Work

High-strength, electrochemically efficient RuO2-MXene/CNTs hybrid fibres via nanostructure design for flexible electronics and energy storage

Year: 2026

Type: article

Abstract: Demand for smart textiles in wearables spotlights MXene fibres, but their use is limited by mechanical robustness, electrochemical activity, and electrical stability challenges. In this paper, a three-dimensional network-structured hybrid fibre with high tensile strength, flexibility, electrical conductivity, and superior electrochemical characteristics was successfully fabricated by combining hydrothermal synthesis and wet-spinning techniques. Initially, an in-situ hydrothermal method was used to uniformly anchor hydrated RuO 2 nanoparticles onto MXene nanosheets. These RuO 2 -MXene composites were subsequently combined with carbon nanotubes (CNTs) to construct RuO 2 -MXene/CNTs hybrid fibres via a wet-spinning process. RuO 2 prevents MXene re-lamination and adds pseudocapacitance, improving ion access and charge storage. Meanwhile, CNTs create a strong 3D conductive network, boosting charge transport and mechanical strength. As a result, the RuO 2 -MXene/CNTs hybrid fibres achieved a superior specific volumetric capacitance reaching 77.9F/cm 3 , along with outstanding cyclic stability, maintaining 88.1 % of the capacitance after 1000 charge–discharge operations. Additionally, the hybrid fibres displayed outstanding flexibility and electrical stability, with a resistance variation of less than 0.7 % under continuous rapid bending over 8000 s. These findings clearly demonstrate that RuO 2 -MXene/CNTs hybrid fibres possess high potential for application as electrode materials in the domain of future flexible electronics.

Source: Materials & Design

DOI: 10.1016/j.matdes.2026.116378