MXenes are a family of two-dimensional materials, meaning they are only a few atoms thick. They were discovered as recently as 2011 and consist of a metal combined with either carbon or nitrogen atoms. Their structure gives them an extremely large surface area in relation to their weight, which makes them interesting for uses such as energy storage, water purification, telecommunications and biomedicine.
Now researchers led by Linköping University have used artificial intelligence (AI) and supercomputers to search materials databases. In this way they identified 33 MXenes that had already been created but that the research field had not been aware of. Inspired by these findings, the team also created 11 new ones. The researchers note that scientists sometimes reinvent the wheel, believing they have made a new discovery when the result was in fact published decades ago.
Easier and cleaner to manufacture
One of the most important findings in the study, in addition to the new materials, concerns how MXenes are made. The team managed to create them in a completely new way, without external heating and in just a few seconds. The new method requires significantly fewer hazardous chemicals and less water than earlier methods. Much is happening in the synthesis of MXenes, and the researchers believe it is the scaling up of manufacturing that will push the materials into significantly wider use.
The researchers also showed that rare earth metals can replace the metals normally used in MXenes. This means the materials can become magnetic, which broadens their possible applications even further.
The study matters because it shows that older scientific literature still holds valuable, overlooked knowledge, and that AI can help researchers find it instead of repeating past work. Combined with simpler and cleaner production, the discovery of both forgotten and new MXenes could speed the way to real applications in sustainability and medicine.
This research is published in Science.