Technology Update

Thermal plasma processes have many existing and potential advantages for both nanoparticle synthesis and the deposition of nanostructured coatings.

Researchers in the US have discovered a new form of carbon produced by “activating” expanded graphite oxide.

Researchers in the US have made the first precise measurements on the “edge states” of graphene nanoribbons. These states have been predicted to have extraordinary properties and the work could help build improved nanoscale devices in the future. http://nanotechweb.org/cws/article/tech/45979

What happens to the nanosilver in your T-shirt when you wash it?  And if the nanoparticles wash out, what is the impact on the environment?  The use of such particles in everything from hygiene articles and cosmetics, to food and textiles, is increasing all the time, yet little is known about its effects on the […]

Nanotechnology’s dirty little secret, according to this article, is that while using nanoscale materials may hold great promise, making these particles often comes at a high cost in terms of energy, water, or the use of toxic chemicals.

Researchers at the Asian Institute of Technology (AIT) have successfully shown that visible light and zinc oxide nanorods can destroy bacterial water contamination. 

The US-EU-Africa-Asia-Pacific and Caribbean Nanotechnology Initiative (USEACANI) will be holding a conference from September 25 to 29 in New York City, New York, United States. 

Nanoparticles can be found in foods, energy drinks and dietary supplements, but most consumers are unaware they are ingesting these particles, because the United States Food and Drug Administration does not require such information to be printed on labels, according to this article. 

Researchers from the A*STAR Singapore Institute of Manufacturing Technology and Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, have developed tiny porous frameworks of zinc-antimony nanoflakes that could have a big impact on future hybrid vehicles and electronic devices. 

A European Commission-funded project has developed a lab-on-a-chip that can monitor drinking water and spot different pathogens, even at very low concentrations. 

The French Agency for Food, Environment, Health and Occupational Safety (Anses) has developed a new risk assessment technique to control possible risks from exposure to nanoparticles. 

The European Food Safety Authority this week published a guidance document for the risk assessment of engineered nanomaterial (ENM) applications in food and feed. 

Arboranano, a not-for-profit network made up of members representing multiple business sectors, universities and non-profit organizations with the goal of creating a new Canadian bioeconomy based on innovative, highly‐engineered, carbon‐neutral products containing nanomaterials, has announced the launch of nine new research and development projects targeting innovative paper grades, improved foams and nanocomposite developments using forest […]

This study, in the Journal of Environmental Monitoring, focused on the effect of titanium dioxide and zinc oxide nanoparticles on wheat growth and soil enzyme activities under field conditions. 

Researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), United States, have created sensors comprised of carbon nanotubes coated with protein fragments found in bee venom that are so sensitive they can pick up a single molecule of an explosive such as TNT. 

The practical use of visible light and zinc oxide nanorods for destroying bacterial water contamination has been successfully demonstrated by researchers in Thailand.

Focused ion beam (FIB) processing is a useful technique for fabricating uniform micro/nanostructured patterns on gold thin film.

There has been much interest in improving the aspect ratio of AFM probes by fabricating needle-like structures on the probe tip to allow accurate profiling of samples with high, steep features.

Graphene – the high-potential allotrope of carbon, which is made of a hexagonal-honeycomb array of sp2 hybridized carbon atoms – has been attracting the attention of nanotechnology researchers for the past couple of decades.

Researchers from China West Normal University have prepared uniform co-ordination polymer nanobelts on a large scale by mixing AgNO3 and 4,4′-bipyridine in solution. In further work, the team has demonstrated the great application of this striking material as an effective sensing platform for fluorescence-enhanced DNA detection. http://nanotechweb.org/cws/article/lab/45913

Researchers from Kanagawa Industrial Technology Center, Tokyo Institute of Technology and Phoeton Corporation are busy developing high-throughput nanofabrication techniques and looking at the mechanisms that underpin the processes in more detail. http://nanotechweb.org/cws/article/lab/45914