Book excerpt: Smart Nanocontainers explores the fundamental concepts and emerging applications of nanocontainers in biomedicine, pharmaceuticals and smart materials. In pharmaceuticals, nanocontainers have advantages over their micro-counterparts, including more efficient drug detoxification, higher intracellular uptake, better stability, less side effects and higher biocompatibility with tissue and cells. In materials science, such as coating technology, they help by making coatings smarter, stronger and more durable. This important reference will help anyone who wants to learn more on how nanocontainers are used to provide the controlled release of active agents, including their applications in smart coatings, corrosion, drug delivery, diagnosis, agri-food and gas storage. - Discusses how the molecular design of nanocarriers can be optimized to increase performance - Explores how nanocarriers are being used to produce a new generation of active coatings - Explains how nanocarriers are being used to deliver more effective nanoscale drug delivery