A review on the fabrication of Ti3C2Tx MXene and its application as a supercapacitor electrode

In this review paper, we discuss about the synthesis of Ti3AlC2 precursor and the etching process to reach to the Ti3C2Tx layers and present different methods to delaminate the stacked nano-sheets. Early transition metal carbides or nitride nano-sheets (Generally called as MXenes) are one of the promising candidates for use in supercapacitor electrodes. These novel two-dimensional materials are attracted great attention due to their high surface area and charge storage capability with high density and velocity. The first introduced member of the MXene family is two-dimensional Titanium Carbide (Ti3C2Tx) which was presented by Naguib in 2011 at the Drexel University. This nano material has the highest electrical conductivity among the members of the MXene family and consequently, is more appealing to be used in battery and supercapacitor electrodes. Normally, Two-dimensional Titanium carbide is achieved by Aluminum etching from titanium-aluminum carbide precursor (Ti3AlC2) with the general name of MAXPhase by acidic etchants such as HF or LiF/HCl. Here, we discuss about the synthesis of Ti3AlC2 precursor and the etching process to reach to the Ti3C2Tx layers and present different methods to delaminate the stacked nano-sheets. We also present the methods to improve the quality of the MXene layers such as removing F ions from the surface and delaminating the layers by introduction of organic molecules on the surface. In addition, we talk about the utilization of these nano-sheets as the active material in supercapacitor electrodes and review the introduced methods for enhancing the electrochemical performance of them by adding convenient nanostructures.