Nanotechnology: Overview of Regulations and Implementations

Nanotechnology presents great prospects for developing new products with both industrial and consumer applications in a wide range of sectors. This chapter discusses the current scope of the nanotechnology field, related safety issues, and regulatory policies involving this technology, as well as how policies can be improved. The majority of nanotechnology applications are driven by the potential to increase or improve the functionality of materials and reduce the amounts of those materials needed for particular purposes. A table illustrates some nanotechnological products that are on the market. The rapid proliferation of nanotechnologies into consumer products, especially drug and food industries, has raised a number of concerns over their safety to the consumer. As for the regulatory framework, current laws can be used to assess the safety of bio-nanoparticles (BNPs), but they may need to be revised to accommodate widespread industrial use of these materials and distinguish BNPs from other ENMs.