Investigation of the effect of some fire retardant chemicals and mineral materials used in surface coating on combustion performance of particleboard

The combustion resistance was investigated for dolomite, melamine (MEL), and ammonium polyphosphate used in the surface coating of particleboard. The surface coating materials consisted of a mixture of dolomite, melamine dust, ammonium polyphosphate, calcite, and water. The ratio of dolomite, melamine dust, and ammonium polyphosphate in the mixture was determined to be 10% based on the amount of calcite. The resulting mixture was applied to the surface of the particleboard at a thickness of 0.20 mm. Combustion tests were carried out according to ASTM E 69 standard. As a function of weight loss, the temperature values, amount of oxygen, amount of carbon dioxide, and nitrogen oxides of the test samples were determined. The results showed that the coating increased the combustion resistance of particleboard. Samples containing a 70% dolomite, 25% melamine dust, and 5% ammonium polyphosphate mixture or 100% dolomite produced the best results. The use of ammonium polyphosphate and dolomite positively affected combustion resistance.