Flame-retardant ethylene vinyl acetate composite materials by combining additions of aluminum hydroxide and melamine cyanurate: Preparation and characteristic evaluations

Abstract

There is a great interest to develop efficient fire-resistant materials. While ethylene vinyl acetate (EVA) is a widely used material, it suffers from the problem of relatively high inflammability which seriously hinders its usage as the product material with a high flame-retardant requirement. In this study, a strategy to combine aluminum hydroxide (ATH) and melamine cyanurate (MCA) with EVA was proposed to prepare the EVA composite materials with high flame resistance. It was found that slight addition of MCA could increase the lubricity of EVA and raise the compatibility between EVA and ATH. Thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) indicated that the thermal stability of EVA was improved via adding MCA, which was evidenced by the delayed thermal decomposition temperature. Moreover, the combustion results indicated that the EVA composite with 60 parts per hundred (phr) ATH and 40 phr MCA addition (EVA-60-40) displayed the optimal isolated layer favoring the fire resistance. In addition, the highest limiting oxygen index (LOI) value (27.5%) and V-0 rating of the EVA-60-40 as compared with other components indicated its incombustible nature. These results suggested the synergetic effect of ATH and MCA additions, the high efficiency of the proposed strategy and the wide application prospect of the produced EVA-ATH-MCA composite materials.