Nanotechnology For Africa Development

Nanotechnology is the design and fabrication of materials that are devised to be controlled at the nano level. The essence of nanotechnology is therefore size and control on the nano-scale, which is incredibly small. The width of a human hair is 60,000–80,000 nanometers, and a human fingernail grows approximately 10 nanometers per minute. Nanotechnologists are working with materials that are between 1 and 100 nanometers in size. Nanotechnology is an emerging science that promises enormous growth for development in Africa in the field of water sanitation, medicine, solar energy, food technology, and agriculture.

Nanotechnology is rightly considered to be in the nascent stage; it was first used in 1974 by the late Norio Taniguichi [1] (University Of Tokyo). It consists of atoms and molecules used in different ways. The disciplines of physics, chemistry, and biology have long dealt with atoms, molecules, and their behavior. Quantum mechanics is firmly established as the science of the absolutely small. Nanotechnologists have only been able to measure the size of a cluster of atoms on a surface since 1981 (IBM, Zurich). Since then, nanotechnologists have begun to provide better models of self-organization and self-assembly in chemistry and biology. Ten years later, in 1991, nanotechnologists were able to move atoms around on surfaces (IBM, Almaden)[2]. In 2002, nanotechnologists assembled molecules by physically positioning the component atoms. Yet, nanotechnologists cannot visualize or model with proper spatial and temporal accuracy for engineering or biological relevance at the nano-scale, but the nano-scale phenomenon holds the promise of fundamental new applications. Possible applications include chemical manufacturing using desi...

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