Tag Archives: University of Maine

Harvard University announced new Center on Nano-safety Research

Leave a reply

The nano safety center at Harvard University (Massachusetts, US) is a joint center with the US National Institute of Environmental Health  Sciences according to an Aug. 29, 2016 news item on Nanowerk,

Engineered nanomaterials (ENMs)—which are less than 100 nanometers (one millionth of a millimeter) in diameter—can make the colors in digital printer inks pop and help sunscreens better protect against radiation, among many other applications in industry and science. They may even help prevent infectious diseases. But as the technology becomes more widespread, questions remain about the potential risks that ENMs may pose to health and the environment.

Researchers at the new Harvard-NIEHS [US National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences] Nanosafety Research Center at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health are working to understand the unique properties of ENMs—both beneficial and harmful—and to ultimately establish safety standards for the field.

An Aug. 16, 2016 Harvard University press release, which originated the news item, provides more detail (Note: Links have been removed),

“We want to help nanotechnology develop as a scientific and economic force while maintaining safeguards for public health,” said Center Director Philip Demokritou, associate professor of aerosol physics at Harvard Chan School. “If you understand the rules of nanobiology, you can design safer nanomaterials.”

ENMs can enter the body through inhalation, ingestion, and skin contact, and toxicological studies have shown that some can penetrate cells and tissues and potentially cause biochemical damage. Because the field of nanoparticle science is relatively new, no standards currently exist for assessing the health risks of exposure to ENMs—or even for how studies of nano-biological interactions should be conducted.

Much of the work of the new Center will focus on building a fundamental understanding of why some ENMs are potentially more harmful than others. The team will also establish a “reference library” of ENMs, each with slightly varied properties, which will be utilized in nanotoxicology research across the country to assess safety. This will allow researchers to pinpoint exactly what aspect of an ENM’s properties may impact health. The researchers will also work to develop standardized methods for nanotoxicology studies evaluating the safety of nanomaterials.

The Center was established with a $4 million dollar grant from the National Institute of Environmental Health Science (NIEHS) last month, and is the only nanosafety research center to receive NIEHS funding for the next five years. It will also play a coordinating role with existing and future NIEHS nanotoxicology research projects nantionwide. Scientists from the Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS), MIT, University of Maine, and University of Florida will collaborate on the new effort.

The Center builds on the existing Center for Nanotechnology and Nanotoxicology at Harvard Chan School, established by Demokritou and Joseph Brain, Cecil K. and Philip Drinker Professor of Environmental Physiology, in the School’s Department of Environmental Health in 2010.

A July 5, 2016 Harvard University press release announcing the $4M grant provides more information about which ENMs are to be studied,

The main focus of the new HSPH-NIEHS Center is to bring together  scientists from across disciplines- material science, chemistry, exposure assessment, risk assessment, nanotoxicology and nanobiology- to assess the potential  environmental Health and safety (EHS) implications of engineered nanomaterials (ENMs).

The $4 million dollar HSPH based Center  which is the only Nanosafety Research  Center to be funded by NIEHS this funding cycle, … The new HSPH-NIEHS Nanosafety Center builds upon the nano-related infrastructure in [the] collaborating Universities, developed over the past 10 years, which includes an inter-disciplinary research group of faculty, research staff and students, as well as state-of-the-art platforms for high throughput synthesis of ENMs, including metal and metal oxides, cutting edge 2D/3D ENMs such as CNTs [carbon nanotubes] and graphene, nanocellulose, and advanced nanocomposites, [emphasis mine] coupled with innovative tools to assess the fate and transport of ENMs in biological systems, statistical and exposure assessment tools, and novel in vitro and in vivo platforms for nanotoxicology research.

“Our mission is to integrate material/exposure/chemical sciences and nanotoxicology-nanobiology   to facilitate assessment of potential risks from emerging nanomaterials.  In doing so, we are bringing together the material synthesis/applications and nanotoxicology communities and other stakeholders including industry,   policy makers and the general public to maximize innovation and growth and minimize environmental and public health risks from nanotechnology”, quoted by  Dr Philip Demokritou, …

This effort certainly falls in line with the current emphasis on interdisciplinary research and creating standards and protocols for researching the toxicology of engineered nanomaterials.

Doubling paper strength with nanofibrils; a nanocellulose story

Leave a reply

A June 3, 2014 Cerealus news release on PR Newswire announces a successful commercial trial for a new nanoscale process making paper stronger,

Cerealus, working with the University of Maine Process Development Center continues to be a leader in innovative technologies for Paper and Forestry research. Utilizing Cerealus’ unique starch encapsulation technology and UMaine’s proprietary developments, the collaborative effort enabled a novel bio-based cellulose nanofibrils (CNF) process to be used in paper and paperboard manufacturing at significantly higher levels than previously possible to develop high strength, lightweight and lower cost paper and paperboard.

