Functionalizing chitosan-based film with highly sensitive fire response and commendable flame retardancy for intelligent fire-alarm system

Recently, the extensive use of combustible materials has amplified building fire damage, making it essential to incorporate fire-detection devices and flame-retardant materials in building. Herein, the chitosan/gelatin (CG) film and KH2PO4-modified CG (KCG) films were fabricated via an eco-friendly water evaporation method. Impressively, KCG films demonstrate swift response times: 0.5 s at 100 °C and 1.5 s under flame, facilitating prompt alarms during fire incidents. Compared to CG, KCG achieve a 70.4% and 46.2% reduction in peak heat release rate and total heat release respectively. They also offer flexibility, transparency, repeated fire-warning efficacy and superior char formation. With these properties, KCG hold promise for innovative building fire safety solutions like smart fire-alarm wallpaper. Besides, a tailored wireless-based fire-alarm system for KCG further decreases building fire damage. This work mitigates damages arising from building fires work, marking significant leap forward in the use of bio-based materials for fire prevention in architecture.