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Noble Metal-Based Nanocomposites for Surface-Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy Detection of Food Contaminants
Huilin Li1,2, Rui Gao1,2, Xiaochun Hu1,2
1Key Laboratory of Food Quality and Health of Tianjin, Tianjin University of Science and Technology, Tianjin 300457, China.
Foods (Basel, Switzerland)
|September 13, 2025
Summary
Noble metal nanocomposites offer highly sensitive and specific detection of food contaminants using surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS). This review explores their structure-performance relationships and applications in ensuring food safety.
Area of Science:
- Analytical Chemistry
- Materials Science
- Food Science
Background:
- Public health is increasingly concerned about food contaminants like biotoxins, pesticides, and heavy metals.
- Rapid and accurate detection technologies are urgently needed to address these food safety issues.
- Surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) shows promise due to its high sensitivity and specificity.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review the application of noble metal-based nanocomposites as SERS-active substrates for detecting food contaminants.
- To highlight the structure-performance relationships of various metallic and composite nanomaterials.
- To discuss the advantages, challenges, and future perspectives of SERS in food safety.
Main Methods:
- Review of scientific literature on noble metal nanocomposites for SERS.
- Analysis of structure-property correlations in nanomaterials (nanoparticles, core-shell, composites).
- Discussion of SERS applications in detecting diverse food contaminants.
Main Results:
- Noble metal nanocomposites, including gold and silver nanoparticles and various composite structures, significantly enhance Raman signals.
- These materials demonstrate high sensitivity and selectivity for detecting multiple food contaminants.
- Structure-performance relationships are crucial for optimizing SERS efficiency.
Conclusions:
- Noble metal-based nanocomposites are effective SERS substrates for sensitive and selective food contaminant detection.
- Further research is needed to overcome current challenges and advance SERS technology for food safety applications.
- Optimizing nanomaterial design and SERS protocols is key for future food safety monitoring.
