Ceramics International xxx (xxxx) xxx

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Ceramics International
journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/ceramint

Review article

MXenes-based materials: Structure, synthesis, and various applications

Shadpour Mallakpour *, Vajiheh Behranvand, Chaudhery Mustansar Hussain
Organic Polymer Chemistry Research Laboratory, Department of Chemistry, Isfahan University of Technology, Isfahan, 84156-83111, Islamic Republic of Iran

A R T I C L E I N F O A B S T R A C T

Keywords: MXenes are two-dimensional materials that can be used in various fields due to their large surface areas, elec­
MXenes tronic possessions, high mechanical strength, hydrophilicity, and antibacterial properties. First, a summary of the
Environmental pollution structure and properties of MXenes is presented in this review. Efforts for delamination or exfoliation of MXene
Membrane
sheets are introduced. Because little research works have focused on the different roles of MXenes-based ma­
Adsorbent
Catalyst
terials in tackling environmental pollution, this review concentrates on the importance of MXenes and their
Shielding hybrids in eliminating environmental pollution, especially water. As can be seen in the following, MXene can
help in various forms of membrane, absorbent, catalyst, and as a shield to eliminate environmental pollution. To
build a basic understanding of remediation processes, the mechanism of pollutant removal in adsorption,
degradation, and other remediation manners is discussed in detail.

1. Introduction to MXene
1.1. Brief overview of crystal structure, properties, and synthesis
A general formula of Mn+1AXn or Mn+1AXnTx presents a very young
member of 2D materials, MXenes, which has been produced by scientists
[1]. In this formula, M denotes d-transition metal [mostly from groups 3
(Sc), 4 (Hf, Zr, Ti), 5 (Ta, Nb, V), and 6 (Mo and Cr)], A is elements of A
groups (such as Al, Ga, In, Si, Ge, Sn, P, As, S, etc.), X is C and/or N, Tx
indicates surface termination (-OH, –O, or –F). There are different MAX
phases as M2X, M3X2, and M4X3. As it can be observed from Fig. 1, in
each case near close-packed layers of M layers are incorporated with
layers of pure group A-element, with the X-atoms filling the octahedral
sites among the former. These phases are different in the number of M
layers splitting the A layers [1–3].
There are strong metallic bonds between the “A” and “M” elements in
the structure of MXenes, for this, the same way the synthesis of other 2D
materials cannot be used for the preparation of MXenes [4]. The most
usual way for the synthesis of MXenes is a wet chemical etching of
atomic layers from a multi-layered MAX phase, considering that, in a
MAX phase, the layer-to-layer bonding is much weaker than the intra­
layer one. At first, soaking of the MAX phase in an acid destroys the
bonds between the A element and the transition metal. Hydrofluoric
acid (HF) was the initial etching agent which can be used directly or
throughout the reaction of hydrochloric acid (HCl) and a fluoride salt (in
situ generations of HF), for instance, ammonium hydrogen bifluoride,
lithium fluoride, and ammonium fluoride. It is nice to mention that
surface terminations are created by the interaction of outer layer metals
with acids through the etching stage of an MXene [5,6]. These valuable
kinds of materials possess a combination of both ceramics and metals.
The same as metals they conduct heat and electricity, and alike ceramics
have thermal stability, strength, good stiffness, and brittleness. There is
a big difference between the interlayer interactions of MXenes (M-A
band) with other layered compounds like graphite. The interactions in
the first case are metallic and in the latter are weak van der Waals in­
teractions. So, the exfoliation of MXenes gets so hard, which restricts the
efficient incorporating of other functional materials and reduces the
available surface active sites [7–9]. Only mechanical cleavage or ultra­
sonication is not simply applied for the delamination process because of
fairly strong bonding between layers but, by applying various “A”
element etching conditions, the MAX phase can be changed to delami­
nated MXenes. To make delamination happen, two groups of inter­
calating agents mean organic molecules or amines, and
tetraalkylammonium salts or an aqueous solution of ionic compounds
are employed. When these materials are used, ultrasonication is needed
[10]. This phenomenon leads to MXenes’ dispersion. In this regard, the
dispersion of Ti3C2Tx in solvents with different polarities was examined
[11]. Immediately after sonication, nice dispersion was observed in all
polar solvents except three hydrophobic or less polar solvents [toluene,
hexane, and 1,2-dichlorobenzene] (Fig. 2, top row). With increasing
time, dispersion stability decreased and high stability was obtained in
dimethyl sulfoxide, N,N-dimethylformamide, N-methyl-2-pyrrolidone,

* Corresponding author.
E-mail addresses: mallak777@yahoo.com, mallak@iut.ac.ir (S. Mallakpour).

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ceramint.2021.06.107
Received 15 April 2021; Received in revised form 12 June 2021; Accepted 14 June 2021
Available online 21 June 2021
0272-8842/© 2021 Elsevier Ltd and Techna Group S.r.l. All rights reserved.

