Phytic acid based fire-retardant coating
A new study describes a novel optically transparent intumescent fire-retardant coating for the protection of combustible substrates with retention of the aesthetic appearance.
Phosphorus source in transparent intumescent fire-retardant (IFR) coatings plays a crucial role in determining its performance against protecting structures from fire. In a new work, naturally occurring environmentally benign phosphorus-rich phytic acid (PA) was used as a phosphorus source. Phosphate ester resin (PER) was synthesised using PA and hyperbranched polyol (HBP), which was then used as a precursor for preparing optically transparent IFR coatings. The prepared PER was further modified with hydrogenated bisphenol-A (DGEHBA)-based epoxy resin in different wt% (25–100).
Improved physicomechanical properties
The transparent IFR coatings were prepared by suitably mixing PER with hexamethoxy methyl melamine (HMMM) resin, and their performance was studied by measuring mechanical properties, optical transparency, thermal stability, fire retardancy, and smoke emission characteristics using various analytical instruments. The combination of PA and hyperbranched polyol improved the physicomechanical properties of PER-based transparent IFR coatings. The char formed after burning was also analysed using FESEM and UTM. Results revealed that phytic acid and HBP combination increased the height as well as strength of the char.
The study has been published in Journal of Coatings Technology and Research Volume 19, 2022.
