Investigations of Flame Retardant Properties of Beneficiated Huntite and Hydromagnesite Mineral Reinforced Polymer Composites

Authors: H. Yilmaz Atay

Abstract:

Huntite and hydromagnesite minerals have been used as additive materials to achieve incombustible material due to their inflammability property. Those fire retardants materials can help to extinguish in the early stages of fire. Thus dispersion of the flame can be prevented even if the fire started. Huntite and hydromagnesite minerals are known to impart fire-proofing of the polymer composites. However, the additives used in the applications led to deterioration in the mechanical properties due to the usage of high amount of the powders in the composites. In this study, by enriching huntite and hydromagnesite, it was aimed to use purer minerals to reinforce the polymer composites. Thus, predictably, using purer mineral will lead to use lower amount of mineral powders. By this manner, the minerals free from impurities by various processes were added to the polymer matrix with different loading level and grades. Different types of samples were manufactured, and subsequently characterized by XRD, SEM-EDS, XRF and flame-retardant tests. Tensile strength and elongation at break values were determined according to loading levels and grades. Besides, a comparison on the properties of the polymer composites produced by using of minerals with and without impurities was performed. As a result of the work, it was concluded that it is required to use beneficiated minerals to provide better fire-proofing behaviors in the polymer composites.

Keywords: Huntite, hdromagnesite, flame retardant, mechanical property, polymeric composites.

Digital Object Identifier (DOI): doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.1316255

References:

[1] M. Le Bras, S. Bourbigot, S. Duquesne, C. Jama, C. Wilkie. “Fire Retardancy of Polymers New Applications of Mineral Fillers”. Royal Society of Chemistry, London, 2005, pp. 223-238.
[2] D.M. Fox , J. Lee , M. Zammarano, D. Katsoulis, D. Eldred, L.M. Haverhals , P.C. Trulove, H.C. De Long, J.W. Gilman. “Char-forming behavior of nanofibrillated cellulose treated with glycidyl phenyl”. Carbohydrate Polymers, vol. 88, no. 3, pp. 847–858, 2012.
[3] http://greensciencepolicy.org/topics/health-environment/ (Accessed March 2017).
[4] O. Köklükaya, F. Carosio, J. C. Grunlan, L. Wågberg. “Flame-Retardant Paper from Wood Fibers Functionalized via Layer-by-Layer Assembly”. Journal of Materials Science, vol. 52, no. 13, pp. 7688-7697, 2017.
[5] L. Haurie, A.I. Fernandez, J.I. Velasco, J.M. Chimenos, J.M. Cuesta, F. Espiell. “Thermal stability and flame retardancy of LDPE/EVA blends filled with synthetic hydromagnesite /aluminium hydroxide /montmorillonite and magnesium hydroxide /aluminium hydroxide /montmorillonite mixtures”. Polym Degrad Stab, vol. 92, no. 6, pp.1082–7, 2007.
[6] G. Kirschbaum. “Minerals on fire, Flame retardants look to mineral solutions”, 3rd Minerals in Compoundings Conference, IMIL-AMI joint conference, 8-10 April 2001.
[7] H. Yilmaz Atay, “Utilising glass fibres to improve mechanical properties of mineral reinforced cable trays”. Ömer Halisdemir Üniversitesi Fen Bilimleri Dergisi, vol. 6, no. 1, pp. 265-274, 2017.
[8] M. Xanthos. “Functional fillers for plastic”. New York: Wiley-VCH, 2004.
[9] R.Schmidt, “In the line of fire, flame retardants overview”, Industrial Minerals, pp. 37-41, February 1999.
[10] H. Yılmaz Atay, E. Çelik, “Use of Turkish Huntite/Hydromagnesite Mineral in Plastic Materials as a Flame Retardant”. Polymer Composites, vol. 31, no. 10, pp. 1692–1700, 2010.
[11] A.F. Grand, C.A. Wilkie, “Fire Retardancy of Polymeric Materials”, New York, 2000, pp. 285–352.
[12] A. Basfar, H. J. Bae. “Influence of magnesium hydroxide (MH) and huntite hydromagnesite (HH) on mechanical properties of ethylene vinyl acetate (EVA) compounds cross-linked by dicumyl peroxide and ionizing radiation”. Journal of Fire Sciences. Vo.28, no.2, pp. 161-180 2009)
[13] A.B. Morgan, J.M. Cogen, R.S. Opperman, J.D. Harris. “The ffectiveness of magnesium carbonate-based flame retardants for poly(ethylene-co-vinyl acetate) and poly(ethylene-coethyl acrylate)”. Fire and Materials, vo. 31, no. 6, pp. 387 – 410, 2007.
[14] Y. Cao, L. Qian, Y. Chen, Z. Wang. “Synergistic flame-retardant effect of phosphaphenanthrene derivative and aluminum diethylphosphinate in glass fiber reinforced polyamide 66”. Journal of Applied Polymer Science. Vol. 134, no. 30, pp. 45126., 2017.
[15] R.N. Rothon, “General Principles Guiding Selection and Use of Particulate Materials”. Particulate-Filled Polymer Composites (2nd ed.). Shropshire-UK: Rapra, 2003.
[16] O. Kangal, A. Guney, “A new industrial mineral: huntite and its recovery”. MinerEn, vol. 19, no. 4, pp. 376–8, 2006.
[17] G. Kartal, “Denizli ve Isparta bölgelerinden alınan alev geciktirici huntit cevherinin zenginleştirme olanaklarının araştırılması”. Muğla Sıtkı Koçman Üniversitesi, Msc. Thesis, 2017.
[18] S.L. Brantley. “Surface area and porosity of primary silicate minerals”. Goldschmidt Conference Toulouse Mineralogical Magazine Volume 62A. 1998, pp. 229-230.
[19] Y. Cheng, M. Xia, F. Luo, N. Li, C. Guo, C. Wei. “Effect of surface modification on physical properties of silica aerogels derived from fly ashacidsludge”. Colloids and Surfaces A: Physicochem. Eng. Aspects. Vol. 490, pp. 200–206, 2016.
[20] S. Schwarz, S.R. Grano. Effect of particle hydrophobicity on particle and water on flotation froth, Colloids and Surfaces, vol. 256, pp 157-164, 2005.
[21] G.E. Christidis, “The concept of layer charge of smectites and its implications on important smectite-water properties”. 1. European Mineralogical Unionand the Mineralogical Society of Great Britain & Ireland, pp. 239–260. 2011.
[22] H. Yılmaz Atay, E. Çelik, Mechanical Properties of Flame Retardant Huntite and Hydromagnesite Reinforced Polymer Composites. Polymer-Plastics Technology and Engineering, vol. 52, no. 2, pp. 182-188, 2013.