Please cite this article as: Shadpour Mallakpour, Ceramics International, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ceramint.2021.06.107
S. Mallakpour et al.
Fig. 1. The structure of MAX phases and the corresponding MXenes [5].
propylene carbonate, and ethanol like water as a control solvent.
However, in-situ HF etching has advantages compared to HF etching,
in situ formations of dangerous HF gases cannot be prevented and the
fluorine-containing acid etching is known as an environmentally haz­
ardous way. Therefore, the non-HF alternative etching methods
including etching in high-temperature NaOH solutions, electrochemical
etching at room temperature, chemical vapor deposition, and Lewis
acidic etching methods have been offered [12–14].
More information with details about the synthesis of MXenes has
been reviewed well in recent years [1,14–16].
1.2. MXenesʼ applications
Due to unique properties of MXenes such as nontoxicity, high ther­
mal and chemical stability, ideal crystal structure, adjustable energy
gap, excellent electronic properties, adsorption ability, large exposed
surface area, and surface activities, as well as hydrophilic nature
[17–19], these materials have found potential applications in different
fields, for example, energy storage [20,21], biomedical [22,23], sensors
[24,25], electromagnetic interference shielding [26–28], catalysis [29,
Fig. 2. Dispersions of 50% HF-etched Ti3C2Tx in the 12 solvents listed above. Time points of just after sonication (top), 24 h after sonication (middle), and 96 h after
sonication (bottom) were used to monitor stability [15].
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30], and biological and environmental protection [31–33]. In the area of
environmental remediation, it seems that MXenes can compete with
traditional carbonaceous materials. They have higher redox capacity
due to terminal metal sites (Ti3C2 MXenes is Ti) and owing to hydro­
philic functional groups (fluorine, hydroxyl, or oxygen groups), they
have enough active sites for intense contact with various pollutants [31,
34,35].
It seems that water is more essential to life than other things.
Nowadays, lack of water resources and access to clean water is a major
global concern. With this in mind and due to the great potential appli­
cation of MXenes in the field of water remediation, their role in water
decontamination is going to be discussed in the following section.
2. Cleaning the planet
Here is going to focus on one of the promising features of MXenes and
that is water remediation. Concerns about water pollution are on the rise
due to declining water resources. Therefore, researchers are trying to use
different technologies to remove water contaminants such as heavy
metal ions (HMI)s, dyes, drugs, radioactive and bacterial materials, etc.
from the aqueous environment and revitalize this important resource. In
addition to the above-mentioned water pollutants, there is another
contamination is called electromagnetic waves. MXenes are hydrophilic,
eco-friendly, with many active sites and high surface areas due to the
existence of activated metallic hydroxide sites. However, these valuable
materials also have disadvantages such as a tendency to aggregation and
oxidation that by its hybridization with other materials and preparing
the composite can increase the synergistic effect, reduce the accumu­
lation and boost the stability, and finally improve the final properties.
These features make them susceptible to pollutant decontamination.
There are various approaches for the sanitization of pollutants such as
membrane separation, photocatalytic degradation, adsorption, and so
on [36,37].
In the following, the performance of MXenes and their derivatives in
recent years as membrane, foam, shielding, photocatalyst, as well as
antibacterial agent will be focused.
2.1. MXenes for remediation
Pollutant sanitization through the adsorption process is considered
as a popular way due to its simplicity, affordability, diversity of adsor­
bents, and high absorption efficiency. To achieve acceptable absorption
of pollutants, the adsorbent must have possessions for instance porosity,
S. Mallakpour et al.
high surface area, and high functional groups. Highly active adsorption
sites are needed as they provide adsorption in three mechanisms: (i)
physisorption for example diffusion, van der Waals, hydrogen bonding,
π-π, electrostatic, and hydrophobic interactions, (ii) chemisorption like
chelation, complexation, covalent bonding, redox reactions, and proton
displacement, (iii) ion exchange, the replacement of ions on the adsor­
bent’s surface with pollutant ions [38–40].
2.1.1. MXenes as adsorbents
HMIs are one of the most dangerous pollutants in the environment.
The metallic chemical elements, which have atomic weight in the range
of about 63–200 g/mol and specific gravity of more than 5 are catego­
rized as heavy metals that are poisonous or toxic at low concentrations
[41]. Ti3C2 was synthesized for the barium (Ba) ion adsorption, as a
radioactive nuclide. World health organization has determined the
maximum permissible concentration for Ba ions in drinking water at less
than 0.7 mg/L. Oil and gas industries are the main sources of this
pollutant [42]. The adsorbent was synthesized by ball milling, then
heating at 1300 ◦ C, etching by HF (50 wt%), sonication, and finally
freeze-drying. The obtained Ti3C2 showed a specific surface area (SA) of
13 m2/g that was so low for physical adsorption. Inductive Coupled
Plasma-Mass Spectrophotometer was used for the determination of the
remained amount of Ba ions. This pollutant could be adsorbed chemi­
cally through functional groups of Ti3C2 as below:
Ba2+ + 2OH − →Ba(OH)2
Ba2+ + 2F − →BaF2
There are other kinds of adsorption ways such as intercalation of Ba
ions in the MXene layers and a bond formation with functional groups on
the titanium’s surface, which was confirmed by powder X-ray diffraction
(XRD), and affirmed barium oxygen covalent bonding by X-ray photo­
electron spectroscopy (XPS). It showed a higher maximum adsorption
capacity (Qm) (9.3 mg/g) in comparison to other counterparts such as
carbon nanotubes (CNT)s and activated carbons. Commercial Ti3C2Tx
with SA of 10 m2/g was used for the adsorption of both radioactive
nuclides of Ba2+ and St2+ from model wastewater [43]. Due to higher
electronegativity, and hydration enthalpy of Sr2+, MXene could adsorb
it better than Ba2+ and the mechanism of adsorption was chemical
ion-exchange and formation of inner-sphere complex. It can be said that
MXene can adsorb ions selectively. High Qmax values of MXene for Ba2+
