Nanotechnology and Carbon Capture

Nanotechnology is the reorientation of matter at the atomic and subatomic level [1]. As I have emphasized in previous blogs, nanotechnology is not something that humans created, but a tool that we have discovered, from butterfly wings, to water properties and reptilian features [2]. Nanoscience has transitioned from the theoretical to the applicational, with hundreds of companies investing in this arena and countless visionaries claiming it's potential to radically transform our technology based society [3]. 

In last week's blog I mentioned futurist thinkers like Ray Kurzweil, who has long wrote about a world where all physical properties can be understood as indivisible digital units of information.

At the theoretical level, nanoscience has the capacity to alter our perception of our physical selves and the world around us [4]. Measuring matter at the nanoscale is incomprehensible to us, therefore we need the help of art and aesthetics to help us imagine such infinitesimal distances. In particular, the digital media designer bridges this gap in interest between the scientific technologist and general public. Nanoart competitions have arisen out of the need for research agencies to gain greater public support and therefore secure federal funding [5]. This usually takes the form of depicting nanosculptures and nanolandscapes alongside non-abstract appeals to the positive, and not harmful, consequences of expanding nanotechnology.

[6] The celebration of NanoArt can largely be attributed to Cris Orfescu, who has been invested in this area of research and design for nearly half a century. Here is an image captured from his online art gallery.

[7] Our very own Dr. Vesna and Dr. Gimszewski are partakers in such exhibitions of nanoart. I particularly appreciate their piece "Nanomandala" as it emphasizes my studies in Eastern traditions like Buddhism.

The application end of nanoscience is likely what requires the greatest convincing on the part of the public and funding agencies. This year I have become especially interested in climate change mitigating technologies due to my participation in the Sustainable LA Grand Challenge [8] and nanoscience gives me hope. Because nanoparticles have such high surface area due to their tiny volume, they offer the promise of energy/material storage at greater efficiency than current technologies [9]. Specifically, carbon capturing/storage technologies function by removing, transfering, or utilizing carbon dioxide before it is dispersed into the atmosphere [10]. Making these devices with nanotubes offers tremendous hope: Membranes made with carbon nanotubes reduce the amount of energy needed to capture carbon-dioxide emmissions from smokestacks because they are highly permeable, therefore cutting costs [11]. Of course, nanotechnology is open to a variety of uses, from infrastructure to biotechnology and medicine [12].

[1] “Nanotech for Artists Part 1 - Dr. Jim Gimszewski” Nanotech + art. 2012, Los Angeles, CA.

[2] “Nature Helps Nanotechnology.” Nature Nanotechnology Coordinated Infrastructure, National Science Foundation, 2019, https://nnci.net/nature-helps-nanotechnology.

[3] Kurzweil, Ray. “A University for the Coming Singularity.” Ray Kurzweil: A University for the Coming Singularity | TED Talk, TED, Feb. 2009, https://www.ted.com/talks/ray_kurzweil_a_university_for_the_coming_singularity?language=en.

[4] Gimzewski , Jim, and Victoria Vesna. “The Nanomeme Syndrome: Blurring of Fact & Fiction in the Construction of a New Science.” The Nanomeme Syndrome: Blurring of Fact & Fiction in the Construction of a New Science, Technoetic Arts a Journal of Speculative Research, 2003, http://vv.arts.ucla.edu/publications/publications/02-03/JV_nano/JV_nano_artF5VG.htm.

[5] Academy of NanoArt, EMarketing 21, 2022, https://nanoart.org/.

[6] Orfescu, Cris. “NanoArt and Surrealist Photography.” Cris Orfescu, EMarketing 21, 2022, https://crisorfescu.com/.

[7] Vesna, Victoria, and Jim Gimszewski . Nano Mandala. YouTube, 26 Sept. 2008, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OerNS-Lu2Fg.

[8] “Sustainable LA Grand Challenge.” Environmental and Public Health Benefits from Achieving Sustainable Energy in California, Regents of University of California, 2022, https://sustainablela.ucla.edu/research-portal/project/environmental-and-public-health-benefits-achieving-sustainable-energy.

[9] “How Tiny Nanoparticles Are Transforming Technology.” NPR, Talk of the Nation, 4 Sept. 2009, https://www.npr.org/2009/09/04/112557420/how-tiny-nanoparticles-are-transforming-technology.

[10]  Herzog, Howard. “Carbon Capture.” MIT Climate Portal, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 3 Sept. 2020, https://climate.mit.edu/explainers/carbon-capture.

[11] Bullis, Kevin. “Carbon Capture with Nanotubes.” MIT Technology Review, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2 Apr. 2020, https://www.technologyreview.com/2009/11/30/207920/carbon-capture-with-nanotubes/.

[12] “Applications of Nanotechnology.” National Nanotechnology Initiative, National Nanotechnology Coordination Office, 2022, https://www.nano.gov/about-nanotechnology/applications-nanotechnology.

[13] Fuller, Nicole R. Carbon Capture Technology . Fine Art America, 24 July 2016, https://fineartamerica.com/featured/carbon-capture-technology-nicolle-r-fuller.html.