Nanotechnology Definition

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Amory Lovins is chief executive officer and co-founder of the Rocky Mountain Institute, an independent nonprofit resource policy center advising firms and governments worldwide on advanced resource productivity and environmental issues. A physicist educated at Harvard and Oxford, Mr. Lovins is the recipient of a MacArthur Fellowship, and the Nissan, Mitchell, and Onassis Prizes. He has briefed nine heads of state, published 26 books, and consulted for scores of industries and governments worldwide.

The Wall Street Journal named Mr. Lovins among 28 people in the world most likely to change the course of business in the 1990s. His work focuses on transforming the car, electricity, and real estate toward advanced resource productivity. Newsweek has praised him as "one of the Western world's most influential energy thinkers", and Car magazine ranked him the 22nd most powerful person in the global automotive industry.

During a recent interview for Small Times on alternative energy solutions, Mr. Lovins was asked about nanotechnology.

Q: Nanotechnology, specifically nanoscale materials and structures, is seen as playing a central role in storing hydrogen as well as catalysts to convert hydrogen to electricity. The oil industry already uses nanoscale technologies to refine petrochemicals. What role, if any, do you see this emerging field playing in a hydrogen economy?

Well, first I think I need to clarify what you mean by nano-based approaches. As far as I know all of the examples you gave are of materials crafted at molecular scale or in nanosize particles.

I prefer to use the term nanotechnology in Eric Drexler's original sense of molecular assemblers, rather than applying it as a blanket term to everything of nanoscale, whether it's anything to do with assemblers or not. Which sense do you mean it in?

Q: Hewlett-Packard nano researcher Stan Williams has separated the field's applications into two categories: passive – nanocomposites and structures – and active – the so-called nanobots and their self-replicating kin.

It’s a useful distinction. I think it's probably clearer between nanotechnology in the Drexlerian sense, and if you're just talking about nanoscale materials, then just use that term.

Q: Would you then separate your concerns or issues related to nanotechnology versus nanoscale materials?

They both have important issues that need to be examined much more carefully than they have. But they're different issues. The assembler-related, or as you would say, active technology issues have to do with malicious use.

I'm not quite so concerned about the gray goo problem, but there is certainly a shadow side to the assembler technology and Eric, of course, has been concerned about that from the beginning.

In that sense, Drexlerian nanotechnology is yet another of several technologies we have — like nuclear fission and transgenics — that someone said are suited for "wise, far-seeing and incorruptible people."

CRN applauds Mr. Lovins for emphasizing the important distinction between nanoscale materials and molecular manufacturing. And, of course, we heartily agree that wise, far-seeing and incorruptible people are greatly to be desired as administrators of this powerful new technology.

Comments

[Chris Rae]

I attended a lecture Mr Lovins gave when he was down in New Zealand in 2001. He has some good ideas, but there remain some major outstanding issues with the hydrogen economy concept. The primary one being how to produce, store and transport hydrogen in bulk quantity. Until solar becomes a major factor in energy suppy, the production issue is not going to be solved. However, this is only a matter of time

He has laid alot of good ground work such as designing a car able to be fabficated out of fibreglass/carbon fibre made of 6 or so pieces, and he is making all the work avaliable as an 'open source' project, which is extremely promising and encouraging to see.

[Chris Phoenix, CRN]

I just read that some researchers in Australia(?) had gotten a titanium dioxide direct-solar hydrogen producer near 10% efficiency. This sounds *very* promising. They were saying that within a few years they could have it ready for home use.

Chris