Synthesis of a Novel Flame Retardant Containing Phosphorus, Nitrogen, and Silicon and Its Application in Epoxy Resin
Minghui Fang, Jun Qian, Xue-Zhi Wang, Zhong Chen, Ruilin Guo, Yifeng Shi
Abstract
P nuclear magnetic resonance, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. Thermogravimetric analysis results indicated that after the introduction of TDA, cured EP maintained good thermal stability with a minimum initial decomposition temperature of 337.6 °C, and the char yields of a EP/TDA-5 sample significantly increased by 76.2% compared with that of the neat EP thermoset. Additionally, with the addition of 25.0 wt % TDA (1.05 wt % phosphorus loading), the limited oxygen index value of cured EP increased from 22.5% of pure EP to 33.4%, and vertical burning V-0 rating was easily achieved. Meanwhile, after the incorporation of TDA, the total heat release and total smoke production of the EP/TDA-5 sample obviously reduced by 28.9 and 27.7% in the cone calorimeter test, respectively. Flame-retardant performances and flame-retardant mechanisms were further analyzed by scanning electron microscopy, FTIR, energy-dispersive spectrometry, and pyrolysis gas chromatography/mass spectrometry. The results reveal that the synergistic effect of phosphorus, nitrogen, and silicon plays an excellent flame-retardant role in both gaseous and condensed phases. In addition, the mechanical and dynamic mechanical properties of cured EP thermosets are well maintained rather than destroyed. All the results demonstrate that TDA endows epoxy resin with excellent flame retardancy and possesses great promise in the industrial field.