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Graphene cellulose hybrids for biodegradable flexible sensing devices
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This review paper summarizes recent research on combining paper (from plant fibers) with graphene, a super-thin, super-strong material, to create cheap, bendable sensors that break down naturally instead of piling up as waste. These hybrid sensors can detect tiny amounts of harmful substances—like heavy metals, PFAS "forever chemicals," and even microplastics—in water, food, or the body, which could make it easier and more affordable to catch health and environmental hazards early. While the technology shows real promise, this paper reports on existing lab research rather than new real-world testing.
Paper-based sensors have emerged as a groundbreaking class of analytical devices, offering affordable, biodegradable, and flexible platforms for a broad range of applications, including environmental monitoring (e.g., heavy metals, PFAS, and microplastics detection), medical diagnostics (such as procalcitonin and glucose monitoring), food safety (like ammonia detection), and wearable electronics (for strain, pressure, and humidity sensing). This review looks at how using cellulosic-based materials with advanced nanomaterials—especially graphene and its variations—can improve the sensitivity, conductivity, and durability of sensors. The deploy of graphene-based electrodes, such as reduced graphene oxide (rGO), laser-induced graphene (LIG), and graphene–molybdenum disulphide (Gr/MoS2) composites, has developed devices with high responsiveness (up to 1.38 × 10−7 µA L−1 µg−1), low detection inhibits (as low as 1.36 pM), excellent mechanical flexibility, and strong thermal equilibrium (up to 700 °C). These developments highlight the immense potential of graphene–paper hybrid systems for constructing the next generation of environmentally friendly and multipurpose sensors that can tackle new worldwide issues in smart packaging, public health, the Internet of Things (IoT), and sustainable electronics. Graphical abstract
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Innovations in Environmental Analytical Chemistry: Transition from Conventional Techniques to Nano-enabled Sensing Technologies
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This review paper looks at how tiny nanomaterials (like gold nanoparticles and graphene) are being used to build super-sensitive sensors that can detect harmful pollutants—including heavy metals, pesticides, PFAS "forever chemicals," and microplastics—faster and cheaper than older lab-based methods. This matters because these new sensors could allow real-time, on-the-spot testing of water, food, and air, helping catch contamination before it harms people, rather than waiting days or weeks for traditional lab results. The authors note there are still challenges to work out, like making sure these sensors are stable, accurate in real-
Electrochemical and physicochemical degradability evaluation of printed flexible carbon electrodes in seawater
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Researchers developed a biodegradable, graphite-based electrode printed on a plant-derived plastic that can monitor water quality and dissolves quickly in seawater after use, offering an eco-friendly alternative to conventional sensor materials that leave behind non-degradable plastic and metal pollution.
Electrochemical detection of phenolic nanoplastic water pollutants using graphene/ceria nanocomposite
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Scientists have developed a highly sensitive sensor made from graphene and cerium oxide nanoparticles that can detect two toxic chemicals, hydroquinone and catechol, commonly released as plastic breaks down in water. This matters because these chemicals are linked to harmful health effects, and the new sensor worked accurately even in real tap, lake, and river water samples, offering a practical tool for monitoring plastic pollution in our water supply.
Nanosized Graphene‐Based Hybrid Architectures for Combating Microplastic Pollution From Water: Materials Design, Mechanisms, and Applications
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Microplastics, tiny plastic particles now found in our water, food, and even bodies, are a growing health concern, and this review rounds up research on using graphene (a super-thin, highly absorbent material) to filter them out of water. Scientists are engineering different graphene-based materials that can trap microplastics like a magnet or break them down using light-activated reactions, offering a promising path toward cleaner drinking water. While this paper doesn't test the technology itself, it maps out the most effective strategies so far, bringing us closer to practical solutions for reducing our exposure to these pervasive pollutants.
Cellulose nanofiber-based electrode as a component of an enzyme-catalyzed biofuel cell
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Researchers developed a flexible, biodegradable biofuel cell using cellulose nanofiber electrodes as a plastic-free alternative for wearable sensors. The device performed comparably to plastic-based equivalents and is readily disposable like paper, offering a path toward reducing microplastic contamination from disposable electronic devices.
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