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Molar group contributions
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Molar Group Contributions to Polymer Flammability
Richard N. Walters,1 Richard E. Lyon2
1Galaxy Scientific Corporation, 3120 Fire Road, Egg Harbor Township, New Jersey 082342Fire Safety Section AAR-440, Airport and Aircraft Safety Research and Development, William J. Hughes TechnicalCenter, Federal Aviation Administration, Atlantic City International Airport, New Jersey 08405
Received 8 March 2002; accepted 26 April 2002
ABSTRACT: The specific heat-release rate is the molecu-lar-level fire response of a burning polymer. The FederalAviation Administration obtains the specific heat-releaserate of milligram samples by analyzing the oxygen con-sumed by the complete combustion of the pyrolysis gasesduring a linear heating program. Dividing the specific heat-release rate (W/g) by the rate of the temperature rise (K/s)of a sample during a test gives a material fire parameter withthe units (J/g K) and significance of the heat (release) capac-ity. The heat-release capacity appears to be a true materialproperty that is rooted in the chemical structure of the
polymer and is calculable from additive molar group con-tributions. Hundreds of polymers of known chemical com-positions have been tested to date, providing over 40 differ-ent empirical molar group contributions to the heat-releasecapacity. Measured and calculated heat-release capacitiesfor over 80 polymers agree to within 15%, suggesting anew capability for predicting flammability from the polymerchemical structure. 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl PolymSci 87: 548563, 2003
Key words: plastics; calculations; thermal properties
INTRODUCTION
The additivity of molar group contributions to the phys-ical and chemical properties of polymers is the basis ofan empirical methodology for relating the chemicalstructure to the polymer properties.13 The early work inthis area4 focused on calculating the heats of combustionfrom the individual atoms comprising small molecules.However, performing calculations for large (polymer)molecules based on the interactions of the individualatoms can be very difficult.2 A simpler approach tocorrelating the polymer chemical structure to the prop-erties is to group the atomic contributions into charac-teristic structural elements (e.g., OCH3), determine thevalue of the group contribution to the property of inter-est parametrically, and add these group contributionsaccording to their molar fractions in the polymer repeatunit. This method has been used to relate the chemicalstructures of polymers to their thermal, chemical, optical,and mechanical properties with excellent results.13 Ofparticular interest in this context is the ability to predictthe thermal stability parameters of polymers (pyrolysisactivation energy, thermal decomposition temperature,and char/fuel fraction) from additive molar group con-tributions.1
A prerequisite for any structureproperty correla-tion is the ability to identify and reproducibly measurethe intrinsic property of interest. In the area of poly-
mer flammability, no single material property hasbeen correlated with fire performance, nor does anytest measure fire performance unambiguously be-cause the burning rate, ignitability, flammability, andheat-release rate are not intrinsic properties. Rather,they are extrinsic quantities resulting from the reac-tion of a macroscopic polymer sample to severe ther-mal exposure. Because the sample size in a flamma-bility or fire test is orders of magnitude larger than thechemical process zone,57 heat and mass transfer dom-inate the fire response. Therefore, an intrinsic materialproperty for use by scientists in designing fire-resis-tant polymers is not obtainable from standard fire orflammability tests.
Recently, a material fire parameter with the unitsand significance of the heat-release capacity57 hasbeen identified that appears to be a good predictor ofthe fire response and flammability of polymers. Aquantitative laboratory pyrolysiscombustion methodfor directly measuring the heat-release capacity hasbeen reported.810 This article provides empirical mo-lar group contributions to the heat-release capacitythat allow its calculation from the polymer chemicalstructure. The relationship between the measured (orcalculated) heat-release capacity of a polymer and itsfire behavior or flammability is described.
THEORY
The solid-state thermochemistry of flaming combus-tion57 reveals a material fire parameter that has theunits of the heat (release) capacity (J/g K):
Correspondence to: R. N. Walters ([email protected]).
Journal of Applied Polymer Science, Vol. 87, 548563 (2003) 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
c hc
01 EaeRTp
2 (1)
The heat-release capacity (c) is a combination of thethermal stability and combustion properties, each ofwhich is known to be calculable from additive molargroup contributions.1 The component material prop-erties are the heat of complete combustion of the py-rolysis gases [hc
0 (J/g)], the weight fraction of the solidresidue after pyrolysis or burning [ (g/g)], the globalactivation energy for the single-step mass-loss processor pyrolysis [Ea (J/mol)], and the temperature at thepeak mass-loss rate [Tp (K)] in a linear heating pro-gram at a constant rate [ (K/s)]. The constants in eq.(1) are the natural number (e) and the gas constant (R).Equation (1) shows the heat-release capacity to be aparticular function of the thermal stability and com-bustion properties, each of which is known to be cal-culable from additive molar group contributions.1
Consequently, c itself is a material property andshould be calculable from the same (or similar) molargroups as the component properties as long as thereare no interactions between the chemical structuralunits. Along with this assumption of group additivity,there is the postulate that for a polymer repeat unit ofmolar mass M, there is a molar heat-release capacity[ (J/mol K)] whose functional form is eq. (1) butwhich has thermal stability and combustion propertieswritten as the molar quantities H, V, E, and Y/M inplace of hc
0, (1 ), Ea, and Tp, respectively. If eachchemical group i in the polymer adds to the compo-nent molar properties according to its molar fraction niin the repeat unit,
HVE
eRY/M2
i
niHi i
niVi i
niEieR
i
niYi/Mi 2 (2)
where Hi, Vi, Ei, Yi, and Mi are the molar heat ofcombustion, molar fraction of fuel, molar activationenergy, molar thermal decomposition function,1 andmolar mass of component i, respectively. Expandingthe summations in eq. (2) and retaining only the non-interacting terms for which i j k (i.e., neglectingterms containing products and quotients with mixedindices), we have the following:
i
niHiViEi
eRYi/Mi2
i
nii (3)
Equation (3) shows that there is a molar group contri-bution to the heat-release capacity i that adds ac-cording to its molar fraction in the repeat unit of thepolymer. If Ni and Mi are the number of moles and themolar mass, respectively, of group i in the polymerwith the repeat unit molar mass M
ni Ni
i
Niand M
i
niMi i
Nii
NiMi
then the heat-release capacity on a mass basis is
c
M
i
nii
i
niMi
i
Nii
i
NiMi(4)
Equations (2)(4) provide the physical basis for anadditive heat-release capacity function, but the valuesof the molar contributions of chemical groups must bederived empirically (i.e., experimentally). To this end,the heat-release capacities of more than 200 polymerswith known chemical structures have been measuredwith the measurement technique described later, andthese experimental values have been used to generateover 40 group contributions.11,12
Figure 1 Schematic diagram of the pyrolysiscombustion flow calorimeter.
