Thermal Degradation and Environmental Responsibility of Flame Retardant Materials

Abstract

Last year, about 2,000 lives were claimed by fires, and like other developed countries, this number has gradually been increasing in the 1990s. Both the government and industry have been forced to take measures to reduce fires. Many sophisticated technologies to prevent fires have been developed and put to use, but no definitive and effective method that fits the requirements of flame retardancy and also overcomes environmental problems has been found. Several representative methods for flame retardancy will be summarized in this paper, and will be followed by the description of thermal degradation processes and the analysis of combustion products from plastics with mass spectroscopy that will take a leading part in the future.