HEAT RESISTANT POLYMERS (FOR FIRE

SUITS)Timothy AdamsSteven Burns

Tony CartwrightMichelle Yu

Heat Resistant Polymers

Nomex (poly(m-phenylene teraphthalate))

Celazole (Polybenzimidazole) (PBI) Kevlar (poly(p-phenylene teraphthalate)) Zylon (Polybenzobisoxazole) (PBO) Kapton (poly(4,4'-oxydiphenylene-

pyromellitimide)) Polyimides Polysulfones Polyaryletheretherketone (PEEK) Phosphazenes

Trade Names

Heat-Resistant Polymer Applications

Firefighting Suits Space Suits Flight Suits Electrical Insulation Heat shields Aircraft Fuselage Welding Protection Sealing Tapes Bushings, Seals Bearings Hot Gas Filtration

DuPont, 2007

Nasa 2008

Firefighting Suits

www.army.gov , 2009

Major Time Periods Pre 1800: Limited protective equipment. First leather fire

helmets invented. Mid 1800s: Use of wool for some protective clothing. First

traditional fire helmet. Post WWI: Use of rubber coats and boots, and use of “Bunker

Pants”. Post WWII: First NFPA standards set. Evolution of the modern

turnout gear.

Fire Suit History

www.fireengineering.com, 2009

NFPA Requirements

Globe Firefighter Suits, 2009

Requirements II

Globe Firefighter Suits, 2009

PBI vs Nome

x

Polybenzimidazole (PBI)

Direct Industry, 2009

Wale Apparatus Co., 2009

Performance Products, 2009

Chemistry

Poly(2,2’-(m-phenylene)-5,5’bibenzimidazole

Performance Products, 2009

Synthesis

Chung, Tai-Shung. 1997

Common Monomers : Tetra-amines (bis-o-diamines) and dicarboxylatesR1 and R: Either aromatic or aliphatic functional groups, such as ether, ketone, sulfone, siloxane, silane, phosphine oxide

Properties Extreme Flame

Resistance Excellent High

Energy Radiation Resistance

High Chemical and Thermal Stabilities at High Temperatures

High Tg Highest Compressive

Strength Heat Deflection

Temp. = 435 deg. C @ 264 psi

Good Mechanical Strength

NASA, 2008

Chung, Tai-Shung. 1997

Polymerization and Processing

PBI Fiber Processing Methods

1. Dry Spinning2. Wet Spinning3. Dry-jet Wet

Spinning

Chung, Tai-Shung. 1997

Nomex

China Suppliers, 2009

Alibaba, 2009

Storyboardtoys.blogspot.com, 2009

Sariwarnamas, 2009

Synthetic Methods in Step-growth Polymers, 2003

Wet spin DMAc Ionic Liquids

Dry spin

Christian Kubel et al., 2001Tingting Zhao, 2007

Properties

Flame resistance Self extinguishing LOI: 28 No melt drip

Chemical resistance

Solvents & biohazards

Long duration Low shrinkage Water Absorption

~9%Gang Sun, 2004

www.madmax-jp.com , 2009

The Breakdown

Advantages: Extreme Fire Resistance

No smoke or off-gases at 1000F

Retains properties up to 760 degrees Celsius and all the way down to -200 degrees Celsius

High Chemical Resistance

Disadvantages: Higher Water Absorption

15-18% water absorption Cost - More than $70/lb

(Smith , 1999)

PBI NomexVS

Advantages: Extreme Fire Resistance

Self extinguishing No drip or melt

High Chemical Resistance

Low Water Absorption ~9%

Cost - $14/kg (Volokhina, 1984)

Disadvantages: UV degradation

In Conclusion…

NOMEX

New advances in Nomex

Nomex on Demand Fibers swell when

exposed to heat At 250F, the polymer

expands to about 5x the thickness

Provides better protection when needed and increased mobility when thermal protection is not needed

Textileworld.com, 2009

DuPont, 2009

Thank you!

Questions?

Acknowledgements: Cleveland Heights

Fire Departmentwww.clevelandheightsfire.com, 2009