Phase 3: Interlaboratory Studies
METHODS DEVELOPMENT AND REFINEMENT
Interlaboratory studies will be conducted in Phase 3 to develop methodologies identified in Phase 2. If we are successful, the resultant methods will be widely used to assess the potential for release and feed into exposure and subsequent risk evaluations. The methods will also be useful to guide design, development, and testing of nanomaterial products. Ideally, these methods would be the basis of consensus documentary standards from standards development organizations.
CURRENT FOCUS
Phase 3 of the project is conducting methods development using an inter-laboratory testing approach, in which government, industry, and academic laboratories are convened using a “cooperative research and development agreement” approach often used by US government agencies to enable technology transfer between public and private sectors.
Two stages of test methods development were considered for the detection and characterization MWCNTs released from products and articles by various means such as abrasion and incineration. The first stage, Tier 1, involves the use of “master batches” of products designed to have varying release potentials of MWCNTs from low to high that represent a range of products used in consumer articles. The second stage, Tier 2, would involve the detection and characterization of released MWCNTs from actual consumer articles. The project completed initial testing of methods corresponding to Tier 2.