Piezoelectric Field-Enhanced Photocatalysis in Ti₃C₂T_x MXene: A Dual-Mechanism Strategy for Marine Antifouling

Piezoelectric photocatalytic materials have been reported to show significant advantages in the field of marine biofouling control. Their sustainable antimicrobial mechanism arises from unique energy conversion properties. Structural characterization reveals that the Ti₃C₂T_x MXene layered surface termination morphology can induce strain-mediated polarization via hydrodynamic stimulation under dark conditions, resulting in a 50.9 % mechanochemical inactivation of Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus). The piezoelectric photocatalytic property indicated a 3.2-fold improvement in antimicrobial efficiency of about 79.8% within visible light irradiation conditions (λ ≥ 420 nm). These results showed higher data compared to Ti₃AlC₂ (22.3%). Thus, the performance enhancement mechanism can be ascribed to factors including the synergistic effect of piezoelectricity, photocatalysis, and the efficient generation of reactive oxygen species (·O₂⁻· and ·OH). Therefore, the mechanical-photonic energy mechanism enhances antifouling activity through the redox reactions.