Nanomaterials can occur naturally, be created as the by-products of combustion reactions, or be produced purposefully through engineering to perform a specialised function.
Due to the ability to generate the materials in a particular way to play a specific role, the use of nanomaterials spans across a wide variety of industries, from healthcare and cosmetics to environmental preservation and air purification.
The healthcare field, for example, utilises nanomaterials in a variety of ways, with one major use being drug delivery. One example of this process is whereby nanoparticles are being developed to assist the transportation of chemotherapy drugs directly to cancerous growths, as well as to deliver drugs to areas of arteries that are damaged in order to fight cardiovascular disease. Carbon nanotubes are also being developed in order to be used in processes such as the addition of antibodies to the nanotubes to create bacteria sensors.