Center for the Environmental Implications of Nanotechnology (CEIN)

This solicitation requests proposals to create a national Center to conduct fundamental research and education on the implications of nanotechnology for the environment and living systems at all scales. The Center will address interactions of naturally derived, incidental and engineered nanoparticles and nanostructured materials, devices and systems (herein called “nanomaterials”) with the living world. Essential elements of this Center will include understanding the interactions of nanomaterials with organisms, cellular constituents, metabolic networks and living tissues; understanding environmental exposure and bioaccumulation and their effects on living systems; and determining the biological impacts of nanomaterials dispersed in the environment. Additional elements of the Center may include the development of methods and instrumentation for the detection and characterization of nanomaterials. For the purpose of this solicitation, nanomaterials have at least one dimension with a length of approximately 1 to 100 nm. A multidisciplinary research approach involving the biological, chemical, physical, computational, mathematical, social and behavioral sciences will be needed to understand the fundamental processes associated with the interaction of nanomaterials with the environment and living systems. This Center is expected to interact with other Nanotechnology Science and Engineering Centers as appropriate.