MOLAR GROUP CONTRIBUTIONS 549
EXPERIMENTAL
Materials
Polymer samples were unfilled, natural, or virgin-grade resins obtained from Aldrich (Milwaukee, WI)and Polysciences, Inc. (Warrington, PA), and researchuniversities or directly from the manufacturers. Theoxygen and nitrogen gases used for calibration andtesting, obtained from Matheson Gas Products(Bridgeport, NJ), were dry and greater than 99.99%pure.
Methods
A pyrolysiscombustion flow calorimeter810 wasused for all experiments (see Fig. 1). In this device, apyrolysis probe (Pyroprobe 2000, CDS Analytical, Ox-ford, PA) is used to thermally decompose milligram-size samples in flowing nitrogen at a controlled heat-ing rate. The samples are heated at a constant rate(typically 4.3 K/s) from a starting temperature that isseveral degrees below the onset degradation temper-ature of the polymer to a maximum temperature of1200 K (930C). The 930C final temperature ensuresthe complete thermal degradation of organic polymersso that the total capacity for heat release is measuredduring the test and eq. (1) applies. Flowing nitrogensweeps the volatile decomposition products from theconstant-temperature (heated) pyrolysis chamber, andoxygen is added to obtain a nominal composition of4:1 N2/O2 before a 900C furnace is entered for 60 s toeffect complete nonflaming combustion. The combus-tion products (carbon dioxide, water, and possiblyacid gases) are then removed from the gas stream with
Ascarite and Drierite scrubbers. The mass flow rateand oxygen consumption of the scrubbed combustionstream are measured with a mass flowmeter and zir-conia oxygen analyzer (Panametrics model 350,Waltham, MA), respectively.
The specific heat-release rate (Qc) in the pyrolysiscombustion flow calorimeter is determined from oxygenconsumption measurements with the assumption that13.1 kJ of heat is released per gram of diatomic oxygenconsumed by combustion.1316 Because Qc is equal to thefractional mass-loss rate multiplied by the heat of com-plete combustion of the pyrolysis products,
Qct E
m0O2t
hc,v0 tm0
dmtdt (5)
where E 13.1 0.6 kJ/g of O2, O2 is the instan-taneous mass consumption rate of oxygen, m0 is theinitial sample mass, hc,v
0 is the instantaneous heat ofcomplete combustion of the volatile pyrolysis prod-ucts, and dm/dt is the instantaneous mass-loss (fuel-generation) rate of the sample during the test. Theadvantage of synchronized oxygen consumption cal-orimetry for determining the specific heat-release rateis the ease and speed of the method in comparisonwith the simultaneous measurement of the mass-lossrate of the solid and the heat of combustion of thepyrolysis gases.17 At Tp, the specific heat-release ratehas an analytical form:57,18
Qcmax
Em0
O2max
hc,v0 t
m0dmtdt
max
hc01Ea
eRTp2
(6)
Figure 2 Specific heat-release rates for several polymers measured with the microscale calorimeter.
550 WALTERS AND LYON
TA
BL
EI
Pol
ymer
Str
uct
ure
and
Val
ues
Der
ived
from
Pyr
olys
isC
omb
ust
ion
Flow
Cal
orim
etry
Mat
eria
l(a
bbre
viat
edna
me)
Tra
de
nam
e,m
anuf
actu
rer/
supp
lier
CA
Snu
mbe
rR
epea
tun
itco
mpo
siti
onR
epea
tun
itst
ruct
ure
Hea
tre
leas
eca
paci
ty(J
/g
K)
Tot
alhe
atre
leas
e(k
J/g)
Cha
r(%
)M
W(g
/m
ol)
Poly
ethy
lene
(PE
)L
DPE
Poly
scie
nces
,In
c.[9
002-
88-4
]C
2H
416
7641
.60
28.0
6
Poly
oxym
ethy
lene
(PO
M)
Poly
scie
nces
[900
2-81
-7]
CH
2O
169
140
30.0
3
Poly
prop
ylen
e(P
P)Po
lysc
ienc
es[2
5085
-53-
4]C
3H
615
7141
.40
42.0
8
Poly
(vin
ylal
coho
l)(
99%
;PV
OH
)A
ldri
chC
hem
ical
Co.
