Silica precursor as synergist for cotton flame retardancy

Purpose – The cotton and its blends is the most commonly used textile material in the design and production of protective clothing. However, as the cellulose textiles are the most flammable materials it is necessary to improve its flame retardancy. The government regulations have been the driving force for developing durable flame retardants finishes for textile, to improve its performance and to reduce the negative impact on the environment. The paper aims to discuss these issues. Design/methodology/approach – This paper investigates the effect of silica precursor (tetraethoxysilane – TEOS) added in bath with conventional flame retardant urea/ammonium polyphosphate in full and half concentration for achieving environmental-friendly cotton flame retardancy. Silica precursors have excellent thermal stability and high heat resistance with very limited release of toxic gases during the thermal decomposition. Synergistic effect between urea/ammonium polyphosphate and TEOS has been calculated. Thermal properties of treated cotton fabrics were determined by limiting oxygen index (LOI), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and microscale combustion calorimeter (MCC). Findings – TEOS, significantly improves the flame retardancy of cotton when added in the bath with conventional flame retardants urea/ammonium polyphosphate by increasing the LOI values and other thermal properties as increasing char residue measured by TGA and higher heat release rate measured by MCC. Originality/value – This paper represent a good synergistic effect between urea/ammonium polyphosphate and TEOS. This phenomena is evident in better thermal properties when TEOS was added in the bath with conventional flame retardant especially for half concentration of urea/ammonium polyphosphate.