Technology Outline (Process Description)

A new family of atomically thin and two-dimensional (2D) layered materials is emerging as a result of the successful discovery of graphene. Transition metal carbides and nitrides known as MXene, a fascinating class of 2D nanosheets with high electrical conductivity. increased surface area, hydrophilicity, porosity, biocompatibility, etc., were introduced in 2011 by Prof, Yury Gogotsi. MXene is commonly prepared by selective chemical etching of the ‘A element present in the MAX phase. Up to date, various strategies have been investigated in order to increase the efficiency and functionalization for widespread applications. For etching. the following strategies- fluoride-based etching methods involving HF, LiF-HCI, and NH4HF2; molten salt etching methods; alkali etching methods; and atmosphere. The as-prepared MAX phase pellets were subjected to electrochemical etching using a unique combination of low concentrations of alkali and the CI etchant at a potential range of 3 to 5V. Afterwards, the resulting black flakes were collected and washed repeatedly with deionized water (DI) until the pH of the solution attained approximately 7. Further material was characterized by XRD, FTIR, FESEM. TEM, and XPS. After electrochemical etching, a peak at 9.2 ^○ (002) plane of the MAX phase is shifted towards a lower angle of 7.8 ^○ and becomes broader compared to the original peak, which confirms the formation of Ti3C2TX. The FT-IR results show the presence of rich -OH and “O surface functionalities and some -Ci terminations. The SEM and TEM images show the formation of layered morphology in MXene material.