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EPA Awards $4 Million in Grants to Investigate Environmental Implications of Nanotechnology
Friday, November 12, 2004
WASHINGTON - EPA’s Assistant Administrator for Research and Development Dr. Paul Gilman today announced EPA has awarded grants to 12 universities to investigate the potential implications of manufactured nanomaterials on human health and the environment. The grants were awarded through EPA’s Science to Achieve Results (STAR) research grants program.
Nanotechnology can be described as the ability to work at the molecular level, atom by atom, to create materials and structures with fundamentally new functions and characteristics that give them unique properties.
Currently there is limited scientific information about implications of manufactured nanomaterials on human health and the environment. Potentially harmful effects of nanotechnology might arise as a result of the nature of the nanomaterials themselves and the characteristics of the products made from them. Six of the grants focus on the potential toxicity of manufactured nanomaterials on human health or the environment. The other six grants will study the fate and transport of nanomaterials in the environment.
“This emerging field has the potential to transform environmental protection,” said Dr. Gilman, “but at the same time, we must understand whether nanomaterials in the environment can have an adverse impact. This research will help determine the utility of nanotechnology as a vital tool for protecting our environment.”
The announcement was made at the Nano2004 Conference in Baltimore, Maryland.
Nanoscale materials are being used in a wide range of products, such as sunscreens, composites, medical devices, and chemical catalysts. As new nanomaterials are manufactured, there is the potential of human and environmental exposure from waste streams or other pathways entering the environment. Since there is a lack of information about the health effects of manufactured nanomaterials – including nanoparticles, nanotubes, nanowires, and others – this research will focus on the potential toxicity of, and exposure to, nanomaterials that are purposefully manufactured.
More information on the nanotechnology STAR grants and the 12 recipients is available at: http://cfpub.epa.gov/ncer_abstracts/index.cfm/fuseaction/recipients.display/rfa_id/352; general information about the STAR grants program is available at: http://es.epa.gov/ncer/grants/
The grants were awarded to the following universities:
Arizona State University, Tempe, Ariz., $455,000 – Scientists will evaluate whether nanomaterials can efficiently remove toxic organic pollutants and viruses from drinking water and test the toxicity of these nanomaterials.[Project Abstract]
Brown University, Providence, R.I., $335,000 – Researchers will study the physical and chemical factors related to the potential toxicity of inhaled nanofibers and nanotubes.[Project Abstract]
University of California, Davis, Davis, Calif., $335,000 – Researchers will investigate the health effects of inhaled nanomaterials.[Project Abstract]
University of California, Santa Barbara, Calif., $332,000 – Researchers will investigate the effects of fluorescent nanoparticles or quantum dots and their breakdown products on bacteria and biofilms.[Project Abstract]
University of Delaware, Newark, Del., $335,000 – The goal of this research project is to assess the short-term , chronic toxicity of light-activated, catalytic nanoparticles on aquatic organisms.[Project Abstract]
University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa, $335,000 – Researchers will help determine the potential impact on human health of manufactured nanomaterial aerosols processed through the atmosphere.[Project Abstract]
North Carolina State University, Raleigh, N.C., $329,000 – The focus of this research is to assess the nature of interaction between manufactured nanoparticles and the skin.[Project Abstract]
Purdue University, West Lafayette, Ind., $335,000 – The goal of this proposal is to provide fundamental information about the impact of carbon-based manufactured nanoparticles on water, soil and subsurface microbial ecosystems.[Project Abstract]
Rice University, Houston, Texas, $334,000 – Researchers will assess the a dsorption and release of contaminants onto engineered nanoparticles.[Project Abstract]
University of Rochester, Rochester, N.Y., $335,000 – This project will provide toxicological information related to nanoparticle dose, size, composition, and effects on the lung.[Project Abstract]
University of South Carolina, Columbia, S.C., $335,000 – Researchers will determine the chemical and biological behavior of carbon nanotubes in estuarine sedimentary systems to determine how they are transported, accumulate, and whether they have harmful effects.[Project Abstract]
University of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah, $333,000 – Researchers will determine how lung cells respond to the metals in manufactured nanoparticles.[Project Abstract]
EPA relies on quality science as the basis for sound policy and decision-making. EPA’s laboratories, research centers, and grantees are building the scientific foundation needed to support the Agency’s mission to safeguard human health and the environment.