Flame retardant and mechanical properties of natural fibre–PP composites containing magnesium hydroxide

The application of ammonium polyphosphate (APP) in different types of commodity thermoplastic composites (polyethylene, polypropylene (PP), polystyrene (PS), poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) and poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET)) have been discussed in terms of mechanical properties, morphologies and thermal properties. In addition, engineering thermoplastics such as acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene (ABS), polyamides and poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVOH) and their composites added with APP and other additives were analyzed as well. It was suggested that improvement of mechanical properties and morphologies of the thermoplastic composites could be made possible with appropriate amount of APP and other additives such as montmorillonite (MMT), pentaerythritol (PER) and different types of layered double hydroxide (LDH). Furthermore, thermal properties such as limiting oxygen index (LOI) values together with cone calorimetry and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) performance could be enhanced through optimum combination of APP, PER and melamine which functions as intumescent flame retardant (IFR).

A review of application of ammonium polyphosphate as intumescent flame retardant in thermoplastic composites

This critical review focuses on the property analysis of graphene and graphene nanocomposites (GNCs) and their demonstrated superior performances in energy storage and conversion, electrochemical- and bio-sensing, environmental remediation and flame retardant application and atomic thickness membrane separation. The performances of graphene and GNCs are strongly dependent on their chemical component, synthetic method, nanoscale morphology, and assembling structure of the hybrids. The current progress in supercapacitor energy storage density, solar cell power conversion efficiency, thermoelectric energy conversion efficiency, electrochemical sensing capability, biosensor sensitivity, heavy metal adsorption capacity and efficiency, photocatalytic degradation rate of organic dye, flame retardant polymer nanocomposites, graphene and porous graphene membranes is discussed with detailed examples through extensive analysis of the literature.

An overview of the engineered graphene nanostructures and nanocomposites

The synergistic effect between a char forming agent (CFA) and microencapsulated ammonium polyphosphate (MAPP) on the thermal and flame retardancy of polypropylene (PP) are investigated by limiting oxygen index (LOI), UL-94 test, cone calorimetry, thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), scanning electron micrograph (SEM), and water resistance test. The results of cone calorimetry show that heat release rate peak (PHRR), total heat release (THR), and the mass loss of PP with 30 wt% intumescent flame retardant (IFR, CFA/MAPP = 1:2) decreases remarkably compared with that of pure PP. The HRR, THR, and mass loss decrease, respectively from 1140 to 100 kW/m2, from 96 to 16.8 MJ/m2, and from 100 to 40%. The PP composite with CFA/MAPP = 1:2 has the best water resistance, and it can still obtain a UL-94 V-0 rating after 168 hr soaking in water. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Synergistic effect between a char forming agent (CFA) and microencapsulated ammonium polyphosphate on the thermal and flame retardant properties of polypropylene

The mechanical properties, flame retardancy, thermal degradation and foaming properties of wood–fiber/PP composites have been investigated. Ammonium polyphosphate (APP) and silica were used as flame retardants. The limiting oxygen index (LOI), thermal gravimetric analysis (TGA) and cone colorimeter (CONE) were employed for the study of fire retardance. At the same time, wood–fiber/PP composite foams were produced with the batch foaming technique using CO 2 as blowing agent. The effects of APP and silica content, pressure and temperature on the final cell structure were investigated. According to LOI, TGA and cone calorimeter results obtained from the experiments, APP and silica are effective flame retardants for wood–fiber/PP composites, and silica was shown to have a flame retardant synergistic effect with APP in wood–fiber/PP composite. The mechanical properties of the composites decreased with addition of flame retardants, except for the tensile strength of small amount of silica filled wood–fiber/PP composite. The results also revealed that the cellular morphologies of the foamed wood–fiber/PP composites are a strong function of the content of APP and silica as well as foaming conditions.

Effect of flame retardants on mechanical properties, flammability and foamability of PP/wood–fiber composites

The high-entropy concept provides extended, optimized space of a composition, resulting in unusual transport phenomena and excellent thermoelectric performance. By tuning electron and phonon localization, we enhanced the figure-of-merit value to 2.7 at 750 kelvin in germanium telluride–based high-entropy materials and realized a high experimental conversion efficiency of 13.3% at a temperature difference of 506 kelvin with the fabricated segmented module. By increasing the entropy, the increased crystal symmetry delocalized the distribution of electrons in the distorted rhombohedral structure, resulting in band convergence and improved electrical properties. By contrast, the localized phonons from the entropy-induced disorder dampened the propagation of transverse phonons, which was the origin of the increased anharmonicity and largely depressed lattice thermal conductivity. We provide a paradigm for tuning electron and phonon localization by entropy manipulation, but we have also demonstrated a route for improving the performance of high-entropy thermoelectric materials. Description Disordered but efficient Thermoelectric materials, many having relative simple compositions, convert heat into electricity. However, Jiang et al. found that adding more cations into a germanium tellurium–based material stabilized a phase with excellent thermoelectric properties. This high-entropy material has low thermal conductivity due to the cation disordering but improved symmetry that helps maintain good electrical properties. The material was used in several devices that showed a high thermoelectric efficiency. —BG A high-entropy material is an outstanding thermoelectric with a combination of delocalized electrons and localized phonons.

