Manopat Depijan, Kanit Hantanasirisakul, Pasit Pakawatpanurut
Imagine a special layered material called MXene, which is great for building devices that store energy quickly (like a super-fast charging battery). However, MXene doesn’t perform well when used with safe, neutral liquids (like salt water) because the tiny energy particles have trouble moving between its tightly packed layers. In this study, we found a way to improve MXene. We mixed it with another very thin material (a specially treated type of carbon nitride) using a simple process and gentle heating. This mixing created more space between the MXene layers and helped the combined material conduct electricity better. As a result, the energy particles could move in and out much more easily. The improved MXene material could store significantly more energy in a safe, neutral salt solution. Plus, it was very durable, keeping its high performance even after being charged and discharged 10,000 times. This work is consistent with the affordable/clean energy and the climate action SDG goals.