Nanotechnology and its Future Applications

Nanotechnology

Nanotechnology, the term coined by Eric Drexler in the1980s, refers to the engineering of tiny devices and machines. This is a technology involving the potential ability to fabricate structures and devices with atomic precision by controlling the size of the matter at the scale of 1-10nm. It will provide the solution to a large number of problems faced by mankind today. A nanometer is one billionth of a meter (10-9), roughly the width of three or four atoms.

The Potential of Nanotechnology

The potential of nanotechnology is huge and can lead to tremendous miniaturization in wider areas like space systems, medial diagnostic equipments and drug delivery systems. It will enable us to fabricate very sensitive devices and machines, leading to the enhancement of human capabilities to work efficiently, at lowers cost, with more precision and in environmentally friendly ways. Nanotechnology will make it feasible for us to create such sophisticated devices and structures with more flexibility at nanoscale.

Areas in which nanotechnology has future applications and discoveries, which can lead to enormous economical and industrial development, is as follows:

• Macromolecular design and folding
• Self-assembly methods
• Catalysis (inorganic, enzyme and other)
• Dendrimers, fullerenes and other novel chemical structures
• Bioenergetics, nanobatteries and ultrasound-driven chemistry
• Semiconductor-organic/biological interfaces
• Miniaturization and massive parallelism of SFM
• Molecular modeling tool

Applications:

• Energy Storage, Production and Conversion:
  a) Novel hydrogen storage systems based on carbon nanotubes and other
  lightweight nanomaterials
  b) Photovoltaic cells and organic light-emitting devices based on quantum dots
  c) Carbon nanotubes in composite 0.lm coatings for solar cells
  d) Nanocatalysts for hydrogen generation
  e) Hybrid protein-polymer biomimetic membranes
• Agricultural Productivity Enrichment:
  a) Nanoporous zeolites for slow release and efficient dosage of water and
  fertilizers for plants and of nutrients and drugs for livestock
  b) Nanocapsules for herbicide delivery
  c) Nanosensors for soil quality and for plant health monitoring
  d) Nanomagnets for removal of soil contaminants
• Water Treatment and Remediation:
  a) Nanomembranes for water purification, desalination and detoxification
  b) Nanosensors for the detection of contaminants and pathogens
  c) Nanoporous zeolites, nanoporous polymers and attapulgite clays for water purification
  d) Magnetic nanoparticles for water treatment and remediation
  e) TiO 2 nanoparticles for the catalytic degradation of water pollutants
• Disease Diagnosis and Screening:
  a) Nanoliter systems (Lab-on-a-chip)
  b) Nanosensor arrays based on carbon nanotubes
  c) Quantum dots for disease diagnosis
  d) Magnetic nanoparticles as nanosensors
  e) Antibody-dendrimer conjugates for diagnosis of HIV-1 and cancer
  f) Nanowire and nanobelt nanosensors for disease diagnosis
  g) Nanoparticles as medical image enhancers
• Drug Delivery Systems:
  a)Nanocapsules, liposomes, dendrimers, buckyballs, nanobiomagnets
  and attapulgite clays for slow and sustained drug release systems
• Food Processing and Storage:
  a) Nanocomposites for plastic .lm coatings used in food packaging
  b) Antimicrobial nanoemulsions for applications used in decontamination of food equipment or packaging
  c) Nanotechnology-based antigen detecting biosensors for identification of pathogen contamination
• Air Pollution and Remediation:
  a) TiO 2 nanoparticle-based photocatalytic degradation of air pollutants in
  self-cleaning systems
  b) Nanocatalysts for more efficient, cheaper and better-controlled
  catalytic converters
  c) Nanosensors for detection of toxic materials and leaks
  d) Gas separation nanodevices
• Construction - nanomolecular structures to make asphalt and concrete more robust to counter water seepage:
  a) Heat-resistant nanomaterials to block ultraviolet and infrared radiation
  b) Nanomaterials for cheaper and durable housing, surfaces, coatings, glues, concrete and heat and light exclusion
  c) Self-cleaning surfaces (e.g. windows, mirrors, toilets) with bioactive coatings
• Health monitoring Nanotubes and nanoparticles for glucose, CO(2), and cholesterol sensors and for in-site monitoring of homeostasis:
• Vector and pest detection and control:
  a) Nanosensors for pest detection.
  b) Nanoparticles for new pesticides, insecticides and insect repellents

Nanotechnology and Cancer

Majority of animal cells are approximately 10,000 to 20,000 nanometers in width. Consequently, it would be simpler for nano tools to go into and intermingle with the cell's proteins and DNA.