and Sr2+, were obtained (180 and 225 mg/g, respectively). Also,
outstanding Qmax (148 mg/g) and fast removal ability of Ti3C2Tx for
radioactive Cs + has been reported and the main Cs + adsorption
mechanism was ion exchange as was confirmed by XPS and
Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) [44].
Ti2CTx MXene under oxidation conditions of NaOH/KOH obtained
two flower-like hierarchical titanate nanostructures [45]. In this struc­
ture, H+/Na+/K+ could be exchanged by Eu3+ sorption through elec­
trostatic attraction and hydrogen bonding. In addition to radioactive
pollutants, delaminated Ti3C2Tx after sonication could adsorb Cu2+
more efficiently and faster than initial multilayer Ti3C2Tx, even its
adsorption capacity was 2.7 times higher than that of activated carbon
[46]. Even in the attendance of other ions such as Cd2+, Pb2+, and Cr3+ it
showed high removal percentage (about 98%). The mechanism of
adsorption was through the formation of species of Cu2O and CuO. It has
been reported that by alkalization, the number of functional groups can
be boosted and in addition to –OH and –F, intercalation ions such as
Na+, Li+, K+, etc. are added to the structure that can behave as efficient
active sites for water decontaminations especially metal ion adsorption
[47].
There is a way to increase the metal chelating capability by grafting
carboxyl functional groups on the surface of MXene with the help of
diazonium salt [48]. The grafting effect study showed improvement in
U6+ and Eu3+ uptake by increasing the ratio from 1:1 to 5:1 (diazonium
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salt: MXene), it is while further increment in a ratio (20:1) caused that
adsorption capacity to decrease slightly. The XPS results showed the
contribution of carboxyl groups in the creation of inner-sphere coordi­
nation complexes with U6+ and Eu3+.
Restacking of Ti3C2Tx was done by insertion of positively-charged
polyethyleneimine reduced-graphene oxide (RGO) (zeta potential of
+44 mV) between the layers of negatively-charged Ti3C2Tx (zeta po­
tential of − 26 mV) [49]. RGO-intercalated Ti3C2Tx film (labeled as RM)
was provided following vacuum-assisted filtration by a membrane of
poly(vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF). Among different forms of Cr [Cr(0),
Cr3+, and Cr6+], Cr6+ is highly toxic. The removal efficiency of Cr6+ by
the obtained MXene was examined and data showed increment from
44% for pure Ti3C2Tx MXene films to about 91% by applying RM film. It
is while that after HCl treatment of RM film, this amount increased
again, which shows the advantage of surface hydroxylation in metal ion
adsorption.
A suitable way to decrease the toxicity of Cr6+ is its reduction to
Cr3+. To reach this aim, the contribution of both adsorption and cata­
lytic pathways is needed. By in situ growing TiO2 nanoparticles (NP)s on
the Ti3C2 under hydrothermal conditions can provide Ti3C2 MXenes/
TiO2 heterojunction [50]. To obtain maximum yield an acidic environ­
ment is essential. As can be observed in Fig. 3a, maximum reduction
happened at pH = 2 and the solution gets colorless in this media. As was
shown in Fig. 3b, in the first step, protonated functional groups on the
MXene’s surface adsorb negatively charged Cr2O2− 7 . Next, with the help
of proton and provided electrons by MXene, Cr2O2− 7 starts to be reduced.
Eventually, formed Cr3+ is adsorbed on the surface of Ti3C2 and creates
Ti–O–Cr3+ and Ti–C–Cr3+.
Another important source of environmental pollutants is dyes, which
are applied in printing, textiles, paper, and foodstuff industries, and
even a very low amount of dyes (less than 1 mg/L) can alter the quality
of water [51]. This subject motivates scientists to present suitable ma­
terials for dye elimination. Using a hydrothermal method, phytic acid
(PA)-doped MXene composites were prepared and the results showed
changing the morphology by different hydrothermal treatment [52]. By
doping of PA, new FT-IR peaks such as the stretching vibrations of P–– O,
P–O, and P–O–H and newly created Ti(OH)PO4 compound in XRD were
observed. So, due to the increasing of actives sites in PA-MXene,
adsorption possessions for the methylene blue (MB) and rhodamine B
(RhB) increased rather than the original MXene. For easy separation of
adsorbent magnetic Ti3C2 MXene was prepared for the MB removal and
the influence of temperature on the adsorption capacity was inspected
[53]. The results of XPS and FT-IR at two temperatures of 25 and 55 ◦ C
showed adsorption of MB by electrostatic attraction on
negatively-charged MXene@Fe3O4 (Fig. 4). By increasing the tempera­
ture, a hydrogen bonding could be created between Ti–OH group of
MXene and unsaturated nitrogen heteroatoms in MB structure and
facilitate the elimination procedure. Besides the aforementioned
mechanisms, the reduction of MB by MXene particularly at pH = 11 has
been confirmed [54].
Neat MXenes have some disadvantages such as poor stability in the
oxygen atmosphere, low flexibility, and hard separation ability from
water solution during the adsorption process. These drawbacks motivate
scientists to combine them with other materials to enhance their per­
formances. These materials contain GO, magnetite particles, organic
molecules like PA, metal oxides, and so on, which have been studied
before. Polymers can be a good choice for improving MXenes’ abilities,
especially in water remediation as they are cost-effective, formable,
their manufacture is easy, and more important superiority is they have
many and tunable functionalities, which are a key point in efficient
adsorption. There are two approaches of ex-situ blending or in-situ
polymerization for the preparation of composites of MXene/polymer, in
which the first approach is preferred [55]. An extracted polysaccharide
from brown seaweed, sodium alginate (SA), has fascinated much
attention due to its biocompatibility, biodegradability, and affordability
and can be used for the improvement of features of MXene [56]. SA was
S. Mallakpour et al.
Fig. 3. (a) Removal of Cr6+ in 50 mL of 50 mg/L solution Ti3C2/TiO2 composite material concentration: 0.05 g/L dependent on pH. and the final solution color at
different pH values, (b) An illustration of the removal mechanism of Cr6+ by the Ti3C2/TiO2 composites [50]. (For interpretation of the references to color in this
figure legend, the reader is referred to the Web version of this article.)
used for the modification of Nb2CTx as a high surface area and a hy­
drophilic class of MXene [57]. So after the delamination of MXene with
