NANOTECHNOLOGY
W
e all have an idea that nanotechnology means dealing with something very very small. Rightly so, but paradoxically, nanotechnology, or nanotech (NT), is a huge area, encompassing all scientific disciplines from chemistry and biology to physics and engineering. Conversely, nanotech applications are very diverse. They can be found in medicine, electronics, biomaterials or energy production, to name but a few. All these have only one thing in common: they involve the engineering of functional systems with at least one dimension at a molecular scale. By molecular scale we mean structures sized between 1 to 100 nanometres – that is one billionth to 100 billionths of a metre. Speaking at EuroNanoFo rum 2011, Rudolf Strohmeier, Deputy Director General at the Directorate General Research and Innovation (EU) said: “Research in NT can add real value to our lives. It offers solutions in all major modern challenges including energy, climate change, health and environmental issues.” EuroNanoForum 2011, held from May 30th to June 1st in Budapest, Hungary, was the 5th EU Nanotech conference, and with more than 1,000 participants, it has
Marie-Catherine Mousseau reports that with nanotechnology we have a lot to look forward to.
been the most important conference on NT research so far. “It is vital for Europe to aim at leadership in NT,” Rudolf Strohmeier continued. While according to him, NT is one sector where the EU is still in the lead, there are two major challenges to maintain this leadership. The first one is to get NT innovation from the lab to the market place to deliver real practical solutions for society. And this step is far from straight forward, with a big financial gap resulting from investors often reluctant to take risks. The other challenge lies in communication. “Science-based regulations, safety and public perception are crucial elements for acceptance of NT,” said Rudolf Strohmeier. According to him, and to many other participants, clear communication on the potential risk associated with different applications of NT is essential. “What we need is transparency of risk management
and public debate based on balanced information,” he concluded. Clear communication is definitely a challenge, considering the diversity of approaches encompassed by the term nanotechnology. Let’s look at a few here in two of the most popular areas: energy and health.
ENERGY
The magic world of nanocrystals
Prof Michael Graetzel, from the Ecole Polytechnique de Lausanne, opened the energy topic on a rather gloomy note: “In the next 30 years or so, power consumption will double while at the same time oil will have run out,” he said. “That’s why a nanomaterial able to convert, generate, store energy very efficiently in the form of electric power would be very welcome.” In 1931 Edison had already foreseen the problem and claimed that he would put his money in solar energy. However, at the moment solar energy based on silicon is not the optimal solution, with relatively poor efficiency compared to its cost. “What we need is low cost, high efficiency solar cells,” Dr Graetzel said. There is one very promising candidate,
SCIENCE SPIN Issue 48 Page 26