Low-Cost Sustainable Nanotechnology Approaches for Water Quality Monitoring in Developing Countries

Conventionally, techniques based on electrochemistry, optical feedback (including absorbance, fluorescence and scattering), electronic response (pH and conductivity) are being explored and revised in addition to the use of exorbitant methodologies such as GC–MS and Mass spectroscopy to analyze the quality of water from various water bodies including river, pond and lake to name a few. Predominantly, these methodologies are time and labor-intensive in addition to being not amenable for resource-limited settings. In this background, recently, there is a growing demand to develop technologies for water quality monitoring using advanced biophysicochemical strategies that predominantly involve the use of novel nanomaterialsNanomaterials and interfaces. Importantly, development of methodologies that aid in rapid, cost-effective, real-time identification and monitoring of water quality for existing or emerging pollutants (ions, molecules and other analytes) is the need of the hour in order to establish and implement effective pollution control regulations, with appropriate surveys and surveillance. Although methodologies involving nanotechnology render newer and simplified ways of detecting biohazards and analyzing the same, the research focus toward the development of sustainable routes to address the current challengesChallenges of human and environmental health is seldom discussed. In this perspective, this chapter summarizes the newer developments specifically in nanotechnology domain with a focus toward advancement of bio-inspired nanointerfaces for detection of hazardous analytes in water samples. The transdisciplinary onset of synergizing the merits of fluorescence spectroscopy and nano-engineering has ameliorated the biosensing and water quality monitoring routes with drastically augmented sensitivity. This is majorly on account of the ability of materials with functional properties at nano-dimensions to boost light-matter interactions pertaining to extremely low concentrations of hazardous molecules and ions in water samples. While different methodologies are explored in this direction, this chapter deliberates the robust hybridization of bludgeoning bio-inspired photonic sensor platforms such as surface plasmon-coupled emission (SPCE) and photonic crystal-coupled emission (PCCE) along with ubiquitously used and cost-effective smartphone-based detection techniques. The understanding of the associated strategies and execution routes in realizing cutting-edge ultra-high sensitivity (attomolar and zeptomolar limit of detection), thereby presents unifying principles from different scientific disciplines such as materials chemistry, nanotechnology and photonics for addressing the current challengesChallenges of water quality monitoring in low-and-middle-income countries.