Engineered MBene-Based Materials for Water Treatment, Desalination, and Environmental Monitoring: Performance, Challenges, and Future Perspectives

MBenes, a newly developed family of 2D transition-metal boride materials, has gained considerable attention in recent years. MBenes have demonstrated encouraging potential in various fields, including energy storage, electrocatalysis, biomedical applications, environmental remediation, and sensing technologies. Despite rapid growth in MBene research, no comprehensive review has yet collectively evaluated their potential for pollutant adsorption from water, solar-driven desalination, and environmental sensing. This article provides the first systematic assessment of MBene applications across the aforementioned areas. The performance of MBene-based adsorbents in remediating diverse contaminants is critically evaluated, with particular emphasis on MBene-pollutant interactions, adsorption pathways, and the factors governing contaminant removal. MBene-integrated membranes for photothermal steam generation are examined with a focus on light absorption, solar-to-vapor conversion efficiency, evaporation flux, and operational stability. Additionally, MBene-enabled sensing platforms, including surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) and electrochemical sensors, for detecting various environmental contaminants are reviewed. Key technological challenges related to synthesis scalability, structure–property relationships, stability and safety, and environmental sustainability are discussed, together with future recommendations for real-world deployment. By consolidating insights across three rapidly advancing domains, this review establishes unifying principles and offers guidance for designing advanced MBene materials for sustainable water purification and environmental sensing technologies. © 2026 Wiley-VCH GmbH.