Effect of a novel flame retardant containing silicon and nitrogen on the thermal stability and flame retardancy of polycarbonate

A novel flame retardant (PSiN), containing silicon and nitrogen, was synthesized using N-(β-aminoethyl)-γ-aminopropylmethyldimethoxysilane and diphenylsilanediol through solution polycondensation and it was added to polycarbonate (PC). The structure and thermal properties of PSiN were characterized by fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and thermogravimetric analysis (TG) tests. The effect of PSiN on the flame retardancy and thermal behaviors of PC was investigated by limited oxygen index (LOI), vertical burning test (UL-94), and TG tests. The results showed that the flame retardancy and the thermal stability of PC are improved with the addition of PSiN. When 1 mass% PSiN and 0.5 mass% diphenylsulfone sulfonate (KSS) are incorporated, the LOI value of PC is found to be 46, and class V-0 of UL-94 test is passed. The char structure observed by scanning electron microscopy indicated that the surface of the char for PC/KSS/PSiN system holds a firmer and denser char structure when compared with neat PC and PC/KSS system.     

Synthesis of a silicon-containing flame retardant and its synergistic effect with potassium-4-(phenylsulfonyl)benzenesulfonate (KSS) in polycarbonate (PC)

A novel flame retardant (DAPSiO), containing silicon and nitrogen, was synthesized by using dichlorodiphenylsilane, γ-chloropropyl methyl dimethoxysilane and 1,2-ethanediamine. DAPSiO was used together with potassium-4-(phenylsulfonyl)benzenesulfonate (KSS) to prepare a flame-retardant system for polycarbonate (PC). The structure of DAPSiO was characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), and ¹H-NMR tests. Flammability and thermal behaviors of PC/KSS/DAPSiO systems were estimated by limited oxygen index (LOI), vertical burning test (UL-94) and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) tests. The results showed that the flame retardancy and thermal stability of PC/KSS system were improved with the addition of DAPSiO. When 1 wt% DAPSiO and 0.5 wt% KSS were incorporated, the LOI value of PC was found to be 44, and class V-0 of UL-94 test was passed. The scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and FTIR indicated that PC/KSS/DAPSiO system held a more cohesive and denser char structure when compared with pure PC and PC/KSS system.     

A novel flame retardant containing phosphorus,nitrogen, and sulfur

In this article, a novel intumescent flame retardant (IFR) PNSFR containing three flame-retardant elements, phosphorus, nitrogen, and sulfur was designed and synthesized. Then a series of flame-retardant thermoplastic polyurethanes (TPU) were prepared using the PNSFR. The effects of the flame retardant on the flammability of TPU/PNSFR composites were investigated by limited oxygen index (LOI) and UL-94 vertical burning. The results showed that TPU containing 10 mass% PNSFR had the highest LOI value (36) and could reach the V-0 rating. The flame-retardant mechanism of PNSFR in TPU was also disclosed using thermogravimetric analysis (TG), scanning electron micrograph, TG-infared spectrometry, and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. The sulfur and phosphorus elements of PNSFR can be kept in residual char. Moreover, an optimal loading amount of the IFR in TPU is in favor of forming dense and continuous char layer to prevent heat transfer and the spread of flammable gases. The IFR PNSFR may find potential use for various flame-retardant polyurethanes.     

Thermal stability and flame retardancy of PET/magnesium salt composites

Nano-Mg(OH)₂ (nanometre magnesium hydroxide, nano-MH) was successfully introduced into the esterification and polycondensation system by in situ polymerization to obtain PET/magnesium salt composites (PETMS). The thermal properties and flame retardancy of PETMS were investigated by differential scanning calorimeter (DSC), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), UL-94 vertical burning and limited oxygen index (LOI) test. The DSC and TGA results show that magnesium salts in the PET matrix have little effect on the thermal properties of PET, but a significant effect on the thermal stabilities of the composites. The results of LOI and UL-94 test show PETMS have higher LOI values (≥25%) and V-0 rating without melt dripping in the UL-94 test, indicating that PETMS have good flame retardancy and anti-dripping property. Moreover, the residues of magnesium salts and composites after TGA test were also studied by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) to better understand the mechanism of flame retardancy, which reveals that magnesium salts accelerate the degradation of PET and catalyze the formation of char. The SEM results show the morphological structures of the char effectively protect the composites’ internal structures and inhibit the heat, smoke transmission and reduce the fuel gases when the fire contacts them.     

