Flame Retardant Hybrid System of Triphenyl Phosphate/Nanoclay in Evaluation of Flammability and Mechanical Properties of PC/ABS Compound

Nanoclay/triphenyl phosphate hybrid system was employed to examine the fire retardancy and mechanical properties of PC/ABS blends. Each of the polymers and their blends are widely used in the automotive, electrical andelectronic industries. Because most thermoplastics are easily combustible they need to be flame retarded to reduce the burning rate especially in the initial phase of a fire incident. The effect of nanoclay on the fire resistance of nanocomposites has been the subject of many research works. Nanosize clay particles improve the fire performance of composites with no significant effect on the ignition ability and extinguishing time. The improvement in flame retardancy of composites has been observed only when nano size species are present with conventional flame retardant additives. Such combinations may result in either a desired level of flame retardancy lower than the normal conventional level with matrix property retention. In this study, the samples were prepared via a direct melt blending process in a twin-screw extruder, and the processing temperature was set at 200-250oC. The effects of nanoclay/triphenyl phosphate hybrid system on the fire retardancy of PC/ABS blend were assessed by cone calorimetry, LOI (Limited Oxygen Index) and UL94 (Underwriters Laboratories), and tensile and impact properties of the composites were determined. The synergistic effect of nanoclay on flame retardancy of TPP has been observed from the fire test and the mechanical properties were improved.