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BIOAVAILABILITY, ENVIRONMENTAL TRANSFORMATION, AND DETOXIFICATION OF CORE/SHELL NANOMATERIALS
Impact/Purpose:
Many engineered nanomaterials possess a core containing a chemical toxicant with known adverse health effects, surrounded by a more biocompatible shell. Materials in this class include quantum dots and catalytically synthesized carbon nanotubes, which are both high priority materials for large scale commercial development. The protective properties of these shells are highly uncertain due to nanoscale dimension, and as a result, the bioavailability of the core toxicant becomes a key property governing health risk. We hypothesize that core toxicant bioavailability will depend on shell structure, environmental transformation, processing stresses, and intra/extra-cellular biological modifications that influence toxicant release profiles in environmental organisms and humans. We further hypothesize that these relationships, once understood, will offer opportunities to synthesize, handle, reformulate, and/or post-process the nanomaterials in a way that minimizes environmental and human health risk.
Description:
The proposed research is targeted at minimizing environmental and health risks associated with commercial nanotubes and quantum dots by proper management of core chemical toxicants. The work will lead to validated chemical screening assays for bioavailability assessment, data on environmental degradation and toxicant release throughout the product lifecycle, and practical protocols for material detoxification through coatings, surface treatment, or targeted removal of bioavailable (free) metal.