Tag Archives: Herbert von Bose

Nanosafety in Europe: a proposed research strategy for 2015 – 2025

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It looks like one of those ‘nanosafety’ days since earlier today I posted US NISOH (National Institute of Occupational Health and Safety) invites you to a meeting about nanomaterials and risk and now I have this June 25, 2013 news item on Nanowerk describing a European initiative,

The Finnish Insitute of Occupational Health, together with the members of the European Nanosafety Cluster, that is, over a hundred European nanosafety research experts, have produced a research strategy for the European Commission. [emphasis mine] The strategy outlines the focal points of nanomaterial safety research for the Commission’s 8th framework programme (Horizon 2020).

The document, Nanosafety in Europe 2015-2025: Towards Safe and Sustainable Nanomaterials and Nanotechnology Innovations, available for free, is over 200 pp. and it was presented, according to the June 20, 2013 Finnish Institute of Occupational Health press release, at the EuroNanoForum being held in Dublin, Ireland from June 18 – 20, 2013.  (The forum was last mentioned in my June 12, 2013 post about Ireland’s Nanoweek which is taking place concurrently [more or less]). From the Finnish Institute of Occupational Health and Safety (FIOH) June 20, 2013 press release,

The document outlines the requirements of strategic research. The focus should be on research that also aims to determine the characteristics of nanomaterials that may be biologically harmful to both people and the environment.

”The ultimate issue of the whole nano field is the safety of the materials and technologies used. One of the goals of the research is that in the future we will be able to group industrially produced nanomaterials easily and economically according to their characteristics, and that we will be able to anticipate the possible health risks of the materials to consumers and the workers who handle them,” stresses specialist research scientist Lea Pylkkänen from FIOH, who co-ordinated the work on the research strategy.

Nanotechnology is defined as a key enabling technology (KET) in the Horizon 2020 programme. It is also considered a significant field from the perspective of European competitiveness, for example.
Research strategy the product of over one hundred European researchers

FIOH produced the research strategy together with the members of the European Nanosafety Cluster, that is, over a hundred european nanosafety research experts. These represented, for example, exposure and risk assessment, molecular biology, toxicology, and material research. Finnish experts involved were from FIOH, the Universtiy of Eastern Finland, the Tampere University of Technology, the Finnish Safety and Chemicals Agency, and the VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland. If needed, the strategy can be later updated.

EU funding is crucial for Finnish nanotechnology and nanosafety research and for the existence of the Nanosafety Centre, for example.

”Domestic funding in this field is scarce: Finland does not have a single funding programme that focuses on nanoresearch. Only individual research projects occasionally receive funding from, for example, the Academy of Finland and the Finnish Work Environment Fund,” Savolainen says.

FIOH’s Nanosafety Research Centre is the leading European research centre for the safety of industrial nanoparticle safety, especially in the field of occupational safety.
Ceremonial presentation of the research programme

Research Professor Kai Savolainen will present the 220-page Nanosafety in Europe 2015-2025: Towards Safe and Sustainable Nanomaterials and Nanotechnology Innovations research strategy to the European Commission and the representatives of the Irish government on Thursday 20 June in Dublin, Ireland at the NanoSafety Cluster meeting, during the EuroNanoForum 2013 congress. Representing the Commission will be Herbert von Bose, European Commission Research DG Director, Industrial Technologies and Christos Tokamanis, Head of Unit, New Generation Products,  Directorate G – Industrial Technologies. Sharon McGuinness, Assistant Chief Executive of the Health and Safety Authority will represent the Irish government.

I’m trying to imagine the logistics involved in having more than 100 researchers collaborate (as per the excerpt from the news item).

Unfortunately, I haven’t had time to look at the report yet but if you manage to take a look at it, please do let me know what you think about it.

Dublin (Ireland) hosts Europe’s largest nanotechnology conference

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The announcement of Dublin’s nano hosting duties is in a Mar. 14, 2013 news item on Nanowerk  (Note: A link has been removed),

The 6th biannual conference, EuroNanoForum 2013, will gather experts and decision-makers of the nanotechnology community to Dublin this June. EuroNanoForum 2013 is the largest nanotechnology conference in Europe and will focus on the impact of nanotechnology in improving people’s lives, especially in the key societal sectors such as health, energy and environment. The event coincides with Nanotech Europe exhibition and the Nanoweek Ireland.

“The conference showcases innovation as a driver of economic growth. New technologies arising from nano-science and their applications are presented and potential new end products are discussed”, describes Herbert von Bose, Director, European Commission, DG Research & Innovation, Industrial Technologies.

The EuroNanoForum March 14, 2013 news release, which originated the news item, can be found here.

The forum organizers have created a Hot Topics page on the conference website (you can register for EuroNanoForum 2013 here) which provides some compelling reasons for attending,

Self-cleaning walls, lightweight airplanes and hydrogen fueled scooters drive the nano-future at EuroNanoForum 2013

We claim that by 2030, Europe will be a frontrunner in sustainable economy. The European Cleantech sector is steadily growing and it is taking a leading position in the global markets.  Companies, nations, and international consortia will capitalise on the business opportunity and what we have so far seen is just the tip of a vastly growing iceberg.

In EuroNanoForum 2013 Henning Zoz, the President of the Zoz Group, will present a concept which will revolutionize the refueling infrastructure. In the plenary, Nano in everyday life, he will elaborate on his company’s innovation – small tank cartridges containing nanostructured powder that can store an enormous amount of hydrogen virtually without pressure. With such changeable tanks it is already possible to drive a scooter, at Zoz GmbH in Wenden. The innovation ensures that surplus electricity output from renewable energy sources economically converted into hydrogen can be consumed as transportation-fuel.

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Cure for cancer and improving hearing implants

Hans Hofstraat, VP of Philips Healthcare, and Patrick Boisseau, the Chairman of the ETP Nanomedicine, will lead the cadre of healthcare specialists in EuroNanoForum 2013. In Dublin we will hear what is the role of nanotechnology in answering the societal challenge of ageing populations. Moreover, will nano make vital medicine available to all people – not only in Europe but worldwide?

Over 60 million citizens in the EU suffer from hearing loss with its associated restrictions. Pascal Senn, Project Coordinator of NanoCi project from University of Bern, will present on the first conference day at the Healthcare session, how their project is developing implants to improve hearing. Using functional nano-materials, including carbon nanotubes, NanoCi aims at developing a cost-efficient and fully implantable neuro-prosthesis with substantially increased sound quality.

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The Graphene Flagship will sail to EuroNanoForum 2013

The European Commission has chosen Graphene as one of Europe’s first 10-year, 1,000 million euro FET flagships. The mission of the flagship is to take graphene and related layered materials from academic laboratories to society, revolutionize multiple industries and create economic growth and new jobs in Europe. The Graphene flagship is a new form of joint, coordinated research initiative of unprecedented scale. It brings together an academic-industrial consortium aiming at a breakthrough for technological innovation. Involved are Nobel Laureates, top-notch research groups and the next generation industrial leaders.

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From the start in 2013 the Graphene Flagship will coordinate 126 academic and industrial research groups in 17 European countries with an initial 30-month-budget of 54 million euro. The consortium will be extended with another 20-30 groups through an open call, issued soon after the start of the initiative, just after EuroNanoForum 2013. Will you sail with the ship or be left behind on the shore?

Wish I could be there.

ETA Apr. 22, 2013: Drat! I don’t like it when someone else does it. Well, I like it even less when I do it! I see the EuroNanoforum dates are not mentioned, they are June 18 – 20, 2013.