Empirical and numerical approach for optimisation of fire and mechanical performance in fire-retardant glass-reinforced epoxy composites

This paper involves the optimisation of fire, mechanical and fire/heat-induced degradation of mechanical properties of recently developed, novel, fibre-reinforced epoxy composite materials incorporating intumescent and cellulosic fibres as fire-retardant (FR) additives. A number of samples with different levels and relative ratios of two additives (FR cellulosic fibre and intumescent) has been prepared and tested for their fire performance using a cone calorimeter. Their mechanical performance in tensile and flexural modes have also been investigated. The experimental results have been used to construct surface plots and develop a numerical expression, which can relate to and predict levels and optimum ratios of additives present in the composite structure with their respective fire and mechanical behaviour.