Owing to the structural recalcitrance, low aqueous solubility, and inherent ecotoxicity of ibuprofen (IBP), conventional water treatment technologies exhibit limited effectiveness in its removal (typically achieving less than 50 % removal efficiency), which falls short of practical remediation requirements. To address this challenge, this study introduces a rational interfacial/structural engineering strategy for the rational development of TiO2/ BiVO4 S-scheme heterostructures, and systematically demonstrates their superior performance in photocatalytic degradation of IBP. The optimized 0.5-TiO2/BiVO4 composite achieves a 99.84 % IBP removal rate within 60 min under ultraviolet (UV) irradiation, representing a 2.4-fold enhancement over pristine BiVO4, while maintaining good cyclic stability (98.67 % efficiency retention after five consecutive cycles). This enhancement is attributed to improved pollutant enrichment and mass transfer enabled by hierarchical mesoporosity (bimodal pore networks), together with enhanced charge separation/transfer associated with the S-scheme heterojunction. Radical trapping experiments and electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectroscopy analysis suggest that superoxide radicals (center dot O2-) and holes (h+) as the dominant active species, while hydroxyl radicals (center dot OH) playing a secondary role. Furthermore, time-resolved liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS) reveals a dual-channel degradation pathway: initial isobutyl hydroxylation, followed by center dot O2--driven demethylation and h+-mediated decarboxylation. This work provides mechanistic insight and a practical design guideline by linking hierarchical porosity (pollutant enrichment) with an S-scheme heterojunction (charge separation with preserved redox ability) to achieve efficient UV-driven IBP degradation, thus offering a feasible photocatalytic advanced oxidation processes (AOPs) strategy for emerging contaminant removal.

The preparation of porous molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) from starch, a natural product, presents significant challenges. In this study, we developed a straightforward method for preparing porous MIPs (DFP-MIPs) by crosslinking short amylose as a functional monomer with decafluorobiphenyl (DFP) as a cross-linker. Experimental results indicated that DFP-MIPs exhibited a larger specific surface area (14.06 m 2/g) and adsorption capacity (26.3 mg/g), and a high imprinting factor of 3.14 for estradiol (E2), compared to MIPs prepared using tetrafluorobenzenediamine with a single benzene ring as the cross-linker. A method for detecting E2 in milk and meat samples was also established using DFP-MIPs as the adsorbent in conjunction with high-performance liquid chromatography. Under optimal conditions, this method demonstrated a linear range of 0.020 0-0.40 0 & micro;g/g, a detection limit of 0.0 030 0 & micro;g/g, and a recovery rate of 85.2 % to 101.4 %. The proposed method for preparing DFP-MIPs is expected to provide a new pathway for the development of porous and highly selective MIPs using amylose. (c) 2026 Published by Elsevier B.V. on behalf of Chinese Chemical Society and Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences.

This study pioneers the incorporation of hydroxyethyl cellulose (HEC) into electrochemiluminescence (ECL) sensing strategy. By modifying a novel velvet-like graphitic carbon nitride (V-g-C3N4) with exceptional conductivity and luminescent properties, we successfully constructed a highly sensitive ECL sensor based on HEC-functionalized V-g-C3N4 (HEC/V-g-C3N4). The incorporation of HEC ensured stable immobilization of V-g-C3N4 on glassy carbon electrode surface. This facilitated the generation of more excited-state species, which significantly enhanced the ECL signal intensity. Compared to the commonly used chitosan-functionalized V-g-C3N4 (CS/V-g-C3N4), HEC/V-g-C3N4 exhibited a 4.35-fold enhancement in ECL intensity. Thus, HEC/V-g-C3N4 was applied in ECL sensors for the ultra-sensitive detection of 3-nitro-l-tyrosine (3-NT) in human saliva. Under optimized conditions, the sensor demonstrated a wide detection range (1 × 10-10 - 1 × 10-5 M) and an exceptionally low detection limit (2.8 × 10-11 M). When applied to the detection of 3-NT in saliva samples, the sensor achieved high accuracy, with recoveries ranging from 96.77% to 106.1% and relative standard deviations between 1.15% and 5.56%. The results highlight the ECL sensor's excellent selectivity, stability, and reproducibility, offering a novel, reliable, and cost-effective platform for the high-sensitivity detection of 3-NT in saliva from healthy individuals.

