Mar. 15, 2007 — A new study by London, England-based Cientifica, the first in the Nanotech:Cleantech series, identifies six key ways in which nanotechnology is contributing to the reduction of carbon emissions. The technologies discussed in this report—available for free on Cientifica’s site—are all available now or within the next two years, and some have been making stealthy inroads into global industry for as long as a decade.
Growing concern over climate change driven by man-made carbon emissions is prompting governments worldwide to look at ways of stabilizing or reducing their carbon footprint. The United Kingdom unveiled plans to set a “legally binding” target to cut carbon emissions by 60% by 2050 and the European Union has agreed to cut emissions by 20% between now and 2020.
Cientifica CEO Tim Harper commented, “All of the key applications are related to our enhanced control of materials at the nanoscale, whether lighter stronger materials for transportation, better thermal insulators or more efficient ways of storing energy. The key players read like a Who’s Who of global industry. “
Cientifica research director Hailing Yu added “combining Cientifica’s technology diffusion and impact models with global emissions data allows the quantification and comparison of the impact of nanotechnologies on a country by country or industry basis.”