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Page 42 of 57 Zheng et al. Soft Sci. 2026, 6, 32

In terms of controlling infrared radiation, MXene type (e.g., Ti C T vs. Nb CT ), stoichiometry, and
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microstructure can be changed to actively design MXene’s emissivity in the mid-infrared atmospheric
window band [Figure 14C and D] [169] . The emissivity of MXene can be adjusted between around 0.06 and
0.59 . Low emissivity fabrics (such as Ti C T coatings as low as 0.06) efficiently reduce the loss of human
[168]
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thermal radiation, improving warmth in cold climates and facilitating infrared stealth [Figure 14E]. On the
other hand, higher emissivity MXene fabrics facilitate the dissipation of human thermal radiation, which
makes them appropriate for radiative cooling under hot conditions [Figure 14F and G] [170,171] .
Even though MXene-based fibers have several benefits for adaptive heat management, much of the present
research is still in the lab. Three main issues need to be systematically resolved for practical application: the
material’s resilience to repeated use and washing, its technical viability for large-scale integration with
current textile manufacturing processes, and the upcoming difficulty of combining sensing and feedback
control to create adaptive closed-loop systems. To further enhance their practical application, future research
must seek synergistic innovation at the material, structural, and system levels.

EMI shielding and intelligent interactions
Smart textiles are facing more serious EMI problems due to the high integration of electronic devices and the
extensive use of wireless communication technologies. Concurrently, maintaining consistent communication
between their internal functional modules has emerged as a crucial obstacle. Because of their high
conductivity, light weight, flexibility, and superior processability, MXene-based conductive fibers present a
viable approach for building flexible EMI shielding fabrics and highly dependable interconnect circuits.

The main causes of MXene’s effective EMI shielding are multiple internal reflections, absorption losses
brought on by its multilayer flake structure, and electromagnetic wave reflection brought on by its high
conductivity. In addition to maintaining MXene’s inherent qualities, turning it into one-dimensional fiber
shapes gives the material exceptional textile processing versatility. For example, Liu et al. created
RC@MXene/GO core-shell fibers by coaxial wet spinning, where the robust MXene/GO shell greatly
increased the mechanical robustness of the fiber [114] . Mesh density can be used to effectively change the
shielding efficiency (SE) of such fibers when they are woven into mesh structures. The SE value rises from
roughly 8.4-19.0 to 26.5-32.9 dB when the mesh pitch is reduced from 3 to 1 mm. SE levels greater than
100 dB are made possible by additional multilayer stacking. EMI SE curves for various mesh thicknesses are
shown in Figure 14H. Researchers created a method for direct functionalization on commercial fabric
surfaces in order to enable scale production. Dense conductive coatings are created on fiber surfaces by
repeatedly dipping cotton, linen, and other textiles into MXene dispersions. According to studies, the fabric
exhibits exceptional environmental stability and longevity, achieving a SE value of roughly 80 dB after several
immersion cycles and maintaining roughly 90% of its performance even after two years of storage .
[173]
MXene-functionalized fibers operate as extremely dependable, flexible, elastic conductors that link functional
modules including sensing, power supply, and display in smart textile system integration [Figure 14I].
Researchers created fibers with specific features to guarantee stable conductivity under extreme deformation.
For example, MXene/AgNWs conductive layers were coated onto electrospun TPU nanofiber membranes by
Zhang et al., who then precisely twisted the membranes into helical yarns [174] . By utilizing interlayer
interlocking effects between the conductive network and elastic nanofiber network, this structure allows the
yarn to sustain high conductivity (1.12 × 10 S·m ) even at 300% tensile strain. Additionally, multifunctional
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smart textile systems can be built to achieve synergistic operation of sensing, power supply, and shielding
functions by combining MXene composite fibers (such as Kevlar/MXene fibers) with multimodal sensing
and energy storage capabilities through knitting or sewing processes [143] . Figure 14J shows the shielding
method for EMI.