On January 17, 2023, the European Union (EU) Observatory for Nanomaterials (EUON) published a Nanopinion entitled “EU 2025: Enjoying the Benefits of Nanotechnology and NMS” by Dr. Anastasios Papadiamantis and Dr. Antreas Afantitis, both of NovaMechanics Ltd. The authors report the findings of a study commissioned by EUON on the EU market for nanomaterials, including substances, uses, volumes, and key operators. The authors state that the EU (including the European Economic Area (EEA)...
By Lynn L. Bergeson and Carla N. Hutton The U.S. Department of Energy’s Bioenergy Technologies Office (BETO) announced on January 23, 2023, that researchers at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) examined the benefits and trade-offs of current and emerging technologies for recycling certain types of plastics to determine the optimal options. According to BETO, the researchers provided a comparison of various closed-loop recycling technologies, which allow for the reuse...
January 24, 2023
Petition Filed to Add Polyphenylene Sulfide to List of Chemical Substances Subject to Superfund Excise Tax
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced on December 30, 2022, that it received a petition requesting the addition of polyphenylene sulfide to the list of taxable substances under Section 4672(a) of the Internal Revenue Code. 87 Fed. Reg. 80579. The petitioner is Celanese Ltd., an exporter of polyphenylene sulfide. According to the petition, “polyphenylene sulfide is a high-performance thermoplastic, has high heat and chemical resistance, and is used in applications such as filters,...
January 24, 2023
BETO Announces that Scientists from Multiple National Labs Are Finding New Ways to Convert Carbon Di
By Lynn L. Bergeson and Carla N. Hutton The U.S. Department of Energy’s Bioenergy Technologies Office (BETO) announced on January 20, 2023, that a collaborative team of BETO-funded scientists from Argonne National Laboratory (ANL) and National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) are searching for carbon utilization technologies that can make better use of the carbon dioxide generated by industry, transportation, and agriculture by transforming it into sustainable aviation fuel and...
January 23, 2023
EPA Announces Reinvoicing 2023 Annual Pesticide Registration Maintenance Fee to Meet Statutory Direction
On January 13, 2023, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced it is notifying pesticide registrants that EPA will send supplemental invoices to reflect the new annual pesticide registration maintenance fee for fiscal year (FY) 2023. To meet new statutory requirements in the Pesticide Registration Improvement Act of 2022 (PRIA 5), which was signed into law on December 29, 2022, the revised fee for FY 2023 for each registered pesticide product will be $4,875,...
January 23, 2023
OECD Will Hold Webinar on Test Guideline No. 125: Nanomaterial Particle Size and Size Distribution of Nanomaterials
The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) will hold a webinar on February 7, 2023, on Test Guideline (TG) No. 125: Nanomaterial Particle Size and Size Distribution of Nanomaterials. OECD states that it will present the methods described in TG No. 125 to determine the size and size distributions of nanomaterial particles and fibers spanning from one nanometer (nm) to 1,000 nm. During the webinar, attendees will be able to learn the use and limitation of the...
January 23, 2023
Petition Filed to Add Bisphenol A Epoxy Resin Copolymer to List of Chemical Substances Subject to Superfund Excise Tax
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced on January 19, 2023, that it received a petition requesting the addition of 4,4′-isopropylidenediphenol-epichlorohydrin copolymer (bisphenol A epoxy resin) to the list of taxable substances under Section 4672(a) of the Internal Revenue Code. 88 Fed. Reg. 3478. The petitioner is Westlake Epoxy Inc., an exporter of 4,4′-isopropylidenediphenol-epichlorohydrin copolymer. According to the petition, “4,4′-Isopropylidenediphenol-Epichlorohydrin...
L’association de veille et d’information civique sur les enjeux des nanosciences et nanotechnologies (AVICENN), a French non-governmental organization (NGO), announced on December 15, 2022, publication of a report entitled Searching for [Nanos] in Everyday Products. AVICENN sought to obtain an “overview of ‘nano impregnation’ in everyday consumer products in 2021-2022.” AVICENN selected products from categories already tested (food products, cosmetics, and medicines)...
January 19, 2023
OSTP Releases Framework for Strengthening Federal Scientific Integrity Policies and Practices
On January 12, 2023, the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) announced the release of A Framework for Federal Scientific Integrity Policy and Practice, “a roadmap that will help strengthen scientific integrity policies and practices across the federal government.” The framework builds on the assessment of federal scientific integrity policies and practices described in the January 2022 report, Protecting the Integrity of Government Science, and...
January 19, 2023
OSTP Releases Framework for Strengthening Federal Scientific Integrity Policies and Practices
By Lynn L. Bergeson and Carla N. Hutton On January 12, 2023, the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) announced the release of A Framework for Federal Scientific Integrity Policy and Practice, “a roadmap that will help strengthen scientific integrity policies and practices across the federal government.” The framework builds on the assessment of federal scientific integrity policies and practices described in the January 2022 report, Protecting the...