Nanotechnology for sale

Three to four new nano products hit the shelves every week in the US.

Toothpaste, cosmetics, sunscreen, diamonds, cooking oil and automotive products are just some of the new nanotechnology consumer products on the shelves in the US now. According to an inventory collated by the US Project on Emerging Nanotechnologies (PEN), new products are appearing by a rate of three to four a week.

Since PEN launched the world’s first online inventory of manufacturer-identified nanotech goods in March 2006, the total number of goods has grown from 212 to 609.

Nanoscale silver is the most cited nanomaterial used and is found in 143 products (over 20 per cent) of the inventory. In second comes carbon, including carbon nanotubes and fullerenes. Other nanoscale material includes zinc and zinc oxide, titanium and titanium oxide, silica and gold.

Although polls in the US show Americans knowing little or nothing about nanotechnology, it is still a multibillion dollar industry. “Public trust is the ‘dark horse’ in nanotechnology’s future,” said PEN Project Director David Rejeski in a testimony before the Senate Commerce Committee yesterday. “If government and industry do not work to build public confidence in nanotechnology, consumers may reach for the ‘No-Nano’ label in the future and investors will put their money elsewhere.”

Rejeski added: “The use of nanotechnology in consumer products and industrial applications is growing rapidly, with the products listed in the PEN inventory showing just the tip of the iceberg. Public perceptions about risks - real and perceived - can have large economic consequences. How consumers respond to these early products - in food, electronics, health care, clothing and cars - are a litmus test for broader market acceptance of nanotechnologies in the future.”

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