TY - JOUR
T1 - Survey of industrial perceptions for the use of nanomaterials for in-home drinking water purification devices
AU - Kidd, Justin
AU - Westerhoff, Paul
AU - Maynard, Andrew
N1 - Funding Information:
This research was funded by the National Science Foundation through the Nanosystems Engineering Research Center for Nano- Enabled Water Treatment (EEC 1449500 ). Research reported was partially supported by National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences through the Metals and metal mixtures: Cognitive aging, remediation and exposure sources (MEMCARE) center [ P42ES030990 ]. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health.
Funding Information:
This research was funded by the National Science Foundation through the Nanosystems Engineering Research Center for Nano- Enabled Water Treatment (EEC 1449500). Research reported was partially supported by National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences through the Metals and metal mixtures: Cognitive aging, remediation and exposure sources (MEMCARE) center [P42ES030990]. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2021
PY - 2021/4
Y1 - 2021/4
N2 - As businesses, specifically technology developers and industrial suppliers, strive to meet growing demand for higher quality drinking water, the use of engineered nanomaterials in commercial point-of-use (POU) in-home water purification devices are becoming an increasingly important option. Anecdotally, some businesses appear wary of developing and marketing nanomaterial-enabled devices because of concerns that they will face onerous regulation and consumer pushback. However, little of substance is known about business perceptions of and attitudes toward the use of engineered nanomaterials in POU water purification devices, or how these compare with consumer perceptions. To address this knowledge-gap, we administered a 14-question survey among 65 participants from US-based industrial companies focused on drinking water purification. Our results indicate that the dominant concerns for businesses are costs and public perceptions associated with nanomaterial-enabled POU devices for drinking water purification. Cost-specific barriers include competition from more conventional technologies, and tensions between operational versus capital costs. 57% of respondents were concerned or very concerned that public perceptions will influence the long-term viability of nanomaterial-enabled POU devices for drinking water purification. 49% of respondents stated that government regulation of nanomaterials would be the preferred approach to ensure public safety, followed by the certification of POU devices (28%). When asked about specific nanomaterials and their potential use in POU devices for drinking water purification, respondents ranked carbon nanotubes as the nanomaterial with highest concern for environmental health and safety, followed by silver, titanium dioxide, zinc oxide, and copper. Respondents ranked nanoclays as the nanomaterial with highest likelihood for public acceptance, followed by silica, cerium oxide, titanium dioxide, and aluminum oxide.
AB - As businesses, specifically technology developers and industrial suppliers, strive to meet growing demand for higher quality drinking water, the use of engineered nanomaterials in commercial point-of-use (POU) in-home water purification devices are becoming an increasingly important option. Anecdotally, some businesses appear wary of developing and marketing nanomaterial-enabled devices because of concerns that they will face onerous regulation and consumer pushback. However, little of substance is known about business perceptions of and attitudes toward the use of engineered nanomaterials in POU water purification devices, or how these compare with consumer perceptions. To address this knowledge-gap, we administered a 14-question survey among 65 participants from US-based industrial companies focused on drinking water purification. Our results indicate that the dominant concerns for businesses are costs and public perceptions associated with nanomaterial-enabled POU devices for drinking water purification. Cost-specific barriers include competition from more conventional technologies, and tensions between operational versus capital costs. 57% of respondents were concerned or very concerned that public perceptions will influence the long-term viability of nanomaterial-enabled POU devices for drinking water purification. 49% of respondents stated that government regulation of nanomaterials would be the preferred approach to ensure public safety, followed by the certification of POU devices (28%). When asked about specific nanomaterials and their potential use in POU devices for drinking water purification, respondents ranked carbon nanotubes as the nanomaterial with highest concern for environmental health and safety, followed by silver, titanium dioxide, zinc oxide, and copper. Respondents ranked nanoclays as the nanomaterial with highest likelihood for public acceptance, followed by silica, cerium oxide, titanium dioxide, and aluminum oxide.
KW - Drinking water
KW - Industry perception
KW - Nanomaterials
KW - Point-of-use
KW - Public perception
KW - Water treatment
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U2 - 10.1016/j.impact.2021.100320
DO - 10.1016/j.impact.2021.100320
M3 - Article
C2 - 35559977
AN - SCOPUS:85105047247
SN - 2452-0748
VL - 22
JO - NanoImpact
JF - NanoImpact
M1 - 100320
ER -