Preparation and flammability of a novel intumescent flame-retardant poly(ethylene-co-vinyl acetate) system

A phosphorus-containing flame retardant, 4-(5,5-dimethyl-2-oxo-1,3,2-dioxaphosphorinan-2-yloxymethyl)-2,6,7-trioxa-1-phospha-bicyclo[2.2.2]octane-1-oxide (MOPO), was synthesized successfully and characterized. The flame retardancy and thermal behavior of a new intumescent flame-retardant (IFR) system for EVA, which was made of MOPO and ammonium polyphosphate (APP), were investigated by limiting oxygen index (LOI) test, vertical burning test (UL-94), cone calorimeter, and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). An LOI value of 28.4 and UL-94 V-0 rating can be achieved when the total loading of MOPO and APP was 30 wt.%. The results from cone calorimeter indicate that both the heat release rate (HRR) and the total heat release (THR) of IFR-EVA decreased significantly compared with those of neat EVA. TG curves showed that the amount of residues increased significantly when intumescent additives were added; it also could be found that the LOI values increased with the increase in char residues. Meanwhile, morphology of the residues obtained from burning IFR-EVA in LOI test was studied through the SEM observations and rich compact char layers could explain the excellent flame retardance.     

A novel efficient halogen-free flame retardant system for polycarbonate

A novel silicon- and phosphorus-containing flame retardant, poly (9,10-dihydro-9-oxa-10-phosphaphenanthrene-10-oxide siloxane), P(DOPO-VTES) was synthesized from 9,10-dihydro-9-oxa-10-phosphaphenanthrene-10-oxide(DOPO) and vinyltriethoxy silane(VTES). Its chemical structure was confirmed by FTIR. The thermal gravimetrical analysis (TGA) showed that P(DOPO-VTES) had good thermal stability and a high of char yield (86.31%) at 700 °C in nitrogen atmosphere. Its XRD patterns showed that this compound had a certain ordered structure. P(DOPO-VTES) was blended with polycarbonate (PC) together with montmorillonite(MMT) to prepare a series of organic-inorganic hybrids of flame retardant (PC)/P(DOPO-VTES)/MMT via melt blending. The thermal degradation behavior and flame retardancy of those hybrids were investigated with TGA, limiting oxygen index (LOI), vertical burning test (UL-94), and cone calorimeter. The LOI value of the flame-retardant PC systems could reach a maximal value of 32.8 when the content of P(DOPO-VTES) was 5 wt%. When 2 wt% MMT was added into the PC/5%P(DOPO-VTES) system, the UL-94 rating reached V-0. The possible flame retardant mode of MMT was studied via the dynamic rheological properties of the systems and the morphology of the chars remaining after the LOI test and the cone calorimeter test.     

Thermal and flame retardant properties of novel intumescent flame retardant polypropylene composites

Novel intumescent flame retardant polypropylene (PP) composites were prepared based on a char forming agent (CFA) and silica-gel microencapsulated ammonium polyphosphate (Si-MCAPP). The thermal and flame retardancy of flame retardant PP composites were investigated by limiting oxygen index, UL-94 test, cone calorimetry, thermogravimetric analysis, scanning electron micrograph, and water resistance test. The results of cone calorimetry show that the flame retardant properties of PP with 30 wt% novel intumescent flame retardants (CFA/Si-MCAPP = 1:3) improve greatly. The peak heat release rate and total heat release decrease, respectively, from 1,140.0 to 156.8 kW m^?2 and from 96.0 to 29.5 MJ m^?2. The PP composite with CFA/Si-MCAPP = 1:3 has the excellent water resistance, and it can still obtain a UL-94 V-0 rating after 168 h soaking in water.     

