Fire retardation of polystyrene/clay nanocomposites: Initial study on synergy effect

Abstract

Polystyrene and its copolymers are a group of polymers with a wide field of applications. A major disadvantage among many of them is their high flammability. Previous research showed that one of the possibilities to reduce this negative property is to synergize conventional fire retardants and other types of fillers. Recent research showed that there is a synergy effect in clay-containing composites. This initial study is focused not only on the evaluation of synergy with modified or unmodified layered clay nanofillers but also on wide variety of other fillers such as clay nanotubes, melamine or magnesium hydroxide. All results are compared with pure polymer and polymer with conventional fire retardants. The samples were prepared in laboratory using Brabender Plasti-Corder kneader and analyzed by X-ray diffraction. Flammability was the most important property evaluated, and mechanical properties were also observed. © 2012 The Author(s)