The influence of α-FeOOH/rGO hybrids on the improved thermal stability and smoke suppression properties in polystyrene

• In this paper, α-FeOOH/rGO hybrids had been prepared by a facile hydrothermal method.
• The addition of the α-FeOOH/rGO hybrids showed a significant effect on the thermal stability and smoke suppression properties of PS composites.
• Graphene can be employed to improve the smoke suppression properties of polymer and further extended the application of graphene.

In this work, α-FeOOH/rGO hybrids were firstly prepared by a facile hydrothermal method. X-ray diffraction and transmission electron microscopy results indicated that α-FeOOH nanoparticles were dispersed uniformly on the surface of graphene nanosheets. Subsequently, the α-FeOOH/rGO hybrids were incorporated into polystyrene (PS) matrix for the improvement of the thermal stability and smoke suppression properties. It was found that the thermal stability of PS nanocomposite was obviously enhanced upon the introduction of 2.0 wt% α-FeOOH/rGO hybrids. Furthermore, the addition of α-FeOOH/rGO hybrids could improve the smoke suppression properties of PS nanocomposites, as evidenced by the dramatical reduction of carbon monoxide production rate, total smoke release and total smoke production. The total flammable gaseous products from the PS nanocomposites were decreased which further led to the inhibition of smoke. Such a significant improvement in thermal stability and smoke suppression properties was mainly attributed to the physical barrier effect of graphene nanosheets and the catalytic carbonization function of α-FeOOH nanoparticles.

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