Nanotechnology in

Transportation

Fabrication

Mechanics

Infrastructure

http://www.ampro.com/Applications/Transportation.htm

http://ocw.mit.edu/OcwWeb/Urban-Studies-and-Planning/11-953Spring-2006/CourseHome/index.htm

How can small

science help us

travel such a bigplanet?

From roads to bridges, from planes to trains,

from cars to bikes, and ships to busses.

How Big Is Nano?

http://www.terressentials.com/exposure.html

http://www.nano.gov/html/facts/The_scale_of_things.html

What Does Transportation Look Like?

http://www.princeton.edu/~ina/infographics/transportation.html

Nanotechnology Transportation

Goals

Protect and Improve the Environment

Improve safety

Improve comfort

http://www.rff.com/Transportation_Plan.gif

Using nanoscience technology, scientists

hope to improve the transportation industry

in three main ways:

1. Behind the Wheel

It won't be long and you'll be driving! Imagine, nearly three quarters of a billion cars are currently being driven around the world.

Pollutant emissions and the need for recycling and disposal are a big concern.

Researchers, developers and industry are searching for new nanotechnology solutions for the transportation industry. http://www.discovery.org/scripts/viewDB/index.php?command=view&id=209&program=Cascadia&isEvent=true

Areas of Vehicle Nanoscience Research

Anti-glare and dirt-resistant

window materials

Wear-resistant super-grip tires

Corrosion protection

Lightweight materials

Individually varying colors

Wear-resistant mechanical parts

Electronic safety sensors

New drive and emissions concepts

Thanks to nanotechnology, look for vehicle

improvements in the following areas. A few of these will

be described on the following pages.

Ames Research Center

conducts research using

nano-scale assembly to create

sensing elements, among

other things. They are using

protein-based nanotubes,

potentially capable of self-

organization and replication. http://www.sti.nasa.gov/tto/spinoff2001/ames.html

image: http://nanopedia.case.edu/NWPage.php?page=transportation

Bling!

An Australian company

nano-based water repellant

product is said to increases

visibility in wet weather by

up to 34%. The company

website states, "Nothing

clings to Bling! Bugs, Snow,

Ice and Rain comes right

off!"

http://www.greentechforum.net/category/news/2007/07/04/if-it%e2%80%99s-in-bling-nanotech-must-be-mainstream

http://nanopublic.blogspot.com/2007/07/need-nano-bling.html

http://www.instructables.com/id/Increase-Miles-Per-Gallon-Instantly/

Windshields

Designs are currently being developed for windows that wrap all the way around vehicles.

Source: Dr. U. König, DaimlerChrysler AGhttp://www.nanotruck.de

Nanoparticles and nanofibers make this possible. These nanoparticles provide extremely high transparency and stiffness. Besides making driving safer with better all-round vision, it also would be lighter.

Look for transparent solar cells for car windows, soon, with the help of nanotechnology.

Better Protection

Click on the following link to find a list of

ways vehicles can be protected by just

one nanotechnology company!

Nanotechnology Innovations

Your Bike and

Nanotechnology

To save energy and for exercise,

some of us ride bicycles, but a

lightweight bicycle is always easier to

pedal. Carbon nanotubes are tiny

cylinders of carbon atoms that have

100 times the strength of steel but

weigh much less. Nanotechnology

has helped make a bicycle that

weights less than three pounds and

is extra durable.

http://discovermagazine.com/2008/feb/06-see-through-bike

http://delta7sports.com/products.html

2. Mechanics

Better Batteries with Nanoscience

A123Systems has taken a different approach to

developing nano-enabled car batteries. The

battery uses the advantage of increased surface

area of particles at the nanoscale nanoparticles

to provide a quicker source of greater power.

http://www.nano.org.uk/features.htm

Fuel Cells using

Nanotechnology

Cheaper fuel cell vehicles can be made possible with the help of an enzyme connected electrically to a carbon nanotube. The National Renewable Energy Labs in Colorado combining the super tiny strands of carbon with hydrogenese, a "biohybrid" catalyst. This process eliminates the need for platinum, an expensive component in traditional fuel cells.

http://www.physorg.com/news114703218.html

Lighter Nanotech Cars

Save Fuel

Ford has an idea for dealing with the energy

crisis. Nanotechnology can make cares 250 to

750 pounds lighter without compromising the

structural integrity of the vehicle. Lightening

the vehicles will have much better gas

mileage.

