The Surprising Ways Nanotechnology Is Changing the World Around Us

Outline

• Nanotechnology in the fight against cancer
• Nanotechnology in the fight against climate change
• Nanotechnology cleans up oil spills

Highlights

id448694570 Nanotechnology in the fight against cancer

Standard cancer treatments are wide-ranging, and run the risk of damaging nearby healthy tissues. Whether a doctor chooses surgery, chemotherapy, or radiation, it's difficult to target tumors exclusively. As a result, some patients have extended recovery times, and unwanted side effects (via the National Cancer Institute).

Nanotech therapies offer the ability to enter the body, and deliver drugs or other treatments directly to the targeted cancer cells without damaging healthy tissues. As the National Cancer Institute explains, despite nanoparticles being smaller than individual cells, they are still large enough to enclose molecular compounds. That makes them effective drug-carrying vessels. Moreover, they can be tuned to seek out characteristics specific to cancerous tissues. In essence, they don't open fire until they find the right target.

In the fight against cancer, nanotechnology isn't stopping at just delivering new treatment methods; it's also helping to make existing treatments more effective. Some cancers have native resistance to treatments like chemotherapy and immunotherapy. However, researchers at Tel Aviv University have developed nanoparticles that use RNA to effectively disable a tumor's built-in armor, leaving them vulnerable to attack from conventional treatments (via EurekAlert!). It carries a one-two punch which turns off the cancer's HO1 enzyme to weaken the tumor's defenses while also ramping up the patient's immune response.

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id448696252 Nanotechnology in the fight against climate change

As human-driven climate change rages on, the search for alternative energy sources is kicking into high gear. Scientists are now developing nanotechnology systems for harvesting energy from the environment, or even from human movements.

A team at the University of Texas at Dallas has created a form of yarn, which they call twistrons, that contains nanofibers. When the fibers are stretched or bent, the kinetic energy is translated into electrical energy, which can be measured or harvested (via the University of Texas at Dallas).

In terms of large-scale energy generation, the fibers could be implemented into devices placed in the environment, and gather energy from the natural movements of waves or wind. Perhaps more interestingly, the fibers can be woven into everyday garments and worn, generating electricity as the wearer goes about their day.

To test that potential application, researchers crafted a glove containing twistrons. The wearer then moved their fingers to form various letters in American Sign Language. Not only did the glove successfully generate electricity, but the researchers were also able to distinguish the different signs being made based on the energy output. As a result, the glove could also be used as a self-powered sign language translation device.

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A startup called SkyNano was founded by Anna Douglas while she was pursuing a Ph.D. from Vanderbilt University. The company has developed an electrochemical process that captures gaseous CO2 emissions, and converts them into solid carbon nanotubes. Greenhouse gases go in, and carbon nanotubes and oxygen come out (via Forbes).

The technology has the benefit of sequestering carbon that would have made its way into the atmosphere — indeed, the company claims the carbon can be stored for more than 1,000 years — and there are additional downstream applications. As made apparent by the other technologies we've discussed, carbon nanotubes have all manner of applications across the nanotechnology space.

This technology is capable of taking one of humanity's biggest problems, and transforming it into a useful resource that could do a lot of good. They estimate they can address 10% of global emissions, which isn't a whole solution on its own, but it's nothing to scoff at.

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id448696835 Nanotechnology cleans up oil spills

The process is relatively simple. These particles could be deployed at a spill site where they'll mix in with the oil. Because the particles are hydrophobic, there's little risk that they'll mix in with the water. Once we have an oil and nanoparticle slurry, it's just a matter of using magnets to grab onto the mix, and separate it from the water (via CNN). What's more, researchers suggest the particles could then be removed from the oil, if desired, so that it could be used as intended. 🔗