Scientists, engineers discuss assessing impacts of work

By Theresa Hogue

Gazette-Times reporter

For the last three years, scientists and engineers have come together on the Corvallis campus of Hewlett-Packard Co. to discuss how to engineer "greener," more sustainable technology. They want to ensure that new technologies don't outpace the research into how these new developments impact humans and the environment.

This year's Greener Nano conference, sponsored by the Oregon Nanoscience and Microtechnologies (ONAMI) Safer Nanomaterials and Nanomanufacturing Initiative, was held Monday and Tuesday at HP.

Jim Hutchison, director of the sponsoring initiative, said the conference is important because most pioneering nanotechnology research developed without examination of its environmental impacts. Investigation of those impacts often came later.

"What we've been arguing in green nano for a long time is …. that implications research should always be done in concert with applications," Hutchinson said "But more than that, what we're trying to do with greener nano is ensure that there's a feedback loop and a synergy, with groups looking at these problems."

Paul Tratnyek is an associate professor in the department of environmental and biomolecular systems at the OGI School of Science and Engineering at Oregon Health & Science University. He works on environmental contaminants. Recently he also became involved in nanotechnology, and he appreciated the chance to meet others who are seeing nanotechnology in a greener light.

"Green chemists and environmental chemists don't usually overlap," Tratnyek said. "Green chemistry is about making products or ways of making products that are more environmentally benign, that don't create problems. Environmental chemists study the chemistry of the environment, and it tends to be (focused on) geological processes or contaminants in the environment."

But Tratnyek's found that there's a lot of common ground, and it's important to begin assessing the overall benefit of nanotechnology as it applies to researchers' individual projects and interests.

Hutchison said ONAMI's approach has really helped create such a synergy.

"Within the last three years, we've really bolstered the team by bringing in toxicology researchers, biologists, chemists, physicists, engineers, really a whole range to cover the whole life cycle of the materials, from their generation through the use phase and all the way to the end of life," Hutchison said. "It may be unusual, but here in Oregon we've brought together a team of researchers that addresses the broad range of scientific topics you need to cover." Because nanotechnology is so new, it's important to act right away to develop safer materials and greener processes before nanotechnology facilities start getting built.

"There's this opportunity to design it right the first time," Hutchison said, "to start from the ground up."