Facile fabrication and characterization of MXene/cellulose composites for electrical properties, electric heating performance

Developing energy-efficient and multifunctional wearable electronic textiles (E-textiles) is a significant challenge. This study investigates MXene-coated cellulose hybrid fibers, focusing on their electrical properties, heating performance, and thermal stability. The fabrication process involves continuous dipping of cellulose fibers into an aqueous MXene solution, resulting in the creation of MXene-coated cellulose hybrid fibers. We confirm the uniform coating of MXene sheets on the cellulose fiber surfaces, with increasing content throughout the dip coating cycle, as evidenced by X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy analysis. The high thermal conductivity of MXene acts as a heat source, impacting the thermal stability of cellulose fibers at lower temperatures. Additionally, the electrical properties of MXene/cellulose hybrid fiber composites are influenced at elevated temperatures. Remarkably, the longitudinal electrical conductivity of the MXene-coated cellulose fiber composites exhibits a notable increase of 0.06 S/cm after the final coating cycle, demonstrating the effective and conductive nature of the layer-by-layer MXene network formed on the cellulose fibers.