Uranium is a core key element in the nuclear industry, and the discharge of uranium-containing wastewater is likely to pose a significant threat to the ecological environment and human health....

An AgNPs@MOF bifunctional nanocomposite (combining peroxidase-like catalytic properties and surface-enhanced Raman activity substrate) was synthesized. The material can decompose H2O2 to produce hydroxyl radicals (˙OH), which oxidize the chromogenic substrate 3,3',5,5'-tetramethylbenzidine (TMB) from its colorless, Raman-silent form to a blue-colored, Raman-active oxidized product (ox-TMB). The peroxidase-like activity of AgNPs@MOF is suppressed when the sulfadimethoxine (SDM) specific aptamer is adsorbed onto its surface. However, upon binding with the target SDM molecule, the aptamer forms a stable complex and detaches from AgNPs@MOF, thereby restoring the nanomaterial's catalytic function. This mechanism enabled the design of a dual-mode aptamer sensor (aptasensor) based on surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) and colorimetry (UV-vis) for SDM detection. The optimized SERS technique displayed a linear detection range of 6.00-200.00 ng mL-1 with an LOD of 0.96 ng mL-1, whereas the colorimetric approach had a linear range of 24.00-200.00 ng mL-1 and a LOD of 2.19 ng mL-1. The developed aptasensor successfully detected SDM in fortified milk and mutton samples, showing excellent specificity and acceptable recovery rates. Compared to single-mode detection systems, this dual-mode analytical platform offers enhanced reliability and can be modified for different antibiotic detection through substitution of specific aptamers. Consequently, the developed aptasensor shows promising applications for monitoring trace-level antibiotics in food safety analysis.

Using a metal-organic framework (MOF) - supported Ru(bpy)32+ (MIL-88@Ru) composite luminescent material, this study innovatively adopted electropolymerization to fabricate a molecularly imprinted polymer-based electrochemiluminescent (MIP-ECL) sensor for enrofloxacin (ENR) detection in animal-derived foods. Systematic investigation of the ECL luminescence and ENR's quenching mechanism confirmed that the sensor integrates ECL's high sensitivity and MIP's high specificity, enabling rapid and accurate recognition of ENR. Experimental results show a good linear response in the range of 1 nmol/L-20 μmol/L (R2 = 0.99), a limit of detection (LOD) as low as 0.28 nmol/L, as well as excellent selectivity and stability. Recoveries of ENR in all investigated matrices ranged from 97.7% to 106.4%, confirming the reliability of the established method. This ECL-MIP coupling strategy provides a new technical approach and application references for the efficient detection of trace pollutants in food safety and environmental monitoring fields.

It is of great significance to explore stable and efficient heterostructured nanocomposite photocatalysts to promote the degradation of organic pollution. In this study, ZnO/BaTiO3 (ZnO/BT) nanocomposite was successfully prepared by simple calcination treatment using ZnO and BT as precursors. The chemical reaction equation for the formation of ZnO/BT nanocomposite was introduced for the first time. The formation mechanism of ZnO/BT nanocomposite was proposed, namely the dissolution-deposition reaction. Among them, when the ZnO mass content was 17 % (17 wt% ZnO/BT), the nanocomposite exhibited the best photocatalytic performance. After being irradiated by ultraviolet-visible light (UV-vis) for 30 min, it could completely degrade methyl blue (MB). The photocatalytic rate constants of 17 wt% ZnO/BT nanocomposite are 14.4 times and 1.8 times that of BT and ZnO, respectively. The carriers of ZnO/BT nanocomposite migrated along the S-scheme trajectory by the internal electric field and energy band bending, which improved the carrier separation efficiency, retained the holes and electrons with high redox potentials. In addition, the nanocomposite photocatalyst showed good cyclability in four cycles, maintained its excellent photocatalytic performance, and showed excellent application prospects. Finally, based on liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry analysis, the pathway of the photocatalytic degradation of MB by ZnO/BT nanocomposite was proposed. The as-prepared ZnO/BT nanocomposite is an economical, stable and efficient photocatalyst, which is expected to be further used for practical wastewater treatment. This study provides a new approach for the design of efficient composite photocatalysis.