,In
c.[9
002-
89-5
]C
2H
4O
533
21.6
3.3
44.0
3
Poly
(eth
ylen
eox
ide)
Poly
scie
nces
[253
22-6
8-3]
C2H
4O
652
21.6
1.7
44.0
5
Poly
isob
utyl
ene
Ald
rich
[900
3-27
-1]
C4H
810
0244
.40
56.1
1
Poly
(vin
ylch
lori
de)
PVC
[900
2-86
-2]
C2H
3C
l13
811
.315
.362
.48
Poly
(vin
ylid
ene
fluo
rid
e)PV
DF
(MW
120,
000)
,Po
lysc
ienc
es[2
4937
-79-
9]C
2H
2F 2
311
9.7
764
.02
Poly
acry
lam
ide
Poly
scie
nces
[900
3-05
-8]
C3H
5N
O10
413
.38.
371
.08
Poly
(acr
ylic
acid
)Po
lysc
ienc
es[9
003-
01-4
]C
3H
4O
216
512
.56.
172
.06
Poly
(vin
ylac
etat
e)(P
VA
c)Po
lysc
ienc
es[9
003-
20-7
]C
4H
6O
231
319
.21.
286
.09
Poly
(met
hacr
ylic
acid
)Po
lysc
ienc
es(M
W
100,
000)
[250
87-2
6-7]
C4H
6O
246
418
.40.
586
.09
Poly
chlo
ropr
ene
Neo
pren
e,Po
lysc
ienc
es[9
010-
98-4
]C
4H
5C
l18
816
.112
.988
.54
MOLAR GROUP CONTRIBUTIONS 551
TA
BL
EI
Con
tinu
ed
Mat
eria
l(a
bbre
viat
edna
me)
Tra
de
nam
e,m
anuf
actu
rer/
supp
lier
CA
Snu
mbe
rR
epea
tun
itco
mpo
siti
onR
epea
tun
itst
ruct
ure
Hea
tre
leas
eca
paci
ty(J
/g
K)
Tot
alhe
atre
leas
e(k
J/g)
Cha
r(%
)M
W(g
/m
ol)
Poly
(tet
rafl
uoro
ethy
lene
)(P
TFE
)A
ldri
ch[9
002-
84-0
]C
2F 4
353.
70
100.
02
Poly
(met
hyl
met
hacr
ylat
e)(P
MM
A)
Ald
rich
[901
1-14
-7]
C5H
8O
251
424
.30
100.
12
Poly
(met
hyl
met
hacr
ylat
e)(P
MM
A)
Poly
scie
nces
(MW
75,0
00)
[901
1-14
-7]
C5H
8O
246
123
.20
100.
12
Poly
(eth
ylac
ryla
te)
Poly
scie
nces
(MW
70,0
00)
[900
3-32
-1]
C5H
8O
232
322
.60.
310
0.12
Poly
met
hacr
ylam
ide
Poly
scie
nces
[250
14-1
2-4]
C4H
7N
O2
103
18.7
4.5
101.
1
Poly
styr
ene
(PS)
Poly
scie
nces
[900
3-53
-6]
C8H
892
738
.80
104.
15
Isot
acti
cpo
lyst
yren
eQ
uest
ra[2
5086
-18-
4]C
8H
888
039
.90
104.
15
Poly
(2-v
inyl
pyri
den
e)Po
lysc
ienc
es(M
W
200,
000
400,
000)
[250
14-1
5-7]
C7H
7N
612
34.7
010
5.14
Poly
(4-v
inyl
pyri
den
e)Po
lysc
ienc
es(M
W
300,
000)
[252
32-4
1-1]
C7H
7N
568
31.7
010
5.14
552 WALTERS AND LYON
TA
BL
EI
Con
tinu
ed
Mat
eria
l(a
bbre
viat
edna
me)
Tra
de
nam
e,m
anuf
actu
rer/
supp
lier
CA
Snu
mbe
rR
epea
tun
itco
mpo
siti
onR
epea
tun
itst
ruct
ure
Hea
tre
leas
eca
paci
ty(J
/g
K)
Tot
alhe
atre
leas
e(k
J/g)
Cha
r(%
)M
W(g
/m
ol)
Poly
(1,4
-phe
nyle
nesu
lfid
e)(P
PS)
Ald
rich
[901
6-75
-5]
C6H
4S
165
17.1
41.6
108.
16
Poly
(n-v
inyl
pyrr
olid
one)
Poly
scie
nces
[900
3-39
-8]
C6H
9N
O33
225
.10
111.
14
Poly
capr
olac
tam
Nyl
on6
[250
38-5
4-4]
C6H
11N
O48
728
.70
113.
16
Poly
capr
olac
tone
Poly
scie
nces
[249
80-4
1-4]
C6H
10O
252
624
.40
114.
14
Poly
(eth
ylm
etha
cryl
ate)
Poly
scie
nces
(MW
250,
000)
[900
3-42
-3]
C6H
10O
247
026
.40
114.
14
Poly
(eth
ylm
etha
cryl
ate)
Ald
rich
(MW
850,
000)
[900
3-42
-3]
C6H
10O
238
026
.80
114.
14
Poly
(-m
ethy
lst
yren
e)A
ldri
ch[5
2014
-31-
7]C
9H
10
730
35.5
011
8.18
Poly
(2,6
-dim
ethy
l1,
4-ph
enyl
eneo
xid
e)(P
PO)
Nor
yl0.
4IV
virg
in,
Gen
eral
Ele
ctri
c[2
5134
-01-
4]C
8H
8O
409
2025
.512
0.15
Poly
(4-v
inyl
phen
ol)
Poly
scie
nces
(MW
22,0
00)
[249
79-7
0-2]
C8H
8O
261
27.6
2.8
120.
