Nanotechnologies - A New Area of Growth for Engineering?

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2 Nanotechnologies - A New Area of Growth for Engineering? Overview CCPE s Research Committee (RC) is tasked with monitoring emerging areas of engineering practice. This role comes about as a result of the Approved Policy on Emerging Technologies formally adopted by the CCPE Board of Directors. Over the course of the last year, it has become evident through various sources such as on-line technical publications, magazines, newspapers and other sources that the evolution of nanotechnology will play an important role in how our society will evolve in the future. Although the bulk of nanotechnology work is currently research-based, there will soon be a need for engineers to commercialize the research and bring nanotechnology products to market. As a result, RC has conducted additional research in this area. As many people are already aware, the profession of engineering has undergone major changes in the last few decades. Engineers can now move from more traditional single disciplines into multidisciplinary activities, or even areas of science or engineering that transcend several of the traditional disciplines of engineering. Nanotechnology is an area of research and development that impacts on a variety of engineering disciplines. Nanotechnology encompasses the hybrid science, which combines physics, biology, chemistry and leads to the engineering of nanostructures. It centers on phenomena that occur at dimensions so tiny, that they are hard to imagine in the range of one billionth of a meter. The goal of nanotechnology is to manipulate atoms individually and place them in a pattern to produce a desired structure. The potential impacts of this technology are tremendous. Nanotechnologies have already made a significant impact on a variety of areas of engineering including biomedical engineering, medical treatment, energy generation, electronics, specialty materials and beyond. According to many think tanks and research and development agencies, nanotechnology could be the factor that will cause significant changes in our lifestyles, similar to the Industrial Revolution in the late 1700s. Scientists on-going quest for more knowledge and to constantly improve our ways of doing things has led to modern nanoscience through the convergence of three factors: 1. Development of new instruments such as the scanning tunneling microscope which allows researchers to track and manipulate things as small as single atoms 2. Recent advancements in information technology scientists can now construct computerbased models to visualize things too small to see directly and, 3. Advancements in the science of measurement - which includes size, shape, mass, voltage, quantum effects, electromagnetic forces and other attributes found in experiments. In essence, nanotechnology is the manufacturing of structures and devices on the atomic scale (a nanometer is one billionth of a meter). Within the broader sphere of nanotechnology, nanoscience leads directly to nanoengineering, which is nothing less than engineering at an atomic scale. Nanotechnology is expected to create large employment opportunities in the future. In the United States, a large research organization predicts that as many as 500,000 jobs will be created in the 2

3 PT next 10 years. Canada is also forecasting job prospects in the area of nanotechnology over the 1 next decadetp but the federal government is hesitant to estimate firm numbers. Industry Canada is hoping that by making universities and the public aware of nanotechnology that Canada will rise to the occasion and produce nanoengineers in the future. Both the Toronto and Waterloo expect that over the next 10 years, there may well be hundreds of nanoengineering graduates working in Canada, many in Ontario. Key Research Areas Nanotechnology has the ability to impact many aspects of our lives. The following is a list of some of the key research areas being pursued at the present time: Nanotechnology research area Nanomaterials & nanomaterials processing Nanoelectronics & nanoinstrumentation Software/computing Nanobiotechnology/ medical products Environment Purpose of research To develop new approaches to build or rebuild materials themselves rather than forcing molecules into certain structures one by one Benefits: could produce stronger fibers than by conventional methods; could also be a way to isolate and control chemical reactions or to store and stabilize materials such as proteins that typically don t last long; could also be beneficial to drug delivery pharmaceuticals could be stored within the large surface area of the nanostructure and then released slowly, as required. To develop and refine molecular beam epitaxy equipment instruments that researchers use to generate beams of atoms in a highly controlled vacuum environment the instrument directs these beams onto a surface where they condense and become crystalline materials that later form nanodots. Benefits: many research institutes are working with nanodots to build more efficient lasers or memory devices in electronics. To further develop the capability to shrink the size of transistors on silicon microprocessors nanotechnology will also be needed to create a new generation of computer components. Benefits: molecular computers could contain storage devices capable of storing trillions of bytes of information in a structure the size of a sugar cube. To develop medications such that in the future, patients will drink fluids containing nanorobots programmed to attack and reconstruct the molecular structure of cancer cells and viruses to make them harmless. Benefits: nanosurgeries could be conducted in the future where nanorobots could work at a level a thousand times more precise than the sharpest scalpel in existence today. To explore alternative ways of purifying water (nanofiltration) as freshwater supplies in various areas of the world are depleted; clean up oil spills instantly; develop renewable sources of fuel; or even regenerate ozone in the atmosphere. Benefits: could create a more sustainable global environment with less pollution and potentially reduce some of our dependence on non-renewable resources. 1 Energenius Centre for Advanced Nanotechnology, Toronto, Hwww.utoronto.ca/~ecan/education.nanoeng.htmlH, Toronto,

