Nanotube technology has been sweeping through the technology and sports industries because of its durability, flexibility, and unique electrical properties. In architecture and technology fields in particular, the future use of carbon nanotubes seems limitless.

The cylindrical nanotube usually has at least one end capped with a hemisphere of a “buckeyball” structure. The diameter is merely a few nanometers and there are both single-walled nanotubes and multi-walled nanotubes. Simply stated, carbon nanotubes have been hailed as the wonder material of the 20th century because they are as light as plastic, but as strong as steel.

While sales and production are expected to rise quickly over the next few years, recent studies have shown that people should be cautious when it comes to health risks. It is not so much the consumers that should be worried, but rather manufacturers and those that dispose of the product.

Not all types of carbon nanotubes are in conflict, either, rather just the long, thin tubes that cells are not able to properly “funnel” through the lungs. These longer tubes are similar to asbestos, which is responsible for one of the worst occupational health disasters in United States history. The cost of asbestos-related diseases, in particular the deadly cancer called mesothelioma, is $200 billion.

The long carbon nanotubes when tested on mice were shown to cause scarring and legions similar to that of asbestos. It is important for people to realize that this is not a huge reason to panic, but it is a great reason to take every preventative measure possible to avoid another disaster that followed asbestos manufacturing.
This is certainly a caution flag for the entire industry, but consumers should rest easy knowing mistakes have been learned from. Some types of carbon nanotubes are not harmful and the ones that are can be eliminated. Further research will need to be performed, but for now analysts should stay on top of the situation and force manufacturing standards to be alert, informative, and progressive.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, July 23rd, 2008 at 3:53 pm and is filed under Asbestos Exposure, Mesothelioma. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Responses are currently closed, but you can trackback from your own site.