Molten Inorganic Salts as Solvents and Reactive Media for Colloidal and Solid-State Chemistry of Low-Dimensional Materials

第一部分： 纳米尺寸的二维材料广泛用于照明和显示应用、催化和医疗保健。这种材料通常是通过液体溶液中的化学反应制成的。因此，用于反应的溶剂的性质成为决定制造新材料并赋予其特定功能能力的重要因素。该项目由材料研究部的固态和材料化学项目支持，探索使用熔融盐，如液体氯化钠（食用盐），作为制造新型二维材料的溶剂。具体而言，熔融无机盐的独特性质被用于开发称为MXenes的二维纳米材料的前所未有的表面化学。芝加哥大学的研究人员开发的合成方法与新型技术重要材料的制备直接相关，这些材料最终应用于显示技术和能量存储。一个全面的教育和推广计划伴随着研究，并侧重于教育丰富当地代表性不足的非洲裔美国人和西班牙裔K-12人口在芝加哥的南区。更广泛的影响活动的主要组成部分包括在研究、课程开发和公共宣传方面对本科生和高中生进行培训。第二部分： 该项目由材料研究部的固态和材料化学计划支持，开发熔融无机盐作为二维材料前所未有的胶体和固态化学的通用介质。在熔融盐中观察到的胶体稳定性不能用传统的静电和空间稳定机制来解释。熔盐中的材料可能通过与晶体表面诱导的熔盐中的长程离子关联相关的新机制形成。该方法在反应条件下提供了无与伦比的热稳定性和化学惰性，这项研究利用熔融无机盐的独特性质为二维过渡金属碳化物和氮化物（MXenes）开发了前所未有的表面化学。因此，该研究计划扩展了扩展无机材料共价表面功能化的溶液合成的边界。一个全面的教育和推广计划伴随着研究，并侧重于教育丰富当地代表性不足的非洲裔美国人和西班牙裔K-12人口在芝加哥的南区。更广泛的影响活动的主要组成部分包括在研究，课程开发和公共外展培训本科生和高中生。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并已被认为是值得通过使用基金会的智力价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估的支持。

PART 1: NON-TECHNICAL SUMMARYNanometer-sized two-dimensional materials are widely used for lighting and display applications, catalysis, and healthcare. Such materials are often made by chemical reactions in liquid solutions. As a result, the properties of a solvent used for the reactions become an important factor that determines the ability to make novel materials and give them specific functional abilities. This project, supported by the Solid State and Materials Chemistry program within the Division of Materials Research, explores the use of molten salts, such as liquid sodium chloride (cooking salt), as solvents for making new types of two-dimensional materials. Specifically, unique properties of molten inorganic salts are used to develop unprecedented surface chemistry for two-dimensional nanomaterials known as MXenes. The synthetic methods, which researchers at the University of Chicago develop, are directly relevant to the preparation of novel, technologically important materials with eventual applications in display technologies and for energy storage. A comprehensive education and outreach program accompanies the research and focus on education enrichment for the local underrepresented African American and Hispanic K-12 populations on Chicago's South Side. The major components of the broader impact activities include training undergraduate and high school students in research, curriculum development, and public outreach. PART 2: TECHNICAL SUMMARYThis project, supported by the Solid State and Materials Chemistry program in the Division of Materials Research, develops molten inorganic salts as versatile media for unprecedented colloidal and solid-state chemistry of two-dimensional materials. The observed colloidal stability in molten salts cannot be explained by traditional electrostatic and steric stabilization mechanisms. Materials in molten salts likely form through a novel mechanism related to the long-range ion correlations in the molten salt induced by the crystal surface. The approach provides unmatched thermal stability and chemical inertness during reaction conditions, and this study uses the unique properties of molten inorganic salts to develop unprecedented surface chemistry for two-dimensional transition metal carbides and nitrides (MXenes). Thereby the research program expands the boundaries for solution synthesis of covalent surface functionalization of extended inorganic materials. A comprehensive education and outreach program accompanies the research and focus on education enrichment for the local underrepresented African American and Hispanic K-12 populations on Chicago's South Side. The major components of the broader impact activities include training undergraduate and high school students in research, curriculum development, and public outreach.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.