Research Status in the Use of Surface-Enhanced Raman Scattering (SERS) to Detect Pesticide Residues in Foods and Plant-Derived Chinese Herbal Medicines

Surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) technology has unique advantages in the rapid detection of pesticides in plant-derived foods, leading to reduced detection limits and increased accuracy. Plant-derived Chinese herbal medicines have similar sources to plant-derived foods; however, due to the rough surfaces and complex compositions of herbal medicines, the detection of pesticide residues in this context continues to rely heavily on traditional methods, which are time consuming and laborious and are unable to meet market demands for portability. The application of flexible nanomaterials and SERS technology in this realm would allow rapid and accurate detection in a portable format. Therefore, in this review, we summarize the underlying principles and characteristics of SERS technology, with particular focus on applications of SERS for the analysis of pesticide residues in agricultural products. This paper summarizes recent research progress in the field from three main directions: sample pretreatment, SERS substrates, and data processing. The prospects and limitations of SERS technology are also discussed, in order to provide theoretical support for rapid detection of pesticide residues in Chinese herbal medicines.