Coupling multicriteria decision analysis and life cycle assessment for nanomaterials

Though life cycle analysis has been agreed to be a good approach for evaluating the potential impacts of engineered nanomaterials, this new technology does present three challenges to current life cycle analysis techniques. These include the great variability of materials even in one seemingly narrow class of nanomaterials (such as the extreme difference in purity, uniformity, other characteristics in carbon nanotubes), the uncertainty about how to measure the toxicity of certain nanomaterials and the doubt that standard methods and tools will be adequate to testing engineered nanomaterials, and the questions as to how the use in the manufacturing process may alter the potential toxicology of engineered nanomaterials. The author makes several recommendations on how to begin finding solutions to these challenges in a way that will allow life cycle analysis to become more flexible and deal with these uncertainties.