Recent Advances in Surface Plasmon Resonance Optical Sensors for Potential Application in Environmental Monitoring

Surface plasmon resonance (SPR) optical sensors are among the most promising sensors for use in various fields of sensing. Owing to their advantages, SPR optical sensors have attracted tremendous attention, especially for monitoring environmental pollutants, e.g., heavy metal ions, phenol, and pesticides. To further enhance their sensitivity and selectivity towards a specific target pollutant, the development of various active layers on top of a metal surface has been explored over the past two decades. This paper provides up-to-date information on advances in SPR optical sensors for detecting heavy metals, phenol, and pesticides, which have been discussed and summarized in chronological order. The systematic information on the detection of these pollutants using SPR optical sensors will give researchers guidelines for future developments in this area.