Nanotechnology can be utilized to combat cancer in 2 manners. Firstly, it will be utilized in spotting the existence of cancer much sooner and with superior accuracy as compared to the regular diagnostic techniques, like X-RAYS, MRIs, and biopsies. Secondly, it will be utilized in the obliteration of the cancer, with bigger exactitude and diligence, once it is diagnosed.

Nanotechnology Cancer Treatment

Nanotechnology's supreme guarantee in medical history is its probability to obliterate cancers that up till now have been defiant to conservative cures.

Contemporary radiation and chemotherapy can be best defined as 'carpet bombing' cancer. That implies that fit cells are assaulted together with the cancer cells. The consequence is that the cancer patient undergoes severe spin-offs, together with sickness, hair fall, anemia, and the dilapidation of his/her immunology. The deficiency of accuracy inbuilt in contemporary cancer combating methods at times, implies that not the entire of a cancer is eliminated, leading to a revival of the cancer.

Nanotechnology cancer therapy on the other hand, gives the probability of a cancer combating smart method. Nano tools can be developed that can accurately transport medicines to only the cancer cells, leaving fit cells undamaged. These tools would go into the formerly distinguished cancerous cells and carry the drug or amalgamation of drugs, annihilating the cancer from its roots.

One more prospective system blends nanotechnology with an innovative type of radiation therapy. Carbon nano tubes are set up into cancerous cells. After that an infrared laser is emphasized on the impacted region. The laser warms the nano tubes, leading to the damage of the cancerous cells, leaving fit cells unharmed.

An additional method anticipated for curing cancer would entail nano computers factually redrafting the DNA of cancerous cells to transform them back into standard cells. The concept would be that these tools would inspect the DNA of cancerous cells on the minuscule level, contrasting them to what the DNA of usual cells for the cancer patient ought to be, and then calling in nano fixing devices to repair the DNA.

Summary

This implies that within the life span of majority people, cancer- the big slayer of our time, may no more be laden with the terror we see it with now. The next generation might well see cancer as we see few epidemics from history, such as chicken pox, which are a fraction of history and no more as an element of our daily life.

Nanotechnology and it's Benefits

Nanotechnology is a protective coating that enhances products of any sort of material. It can strengthen and improve the assets to benefit both manufacturers and end users. With the help of Nanotechnology, which is an applied science, new products are created to protect various materials.

Protective coating is a result of nanotechnology. It makes the materials weather resistant and the surface becomes easy to clean as well. Its protective coating exhibits very high resistance to corrosion attack, long term stability in aggressive conditions and an environmentally friendly, easy and economical preparation procedure.

Nanotechnology and its characteristics will be different in the case of each material surface and it is available with standard features and techniques. Nanotechnology uses more techniques and tools for its updating. Nanotechnology research has been made continuously to update technology using different techniques and tools available in the world. New technologies have been used to measure the molecular interactions that take place.

Nanotechnology has the potential to revolutionize the life of materials used in every sector be it industrial, residential, medicines, genetics, communication, textile and many more. It helps to improve products and production processes with better techniques and new functionality.

In coming years, products based on nanotechnology are expected to impact nearly all-industrial sectors and enter the consumer markets in large quantities. Considering the future prospects of nanotechnology, countries across the world are investing heavily in this sector. Diamon Fusion International is one such example that makes the optimum use of nanotechnology by providing glass protection,hydrophobic coating, protective coating to various materials depending on there characters.

