Citation

Tewarson A, Macaione DP. J. Fire Sci. 1993; 11(5): 421-441.

Copyright

(Copyright © 1993, SAGE Publishing)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

Fiber reinforced composite (FRC) materials are used extensively because of their favorable physico-chemical properties and high strength-to-weight ratio. The use of composites in Army vehicles as a means of decreasing weight and enhancing survivability, without reducing personnel safety, has been under study for some time. Although FRC materials are very attractive in terms of their physico-chemical properties, concern for possible fire hazard is understandable as organic polymers are one of the major constituents of the materials. A joint study thus was undertaken by the US. Army Materials Technology Laboratory (MTL) and the Factory Mutual Research Corporation (FMRC) to quantify flammability behavior of selected composite materials for the assessment of fire hazard. In the study, eight FRC materials, identified as MTL #1 to #8, were used. The FRC materials were 3 to 45 mm in thickness. The flammability behavior was examined by using the FMRC Flammability Apparatus (50 kW-Scale) and Oxygen Index (OI) apparatus, Thermogravimetric Analysis (TGA) instrument, NBS smoke chamber (ASTM E 662), and Gas Chromatograph-Mass Spectrometer (GC-MS) instrument at MTL.