Experimental study on liquid fire behavior at different effective ceiling heights in a full-size simulated cargo compartment

A phosphorus-containing maleimide flame retardant (BDMP) was synthesized via the addition reaction between 9,10-dihydro-9-oxa-10-phosphaphenanthrene 10-oxide and N,N′-bismaleimide-4,4′-diphenylmethane. The structure of BDMP was characterized by Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), ¹H and ³¹P nuclear magnetic resonance and elemental analysis. The thermal, flame-retardant and mechanical properties of the flame-retardant cyanate ester system were investigated by thermogravimetric analysis (TG), limiting oxygen index (LOI), vertical burning (UL-94), cone calorimeter test and dynamic mechanical analysis. The TG results indicated that the initial decomposition of modified CE resin shifted from 416 to 363 °C, and on the contrary, the char yield increased from 38.8 to 44.5%. The results of combustion tests indicated that the CE with highest phosphorus content acquired LOI value of 37% and achieved a UL-94 V-0 rating. The peak heat release rate, average heat release rate and average of effective heat combustion (av-EHC) of that group decreased by 39.5, 31.2 and 41.8%, respectively. In addition, the increase in phosphorus content led to a decrease in av-EHC and average CO₂ yield, and an increase in average CO yield, indicating that BDMP led to an incomplete combustion of the modified CE system. The flame-retardant mechanism was investigated by TG–FTIR, scanning electron microscope and cone calorimeter. Last but not least, the dielectric constant of modified CE system showed a slight fluctuation from 2.96 to 3.02 at 1 GHz, which was lower than that of neat CE.     

Thermal degradation and intumescent flame retardation of cellulose whisker/epoxy resin composite

The morphology, thermal degradation, and flame retardancy of epoxy (EP) composites containing microcrystalline cellulose whisker (MCW) and microencapsulated ammonium polyphosphate (MFAPP) were investigated using optical microscopy, limiting oxygen index (LOI), UL-94, thermogravimetry (TG), microscale combustion calorimeter, and TG-FTIR. EP/MFAPP/MCW composites can pass V-0 in UL-94 test at 6 wt% loading, and its peak heat release rate decreases when compared with EP and EP/MFAPP. The reason is that the presence of MCW strengthens the charring capacity of EP composites in a fire. The results of TG and TG-FTIR show that at low temperature, MFAPP stimulates the dehydration of MCW and EP, and produces gas which is helpful for the formation of an intumescent char. Moreover, the residue at high temperature does not release any flammable gas and is a good insulation layer on the surface of the sample, which protects the underlying material in a fire.     

Synergistic effect of boron containing substances on flame retardancy and thermal stability of intumescent polypropylene composites

The synergistic effect of four different boron containing substances, zinc borate (ZnB), borophosphate (BPO₄), boron silicon containing preceramic oligomer (BSi) and lanthanum borate (LaB), were studied to improve the flame retardancy of a polypropylene (PP) intumescent system composed of ammonium polyphosphate (APP) and pentaerythritol (PER). The flame retardancy of PP composites was investigated by limiting oxygen index (LOI), UL-94 standard, thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and cone calorimeter tests. The addition of 20 wt% intumescent flame retardant (IFR) improves the flame retardancy by increasing the char formation. According to LOI and UL-94 test, boron compounds show their highest synergistic effect at 1 wt% loading. BPO₄ containing composite shows the highest LOI (30), lowest maximum heat release rate (HRR) and lowest total heat release rate (THR) value. Although the char yield increases as the amount of boron compounds increases, the flame retarding effect decreases. Cone calorimeter and TGA data indicate that the boron compounds are likely to show their synergistic effect by reinforcing the integrity of char which improves its barrier effect rather than increasing the char yield.     

磷化淀粉的合成及其与聚磷酸铵协效阻燃聚乳酸的性能研究

利用9,10-二氢-9-氧杂-10-磷杂菲-10-氧化物(DOPO)和马来酸酐(MA)对淀粉进行改性得到磷化淀粉(DOPOMASt),通过红外光谱(FTIR)、核磁共振谱(1H-NMR)和X射线光电子能谱(XPS)确定其结构.利用DOPOMASt作为碳源,与聚磷酸铵(APP)复配后通过熔融共混制备了阻燃聚乳酸(PLA)...     

