Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jan 30, 2026

Reverse Microemulsion-mediated Synthesis of Monometallic and Bimetallic Early Transition Metal Carbide and Nitride Nanoparticles
Published on: November 27, 2015
Hydrolysis of 2D Transition-Metal Carbides (MXenes) in Colloidal Solutions
Shuohan Huang1, Vadym N Mochalin1,2
1Department of Chemistry , Missouri University of Science & Technology , Rolla , Missouri 65409 , United States.
Abstract:
Although oxidation was deemed as the main factor responsible for the instability of MXenes in aqueous colloids, here we put forward and test a hypothesis about the central role of water as the primary factor. We show that water and related processes of MXene hydrolysis play the main role in the phenomena leading to complete transformations of 2D titanium carbide MXenes into titania in aqueous environments. To demonstrate the role of water, the stability of two MXenes, Ti3C2T x and Ti2CT x, has been systematically studied in aqueous and nonaqueous colloids exposed to oxygen and inert gas atmospheres. The calculated time constant for degradation of Ti3C2T x dispersed in anhydrous iso-propanol saturated with pure oxygen exceeds 5 years, in striking contrast to the same MXene dispersed in water, where more than a half of it would transform into titania even in an oxygen-less atmosphere over ∼41 days. A thinner Ti2CT x MXene showed similar behavior, albeit with shorter time constants in both solvents, correspondingly. UV-vis and Raman spectroscopy were used to analyze the oxidation kinetics and composition of fresh and aged MXenes. An intense anatase peak was observed in MXenes stored in aqueous solutions under Ar atmosphere, while no signs of oxidation could be found in iso-propanol solutions of the MXenes stored under O2 atmosphere over a similar period of time.
More Related Videos
Related Concept Videos
Properties of Transition Metals
Colloids
Hydrolysis of ATP
If one phosphate group is removed, a molecule of ADP—adenosine diphosphate—remains, along with inorganic phosphate. ADP can be further hydrolyzed to AMP—adenosine...
Hydrolysis
Hydrolysis is a chemical reaction in which the addition of water breaks down a polymer into its simpler monomer units. For example, peptides break into amino acids, carbohydrates into simple sugars, and DNA into nucleotides. Enzymes often facilitate these processes.
Hydrolysis Reverses Dehydration Synthesis
Complex carbohydrates can be broken down by breaking the bonds between individual sugar units. The reaction breaks a glycosidic bond as water is added to the compound. The...
Phase Transitions
Colloids and Suspensions

