Abstract
By now it is well-established that the layered, hexagonal carbides and nitrides with the general formula, Mn+1AXn, (MAX) where n = 1 to 3, M is an early transition metal, A is an A-group (mostly IIIA and IVA) element and X is either C and/or N – sometimes referred to as polycrystalline nanolaminates because every basal plane is a potential deformation or delamination plane - combine some of the best attributes of metals and ceramics. They are excellent conductors of heat and electricity, damage and thermal shock tolerant and fracture toughness values as high as 15 MPa√m. Some are lightweight, stiff and have good creep and outstanding oxidation resistance. More recently we have shown that by simply immersing MAX phase powders,at room temperature,in HFthe A-layers are selectively etched to produce 2D materials that we labeled MXenes to emphasize the loss of the A-group element and theirsimilaritiesto graphene.Unlike hydrophobic graphene, MXenes are hydrophilicand behave as“conductive clays”, a hitherto unknown combination. MXenes such as Ti2C, V2C, Nb2C and Ti3C2can be used as electrode materials in lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) and supercapacitors (SC) as well as transparent conductive electrodes, with performances that are quite impressive. In all cases, when used as anodes in LIB, MXenes showed an excellent capability to handle high cycling rates. Flexible, additives-free electrodes of delaminated Ti3C2 showed reversible capacities of >400mAhg-1 at 1C and 110mAhg-1 at 36 C, the latter for > 700 cycles.SC'swith volumetric capacitances of > 900 F/cm3 were obtained.The potential of using MXenes in energy storage, as transparent conductive electrodes, among many other applications will be highlighted.

Short Biography
Prof. Michel W. Barsoum - Distinguished Professor in the Department of Materials Science and Engineering at Drexel University - is an internationally recognized leader in the area of MAX phases. He is the author of two entries on the MAX phases in the Encyclopedia of Materials Science and the book, MAX Phases, published in 2013. He is also the author of Fundamentals of Ceramics,a leading textbook in his field. In 2011, he and Drexel colleagues selectively etched the A-group layers from the MAX phases to produce an entirely new family of 2D solids - they labeled MXenes - that have sparked global interest because of their potential in many applications, least of which is energy storage. With over 350 refereed publications, cited over 15,000 times and an ISI h index of 63, his work has been highly cited. In 2009 he made ISI's most highly cited authors' list. He is a fellow of the American Ceramic Society and the World Academy of Ceramics. In 2000 he was awarded a Humboldt-Max Planck Research Award for Senior US Research Scientists. Since 2008 he has been a visiting professor at Linkoping University in Sweden. He spenthis last sabbatical year at Imperial College in London and the Grenoble Institute of Technology in Grenoble, France.