Understanding Flame Retardants
Why they matter, how they work, and what the future holds.
Why Flame
Retardants?
Flame retardants stop materials from catching fire or at least slow the spread of flames.
Where Are
They Used?
Common in household, electronic items, cushions, cables, cars, insulation, etc.
How Do
They Work?
Flame retardants fight fire using four strategies.
Absorbing heat through an endothermic
reactions, thereby cooling the burning material.
Releasing non-flammable gases that dilute oxygen and flammable vapors, smothering the fire.
Neutralizing flame-sustaining radicals, interrupting
the chemical fire chain by flame poisoning.
Forming a protective char layer that blocks
heat and inhibits pyrolysis gas release.
What’s the
Problem?
Some flame retardants are toxic and persist in nature as permanent pollutants. They can pose serious health and environmental risks.
The
PLANETS
Solution
PLANETS is developing new flame retardants using SSbD (Safe and Sustainable by Design) principles.
- Effective
- Sustainable
- Safe