Intumescent flame retardant properties of graft copolymerized vinyl monomers onto cotton fabric

17th World Textile Conference AUTEX 2017 - Shaping the Future of Textiles

Rosace, G.^1,3 ; Colleoni, C.^1 ; Trovato, V.^1 ; Iacono, G.^2 ; Malucelli, G.^2

University of Bergamo, Department of Engineering and Applied Sciences, Viale Marconi 5, Dalmine (Bg)

24044, Italy^1

Politecnico di Torino, Department of Applied Science and Technology, Viale T. Michel 5, Alessandria

15121, Italy^2

Local Unit INSTM-Consorzio Interuniversitario Nazionale per la Scienza e la Tecnologia Dei Materiali, Firenze, Italy^3

关键词: Cellulose polymers;    Cross-linking degree;    Intumescent flame retardant;    Laundering cycles;    Potassium persulfate;    Protective action;    Self-extinguishing;    Vinylphosphonic acids;   

Others  :  https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/1757-899X/254/12/122009/pdf
DOI  :  10.1088/1757-899X/254/12/122009

来源: IOP

【 摘 要 】

In this paper, an intumescent flame retardant treatment, obtained by a combination of vinylphosphonic acid (VPA) and methacrylamide (MAA), was applied to cotton fabrics. In order to improve the cross-linking degree onto cellulose polymers, potassium persulfate was used as initiator of a radical polymerization technique. The application on cotton was carried out by padding, followed by drying and a curing treatment. The treated samples were characterized by SEM, TGA and FTIR-ATR analyses and tested in terms of flammability and washing fastness. The thermal and fire behavior of the treated fabrics was thoroughly investigated. The results clearly showed that the VPA/MAA coating was able to exert a protective action, giving rise to the formation of a stable char on the surface of textile fibers upon heating, hence improving the flame retardant performance of cotton. Horizontal flame spread tests confirmed that the coated fabrics achieved self-extinction, and the residues well preserved the original weave structure and fiber morphology; at variance, the uncoated fabric left only ashes. A remarkable weight loss was observed only after the first washing cycle, then the samples did not show any significant weight loss, hence confirming the durability of the self-extinguishing treatment, even after five laundering cycles.