4 As a specific example of one research area defined above - work is under way to assemble therapeutic anti-cancer devices, which will perform a variety of tasks including: 1) cancer cell recognition 2) identification of cancer causes 3) drug delivery 4) reporting of tumor location 5) reporting of cancer cell death At the center for biologic nanotechnology in the U.S. various devices have been created, which can complete 3 of the 5 functions. The goal is now to engineer these individual nanodevices into a complex nanodevice, which can perform all five functions. Hence an understanding of basic engineering principles including the application of scientific principles and design of devices is required to create a Nanoengineering solution to the problem at hand. Commercialization of Nanotechnologies Typically the process involved in developing nanotechnology-produced goods is: Scientists and engineers must be able to manipulate individual atoms this means that techniques to grab single atoms and move them to desired positions are required. The next step is to develop nanoscopic machines, that can be programmed to manipulate atoms and molecules at will. In order to create enough nanoscopic machines to build consumer goods, some higher - level machines and devices need to be programmed to build more of these machines. Trillions of assembly processes are too small for us to see with the naked eye and can fill an area smaller than a cubic millimeter. These complex multi-stage processes can allow for the automatic construction of products and eventually replace many traditional labour methods. This could decrease manufacturing costs and allow the development of better products, stronger and tailored for specific purposes. This is one of the key research areas required to bring nanotechnology to the marketplace. Several examples of nanotechnology, which are very close to the commercialization stage are: building materials with exceptional strength-to-mass ratios, corrosion resistant coatings, bio-mimetic membranes, and catalysts for chemical processes. inexpensive devices that monitor heat, radiation, temperature, stress, strain and vibration for applications in automation, product safety and maintenance, as well as security and surveillance. Canadian Research The National Institute of Nanotechnology is a $120 million joint venture between the National Research Council, the Government of Alberta and the Alberta. The Institute, whose research focus is nanotechnology, chemistry, physics, protein engineering, oncology and engineering, will be a 14,000 square meter facility on the Alberta campus and will be open for business in Much of the work being done in nanotechnology is taking place in universities across the globe; however, commercial companies are beginning to emerge slowly. Canada s $120 million dollars to the National Institute of Nanotechnology over 4 years in addition to other research funded through organizations such as the National Science and Engineering Research Council (NSERC) was a huge increase in nanotechnology spending from five years prior. The National Research 4

5 Council currently has eight institutes that have programmes with a major nanotechnology component: Institute for Microstructural Sciences Steacie Institute for Molecular Sciences Biotechnology Research Institute Industrial Materials Institute Institute for Chemical Process and Environmental Technology Integrated Manufacturing Technologies Institute Institute for Aerospace Research Institute for Biological Sciences NanoQuébec is the Quebec research network in nanoscience and nanotechnology, which was founded in 2001 by the six leading research universities in Quebec (McGill University, Université de Montréal, École Polytechnique, Université de Sherbrooke, Université Laval and INRS- Énergie, Matériaux et Télécommunications). The network was provided with $10 million in start-up funding by Valoristation-Recherche Québec, an initiative of the Quebec government aimed at fostering greater economic outcomes from university research. The following table shows the growth in nanotechnology investment from 1997 to 2002 for various countries around the world: Research Investment in Nanotechnology 1997 (million Canadian dollars) 2002 (million Canadian dollars) 2002 Population (millions) Japan 170 1, Taiwan South Korea U.S Australia Canada Western Europe China , Research Investment/ Pop. (Canadian dollars per person in 2002) Universities in Canada Engaged in Nanotechnology ResearchP Nanotechnology research is being undertaken by a variety of universities across Canada (primarily at the graduate level although several universities in Canada and the U.S. are beginning 2 to introduce some nanotechnology curriculum at the undergraduate leveltp PT): 2 Integrating Nanotechnology into Undergraduate Experience: A Web-based Approach, Timothy Chang (Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, New Jersey Institute of Technology, Newark, New Jersey) and Xuemei Sun (Software Center, Motorola Inc., Farmington Hills, Missouri),

