Effect of diammonium hydrogen phosphate coated with silica on flame retardancy of epoxy resin

Epoxy resin has become one of the most widely used polymers owing to their excellent comprehensive properties. However, the inherent inflammability of epoxy resin (EP) has seriously limited its application in a range of fields with high fire safety requirements. Herein, a novel shell-core hierarchy architecture (DAP@SiO₂) was prepared, composed of diammonium hydrogen phosphate (DAP) and in situ grown silica, and its structure and morphology were characterized by electron microscopy and infrared spectroscopy. The results indicated that silica particles were uniformly coated onto the surface of DAP. The modified DAP was used to reinforce the epoxy resin. The thermal stability of the EP blends was studied with the use of thermogravimetric analysis. The diammonium phosphate in DAP@SiO₂ flame retardant produces pyrolysis gases such as NH₃ and N₂ during decomposition, diluting the concentration of oxygen and flammable volatile products around the flame. Secondly, silica migrates to the surface of epoxy resin to form a shielding layer, forming compounds containing Si-O-Si and O-Si-C structures, which can be cross-linked with other condensed phase products, greatly improving the thermal stability of the carbon layer. Fire behavior was evaluated using the limiting oxygen index (LOI), vertical burning test, and the cone calorimetry, and the flame retardancy mode of action was explained. With 12% of DAP@SiO₂ involved, the EP blend passes UL-94 V-0 level, and its limiting oxygen index (LOI) reaches 33.2%. The incorporation of DAP@SiO₂ in an EP matrix showed a slight reduction in the heat release and smoke production. The flame retardant mode of the EP polymer shows that its flame retardant and smoke suppression characteristics are related to the interaction of flame retardants in the gas phase and condensed phase. The mechanical properties test results illustrated that the tensile strength, elastic modulus and impact strength of EP/3%DAP@SiO₂ are improved compared with pure EP. This is due to the crosslinking reaction between a large number of amino groups on the surface of DAP@SiO₂ and the epoxy group on the epoxy resin, which significantly enhances the interfacial compatibility between DAP@SiO₂ and epoxy resin, making the combination of DAP@SiO₂ and epoxy resin closer.