The excessive use of pesticides is an urgent issue facing environmental sustainability and human health. In this study, a uniform dispersion size, good fluorescence performance and mesoporous structure of a ratiometric fluorescent probe were constructed for nicosulfuron detection. A solvent-free in situ solid-phase synthesis method was used to encapsulate biomass carbon dots within mesoporous silica (CDs@mSiO2), followed by the modification of L-cysteine-modified manganese-doped zinc sulfide quantum dots (ZnS:Mn QDs), to construct a ratiometric fluorescent probe for highly sensitive and selective detection of nicosulfuron. This design effectively prevents the aggregation of CDs and reduces interference between the two fluorescent signals. Nicosulfuron detection had a low detection limit of 0.082 mu M. Density functional theory calculations were carried out to uncover the specific interactions between nicosulfuron and ZnS:Mn QDs. The process of fluorescence quenching is ascribed to photoinduced electron transfer. This work offers a special strategy to produce a ratiometric fluorescent probe and illustrate the mechanism, which is crucial for sensing and environmental engineering.

Hydrogen sulfide (H2S) plays a vital role in plant physiology and stress adaptation, but the detection of endogenous H2S remains a challenge. In this work, a near-infrared fluorescent probe (NIR-BOD-HS) was synthesized using boron-dipyrromethene (BODIPY) as the raw material, which showed a good linear relationship in the concentration range of 0.1-70 μM and a detection limit of 56 nM. The long-wavelength emission (712 nm) reduced the interference of plant autofluorescence and improved the imaging quality. The probe combined with fluorescence imaging technology nondestructively realized the spatiotemporal distribution signal of H2S in the deep tissues of plants. In addition, the dynamic changes of H2S content during seed germination and seedling growth under abiotic stress were also demonstrated through the changes in fluorescence signals. This study helps to understand the physiological response mechanism of plants under abiotic stress and provides a scientific basis for further research on plant imaging and agricultural production.

Water pollution remediation has emerged as a paramount challenge amid rapid industry, agriculture and society development, particularly for persistent, low-concentration contaminants that evade conventional water treatments. Integrating photocatalysis with molecular imprinting technology offers a transformative approach for specific adsorption, enhanced matrix resistance, and efficient radical utilization through pollutant targeted degradation, delivering great potential in water pollution preferential remediation. This review briefly summarized the fundamental mechanisms underlying molecular imprinting and photocatalysis, and discussed in detail the research necessity and key scientific challenges faced by molecular imprinting photocatalysts (MIPCs). Combining different photocatalytic materials, synergistic mechanism of selective adsorption with photodegradation, and water pollution removal efficiency, the innovative design strategies of MIPCs are discussed in detail from perspective of molecular imprinting (photocatalyst and MIPs separated, photocatalyst serving as imprinted matrix) and photocatalysis (diverse photocatalysts, e.g., TiO2, g-C3N4, ZnO, CdS). Additionally, theoretical calculations about this field were analyzed critically. Finally, the key challenges and long-term prospects were outlined, emphasizing four critical dimensions: (1) enhancement of selective removal efficiency; (2) elucidation of reaction mechanisms; (3) scalability for practical applications; (4) innovative imprinting strategies. This review is expected to offer fundamental insights into both the scientific principles and engineering applications of MIPCs, while catalyzing advancements in water preferential remediation technologies.

Nanoalloy materials showed excellent, sensitive properties in the research field of ammonia-nitrogen electrochemical sensors, which have been widely used by researchers. The PtZnCu ternary nanoalloy electrode based on a carbon cloth substrate (PtZnCu-CC) was prepared using one-step electrodeposition. The characterization results showed that the alloying of Zn, Cu and Pt regulated the electronic structure of Pt and enhanced the electrocatalytic oxidation capacity of Pt for ammonia-nitrogen. Meanwhile, it was proved by density functional theory (DFT) that PtZnCu nanoalloy fully inherited the advantages of PtCu and PtZn nanoalloy, which not only enhanced the adsorption capacity of ammonia but also balanced the free energy of each step. Finally, the sensitivity of the whole electrode to ammonia-nitrogen was improved. The linear detection range of the sensor based on PtZnCu-CC electrode for ammonia-nitrogen was 0.5-1000 mu M, the sensitivity was 23.9 mu A mu M- 1 cm- 2, and the limit of detection (LOD) was 8.37 nM, which showed satisfactory repeatability, anti-interference and stability. This work provided a specific direction for designing high-performance electrochemical sensors.

