Development and Applications of MXene-Based Functional Fibers

Abstract

The increasing interest toward wearable and portable electronic devices calls for multifunctional materials and fibers/yarns capable of seamless integration with everyday textiles. To date, one particular gap inhibiting the development of such devices is the production of robust functional fibers with improved electronic conductivity and electrochemical energy storage capability. Recent efforts have been made to produce functional fibers with 2D carbides known as MXenes to address these demands. Ti 3 C 2 T x MXene, in particular, is known for its metallic conductivity and high volumetric capacitance, and has shown promise for fibers and textile-based devices when used either as an additive, coating or the main fiber component. In this spotlight article, we highlight the recent exciting developments in our diverse efforts to fabricate MXene functionalized fibers, along with a critical evaluation of the challenges in processing, which directly affect macroscale material properties and the performance of the subsequent prototype devices. We also provide our assessment of observed and foreseen challenges of the current manufacturing methods and the opportunities arising from recent advances in the development of MXene fibers and paving future avenues for textile design and practical use in advanced applications.

Inducing liquid crystallinity in dilute MXene dispersions for facile processing of multifunctional fibers

“…6,7 These remarkable properties make MXenes excellent candidates for a wide array of applications including but not limited to energy storage, 8,9 sensors, 10,11 and electromagnetic interference shielding. 12,13 In order to realize these applications, MXenes are typically solution-processed into films, 14,15 fibers, 11,16,17 and foams. 18,19 However, controlling the degree of sheet ordering, which is critical to performance, using conventional fabrication methods remains a challenge.…”

Two‐dimensional MXenes: New frontier of wearable and flexible electronics

“…Textiles started out as esthetic, everyday consumables, but have become advanced, demanding constructs for modern wearable technologies. These revolutionary advances and modifications in textiles have been made possible with the emergence of nanomaterials including graphene, 11,55,56 MXene, 15,57,58 carbon nanotubes (CNTs), 59 conducting polymers, 60 metallic nanoparticles/nanowires, 61,62 and so on. Textile-based electronic devices have been widely used in flexible, portable energy storage and conversion systems, 63,64 real-time healthcare monitoring, [65][66][67][68] flexible sensing, [69][70][71][72][73] flexible displays, 4 thermal management, [74][75][76][77] biomedical therapy, 78 soft-robotics, 79,80 and so on.…”

Constructing conductive titanium carbide nanosheet (MXene) network on natural rubber foam framework for flexible strain sensor

“…In addition, MXene can be easily fabricated through top-down selective aqueous acid etching [29], which creates chemically active surface and abundant termination groups including -OH, -O, and/or -F. Most importantly, the MXene prepared by the above method also demonstrates high electrical conductivity, which is different from other 2D materials, such as graphene that requires high temperature or reductants to recover its electrical conductivity after solution process [30,31]. Last but not the least, the aqueous dispersion of Ti 3-C 2 T x can be processed into fibers [32], films [33] and aerogels [34] by using a solution-based strategy [35,36]. Jiang et al used the mixture of MXene and graphene oxide dispersion to produce elastic MXene/graphene aerogels through complex several-stage reduction, freezing templating, and thermal annealing procedures [34].…”