Effect and mechanism study of mixed‐dimensional palygorskite clay on thermo‐stability, flame‐retardant and smoke‐suppression for PC/ABS composites

Abstract

This investigation investigates the effects and mechanisms of mixed‐dimensional palygorskite clay (MDPal) on the thermal stability, flame retardancy and smoke suppression of polycarbonate/acrylonitrile‐butadiene‐styrene (PC/ABS) composites. MDPal, comprising palygorskite and illite as its main mineral components, is characterized by its interwoven morphology and the presence of Fe ions in its octahedral framework, making it highly promising for enhancing the fire safety of flammable composites. The incorporation of MDPal at a 10 wt% dosage leads to significant improvements in the fire safety of PC/ABS composites, including the reduction of 29.8% in peak heat release rate, 9.9% in total heat release, 34.5% in peak smoke production rate and 15.7% in total smoke production compared to pure PC/ABS. Besides, there is a notable increase of 31.5% in tensile strength and 80.4% in elongation at break when the content is 5 wt%. This research offers valuable insights into the application of MDPal for enhancing the thermal stability, flame retardancy and smoke suppression of flammable polymers. MDPal plays dual functions in gas and condensed phases as a flame retardant. MDPal effectively reduces the heat and smoke release of PC/ABS composites. MDPal improves the thermo‐stability and tensile strength of PC/ABS composites. The flame‐retardant and smoke‐suppression mechanisms of PALC are elucidated.