The latest commercial trial doubled cellulose Nanofibril utilization in paper with the patent pending starch encapsulation technology, marketed as Cerenano™. This project confirms the promise of nanotechnology to deliver dramatic improvement in sheet density, porosity, surface quality and Z-direction strength (internal bond). Paper mills can expect:

  •     Tighter sheet
  •     More uniform surface
  •     Better printability
  •     Reduced opacity
  •     Reduced energy requirements

The collaborative private/public partnership has significantly improved the economic prospects for deploying nanotechnology in paper, wood and forestry products. A recent report estimates the current addressable market for nano cellulose at $500 million for North America.

Mike Bilodeau, Director of the UMaine Process Development Center underscored the commercial scalability of this project by saying, “This technology represents a significant break-through in the ability to leverage the unique properties of cellulose nanofibrils in paper and paperboard products.”

Tony Jabar, CEO and founder of Cerealus goes on to say, “Cerealus takes great pride in taking a lead role to create cutting edge nanocellulose technology. Successful paper makers appreciate innovation as a key to sustained profitability in the challenging paper making sector of our economy. This new development is our third generation technology and demonstrates the value of our collaboration with the University of Maine Process Development Center.”

Cerenano™ is a high performance additive that enables efficient loading of high levels of starch thus creating strong internal bond strength. The successful commercial trial demonstrated positive economic benefits and commercial scalability. The likely next phase in product development will be size press applications.

The University of Maine is working with several private companies and federal agencies to accelerate the commercialization of cellulose nanofibrils. This effort has significant implications to the health of National Forests and private timberland, as well as strategic and economic impacts to the domestic Forest Products Industry.

You can find Cerealus here and Cerenano™ page here where there’s a link to a 50 pp. presentation on Cerenano. From the presentation,

Using Renewable Nanotechnology (and Other Novel Approaches) to Improve Base Paper Performance
AWA Conferences & Events
AWA Silicone Technology Seminar 2014
March 19, 2014
Park Plaza Hotel Amsterdam Airport
Amsterdam, Netherlands
Robert Hamilton
President
Stirling Consulting, Inc.

I was particularly interested to see this (from p. 3 of the presentation),

Cellulose Nanofibrils (CNF)
The Renewable Nanomaterial

• CNF can be made from any plant matter.
# Process uses a series of mechanical refining steps.
# Resulting material is FDA compliant and compatible with any aqueous system. CNF is cellulose.

• Not to be confused with Cellulose NanoCrystals (CNC)
# Produced using more expensive strong acid hydrolysis process.

It’s the first time I’ve stumbled across a comparison of any kind between CNC (also known as NCC, nanocrystalline cellulose) and CNF and I find it quite instructive.

Machine/flesh, robotic venus flytraps, and artificial muscles

Leave a reply

On the heels of yesterday’s musings about machine/flesh in the context of my Carbon nanotubes, neurons, and spinal cords … posting, there’s a new Spotlight essay (on Nanowerk) by Michael Berger titled, Robotic Venus flytrap aids artificial muscle research. From the essay,

Mohsen Shahinpoor, Richard C. Hill Professor & Chairman Mechanical Engineering Department at the University of Maine, has created a robotic replica of the carnivorous Venus flytrap with nanosensors and a thin, pliable metal composite material that he invented as part of his ongoing artificial muscle research. The device offers promise in the development of electrically stimulated artificial muscle that could be implanted in people to help overcome muscular disease or paralysis.

It’s the Venus flytrap’s (Dionaea muscipula) trigger sensitivity to movement (when the plant feels movement along certain hairs, it snaps shut within milliseconds to trap its prey). Here’s an image from the Botanical Society of America’s Mysterious Venus Flytrap webpage which illustrates the hairs (cilia) that act as triggers,

Venus flytrap trigger hairs

I have briefly glanced at the research paper, Biomimetic robotic Venus flytrap (Dionaea muscipula Ellis) made with ionic polymer metal  composites (open access PDF), published by IOP Publishers in its Bioinspiration & Biomimetics journal (vol. 6, no. 4). The introduction, the conclusion, and the images are the most accessible for someone (like me) who doesn’t have a background in electrical engineering. Here’s a bit from the introduction (Note: I have removed the bibiographic notes),

The rapid closure of the VFT lobes in about hundreds of milliseconds is one of the fastest nastic movements in higher plants. Darwin described the VFT plant as ‘one of the most wonderful plants in the world’. Mechanical stimulation of trigger hairs in the lobes of the VFT by a prey causes the traps to close rapidly. The reader is referred to a number of studies on the mechanism of closing of lobes of the VFT as described in … Note that Batalin was the first to propose a possible mechanism for such nastic movements in higher plants. Sibaoka discussed the physiology of rapid movements in higher plants.

…

Here, we propose that the mechanisms of sensing of the prey wiggling in its lobes by the trigger hairs and the trap closing of VFT are very similar to sensing and actuation mechanisms in IPMCs and thus one can design, fabricate and operate a biomimetic robotic VFT equipped with IPMCs [ionic polymeric metal composite].

The researchers don’t mention any applications (none I could find in the paper) for these progenitors to artificial muscles but Berger notes at the end of his essay,

The development of artificial muscles is one of the key areas for bionic enhancements or replacements. Artificial muscles like these could find applications in the medical field or for engineering applications.

I suppose you can’t call the possible integration in medical applications of these artificial muscles machine/flesh so much as they are plant/machine/flesh.