Nanotechnology in Transportation

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Nanotechnology in Transportation 

• Fabrication
• Mechanics
• Infrastructure

http//www.ampro.com/Applications/Transportation.h
tm http//ocw.mit.edu/OcwWeb/Urban-Studies-and-Pl
anning/11-953Spring-2006/CourseHome/index.htm
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From roads to bridges, from planes to trains,
from cars to bikes, and ships to busses.

• How can small science help us travel such a
  big planet?

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How Big Is Nano?
http//www.terressentials.com/exposure.html
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What Does Transportation Look Like?
http//www.princeton.edu/ina/infographics/transpo
rtation.html
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Nanotechnology Transportation Goals
Using nanoscience technology, scientists hope to
improve the transportation industry in three main
ways

• Protect and Improve
  the Environment
• Improve safety
• Improve comfort

http//www.rff.com/Transportation_Plan.gif
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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?
commandviewid209programCascadiaisEventtrue
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Areas of Vehicle Nanoscience Research
Thanks to nanotechnology, look for vehicle
improvements in the following areas. A few of
these will be described on the following pages.

• 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

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
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image http//nanopedia.case.edu/NWPage.php?paget
ransportation
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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/2007/0
7/04/if-ite28099s-in-bling-nanotech-must-be-mai
nstream http//nanopublic.blogspot.com/2007/07/nee
d-nano-bling.html http//www.instructables.com/id
/Increase-Miles-Per-Gallon-Instantly/
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Windshields

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

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.
Source Dr. U. König, DaimlerChrysler
AG http//www.nanotruck.de
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Better Protection

• Click on the following link to find a list of
  ways vehicles can be protected by just one
  nanotechnology company!
• Nanotechnology Innovations

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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-throug
h-bike http//delta7sports.com/products.html
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MechanicsBetter 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
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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
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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-nanotec
hnology-for-future-design http//blog.wired.com/ca
rs/2008/04/ford-turns-to-n.html
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A Better Catalytic Converter
Mazda created a new catalytic converter using
nanotechnology. Catalytic converters help to
purify exhaust emissions.

• 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/newsid2913.php http
//maremare1225.files.wordpress.com/2008/03/catalyt
ic-converter-location.jpg
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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). Thats a
  problem when working with nanoparticles due to
  the laws of quantum mechanics. (Quantum
  small). Somehow, Mazda has overcome the problem,
  and theyre not telling how!

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Thats 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/na
no-boric-acid-makes-motor-oil-more.html
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3. Infrastructure
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.
http//pubsindex.trb.org/document/view/default.asp
?lbid847888 http//whrpnews.org/images/12-07/join
t_distress1.jpg http//radio.weblogs.com/0105910/
2004/08/04.html
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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
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Social, Environmental and Ethical Concerns
 

• Might these nanotechnology developments in
  transportation infringe on human rights? 
• Could any of them decrease privacy of
  individuals? 
• Could the use of nanotechnology for
  transportation have unwanted and negative
  environmental effects?
• What economic impact could the use of
  nanotechnology in transportation have on
  producers, consumers, and other industries?
  Might they be negative or positive?

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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?

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

• What can be done to maximize the chances that
  humans will benefit from, rather than be harmed
  by, new developments?

• If we can develop these technologies, should we?
  Why?

http//pro.corbis.com/images/42-16672735.jpg?size
572uid7B44615E22-1598-41FF-B99B-9268F07BE0147D

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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/articleD
  etail.jsp?id361237
• General Nanoscience Weblinks

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More Help
 

• If you would like help breaking down your
  research into steps, click on the help button for
  an outline.