Ti3C2Tx MXene/Fe3O4/Carbon Fiber Fabric/Water Polyurethane Composite Fabrics for Electromagnetic Interference Shielding and Thermal Management

The application of smart devices and artificial intelligence (AI) technologies has led to an increase in electromagnetic interference (EMI) issues. Compared with the traditional metal-based EMI shielding materials, lighter and more efficient polymer-based EMI shielding materials have a broader application prospect. In this work, we utilized electrospinning and calcination techniques to synthesize Fe3O4 nanofibers and employed a layer-by-layer assembly method to create a Ti3C2Tx MXene/Fe3O4/carbon fiber fabric/waterborne polyurethane (Ti3C2Tx MXene/Fe3O4/CFf/WPU) composite fabric. Our findings reveal that this composite fabric possesses superior EMI shielding capabilities. Specifically, the FMC12.5–5 composite material, which contains 12.5 wt % Fe3O4 and 5 wt % Ti3C2Tx, demonstrates remarkable electromagnetic interference (EMI) shielding effectiveness (SE) (up to 43.6 dB) at a mere 0.4 mm thickness with a low MXene content. Meanwhile, the fabric achieves a significant anisotropic thermal conductivity of up to 0.46 W/(m K), fulfilling the in-plane thermal conductivity requirement. Additionally, the sandwich-structured composite exhibits excellent mechanical performance (Young's modulus is up to 113.5 MPa and tensile strength reaches 15.7 MPa) and is flexible enough to endure repeated bending, folding, and shaping. It maintains a reliable electrothermal conversion capability, achieving temperatures of up to 106 °C at only 2.5 V. This study has expanded the exploration of enhanced electromagnetic interference (EMI) shielding and electrothermal conversion capabilities.