Polymer Combustion and New Flame Retardants.
Polymer Combustion and New Flame Retardants.
(1978 K)
Kashiwagi, T.; Hamins, A.; Steckler, K. D.; Gilman, J.
W.
BCC Conference on Flame Retardancy, Seventh (7th)
Annual. Proceedings. Business Communications Co., Inc.
(BCC). May 20-22, 1996, Stamford, CT, 1-26 pp, 1996.
Keywords:
flame retardants; char; flame spread; heat release;
combustion; vapor phases; cone calorimeters; thermal
degradation
Abstract:
The combustion of polymers is a complex coupled process
characterized by energy feedback from a flame to the
polymer surface and subsequent gasification of the
polymer to generate combustible degradation products.
Energy feedback characteristics for two different
burning configurations, pool burning and vertical wall
burning, are discussed. Thermal degradation of polymers
and heat transfer in polymer samples are briefly
discussed in order to determine polymer gasification
rates at specified external heat fluxes. Transient
burning rates of two polymeric materials, PMMA and
Douglas Fir, are calculated in a pool flame
configuration for two different diameters and the
predicted results are compared with the experimental
data. A similar comparison is made for upward flame
spread in the corner of a room. To improve the fire
performance of polymers, use of a nonhalogenated
char-forming flame retardant is suggested, and its
benefits are discussed. The fire performance of a newly
developed char forming flame retardant additive
combination in a variety of polymers is described.
Although its flame retardant mechanism has been studied
by analyzing the char structure in the presence of the
additives using solid-state NMR, at present it is not
clearly understood.
