Project description
A simple, portable device monitors airborne nanoparticles inexpensively
Many types of nanoparticles exhibit unique and exotic properties compared to the properties of the same materials in bulk form. Over the last couple of decades, these properties have been harnessed in technologies and devices in almost every field of science. As a result, nanoparticles are increasingly present in the environment, posing potential risks to people and ecosystems. However, testing and monitoring are still generally expensive and confined to laboratories with expert personnel. The Spanish SME CONTROLNANO TECHNOLOGIES has developed an innovative and inexpensive portable system to detect and quantify airborne nanoparticles. The system can be operated remotely and continuously, promising to significantly expand nanoparticle monitoring and to enhance occupational and environmental safety. The EU-funded NANOWATCHER project is providing business innovation support and the first steps towards a market launch.
Objective
NanoWatcher is a low-cost and highly accurate innovative instrument, IPR protected, to detect and quantify nanomaterials in air to be used by non-specialised staff.
Exposure to nanomaterials (NMs) (particles below 100 nm) leads to up to 4.2 million premature deaths worldwide because they are more toxic than the same material conventionally sized, able to penetrate the lungs and increase the risk of explosion in industrial settings. Moreover, 6 million workers will potentially be exposed to nanoparticles (NPs) by 2020.
Current instruments to detect and quantify NPs have significant limitations in detecting polydisperse airborne NPs at industrial facilities, measure unspecific size fractions for human health (<450 nm), are costly (>€12,000), bench-top (>10kg), non-remote operated and use solvent-based working fluids. In addition, they require highly skilled professionals for data interpretation.
Nanowatcher is the very first particle counter designed specifically for NM exposure assessment with selective cut-off diameters of 300 and 450 nm, 1-second resolution, and operated with smart data acquisition software for data interpretation by non-expert users.
The main benefits of our solution include: portable (<2kg), remote sensing, real-time exposure analysis, stand-alone continuous operation (120h) for long-term exposure studies, water as its working fluid, low maintenance (>18 months), and low price (€6,000).
Our targets are occupational health and safety (OHS) professionals working in: (i) Companies manufacturing NMs or nano-enabled products (7,706 in the EU); (ii) Companies exposed to hazardous fine dust particles (>60,000 in the EU); and (iii) External OHS services (~8,500 in the EU).
We estimate that the successful implementation of the NanoWatcher project will allow us to steadily reach, after 5 years of commercialisation, €26.7 M in turnover, 29 new direct jobs, and a Return on Investment (ROI) of €4.16 per euro invested.
Fields of science
- medical and health sciencesclinical medicinecardiologycardiovascular diseasescardiac arrhythmia
- natural sciencescomputer and information sciencessoftware
- medical and health sciencesclinical medicinepneumologyasthma
- engineering and technologynanotechnologynano-materials
- medical and health scienceshealth sciencespublic healthoccupational health
Programme(s)
Funding Scheme
SME-1 - SME instrument phase 1Coordinator
46980 Paterna, Valencia
Spain
The organization defined itself as SME (small and medium-sized enterprise) at the time the Grant Agreement was signed.