http://jalopnik.com/380964/ford-looking-to-nanotechnology-for-future-design

http://blog.wired.com/cars/2008/04/ford-turns-to-n.html

A Better Catalytic

Converter

With nanoscience these catalytic converters use 70 to 90 percent less metals, like platinum, rhodium and palladium, which speed up chemical reactions of pollutants such as nitrogen oxide, carbon monoxide and hydrocarbons. The converters rely on nanoparticles of the catalytic metal, each less than five nanometers in diameter, embedded into fixed positions onto the surface of tiny ceramic spheres.

See how it works on the next page.

http://www.nanowerk.com/news/newsid=2913.php

http://maremare1225.files.wordpress.com/2008/03/catalytic-converter-location.jpg

Mazda created a new catalytic

converter using nanotechnology.

Catalytic converters help to purify

exhaust emissions.

Nano-sized Secrets

In the past the problem of placing nanoparticles on a

surface like this resulted in the migration and

collection of nanoparticles into one place,

(agglomerating). That’s a problem when working with

nanoparticles due to the laws of quantum mechanics.

(Quantum = small). Somehow, Mazda has overcome

the problem, and they’re not telling how!

That’s Nano-Slick!

Using nano-boric acid

particles in motor oil

reduces friction in

automobile engine parts

can have less friction.

This boric acid 'rose' shows

the intricately layered

microscopic structure of the

compound.

http://nanotechnologytoday.blogspot.com/2007/08/nano-boric-acid-makes-motor-oil-more.html

3. Infrastructure

http://pubsindex.trb.org/document/view/default.asp?lbid=847888http://whrpnews.org/images/12-07/joint_distress1.jpghttp://radio.weblogs.com/0105910/2004/08/04.html

Nanotechnology can also be found in the

construction and monitoring of roads.

Nanomaterials are found in construction materials

including concrete, asphalt, aggregates, and even

pavement marking materials. Research into nano-

phosphors could someday illuminate the streets, not from

above, but from within! Guardrails may someday heal

themselves, or concrete or asphalt that heal their own

cracking using nanotechnology.

Sensors

Advanced sensor technology using nanochips is available for transportation applications. Due to the lower cost and easy installation, sensors have been placed in the pavements, bridges, inside concrete and asphalt, and even inside vehicles. There are nanosensors on the Golden Gate Bridge to monitor its behavior. These nanochips can provide wireless communication to improve safety.

http://radio.weblogs.com/0105910/2004/08/04.html

Social, Environmental and

Ethical Concerns

1. Might these nanotechnology developments in

transportation infringe on human rights?

2. Could any of them decrease privacy of individuals?

3. Could the use of nanotechnology for transportation

have unwanted and negative environmental effects?

4. What economic impact could the use of

nanotechnology in transportation have on

producers, consumers, and other industries?

Might they be negative or positive?

What About Your

Rights?

If so, are these developments

more important than

•Your privacy?

•Your rights as a citizen?

•Your rights as a human being?

Are the answers somewhere in between?

Research QuestionsTo prepare for your presentation, answer the following questions using reference materials which can include the websites linked to this webquest:

2. If we can develop these technologies,

should we? Why?

1. What can be done to maximize the

chances that humans will benefit from,

rather than be harmed by, new

developments?

http://pro.corbis.com/images/42-16672735.jpg?size=572&uid=%7B44615E22-1598-41FF-B99B-9268F07BE014%7D

Transportation Weblinks

These are websites which are a good place to start looking for more information on nanotechnology in transportation. You may also wish to use the reference links at the bottom of many of the pages within this presentation. Then use the general website page linked at the bottom of this page. It is chock full of nanotechnology sites related to multiple areas including yours.

Vehicles

http://www.drivers.com/article/887

Infrastructure Materials

http://www.irmca.com/projects/birk.asp Click on the topics on the left of the webpage for more

information at

http://www.nanoforum.org/educationtree/modernlife/modernlife-construction.htm

Sensors

http://www.denverpost.com/business/ci_4359023

http://www.sensorsmag.com/sensors/article/articleDetail.jsp?id=361237

General Nanoscience Weblinks

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