Citation:

Rogers, K. ENM-Enabled Consumer Products: the Exposure-Hazard Interface Along the Life Cycle. QEEN2, Washington, DC, October 09 - 10, 2018.

Impact/Purpose:

One of the purposes for this presentation is to summarize ORD’s framework for evaluation of nanoparticles across realistic environmental or biological systems. Consideration of environmental and biological compartments with associated parameters such as transfer rates, affinity coefficients, dissolution rates and other relevant parameters where applicable, will benefit the long-term ability to construct and evaluate quantitative, predictive modeling of both nanomaterial exposures and effects across product life cycles. Another purpose is to showcase some of the Agency’s nanomaterials research under CSS.

Description:

Engineered nanomaterials (ENM) encompass a growing aspect of the global economy. Their safe and sustainable development, use, and eventual disposal requires the capability to forecast and avoid potential human and ecosystem exposures. EPA-ORD’s research approach for health and safety implications of ENM-enabled products, includes evaluation those designed for purposeful releases such as antimicrobial sprays, as well as products such as textiles, food containers or treated lumber involving inadvertent releases of ENMs. ORD’s ENM product lifecycle approach encompasses release, transformation, exposure and possible adverse outcomes. One area of emphasis includes potential exposure to ENM-enabled products as they occur in environmental matrices or at the biological interface. The critical nodes of release, transformation, exposure and effects provide targets for development of functional assays to determine factors that may contribute to estimates of risk. Application, refinement, and demonstration of these methods as well as resulting data from targeted functional assays, will allow better predictions of potential exposures and adverse outcomes.

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