Smart and Multifunctional Fiber-Reinforced Composites of 2D Heterostructure-Based Textiles

Smart and multifunctional fiber reinforced polymer (FRP) composites with energy storage, sensing, and heating capabilities have gained significant interest for automotive, civil, and aerospace applications. However, achieving smart and multifunctional capabilities in an FRP composite while maintaining desired mechanical properties remains challenging. Here, a novel approach for layer-by-layer (LBL) deposition of 2D material (graphene and molybdenum disulfide, MoS₂)-based heterostructure onto glass fiber fabric using a highly scalable manufacturing technique at a remarkable speed of ≈150 m min⁻¹ is reported. This process enables the creation of smart textiles with integrated energy storage, sensing, and heating functionalities. This methodology combines gel-based electrolyte with a vacuum resin infusion technique, resulting in an efficient and stable smart FRP composite with an areal capacitance of up to ≈182 µF cm⁻² at 10 mV s⁻¹. The composite exhibits exceptional cyclic stability, maintaining ≈90% capacitance after 1000 cycles. Moreover, the smart composite demonstrates joule heating, reaching from ≈24 to ≈27 °C within 120 s at 25 V. Additionally, the smart composite displays strain sensitivity by altering electrical resistance with longitudinal strain, enabling structural health monitoring. These findings highlight the potential of smart composites for multifunctional applications and provide an important step toward realizing their actual real-world applications.