ABSTRACT

Nanotechnology is an area where research niches are growing fast and attract substantial funding from both the public and private sectors. Nanoparticles (NPs) are particles with at least one dimension less than 100 nm. According to Lux Research, a New York-based independent intelligence and technology research and advisory firm, investments in the nanotechnology industry grew from $13 billion in 2004 to $50 billion in 2006. It has been estimated that this amount will reach $1 trillion by 2015 and that the industry will employ about two million workers (Nel 2006; Roco and Bainbridge 2005) and output is projected to grow to over half a million tons by 2020 (Robichaud et al. 2009; Stensberg et al. 2011). According to BCC Research (2012) the total market for NPs in biotechnology, drug discovery, and development was valued at $17.5 billion in 2011 and is predicted to reach $53.5 billion in 2017. Thus, a large number of materials and products made of NPs may come into contact with the environment, either during production, transport, use, or when they end up as waste.