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Displaying 1 - 25 of 76

Effects of Aspect Ratio of Multi-Walled Carbon Nanotube on Flammability Properties of Polymer Nanocomposites

October 12, 2021
Author(s)
Bani Cipiriano, Takashi Kashiwagi, Srinivasa R. Raghavan, Ying Yang, E A. Grulke, Kazuya Yamammoto, John R. Shields, Jack F. Douglas
The effects of the aspect ratio of multi-walled carbon nanotube (MWNT) on viscoelastic properties and flammability properties of PS/MWNT nanocomposites are studied with two different MWNTs having average aspect ratios of 49 and 150. While no significant

Full-Scale Experiments to Demonstrate Flammability Risk of Residential Upholstered Furniture and Mitigation Using Barrier Fabric

December 11, 2020
Author(s)
Mauro Zammarano, Matthew S. Hoehler, John R. Shields, Andre L. Thompson, Ickchan Kim, Isaac T. Leventon, Matthew F. Bundy
In this work, we investigated fire growth in a furnished compartment intended to mimic a living room where a couch was the main fuel load. Three TB-117-2013 compliant and commercially available couches were procured. The couches were identical except for

Reduced-Scale Test to Assess the Effect of Fire Barriers on the Flaming Combustion of Cored Composites: an Upholstery-Material Case Study

September 4, 2020
Author(s)
Mauro Zammarano, John R. Shields, Isaac T. Leventon, Ickchan Kim, Shonali Nazare, Andre L. Thompson, Rick D. Davis, Artur A. Chernovsky, Matthew F. Bundy
In this work, we describe a reduced-scale test (“Cube” test), based on cone calorimetry, measuring the fire performance (heat release rate, propensity to pool-fire formation, etc.) of composite specimens including a fire barrier (FB) and a flammable core

Environmental Friendly Flame Resistant Coatings for Soft Furnishing

May 1, 2019
Author(s)
Yeon S. Kim, Yu-Chin Li, John R. Shields, Rick D. Davis
Pending flammability regulations and scrutinizing of the environment and health consequences of fire retardants is creating opportunities for novel and “greener” technologies to reduce the flammability of residential furniture. This presentation will

Assessing Fire-blocking Effectiveness of Barrier Fabrics in the Cone Calorimeter

April 29, 2019
Author(s)
Shonali Nazare, William M. Pitts, Mauro Zammarano, John R. Shields, Elizabeth Knowlton, Benito De Leon
Cone calorimetric experiments have been conducted on bare flexible polyurethane foam (FPUF) samples as well as FPUF covered with a variety of fire-blocking barrier fabrics (BFs) in order to characterize and rank BF effectiveness for improving the

A Novel Application of Silicone-Based Flame-Retardant Adhesive in Plywood

September 11, 2018
Author(s)
Mauro Zammarano, John R. Shields, Elizabeth D. Knowlton, Ickchan Kim, Matthew S. Hoehler
A silicone-based elastomer filled with vinyl-silane treated aluminum hydroxide was used as a flame- retardant adhesive for plywood, as a replacement for a conventional polyurethane-based adhesive. The shear strength and fire performance of such a silicone

Development of High Throughput Methods for Polymer Flammability Property Characterization

February 19, 2017
Author(s)
Jeffrey W. Gilman, Rick D. Davis, John R. Shields, D Wentz, L D. Brassell, A B. Morgan, R Lyon, J E. Zanetto
Recently we have developed several new high throughput (HT) methods to quantitatively evaluate the flammability of flame retarded (FR) polymers. The most recent results are due to the efforts of the High Throughput Methods for Materials Flammability

Effect of Carbon Nanofiber Network Formation on Flammability of Flexible Polyurethane Foams

February 19, 2017
Author(s)
Mauro Zammarano, Roland H. Kraemer, Richard H. Harris Jr., Thomas J. Ohlemiller, John R. Shields, Sameer Rahatekar, Jeffrey W. Gilman
Polyurethane flexible foams (PUFs) are used extensively as upholstery and bedding materials. Untreated PUFs are prone to rapid fire growth due to their low density and thermal conductivity. Furthermore, the low viscosity of the decomposition products

Flame Retardant Mechanism of a Polymer Clay Nanocomposite

February 19, 2017
Author(s)
Takashi Kashiwagi, John R. Shields, Richard H. Harris Jr., W H. Awad
The thermal and flammability properties of the polyamide 6/clay nanocomposites are measured to determine the flame retardant performance of the nanocomposites. The gasification process of the nanocomposite samples are observed and collected residues are

Flammability Properties of PMMA-Single Walled Carbon Nanotube Nanocomposites

February 19, 2017
Author(s)
Takashi Kashiwagi, F Du, K Winey, K M. Groth, John R. Shields, Richard H. Harris Jr., Jack F. Douglas
Flammability properties of PMMA/SWNT nanocomposites were measured. The addition of SWNT significantly reduces mass loss rate of PMMA even for the contents less than a 1 % mass fraction. The dispersion of tubes affects flammability properties.

High Throughput Methods for Rapidly Developing Additive Filled Polymers

February 19, 2017
Author(s)
Rick D. Davis, Jeffrey W. Gilman, Marc R. Nyden, John R. Shields, Richard H. Harris Jr., W Demory
The high throughput mindset has been our approach to rapidly synthesize, characterize, and analyze additive filled polymers. For example, rather than taking a week to extrude polystyrene strands with 0% to 10% integer amounts of organically modified clay

Ignition of Mulch by Firebrands in Wildland/Urban Interface (WUI) Fires

February 19, 2017
Author(s)
Samuel Manzello, John R. Shields, Thomas Cleary, Jiann C. Yang
Firebrands or embers are produced as trees and structures burn in wildland/urban interface (WUI) fires. Hot firebrands ultimately come to rest and may ignite fuels far removed from the fire, resulting in fire spread. It is believed that firebrand showers

Epoxy Composites Using Wood Pulp Components as Fillers

November 30, 2016
Author(s)
Douglas M. Fox, Noy Kaufman, Jeremiah W. Woodcock, Jeffrey W. Gilman, John R. Shields, Rick D. Davis, Szabolcs Matko, Mauro Zammarano, Chelsea S. Davis
The components of wood, especially lignin and cellulose, have great potential for improving the properties of polymer composites. In this chapter, we discuss some of the latest developments from our lab on incorporating wood based materials into epoxy

Smoldering and Flame Resistant Textiles via Conformal Barrier Formation

November 2, 2016
Author(s)
Mauro Zammarano, Shonali Nazare, John R. Shields, Kathleen M. Hoffman, Rick D. Davis
A durable and flexible silicone-based backcoating (halogen and formaldehyde free) is applied to the backside of an otherwise smoldering-prone and flammable fabric. When exposed to fire, cyclic siloxanes (produced by thermal decomposition of the backcoating

Assessing the Thermal Protective Performance of Fire Blocking Barrier Fabrics for Residential Upholstered Furniture: Report to Consumer Product Safety Commission for Interagency Agreement CPSC-I-13-0022

September 17, 2015
Author(s)
Shonali Nazare, John R. Shields, Szabolcs Matko, Rick D. Davis
Fire behavior of five barrier fabrics has been evaluated both, as an individual component and as a part of composite samples, using different test methods. The quantitative component test methods selected to characterize fire behavior of barrier fabrics