AKING SOTCK OF THE OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY AND HEALTH CHALLENGES OF NANOTECHNOLOGY: 2000–2015

"THE CONCERN ABOUT NANOMATERIALS"

The commercial exploitation of nanotechnology has aroused marked public interest since around 2000. Concerns that engineered nanomaterials (ENMs) could be hazardous arose from knowledge of the respiratory and cardiovascular effects of ultrafine air pollutants; industrial experience with health effects of welding fumes and diesel particulates, acute lung inflammation from fumed silica (Schulte, et all, 2000)

Ultrafine particles were found to have higher pulmonary toxicity than larger respirable (fine) particles when measured by mass dose; The scientific literature on occupational exposures and health effects of existing aerosol particles and fibers provided a basis for evaluating the potential hazards of new aerosols at the nanoscale and highlighted gaps in the current body of knowledge (Maynard and Kuempel 2005).

Ultrafine particles were found to have higher pulmonary toxicity than larger respirable (fine) particles when measured by mass dose;
Scientific texts explaining occupational exposures and health effects of existing aerosol particles and fibers, furthermore, provided a basis for evaluating the potential hazards of new aerosols at the nanoscale (Maynard and Kuempel 2005).

the United States National Science Foundation stated the caution that “nanomaterials are likely to possess at least three properties that will generate new safety challenges (Roco and Bainbridge, 2001).

"THE GROWING PREOCUPATION ON NANOPARTICLES"

There is growing concern about these nanoparticles, since that same year, The Royal Society and The Royal Academy of Engineering warned that measures must be addressed promptly to protect the factors related to them (workers and consumers) and support regulatory decisions.
  Schulte et all (2000) emphasize that free particles in the nano-size range do pose health, environmental, and safety problems, and their toxicology cannot be inferred from larger particles of the same chemical substance.

Scientists And Government Officials Had To Respond On These Materials And Their Potential Damage To Health For Which They Raised Various International Conferences To Address The Issue

BUXTON (2004), MINEAPOLIS (2005), TAIPEI (2007), HELSINKI (2009), BOSTON (2011), NAGOYA (2013), LIMPOPO (2015)

Schulte et all, (2000) highlight eight significant Areas in the matter of Occupational Safety and Health with respect to Nanomaterials; These are: toxicology, metrology, exposure assessment, engineering controls and protective equipment, risk assessment, risk management, medical surveillance, and epidemiology. which will be explained in the following news