Carbon dots as robust class of sustainable and environment friendlier nano/optical sensors for pesticide recognition from wastewater

The toxicological influence and pervasive manifestation of hazardous pesticides posture adverse con-sequences on humans and a number of environmental matrices, directly through bioaccumulation or indirectly via the food chain. Much emphasis has been paid to reevaluating how to manage pesticide usage practices without affecting or damaging the environment due to the persistent existence of pesticide residues over acceptable levels in numerous forms. Therefore, the studies related to the cre-ation of trustworthy techniques for pesticide monitoring are hotspot across the globe. It has been sug-gested that carbon dots (C-dots), which have outstanding biocompatibility strong photostability and low toxicity, could replace other materials in the construction of several optical sensors for the detection of pesticide. Based on the complex nature and health hazards of the pesticides, this manuscript compre-hensively summarizes the overview of recent developments of C-dots based optical sensors for pesticide detection with special emphasis on colorimetric and photoluminescent sensors. This section is further nourished by highlighting the sensing mechanisms, structural design through integration of types of recognition elements such as, nanoparticles, enzymes, aptamers, antibodies and some of the molecularly imprinted polymers. Beyond evaluating how well these suggested optical sensors operate in practical applications, detailed discussions regarding current monitoring gaps and difficulties as well as potential future directions has also been presented. It is believed that this review would offer significant new insights for the creation of novel C-dots based pesticide monitoring systems with a large variety of applications.(c) 2023 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Automated summary

This review article provides an overview of recent developments in carbon dots-based optical sensors for pesticide detection, with a focus on colorimetric and photoluminescent sensors. The sensing mechanisms, structural design, and integration of recognition elements are discussed. The article also addresses current monitoring gaps and difficulties, and presents potential future directions for the development of novel carbon dots-based pesticide monitoring systems.