Over the past five years, both interest in and concerns about occupational hazards posed by various types of engineered nanomaterials have escalated. The toxicological understanding of these particles and the approaches to conducting a proper risk assessment are currently evolving.

Few firms are currently equipped with the multidisciplinary skills sets (toxicology, nanoscience, dosimetry, aerosol sampling, etc.) to effectively approach questions about how to evaluate the possible hazards of these particles in the workplace, in consumer products, in environmental emissions (air or water), or in pharmaceutical agents. ChemRisk^® professionals are currently active in research regarding these materials, and have served on science advisory boards that are now developing standardized risk assessment methodologies.