Novel and high efficient nanosheets of Ti3C2Tx MXenes decorated with BiFeO3 nanoparticles for Super-capacitor and electro-catalytic water splitting applications

Abstract Recently, we are facing a notable surge in the demand for the development of new materials with high specific capacitance and lower over-potentials for advanced energy storage and electrocatalytic water splitting applications. Here, we report nanocomposite electrode materials composed of 2-dimensional Ti 3 C 2 T x MXene and BiFeO 3 nanoparticles with high specific capacitance and energy density. Ti 3 C 2 T x was etched from Ti 3 SiC 2 using the hydrothermal method. BiFeO 3 nanoparticles were synthesized using sol-gel technique. The nanocomposite was synthesized using a straightforward and cost-effective double-solvent solvothermal method, and it was characterized using XRD, SEM, EDX, FTIR, and Raman spectroscopy. Three kinds of nanocomposites were synthesized with different concentrations of BiFeO 3 nanoparticles. The cyclic voltammetry measurements revealed that the nanocomposite with optimized composition exhibited superior capacitive behaviour when compared to the individual components i-e- Ti 3 C 2 T x and BiFeO 3 , with a specific capacitance of 420 F/g and a specific energy density of 90.6 J/g at a scan rate of 2 mV/sec. The nanocomposite exhibits a low charge transfer resistance of 1.485 Ω, making it a suitable candidate for electrode of supercapacitors. Additionally, the MXene and BFO nanocomposite showed improved HER and OER performance, with low overpotentials of 24.6 mV and 574.9 mV, respectively, at a current density of 10 mAcm −2 for 18 hrs. The strong electronic coupling between MXene nanosheets and BFO nanoparticles accelerates OER and HER kinetics and increasing its potential use in electrocatalytic applications.