15
MOLAR GROUP CONTRIBUTIONS 553
TA
BL
EI
Con
tinu
ed
Mat
eria
l(a
bbre
viat
edna
me)
Tra
de
nam
e,m
anuf
actu
rer/
supp
lier
CA
Snu
mbe
rR
epea
tun
itco
mpo
siti
onR
epea
tun
itst
ruct
ure
Hea
tre
leas
eca
paci
ty(J
/g
K)
Tot
alhe
atre
leas
e(k
J/g)
Cha
r(%
)M
W(g
/m
ol)
Poly
(eth
ylen
em
alei
can
hyd
rid
e)Po
lysc
ienc
es[9
002-
26-2
]C
6H
6O
313
812
.12.
812
6.11
Poly
(vin
ylbu
tyra
l)Po
lysc
ienc
es(M
W
100,
000
150,
000)
[631
48-6
5-2]
C8H
14O
280
626
.90.
114
2.1
Poly
(2-v
inyl
naph
thal
ene)
Ald
rich
(MW
175,
000)
[284
06-5
6-6]
C12H
10
834
390
154.
21
Poly
(ben
zoyl
1,4-
phen
ylen
e)PO
LY
X-1
000,
MA
XD
EM
,Inc
.[N
A]
C13H
8O
4110
.965
.218
0.21
Poly
(eth
ylen
ete
reph
thal
ate)
(PE
T)
Poly
scie
nces
[250
38-5
9-9]
C10H
8O
433
215
.35.
119
2.17
Poly
(eth
erke
tone
)(P
EK
)P2
2(v
irgi
n),V
ictr
exU
SA[2
7380
-27-
4]C
13H
8O
212
410
.852
.919
6.2
Poly
laur
olac
tam
Nyl
on12
,Pol
ysci
ence
s[2
5030
-74-
8]C
12H
23O
743
33.2
019
7.32
Poly
(sty
rene
mal
eic
anhy
dri
de)
Poly
scie
nces
[901
1-13
-6]
C12H
10O
327
923
.32.
220
2.21
554 WALTERS AND LYON
TA
BL
EI
Con
tinu
ed
Mat
eria
l(a
bbre
viat
edna
me)
Tra
de
nam
e,m
anuf
actu
rer/
supp
lier
CA
Snu
mbe
rR
epea
tun
itco
mpo
siti
onR
epea
tun
itst
ruct
ure
Hea
tre
leas
eca
paci
ty(J
/g
K)
Tot
alhe
atre
leas
e(k
J/g)
Cha
r(%
)M
W(g
/m
ol)
Poly
(acr
ylon
itri
lebu
tad
iene
styr
ene)
(AB
S)
AB
S,Po
lysc
ienc
es[9
003-
56-9
]C
15H
17N
669
36.6
021
1.31
Poly
(1,4
-but
aned
iol
tere
phth
alat
e)(P
BT
)Po
lysc
ienc
es[2
6062
-94-
2]C
12H
12O
447
420
.31.
522
0.22
Poly
(hex
amet
hyle
nead
ipam
ide)
Nyl
on6/
6,Po
lysc
ienc
es[3
2131
-17-
2]C
12H
22O
2N
261
527
.40
226.
32
Poly
azom
ethi
neU
MA
SS[N
A]
C15H
9N
336
8.7
77.8
231.
26
Poly
(1,4
-phe
nyle
neet
her
sulf
one)
(PE
S)B
ASF
Ult
raso
nE
1010
/N
atur
alB
ASF
[256
67-4
2-9]
C12H
8O
3S
115
11.2
29.3
232.
26
Poly
(p-p
heny
lene
benz
obis
oxaz
ole)
(PB
O)
PBO
,Dow
Che
mic
alC
o.[8
52-3
6-8]
C14H
6O
2N
242
5.4
69.5
234.
21
Poly
(p-p
heny
lene
tere
phth
alam
ide)
Kev
lar,
Dup
ont
[308
069-
56-9
]C
14H
10O
2N
230
214
.836
.123
8.25
Poly
(m-p
heny
lene
isop
htha
lam
ide)
Nom
ex,D
upon
t[2
4938
-60-
1]C
14H
10O
2N
252
11.7
48.4
238.
25
Poly
(eth
ylen
ena
phth
ylat
e)(P
EN
)E
astm
anC
hem
ical
Co.
[249
68-1
1-4]
C14H
10O
430
916
.818
.224
2.23
Dic
yclo
pent
adie
nyl
bisp
heno
lcy
anat
ees
ter
XU
-717
87,D
owC
hem
ical
[135
5-71
-0]
C17H
17N
O49
320
.127
.125
1.32
Poly
carb
onat
eof
bisp
heno
lA
(PC
)Po
lysc
ienc
es(M
W
32,0
003
6,00
0)[2
4936
-68-
3]C
16H
14O
335
916
.321
.725
4.28
MOLAR GROUP CONTRIBUTIONS 555
TA
BL
EI
Con
tinu
ed
Mat
eria
l(a
bbre
viat
edna
me)
Tra
de
nam
e,m
anuf
actu
rer/
supp
lier
CA
Snu
mbe
rR
epea
tun
itco
mpo
siti
onR
epea
tun
itst
ruct
ure
Hea
tre
leas
eca
paci
ty(J
/g
K)
Tot
alhe
atre
leas
e(k
J/g)
Cha
r(%
)M
W(g
/m
ol)
Poly
phos
phaz
ene
Eyp
el-A
,Pen
nSt
ate
[NA
]C
14H
14PN
O3
204
21.9
2025
9.24
Poly
(dic
hlor
oeth
yld
iphe
nyl
ethe
r)R
ice
Uni
vers
ity
(MW
9350
)[N
A]
C14H
8O
Cl 2
165.
