Recent study finds that manufacturing material could be hazardous.
By Raif Karerat
Carbon nanotubes have long been hailed as one of the holy grails of manufacturing.
The material is one of the strongest and stiffest substances yet discovered in terms of tensile strength and they carbon nanotubes has vast applications in the field of materials science due to their extraordinary mechanical, thermal, and electrical properties.
A recent study by lead author Fathi Moussa at the University of Paris-Saclay, France determined that while scientists are racing to improve the manufacturing process for carbon nanotubes, cars may be producing them already, albeit in a possibly detrimental fashion, reported the Apex Tribune.
Moussa and his colleagues studied fluid samples from the lungs of 64 asthmatic children from Paris and discovered strange particles they had not observed before. A closer analysis of the samples revealed that the children had carbon nanotubes in their lungs.
The level at which the nanotubes are present is unclear, as is their source, although the team found similar structures in dust and vehicle exhaust collected in Paris.
James Bonner at North Carolina State University in Raleigh told New Scientist that the detection of nanotubes should be treated with caution, as other studies of air pollution over the years have failed to find them.
“In my opinion, there is a great deal of uncertainty as to what these structures really are, especially the material in the lung cells from patients,” he stated.
Regarding the possibility of negative health effects, Jonathan Grigg at Queen Mary, University of London, believes nanotubes are unlikely to have the cancer-causing potential of asbestos fibers, which are much larger and can get trapped in the lining of the lung.