The detection of lead ions (Pb2+) is essential because of their toxicity and potential risks to human health and ecosystems. Conventional detection methods often rely on pre-enrichment, which, while improving sensitivity, can lead to challenges such as longer detection times, higher energy consumption, and electrode degradation. In this study, we introduce a high-performance electrochemical sensor utilizing a phosphorus-doped tungsten-based material/carbon cloth electrode (P-W-CC), designed for Pb2+ detection without pre-enrichment. This approach takes advantage of the multivalent properties of tungsten and the effects of phosphorus doping. Tungsten's multivalent properties enable efficient redox cycling, while phosphorus doping enhances the electrode's adsorption capacity for Pb2+. This combination significantly improves both adsorption and detection performance. Integrated into a wireless low-power detection system using LoRa communication, the P-W-CC sensor demonstrates exceptional sensitivity, stability, and rapid analysis. This study offers valuable insights into the development of real-time monitoring systems for detecting heavy metal ions, meeting critical demands in environmental monitoring and industrial applications.

Monitoring lambda-cyhalothrin (LC) is essential for environmental and public health. Herein, LC was selected as the template to fabricate a molecularly imprinted layer on magnetic nanozymes Fe3O4-Cu, resulting in a magnetic molecularly imprinted nanozyme (SMIPs@Fe3O4-Cu). In the presence of hydrogen peroxide, non-fluorescent terephthalic acid could be catalyzed by SMIPs@Fe3O4-Cu and converted into its fluorescent derivative, 2-hydroxyterephthalic acid (2-HTA). LC could occupy the imprinted cavities, thereby reducing the peroxidase-like activity of SMIPs@Fe3O4-Cu and decreasing 2-HTA production. Additionally, LC could quench the fluorescence of 2-HTA via electron transfer. The dual quenching mechanism significantly improved the sensitivity of the constructed selective sensing platform based on SMIPs@Fe3O4-Cu, with an extremely low limit of detection (5.03 ng/L) for LC. Furthermore, the applicability of the proposed method was evaluated using fruit and vegetable samples, achieving satisfactory recoveries (97.8

As a prototypical heavy metal pollutant, copper ions (Cu2+) are ubiquitously present in industrial wastewater from electroplating and metallurgical processes. Their excessive discharge poses severe threats to ecological systems and human health, underscoring the critical need for advanced detection technologies. This study pioneers a light-driven oxygen vacancy engineering strategy to develop a Co3O4-based sensor through an in situ growth approach on transparent fluorine-doped tin oxide (FTO) substrates. The engineered oxygen vacancies (Ov) enable ultraviolet-triggered directional migration of photogenerated electron-hole pairs, with electrons accumulating at Ov defect states to directly reduce Cu2+ via Cu2+ + 2e- -> Cu0. Crucially, the dynamic Co3+/ Co2+ valence cycling ensures continuous regeneration of active sites, circumventing the pre-enrichment requirement inherent to conventional electrochemical methods. Experimental evaluations demonstrate exceptional performance: the sensitivity within the linear range of 0.1-1 mu M is 11.76 mu A & sdot;mu M- 1, and the detection limit (22.99 nM) is extremely low and practical recoveries of 83-127 % in real water matrices. This study provides a light-driven oxygen vacancy mechanism for the rapid detection of heavy metal ions without enrichment, and provides a new idea for the development of in situ monitoring technology for environmental pollutants.

Graphitic carbon nitride (g-C3N4), a π-conjugated semiconductor with visible-light absorption, has emerged as a versatile material for ratiometric sensing due to its thermal/chemical stability, biocompatibility, and tunable optoelectronic properties. This review highlights recent advances in g-C3N4-based ratiometric electrochemiluminescence (ECL), fluorescence (FL), and photoelectrochemical (PEC) sensors for ultrasensitive detection of diverse analytes. Ratiometric ECL platforms achieved remarkable detection limits, such as 0.2 nM for Hg2+ and 59 aM for SARS-CoV-2 RdRp gene, leveraging dual-potential or dual-wavelength strategies. FL sensors enabled selective quantification of analysts, such as Ce3+ (6.4 × 10-8 mol/L) and tetracycline (5.0 nM) via aggregation-induced emission or inner filter effect mechanisms. In PEC sensing, spatial-resolved dual-electrode systems attained ultrahigh sensitivity for Escherichia coli (0.66 cfu/mL) and alpha-fetoprotein (0.2 pg/mL). These g-C3N4-based sensors demonstrated enhanced sensitivity and reliability across environmental, biomedical, and food safety applications. The synergy of g-C3N4's structural advantages and ratiometric design principles demonstrates broad application prospects in fields such as food and environmental safety analysis, as well as early disease diagnosis.

