Nanomaterials-based electrochemical detection of chemical contaminants

Abstract

Recent advances in the development of nanomaterials-based electrochemical sensors for environmental monitoring and food safety applications are assessed.

Abstract

Owing to the high toxicity and detrimental effects of chemical contaminants to human health and the environment, public concerns over chemical contaminants in the environment and in foods have been mounting drastically. It is therefore significant to monitor contaminants via portable sensing devices, which encompass the demands of being low-cost and the potential for online environmental monitoring and food safety applications. This review will assess various concepts and recent advancements in design and the application of state-of-the-art nanomaterials through the incorporation of carbon nanomaterials, metallic and metallic oxide nanoparticles, titanium dioxide nanotubes, and dendrimers toward the development of electrochemical sensors for the detection of chemical contaminants in the environment and in foods. The development of nanomaterials based sensors facilitated by recent advances is having a major impact on sensor industries for environmental and food safety monitoring. Electrochemical sensing strategies have spurred intense interest in the research community as they have the capacity to serve as ideal sensor technology candidates, having such features as rapid response, robustness, high sensitivity and selectivity, low cost, miniaturization, and the potential for real-time monitoring. Nanomaterials have strong potential for increasing the competitiveness of new sensors for environmental monitoring and food safety applications through the combination of efficacious, yet simple fabrication techniques in the development of critical nanometric interfaces, and the optimization of their design and performance. Opportunities and future considerations for the use of nanomaterials in electrochemical sensors for producing advanced environmental and food sensing devices will also be addressed.