BODIPY-Based Fluorescent Probes for Selected Hazardous Chemicals: Multilevel Regulation of Sensing Performance

The rapid and reliable detection of hazardous chemicals in complex environments remains an important challenge in fluorescence sensing. BODIPY dyes and related boron-difluoride fluorophores have attracted considerable attention because of their excellent photophysical properties and highly tunable molecular structures. However, sensing performance depends not only on analyte recognition but also on excited-state processes, intermolecular interactions, aggregation behavior, analyte transport, and practical signal readout. This review examines BODIPY-based fluorescent sensing of selected hazardous chemicals at the molecular level, supramolecular and aggregated-state level, and sensing material and device level, focusing on how regulation at different levels addresses different performance limitations. At the molecular level, recognition unit design, conformational regulation, and boron-center transformation regulate analyte recognition and signal transduction. At the supramolecular and aggregated-state level, noncovalent interactions, aggregation-state regulation, and molecular packing influence emission behavior and signal stability. At the sensing material and device level, interfacial and transport regulation, sensing material construction, and device integration and signal readout improve analyte accessibility and practical detection performance. This review provides a systematic framework for understanding the factors that govern BODIPY-based fluorescence sensing. This multilevel classification facilitates the identification of major factors limiting sensing performance and the corresponding regulation strategies, thereby providing guidance for the rational design and optimization of BODIPY-based fluorescent sensing systems.