Nanotechnology drives tremendous breakthroughs, from enhancing consumer electronics to revolutionizing the way the medical industry combats disease. This year, the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) Technical Committee (TC) 229, Nanotechnologies, celebrates 20 years of developing critical standards that enable safe nanotechnology innovation across industries.
To mark this milestone anniversary, ANSI is highlighting ISO TC 229’s achievements and what’s on the horizon for future nanotechnology standards efforts. The U.S. is represented in ISO TC 229’s work through the ANSI-accredited U.S. Technical Advisory Group (TAG) to ISO TC 229, administered by ANSI.
Creating Real World Impact with Standards
Nanotechnology and the standards that support it have far-reaching applications across a broad swath of industries. Established in 2005, ISO TC 229 develops standards related to terminology and nomenclature; measurement and characterization; sustainability; consumer and societal dimensions of nanotechnologies; health, safety and environmental aspects of nanotechnologies; material specifications; and products and applications.
“Nanotechnology has grown from a fledgling technology to a thriving contributor to a large diversity of disciplines: physics, chemistry, biology, biochemical, biological, materials science, electronics, manufacturing, and production, and to a diversity of societal areas: agriculture, construction, energy, health, manufacturing, and resource utilization,” said Dr. Clayton Teague, the first chair of the ANSI-accredited U.S. TAG to ISO TC 229, who held the position from 2005-2011. “Much has been realized in these areas throughout society, with new materials such as quantum dots for high-definition TVs, nanostructured catalysts and pharmaceuticals, nano-engineered thermoelectric materials enabling compressor free cooling, new medical treatments based on CRISPR gene editing therapies delivered by lipid nanoparticles, high strength materials from new nanoalloys, and new nanotech-based approaches to provide improved treatment of fungal infections.”
Keeping up with rapidly emerging developments, ISO TC 229 was one of the first horizontal ISO committees to proactively develop standards for emerging technologies across multiple industries, as Dr. Vladimir Murashov, former chair of the ANSI-accredited U.S. TAG to ISO TC 229 (2020-2025), shared with ANSI.
Key standardization accomplishments of ISO TC 229 include ISO 80004-1, Nanotechnologies – Vocabulary – Part 1: Core vocabulary, which established fundamental terminology and definitions for nanotechnology, providing the foundation for all subsequent standards development in the field.
“ISO TC 229 has played a crucial role in allaying many of the early concerns and questions about the safety of nanomaterials and nanotechnology,” said Dr. Ajit Jilla, former chair the ANSI-accredited U.S. TAG to ISO TC 229 (2016-2020). “Through its work over the past 20 years, including developing standardized definitions as a resource for both regulators and industry, the work of this Committee has exemplified the goal of international standards: develop agreed-upon solutions used around the world that represent the state of technology and address important questions relating to health and safety, benefiting consumers, government, and industry.”
The TC has provided significant clarity and structure in the development and use of nanomaterials within the U.S. and across international borders.
“ISO TC 229 has played a significant role as a forum for mutual collaboration between the public and private sectors, supporting important conversations among stakeholders and moving nanomaterials from an area of uncertainty to a path towards resolution,” said Scott Brown, chair of the ANSI-accredited U.S. TAG to TC 229 Working Group (WG) 1, Terminology and Nomenclature. “The TC has been instrumental in supporting emerging materials markets, becoming a proactive home for the industry in facilitating trade and fair competition, notably for graphene.”
U.S. Efforts Driving Nano Standardization
Since ISO TC 229’s inception in 2005, the U.S. has been an engaged, active, and strategic leader in nanotechnology standardization.
The U.S. is also a key player in a new initiative of ISO TC 229: the Nanotechnologies Liaison Coordination Group (NLCG). Led by the U.S., this group coordinates liaisons’ participation and engagement with ISO TC 229—an essential role, as nanotechnology and utilization of nanomaterials covers many sectors. Productive relationships with liaisons are critical in assuring the quality and appropriateness of ISO TC 229’s horizontal standards.
Nanotechnology continues to be an important area of research and innovation related to U.S. national security. Nanotechnology and its materials and applications underpin a number of the areas identified in the 2024 Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) Critical and Emerging Technologies (CET) list potentially related to national security, including biotechnologies, quantum information and enabling technologies, and semiconductors and microelectronics.
Collaboration Fuels Growth
As Teague reflected on his participation: “I have been incredibly pleased to see the engagement of the ANSI-accredited U.S. TAG with so many other national and international standards efforts: nationally with ASTM, IEEE, ASME, and SEMI; with other national standards bodies including BSI, DIN, JISC, and AFNOR; and internationally with OECD, VAMAS, BIPM, IEC, and ITU.”
“To quote the vision of the U.S. National Nanotechnology Initiative, ‘a future in which the ability to understand and control matter at the nanoscale leads to ongoing revolutions in technology and industry that benefit society,’” said Teague. “An essential aspect of this vision is the development of national and international standards to guide the production and trade of materials and products and to assure that these are safe for the public’s health, safety, and environment. To have been a small part of nanotechnology’s development and the initial standardization efforts for this huge field via the ANSI-accredited U.S. TAG and the ISO TC was a major lifetime reward.”
Learn More and Get Involved
U.S. participation in ISO TC 229 is coordinated through the ANSI-accredited U.S. TAG administered by ANSI. To get involved, contact Heather Benko, associate director, ANSI nanotechnology standardization activities, at [email protected].
ANSI also hosts a Nanotechnology Standards Panel (ANSI-NSP) that serves as the cross-sector coordinating body for facilitating nanotechnology standards. Learn more at www.ansi.org/nsp.
ISO TC 229 by the Numbers:
