The global Flame Retardant (FR) market in plastics continues to grow at an overall growth rate of around 3-5% a year. Transportation has always been an important market for flame retardants, but automotive lagged behind trains, planes and boats. And, “That’s Changing Now!”
As the market grows, so does the choice of flame retardants offerings with a strong trend towards sustainability.
Flame retardant market demand is currently being driven by increasing use in automotive electronics. Specifically, increased use in vehicle electronics and electric drive systems are on the rise as evidenced at the recent NAIAS (North American International Automotive Show) in Detroit.
Concurrently, plastic raw material and additive suppliers are seeking sustainable FR solutions across their customer bases. Ever more restrictive global FR regulations are driving interest in:
» Halogen-free systems in the form of polymeric, synergistic etc., and
» Novel FR technology solutions
Polymeric and high molecular weight flame retardants are increasingly replacing smaller molecule types that have a greater tendency to migrate out of product surfaces. There is also a strong underlying trend in many markets towards halogen free flame retardant products.
Be ready to beat the heat & let's have a look at some of the sustainable FR solutions to develop your next 'hot' formulation...
#1 Halogen-free Polymeric FRs by FRX Polymers
By offering
FRX Polymers of Chelmsford, MA, USA is successfully capitalizing on the ongoing trend away from halogenated flame retardants and low molecular weight types. Offering only halogen-free flame retardants is leading them to becoming a technological leader in polymeric types.
Stated simply, FRX Polymers has the only halogen-free polymeric solution on the market. The company offers both polymeric and reactive phosphonates, branded under the Nofia trade name. These flame retardant are used in a variety of resins such as:
» Polyesters
» Polycarbonate
» Thermoplastic and thermoset polyurethanes
» Epoxies
» Unsaturated polyesters,
» Polyureas
FRX is already selling Nofia for textiles and fibers, mostly in PET. It is now also providing the additives for applications in connectors for consumer electronics that are injection molded in thermoplastic polyesters, PET and to a lesser extent PBT.
Nofia is also being used in PET film in numerous applications including: Labelling and insulation, as well as polycarbonate for injection molding and for sheet and film. The Nofia flame retardant capability does not affect finished part transparency.
» Continue reading to explore more novel FR solutions for your formulations!