Preface: NanoItaly 2015

Recent technological and scientific advancements are more and more often related to the nano world, which may refer to the used materials, the designed structures, the involved composites, the machining processes, and/or the realized devices. Indeed, nanotechnologies are triggering a broad number of applications which are suggested by the amazing and unpreceded properties of these new classes of materials, composites, and devices. While academy of scientists and the world of “pure” research have been undoubtedly already fascinated by the great beauty…of nano (U. Fascio), however, a certain inertia and skepticisms still affect some field of industry. This cautious attitude may be partially attributed to some worries of the final consumer, especially in fields like food and nutrition, as well as to a certain incapacity of a part of the academic world to transfer their enthusiasm for their discoveries to the industry and to clearly show how nanotechnologies may improve the quality of our everyday life. Aiming at filling the gap between science and industry, NanoItaly represents a forum where Research and Market can meet each other. The first edition of this forum, NanoItaly 2015, took place from 20 to 23 September 2015, hosted by the Faculty of Civil and Industrial Engineering of SAPIENZA University of Rome. In the suggestive Renaissance Cloister by Giuliano da Sangallo, NanoItaly 2015 alternated exhibitions, plenary sessions, keynote lectures, tutorial sessions, and parallel symposia focused on specific scientific and technological themes. Among the latter: nanosensors and diagnostics; aerogels; microscopy, nanotomography and nanocharacterization techniques; graphene; nano-bio-photonics; nanotribology; nanomedicine and biomedical applications; nanotoxicology; nanotechnologies for cultural heritage, sport, and textile; molecular dynamics and atomistic simulation; nanotechnology and agro-food; nanoelectronics; nanofluidics; optical devices. This volume is a collection of contributions presented at NanoItaly 2015, which however can give only a partial account of the variety of the themes addresses in the different symposia. The articles here collected focus among the others on nanomaterials for catalysis, drug delivery, electronics, and construction industry, imaging and nanocharacterization techniques, and nanofabrication. The Editors are deeply in debt with all the Authors for their valuable contributions, which offer the Reader a significant, albeit pale, overview of the richness of the contents of NanoItaly 2015, and to all the Reviewers for their essential work of revision, fulfilled with carefulness and patience.