Fully bio-based coating for nylon/cotton blend fabrics with improved flame retardancy and smoke suppression properties

Abstract

With the increasing requirements of eco-friendly flame retardant fabrics, fully bio-based flame retardants have attracted more and more attention. In this work, a fully bio-based flame retardant coating (PALC) was prepared by combining phytic acid and L-cysteine through ion exchange, which was then applied to nylon-cotton blends. The water contact angle (WCA) test indicates that the hydrophilicity of treated blend fabrics is significantly increased. The treated blend fabrics also exhibited excellent antibacterial property against E. coli and S. aureus. Besides, the limiting oxygen index (LOI) value of the treated blend fabric is increased to 27.2 % from 19.3 %, and the damage length is reduced to 5 cm from 30 cm. The analysis of cone calorimetry test results demonstrates that the total heat release (THR) and peak heat release rate (pHRR) values of the treated blend fabric are reduced by 62.6 % and 65.4 %, respectively, relative to CO/NY. At the same time, the PALC coating can also endow the blend fabric with smoke suppression properties. The total smoke production (TSP) and smoke production rate (SPR) values are reduced by 64.5 % and 67.6 %, respectively. The combination analysis of TG-FTIR, SEM and XPS proves that the phytic acid promotes the dense char layers forming, and L-cysteine generates non-combustible gases. This work provides an eco-friendly and organic solvent-free method for producing flame-retardant nylon/cotton blends with reduced smoke release.