ABSTRACT
Maintaining and improving the quality of soil, water, and air resources represent some of the greatest challenges standing before our society today. Pollution from a variety of sources, such as oil and chemical spills, pesticide and fertilizer runoff, abandoned industrial and mining sites, as well
CONTENTS
7.1 Introduction ................................................................................................ 129 7.2 Environmental Pollution, Human Health, and Nanotechnology....... 130 7.3 Nanotechnology and Environmental Monitoring ................................ 132
7.3.1 Air Monitoring Systems ................................................................ 133 7.3.2 Water Monitoring Systems ........................................................... 134 7.3.3 Summary and Conclusions .......................................................... 135
7.4 Nanotechnology for Environmental Remediation and Treatment .... 136 7.4.1 Remediation Nanotechnologies ................................................... 137
7.4.1.1 Nanoscale Zero-Valent Iron ........................................... 137 7.4.1.2 Nanoscale Semiconductor Photocatalysts (nSPs) ....... 138 7.4.1.3 Polymeric Nanoparticles ................................................ 139 7.4.1.4 Ferritin-Encapsulated Metal Oxides ............................ 140 7.4.1.5 Single-Enzyme Nanoparticles ....................................... 141 7.4.1.6 Summary and Conclusions ........................................... 141
7.4.2 Treatment Nanotechnologies ....................................................... 142 7.4.2.1 Carbon Nanotube Membranes (CNMs) ....................... 143 7.4.2.2 Nanomembranes for Carbon Dioxide Removal ......... 144 7.4.2.3 Self-Assembled Monolayers on Mesoporous
Supports (SAMMS) ......................................................... 145 7.4.2.4 Summary and Conclusions ........................................... 146
7.5 Conclusion .................................................................................................. 146 References ............................................................................................................. 147
as airborne gaseous contaminants and particulate matter (PM) from car exhaust, seriously affects the environment and threatens the health of human populations. Enormous amounts of carbon dioxide (CO2) are released daily into the atmosphere from combustion of fossil fuels and warm it up irreversibly. The world’s climate system is an integral part of the complex of life-supporting processes. Climate and weather have always had a powerful impact on human health and wellbeing.
