Abstract: Chlorine dioxide (ClO₂) gas is recognized as a safe, non-toxic and green disinfectant, which has the advantages of strong sterilization, good diffusion and penetrability, no chlorine substitution reaction, no side effects. It has been widely used in agriculture, food, medicine and other fields. In recent years, ClO₂ has been well applied in the field of fruit and vegetable preservation and it has become a research hotspot. In this paper, the effects of ClO₂ gas on the physiological metabolism include ethylene, respiration, membrane lipids, phenylpropane, energy and the storage quality of fruits and vegetables, such as dehydration softening, appearance and nutrition are summarized. The sterilization mechanism and sterilization effect of ClO₂ gas on pathogenic and putrefactive microorganisms of fruits and vegetables are discussed. At the same time, the application limitations of ClO₂ gas in the preservation of fruits and vegetables are analyzed. In addition, the existing problems were summarized according to the current application research status, and the future application prospect are prospected. Overall, the purpose of this paper is to provide a theoretical reference for regulating the physiological metabolism of fruits and vegetables and controlling the infection of pathogenic microorganisms by ClO₂ gas, thus improving the application value of ClO₂ gas in the field of fruits and vegetables preservation.