Questions and answers

Nanotechnology can be considered as a set of activities or mechanisms that occur on an extremely small scale, but that have implications in the real world. Such mechanisms are beyond the perception of the human eye and operate on a scale called nanometrical (a nanometer is the billionth or 10-fraction of a meter ). It is on this size scale that nanotechnology operates and that nanotechnology objects are conceived. It is the same scale of atoms and molecules. Nanotechnology is the result of the combination and evolution of several fields of human knowledge, including chemistry, materials science, biology, electronics, computing and physics.

 

As the centuries went by, the concept of the composition of matter evolved, to the extent that new scientific methods and equipment were perfected and incorporated into science (HAWKING, 1988). Manipulating atoms and/or individual molecules on a nanometric scale - nanomanipulation- is a relatively recent idea, which only gained greater consistency after 1959, when Richard Feynman, one of the most famous scientists of the 20th century and winner of two Nobel prizes (ERIC DREXLER, 1992) showed that there are no physical reasons that would prevent devices from being made through the manipulation of individual atoms. He proposes that such manipulation was not only perfectly possible, but that it would also inevitably result in the fabrication of useful devices and incredible applications for every field of knowledge (FISHBINE, 2002).

Brazilian research on nanotechnology started to intensify in the late 1990s. In 2002, the Brazilian Presidency's Strategic Studies Team published a study stressing the relevance of the area for the country and the efforts that resulted in the elaboration of the Brazilian nanotechnology initiative, in 2001, and the establishment of nananotechnology research networks, with the participation of several institutions,including Embrapa.

 

Nanotechnology is present in several products in our daily routines, e.g laptops, sunscreen, sports footwear, cell phones, fabrics, cosmetics, vehicles and drugs, among others. It is also very active in several sectors, such as: energy, agriculture, water treatment, ceramics and finishing materials, compound materials, plastics and polymers, airspace, naval and automotive industries; steel industry, dentistry, textiles, cement and concrete, microelectronics, disease diagnosis and prevention, and pharmaceutics.

 

As once happened with electricity and computers, nanotechnology will soon be present in almost every facet of daily life, and because it is an integrated science, it offers the chance to interfere in several economic segments, and agriculture is no exception.

In developing countries the application of nanotechnology in production systems or the food industry will especially bring unprecedented impacts, as it will be able to generate benefits to, according to calculations by the United Nations, an estimated five billion people in the upcoming years. These benefits are not only from the economic standpoint, but also direct or indirect ones like better quality of life, increase in food production per cultivated area, improved quality in agro-industrial processes and a higher number of consumers' having access to new products.

 

O objetivo da pesquisa em nanoteconologia conduzida na Embrapa é o de aprimorar a intervenção humana, através do uso do desenvolvimento de ferramentas que permitam o controle sobre os eventos, facilitando a tomada de decisões para obtenção de uma melhor rastreabilidade, produtividade e qualidade de produtos agropecuários. Para tal foi organizada uma rede (Agronano) que conta com mais de 150 pesquisadores de centros de pesquisa da Embrapa e de 53 instituições diversas, abrangendo todo o território nacional.

 

Just like in other areas of knowledge, nanotechnology is of extreme importance for agribusiness in general terms. Nanotechnology can generate a quality improvement associated with monitoring and reducing environmental damage. Precision agriculture, product traceability, certification, biofuel production, the inputs (fertilizers, pesticides) industry, production of drugs for veterinary use, food industry, and several other sectors related to the agroindustry will inevitably benefit from the advances of nanotechnology.

The goal of nanotechnology in agriculture is to improve such human intervention, through the use of sensors that enhance control over events and facilitate decision-making to obtain better traceability, productivity and quality. One example is precision agriculture, which today can aggregate and adapt advanced technologies to improve efficiency in production.

The importance of nanotechnology in agribusiness starts at the beginning of the production chains, significantly contributing to improving the performance, efficiency and economical use of inputs (fertilizers, pesticides, etc.), through the development of nanoparticles and nanocapsules for the controlled release of fertilizers and pesticides into the soil and of drugs for veterinary purposes (MATTOSO, 2005; DURÁN et al., 2005, ETC GROUP, 2004).

 

In agroindustry there are countless areas where nanotechnology can give an expressive contribution to increase the sector's competitiveness. An example is the improvement of the performance of agro-industrial processes and products, through the development of separation membranes and/or barriers for some agro-industrial processes and active intelligent packagings for food and drink and water purification, through the control of nanostructures, which have enormous importance in this sector.

The development of a sensor to assess the flavor of beverages like coffee, wine and milk, nicknamed "Electronic Tongue", can be deemed promising in this area. The device is capable of detecting sensorial characteristics like bitterness, sweetness and sourness. As it offers higher sensitivity than a human tongue, the nanotechnological tongue has shown fabulous potential for the food industry. The product, developed under the coordination of Embrapa Instrumentation (São Carlos, SP), has demonstrated how nananotechnology could expand horizons of application.

 

The main lines of research at the lab consist in the development of sensors and biosensors for food certification, quality control and traceability; development of new uses of agricultural products, characterization and synthesis of new materials, such as biodegradable plastics and nanostructured materials with specific properties, fine films and active surfaces to fabricate intelligent, edible packaging and surfaces; nanoparticles, composites and fibers for the development of reinforced materials using natural products, such as sisal, jute, coconut and other fibers for industrial applications; organic and inorganic nanoparticles for the controlled release of nutrients and pesticides onto soils and plants, and of pharmaceuticals for veterinarian use; development of nanomanipulation methodologies and nanocharacterization of materials; nanobiotechnology for the characterization of genetic material and genic nanomanipulation; characterization of materials of agribusiness interest to obtain unknown information about soil and plant particless, bacteria and pathogens of agricultural interest.

The Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation (MCTI), through FINEP (Financier of Studies and Projects), supported the establishment, in São Carlos, of the first National Laboratory of Nanotechnology for Agribusiness (LNNA), in which about R$ 8 million were invested. LNNA is a landmark in the consolidation of an infrastructure with advanced equipment and dedicated to Nanotechnology, which has given Brazil more ability to advance and generate innovations in such a promising area.