Growing use of nanoparticles raises questions for researchers

As the use of nanoscale materials in consumer goods increases – including in food, personal care products and medicine – researchers are exploring the possible health and environmental impacts of exposure to nanoparticles.

More and more products contain titanium, silver or zinc that is nano-sized by being burned or crushed into an extremely fine dust and then used as ingredients in products or as a coating.

Such nanomaterials can make products more resilient and effective.

Among those leading research on the effects of nanoparticles is Paul Westerhoff, associate dean of research in ASU’s Ira A. Fulton Schools of Engineering, and a professor in the School of Sustainable Engineering and the Built Environment.

A telling study on the subject, co-authored by Westerhoff and published in the journal Environment Science and Technology, raises many of the questions about nanoparticles use that are now the focus of news media reports such as a recent series in the Montreal Gazette.

Westerhoff is quoted extensively in one of the articles in the series.