257
.126
3.12
Cya
no-s
ubst
itut
edK
evla
rU
MA
SS[N
A]
C15H
9N
3O
254
9.1
58.3
263.
26
Bis
phen
olE
poly
cyan
urat
eA
roC
yL
-10,
Cib
aSp
ecia
lty
Che
mic
als
[470
73-9
2-7]
C16H
12O
2N
231
614
.741
.926
4.28
Bis
phen
olA
poly
cyan
urat
eA
roC
yB
-10,
Cib
aSp
ecia
lty
Che
mic
als
[115
6-51
-0]
C17H
14O
2N
228
317
.636
.327
8.31
Poly
(hex
amet
hyle
nese
baca
mid
e)N
ylon
6/10
,Po
lysc
ienc
es[9
008-
66-6
]C
16H
30O
2N
287
835
.70
282.
43
Poly
(eth
eret
her
keto
ne)
(PE
EK
)45
0F,V
ictr
exU
SA[2
9658
-26-
2]C
19H
12O
315
512
.446
.528
8.3
Poly
(silo
xyte
traa
lkyl
biph
enyl
ene
oxid
e)(P
SA)
Gen
eral
Ele
ctri
c[N
A]
C18H
18Si
O2
119
15.7
60.1
294.
42
Poly
(eth
erke
tone
keto
ne)
(PE
KK
)G
040
(vir
gin
flak
e),
Dup
ont
[749
70-2
5-5]
C20H
12O
396
8.7
60.7
300.
31
Tet
ram
ethy
lbi
sphe
nol
Fpo
lycy
anur
ate
Aro
Cy
M-1
0,C
iba
Spec
ialt
yC
hem
ical
[101
657-
77-6
]C
19H
18O
2N
228
017
.435
.430
6.36
556 WALTERS AND LYON
TA
BL
EI
Con
tinu
ed
Mat
eria
l(a
bbre
viat
edna
me)
Tra
de
nam
e,m
anuf
actu
rer/
supp
lier
CA
Snu
mbe
rR
epea
tun
itco
mpo
siti
onR
epea
tun
itst
ruct
ure
Hea
tre
leas
eca
paci
ty(J
/g
K)
Tot
alhe
atre
leas
e(k
J/g)
Cha
r(%
)M
W(g
/m
ol)
Bis
phen
olC
poly
carb
onat
eB
PCPC
,Gen
eral
Ele
ctri
c[N
A]
C15H
8O
3C
l 229
3.0
50.1
307.
13
Poly
benz
imid
azol
e(P
BI)
CE
LA
ZO
LE
PBI,
Hoe
chst
Cel
anes
e[2
5928
-81-
8]C
20H
12N
436
8.6
67.5
308.
34
Poly
(hex
amet
hyle
ned
odec
ane
dia
mid
e)N
ylon
6/12
,Po
lysc
ienc
es[2
6098
-55-
5]C
18H
34N
2O
270
730
.80
310.
48
Bis
phen
olC
,po
lycy
anur
ate
BPC
CE
,Cib
aSp
ecia
lty
Che
mic
als
[NA
]C
16H
8O
2C
l 224
4.2
53.3
331.
16
Bis
phen
olA
epox
y,ca
taly
tic
cure
phen
oxy
A
DE
R-3
32,D
owC
hem
ical
[001
675-
54-3
]C
21H
24O
465
726
.03.
934
0.42
Phen
olph
thal
ein
poly
carb
onat
eD
owC
hem
ical
[NA
]C
21H
12O
528
849
.834
4.32
Poly
(am
ide
imid
e)(P
AI)
TO
RL
ON
4203
L,
Am
oco
[429
55-0
3-3]
C15H
8O
3N
233
7.1
53.6
354.
36
Nov
olac
poly
cyan
urat
ePr
imas
etPT
-30,
Alli
edSi
gnal
XU
-371
,Cib
a[1
7345
2-35
-2]
[309
44-9
2-4]
C23H
15O
3N
312
29.
951
.938
1.39
Poly
imid
e(P
I)A
ldri
ch[2
6023
-21-
2]C
22H
10O
5N
225
6.6
51.9
382.
33
MOLAR GROUP CONTRIBUTIONS 557
TA
BL
EI
Con
tinu
ed
Mat
eria
l(a
bbre
viat
edna
me)
Tra
de
nam
e,m
anuf
actu
rer/
supp
lier
CA
Snu
mbe
rR
epea
tun
itco
mpo
siti
onR
epea
tun
itst
ruct
ure
Hea
tre
leas
eca
paci
ty(J
/g
K)
Tot
alhe
atre
leas
e(k
J/g)
Cha
r(%
)M
W(g
/m
ol)
Hex
afluo
robi
sphe
nol
Apo
lycy
anur
ate
Aro
Cy
F-10
,Cib
aSp
ecia
lty
Che
mic
als
[327
28-2
7-1]
C17H
8O
2N
2F 6
322.
355
.238
6.25
Bis
phen
olC
epox
yB
PCE
[NA
]C
20H
18O
4C
l 250
610
3639
3.26
Bis
phen
olM
poly
cyan
urat
eA
roC
yX
U-3
66,C
iba
Spec
ialt
yC
hem
ical
s[1
2766
7-44
-1]
C26H
24O
2N
223
922
.526
.439
6.49
Poly
(phe
nyl
sulf
one)
Rad
elR
5200
,Am
oco
[258
39-8
1-0]
C24H
16SO
415
311
.338
.440
0.45
Bis
phen
olC
poly
aryl
ate
BPC
PA,U
MA
SS[N
A]
C22H
12O
4C
l 221
7.6
42.7
411.
02
Bip
heno
lph
thal
onit
rile
Nav
y[N
A]
C28H
14N
4O
215
3.5
78.8
438.
44
Poly
sulf
one
ofbi
sphe
nol
APS
FU
del
,Am
oco
[251
35-5
7-7]
C27H
22O
4S
345
19.4
28.1
442.
53
LaR
C-1
AN
ASA
Lan
gley
[105
030-
42-0
]C
28H
14N
2O
638
6.7
5747
4.43
Epo
xyN
ovol
ac,
cata
lyti
ccu
reph
enox
yN
DE
N-4
38,D
owC
hem
ical
[028
064-
14-4
]C
10H
11O
246
18.9
15.9
474.
55
Bis
phen
olA
phth
alon
itri
leU
.S.N
avy
[NA
]C
31H
20N
4O
240
5.9
73.6
480.
52
Tec
hnor
aT
eijin
[NA
]C
34H
24N
4O
513
115
.341
.856
8.59
Bis
phen
olA
6Fph
thal
onit
rile
U.S
.Nav
y[N
A]
C31H
14N
4O
2F 6
92.
863
.858
8.46
558 WALTERS AND LYON
The rate-independent heat-release capacity is obtainedfrom eq. (6) by the division of the maximum specificheat-release rate by the constant sample heating rate[ (K/s)]:
c Qc
max
Em0
O2max
hc01 Ea
eRTp2 (7)
The quantities measured in the test are the initial samplemass and Qc (W/g). The time integration of the specificheat-release rate gives the total heat released by thecomplete combustion of the pyrolysis gases per unit ofthe initial sample mass [hc
0 (J/g)]. c (J/g K) is calculatedfrom the peak specific heat-release rate and the linearheating rate of the sample according to eq. (7). Weighingthe sample after the test allows for the calculation of (g/g) and the average heat of complete combustion perunit mass of volatiles.
RESULTS
Pyrolysiscombustion flow calorimeter data for the spe-cific heat-release rates of polyethylene (PE), polypro-pylene (PP), polystyrene (PS), an acrylonitrilebuta-dienestyrene terpolymer (ABS), poly(methyl methacry-late) (PMMA), poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET),poly(ether ether ketone) (PEEK), and polybenz-imidazole (PBI) are shown in Figure 2, having beenhorizontally shifted for clarity. Dividing the maximumspecific heat-release rate (W/g) measured during the test(peak height in Fig. 2) by the constant sample heatingrate ( 4.3 K/s in these tests) gives the heat-releasecapacity of the polymer (J/g K) for materials that ther-mally decompose in a single step. Materials exhibitingmultiple heat-release peaks are beyond the scope of thisreport and will be addressed in the future.
The measured heat-release capacities for more than100 polymers with known chemical structures areshown in Table I. These data have been used to gen-erate the group contributions shown in Table II. Themolar group contributions were obtained by i beingtreated as adjustable parameters in the linear systemof equations for polymers with known chemical struc-tures and measured c values. The optimization cal-culation continued until the sum of the squares of therelative error between the measured c value and thevalue calculated from group contributions was a min-imum. The calculation converged rapidly to theunique i values listed in Table II, which were inde-pendent of initial estimates.
Figure 3 is a plot of the calculated and measuredheat-release capacities for over 80 polymers for whichoptimized i values were determined. The correlationcoefficient between the measured and predicted heat-release capacities is r 0.96, and the average relativeerror is 15%.
TA
BL
EI
Con
tinu
ed
Mat
eria
l(a
bbre
viat
edna
me)
Tra
de
nam
e,m
anuf
actu
rer/
supp
lier
CA
Snu
mbe
rR
epea
tun
itco
mpo
siti
onR
epea
tun
itst
ruct
ure
Hea
tre
leas
eca
paci
ty(J
/g
K)
Tot
alhe
atre
leas
e(k
J/g)
Cha
r(%
)M
W(g
/m
ol)
Poly
(eth
erim
ide)
(PE
I)U
ltem
1000
,G
ener
alE
lect
ric
[611
28-4
6-9]
C37H
24O
6N
212
111
.849
.259
2.61
Poly
este
rof
hyd
roxy
benz
oic
and
hyd
roxy
napt
hoic
acid
s
Vec
tra
CL
CP
(vir
gin/
unfi
lled
),H
oech
stC
elan
ese
[706
79-9
2-4]
C39H
22O
10
164
11.1
40.6
650.
6
LaR
C-T
OR
NA
SAL
angl
ey[1
9198
5-77
-0]
C44H
29N
4O
3P
135
11.7
6369
2.71
LaR
C-C
P2N
ASA
Lan
gley
[790
62-5
5-8]
C37H
18N
2O
6F 6
143.
457
700.
55
LaR
C-C
P1N
ASA
Lan
gley
[871
86-9
4-5]
C46H
22N
2O
6F 1
213
2.9
5292
6.66
NA
not
appl
icab
le;M
W
mol
ecul
arw
eigh
t.