Herein, a novel S-scheme β-Bi 2 O 3 /BaTiO 3 heterojunction nanocomposite was prepared for the first time. The nanocomposite can efficiently degrade RhB under simulated sunlight irradiation.

The imbalance of reactive nitrogen species (RNS) levels is one of the main pathological changes in plants under abiotic stress. Among them, the imbalance of peroxynitrite (ONOO-) leads to nitrosation reactions that cause plant damage. In this study, a naphthylimide fluorescent probe (NFP) was constructed by using the twisted intramolecular charge transfer (TICT) property with naphthylimide as the fluorophore and methyl (4-hydroxyphenyl) amino group as the recognition group. The interaction mechanism between the probe NFP and ONOO- was verified by density-functional theory (DFT). The organic fluorescent probe NFP has a small size that can easily enter the cell wall. The probe NFP specifically recognizes ONOO- through N-dearomatisation, triggering a 'turn-on' fluorescence response with an approximately 22-fold increase in fluorescence intensity. NFP showed high sensitivity, prominent selectivity, and rapid response to ONOO-. The reaction of NFP with ONOO- proceeded immediately, and the limit of detection was as low as 7.9nM, almost unaffected by other interferences. In addition, the fluorescence imaging experiment of onion epidermal cells proved that NFP had good cell permeability and could be applied for plant imaging. NFP was applied to the efficient detection of ONOO- in plant shoots and seedlings, and the in-situ dynamic tracking of ONOO- in plants under abiotic stress was realized. The designed method can reveal changes in ONOO- concentration in seed germination and seedling growth in response to external abiotic stress, and explore the visual response of plants under stress.

Biotic and abiotic stresses can disrupt plant metabolic processes. This leads to the excessive accumulation of hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) in plants, which in turn induces oxidative stress. Therefore, detection of H2O2 is critical to understanding plant growth. In this study, we developed a naphthalene-based fluorescein near-infrared fluorescent probe (NAPF-AC) for the sensitive and selective detection of H2O2. Upon exposure to H2O2, the probe undergoes disruption of its push-pull electronic structure, triggering an intramolecular charge transfer process that allows for fluorescence-based detection. NAPF-AC exhibited excellent linearity (R2 = 0.998) over a wide concentration range of H2O2 (0.1 to 100 μM), with a limit of detection (LOD) as low as 0.05 μM. In addition, NAPF-AC was successfully used for the in-situ detection of H2O2 in plant tissues. This study provides a powerful tool for studying H2O2 dynamics in plants and offers new insights into the mechanisms regulating plant growth and stress responses.

The photocatalytic activation of sulfites, a common by-product in industries, is a green and sustainable technology with great promise for the treatment of refractory pollutants in water. In this study, N vacancies and N doping were constructed at precise sites in graphitic carbon nitride (CN), following the combination with biochar (BC), synthesizing the BVCN with excellent photocatalytic activation of sulfites under solar light. When the BC was 5wt% (5BVCN), the reaction rate constant of reactive red 120 (RR120) in SO32−-containing solution reached 0.0247 min−1, which was 5.49 times of CN and 15.43 times of 5BVCN in SO32−-free solution. Characterizations and density functional theory (DFT) calculations revealed that N vacancies could trap electrons, while N doping regulated the electronic structure, forming mid-gap states to enhance the separation of carriers. In BVCN, BC rich in pyridinic N serves as both electron transfer channel and electron storage medium, having π-π interaction with structurally regulated CN (VCN). BVCN has narrower band gap and low recombination rate of photogenerated carriers, responds well to visible light, and is easy to firmly associated with SO32−, enhancing the electron transfer from SO32− to BVCN. In the SO32−-containing system, the primary active species were identified as SO3•−, •O2− and h+. Moreover, BVCN exhibited good stability and recyclability. The system shows potential for treating wastewater containing sulfites, realizing resource utilization.Graphical Abstract