Nanotechnology - Nanomedicine

Nanotechnology involves the science and technology of devices and materials, such as drug delivery systems or electronic circuits, that are created on extremely tiny scales – as small as molecules and even atoms. Nanotechnology also involves manipulation of structure matter at molecular levels, involving different fields and specialties such as chemistry, engineering, electronics, medicine and others. All of these fields of study and pursuit are concerned with bringing existing technologies down to a very tiny scale that is measured in, 'nanometers,' which is a billionth of a meter, or about the size of six carbon atoms in a row.

The processes used both today and in the past in the creation of industrial products have involved pushing piles of millions of atoms together through mixing, grinding and heating, a process that is very imprecise. Scientists are now able to pick up individual atoms and assemble them into structures, or cause particular chemical reactions. For example, propellers have been attached to molecular motors and electricity has been conducted through, 'nanowires.' 'Nanotubes,' made of carbon are being investigated for use in a variety of both research and industrial purposes. As the future approaches, the use of nanotechnology might find scientists able to harness the forces that operate at the scale of the nanometer, such as the Van Der Waals force. They may be able to harness the changes in the quantum states of particles for engineering purposes.

One of the promising aspects of nanotechnology where improvement of the quality of human life is concerned includes the potential for new treatments for disease. Tiny autonomous robots or, 'nanobots,' might one day be sent into a person's body to cure cancer or repair cells, or possibly even extend the person's life span by a number of years. At this time the simple devices that have been created by nanotechnology are not of the complexity envisioned with nanomachines and nanobots.

Nanotechnology Background

Nanotechnology has emerged from the chemical, physical, biological and engineering sciences. Novel techniques are being developed by scientists in these fields to both probe and manipulate individual atoms and molecules. The tools these scientists have developed have enabled a variety of new discoveries regarding the ways in which properties of matter are governed by the atomic and molecular arrangements at nanometer dimensions. The discoveries that have been made have had an impact on the processing of a wide-range of devices and materials. The results have been substantial improvements in existing technologies, as well as entirely new ones. Control of the design properties, materials, as well as devices at the nanoscale is possible through exploitation of strategies which are often complemented by top-down engineering approaches.

Nanotechnology-based approaches are poised to revolutionize research biology and medicine. In another example, with the significant progress in understanding the genetic basis of biochemical pathways that are involved in both injury and disease processes, there is a great need for highly-sensitive, real-time monitoring and detection technologies. Nanotechnology may be used to design diagnostic systems that are multi-functional and multi-analytic; ones that not only define early stage changes or progression of disease states, but also identify unique biological molecules, structures and chemicals. There are nanotechnologies related to imaging for metastasis, inflammation, and angiogenesis that are emerging. Nanotechnology and nanoscience are presenting new opportunities for the treatment and management of traumatic injuries and diseases. Multifunctional materials on nanoscales that capitalize on progress in proteomics and genomics are allowing targeted delivery of molecular therapies with enhanced efficacy.

Studies that use nanotechnology concepts and techniques and focus on biological processes have the potential to provide new insight into the physical relationships between cellular components and functional irregularities that trigger pathological abnormalities. Nanoscience and the technologies emerging from it offer a means of controlling the design and assembly of biomolecular processes that are very relevant to health and disease. In another example, while the processes involved in energy conversion offer a means of constructing a biomolecular machine through enzymology and structural biology have been studied for a number of years, nanotechnology and nanoscience present a means of creating a biomolecular machine that uses biological energy sources in new ways.

NanoTechnology, Nanomedicine, and the Future

Nanotechnologies, applied to the medical field, could allow doctors to search out and destroy the very first cancer cells that would otherwise have caused a tumor to develop. Nanotechnologies could remove a broken portion of a cell and replace it with a miniature biological machine, or deliver medicines exactly where and when they are needed. Nanomedicine is an offshoot of nanotechnology, and refers to highly-specific medical intervention at the molecular scale for curing diseases or repairing damaged tissues. The pursuit of nanomedicine on the part of researchers at the National Institute of Health (NIH) began several years ago, with results expected within ten years of their launch date in 2005.

