Recent advances in nanomaterials-based electrochemical sensors for herbicide detection

In recent decades, herbicides have been extensively used to preserve the quantity and quality of crops, thereby meeting the growing demand for food production worldwide. Environmental pollution resulting from the excessive utilization of pesticides, particularly the over-application of herbicides to safeguard desirable crops from weeds, poses a significant threat to both human health and the ecological system. It is essential to detect these pollutants at low concentrations, particularly in water and soil samples. While commonly accepted analytical procedures (chromatography and spectroscopy methods) are available, these highly sensitive and time-consuming methods are hindered by their high costs, the requirement for bulky equipment, the need for user training, and the necessity for sample pre-treatment. Electrochemical sensors address the limitations of traditional detection methods and offer significant potential for the efficient, sensitive, and cost-effective detection of herbicides. The development of nanomaterial-based electrochemical sensors for detecting herbicides has attracted considerable attention because of their benefits, including high selectivity, sensitivity, real-time monitoring capabilities, and user-friendliness. This review provides a thorough overview of the recent advancements in nanomaterial-based electrochemical herbicide sensors. The review begins with a general introduction, followed by a discussion on electrochemical sensors and the significance of incorporating nanomaterials into electrochemical sensors. Additionally, the review highlights recent advancements in electrochemical sensors that utilize various nanomaterials, including carbon-based nanomaterials, metal and metal oxide nanoparticles, metal-organic frameworks and transition metal chalcogenides, for the quantitative determination of herbicides. Finally, the review outlines the perspectives associated with the practical application of nanomaterial-based electrochemical herbicide sensors.