Integrated Design of Nanomaterial, Product, and Process and Multiscale Sustainability Assessment

It is evidenced that engineered nanomaterials (ENMs) could substantially improve the performance and functionality of ENM-containing products. However, there have been serious concerns on possible environmental and health impacts. Nanopaint is a typical example, which is potentially a dominant coating material in the near future. However, how to design a sustainable material at the nanoscale, nanocoatings at the mesoscale, and application processes at the macroscale is a major challenge in the coating industry today. In this paper, we will introduce a material-product-process-integrated design methodology by resorting to multiscale system science, nanoengineering and process engineering sciences, as well as sustainability principles. We will present how to model the whole system and utilize parameter information from different design phases to conduct multiscale sustainability assessment, and to generation guidelines for sustainable design of nanopaint, nanocoating product, and manufacturing process. Design optimality and application practicality issues will also be discussed.