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Title
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Economic feasibility and influence of nanotechnology in health : cost profile of nanomaterials
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Author
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Abstract
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| Impressive progress has been achieved in recent years in the field of nanotechnology and specifically in nanomaterials. However, the ever-growing number of nanomaterials poses a challenge in terms of financial, ethical and time resources. While the drive for nanomaterials improvements is present, a technology orientation is only a part of the answer. I acknowledge that the other part of the answer lies in the inclusion of the cost factor. Indirect costs of nanomaterials have never been assessed and this gap in knowledge can be perceived as a research opportunity and serve as the point of departure for this thesis. Against this backdrop, a stepwise process was developed to study a group of health-related nanomaterials at a lab scale. The group will be further used to form a cost profile for the synthesis and physicochemical characterization processes, along with the accorded opinion of experts covering major stakeholder groups (academics, laboratories and policy makers). The process offers a comprehensive view of the knowledge management approach that was adopted, and addresses prominent issues of both financial and risk-related concerns, in an effort to improve strategic management and create a competitive advantage. Reflecting from a technology science perspective, the first step consisted of searching granted patents from EPO and USPTO offices. Three attributes (title, abstract and claims) were extracted from the raw dataset during a 5-year period. The quantitative results revealed 23 health related nanomaterials in order to serve as a basis for further analysis. The qualitative branch of the study took a closer look on the safety datasheets in order to communicate the hazards of the group of nanomaterials under investigation. The inclusion of qualitative criteria revealed that the safety language of the safety datasheets was often different and that nanomaterial size was not always specified. Reflecting from an economic science perspective, the second step adopted the TCO methodology, in order to trace the costs and create the cost profile for the synthesis and physicochemical characterization process from the aforementioned generated dataset. The process of Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) is discussed through three synthesis case studies and a physicochemical characterization one to support decision making. The quantitative analysis revealed that the most influencing parameters for synthesis are accident and labor cost. In contrast for the physicochemical characterization process where the most important determinant is labour cost. The qualitative analysis highlighted the need for segmentation and analysis of synthesis recipes, to assess their structure and the required information. Publicized nanomaterial recipes most neglect to provide information about the produced quantities. Lack of produced quantities may lead to unstable outcomes that do not allow for a safe assessment of the toxicity risks of the manufactured nanomaterial. Without conducting a qualitative analysis, any assessment of processes will not paint the full picture, as it could potentially miss non-quantifiable factors. Reflecting from a safety perspective, a cost benefit analysis for a safety investment was used to estimate corresponding costs and hypothetical benefits of financial losses due to nanomaterial related accidents during the physicochemical characterization process. The findings of this study offer a better understanding of the role of safety training in accident prevention and provide the theoretical basis to support manager’s decisions to invest in safety. The research showed that the proposed methodology was able to manage multiple data sources. The process for nanomaterial groping is scalable. It may effortlessly include a larger amount of application types and can be seamlessly expanded to incorporate the ever-growing amount of newly produced nanomaterials. The cost factor was included in the nanomaterial evaluation equation. Although TCO analysis is very case specific and generic models are not appropriate, none of the identified cost drivers are solely for health-related nanomaterials. The TCO models developed uphold the necessary objectivity and can be generalized to all existing types of nanomaterials. |
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Language
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English
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Publication
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Antwerp
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University of Antwerp, Faculty of Business Economics, Department of Engineering Management
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2020
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Volume/pages
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280 p.
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Note
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Reniers, Genserik [Supervisor]
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Cool, Pegie [Supervisor]
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