MOLAR GROUP CONTRIBUTIONS 559
Calculation of the Heat-Release Capacity
The following example illustrates the calculation ofthe heat-release capacity from molar group contribu-
tions for a diglycidyl ether of bisphenol A (BPA ep-oxy) cured by anionic ring-opening polymerization.This polymer has the following repeat unit chemicalstructure:
TABLE IIStructural Groups and Their Molar Contribution to the Heat Release Capacity
Structural groupContribution(kJ/mol K) Structural group
Contribution(kJ/mol K) Structural group
Contribution(kJ/mol K)
118a OH 8.1 OOH 19.8
77.0 {NH}
7.6 OBr 22.0
69.5 OCH2OOO 4.18O
OCO22.0
30.6 {CF2}
1.8 23.2a
29.5 0.1 25.5
28.8 8.8 OCl 34.7
28.3 OSO 10.9a 36.4a
26.6 OOO 11.6O
OOOCOOOPendant: 39.5
Backbone: 13.7
22.5 13.8 }ON{
43.0a
19.0 ONH2 13.9a
O
OOOCOOO 49.0
18.7 OCF3 14.8POSiOP
53.5a
16.7 OC'N 17.6 66.7
15.1 18.9a 74.5
9.7 19.2 76.7
a Molar group contribution derived from a single polymer.
560 WALTERS AND LYON
The polymer repeat unit consists of six basic chemicalgroups, and the heat-release capacity is calculatedfrom the associated Ni, Mi, and i values for thesegroups, which are listed in Table III.
The molar heat-release capacity is obtained by thesumming of the group contributions according to theirmolar fraction in the repeat unit and division by themolar mass of the repeat unit to give the heat-releasecapacity on a mass basis (J/g K).
c
M
i
nii
i
niMi
i
Nii
i
NiMi
204.5 kJ/mol K340 g/mol
601 J/g K
The predicted value of 601 J/g K compares reasonably wellwith the measured value of 657 J/g K for this polymer.
Heat-Release Capacity and Fire Hazard
The primary indicator of the fire hazard of a materialis the heat-release rate in forced flaming combustion.19
Figure 4 is a plot of the average flaming heat-releaserate of samples (10 cm 10 cm 0.64 cm, 80 g) ofpure polymer measured in a fire calorimeter at anexternal heat flux qext 50 kW/m
2) according to stan-dard methods2022 versus the measured heat-releasecapacity. Proportionality is observed between the av-erage flaming heat-release rate of kilogram-size sam-ples and the heat-release capacity of milligram-sizesamples of the same polymer with a slope of 1.0 (kg/s)/m2/K, which is in general agreement with predic-tions for steady burning at this external heat flux.57
Figure 3 Calculated and measured heat-release capacities for 80 pure polymers.
TABLE IIIGroup Contributions Used in the Calculation of the Heat Release Capacity of Bisphenol A Epoxy
Chemical group (i) N Mi (g/mol)
(kJ/mol K)NiMi
(g/mol)Ni
(kJ/mol K)
C
1 12 28.3 12 28.3
CH
CH22 13 26.6 26 53.2
4 14 16.7 56 66.8
CH3 2 15 22.5 30 45.0
2 76 28.8 152 57.6
OOO 4 16 11.6 64 46.4Total 340 204.5
MOLAR GROUP CONTRIBUTIONS 561
Consequently, c is a reasonable predictor of the firehazard with an empirical correlation (e.g., Fig. 4) orphysically based calculations.57
Heat-Release Capacity and Flammability
Flammability is taken here to mean the tendency of athin sample of a material ignited by a small flame tocontinue burning in the absence of external radiantheat after the removal of the ignition source. Self-extinguishing behavior in these tests implies a certainresistance to ignition and/or flame propagation, andstandard methods have been developed to measurethis characteristic. These flame tests are widely used torank the burning propensity of combustible solids, butthey do not yield any material property information.Two common flammability test methods are the Un-derwriters Laboratories UL 94 test for upward vertical(V) and horizontal burning (HB)23 and the criticaloxygen concentration for flame extinguishment or lim-iting oxygen index (LOI) in downward burning.24
In flammability tests, the flame heat flux at thesample tip must provide all of the heat energy tocontinue the burning process after the removal of theBunsen burner (UL 94) or methane diffusion flame(LOI) used to cause ignition. If the heat flux from thesample surface flame is constant (UL 94 test) or in-creases in a known way with oxygen concentration(LOI), the criterion for self-extinguishing behavior inthese tests can be formulated in terms of a criticalheat-release capacity if it is assumed that a minimumheat-release rate of about 100 kW/m2 25 is needed tosustain flaming combustion. Such an analysis for theUL 94 test6 indicates that polymers with c valueslower than about 300 J/g K should self-extinguishbecause they do not release heat at a high enough rateto overcome heat losses and so the flame cannot prop-agate. Therefore, for pure polymers with c 300 J/gK, self-extinguishing behavior in the UL 94 vertical
test (a V rating) is expected. Figure 5 contains UL 94data26 and measured heat-release capacities for sev-eral pure polymers. A transition from a self-propagat-ing (HB) flame behavior to a self-extinguishing (V-0)flame behavior occurs in the vicinity of c 300 J/g K,as predicted from the critical heat-release-rate crite-rion.
The criterion for self-extinguishing behavior in theLOI test must take into account the fact that an in-crease in the oxygen concentration of the flowing gasstream in the test chamber increases the temperature(radiant heat flux) of the sample diffusion flame and,therefore, the amount of thermal energy deposited inthe polymer. Because the heat-release rate of the sam-ple increases with the flame heat flux, which in turnincreases with oxygen concentration, an inverse rela-tionship between c and the limiting oxygen concen-tration is expected and observed, as shown in the LOIdata1,27,28 plotted versus c in Figure 6.
Figure 5 UL-94 ratings versus the measured heat-releasecapacities of pure polymers.
Figure 4 Average flaming heat-release rate (HRR) versusthe heat-release capacity for several polymers. Figure 6 LOI versus the measured heat-release capacity.
