Computer particles may cause damage to lungs

Published on Monday 20 February 2012 01:32

A REVOLUTIONARY material used in computer technology could pose health risks to those involved in its manufacture, scientists have warned.

Experts at Edinburgh University say nano discs or platelets – ultra-thin layers of carbon called “graphene”, heralded for its super-conductive properties – could be harmful to the lungs when produced in a particular form.

The flexibility of these disc-shaped particles means they can be readily incorporated into plastic and rubber, giving them new and useful properties. They can also be used to produce futuristic “bendy” computer screens that can be folded up and stored away without damage.

But scientists studying their behaviour found that the nanoplatelets, which are less than one carbon atom thick and invisible to the naked eye, behave like tiny frisbees, and stay airborne.

They warned that the nanoplatelets’ aerodynamic properties also mean that when inhaled, they can find their way deeper into the lungs compared with other forms of graphene. And the particles could accumulate in the lungs and cause damage.

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Alternative (High Octane) Fuel Head

Monday, February 20, 2012 at 03:41 PM

Would someone mind telling the person who wrote this that it is not possible to make something out of carbon that is "less than one carbon atom thick"

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Bourneville

Monday, February 20, 2012 at 09:01 AM

Go on then, explain how the nanoplatelets are "less than one carbon atom thick"? More likely to be in the 1-15nm thick range...

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