In cooperation with the University of Toulouse, France, a research team from the Center for Rare Earth Vanadium and Titanium Materials of the College of Materials Science and Engineering of Sichuan University, has made important progress in the preparation of two-dimensional MXene materials and the study of lithium storage properties. The paper entitled“Li-ion Storage Properties of Two-dimensional Titanium Carbide Synthesized via Fast One-pot Method in Air Atmosphere” was published in Nature Communications.

The two first authors are Ma Guoliang (PhD), who earned his MS at CMSE (2018), SCU, and Shao Hui, a postdoctoral fellow of the University of Toulouse, France.Corresponding authors include Professor Liu Ying and Lin Zifeng(a research fellow) of the Center for Rare Earth Vanadium Titanium, CMSE, SCU and Professor Simon from the University of Toulouse, France, and Chair Professor at Sichuan University.

"Structural bidimensional transition-metal carbides and/or nitrides (MXenes) have drawn the attention of the material science research community thanks to their unique physical-chemical properties. However, a facile and cost-effective synthesis of MXenes has not yet been reported. Here, using elemental precursors, we report a method for MXene synthesis via titanium aluminium carbide formation and subsequent in situ etching in one molten salt pot. The molten salts act as the reaction medium and prevent the oxidation of the reactants during the high-temperature synthesis process, thus enabling the synthesis of MXenes in an air environment without using inert gas protection. Cl-terminated Ti₃C₂T_xand Ti₂CT_xMXenes are prepared using this one-pot synthetic method, where the in situ etching step at 700 °C requires only approximately 10 mins. Furthermore, when used as an active material for nonaqueous Li-ion storage in a half-cell configuration, the obtained Ti₂CT_xMXene exhibits lithiation capacity values of approximately 280 mAh g⁻¹and 160 mAh g⁻¹at specific currents of 0.1 A g⁻¹and 2 A g⁻¹, respectively."(Abstract)

The Chinese names begin with family name in this report.

Original link: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-021-25306-y#citeas