Research into nanotechnology started with discoveries of unique chemical and physical properties of various carbon-based or metallic materials which only appear for structures at nanometer-sized dimensions. The ability to understand the scale of these properties allows engineers to build new structures and use the materials in new ways. The same thing is true for biological structures inside living cells within the human body. Researchers have been able to develop powerful tools to categorize the parts of cells in great detail; they are aware of a great amount of detail concerning how intracellular structures operate.

Still, scientists have not been able to answer certain questions. The questions that remain involve things such as, 'How many, ' 'how big,' and, 'how fast?' They must find the answers to these kinds of questions in order to fully understand cellular structures and gain the ability to repair them, or build new nanotechnology structures that can safely operate inside the human body. Once scientists have achieved this, they will be able to work with others to build better diagnostic tools and engineer nanoscale structures for specific treatments of diseases or tissues that have been damaged.

The NIH established a national network of eight Nanomedicine Development Centers to serve as the intellectual and technological centerpiece of the NIH Nanomedicine Roadmap Initiative. The centers are staffed by research teams that include physicians, biologists, engineers, mathematicians, and computer scientists. The initial phase of the program found the centers pursuing research aimed at gathering extensive information about the chemical and physical properties of nanoscale biological structures. Because of the catalogue the NIH has been able to create, they are gaining a greater understanding of nature's rules of biological design that will enable their researchers to correct defects in unhealthy cells. The research requires the development of new devices for a broad range of biomedical applications, such as detecting infectious agents or metabolic imbalances, with new and tiny sensors, replacing items inside of cells with new nanoscale structures, or generating miniature devices that have the capability to search for and destroy infectious agents.

The NIH is approaching phase two of the program, which has been approved. During phase two of the Nanomedicine initiative, the fundamental knowledge and developed tools they have acquired will be applied to both understanding and treatment of disease. The centers will continue their pursuit of knowledge, expanding it in regards to the science of nanostructures in living cells. They will gain the capability to engineer biological nanostructures, apply their knowledge, tools, and devices – and focus on targeting specific diseases.

Nanotechnology Fundamental Techniques

Introduction to nanotechnology manipulates the atomic properties of nanotechnology materials. Nanotechnology is the broad classification of applied science and technologies evolving around. Nanotechnology comprises of physics, material science, and applied science different disciplines. The characteristic of nanotechnology will be different and it comes up with standard features and techniques. It is designed and produced specifically to meet wide applications. It is used to control, manipulate the molecular level of the scale and it ranges with regards to the fabrication devices.

Nanotechnology in medicine has been made with regards to nanotechnology research and nanotechnology reports. Generally, Nanotechnologies have been classified under multidisciplinary or interdisciplinary field of science and technology and more nanotechnology materials have been updated constantly. It is confined has mechanical and electrical engineering. The popular nanotechnology among the customer is molecular nanotechnology which is used to operate molecular scale. The main purpose of introduction to nanotechnology is that it produces desire structure or device using principles.

Nanotechnology uses more techniques and tools for its updating. Nanotechnology includes techniques for fabrication such as deep ultraviolet lithography, electron beam lithography, atomic layer deposition, and molecular vapor deposition. With regards to nanotechnology research and nanotechnology reports, it is come to know that it is possible to measure nanostructures and it is functionality. Nanotechnology can be used for wide applications and it has been designed specifically to meet the requirement of the customers around the world. Nanotechnology is an extension of existing sciences which interprets as nano scale or as recasting of existing science using new technology research.

Nanotechnology research has been made continuously to update technology using different techniques and tools available in the world. New technologies have been used to measure the molecular interactions that take place. Two different approaches have been insisted in nanotechnology to control, assist and to manipulate the molecular level of the scales. The fabrication techniques used ranges and the applications of structures differ. The design, devices for nanotechnology used for production to control the manipulation of size and shape of the scale which produces structural and characteristic for the technology updated.

Nanotechnology uses techniques to suit for applications such as field emission, plastics, energy storage, adhesives/connectors, molecular electronics, fibers and fabrics and for other applications. More number of manufacturers is interested in manufacturing tools required for nanotechnology and they provides and update for reasonable price consideration. To use nanotechnology or its updating, more assumption has been created with regards to science and technology which results from nanotechnology research.