Development of a Versatile and Rapid MAX Phase Synthesis System to Obtain 2D MXenes

MXene is an attractive two-dimensional nanomaterial with potential applications in energy storage, biosensors, and catalytic electrodes MXene is a transition metal carbide or nitride, and many combinations have been proposed. However, only a limited number of combinations of MXene have been realized. In general, MXene is obtained by etching the MAX phase, but the synthesis of the MAX phase is not easy because it requires annealing for several hours under high temperature and pressure conditions. Therefore, it is desirable to establish a simple and easy method for synthesizing the MAX phase.<br/>We have developed a simple and cost-effective MAX phase synthesis system that does not require complicated equipment. In addition, the system can synthesize a MAX phase in less than one minute. This means that the power consumption for synthesis is also very low. The system is based on induction heating (IH). The system is pressureless, and the MAX phase can be synthesized simply by heating the sample in a vacuum or an inert gas atmosphere such as argon. Rapid heating by induction heating induces a self-propagating high temperature synthesis (SHS) in the sample. This SHS propagates throughout the sample in just a few seconds. Therefore, the total heating time is less than one minute. Since this system is a pressureless method, the synthesized MAX phase can be easily flaked off and thus easily etched into MXene. Another feature of this system is that it can synthesize different types of MAX phases, such as M=Ti and M=V. Especially for the titanium based MAX phases, the synthesis of Ti₃AlC₂ and Ti₂AlC can be controlled by the synthesis conditions. Details of the developed system and the synthesis of M=Mo, Nb, and Cr MAX phases will be presented at the meeting.