TrAC - Trends in Analytical Chemistry, cilt.195, 2026 (SCI-Expanded, Scopus)
Metal selenides are an emerging materials framework characterized by their visible-light reactivity, high electrical conductivity, and chemically versatile surfaces, which position them for end-to-end environmental solutions, from ultrasensitive detection to selective preconcentration and efficient removal/degradation of pollutants. This review connects synthesis–structure–function by surveying hydro/solvothermal, microwave, mechanochemical, and templated routes and shows how morphology control, defect engineering, doping, and heterojunction design tune charge transport and active sites. We map these levers to applications: (i) Sensing, including room-temperature, low-power MS sensors and MS–carbon hybrids; (ii) Solid-phase extraction (SPE), MSs and their composites enabling high recoveries in complex matrices; and (iii) Remediation, including photocatalytic and pathways that degrade dyes, pharmaceuticals, and antibiotics under visible light. We summarized comparative performance (limits of detection, linear ranges, adsorption capacities, kinetics) and discussed scalability, stability, and regeneration. We outline design rules, such as defect-guided charge transport, core–shell protection, conductive supports, and membrane/foam immobilization, to convert MSs into deployable sensors, field-ready SPE adsorbents, and solar-driven reactors for sustainable water, soil, and air applications.