Here is an interesting follow up to a previous entry on flame retardants. In the September 5th issue of Chemical and Engineering News an article was published on "greener flame retardants" http://pubs.acs.org/cen/news/89/i36/8936news8.html
Researchers have developed a two different types of coatings. In one case, researchers are using a thin coating of two polymers, poly(sodium phosphate) and poly(allyamine), in alternating layers on cotton. Material that was coated was shown only to char on exposure to flame, where uncoated material completely disintegrates.
The second coating is one made of clay, or more scientifically, montmorillonite, that is alternated with chitosan-a polysaccharide that makes up the exoskeleton of insects. This was then coated onto a polyurethane foam and the result of the flame test showed that the material only charred.
So what we see here are strides that are being made to find flame retardants that are as effective as halogenated flame retardants, but do not posses the environmental impact of halogenated flame retardants.
To quote Nobel laureate Richard Smalley: "Save the world, become a scientist."
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