Recent Advances on Electrochemical Sensors for Detection of Contaminants of Emerging Concern (CECs).

Contaminants of Emerging Concern (CECs), a new category of contaminants currently in the limelight, are a major issue of global concern. The pervasive nature of CECs and their harmful effects, such as cancer, reproductive disorders, neurotoxicity, etc., make the situation alarming. The perilous nature of CECs lies in the fact that even very small concentrations of CECs can cause great impacts on living beings. They also have a nature of bioaccumulation. Thus, there is a great need to have efficient sensors for the detection of CECs to ensure a safe living environment. Electrochemical sensors are an efficient platform for CEC detection as they are highly selective, sensitive, stable, reproducible, and prompt, and can detect very low concentrations of the analyte. Major classes of CECs are pharmaceuticals, illicit drugs, personal care products, endocrine disruptors, newly registered pesticides, and disinfection by-products. This review focusses on CECs, including their sources and pathways, health effects caused by them, and electrochemical sensors as reported in the literature under each category for the detection of major CECs.

Recent Progress in Morphology-Tuned Nanomaterials for the Electrochemical Detection of Heavy Metals.

Heavy metals are one of the most important classes of environmental pollutants which are toxic to living beings. Many efforts are made by scientists to fabricate better sensors for the identification and quantification of heavy metal ions (HMI) in water and food samples to ensure good health. Electrocatalysts have been demonstrated to play an important role in enhancing the sensitivity and selectivity of HMI detection in electrochemical sensors. In this review, we presented morphologically well-tuned nanomaterials used as efficient sensor materials. Based on the molecular dimensions, shapes, and orientation, nanomaterials can be classified into 0-D, 1-D, 2-D, and 3-D nanomaterials. Active surface areas with significant exposure of active sites and adsorption-desorption abilities are extensively varied with dimensionality, which in turn ultimately influence the sensing performance for HMI.