Nanotechnology

Strategic Plan for NIOSH Nanotechnology Research: Filling the Knowledge Gaps

Executive Summary

Nanotechnology is the manipulation of matter on a near-atomic scale to produce new structures, materials, and devices. This technology has the ability to transform many industries and will have numerous applications to areas ranging from medicine to manufacturing. Research in nanoscale technologies is growing rapidly worldwide. By 2015, the National Science Foundation estimates that nanotechnology will have a $1 trillion impact on the global economy and employ 2 million workers, 1 million of which may be in the United States. Nanomaterials may present new challenges to understanding, predicting, and managing potential health risks to workers. Many knowledge gaps remain to be filled before we fully understand how to work safely with these materials. Through strategic planning, research, partnering with others, and making information widely available, NIOSH is working in parallel with the development and implementation of nanotechnology to provide national and world leadership in preventing work-related illness and injury.

Nanotechnology and NIOSH Research

The potential and rapid growth of nanotechnology may far outpace the knowledge about associated safety and health risks. To prevent this from happening, timely targeted research is needed to define risks and provide guidance for safe handling of nanomaterials. A concerted effort is needed by industry, academia, labor, the professions, and government to identify and address the knowledge gaps in a transparent and credible process that coincides with development of this new technology. NIOSH can play an active part in this process through scientific research in occupational safety and health and the development of strategies for worker protection. Thus, NIOSH is supporting the development of a broad spectrum of research and prevention strategies related to nanotechnology. In June 2007, NIOSH reported its progress in conducting nanotechnology research and developing recommendations on the safe handling of nanomaterials, [see report Progress Toward Safe Nanotechnology in the Workplace: A Report from NIOSH Nanotechnology Research Center at http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/topics/nanotech/, DHHS (NIOSH) Publication No. 2007-123].

NIOSH Nanotechnology Research Center (NTRC)

Given the current and future growth of nanotechnology and the potential for wide-scale worker involvement, NIOSH established the NIOSH Nanotechnology Research Center (NTRC) in 2004 to accelerate progress in nanotechnology research across the Institute. The NTRC and its Steering Committee consist of NIOSH scientists from various disciplines who are responsible for developing and guiding NIOSH scientific and organizational plans in nanotechnology health research. Informed by a broad range of collaborations and inputs from government agencies, academia, and the private sector, NIOSH has developed a strategic plan for NIOSH nanotechnology research and guidance.

Vision of the NTRC

The vision of the NTRC is as follows:

Safe nanotechnology by delivering on the Nation’s promise—safety and health at work for all people through research and prevention.

Mission of the NTRC

The mission of the NTRC is to provide national and world leadership for research into the implications of nanoparticles and nanomaterials for work-related injury and illness, and the application of nanoparticles and nanomaterials in occupational safety and health.

The Strategic Plan for NIOSH Nanotechnology Research

The purpose of the strategic plan for NIOSH nanotechnology research and guidance is to provide a tool for coordinating nanotechnology research across the Institute and to provide a guide for enhancing the development of new research efforts that will respond to the challenges of working with a new technology. The strategic plan represents a cohesive, multidimensional, and timely research agenda for addressing knowledge gaps concerning possible worker exposures to nanomaterials, the health risks from such exposure, and development of control technology and prevention measures. From its inception, the strategic planning process has incorporated input from a broad range of collaborators and stakeholders.

Goals for NIOSH Nanotechnology Research:

The goals for NIOSH nanotechnology research are as follows:

1. Determine if nanoparticles and nanomaterials pose risks for work-related injuries and illnesses.
   
   
2. Conduct research to prevent work-related injuries and illnesses by applying nanotechnology products.
   
   
3. Promote healthy workplaces through interventions, recommendations, and capacity building.
   
   
4. Enhance global workplace safety and health through national and international collaborations on nanotechnology research and guidance.

The strategies for achieving these goals consist of intermediate and long-term objectives. The nature of these objectives is described for each goal

• GOAL 1: Determine if nanoparticles and nanomaterials pose risks for work-related injuries and illnesses.
  
  To achieve this goal, NIOSH researchers will determine the relative toxicity of nanoparticles and nanomaterials and identify possible health effects from the early uses of these materials. Critical to assessing risks will be the ability to measure nanoparticles in workplace air. Research will be conducted to develop and validate methods of exposure assessment. The assessment of human health effects will be difficult because only small numbers of workers have been exposed, and they have been exposed for relatively short periods. Innovative research will be needed to monitor the health of this emerging workforce. Animal models need to be developed to provide hazard identification, biological reactions at the route of exposure as well as distal organs, dose-response, time course, information concerning clearance and translocation, and risk assessment information necessary for various nanoparticles and nanomaterials. In addition, in vitro screening tests predictive of in vivo response are needed to develop algorithms relating physicochemical properties to bioactivity. Information and knowledge gained from this research will form the basis of recommendations and guidance on the safe handling of nanomaterials.
  
