Flame Retardant Chemical Mechanisms, Standards and Applications

摘要

Chemical reaction mechanisms for various classes of flame retardants are presented and their uses relative to nonwoven fibers and fabrics are discussed along with an overview of regulations and standards. A flame retardant's action upon the burning combustion cycle generally requires the interruption of some aspect of the chemical reaction mechanism involved. These mechanisms can be in the solid or gaseous phase or have an endothermic (cooling) effect on the system by absorbing or consuming heat during the pyrolytic decomposition. Flame retardants do not generally improve material properties, but ensure high fire safety levels. Fire safety is required in many applications. Products used for building/construction, transportation, electrical/electronics, textiles and furniture all have specific requirements for fire control. In particular, it is apparent there is a significant overlap with respect to the broad use of textiles and nonwovens as components in these other applications. Fire regulations and tests are increasingly international and more stringent. Notable US standards have been developed by the US Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) and California as regulations and Technical Bulletins, the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), Underwriters Laboratory (UL), and American Society of Testing and Materials (ASTM). Internationally, the various members of the European Union harmonized their regulations under the auspices of the EC Commission in 2005 and reissued new EN standards for products and the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) for testing. In the rest of the world, many nations assure their testing procedures and standards are in compliance with the EN and ISO standards.