Fire safety performance of 3D GFRP nanocomposite as a cladding material

Vertical fire spread along highly flammable claddings is a major safety issue for buildings. In this project, a potential new type of cladding material, 3D Glass Fibre Reinforced Polymer (3D GFRP) with improved thermal stability, and fire performance is developed. 3D GFRP nanocomposite samples were fabricated with different percentages of Sepiolite (Sep), Sepiolite-phosphate (SepP), Ammonium Polyphosphate (APP) flame retardant, and 3D glass fabrics. Synthesis of SepP, dispersion analysis of nanoparticles, and manufacturing process have been studied. The characterisation of materials was conducted using Scanning Electron Microscopy, Helium Ion Microscopy, Transmission Electron Microscopy, Thermogravimetric Analysis (TGA), and X-ray Diffraction Analysis. The thermal stability and fire behaviour of the 3D GFRP nanocomposite was studied via TGA and cone calorimeter test. TGA results showed that the optimum amount of additives that improved the thermal stability is 15% flame retardants. Results of cone calorimeter tests showed that different percentages of APP, Sep, and SepP decreased the peak of the heat release rate between 4% and 42%. Also, the effects of APP flame retardant in improving thermal and fire reaction properties were more than Sep and SepP. The test results of 3D GFRP nanocomposite also showed a prospective cladding that can benefit the construction industry in near future.

沿高度易燃的覆层垂直火势蔓延是建筑物的一个主要安全问题。在该项目中，开发了一种潜在的新型覆层材料——具有改善的热稳定性和防火性能的3D玻璃纤维增强聚合物（3D GFRP）。用不同百分比的海泡石（Sep）、海泡石 - 磷酸盐（SepP）、聚磷酸铵（APP）阻燃剂和3D玻璃纤维织物制备了3D GFRP纳米复合材料样品。研究了SepP的合成、纳米粒子的分散分析以及制造工艺。使用扫描电子显微镜、氦离子显微镜、透射电子显微镜、热重分析（TGA）和X射线衍射分析对材料进行了表征。通过TGA和锥形量热仪测试研究了3D GFRP纳米复合材料的热稳定性和防火性能。TGA结果表明，提高热稳定性的最佳添加剂用量为15%的阻燃剂。锥形量热仪测试结果表明，不同百分比的APP、Sep和SepP使热释放速率峰值降低了4%到42%。此外，APP阻燃剂在改善热和火反应性能方面的效果比Sep和SepP更显著。3D GFRP纳米复合材料的测试结果还表明，这是一种有前景的覆层材料，在不久的将来可能会使建筑行业受益。