dimethyl sulfoxide, it was treated with SA, and finally, NbSA membrane
was produced through the supported vacuum filtration manner by PVDF
as was shown in Fig. 5A and cross-view and top view of the membrane
can be seen in Fig. 5B. The amorphous structure of NbSA membrane due
to the presence of SA has been represented by Field Emission Scanning
Electron Microscopy (FE-SEM) (Fig. 5). Around 100% rejection rates to
different dyes such as Basic Blue, Toluidine Blue, and Rhodamine 6G,
and fast water flux were obtained by applying NbSA membrane.
The effect of the SA ratio on HMI’ (Pb2+ and Cu2+) adsorption ability
of MXene/alginate composites was examined [58]. By increasing the
ratio of MXene/SA, the adsorption percent increased and that is because
of many carboxyl groups in the SA structure and providing chelation
ability with metal ions. By crosslinking MXene/alginate composite via
calcium nitrate, better mechanical properties were obtained, and
eventually, a considerable decrease was observed in the adsorption loss
rate. The obtained composite could exhibit high adsorption capacity in a
short equilibrium time. For the functionalization of Ti2CTX and
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increasing its Pb2+ adsorption capability, lignosulfonate (LS) as an
anionic surfactant, chitosan (CS) as a cationic surfactant, and enzymatic
hydrolysis lignin (EHL) as a non-ionic surfactant were employed [59].
According to morphology images (Fig. 6), it seems that EHL as a
nonionic surfactant can peel MXene nanosheets easier and improve the
dispersibility of the system (Fig. 6d1, d2, d3). This structural feature
leads to providing adsorption active sites for the better chelation to
Pb2+and ions exchange efficiency, which caused significant Qmax for
Pb2+.
Poly(m-phenylenediamine) (PmPD), a conjugated polymer contain­
ing many amino groups, was used for the intercalation of Ti3C2Tx [60].
Due to the steric effect of polymer layers and the intercalation phe­
nomenon, the interlayer spacing of MXene increased. Excellent Qmax
(540.47 mg/g) for Cr6+ was obtained by the resulted sample and this
amount was greater than the ones for PmPD (384.73 mg/g), and pure
MXene (137.45 mg/g). As can be observed from Fig. 7, different agents
are caused this great capacity for example at first anionic Cr molecules
are attached to the positively charged MXene. Next, the benzenoid
amine can reduce around half percent of Cr6+ and itself is converted to
S. Mallakpour et al.
Fig. 4. The schematic illustration of interaction mechanism of MB on MXene@Fe3O4 [53]
MB: Methylene blue. (For interpretation of the references to color in this figure legend, the reader is referred to the Web version of this article.)
Fig. 5. (A) Schematic illustration for synthesizing NbSA nanosheet (as shown
on the right enlarged FE-SEM image) membrane through filtration method on
polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) filter substrate (~0.7 bar) (B) Schematic image
for the NbSA nanosheet membrane including cross view image and top view
image [57].
quinoid imine by oxidation. Quinoid imine can adsorb generated Cr3+
through chelation. So, it can be concluded that a polymeric modifier not
only can provide larger interlayer space but also can make many active
sites accessible for adsorption.
To improve the performance of polymer modification of MXene
mussel-inspired embellish way can be employed. Polydopamine-coated
MXene can be applied for Ag2O immobilization for the decontamination
of radioactive iodine (I− ) [61]. Ag2O had the main role of excellent
adsorption ability of I− that trivalent Ag ions oxidize some I− ions and
lead to the formation of AgI3, finally.
Polyimides (PI)s have obvious thermal stability and solvent resis­
tance properties, which have applications in electronic and automobile
industries [62]. PI aerogels with high porosity can be usually
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manufactured by drying synthesized poly(amic acid) (PAA) from dia­
nhydrides and diamines as was represented in Fig. 8 [63].
The obtained hydrophobic PI/MXene not only showed high absorp­
tion capacities (for different solvents about 18–58 times of their weight)
(Fig. 9A) but also exhibited fire retardancy. As can be seen in Fig. 9B,
during a test on the alcohol lamp no obvious flame was seen during the
62 s ignition process.
2.1.2. MXenes as catalysts
One of the abilities of MXenes is the degradation of the pollutants
under the determined maintainable solar light, which is named photo­
degradation. In this process, at first, the photocatalyst absorbs light
energy, and electrons and holes are created. Next, generated electrons
and holes are separated and migrated to the photocatalyst’s surface.
Afterward, by consuming the mentioned species, reduction, and oxida­
tion reactions happen. As has been reviewed well, MXenes not only can
act as a good separator for electrons and holes but also are robust sup­
ports for the homogeneous growth of catalysts, for example, TiO2 [64].
This support can decrease the size of the catalyst and lead to a uniform
dispersion of it. Another feature of MXenes in this line is having enor­
mous surface functional groups that supply accessible active sites for the
adsorption of reactants. MXene can be used for increasing the photo­
catalytic performance of metal-organic frameworks (MOFs). The highest
tetracycline degradation yield for Ti3C2 under visible light was found to
be around 83% in 1 h, which was about 11 times of its neat [65]. To
prevent rapid electron/hole recombination under visible light irradia­
tion in Bi2WO6 nano-plates, it was modified with Ti3C2 via electrostatic
adsorption [66]. In comparison to the pure Bi2WO6, the obtained MXene
modified one exhibited 2 times and 6.6 times higher photodegradation
ability toward volatile organic compounds.
The potential photodegradation application of graphene layers
attached TiO2/g–C3N4 was examined for decomposition of ciprofloxacin
(CIP), tetracycline (TC), RhB, and bisphenol A (BPA) under irradiation
of visible light [67]. Photoluminescence (PL) spectroscopy showed a
decrease in the emission spectrum’s intensity of the obtained hybrid
compared to the pure species that shows the separation of the
electron-hole, which is essential for efficient photo-degradation. In this
system graphene as a mediator could overcome disadvantages such as
insufficient surface area and visible light absorption and enhance pho­
todegradation contrasted with the TiO2/graphene, g–C3N4, and con­
ventional TiO2/g–C3N4. Degradation of diclofenac (DCF) was studied
S. Mallakpour et al. Ceramics International xxx (xxxx) xxx

