Effect of fire retardant on flammability of acrylamide and 2-acrylamido-2-methylpropane sodium sulfonate copolymer composites

Poly[acrylamide-co-(2-acrylamido-2-methylpropane sodium sulfonate)] superabsorbents and superabsorbent composites (SAPCs) with zinc borate and/or melamine as fire retardants were synthesized. Water absorbencies decreased inversely to added amount of fire retardant. Thermal stability of SAPC/zinc borate increases with increasing zinc borate. Incorporating melamine improved thermal stability of the SAPC until 300 °C. Flammability analysis demonstrated that wood surface coated with SAP or SAPC emulsions extended time to ignition of the wood. Peak heat release rate and total heat release are smallest in specimens coated with SAPC/30% melamine. Wood coated with SAPC incorporating 20% zinc borate/10% melamine mixture gave the longest time to ignition at 4½ min.