and strength, and bacterial resistance.

Nanoscience

Nanoscience is an emerging area of science which involves the study of materials on an

ultra-small scale and the novel properties that these materials demonstrate.

Nanoscience has the potential to reshape the world around us. It could lead to revolutionary

breakthroughs in fields ranging from manufacturing to health care.

Nanoscience vs nanotechnology

NANOSCIENCE

Nanoscience is the study of structures and materials on an ultra-small scale, and the unique

and interesting properties these materials demonstrate. Nanoscience is cross disciplinary,

meaning scientists from a range of fields including chemistry, physics, biology, medicine,

computing, materials science and engineering are studying it and using it to better

understand our world.

NANOTECHNOLOGY

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Nanotechnology (also sometimes called molecular manufacturing), on the other hand, is the

design, production and application of structures, devices and systems at the nanoscale. So

essentially one is studying nanomaterials and their properties and the other is

using those materials and properties to create something new or different.

FOUNDING FATHERS OF NANOTECHNOLOGY

Richard Feynman

The American physicist Richard Feynman lectured, "There's Plenty of Room at the

Bottom," at an American Physical Society meeting at Caltech on December 29,

1959, which is often held to have provided inspiration for the field of

nanotechnology.

Norio Taniguchi

The Japanese scientist called Norio Taniguchi of Tokyo University of Science

was first to use the term "nano-technology" in a 1974 conference,

K. Eric Drexler

In the 1980s the idea of nanotechnology as a deterministic, rather than stochastic, handling

of individual atoms and molecules was conceptually explored in depth by K. Eric Drexler. He

developed and popularized the concept of nanotechnology and founded the field of

molecular nanotechnology.

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Heinrich Rohrer

Winner of the 1986 Nobel Prize in Physics, passed away at the age of 79. Rohrer is widely

regarded as one of the founding scientists of the nanotechnology field.

CONCLUSION

Nanoscience is all about the ultra-small, but it has the potential to have an

enormous impact on our lives. We are already using and enjoying many products enhanced

with nanotechnology, but it is the potential to revolutionise fields such as medicine, or to

help solve some of the world’s difficult environmental problems, that makes the future of

nanoscience and nanotechnology most exciting.

However, nanotechnology—as with all new emerging technologies— is bringing up just as

many problems as solutions. How can regulation and testing keep up with technology, and

what impact might these new nanomaterials have on human health or the

wider environment? These are issues that still need to be addressed. As

greater investments continue to be made in nanotechnology and ever more

nanoparticles find their way into our environment, products, and even

bodies, it is vitally important that the potential benefits of this technology are carefully

weighed and considered against the unknown risks

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III. ACTIVITY

ACTIVITY 10.1 ART IS SCIENCE, SCIENCE IS ART

According to what have you learned in this Chapter, Draw or Make a POSTER that shows

how Nanotechnology affects the Society.

ACTIVITY 10.2 WRITTEN HOMEWORK

Search the following and discuss it in front

1. Examples of Nanostructures

2. Types of Microscopes used in Nanoscience and Nanotechnology

3. Tools that can manipulate nanostructures

4. Top ten uses and application of nanotechnology by UNESCO

5. Nanotech Roadmap of the Philippines

IV. EVALUATION

ACTIVITY 10.3. MIND BUZZER

Write the correct answer on blank.

__________1. He developed and popularized the concept of nanotechnology and

founded the field of molecular nanotechnology.

__________2. Is an example of Nanotechnology that is a synthetic porous ultra light

material derived from a gel, in which the liquid component for the gel has been replaced

with a gas.

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 __________3. Is the global market leader for tips for Scanning Probe Microcopy and

Atomic Force Microcopy.

__________4. He is widely regarded as one of the founding scientists of the

nanotechnology field.

__________5. Is cross disciplinary, meaning scientists from a range of fields including

chemistry, physics, biology, medicine, computing, materials science and engineering are

studying it and using it to better understand our world.

(For items 6-10) 5pt. Short Essay

Enumerate 5 Examples of Nanotechnology and based on your understanding, how does

these inventention improves our daily lives. (atleast 150 words)

V. REFERENCES

[Link]

[Link]

National Nanotechnology Initiative: Benefits and Applications

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Science Daily: Nanotechnology Pioneer Slays 'Grey Goo' Myths

ActionBioscience: Nanotechnology It's a Small, Small, Small, Small World

Foresight Institute: Nanotechnology and International Security

[Link]

Discover Magazine, “The 9 Best Nanotechnology-Powered Products”

[Link]

[Link], Applications

[Link], “Pre-treatment of bandages may improve the antibacterial properties of

National Nanotechnology Infrastructure Network, “What is the Product Curad® Silver Bandages”

The National Nanotechnology Infrastructure Network, “Nanotechnology Products”

The Guardian, “What you need to know about nano-food”

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