6 muth University Departments Web Site Address Alberta Electrical and Computer Engineering Nanoscale Engineering Physics Initiative Mechanical Engineering Department Faculty of Pharmacy HTUwww.ee.ualberta.ca/~brett/UTH HTUwww.mece.ualberta.ca/staff/finlay/index.htmUTH HTUwww.pharmacy.ualberta.ca/Loebenberg.htmlUTH British Columbia Calgary Concordia University Faculty of Law (ethical issues) Department of Physics Department of Chemistry Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering HTUwww.law.ualberta.ca/faculty/profiles/caulfield.htmUTH HTUwww.physics.ubc.ca/physoffice/profs/evans.htmlUTH HTUwww.chem.ucalgary.ca/faculty/cramb.htmlUTH HTUhttp:// Dalhousie University Université Laval Manitoba McGill University Department of Physics and Atmospheric Science Faculty of Medecine Department of Chemistry Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering Department of Biomedical Engineering Department of Physics Department of Chemistry HTUwww.physics.dal.caUTH HTUwww.umanitoba.ca/academic/faculties/science/che mistry/courses/chem457/index.htmluth HTUwww.ee.umanitoba.ca/research/nano.htmlUTH HTUwww.bmed.mcgill.ca/tabrizian/UTH HTUwww.physics.mcgill.ca/research/cmp.htmlUTH Uww2.mcgill.ca/chemistry/faculty/marchessault/Ho Université de Montréal Queen s University École Polytechnique Toronto Waterloo Western Ontario me.htmlu Faculty of Pharmacy HTUhttp:// Centre for Manufacturing of Advanced Ceramics and Nanomaterials Department of Computer Engineering Department of Engineering Physics Energenius Centre for Advanced Nanotechnology Faculties of Engineering, Chemistry and Physics (nanoengineering offered for the first time in 2002/2003 to third/fourth year students) Faculty of Dentistry Joint Centre for Bioethics Department of Chemical Engineering Department of Chemical and Biochemical Engineering HTUwww.ceramics.queensu.caUTH HTUwww.ee.ualberta.ca/~elezzabi/UTH Ulpl.phys.polymtl.ca/frameset_anglais.htmlU HTUwww.utoronto.ca/~ecan/education.nanoeng.htmlUTH HTUwww.utoronto.ca/jcb/abdallah_daar.htmlUTH Usciborg.uwaterloo.ca/~lfnazar/ HTUwww.engga.uwo.ca/compendium/faculty/Wan.htmUTH 6

7 From the evidence available, it appears that nanotechnology curriculum is only beginning to be introduced at the undergraduate level in various programs in Canada. To date, the course materials developed form part of the regular engineering science and engineering design criteria set forth in the accreditation criteria of the Canadian Engineering Accreditation Board. While there are nanotechnology materials (curriculum) in existence within other engineering programs in Canada, no distinct nanoengineering programs have been started to date. The Toronto does indicate on its Web site that an individual can acquire nanoengineering knowledge in third and fourth year of a variety of its engineering programs including biomedical, chemical, electrical, computer and materials engineering. The Waterloo also held a nanotechnology workshop in May of 2003 and, at this workshop, a full session was dedicated to the need for an undergraduate program in nanotechnology in Canada. Further work is currently underway to develop a framework for a nanotechnology program at the Waterloo that is targeting the graduation of up to 100 nano-engineers by Internationally, several nanotechnology science programs are already in existence. The university of New South Wales in the U.K. offers a Bachelor of Science in Nanotechnology and Flinders University in Australia offers the same. Issues for the Engineering Profession Education Nanotechnology already forms part of the undergraduate curriculum for some engineering programs in Canada. It will be important to monitor universities in Canada in the future to ensure that, if any undergraduate nanoengineering programs are developed, they conform to the standards and criteria set forth by the Canadian Engineering Accreditation Board. It may also be worthwhile to monitor the development of science-based nanotechnology programs at universities to more closely track the evolution of this new technology. Due to the multi-disciplinary nature of this emerging field, industry linkages will play an important role in ensuring that the curriculum is meeting the requirements of industry. Professional Practice Any engineers who practice in the nanotechnology area now and in the short- to medium-term will be practising in other more traditional disciplines of engineering such as those referenced above. Nanoengineering is multidisciplinary in nature and is carried out by teams of engineers and non-engineers. Regulation of engineers in the nanoengineering area will require individuals with nanotechnology knowledge. It is imminent that the provincial/territorial engineering licensing bodies will be charged with granting professional status to bioengineers, chemical engineers, etc. that work in the area of nanotechnology. In the future it may be important for the P.Eng. applicant to demonstrate appropriate experience in the area of nanotechnology to obtain status in the engineering profession. Public Awareness The public s current understanding of nanotechnology and of nanoengineering is not apparent. As the rapid pace of research and development continues in this area it will be important for the engineering profession to educate its members about nanotechnology and its anticipated impacts on society. It is also important that the general public be made aware of the role of engineering in this new area. 7

8 Public Safety Several leading research organizations feel that nanotechnology is heading for a public showdown similar to genetically modified crops unless researchers address questions of ethics now. One of the world s leading medical ethics think tanks ( Toronto Joint Centre for Bioethics) warns that the backlash is already gaining momentumtpt3 TPT. Dr. Peter Singer, from the Toronto indicated that, technology which promises to make massive changes in our lives may be viewed with suspicion and perhaps outright fear. As nanotechnology is further developed and moves beyond the research and development phase, the government will have a role to ensure that public safety is guaranteed. Some of the ethical issues surrounding medical treatments and the environment will inevitably be of interest to regulating agencies and more research may be required in the future to assess these issues as they arise. It will be important for the engineering profession to remain proactive in its communications and education of government and the public in the area of nanotechnology and specifically, nanoengineering. 3 Institute of Electrical Engineers (IEE) Review, March 2003, U.S. 8