Three-Year Project Aims to Achieve Industrial Production by 2028
Khalifa University of Science and Technology’s Research & Innovation Center for Graphene and 2D Materials (RIC2D) along with partners at the University of Padua (Italy), and Carbon-Ukraine (Ukraine), are working together with the Drexel University’s A.J. Drexel Nanomaterials Institute and the Department of Materials Science & Engineering to develop methodologies for MXene production. The project will focus on two important applications: water desalination and advanced biomedical analysis.
The project titled “Commercial MXene manufacturing toward technology innovations in the UAE and beyond,” (MX-Innovation), is led by Professor Yury Gogotsi, Charles T. and Ruth M. Bach Distinguished Professor of Materials Science & Engineering, and Director of the A.J. Drexel Nanomaterials Institute. MX-Innovation is one of three projects under RIC2D’s inaugural call. The three-year project will aim to achieve industrial production by 2028.
Professor Gogotsi said: “We are thrilled to begin work on this exciting project. Exploring these MXene applications at a greater scale will certainly expand the capabilities of this family of materials and offer vital opportunities to people in need of more drinking water, and cell labeling and tracking for crucial clinical research and medical diagnostics. This study is timely and further emphasizes the importance of the work we are doing with MXenes.”
Professor Hassan Arafat, Senior Director, RIC2D, said: “The partnership between Khalifa University and Drexel University is well-aligned, as both institutions share a strong focus on commercializing the research. Ultimately, RIC2D in the UAE will serve as the hub for deploying these innovative MXene-based technologies—advancing potable water production and cell tracking capabilities. These solutions are critically important for the UAE and the broader region, and the project promises to deliver meaningful global impact.”
The global partnership also brings together Professor Ekaterina Pomerantseva (US), and Khalifa University faculty Professor Lucia Gemma Delogu (Italy and the UAE), Dr. Ahsan Ul Haq Qurashi, Dr. Anna Maria Pappa, Dr. Faisal AlMarzooqi, and Dr. Emad Alhseinat (UAE), with Dr. Laura Fusco (Italy), Dr. Veronika Zahorodna and Dr. Oleksiy Gogotsi (Ukraine), to tackle important issues impacting many communities worldwide.
Water desalination and biomedical applications are among the fields in which MXenes have shown great promise. Developing tailored 2D materials to produce drinking water from high-salinity seawater from the Arabian Gulf or brackish water, and support clinical research through ‘Cytometry by Time-of-Flight’, a disruptive technology already replacing flow cytometry in clinical settings, is the focus of this study.
Production of MXene with the composition and properties required in these applications is a necessity to carry this project through to a successful outcome. For MX-Innovation, the aim is to develop production methodologies for two specific purposes, whilst paving the way to producing MXenes at a commercial scale.
RIC2D was established in 2022 at Khalifa University to foster scientific exploration, development and commercialization of graphene and other novel materials that will have a positive impact on both the UAE and the global civilization.
