Molecularly imprinted polymers are synthetic receptors for a targeted molecule. As such, they are analogues of the natural antibody–antigen systems. In this review, after a recounting of the early history of the general field, we specifically focus on the application of these polymers as sensors. In these applications, the polymers are paired with a reporting system, which may be electrical, electrochemical, optical, or gravimetric. The presence of the targeted molecule effects a change in the reporting agent, and a calibrated quantity of the target is recorded. In this review, we describe the imprinted polymer production processes, the techniques used for reporting, and the applications of the reported sensors. A brief survey of recent applications to gas-phase sensing is included, but the focus is primarily on the development of sensors for targets in solution. Included among the applications are those designed to detect toxic chemicals, toxins in foods, drugs, explosives, and pathogens. The application...

Molecularly Imprinted Polymers

The current application of nanotechnology in food and agriculture.

Hierarchical Hollow‐Microsphere Metal–Selenide@Carbon Composites with Rational Surface Engineering for Advanced Sodium Storage

Since the past decade, enormous research efforts have been devoted to the detection/degradation and quantification of environmental toxic pollutants and biologically important molecules due to their ubiquitous necessity in the fields of environmental protection and human health. These fields of sensor and catalysis are advanced to a new era after emerging of nanomaterials, especially, carbon nanomaterials including graphene, carbon nanotube, carbon dots (C-dots), etc. Among them, the C-dots in the carbon family are rapidly boosted in the aspect of synthesis and application due to their superior properties of chemical and photostability, highly fluorescent with tunable, non/low-toxicity, and biocompatibility. The C-dot-based functional materials have shown great potential in sensor and catalysis fields for the detection/degradation of environmental pollutants. The major advantage of C-dots is that they can be easily prepared from numerous biomass/waste materials which are inexpensive and environment-friendly and are suitable for a developing trend of sustainable materials. This review is devoted to the recent development (since 2017) in the synthesis of biomass- and chemical-derived C-dots as well as diverse functionalization of C-dots. Their capability as a sensor and catalyst and respective mechanism are summarized. The future perspectives of C-dots are also discussed.

Recent Advances in Functionalized Carbon Dots toward the Design of Efficient Materials for Sensing and Catalysis Applications

Over the past decade, carbon dots have ignited a burst of interest in many different fields, including nanomedicine, solar energy, optoelectronics, energy storage, and sensing applications, owing to their excellent photoluminescence properties and the easiness to modify their optical properties through doping and functionalization. In this review, the synthesis, structural and optical properties, as well as photoluminescence mechanisms of carbon dots are first reviewed and summarized. Then, we describe a series of designs for carbon dot-based sensors and the different sensing mechanisms associated with them. Thereafter, we elaborate on recent research advances on carbon dot-based sensors for the selective and sensitive detection of a wide range of analytes, including heavy metals, cations, anions, biomolecules, biomarkers, nitroaromatic explosives, pollutants, vitamins, and drugs. Lastly, we provide a concluding perspective on the overall status, challenges, and future directions for the use of carbon dots in real-life sensing.

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Biogreen Synthesis of Carbon Dots for Biotechnology and Nanomedicine Applications

N,S co-doped carbon dots based fluorescent “on-off-on” sensor for determination of ascorbic acid in common fruits

Background Food analysis is essential in monitoring food quality for risk assessment regarding public health. Traditional techniques can meet the requirement of routine food analysis in laboratory. However, serious food safety situations urgently demand rapid, time-saving, low-cost analysis methods even on-site, portable and household testing kits. Fluorescence analysis exhibits immense potential for food safety owing to its remarkable advantages of high sensitivity, ease of operation, low cost and rapid result outputs. Scope and approach Carbon dots (CDs) are novel 0D carbonic nanomaterials recently emerging as potential substitutes for traditional fluorescent materials. Compared with the conventional fluorescent materials, e.g. organic fluorescent dyes, metal nanoparticles/nanoclusters and quantum dots (QDs), CDs possess many appealing merits such as ease of preparation, low cost, non-blinking, low cytotoxicity, excellent biocompatibility and high resistance to photo-bleaching. As a result CDs-based fluorescence sensing provides excellent analysis platforms for monitoring food-related analytes. This review provides a comprehensive overview of the state-of-the-art synthesis methods and the fluorescence properties of CDs along with the sensing mechanisms and designing principles of CDs-based fluorescent sensors for food analysis. Possible challenges and appealing prospects of CDs-based fluorescent sensors are also discussed. Key findings and conclusions CDs have been widely applied in bio-imaging, sensing, drug delivery, catalysis and optronics. Integration of CDs into food science and engineering for food safety control and risk assessment exhibits a bright future.

Carbon dots derived fluorescent nanosensors as versatile tools for food quality and safety assessment: A review

Surface molecularly imprinted polymer capped Mn-doped ZnS quantum dots as a phosphorescent nanosensor for detecting patulin in apple juice.

In-situ growth of UiO-66-NH2 onto polyacrylamide-grafted nonwoven fabric for highly efficient Pb(II) removal

Food safety has become a major global concern and the rapid detection of food nutritional ingredients and contaminants has aroused much more attention. Nanomaterials-based fluorescent sensing holds...

Xueli Luo

Papers

N,S co-doped carbon dots based fluorescent “on-off-on” sensor for determination of ascorbic acid in common fruits

Carbon dots derived fluorescent nanosensors as versatile tools for food quality and safety assessment: A review

Surface molecularly imprinted polymer capped Mn-doped ZnS quantum dots as a phosphorescent nanosensor for detecting patulin in apple juice.

In-situ growth of UiO-66-NH2 onto polyacrylamide-grafted nonwoven fabric for highly efficient Pb(II) removal

Carbon dots based ratiometric fluorescent sensing platform for food safety.