The development of intelligent electronics and the Internet of Things has greatly promoted the development of functional materials and equipment, especially miniature supercapacitors ( MSCs ). But high energy density, long cycle life, fast charge / discharge and low cost remain a major challenge. Screen printing technology has the highest deposition rate, allowing the rapid and batch production of MSCs . At present, there are mainly problems in the development of functional inks, suitable rheological properties and printing of high-resolution screens. In addition, in order to improve electrical conductivity or mechanical stability and adjust rheological properties, most reported ink systems contain additives. This will cause additional removal costs. 2D transition metal carbide /carbonitride (MXene) has attracted great attention in the fields of electrochemical energy storage, electromagnetic shielding, catalysis, and sensing due to its ultra-high intrinsic conductivity, large specific surface area, and excellent mechanical properties. . However , the mass of the unstripped mxene precursor can reach 80-90% , which is usually discarded as waste, forming a huge waste, which hinders the industrial development of MXene .

Achievements

Recently , the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Federal Institute for Materials Science of Zhang Zhuanfang research team in the internationally renowned journal Advanced Materials published entitled"Turning Trash into Treasure: Additive Free MXene Sediment Inks for Screen-Printed Micro-Supercapacitors" papers. An additive-free printing functional conductive ink consisting mainly of unetched precursors and multilayer MXene deposits is reported . The results show that the exfoliatedMXene nanosheets can be used as a highly efficient conductive adhesive for layered structure nanoparticles, maintaining their complete mechanical properties and conductive network. The printed miniature supercapacitors exhibit a surface capacitance of 158 mF cm ⁻² and an energy density of 1.64 μWh cm ⁻² , which is higher than other reported MXene or graphene devices.This "turn waste into treasure" conductive ink preparation strategy leverages MXene ‘s great potential for screen printing, laying the foundation for the sustainable production of next-generation wearable devices and intelligent electronic products.

Figure 1 Screen printing schematic of MXene sediment ink .

Figure 2 Morphology and structural characterization of MXene sediment ink .

Figure 3 Characterization of Screen Printing of MXene Deposit Ink .

Figure 4 Effect of device structure on electrochemical performance .

Figure 5 Comparison of MXenes film‘s shielding properties with the reported literature .

Figure 6 Mass production of micro-supercapacitors with MXene sediment ink .

in conclusion

In summary, an additive-free MXene sediment ink and batch printing of various high-resolution patterns and structures are reported . Among them, a few percent of the nanosheets play an important role in maintaining the integrity of the conductive network and mechanical properties. Printed mass-produced MSCSexhibit excellent charge storage performance, including high area capacitance and high energy / power density, surpassing all known printed MSCs . Such a screen printing technology that turns waste into treasure will greatly promote the industrial development of MXene materials .

Original link:

https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/adma.202000716

Source: MXene Academic