Enabling Redispersion of Thermally Dried MXene Powders by a Trace Carboxylated MXene Additive

The irreversible restacking of MXene nanosheets during thermal drying severely limits their practical applications. This study presents an edge-selective grafting strategy where poly-(acrylic acid) is covalently anchored to MXene edges, creating effective nanospacers that inhibit face-to-face stacking. XRD confirms expanded interlayer spacing proportional to the grafting degree, while FTIR and XPS verify successful carboxyl group introduction. The modified MXene enables enhanced redispersion of thermally dried powders into a stable nanosheet dispersion in alkaline aqueous media, exhibiting excellent colloidal stability and preserved electrical conductivity. This work provides a scalable approach to produce redispersible, highly conductive MXene powders, overcoming a critical processing bottleneck.