Synergistic effects of aluminum hypophosphite on intumescent flame retardant polypropylene system

The effects of aluminum hypophosphite(AHP) as a synergistic agent on the flame retardancy and thermal degradation behavior of intumescent flame retardant polypropylene composites(PP/IFR) containing ammonium polyphosphate(APP) and triazine charring-foaming agent(CFA) were investigated by limiting oxygen index(LOI), UL-94 measurement, thermogravimetric analysis(TGA), cone calorimeter test(CONE), scanning electron microscopy(SEM) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy(XPS). It was found that the combination of IFR with AHP exhibited an evident synergistic effect and enhanced the flame retardant efficiency for PP matrix. The specimens with the thickness of 0.8 mm can pass UL-94 V-0 rating and the LOI value reaches 33.5% based on the total loading of flame retardant of 24 wt%, and the optimum mass fraction of AHP/IFR is 1:6. The TGA data revealed that AHP could change the degradation behavior of IFR and PP/IFR system, enhance the thermal stability of the IFR and PP/IFR systems at high temperatures and promote the char residue formation. The CONE results revealed that IFR/AHP blends can efficiently reduce the combustion parameters of PP, such as heat release rate(HRR), total heat release(THR), smoke production rate(SPR) and so on. The morphological structures of char residue demonstrated that AHP is of benefit to the formation of a more compact and homogeneous char layer on the materials surface during burning. The analysis of XPS indicates that AHP may promote the formation of sufficient char on the materials surface and improve the flame retardant properties.     

Simultaneous improvement in the flame retardancy and water resistance of PP/APP through coating UV-curable pentaerythritol triacrylate onto APP

To improve the flame-retardant efficiency and water resistance of ammonium polyphosphate(APP), the UV-curable pentaerythritol triacrylate(PETA) was used to microencapsulate APP via the UV curing polymerization method. The prepared PETA-microencapsulated APP(PETA-APP) was characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy(FTIR), scanning electron microscopy(SEM), and thermogravimetric(TG) analysis. PETA-APP was used as intumescent flame retardant(IFR) alone to flame retard polypropylene(PP). The water resistance of PP/PETA-APP composites was investigated, and the effect of PETA on the combustion behaviors of PP/APP composites was studied through limiting oxygen index(LOI), vertical burning test(UL-94) and cone calorimeter(CC) test, respectively. With 40 wt% of PETA-APP, the PP/PETA-APP system could achieve a LOI value of 30.0% and UL-94 V-0 rating after treatment in hot water for 168 h, while the LOI value of the system containing 40 wt% uncoated APP was only 19.2%, and it failed to pass the UL-94 rating. CC test results showed that the heat release rate(HRR), mass loss rate(MLR) and smoke production rate(SPR) of PP/PETAAPP system decreased significantly compared with PP/APP system, especially the peak of HRR was decreased by 51.4%. The mechanism for the improvement of flame reatardancy for PP/PETA-APP composites was discussed based on FTIR and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy(XPS) tests. All these results illustrated that simultaneous improvement of flame retardancy and water resistance for PP/APP was achieved through coating UV-curable PETA onto APP.     

Intrinsically flame retardant epoxy resin - Fire performance and background - Part I

The flame retardant effect of newly synthesized phosphorus-containing reactive amine, which can be used both as crosslinking agent in epoxy resins and as a flame retardant, was investigated. The effect of montmorillonite and sepiolite additives on the fire induced degradation was compared to pristine epoxy resin. The effect of combining the organophosphorous amine with clay minerals was also studied. It could be concluded that the synthesized phosphorus-containing amine, TEDAP can substitute the traditional epoxy resin curing agents providing additionally excellent flame retardancy: the epoxy resins flame retarded this way reach 960 °C GWFI value, 33 LOI value and V-0 UL-94 rating - compared to the 550 °C GWFI value, 21 LOI value and “no rate” UL-94 classification of the reference epoxy resin. The peak of heat release was reduced to 1/10 compared to non-flame retarded resin, furthermore a shift in time was observed, which increases the time to escape in case of fire. The flame retardant performance can be further improved by incorporating clay additives: the LOI and the HRR results showed that the optimum of flame retardant effect of clay additives is around 1 mass% filler level in AH-16-TEDAP system. Applying a complex method for mechanical and structural characterization of the intumescent char it was determined that the flame retarded system forms significantly more and stronger char of better uniformity with smaller average bubble size. Incorporation of clay additives (owing to their bubble nucleating activity) results in further decrease in average bubble diameter.     

