Nanomaterials Properties of Environmental Interest and How to Assess Them

What aspects are relevant to understand and predict the outstanding properties and uses of nanomaterials? From the combination of the compositional characteristics of atoms (e.g., atomic number, size, electronegativity), the way they organize in space (e.g., symmetry, crystallinity, energy levels), along with their shape (i.e., morphology), it is commonly possible to understand the properties manifested by nanomaterials. This composition-structure-morphology-property correlation was highly refined by 20th century physics and chemistry knowledge. The rational understanding of this correlation enables scientists and engineers to predict and produce nanomaterials that will efficiently remove water contaminants, detect pollutants, or convert sunlight into electricity. In this context, nanomaterials properties of environmental interest will be discussed in this chapter, and representative examples will be provided as an introduction to this multidisciplinary field. In addition, the high-end technics and tools currently used to access and reveal the composition, structure, and morphology of nanomaterials will result in identifying their environmentally significant properties.