Building energy consumption accounts for 30%–45% of the global energy demand. With an ever-increasing world population, it has now become essential to minimize the energy consumption for the future of the environment. One of the most crucial aspects in this regard is the utilization of sensing and environmental monitoring technologies in buildings as these technologies provide stakeholders, such as owners, designers, managers, and occupants, with important information regarding the energy performance, safety and cost-effectiveness of the building. With the global sensors market value predicted to exceed $190 billion by 2021 and the number of sensors deployed worldwide forecasted to reach the ‘1 Trillion’ mark by 2025, a state-of-the-art review of various commercially-viable sensor devices and the wide range of communication technologies that complement them is highly desirable. This paper provides an insight into various sensing and environmental monitoring technologies commonly deployed in buildings by surveying different sensor technologies, wired and wireless communication technologies, and the key selection parameters and strategies for optimal sensor placement. In addition, we review the key characteristics and limitations of the most prominent battery technologies in use today, different energy harvesting sources and commercial off-the-shelf solutions, and various challenges and future perspectives associated with the application of sensing and environmental monitoring technologies within buildings.

Heart failure resulting from acute myocardial infarction (AMI) is an important global health problem. Treatments of heart failure and AMI have improved significantly over the past two decades; however, the available diagnostic tests only give limited insights into these heterogeneous conditions at a reversible stage and are not precise enough to evaluate the status of the tissue at high risk. Innovative diagnostic tools for more accurate, more reliable, and early diagnosis of AMI are urgently needed. A promising solution is the timely identification of prognostic biomarkers, which is crucial for patients with AMI, as myocardial dysfunction and infarction lead to more severe and irreversible changes in the cardiovascular system over time. The currently available biomarkers for AMI detection include cardiac troponin I (cTnI), cardiac troponin T (cTnT), myoglobin, lactate dehydrogenase, C-reactive protein, and creatine kinase and myoglobin. Most recently, electrochemical biosensing technologies coupled with graphene quantum dots (GQDs) have emerged as a promising platform for the identification of troponin and myoglobin. The results suggest that GQDs-integrated electrochemical biosensors can provide useful prognostic information about AMI at an early, reversible, and potentially curable stage. GQDs offer several advantages over other nanomaterials that are used for the electrochemical detection of AMI such as strong interactions between cTnI and GQDs, low biomarker consumption, and reusability of the electrode; graphene-modified electrodes demonstrate excellent electrochemical responses due to the conductive nature of graphene and other features of GQDs (e.g., high specific surface area, π–π interactions with the analyte, facile electron-transfer mechanisms, size-dependent optical features, interplay between bandgap and photoluminescence, electrochemical luminescence emission capability, biocompatibility, and ease of functionalization). Other advantages include the presence of functional groups such as hydroxyl, carboxyl, carbonyl, and epoxide groups, which enhance the solubility and dispersibility of GQDs in a wide variety of solvents and biological media. In this perspective article, we consider the emerging knowledge regarding the early detection of AMI using GQDs-based electrochemical sensors and address the potential role of this sensing technology which might lead to more efficient care of patients with AMI.