Plasmonic nanoparticles for colorimetric detection of nitrite and nitrate

Irregular and unknowingly use of chemical compounds is a serious threat to the environment, human health, and other living organisms attributable and intensified by the growing population and increasing demand for food. Nitrite and nitrate are among those compounds that are widely used in agricultural and industrial products. Therefore on-site, rapid, simple, and accurate monitoring of nitrite/nitrate is highly desirable. In this review, while emphasizing the importance of nitrite and nitrate in food chain safety and health of living organisms, their measurement methods, in particular, nanoplasmonic colorimetric sensors are comprehensively discussed based on the researches in this field. Nanoplasmonic-based sensors have proved to be successful in comparison with traditional methods due to their low cost, biocompatibility, high sensitivity and selectivity, and most importantly, the ability to visually detect and be used on-site to measure nitrite and nitrate. The design principle of nanoplasmonic sensors will be presented into two categories of aggregation- and etching-based detection followed by their applications in nitrite detection. The nitrate measurement will be discussed based on either direct detection of nitrate or indirect strategy in which nitrate is reduced to nitrite by enzymes or metals. Finally, the remaining challenges and prospects in this topic will be described and outlined. •Nitrite/nitrate monitoring is of crucial importance for food security and environmental protection.•Nanoplasmonic sensors provide visual, on-site, rapid, and low-cost detection.•Nitrite measurement is based on aggregation, anti-aggregation, and etching of plasmonic NPs.•The nitrate is frequently detected indirectly after reduction by enzymes or metals.