A novel stiffener skeleton strategy in catalytic carbonization system with enhanced carbon layer structure and improved fire retardancy

Abstract Catalyzing carbonization of polymer itself to form a protective carbonaceous layer has been proven to be an effective way to improve polymer's flame retardancy, but there is still a great challenge to achieve synchronous enhancement in traditional test standards (such as LOI and UL-94 testing). In this study, a stiffener skeleton strategy combined with catalyzing carbonization was proposed to improve the flame retardancy of polycarbonate (PC). The synergistic effect of nanosized carbon black (CB)/Ni2O3 on carbon yield and combustion properties of PC were investigated. An improvement with 31.4% in LOI, V0 in UL-94, and 50% reduction for PHRR in cone calorimeter test was achieved. According to char morphology and structure analysis, the flame retardancy mechanism was attributed to the enhanced barrier effect of carbon layer with interconnected structure and self-supporting capacity, which was promoted by the formation of carbon skeleton framework from PC and the catalytic carbonization from combined catalysts.