Downsides to the science

Amazing as it is, there appear to be some potential downsides to the amazing graphene. 

Two recent stories stick out in my constant perusal of this topic. The first is potential danger to individuals, the second is a potential downside to our fragile ecosystem.

The first one discusses the downside of carbon nanotubes as they can essentially "trap" cancer cells

source:  nanotube posts from technewsdaily

According to a new study conducted by researchers at Brown University, nanomaterials such as carbon nanotubes mimic asbestos and can fool our cells into thinking they are big enough to ingest, leading to some disastrous results. This is the same thing that makes asbestos dangerous, a process lead researcher Huajian Gao compared to eating a lollipop that's bigger than your own body — it would get stuck.

The second source of danger appears even more disturbing, as the extremely durable, pliant and "resistant" materials that graphene can enhance end up being toxic to many aquatic animals:

Nickel, chromium and other metals used in the manufacturing process can remain as impurities. Deng and his colleagues found that these metals and the CNTs themselves can reduce the growth rates or even kill some species of aquatic organisms. The four species used in the experiment were mussels (Villosa iris), small flies' larvae (Chironomus dilutus), worms (Lumbriculus variegatus) and crustaceans (Hyalella azteca).

 source