Study on flame-retardant mechanism of polycarbonate containing sulfonate-silsesquioxane-fluoro retardants by TGA and FTIR

The flame retardancy of bisphenol A polycarbonate (PC) containing potassium diphenylsulfone sulfonate (KSS), poly(aminopropyl/phenylsilsesquioxane) (PAPSQ) and poly(vinylidenefluoride) (PVDF) was measured by limited oxygen index (LOI) and examined according to UL94. A high LOI and UL94 V-0 rating for 1.6 mm thickness samples were obtained by a combined use of equivalent KSS, PAPSQ and PVDF at 0.1-0.3 wt% loading, respectively. The improvement in flame retardancy of PC compositions arose from the synergistic interaction of three additives. Thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) indicated that the combination decreased the activation energy (E) of PC degradation and elevated the thermal degradation rate of PC to ensure the formation of an insulating carbon layer. FTIR analysis showed that the LOI char of PC containing the three additives took on a highly cross-linking aromatic ester and ether structure.     

Fire retarded polyurethane foam composites based on steel slag/ammonium polyphosphate system: A novel strategy for utilization of metallurgical solid waste

A series of FR-RPUF composites were prepared by a one-step water foaming process with ammonium polyphosphate (APP) and steel slag (SS) as flame retardants. Thermogravimetric analysis (TG), limiting oxygen index (LOI), UL-94 vertical combustion test, microscale combustion calorimetry (MCC), TG-Fourier transform infrared spectrometry (TG-FTIR), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Raman spectra and FTIR were used to investigate the thermal stability, flame retardancy, combustion performance, gas phase products, and char residue morphology of FR-RPUF composites. TG test results showed that the initial decomposition temperature (T_-5wt%) and char residue rate at 700°C of RPUF/APP/SS composites were significantly enhanced by the addition of APP and SS, and the thermal stability of the composites was improved. Flame retardant test results confirmed the significantly increased LOI values of RPUF/APP/SS composites with V-0 rating. TG-FTIR also confirmed the obviously decreased release of toxic gases and flammable gases in the combustion of RPUF/APP/SS composites. SEM and Raman spectra of char residues for the composites suggested that APP/SS system improved the compactness and graphitization degree of char layer for RPUF/APP/SS composite. The above researches provide a new strategy for the utilization of SS in fire safety engineering.     

Thermal Degradation,Flame Retardance and Mechanical Properties of Thermoplastic Polyurethane Composites Based on AluminumHypophosphite简

Aluminum hypophosphite （AP） was used to prepare flame-retarded thermoplastic polyurethane （FR-TPU） composites, and their flame retardancy, thermal degradation and mechanical properties were investigated by limiting oxygen index （LOI）, vertical burning test （UL-94）, thermogravimetric analysis （TGA）, cone calorimeter （CC） test, Fourier transform infrared （FTIR） spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy （SEM） and tensile test. TPU containing 30 wt% of AP could reach a V-0 rating in the UL-94 test, and its LOI value was 30.2. TGA tests revealed that AP enhanced the formation of residual chars at high temperatures, and slightly affected the thermal stability of TPU at high temperatures. The combustion tests indicated that AP affected the burning behavior of TPU. The peak of heat release rate （PHRR）, total heat release （THR） and mass loss rate （MLR） greatly reduced due to the incorporation of AP. The tensile test results showed that both the tensile strength and the elongation at break slightly decreased with the addition of AP. The digital photos and SEM micrographs vitrified that AP facilitated the formation of more compact intumescent char layer. Based on these results mentioned above, the flame-retarding mechanism of AP was discussed. Both the self-charring during the decomposing process of AP and its facilitation to the charring of TPU led to the great improvement in the flame retardancy of TPU.     