  
• GOAL 2: Conduct research to prevent work-related injuries and illnesses by applying nanotechnology products.

  Nanotechnology is potentially useful for studying and preventing occupational injuries and illnesses. NIOSH will continue to evaluate the potential applications. Engineered nanomaterials may support the development of high performance filter media, including those used in respirators, coatings in non-soiling/dust-repellant/self-cleaning clothes, fillers for noise absorption materials, fire retardants, protective screens for prevention of roof falls, curtains for ventilation control in mines, catalysts for emissions reduction, and cleanup of pollutants and hazardous substances. Nanotechnology-based sensors and communication devices may help in handling emergencies and in empowering workers to take preventive steps for reducing their risk of injury. The smallness of their size coupled with wireless technology may facilitate development of wearable sensors and systems for real-time monitoring of occupational safety and health hazards. Nanotechnology-based fuel cells, lab-on-chip analyzers, and optoelectronic devices all have the potential to be useful in the safe and efficient design of work itself.

  NIOSH intends to develop a roadmap to pursue these potential nanotechnology applications for the advancement of occupational safety and health in the workplace. Research (using partnerships with industry, academia, and labor) will focus on evaluating feasibility in the laboratory environment followed by testing in the field.

• GOAL 3: Promote healthy workplaces through interventions, recommendations, and capacity building.

  NIOSH intends to address this goal by continuing to develop guidance based on the review of the science and evaluation of current best practices, available knowledge, and professional judgment. NIOSH provided seminal guidance for workers and employers in nanotechnology through the document entitled Approaches to Safe Nanotechnology: An Information Exchange with NIOSH. This document was posted on the NIOSH Web site in October 2005 and updated in August 2006, and will be updated and published within the next two years. NIOSH will continue to develop guidance documents on critical occupational safety and health issues involving nanotechnology.

  NIOSH will continue to evaluate engineering controls, protective equipment, occupational exposure limits, and administrative controls that have been used to reduce occupational exposures to other types of particulates to determine how they might apply to nanoparticle exposures. NIOSH will continue to evaluate medical surveillance and develop guidance for workers involved with nanotechnology. The use of control banding (a hazard-based approach to risk assessment and control) or similar qualitative risk management approaches will be evaluated and, where appropriate, considered for recommendation. The information developed by NIOSH will be widely disseminated and efforts will be made to incorporate it in training programs and occupational safety and health management systems.

• GOAL 4: Enhance global workplace safety and health through national and international collaborations on nanotechnology research and guidance.

  The growth and utilization of nanotechnology is a global phenomenon that requires a global response. The impacts of global influences on labor markets, capital investment, and scientific research are well known and will affect the development of nanotechnology. NIOSH will continue its history of and commitment to working with national and international groups to promote occupational safety and health. Use of national and international partnerships and the establishment of new partnerships will assure timely identification of research needs, development of approaches, and communication of results. This will include the development and dissemination of information and training for occupational safety and health professionals and workers.

The NTRC identified 10 critical research areas that will be used to address the strategic goals:

• Exposure assessment
  
  
• Toxicity and internal dose
  
  
• Epidemiology and surveillance
  
  
• Risk assessment
  
  
• Measurement methods
  
  
• Engineering controls and personal protective equipment
  
  
• Fire and explosion safety
  
  
• Recommendations and guidance
  
  
• Communication and information
  
  
• Applications

The NTRC efforts are organized according to the 10 critical research areas. Targeted research in each of the critical areas is the means by which NIOSH will identify and characterize hazards, assess exposure, characterize risk and develop risk management guidance.

The strategic plan is built on the integration of basic and applied research, developing guidance, and translating results into practice. As nanotechnology grows and is used more widely, new and expanded questions will be raised about its safety and impact on the health of workers. This developing technology calls for a dynamic planning strategy that will continue to evolve as new scientific information is obtained, questions arise, and concerns of stakeholders and partners are raised. By maintaining a dynamic approach, NIOSH will be able to anticipate challenges and provide useful information and knowledge for the safe handling of nanomaterials.

Strategic Plan for NIOSH Nanotechnology Research:
Table of Contents	I. Introduction
Page last modified: March 4, 2008 Page last reviewed: March 4, 2008 Content Source: National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)