Recent progress in Pt(II)- and Ir(III)-complex-based chemical sensors for detecting picric acid

The efficient detection of picric acid (PA) is of great significance in the fields of environmental protection and counter-terrorism. To date, a variety of metal complexes have been developed for sensing PA. Among them, Pt(II) and Ir(III) complexes have attracted much attention due to their excellent photostability and tunable luminescence properties. This review provides a systematic overview of the recent progress in the molecular structure design of Pt(II) and Ir(III) complexes and their effects on the performance of PA detection in different solvent systems, especially in aqueous media. In addition, the directions and prospects for the detection of PA are presented and discussed. This review affords important theoretical references and application insights for the field of explosives detection and environmental pollution monitoring.