NSF Award
2318105
The NSF Center for MXenes Synthesis, Tunability and Reactivity (M-STAR) is supported by the Centers for Chemical Innovation (CCI) Program of the Division of Chemistry. MXenes represent the most rapidly growing family of functional 2D materials, exhibiting great promise in the areas of energy storage, filtration and separation technologies, medicine, optoelectronics, and composite materials. Interest in MXenes stems from the fact that these crystalline metal carbides and nitrides have huge surface-to-volume ratios, robust metallic conductivities and nearly limitless opportunities for surface functionalization. This makes MXenes uniquely powerful chemical building blocks for tunable functional materials. M-STAR will build knowledge and empirical data on how to manipulate and enhance the optical, electronic and catalytic properties of MXenes by changing the composition of their 2D MXene sheets and by attaching organic functional groups to the surface. Activities within this Center will include active engagement with industrial partners to promote MXene translation, STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) engagement through a cross-disciplinary rotation of summer schools and workshops, and the development of new activities for various science festivals and associated with the Chicago Museum of Science and Industry.<br/><br/>While MXenes show great technological promise in numerous critical industries, these 2D materials are limited by the types of synthetic approaches available to make these materials. Additionally, the impact of these functional 2D materials could be enhanced through an improved understanding of how functional modifications of MXenes can lead to new electrochemical and catalytic processes with greater stability and predictability. M-STAR will develop new methodologies for the direct synthesis of MXenes via chemical vapor deposition and molten salt-assisted templating. Fundamental studies of MXene reactivity will require determining the relative reactivities of basal planes versus the edges of MXenes; this will be achieved by systematically varying the lateral dimensions of MXene flakes. The structural tunability of MXene compounds will be enabled through the synthesis of MXenes with organic functional groups covalently bound to the 2D inorganic sheets, forming hybrid organic-inorganic MXenes. M-STAR will make connections between the structure/composition of MXene organic and inorganic constituents with their physical and chemical properties. Fundamental studies will include examinations of modified MXenes as tunable/adaptable metamaterials by chemical design. Finally, M-STAR will explore reactivity and catalysis by MXenes and MXene assemblies in hydrogen transfer reactions, C-C bond-forming reactions and electrochemical hydrogen evolution. All these experiments will be integrated with theory, computation, and machine learning methods to analyze reaction thermodynamics and kinetics, determine material stability, and predict material properties.<br/><br/>This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.
