Fabrication of hollow polypyrrole nanocubes/Ti3C2Tx MXene composites for high-performance electromagnetic wave absorption performances

Because of electromagnetic wave pollution, there is a growing need for electromagnetic wave absorption materials. An effective strategy is to optimize their microstructure and composition. In this study, hollow polypyrrole (PPy) nanocubes (HP) are synthesized using zeolitic imidazolate frameworks (ZIFs) as sacrificial templates. Subsequently, HP/Ti 3 C 2 T x MXene (HPM) composites are fabricated through electrostatic self-assembly and freeze-drying methods. The resulting 3D conductive network and numerous heterogeneous interfaces enhance interfacial polarization, and the hollow morphology facilitates electromagnetic wave multiple reflections, thereby significantly improving electromagnetic wave absorption performance. HPM-2 realizes a minimum reflection loss (RL min ) of −53.45 dB and an effective absorption bandwidth (EAB) of 6.52 GHz at 1.84 mm. HPM-3 achieves a RL min of −72.28 dB at 2.75 nm and an EAB of 4.7 GHz at 1.61 mm. Moreover, the simulation procedures are applied to investigate the radar cross-section (RCS) attenuation. It is worth noting that with a detection angle (θ) of 0°, HPM-3 possesses a maximum RCS reduction of 35.19 dB m². This work presents a straightforward method for preparing HPM composites and lays the foundation for exploring the efficient electromagnetic wave absorption properties of conducting polymer and MXene-based composites and their derivatives.