Effects of OMMT on the aging behaviors of halogen-antimony flame-retarded LGFPA6 composites: Flammability and thermal degradation kinetics

After a long-term thermo-oxidative exposure, compared to the long-glass-fiber reinforced polyamide 6 composite containing halogen-antimony flame retardants (FR/LGFPA6), substitution of a certain content of flame retardants with organo-modified montmorillonite (OMMT) was found to positively affect the FR/LGFPA6 composite in some cases (i.e. flammability and thermal degradation kinetics). The aged OMMT/FR/LGFPA6 composite not only was less flammable but also behaved better in the formation of char residues. All the calculated apparent activation energy obtained by the methods of Friedman, Flynn-Wall-Ozawa and Coats-Redfern in a dynamic measurement showed an obvious increase for the OMMT/FR/LGFPA6 composite after aging, a theoretical evidence for its improved flame retardancy.