Fig. 6. FE-SEM images of Ti2CTX (a1, a2, a3), Ti2CTX-CS (b1, b2, b3), Ti2CTX-LS (c1, c2, c3) and Ti2CTX-EHL (d1, d2, d3) [59].
LS: Lignosulfonate, CS: Chitosan, EHL: Enzymatic hydrolysis lignin, FE-SEM: Field emission scanning electron microscopy.

Fig. 7. Cr(VI) adsorption mechanism of Ti3C2Tx/PmPD [60]

PmPD: Poly
(m-phenylenediamine).

6
S. Mallakpour et al.
Fig. 8. Preparation routes of (a) MXene nanosheets and (b) PI/MXene hybrid
aerogels [63] PI: Polyimide, PAA: Poly(amic acid).
Fig. 9. (A) Absorption capacity of the PI/MXene-3 aerogel for various organic
liquids, (B) Burning behavior of the PI/MXene-3 aerogel [63]. PI: Polyimide.
under various treatment schemes, counting Cl2, UV, H2O2, UV/H2O2,
and UV/Cl2 approaches by a magnetic MXene [68]. Owing to the higher
attack of radicals HO• and Cl•, the much quicker degradation of DCF
was obtained under UV/Cl2 conditions. Magnetic NPs can increase
adsorption capacity besides boosting the rate of electron transfer.
Many research works have employed MXenes as photocatalyst for
not only photodegradation of dyes and organic molecules but also used
for H2 generation or CO2 reduction. A list of literature surveys about the
application of MXenes and their hybrids as a catalyst has been presented
in Table 1.
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2.1.3. MXenes as membranes
As can be found from the aforementioned information, MXenes as
adsorbents or catalysts have demonstrated an effective role in water
sanitization. Above and beyond other roles of MXenes, they can be acted
as a filter in a membrane shape and employed for the purification of
water [37]. To obtain high flux and high substrate retention, a com­
posite membrane supported by mixed cellulose ester (MCE) was man­
ufactured from both GO and MXene in a different ratio [79]. The water
flux value of GO/MXene with a mass ratio of 1:4 (71.9 L/m2 h bar)
increased significantly in comparison to the neat GO membrane (6.5
L/m2. H.bar). MXenes broke stacked layers of GO and provide extra
low-friction nano-capillary webs, which improved the water
permeability.
Coating Ti3C2Tx ink has been done on a low-cost and commercial
print paper (Fig. 10a) and highly oleophobic, hydrophilic, and flexible
membrane as it was shown in Fig. 10c was obtained [80]. The exfolia­
tion of MXene is seen in the transmission electron microscopy (TEM)
image (Fig. 10b). A comparison of SEM images of print paper (Fig. 10d)
and composite (Fig. 10e and f), shows the coating of print paper cellu­
lose fibers with MXenes. Also, the expansion of the interlayer spacing of
the nano-flakes of MXene can be observed in Fig. 10e. High-level water
flux (more than 450 L/m2 h bar) and elevated separation efficacy (more
than 99%) were offered by this membrane for oil/water emulsions.
By direct deposition of different mass loadings of MXenes on the MCE
filter, a filter was obtained that provided complete removal of MB along
with water flux up to around 119.83 L m2 h [81]. By increasing the
MXene concentration to 0.6 mg/cm2, MB water flux reduced (44.97
L/m2.h) accompanied by complete MB elimination. By more loading
increment, MB water flux reduced to 26.83 L/m2.h whereas the 100%
MB elimination maintained. It is because by increasing the loading, the
mean pore radius decreased. Cellulose acetate (CA) is a good candidate
for the fabrication of nanofiltration (NF) membranes owing to fairly low
cost, biodegradability, biocompatibility, hydrophilicity, excellent
film-forming ability, easy chemical modification, and high toughness
[82]. One of the disadvantages of CA is fouling by biological and organic
pollutants, which can be improved by the insertion of MXenes and the
preparation of MXene@CA composite. To avoid easy MXene leaching,
the composite can be crosslinked by formaldehyde as was shown in
Fig. 11. The obtained membrane with 10% MXene loading showed a
high pure water flux of about 256.85 L/m2 h bar. Besides, it could reject
more than 92% and 98% RhB and MG, respectively and also, exhibited
antibacterial properties. Inactivation of bacterial growth by MXene has
been reported elsewhere [83].
Vacuum filtration way was employed for MXene’s deposition onto
porous PVDF membranes and to increase adhesion force between them,
SA was used [84]. The resulted membrane revealed a high permeation
flux of 887 L/m2 h bar and 99.4% oil removal efficacy. What’s more, it
could efficiently eliminate crude oil droplets from water in corrosive
liquids for instance alkaline, acidic, and salty media.
2.1.4. MXenes as shielding
Along with noise, water, and air pollution, there is another kind of
pollution that is radiation pollution. An undesirable radiated signal,
which endamages to adjacent electronic apparatus in addition to human
beings can be managed by electromagnetic-interference (EMI) shielding
compounds for example MXenes. They have attained much consider­
ation owing to outstanding EMI-shielding, large SA, remarkable metallic
conductivity, lightweight, adaptable surface chemistry, and solution
processability [85–88]. A shield can interact with EM radiation via
mechanisms of reflection, absorption, and multiple reflections, which as
a sample can be observed for crosslinking polyacrylonitrile (CPAN)
nanofiber (NF)/metal nanoparticle (MNP) hybrid membranes in Fig. 12
[89]. On the conductive materials’ surface usually, reflection happens
since the interaction of entering EM waves would occur with mobile
electrons or holes. EM waves will be absorbed during interaction with
magnetic or electrical dipoles of shielding compounds and be converted
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Table 1
Photocatalysts based on MXenes for photocatalytic degradation or reduction of pollutants.
Photocatalyst Source Pollutant Photocatalytic activity References

