MXene/Polymer Nanocomposites: Preparation, Properties, and Applications

As a new member of the group of promising 2D materials, MXene shows the advantages including metallic conductivity, high charge carrier mobility, tunable band gap, flexibility and diverse surface chemistry, favorable optical and mechanical properties. These unique properties have drawn huge attention, and research on MXene has been intensively conducted and innovative applications have been reported in various fields. At the same time, MXene/polymer nanocomposites have been developed, and many amazing results have been reported. However, overviews of the status and progress in this field are rare. In this paper, first, the preparation method and technical route of MXene/polymer nanocomposites are reviewed. It is found that solution mixing and in situ polymerization are the main preparation methods of the nanocomposites. Second, the properties of the composites are presented. It is shown that MXene can effectively improve the electrical, mechanical, and thermal characteristics of polymers. Then, innovative applications and representative results of the composites in the biomedical, sensing, energy, electromagnetic protection, and other fields are summarized. Finally, the development prospects and key challenges of the composites are listed concisely.