Timing, hosts and locations of (grouped) events of NanoImpactNet

NanoSafetyCluster - Compendium 2012
trade moulders who will not probably be able to readily get hold of
this information. Moreover, these projects are very academic
orientated thus, they don’t fully meets the SMEs needs.
In addition, methodologies to assess the exposure and hazard
aren’t standardized, so that the results of projects like Nanosafe
are difficult to interpret and apply to other conditions. Thus, we
aim to develop a best practices guide directly applicable in the
nanocomposite industry.
The current handbooks, guides and reports of research projects
are not focused on specific nanoparticles used in the current
industrial setting of the packaging industry, which can differ
enormously from another industrial process involving the use of
polymers and nanoparticles. At this stage, our solution is
innovative due to the direct application of our members in
particular SMEs and industrial settings, as well as providing
valuable information to characterize the toxicological profile and
potential risk of the new manufactured nanocomposites and also
those placed on the market in the recent years.
In relation to nanocomposite safety, the commercial manufacture
of nanoparticles is relatively new, so that, there isn’t consensus in
relation to the potential migration and release of the nanofillers
employed on the nanocomposite industry. In this sense, taking into
account physicochemical properties of the nanofillers employed,
the possibility of migration is likely. Therefore, manufactures of
nanocomposites, with special attention to those who manufacture
food contact materials, must predict the potential migration in
order to protect the consumer’s health and comply with the
current regulation. At this stage, our proposal will study the
aspects concerning the migration and release of nanoparticles in
the polymeric matrix, providing the SMEs with scientific and valid
data to select the less hazardous nanofillers or predict the
potential release to the end user.
After studying the existing solutions and emerging research, the
consortium has concluded that the submitted project has a high
innovative character and will enhance significantly the state-of-theart
in the nanocomposite area. There is a demand that the current
solutions are not able to meet, and the other research approaches
are not focused in the specific field of the nanocomposite industry.
Therefore we have an opportunity to exploit our innovative
approach, including the achievement of the results in a reasonable
period of time.
On the other hand, due to the current lack of data in the
nanotechnology area, mainly in relation to the adequacy of testing
models and exposure measurements, we have conducted a
complete contingency plan, including a detailed risk analysis and
the contingency actions to guaranty the progress beyond the state
of the art, ensuring that the project results will be addressed.
6 Impact
The development of the NanoSafePACK project will have a
remarkable impact on the European SME Community and their
citizens, clearly identifiable due to the hundreds of applications of
the nanocomposite materials every day and the hundreds of
people who use them. It’s expected a direct impact in the
packaging and polymer nanocomposite industry, helping the SME
to develop new innovative materials, which provide the end users
with new products tailored to their needs. On the other hand, the
implementation of the project results will enable the SME
Associations, their members and other SMEs across Europe
minimise the health impact and environmental risk from the
nanoparticles, providing the information to safely design,
manufacture and market nanotechnology enable products.
At the moment, much of the research and development work is
concentrated on the development of innovative products,
considering new properties that improve the final application,
while ,at the same time, the safety of the product has been
compromised at all stages of nano-products manufacturing, use
and disposal. Overall market value will benefit from important
consumer preferences toward safe and environmentally friendly
products, which will support consumption of high-performance
nanocomposites.
186 Compendium of Projects in the European NanoSafety Cluster