Synergistic effect of graphene oxide and boron-nitrogen structure on flame retardancy of natural rubber/IFR composites

• Main Authors: Na Wang, Hao Liu, Jing Zhang, Miao Zhang, Qinghong Fang, Deyi Wang
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Elsevier 2020-08-01
• Series: Arabian Journal of Chemistry
• Subjects: Natural rubber; Flame retardant; Graphene oxide; Boron nitride
• Online Access: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1878535220301635

In this paper, GO-BN(graphene oxide grafted boron nitride) was synthesized from graphene oxide and boron nitride by silane coupling agent KH550. Furthermore, GO-BN and intumescent flame retardant (IFR) were added into natural rubber (NR) simultaneously to improve its flame retardancy. The structure of GO-BN was studied by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The analysis showed that GO-BN was successfully synthesized. The enhanced flame retardancy performance of flame retardant natural rubber (FRNR) was evaluated by limiting oxygen index (LOI) and UL-94 tests. Moreover, the combustion action of FRNR in fire was evaluated by cone calorimetry. Notably, the results showed that the sample with a GO-BN content of 12 phr showed the best flame retardancy performance. The heat release rate (HRR) and total heat release rate (THR) were remarkably decreased by 42.8% and 19.4%, respectively. Carbon residues were analyzed by infrared spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy, which showed that GO-BN and IFR had a synergistic catalytic effect. The formation of compact thermal stable carbon layer after combustion was the key to protect engineering materials from combustion.