Ambient Processed rGO/Ti₃CNT_x MXene Thin Film with High Oxidation Stability, Photosensitivity, and Self-Cleaning Potential

Solution-based processing offers advantages for producing thin films due to scalability, low cost, simplicity, and benignity to the environment. Here, we develop conductive and photoactivated self-cleaning reduced graphene oxide (rGO)/Ti₃CNT_x MXene thin films via spin coating under ambient conditions. The addition of a thin rGO layer on top of Ti₃CNT_x resulted in up to 45-fold improvement in the environmental stability of the film compared to the bare Ti₃CNT_x film. The optimized rGO/Ti₃CNT_x thin film exhibits an optical transmittance of 74% in the visible region of the spectrum and a sheet resistance of 19 kΩ/sq. The rGO/Ti₃CNT_x films show high rhodamine B discoloration activity upon light irradiation. Under UV irradiation, the electrically conductive MXene in combination with in situ formed semiconducting titanium oxide induces photogenerated charge carriers, which could potentially be used in photocatalysis. On the other hand, due to film transparency, white light irradiation can bleach the adsorbed dye via photolysis. This study opens the door for using MXene thin films as multifunctional coatings with conductive and potentially self-cleaning properties.