CdS@Ti3C2@TiO2 visible light (intensity Sulfachloropyridazine, MB, RhB, CdS@Ti3C2@TiO2 displayed much higher photocatalytic performance. [69]
of 300 mW/cm2) Phenol
BiOBr/Ti3C2 UV–Vis RhB, 2,4-DNP and Cr6+ 6+
The degradation rate constant of RhB, 2,4-DNP, and Cr with BiOBr/ [70]
Ti3C2 were 1.2, 1.3, 6 times that of BiOBr
Ti3C2–OH/ln2S3/CdS visible light (300W Xe RhB, MO The photo-degradation activity of Ti3C2–OH/In2S3/CdS was greater to [71]
lamp) that of pure CdS and In2S3.
CeO2/Ti3C2 solar light (350 W Xe CO2 reduction and Tetracycline CeO2/Ti3C2 showed activities 6.3 and 1.5 times more than those of pure [72]
lamp) (TC) decomposition CeO2
Zn2In2S5/Ti3C2 visible light Photo-degradation of TC and H2 The photocatalytic removal rate of TC and H2 generation were increased [73]
generation about 1.25 times and 1.97 times higher than that of neat Zn2In2S5,
respectively.
Ti3C2/Co3O4 H2O2 RhB, MB The decomposition of MB and RhB were meaningfully boosted respect to [74]
pure MXene and Co3O4.
Mn-codoped bismuth visible light Congo red The obtained hybrid could degrade nearly 100% dye within 30 min of [75]
ferrite/Ti3C2 irradiation.
Ti3C2/Bi3TaO7 visible light (300 W MB Complete degradation happened at 2 h. [76]
Xe lamp)
Ti3C2–OH/Bi2WO6: Visible and near- RhB The resulted hybrid showed RhB decomposition rate of 3.5 times than [77]
Yb3+, Tm3+ infrared that of neat Bi2WO6.
Ti3C2/TiO2/BiOBr visible-light RhB It showed higher RhB photodegradation capability than pure BiOBr and [78]
TiO2/Ti3C2

MB: Methylene blue; MO: Methyl orange; TC: Tetracycline; RhB: Rhodamine B; 2,4-DNP: 2,4-Dinitrophenol.

Fig. 10. (a) Schematic illustration of the

deposited MXene nanoflakes on the poly­
meric fibers of commercial print paper. (b)
TEM image of delaminated Ti3C2Tx MXene.
(c) Digital photograph demonstrating the
flexibility of the MXene based composite
membrane. (d) SEM image of substrate print
paper. (e and f) Cross section SEM images of
the MXene-based composite membranes at
various magnification levels. The inset in (f)
shows the layer-by-layer structure of MXene
nanoflakes [80]
TEM: Transmission electron microscopy,
SEM: Scanning electron microscopy.

into heat energy. Multiple reflections happen during the reflection of the
wave of EM and its scattering at different inhomogeneous interfaces
within the EMI shielding materials [89,90].
Ultralight MXene aerogel was prepared in a dry ice bath following
the vacuum drying, which could absorb organic solvents and oils, 35 to
90 times the weight of aerogel [91]. Also, it showed enormously low EM
reflection (less than 1 dB) and a strong EMI shielding effectiveness (EMI
SE) (up to 75 dB). This achievement was provided by the porous
structure and high electrical conductivity of MXenes. Even though, poor
flexibility and mechanical strength of MXenes restricted their use in
electronics, cellulose nanofibers (CNF) can help to overcome these
limitations of MXenes. They have been employed for the construction of
composite papers of Ti3C2Tx/CNF under stirring followed by
vacuum-assisted filtration [92]. 2,2,6,6-Tetramethyl-1-piperidinyloxy
(TEMPO) was used for the carboxylation process, which provided
many sodium carboxylate groups on the CNFs’ surfaces and leads to
well-suspended separable NFs. Good tensile strength and Young’s
modulus were obtained, thanks to the nice NFs’ dispersion and strong
interaction between MXene and fibers through hydrogen bonding. Also,
the obtained paper containing 50 wt% Ti3C2Tx showed appropriate
conductivity (2837 Sm-1) and an outstanding EMI SE (39.6 dB).
From mixing different ratios of CNFs and Ti3C2Tx via stirring and
sonication and then vacuum-filtration, the composite paper of Ti3C2Tx/
CNF with nacre-like lamellar structure and high tensile strength (up to
135.4 MPa) were obtained [93]. By increasing the content of MXene,
EMI SE improved, efficiently. So that thin Ti3C2Tx/CNF composite 90 wt
% exhibited high electrical conductivity (up to 739.4 S/m) and admi­
rable EMI SE > 20 dB. In weapon equipment and robot joints, the ob­
tained films may be applicable. Other efforts have been made to obtain
desirable EMI shielding with the loading of a lower amount of MXenes.
MXene (1.89 vol%) was loaded on a commercial paper through a simple
dip-coating followed by introducing a thin layer of

