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The synthesis of MXenes

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Abstract

In this article, we summarize different synthesis routes of MXenes. MXenes are made by selective etching of certain atomic layers from their layered precursors, mostly MAX phases. The etching selectively removes the A-group element layers in the MAX phases while keeping the MX layers with two-dimensional structure. Wet-chemical etching is the most common method to make MXenes and hydrofluoric acid was the first etchant used to make MXenes. It is found that F− anion is vital in the etching process. Thus, fluoride salt mixed with hydrochloric acid was also used to make MXenes. The wet-chemical etching process for MXene synthesis is affected by environmental factors, such as temperature, pressure, and so on. Thus, by controlling these factors, more etching methods, such as hydrothermal etching and electrochemical etching, were used to synthesize MXenes effectively. Besides wet-chemical etching in aqueous solution, molten salt etching is also an important method to make MXenes with more terminations.

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Acknowledgments

The authors thank B. Anasori from Indiana University–Purdue University Indianapolis for his suggestions and revisions on this paper. This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (52275187, 51772077), Fundamental Research Funds for the Universities of Henan Province (NSFRF200101).

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  1. Sen Jin, Yitong Guo, and Fengling Wang contributed equally to this work.

Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Materials Science and Engineering, Henan Polytechnic University, Jiaozuo, Henan, China

    Sen Jin, Yitong Guo, Fengling Wang & Aiguo Zhou

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  1. Sen Jin
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Correspondence to Aiguo Zhou.

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Jin, S., Guo, Y., Wang, F. et al. The synthesis of MXenes. MRS Bulletin 48, 245–252 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1557/s43577-023-00491-x

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