Self-regulating nanozyme systems for adaptive environmental remediation: A review

The traditional approach of environmental remediation relies on passive approaches, relying on substances such as adsorbents, catalysts, and membranes that operate under fixed conditions and are relatively insensitive to changes in the environment. These materials have been effective at cleaning pollutants, but are slow, susceptible to fouling, and less effective in the complex case of multi-pollutant systems. Recently, nanozymes (nanomaterials with enzyme-like properties), possessing high stability, variable reactivity, and multi-functionality, have gained attention as an efficient, diverse range of application. Now, it is believed that nanozymes can be considered to be self-regulating environmental interfaces that can sense pollution and detect pollutants. In this review, we propose a closed loop architecture of Sensing–Transduction–Computation–Action–Feedback (S–T–C–A–F) that reimagines nanozymes as adaptable environmental interfaces. Our structure specifies that Sensing (S) detects pollutant, Transduction (T) converts molecular interactions into measurable physicochemical signals, Computation (C) interprets these signals via threshold and logic decision steps, Action (A) degrades pollutants by catalytically, and Feedback (F) adjusts the system based on environmental conditions and remediation progress.