• What is nanotechnology?
• What laws apply?
• Are nanoparticles dangerous?
• Nanotechnology in the workplace
• Classification of engineered nanomaterials
• Definitions
• Risks of nanoparticles
• Assessment tool for handling engineered nanomaterials
• Nanomaterial control banding risk assessment
• Register of nanomaterial use and storage

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What is nanotechnology?

Nanotechnology is the controlling of matter on an atomic and molecular scale. Generally nanotechnology deals with structures of the size 100 nanometres or smaller. Nanotechnology has the potential to create many new materials and products with a vast range of applications, such as in medicine, electronics, and energy production.

Nanotechnology involves the:

• design, characterisation, production and application of structures, devices and systems by controlling shape and size at the nanometre scale
• manufacture of nanoparticles or nanomaterials with at least one dimension less than 100 nanometres to give them useful chemical, physical, electrical or optical properties.

Normal office paper is about 100 000 nm thick and you can fit about 1 million nanoparticles on a pinhead. One strand of hair is about 50 000 nm thick.

The small size and some of the unique properties of engineered nanomaterials have raised concerns that there might be implications for human health and safety.