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Nanocharacterization, Materials Modeling, and Research Integrity as Enablers of Sound Risk Assessment: Designing Responsible Nanotechnology
Author(s) -
Xiarchos Ioannis,
Morozinis Athanasios K.,
Kavouras Panagiotis,
Charitidis Costas A.
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
small
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 3.785
H-Index - 236
eISSN - 1613-6829
pISSN - 1613-6810
DOI - 10.1002/smll.202001590
Subject(s) - nanotechnology , societal impact of nanotechnology , impact of nanotechnology , context (archaeology) , engineering ethics , risk analysis (engineering) , human health , characterization (materials science) , engineering , materials science , business , medicine , paleontology , environmental health , biology
Nanotechnology, as a mature enabling technology, has great potential to boost societal welfare. However, nanomaterials' current and foreseen applications raise serious concerns about their impact on human health and the environment. These concerns emerge because a reliable risk assessment in nanotechnology is yet to be achieved. The reasons for such a shortcoming are the inherent difficulties in characterizing nanomaterials properties. The interaction of characterization with modeling is an open issue and, due to overarching concerns about the reliability of research results, usually framed within the context of research integrity. This essay explores the connection between these different, but deeply intertwined concerns and the way they enable the production of responsible nanotechnology, i.e., nanotechnology devoted to societal welfare.