8
S. Mallakpour et al.
Fig. 11. Proposed reaction route for the synthesis of cross-linked MXene@CA hybrid nanoporous membranes [82] CA: Cellulose acetate.
Fig. 12. Schematic description of the EMI shielding mechanism in the CPAN NF/MNP hybrid membranes [89] EMI: Electromagnetic-interference, CPAN NF/MNP:
Crosslinking polyacrylonitrile nanofiber/metal nanoparticle.
polydimethylsiloxane for the protection of the integrated MXene
network and to avoid of MXene oxidation [94]. At small MXene loading,
EMI higher than 43 dB in X-band and Ku-band and superior electrical
conductivity of 2756 S/m were achieved.
In contradiction of old heavy metals, CNTs and graphene sheets due
to their flexibility and lightweight have attracted wide attention for EMI
shielding. The cationic surfactant of cetyltrimethylammonium bromide
(CTAB) was used for the efficient formation of a mixture of CNTs and
MXenes for the preparation of CNF composite paper [95]. Introduction
of CNTs boosted surface area of composite remarkably and a composite
having sandwich and gradient structure with high tensile strength of
97.9 MPa, the high electrical conductivity of 2506.6 S/m, and an
improved EMI SE of 38.4 dB was attained. Under magnetic stirring and
ultrasonic dispersion following by vacuum freeze-drying, a lightweight
MXene/graphene hybrid foam with EMI SE of 50.7 dB was prepared that
was upper than that of foam of reduced graphene oxide [96]. Using
MXenes besides conductive polymers such as poly(p-aminophenol)
(PpAP), and its copolymer with polyaniline (PANI–PpAP) had EMI SE of
9
Ceramics International xxx (xxxx) xxx
45.18 dB and can be a good candidate in EMI applications [97].
2.1.5. MXenes as an antibacterial agent
MXenes have shown stronger antimicrobial activity than traditional
materials for instance GO. Like graphene, the antibacterial activity of
MXenes can result from the oxidative and physical stress caused by the
sharp edges of MXene sheets [98]. Antibacterial performance of Ti3C2Tx
in the suspension against Escherichia coli (E. Coli) and Bacillus subtilis
(B. Subtilis) was compared with GO [99]. For the inspection of delami­
nation influence on bacterial growth inhibition, Ti3AlC, as produced
multilayer Ti3C2Tx (ML-MXene), and delaminated Ti3C2Tx were studied
by the colony counting method. Before this test, the morphology of the
aforementioned samples was examined by SEM (Fig. 13). Well-stacked
nanosheets were observed in the images of both Ti3AlC and
ML-MXene (Fig. 13A, B). Digital pictures showed opaque gray color for
both and stability test showed sedimentation of their particles after 1 h.
It is while for the third sample, delaminated sheets can be seen (Fig. 13C)
and the TEM image of it (Fig. 13D) showed more details means thin and
S. Mallakpour et al. Ceramics International xxx (xxxx) xxx

Fig. 13. SEM images of Ti3AlC2 (A) and ML-Ti3C2Tx (B) and Ti3C2Tx nanosheets on an alumina filter (C), and their corresponding photographs showing Ti3AlC2, ML-
Ti3C2Tx, and Ti3C2Tx solution, respectively. (D) TEM image of the pristine Ti3C2Tx flake. (E) Typical XRD pattern of air-dried Ti3C2Tx film [99] SEM: Scanning
electron microscopy, ML-Ti3C2Tx: Multilayer Ti3C2Tx, TEM: Transmission electron microscopy, XRD: X-ray diffraction.

transparent flakes of Ti3C2Tx nanosheet. Antibacterial test showed
remarkable increment in percent of bacterial growth inhibition (for
E. coli and B. subtilis) from 14.39 ± 1.43% and 18.34 ± 1.59% (for
Ti3AlC) and 30.55 ± 2.56% and 33.60 ± 2.89% (for ML-MXene) to high
values for delaminated Ti3C2Tx (97.70 ± 2.87% and 97.04 ± 2.91%).
The antibacterial activity of MXene was concentration-dependent and
surpassed that of GO. This feature can be important in the elimination of
environmental pollution.
It has been reported that the structure of materials can affect their
observed bioactivity. For example, the antibacterial activity of Ti2C and
Ti3C2 MXenes (the same atoms, the same synthetic conditions) to E. Coli
as Gram-negative bacteria has been compared [100]. Bacterial growth
inhibition was seen for Ti3C2, not for Ti2C. Analyses showed differences
in their structure like a higher atomic percentage of Ti–C and a larger
thickness of sheets in Ti2C compared to the Ti3C2. Other research has
shown the dependency of antibacterial activity on MXene’s size and
exposure time [101]. Ti3C2Tx nanosheets with smaller sizes could
damage the bacteria envelope more. Nanomaterials with smaller sizes
can get into the cytosol with a higher probability and harm the cyto­
plasmic components, mostly the DNA. In this process, time is so
important because, during the first time (3h in this research), the DNA
release from bacteria cytosol is perceived. Noteworthy harms in the cell
wall of bacteria, which are caused due to the dispersion of the bacteria
population can be achieved in longer exposure times (Fig. 14).
Nontoxicity and antimicrobial features are essential factors for
electrospun natural polymeric bandages. By loading 0.75 wt% Ti3C2Tz
in CS fibers can obtain a composite that would be able to reduce 95%
and 62% colony forming units of E. coli and Staphylococcus aureus,
respectively [102].
3. Conclusions
MXenes can be mentioned as one of the rapidly developing and
promising families of two-dimensional topological materials. They have

