 The development of nanomaterials promises immense technological advances, which in turn pose many questions concerning their potential effects on public health and the environment. Testing is currently underway, involving researchers, public institutions, and industrial and consumer organizations. Arkema is leading several studies and will communicate its results in total transparency.
Evaluating hazards and risks Nanoparticles raise several questions concerning the possibility of their dispersal in the atmosphere and the risks of their inhalation. First of all, “we must distinguish between risks and hazards,” says Daniel Bernard, scientific consultant for Arkema R&D.  “Hazards are intrinsic to a product, while risks are the consequences of being exposed to hazards. A hazardous product that never comes into contact with humans or the environment thus presents no risk.”
Let’s take carbon nanotubes as an example, since they are likely to be widely used in daily life. Are any risks that would prevent their use inherent in their composition? To evaluate this risk, Arkema is seeking to find out if they could ever be dispersed in the atmosphere. “We’re going to drill, saw, heat, burn, and break certain materials containing carbon nanotubes to be certain that a consumer can inflict the most extreme tortures on a product containing nanotubes without incurring any possible risk,” Daniel Bernard explains.
Toxicity isn’t a question of size… Fears about nanomaterials often concern their infinitely small size and the difficulties in detecting their presence. Our current sensors are in fact unable to differentiate between manufactured nanoparticles and the natural and artificial dust particles that populate our environment. Nanomaterials are even able to penetrate living cells. This capability may be useful to the pharmaceutical industry, currently in the process of designing more effective treatments by using nanomaterials to transport active ingredients to a cell’s interior.
The size question is as follows: what effects will nanoparticles have through inhalation, ingestion, or skin contact? Despite the  widespread belief, the size of a particle is not a hazard in itself. A research program conducted in 2003 by the French National Institute of Sciences of the Universe (INSU) composed of scientists from all fields, concluded that “small” nanoparticles are not in themselves more hazardous than “large” particles. Testing each nanoparticle It’s necessary to test each nanoparticle in order to classify them according to their toxicity, as is the case for chemical products. Nanomaterials must therefore undergo all traditional tests (test of skin irritability, consequences of ingestion and inhalation, etc.). Researchers will then be able to identify any uncomfortable or dangerous effects of exposure in order to provide usage guidelines. “This procedure is a cornerstone of  Arkema’s business,” Daniel Bernard indicates. “Nanomaterials must be considered just like any other chemical product, with one important difference: in addition to the usual tests, we must also test the toxicity of nanomaterials dispersed in the atmosphere.” Safety and transparency as core principles Another risk merits particular attention: the dangers presented to personnel in nanoparticle production plants. During manufacturing, there is a risk of  dispersal. For this reason, even though the effects of exposure are not yet entirely known, we will impose a strict principle of safety.
“Within our production plants, the principle of safety means avoiding all contact with nanoparticles by the same methods and equipment used with any hazardous material,” Daniel Bernard explains. “These precautions are scrupulously applied on all Arkema sites. Because of the nature of our activity, Arkema systematically enforces prevention, protection, and security. At the same time, we conduct our research in total transparency, widely sharing both the results of our studies and the limits of our knowledge. This transparency is the proof of our will to remain a responsible company,” Daniel Bernard concludes. Joint research projects Many studies and workgroups analyzing the risks linked with nanomaterials are underway throughout the world. The European program Nanosafe comprises public and private laboratories in 7 countries. Its experiments study the impact of nanomaterials, including carbon nanotubes, on health and the environment. |
