Thermal Decomposition/incineration of Nano-Enabled Products (NEPs): Environmental Health and Safety Implications

PI：Philip K. DemokritouProposal Number：CBET - 1436450纳米材料使越来越多的新材料得以生产。这些产品被称为纳米产品（NEP）。由于纳米材料组分的尺寸非常小，因此存在未归因于其散装对应物的额外物理、化学和生理危害。因此，非核能源的扩散在其生命周期内，包括在其生命周期结束时的处置，构成了潜在的环境健康和安全风险。具体而言，NEP在高温下分解并释放纳米材料，当它们被焚烧以进行最终处置或在偶然的火灾下时。拟议的研究是生成一个数据库，并提供有关如何发生这种热分解的基本知识。有了这些知识，就有可能设计出更安全的NEP。也就是说，“设计更安全”的能力将有助于消除非能源产品的风险不确定性，并有助于纳米技术产业的可持续发展。除了对工业界的贡献外，这项拟议中的研究还将让学生参与研究，并在波士顿地区的公立学校和爱德华·M。肯尼迪卫生职业学院。在焚烧设施或偶然发生的火灾中，非核能源的热分解可能会释放出合成过程中使用的纳米级材料，对空气和土壤造成危害，并对环境和人类健康造成潜在威胁和风险。有一个主要的知识差距，广泛使用的家庭的非颗粒，潜在的纳米释放机制，副产品的特点和潜在的纳米EHS影响的热分解的基本原理。为了填补这一巨大的知识空白，提出了一种新的方法学途径，利用体外和体内实验，以目前的纳米风险评估范式，以解决焚烧过程中的非颗粒物质的EHS影响：1）开发“最佳实践”的方法，适用于与非颗粒物质热分解相关的现实暴露的产生，物理化学和毒理学表征; 2）证明这些方法的可重复性，并建立我们对影响目前市场上代表性NEP类别的纳米释放的因素的知识;以及3）利用开发的方法和知识来生成“通过设计更安全”的NEP和暴露控制策略。

PI: Philip K. DemokritouProposal Number: CBET - 1436450 Nano-sized materials have enabled an increasing number of new materials to be produced. These manufactured products are called Nano-Enabled Products (NEPs). Because of the extremely small sizes of the nano-material components, there are additional physical, chemical, and physiological hazards not attributed to their bulk counterparts. The proliferation of NEPs thus poses potential environmental health and safety (EHS) risks during their life cycle, including their disposal at the end of their life-cycle. Specifically, NEPs decompose and release nano-materials under elevated temperatures when they are incinerated for their final disposal or under incidental fires. The proposed study is to generate a data base and to provide knowledge on the fundamentals of how such thermal decomposition takes place. With this knowledge it should be possible to design safer NEPs. That is, the "safer-by-design" capability will help to remove risk-uncertainties of NEPs and contribute to the sustainability of the nano-technology industry. Besides contributions to industry, the proposed study will involve students in research and train K-12 teachers and students in Boston area public schools and the Edward M. Kennedy Academy of Health Careers. Thermal decomposition of NEPs, either in incineration facilities or in incidental fires, may release nano-scale materials used in their synthesis and produce air and soil hazards and potential threats and risks to the environmental and human health. There is a major knowledge gap on the fundamentals of thermal decomposition of widely used families of NEPs, potential nano-release mechanisms, and characteristics of byproducts and potential nano-EHS implications. In order to fill this large knowledge gap, a new methodological approach, using both in-vitro and in-vivo experiments, is proposed to the current nano-risk assessment paradigm to address EHS implications of NEPs during incineration: 1) Develop "best practice" methods suitable for the generation, physico-chemical and toxicological characterization of realistic exposures associated with thermal decomposition of NEPs; 2) Demonstrate the reproducibility of these methods and build our knowledge on factors influencing nano-release for representative classes of NEPs currently in the market; and 3) Utilize the developed methods and knowledge to generate "safer by design" NEPs and exposure control strategies.