Solid Intercalation and Exfoliation of Cl-Terminated Multilayered MXenes toward O-Functionalized Single Layers

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Nanotechnology
• Chemistry

Background:

• Ion intercalation is key for layered materials but often slow.
• Existing methods in aqueous/organic systems take days.
• Need for faster, efficient intercalation techniques.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a rapid method for producing O-functionalized single-layer MXenes.
• To improve the kinetics of MXene expansion and exfoliation.
• To explore the properties of O-functionalized MXenes for electromagnetic wave absorption.

Main Methods:

• Solid intercalation of Cl-terminated MXenes in molten salts.
• Intercalation of Li+, Na+, K+ cations and CO32- anions.
• Subsequent exfoliation to achieve single-layer MXenes.

Main Results:

• Rapid expansion of multilayered MXenes in 30 minutes.
• Interlayer spacing increased from 11.2 to 12.7 Å.
• Formation of O-functionalized MXenes with enhanced permittivity.
• Achieved -50.5 dB reflection loss at 1.35 mm for electromagnetic wave absorption.

Conclusions:

• Solid intercalation in molten salts is a facile and rapid approach for MXene production.
• O-functionalized MXenes exhibit superior properties for electromagnetic wave absorption.
• This method significantly accelerates the synthesis of advanced layered materials.