[en] Carbon nanotubes are thought to be a promising candidate for nano-scale sensing materials. They show good potential for detecting diverse air pollutants, including volatile organic compounds like benzene and toluene. In the present work, four different types of single walled nanotubes are considered for sensing dioxins and related compounds. These nanotubes include: (i) pristine carbon nanotube (CNT), (ii) silicon carbide nanotube (SiCNT), (iii) silicon nitride nanotube (SiNNT) and (iv) boron nitride nanotube (BNNT). These carbon nanotubes can be categorized into hydrophilic nanotubes (SiCNT and SiNNT) and hydrophobic nanotubes (Pristine CNT and BNNT), a crucial aspect in determining their suitability for sensor applications. Dioxins and furans are highly toxic and stable pollutants commonly known for human carcinogen. They are a tri-cyclic ring compound consisting of two benzene chloride rings bridged by oxygen atom(s). Here three highly toxic dioxins recognized by WHO viz., 2,3,7,8-tetrachloro dibenzo-p-dioxin, 1,2,3,7,8-pentachloro dibenzo-p-dioxin and 2,3,4,7,8-pentachloro dibenzofuran are considered for the study. The different position of dioxin congeners with respect to CNTs are investigated and their interactions are compared to find out the sensing capabilities of CNTs using density functional theory (DFT) based calculations. From the computed results, it was observed that the hexagonal arrays of carbon atoms present in carbon nanotubes attributed to re-electron cloud which shows a significant interaction with the hexagonal benzene ring present in dioxins structure and can be extended for the other benzene halides for sensor applications. (author)