title: Development of a conceptual framework for evaluation of nanomaterials release from nanocomposites: environmental and toxicological implications.
abstract: Despite the fact that nanomaterials are considered potentially hazardous in a freely dispersed form, they are often considered safe when encapsulated into a polymer matrix. However, systematic research to confirm the abovementioned paradigm is lacking. Our data indicates that there are possible mechanisms of nanomaterial release from nanocomposites due to exposure to environmental conditions, especially UV radiation. The degradation of the polymer matrix and potential release of nanomaterials depend on the nature of the nanofillers and the polymer matrix, as well as on the nature of environmental exposure, such as the combination of UV, moisture, mechanical stress and other factors. To the best of our knowledge there is no systematic study that addresses all these effects. We present here an initial study of the stability of nanocomposites exposed to environmental conditions, where carbon nanotube (CNT) containing polymer composites were evaluated with various spectroscopic and microscopic techniques. This work discusses various degradation mechanisms of CNT polymer nanocomposites, including such factors as UV, moisture and mechanical damage. An in vivo ingestion study with Drosophila showed reduced survivorship at each dose tested with free amine-functionalized CNTs, while there was no toxicity when these CNTs were embedded in epoxy. In addition to developing new paradigms in terms of safety of nanocomposites, the outcomes of this research can lead to recommendations on safer design strategies for the next generation of CNT-containing products.
authors.affiliation: Materials Science and Engineering, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY, United States.
authors.forename: James
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Ging
authors.affiliation: Materials Science and Engineering, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY, United States.
authors.forename: Raul
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Tejerina-Anton
authors.affiliation: Materials Science and Engineering, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY, United States.
authors.forename: Girish
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Ramakrishnan
authors.affiliation: University of Dayton, Dayton, OH, United States.
authors.forename: Mark
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Nielsen
authors.affiliation: University of Dayton, Dayton, OH, United States.
authors.forename: Kyle
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Murphy
authors.affiliation: National Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, MD, United States.
authors.forename: Justin M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Gorham
authors.affiliation: National Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, MD, United States.
authors.forename: Tinh
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Nguyen
authors.affiliation: Materials Science and Engineering, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY, United States. Electronic address: alexander.orlov@stonybrook.edu.
authors.forename: Alexander
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Orlov
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D004330:Drosophila; D004781:Environmental Exposure / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D004785:Environmental Pollutants / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000633:toxicity; D008956:Models, Chemical; D053761:Nanocomposites / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000633:toxicity; D049329:Nanostructures / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000633:toxicity; D010782:Photolysis; D018675:Toxicity Tests; D014466:Ultraviolet Rays
chemical_list: D004785:Environmental Pollutants
keywords: CNT-epoxy nanocomposites; Degradation products; Environmental degradation; Nanomaterial release; Nanomaterial toxicity