10
S. Mallakpour et al.
Fig. 14. Schematic representation of our proposed antibacterial mode-of-action of Ti3C2Tx MXene nanosheets. (a) Interactions of the nanosheets with bacteria cells
result in the release of bacteria DNA and eventually bacteria dispersion. (b) MXene sharp nanosheets get into the bacteria cytoplasmic region by cutting the bacteria
cell wall. PM and CM stand for peptidoglycan mesh and cytoplasmic membrane, respectively [101].
unique properties such as hydrophilicity, environmentally safe, having
many active sites, high surface areas, thermal stability, and strength, and
thank them can act as a highly efficient pollutant decontamination
agent. Mechanical cleavage or ultrasonication besides intercalating
agents such as organic molecules is required for the delamination of
MXenes, which provides access to more active sites useful for pollutant
remediation. Due to some disadvantages of pure MXenes such as low
flexibility, poor stability at oxygen atmosphere, and hard separation
from water solution during the adsorption, it is proposed to combine
them with other materials. By employing MXenes in the forms of an
adsorbent, in a membrane, as a catalyst, and in a shielding, can help to
the environment cleaning. Besides, MXenes have exhibited bacterial
growth inhibition and this would be valuable to have an adsorbent,
catalyst, membrane, or shield with antibacterial features. It is recom­
mended to examine the effect of MXenes and their hybrids on the water
decontamination ability of various synthetic, natural, or recyclable
polymers.
Declaration of competing interest
The authors declare that they have no known competing financial
interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence
the work reported in this paper.
Acknowledgments
We are deeply grateful to the financial support from the Research
Affairs Division of Isfahan University of Technology (IUT), Isfahan. I. R.
Iran, and Iran National Science Foundation (INSF), Tehran, I. R. Iran
(Grant Number 98015398), and Iran Nanotechnology Initiative Council
(INIC) Tehran, I. R. Iran. The authors also thank National Elite Foun­
dation (NEF), Tehran, I. R. Iran, and Center of Excellence in Sensors and
Green Chemistry IUT. With many thanks to Miss. E. Azadi for her sci­
entific assistance.
11
Ceramics International xxx (xxxx) xxx
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Professor Shadpour Mallakpour, organic polymer chemist,
graduated from chemistry department, University of Florida
(UF), Gainesville, Florida, USA in 1984. He spent two years as a
post-doc at UF. He has joined the department of chemistry,
Isfahan University of Technology (IUT), Iran, since 1986. He
held several positions such as the chairman of the department
of chemistry and deputy of research, department of chemistry
at IUT. From 1994 to 1995 he worked as a visiting professor,
University of Mainz, Germany, and from 2003 to 2004 as a
visiting professor, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, USA. He has
published more than 870 journal papers and more than 400
conference papers and has got more than 30 items of awards.
The most important award to him was given for the selection of
the first laureate on fundamental research, at 21st Khwarizmi International award in 2008.
He is listed as the Top 1% Scientists in Chemistry. He is also listed as the Top 2% Scientists
in Polymer in 2020. He was selected as academic guest of the 59th Meeting of Nobel Prize
Winners in Chemistry, 2009, at Lindau, Germany. He presented many lectures as an
invited or keynote speaker in different national and international conferences or univer­
sities. He was a member of organizing and scientific committees for many national and
international conferences. He was also the chairperson of many national and international
meetings. In recent years, he has focused on preparation and characterization of polymer-
based nanocomposites to be used as bioactive materials as well as adsorbents and pho­
tocatalyst for remediation technology.
Vajiheh Behranvand received a BSc in chemistry field in 2012
and MSc in organic chemistry in 2014 from Isfahan University
of Technology (IUT), Isfahan, I. R. Iran. She received her PhD
degree in organic chemistry under the supervision of Prof. S.
Mallakpour from IUT in 2019. She is currently a postdoctoral
researcher in Prof. S. Mallakpour’s group at the IUT. Her
research interests include surface functionalization of carbon
nanotubes, metal oxide NPs, fabrication of high-performance
polymer-inorganic nanocomposites based on waste materials,
and their applications in water remediation.
Chaudhery Mustansar Hussain, PhD is an Adjunct Professor,
Academic Advisor, and Director of Chemistry & EVSc Labs in
the Department of Chemistry & Environmental Sciences at the
New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT), Newark, New Jer­
sey, USA. His research is focused on the applications of Nano­
technology & Advanced Materials, Environmental
Management, Analytical Chemistry, and Various Industries. Dr.
Hussain is the author of numerous papers in peer-reviewed
journals as well as prolific author and editor of several scien­
tific monographs and handbooks in his research areas pub­
lished with ELSEVIER, Royal Society of Chemistry, John Wiley
& sons, CRC, Springer etc.