562 WALTERS AND LYON
Comparing Figures 5 and 6 shows that self-extin-guishing behavior in the UL 94 vertical test occurs at alower heat-release capacity (c 300 100 J/g K)than in the LOI test (c 550 100 J/g K) underam-bient conditions (298 K, LOI 21% O2). The reason forthis is that the upward burning UL 94 test is moresevere than the downward burning LOI test becauseof convective and radiative preheating of the sampleby its flame and so requires more material fire resis-tance (lower heat-release capacity) for self-extinguish-ing behavior under ambient conditions.
CONCLUSIONS
The heat-release capacity is a physically based mate-rial property that is a good predictor of the fire behav-ior and flammability of pure polymers. The heat-re-lease capacity is simply calculated for pure polymersfrom their chemical structures with additive molargroup contributions that have been determined em-pirically with a high level of confidence (15%). Theproposed methodology for predicting the fire behav-ior and flammability of polymers from their chemicalstructures allows for the molecular-level design ofultra-fire-resistant polymers without the expense ofsynthesizing and testing new materials.
The authors are indebted to Stanislav I. Stoliarov of theUniversity of Massachusetts (Amherst, MA) for performingthe optimization calculations for the molar group contribu-tions to the heat-release capacity. Certain commercial equip-ment, instruments, materials, or companies are identified inthis report to adequately specify the experimental proce-dure. This in no way implies endorsement or recommenda-tion by the Federal Aviation Administration.
References
1. Van Krevelen, D. W. Properties of Polymers, 3rd ed.; Elsevier:Amsterdam, 1990.
2. Bicerano, J. Prediction of Polymer Properties, 2nd ed.; MarcelDekker: New York, 1996.
3. Coleman, M. M.; Graf, J. F.; Painter, P. C. Specific Interactionsand the Miscibility of Polymer Blends; Technomic: Lancaster,PA, 1991.
4. Bensen, S. W. Thermochemical Kinetics, Methods for the Esti-mation of Thermochemical Data and Rate Parameters; Wiley:New York, 1968.
5. Lyon, R. E. In Fire Retardancy of Polymeric Materials; Wilkie,C. A.; Grand, A. F., Eds.; Marcel Dekker: New York, 2000.
6. Lyon, R. E.; Walters, R. N. Proceedings of the Fire and Materials2001 Conference, San Francisco, CA; Interscience Communica-tions Limited: London, England, 2001, pp 285300.
7. Lyon, R. E. Fire Mater 2000, 24, 179.8. Walters, R. N.; Lyon, R. E. Proc Int SAMPE Symp Exhibition
1997, 42, 1335.9. Walters, R. N.; Lyon, R. E. NISTIR 5904, Beall, K., ed.; National
Institute of Standards and Technology, Annual Conference onFire Research: Book of Abstracts, October 2831, 1996, Gaith-ersburg, MD, 1996, pp 8990.
10. Lyon, R. E.; Walters, R. N. U.S. Pat. 5,981,290 (1999).11. Walters, R. N.; Lyon, R. E. PMSE Prepr 2000, 83, 86.12. Walters, R. N.; Lyon, R. E. The 2000 Conference on Flame
Retardancy of Polymeric Materials; Business CommunicationsCorporation: Norwalk, CT, 2000.
13. Thornton, W. Philos Mag J Sci 1971, 33, 196.14. Hugget, C. Fire and Materials, 1980, 61.15. Janssens, M.; Parker, W. J. In Heat Release in Fires; Babrauskas,
V.; Grayson, S. J., Eds.; Elsevier Applied Science: London, 1992;Chapter 3, p 31.
16. Walters, R. N.; Hackett, S. M.; Lyon, R. E. Fire Mater 2000, 24,245.
17. Inguilizian, T. V. M.S. Thesis, University of Massachusetts, 1999.18. Lyon, R. E. Polym Degrad Stab 1998, 61, 201.19. Babrauskas, V.; Peacock, R. D. Fire Safety J 1992, 18, 255.20. Hirschler, M. M. In Heat Release in Fires; Babrauskas, V.;
Grayson, S., Eds.; Elsevier Applied Science: New York, 1992;p 207.
21. Scudamore, M. J.; Briggs, P. J.; Prager, F. H. Fire Mater 1991, 15,65.
22. Lyon, R. E.; Gandhi, S.; Walters, R. N. Proceedings of the Societyfor the Advancement of Materials and Process Engineering(SAMPE) 44th International Symposium and Exhibition;SAMPE: Covina, CA, 1999.
23. Standard for Tests for Flammability of Plastic Materials for Partsin Devices and Appliances, Underwriters Laboratory: UL 94, 4thed.; Underwriters Laboratories: Research Triangle Park, NC,1991.
24. Standard Test Method for Measuring the Minimum OxygenConcentration to Support Candle-Like Combustion of Plastics;ASTM D2863; American Society for Testing and Materials: Phil-adelphia, PA, 1991.
25. Tewarson, A. SFPE Handbook of Fire Protection Engineering,2nd ed.; Society of Fire Protection Engineers: Boston, MA, 1995;Section 3, p 53.
26. Plastics Digest, Ranked Properties Reference Indexes; D.A.T.A.Business Publishing: Englewood, CO, 1996, 17(1), 773.
27. Cullis, C. F.; Hirschler, M. M. The Combustion of OrganicPolymers; Oxford University Press: Oxford, 1981.
28. Hilado, C. J. Flammability Handbook for Plastics, 5th ed.; Tech-nomic: Lancaster, PA, 1998.
MOLAR GROUP CONTRIBUTIONS 563