Thermogravimetry as a tool for measuring of fracturing fluid absorption in shales

A series of flame-retardant ethylene–vinyl acetate (EVA) composites with different contents of aluminum phosphate (AHP) and Trimer were prepared. The synergistic flame-retardant effects of the Trimer with AHP in EVA/AHP blends were studied by limiting oxygen index (LOI) tests, UL-94 tests, cone calorimeter tests, thermogravimetric analysis, and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The LOI and UL-94 results showed that the system containing AHP and Trimer was very effective in improving the flame retardancy of EVA. When the mass ratio of AHP and Trimer was 3:1, the highest flame retardancy could be obtained, and when the flame-retardant loading was 30 wt%, the EVA/AHP/Trimer (7.5%) sample could achieve the V-0 rating in UL-94 tests, at the same time, its LOI value was 24.4%. The TG and DTG results showed that the addition of flame retardants catalyzes EVA decomposition in the first stage and generates a more stable char residue in the second stage. Consequently, an efficient reduction in the flammability parameters, such as heat release rate, total heat release, smoke production rate, and total smoke production could be observed. In addition, it was observed from the SEM observations of the morphological features that the AHP and Trimer combination, at the optimum proportion, could promote the formation of compact charred layers and prevent their cracking, which effectively protected the underlying materials from burning.     

Combustion properties and thermal degradation behavior of polylactide with an effective intumescent flame retardant

An intumescent flame retardant spirocyclic pentaerythritol bisphosphorate disphosphoryl melamine (SPDPM) has been synthesized and its structure was characterized by Fourier transformed infrared spectrometry (FTIR), ¹H and ³¹P nuclear magnetic resonances (NMR). A series of polylactide (PLA)-based flame retardant composites containing SPDPM were prepared by melt blending method. The combustion properties of PLA/SPDPM composites were evaluated through UL-94, limiting oxygen index (LOI) tests and microscale combustion calorimetry (MCC) experiments. It is found that SPDPM integrating acid, char and gas sources significantly improved the flame retardancy and anti-dripping performance of PLA. When 25 wt% flame retardant was added, the composites achieved UL-94 V0, and the LOI value was increased to 38. Thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) showed that the weight loss rate of PLA was decreased by introduction of SPDPM. In addition, the thermal degradation process and possible flame retardant mechanism of PLA composites with SPDPM were analyzed by in situ FTIR.     

Study of thermal properties of flame retardant epoxy resin treated with hexakis[p-(hydroxymethyl)phenoxy]cyclotriphosphazene

Hexakis[p-(hydroxymethyl)phenoxy]cyclotriphosphazene (HHPCP) is prepared and characterized by FTIR, ¹H-NMR, and ³¹P-NMR spectroscopy. Then an investigation of the flame retardancy, thermal decomposition behavior of epoxy resin (EP) containing HHPCP is carried out using limiting oxygen (LOI) test, horizontal flame test, smoke density rate (SDR) test, thermogravimetric analysis (TG), and thermal gravimetric analyzer-mass spectrometry (TG-MS). The decomposition process of HHPCP is studied by TG-MS and FTIR. The result shows that the LOI value of EP increase from 20.5 to 26.5 %, when 7.5 mass% HHPCP is added into EP. The addition of 1 mass% nano-montmorillonite (nMMT) into EP–7.5 mass% HHPCP sample as synergist can increase the LOI value of EP–7.5 mass% HHPCP–1 mass% nMMT sample from 26.5 to 27.5 %. The SDR test indicates that smoke suppression of HHPCP on EP is not significant. TG analysis reflects that the EP–7.5 mass% HHPCP sample and EP–7.5 mass% HHPCP–1 mass% nMMT show higher thermal stability properties with an increasing T _onset and T _max comparing with neat-EP. TG-MS result indicates that the main pyrolysis product of EP is H₂O, CO, CO₂, C₆H₆, C₆H₅OH, HOC₆H₄CH₃, and flammable hydrocarbon fragments C_xH_y. Compared with neat-EP sample, nonflammable water vapor of EP–7.5 mass% HHPCP sample increased, whereas CO₂ and the flammable hydrocarbon fragments C_xH_y and flammable gas CO decreased. TG-MS and FTIR result suggests that HHPCP decomposed first by inter-molecular dehydration, then P–N hexatomic ring of HHPCP decomposed during 470 and 560 °C, and a little no-flame gas containing nitrogen element volatilized into the gaseous phase.