Lei Wang, Zelong Yang, Xiaofeng Hu, Hua Qiu, Binxue Xiang, Hua Guo*, Yali Zhang, Xiaohui Ji*. Multifunctional polyethylene terephthalate fabrics with multilevel conductive networks for electromagnetic interference shielding and photothermal conversion. Nano Research, 2025, 18: 94907500. 2024IF= 9.0.
Abstract
Flexible multifunctional polymer-based electromagnetic interference (EMI) shielding composite fabrics have important application values in 5G communication technology, wearable electronic devices and artificial intelligence. In this work, the flexible and multifunctional MXene/poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene):poly(styrene sulfonate) (PEDOT:PSS)/polyethylene terephthalate (PET) (M-PPSS-PET) composite fabrics are prepared by constructing multilevel conductive networks through a stepwise impregnation process. The PEDOT:PSS acts as a bi-functional intermediate layer of “bonding and conduction”. It not only improves the interface bonding strength of MXene and PET fabrics, but also optimizes carrier migration path through energy level matching. The M-PPSS-PET composite fabrics exhibit excellent comprehensive performance, with electrical conductivity (σ) of up to 334.1 S/cm, EMI shielding effectiveness (EMI SE) of 42 dB, and tensile strength of 101 MPa. Even after being folded for 300 times, EMI SE still remains at 93% of its initial value. When stacked with three pieces of M-PPSS-PET composite fabrics, the EMI SE is up to 69 dB. Moreover, M-PPSS-PET composite fabrics also present excellent Joule heating performance and photothermal conversion properties. When the applied voltage is 2 V, M-PPSS-PET composite fabrics quickly reach the surface stability temperature of 116°C. Under simulated solar irradiation with a power density of 120 mW/cm2, the surface stability temperature is up to 85.7°C. In addition, M-PPSS-PET composite fabrics also show excellent structural stability and flexibility. This work provides a novel and feasible strategy to prepare flexible multifunctional fabrics for applications in the fields of artificial intelligence, flexible wearable electronic devices and smart textiles.