Selective Nanocatalysts and Nanoscience

This comprehensive book covers various aspects of nanoscience and nanotechnology and what is known about the potential environmental and health impacts. Divided into three main sections, the book addresses the toxicity of nanomaterials, fate and transport of nanomaterials in the environment, and occupational health aspects of nanotechonology.

This book describes various aspects of nanoscience and nanotechnology. It begins with an introduction to nanoscience and nanotechnology and includes a historical prospective, nanotechnology working in nature, man -made nanomaterial and impact of nanotechnology illustrated with examples. It goes on to describes general synthetic approaches and strategies and also deals with the characterization of nanomaterial using modern tools and techniques to give basic understanding to those interested in learning this emerging area. It then deals with different kinds of nanomaterial such as inorganics, carbon based-, nanocomposites and self-assembled/supramolecular nano structures in terms of their varieties, synthesis, properties etc. In addition, it contains chapters devoted to unique properties with mathematical treatment wherever applicable and the novel applications dealing with information technology, pollution control (environment, water), energy, nanomedicine, healthcare, consumer goods etc.

Introduction to Nanoscience and Nanotechnology explains nanotechnology to an audience that does not necessarily have a scientific background. It covers all aspects, including the new areas of biomedical applications and the use of nanotechnology to probe the «quantum vacuum.» After discussing the present state of the art in nanotechnology, the book makes estimates of where these technologies are going and what will be possible in the future.

The book presents nanoscience and nanotechnology to a broad audience that does not necessarily have a scientific background. This book starts with the fundamental physicochemical properties of nanoparticles and nanostructures, and discusses how these special properties can be manipulated to produce high-performance materials and devices. In the following chapters, the scope is broadened to cover naturally occurring nanoparticles and artificially-engineered carbon nanoparticles, their mechanical properties, and their importance to the rest of nanotechnology. The book also covers the two design ideologies for manufacturing nanostructures, the bottom-up and top-down methods, and discusses how these two can be combined to allow for the imaging, probing and manipulation of nanostructures. The remainder of the book surveys the current state of nanotechnology, including the use of single-nanoparticle devices in data storage, electronics, optics, and solar power; advances in nanoparticle manufacturing and biotechnology that can lead to powerful new cancer treatments; and the use of nanotechnology to study the “quantum vacuum”.

Unique in combining the expertise of practitioners from university hospitals and that of academic researchers, this timely monograph presents selected topics catering specifically to the needs and interests of natural scientists and engineers as well as physicians who are concerned with developing nanotechnology-based treatments to improve human health. To this end, the book cover the materials aspects of nanomedicine, such as the hierarchical structure of biological materials, the imaging of hard and soft tissues and, in particular, concrete examples of nanotechnology-based approaches in modern medical treatments. The whole is rounded off by a discussion of the opportunities and risks of using nanotechnology and nanomaterials in medicine, backed by case studies taken from real life.

The unique nanoscale properties of renewable biomaterials present valuable opportunities in the field of nanoscience and technology. Lignocellulosic biomass is an important industrial resource which can be used for the production of highly efficient and environmentally sustainable nanomaterials. The Nanoscience and Technology of Renewable Biomaterials presents the latest advances in biomass nanotechnology, including leading research from academia and industry, as well as a future vision for the nanotechnology of forest products. Topics covered include: A fundamental review of the relationship between nanotechnology and lignocellulosic biomass Characterization methods for biomass on the nanometer scale Cellulose, hemicelluloses and lignin as nanoscopic biomaterials-physical features, chemical properties and potential nanoproducts Nanoscale surface engineering Renewable materials as scaffolds for tissue engineering Nanoscopically-controlled drug delivery This book will be a valuable resource for chemists, chemical engineers, bioscience researchers and materials scientists who are interested in harnessing the nanotechnological features of renewable biomaterials.

Filling the need for a single work specifically addressing how to use plasma for the fabrication of nanoscale structures, this book is the first to cover plasma deposition in sufficient depth. The author has worked with numerous R&D institutions around the world, and here he begins with an introductory overview of plasma processing at micro- and nanoscales, as well as the current problems and challenges, before going on to address surface preparation, generation and diagnostics, transport and the manipulation of nano units.

The third, partly revised and enlarged edition of this introductory reference summarizes the terms and definitions, most important phenomena, and regulations occurring in the physics, chemistry, technology, and application of nanostructures. A representative collection of fundamental terms and definitions from quantum physics and chemistry, special mathematics, organic and inorganic chemistry, solid state physics, material science and technology accompanies recommended secondary sources for an extended study of any given subject. Each of the more than 2,200 entries, from a few sentences to a page in length, interprets the term or definition in question and briefly presents the main features of the phenomena behind it. Additional information in the form of notes («First described in», «Recognition», «More details in») supplements the entries and gives a historical perspective of the subject with reference to further sources. Ideal for answering questions related to unknown terms and definitions among undergraduate and PhD students studying the physics of low-dimensional structures, nanoelectronics, and nanotechnology.

Visual attention is a relatively new area of study combining a number of disciplines: artificial neural networks, artificial intelligence, vision science and psychology. The aim is to build computational models similar to human vision in order to solve tough problems for many potential applications including object recognition, unmanned vehicle navigation, and image and video coding and processing. In this book, the authors provide an up to date and highly applied introduction to the topic of visual attention, aiding researchers in creating powerful computer vision systems. Areas covered include the significance of vision research, psychology and computer vision, existing computational visual attention models, and the authors' contributions on visual attention models, and applications in various image and video processing tasks. This book is geared for graduates students and researchers in neural networks, image processing, machine learning, computer vision, and other areas of biologically inspired model building and applications. The book can also be used by practicing engineers looking for techniques involving the application of image coding, video processing, machine vision and brain-like robots to real-world systems. Other students and researchers with interdisciplinary interests will also find this book appealing. Provides a key knowledge boost to developers of image processing applications Is unique in emphasizing the practical utility of attention mechanisms Includes a number of real-world examples that readers can implement in their own work: robot navigation and object selection image and video quality assessment image and video coding Provides codes for users to apply in practical attentional models and mechanisms