Introduction
Flame retardant adhesives based on bromine or chlorine have historically been used to provide adhesives with a degree of fire resistance. They have enjoyed long commercial use because of their ability to provide flame retardancy, cost performance, and compatibility with adhesive resins so as not to degrade other performance properties. However, halogen containing adhesives are feared to have a possibility of generating toxic substances such as dioxins when they are burned. As a result, significant efforts in recent years has focused on the development and use of non-halogen flame retardants.
Adhesives formulators are being attacked from two fronts on this issue. One front is the end-use sectors (e.g., transportation, building, construction) where new statutory regulations place specific burdens on designers regarding fire-related performance of their structures. The second front is the environmentalists who are developing regulations regarding toxic substances both within the adhesive and that may be emitted from the adhesive in the occasion of a fire.
This article will examine the external events that are leading to the development of new fire resistant materials and the types of solutions that are seeing commercial acceptance. Articles regarding the adhesive¡¯s performance in case of a fire , the standards and regulations that are being imposed, and the development of fire resistance test methods have been explored in previous SpecialChem articles. |