Combustion Behavior and Thermal Degradation Properties of Wood Impregnated with Intumescent Biomass Flame Retardants: Phytic Acid, Hydrolyzed Collagen, and Glycerol

Wood is a natural renewable material with a porous structure widely used in construction, furniture, and interior decoration, yet its intrinsic flammability poses safety risks. Therefore, environmentally friendly flame retardants have received increasing attention. In this study, a water-soluble flame retardant, consisting of bio-resourced phytic acid (PA), hydrolyzed collagen (HC), and glycerol (GL), was used to improve the flame retardancy of wood (PHG/wood) through full cell vacuum-pressure impregnation. Morphology and Fourier transform infrared analysis results show that the flame retardant impregnated the wood and adhered evenly to the wood vessels. A PA/HC/GL ratio of 3:1:1 (concentration of the flame retardant solution = 30%) maximized the limiting oxygen index (LOI, 41%) and weight gain (51.32%) for PHG-C30/wood. The flame retardant formed an expansive layer after heating, and the treated wood showed an improved combustion safety performance such that the fire performance index and residue of PHG-C30/wood were 75 and 126.8% higher compared with that of untreated wood, respectively. The peak and total heat release were also significantly reduced by 54.7 and 47.7%, respectively. The PHG/wood exhibited good carbon-forming performance and a high degree of graphitization after combustion. The dense carbon layer provides condensed phase protective action, and non-combustible volatile gases, such as H2O, CO2, and NH3, are released simultaneously to dilute the fuel load in the gas phase. Thus, PHG is shown to be an effective flame retardant for wood.

Automated summary

This study utilized a water-soluble flame retardant to enhance the flame retardancy of wood, improving combustion safety performance and maximizing the limiting oxygen index and weight gain. The flame retardant formed an expansive layer after heating, showing improved fire performance and residue compared to untreated wood. The PHG/wood exhibited good carbon-forming performance and a high degree of graphitization after combustion, confirming the effectiveness of PHG as a flame retardant for wood.