Journal of Industrial Textiles

To develop durable flame, water and oil repellent fabrics, a study was undertaken using fluorochemicals as water and oil repellent agents on inherently flame-retardant fibers. The treated samples were leached for 30 and 60 min to evaluate durability of the chemical treatment. The fluorochemical treatments produced durable fabrics that were simultaneously flame retardant and water and oil repellent. The effect of fluorochemicals on the thermal chemistry of inherently flame-retardant fibers was studied using thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). The studies showed that the fluorochemical treatment does not affect the thermal chemistry of the flame-retardant fibers.

The use of flammable materials in house interiors, building or public transport constitutes a potential hazard for people in case of fire. The need for consumer protection, coupled with the new regulations and environmental concerns, increases the interest in flame-retardant treatments, in particular intumescent systems. The aim of this work was to develop innovative synthetic textiles, bonded with flame-retardant back-coating at laboratory scale, and to develop a methodology to study the fire behavior of these kinds of materials. Our work points out the differences in fire behavior of polypropylene textile structures in comparison with plastics. Fire behavior was validated on cone calorimeter equipment. As a consequence, this study shows how after reducing the rate of heat release, which is one of the parameters of the new regulations, polypropylene fibers can be used for flame retardant materials.

European priority-chemical risk assessments of flame retardants, UK work on associated ecotoxicological risks, the findings of the US NAS/NRC subcommittee report on the risk assessment of flame retardant chemicals and the related work of the US CPSC, have revealed a distinct absence of good quality peer reviewed information on the release of flame retardants from common consumer product materials. Such lack of information for human exposure by dermal, oral and inhalation routes and for environmental ecotoxicology assessments can have a significant impact on the outcome of current and future prospective approaches to risk assessment. This is illustrated for some current risk assessment methodologies. Flame retardant release and exposure measurements may obviate the need for more expensive and time-consuming toxicology work to arrive at risk assessments that contain a high degree of certainty. We discuss flame retardant release and exposure research needs and describe recently initiated work to establish release behaviour and the effects of ageing and wear on the release and exposure of flame retardants used in upholstered furniture materials. The practical consequences of having a better understanding of the release and exposure of flame retardants is also discussed.

Increasing demand for specialized textiles, especially high performance technical products, can be observed world-wide. Therefore, intensive research work concentrates on the development of new methods for specific modification or functionalization of synthetic fiber surfaces to achieve improved or even new properties. Two of these methods are described in detail. One is an innovative method for textile finishing that involves modification of fiber material with organically modified ceramics, which combine advantages of organic polymers and ceramics. These materials are part of the nanotechnology. Another approach to create specific surface properties involves photochemical and/or physical modifications using excimer-UV-light sources. These special light sources emit monochromatic radiation that allows well-defined modification processes.