Synergistic Effects of Two-Dimensional MXene and Ammonium Polyphosphate on Enhancing the Fire Safety of Polyvinyl Alcohol Composite Aerogels

Abstract

Fire and smoke suppressions of polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) aerogels are urgently required due to the serious fire hazard they present. MXene, a 2D transition-metal carbide with many excellent properties, is considered a promising synergist for providing excellent flame retardant performance. PVA/ammonium polyphosphate (APP)/transition metal carbide (MXene) composite aerogels were prepared via the freeze-drying method to enhance the flame retardancy. Thermogravimetric analysis, limiting oxygen index, vertical burning, and cone calorimeter tests were executed to investigate the thermal stability and flame retardancy of PVA/APP/MXene (PAM) composite aerogels. The results demonstrated that MXene boosted the flame retardancy of PVA-APP, and that PAM-2 (with 2.0 wt% MXene loading) passed the V-0 rating, and reached a maximum LOI value of 42%; Moreover, MXene endowed the PVA-APP system with excellent fire and smoke suppression performance, as the the peak heat release rate and peak smoke production rate were significantly reduced by 55% and 74% at 1.0 wt% MXene loading. The flame retardant mechanism was systematically studied, MXene facilitated the generation of compact intumescent residues via ita catalyst effects, thus further restraining the release of heat and smoke. This work provides a simple route to improve the flame retardancy of PVA aerogels via the synergistic effect of MXene and APP.

Mechanotribological Aspects of MXene‐Reinforced Nanocomposites

“…[28] They have numerous applications in a variety of fields ranging from energy materials, lubricating additives, nanocomposites, etc. owing to excellent properties; [5,8,13,[28][29][30][31][32][33] MXene-based composites have already been used in many fields such as electromagnetic shielding, [32,34,35] electronics, [36] electrical and thermal conductors, [33,37,38] environmental remediations, [39] supercapacitors, [40,41] fire safety materials, [42] photocatalysts, [43,44] sensors, [10,45] batteries, [46] self-healing composites, [40,47] water purifications, [44,48] antibacterial materials, [49] actuators, [50] and other advanced materials and structures. [8,29,51] For instance, Kang et al [36] developed Ti 3 C 2 MXene reinforced epoxy nanocomposite to enhance thermal and electrical performance wherein they found that the addition of 1.0 wt% few-layer Ti 3 C 2 MXene increases the thermal conductivity to 0.587 W m −1 K −1 , attaining 141.3% improvement compared with that of unreinforced sample.…”

The Toxicological Testing and Thermal Decomposition of Drive and Transport Belts Made of Thermoplastic Multilayer Polymer Materials

“…Numerous studies have been conducted to increase fire resistance and the effects of combustion and thermal decomposition of polymer composites [ 39 , 40 , 41 , 42 ]. Tang et al [ 39 ] carried out testing on the properties of pure polypropylene (PP) and basalt fiber-reinforced polypropylene (BFRPP) during combustion.…”

“…Barczewski et al [ 40 ] indicated that basalt powder can be used as a filler in order to increase the thermal stability and reduce the flammability of polypropylene composites. Sheng et al [ 41 ] described the method of suppressing fire and smoke during the combustion of polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) through the synergistic effect of ammonium polyphosphate (APP), and transition metal carbide (MXene) composite aerogels were prepared via the freeze-drying method. Tests of such materials are usually carried out employing thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and pyrolysis combustion flow calorimetry (PCFC).…”

“…Tests of such materials are usually carried out employing thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and pyrolysis combustion flow calorimetry (PCFC). Arrhenius parameters and the associated calorimetric quantities, i.e., heat release rates, temperature to the peak heat release rate, heats of combustion, heat release capacities, and char yields, were also evaluated [ 41 ].…”

“…Nowadays, fiber-reinforced composites are commonly used materials for tension belts. Such material not only provides a high strength-to-weight ratio but also exhibits unique properties such as high strength, stiffness, attenuation property, flexural strength, and resistance to corrosion, wear, impact, and fire [ 40 , 41 , 42 ]. And, more particularly, to an aramid fiber (PA) cord for use as a load carrying component in a power transmission belt and having excellent resistance to flexing fatigue, deformation, and fraying [ 42 ].…”