MXene and their integrated composite-based acetone sensors for monitoring of diabetes

Abstract

For present-day technological advancements, the MXene family is a highly investigated material in the family of van der Waals heterostructures. MXenes possess exceptional physical, optical, electrical, and electronic properties. Herein, their vast electroactive surfaces, MXene-based sensors and their integration with other materials for enhanced sensing performance are discussed. The challenges and future directions of MXene-based VOCs sensors are also considered. This review emphasizes the potential of MXene in addressing environmental and health-related concerns, particularly in acetone sensing. Acetone, a volatile organic compound (VOC), is dangerous due to its explosiveness and toxicity, causing various health issues. Detecting acetone gas has medical and environmental applications, including diabetes diagnosis and environmental monitoring. This review aims to analyze recent advancements in chemiresistive sensors for acetone gas detection using MXene and MXene composite materials, discussing the synthesis methods, characterization, response and recovery time, and sensing mechanisms to achieve further improvements in sensor performance. The average amount of acetone detected in the breath of healthy people is less than 1 ppm (0.3–0.9 ppm), but it increases to 2.2 and 1.7 ppm in type 1 and type 2 diabetic patients, respectively. As a result, the ability to recognize acetone concentrations at levels sub-ppm, or even at ppb levels, is crucial for the early detection of diabetes. Nowadays, breath analysis has attracted much attention as a potentially powerful tool for studying medical diagnosis diseases due to its noninvasive nature and real-time monitoring ability. In VOCs, acetone is considered to be an important breath biomarker for diabetes.