Abstract
AbstractIn current thermal protective clothing systems, maximizing the personal protection performance against fire and heat is in great demand. Additionally, minimizing the manufacturing cost by using low-cost materials is also a critical factor. In previous studies [1–3], a new type of low-cost inherently flame resistant (FR) non-drip Polyamide 6 (PA6) nanocomposite fiber was developed. In this paper, this FR non-drip PA6 fiber was tested in blends with two commercially available inherently FR fibers to form FR nonwoven fabrics. Different formulations of varying blending ratios were processed into nonwoven fabrics. The fiber morphology was observed by Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM). The fabric flammability and combustion properties were characterized using a Microscale Combustion Calorimeter (MCC), and a vertical flame tester, as well as Thermogravimetric Analysis (TGA). Tensile tests were conducted to characterize mechanical properties of these FR nonwoven fabrics. The water vapor permeability test was also performed to measure the wearability of the fabric. Results of several nonwoven blends were compared to find the one with optimum blend ratio which has the potential to be used as low-cost thermal protective fabric.
Highlights
In current thermal protective clothing systems, maximizing the personal protection performance against fire and heat is in great demand
All fabric blends show a clear sandwich structure: the core consists of pure PBI fibers whereas the surface layers are made of a mixture of LenzingFR and flame resistant (FR) Polyamide 6 (PA6) fibers
Experience shows that a typical neat nylon content in a FR fiber mix cannot exceed 10-12%, if one is to retain FR performance of the fiber
Summary
Abstract: In current thermal protective clothing systems, maximizing the personal protection performance against fire and heat is in great demand. In previous studies [1,2,3], a new type of low-cost inherently flame resistant (FR) non-drip Polyamide 6 (PA6) nanocomposite fiber was developed. In this paper, this FR non-drip PA6 fiber was tested in blends with two commercially available inherently FR fibers to form FR nonwoven fabrics. Different formulations of varying blending ratios were processed into nonwoven fabrics. Tensile tests were conducted to characterize mechanical properties of these FR nonwoven fabrics. Results of several nonwoven blends were compared to find the one with optimum blend ratio which has the potential to be used as low-cost thermal protective fabric
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