Wireless chemical sensors and biosensors: A review

Parallel advances in chemical sensing and wireless communication technologies have sparked the development of wireless chemical sensors (WCSs). These hybrid devices enable wireless determination, collection and distribution of (bio)chemical analytical information in a way that is significantly impacting the Sensor Internet of Things with applications in healthcare, defence, sport, the environment, and agriculture. Challenges and examples for each of the major chemical sensor and major radio technologies related to different application areas are reviewed, including the latest trends emerging from wearable sensors. The review focuses on radio-based WCSs, and finds that ubiquitous wireless technologies such as Bluetooth, ZigBee, radio-frequency identification (RFID) and near-field communication (NFC) are helping make analytical (bio)chemical sensing appropriate and realistic for mass market adoption, in particular for two major classes of chemical sensor – electrochemical and optical. The review provides an in-depth analysis of academic WCS research publications over the ten year period 2007–2017.