High figure-of-merit and power generation in high-entropy GeTe-based thermoelectrics

The flammability properties of an intumescent fire retardant polypropylene added with magnesium hydroxide was discussed in this study. To evaluate the flammability of the material, limit oxygen index, smoke emission, tensile strength, and our exploitation dynamic flammability evaluation system, tests were assessed in experiments. The results showed that the intumescent flame retardant ammonium polyphosphate-filled polypropylene has superior flammability properties but higher carbon oxide (CO) concentration and smoke density. By adding some magnesium hydroxide additives in intumescent fire retarded polypropylene, the smoke density and CO concentration decrease; and the compound also has superior fire properties. It is concluded that intumescent system and magnesium hydroxide additives are effective on improving combustion properties for polypropylene. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 67:989–995, 1998

The dynamic flammability and toxicity of magnesium hydroxide filled intumescent fire retardant polypropylene

Treating hazardous waste Ni from the electroplating industry is mandated world-wide, is exceptionally expensive, and carries a very high CO2 footprint. Rather than regarding Ni as a disposable waste, the chemicals and petrochemicals industries could instead consider it a huge resource. In the work described herein, we present a strategy for upcycling waste Ni from electroplating wastewater into a photothermal catalyst for converting CO2 to CO. Specifically, magnetic nanoparticles encapsulated in amine functionalized porous SiO2, is demonstrated to efficiently scavenge Ni from electroplating wastewater for utilization in photothermal CO2 catalysis. The core-shell catalyst architecture produces CO at a rate of 1.9 mol·gNi-1·h-1 (44.1 mmol·gcat-1·h-1), a selectivity close to 100%, and notable long-term stability. This strategy of upcycling metal waste into functional, catalytic materials offers a multi-pronged approach for clean and renewable energy technologies. 

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Grave-to-cradle upcycling of Ni from electroplating wastewater to photothermal CO2 catalysis

In the field of supramolecular chemistry, host-guest systems have been extensively explored to encapsulate a wide range of substrates, owing to emerging functionalities in nanoconfined space that cannot be achieved in dilute solutions. However, host-guest chemistry is still limited to encapsulation of small guests. Herein, we construct a water-soluble metallo-supramolecular hexagonal prism with a large hydrophobic cavity by anchoring multiple polyethylene glycol chains onto the building blocks. Then, assembled prisms are able to encapsulate quantum dots (QDs) with diameters of less than 5.0 nm. Furthermore, we find that the supramolecular cage around each QD strongly modifies the photophysics of the QD by universally increasing the rates of QD relaxation processes via ultrafast electron and vibrational energy transfer. Taken together, these efforts expand the scope of substrates in host-guest systems and provide a new approach to tune the optical properties of QDs.

Encapsulating Semiconductor Quantum Dots in Supramolecular Cages Enables Ultrafast Guest-Host Electron and Vibrational Energy Transfer.

Tungsten and molybdenum carbides have shown great potential in catalysis and superconductivity. However, the synthesis of ultrathin W/Mo carbides with a controlled dimension and unique structure is still difficult. Here, inspired by the host-guest assembly strategy with single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) as a transparent template, we reported the synthesis of ultrathin (0.8-2.0 nm) W2C and Mo2C nanowires confined in SWCNTs deriving from the encapsulated W/Mo polyoxometalate clusters. The atom-resolved electron microscope combined with spectroscopy and theoretical calculations revealed that the strong interaction between the highly carbophilic W/Mo and SWCNT resulted in the anisotropic growth of carbide nanowires along a specific crystal direction, accompanied by lattice strain and electron donation to the SWCNTs. The SWCNT template endowed carbides with resistance to H2O corrosion. Different from normal modification on the outer surface of SWCNTs, such M2C@SWCNTs (M = W, Mo) provided a delocalized and electron-enriched SWCNT surface to uniformly construct the negatively charged Pd catalyst, which was demonstrated to inhibit the formation of active PdHx hydride and thus achieve highly selective semihydrogenation of a series of alkynes. This work could provide a nondestructive way to design the electron-delocalized SWCNT surface and expand the methodology in synthesizing unusual 1D ultrathin carbophilic-metal nanowires (e.g., TaC, NbC, β-W) with precise control of the anisotropy in SWCNT arrays.

Wu-Kou Wang

Papers

High figure-of-merit and power generation in high-entropy GeTe-based thermoelectrics

The dynamic flammability and toxicity of magnesium hydroxide filled intumescent fire retardant polypropylene

Grave-to-cradle upcycling of Ni from electroplating wastewater to photothermal CO2 catalysis

Encapsulating Semiconductor Quantum Dots in Supramolecular Cages Enables Ultrafast Guest-Host Electron and Vibrational Energy Transfer.

Anisotropic Growth of One-Dimensional Carbides in Single-Walled Carbon Nanotubes with Strong Interaction for Catalysis.