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MXenes are a large family of two-dimensional (2D) materials that consist of transition metal carbides, nitrides, or carbonitrides. They are produced by selectively etching out the "A" layer from a layered MAX phase compound, a group of layered, hexagonal-structure ternary carbides and nitrides. Some notable characteristics of MXenes include high electrical conductivity, good mechanical strength, excellent thermal stability, and a high surface area that enables efficient interaction with surrounding environments. Using MXenes in biocoating application has recently gained attention because of their high surface area, excellent biocompatibility, and flexible chemical composition.  At the Chair of Ceramics in RWTH Aachen University, we work on developing MXenes for different applications including bioapplications. In our recent study, we suggest an efficient and simple method to deposit Ti3C2Tx MXenes on metal implant to improve their biological properties. Stainless steel (SS316L) is widely used in medical implants because of its mechanical strength and corrosion resistance, but there are several challenges associated with the integration of these implants into the human body, including bacterial infections, poor osseointegration, and limited biocompatibility. Merging the excellent biological properties of Ti3C2Tx MXenes with the surfaces of SS316L could create a novel concept material system for a wide range of biomedical applications. 

In our work, Ti3C2Tx MXene films have been successfully immobilized on SS316L substrates using a unique and simple coating technique. The SS316L samples were firstly functionalized by silanization to obtain the -NH2 termination on the metal substrates for improving the covalent attraction with the terminations of MXene-flakes. Then the homogeneously distributed Ti3C2Tx-MXene coatings on functionalized SS316L samples were obtained after the simple dip-coating method. We could show that MXene-coated substrates have non-toxic behavior, superior osteogenic differentiation, and antibacterial feature, which make them ideal candidate as implant surface modifier. Future work will involve a better understanding of the mechanism of observed phenomena and controlling of interfacial events to be able to translate the coatings to medical applications.

Nima Amousa

nima.amousa@rwth-aachen.de

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Chair of Ceramics, Institute of Mineral Engineering

RWTH Aachen University, Forckenbeckstraße 33,

52074 Aachen

Germany