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ABSTRACT
Within the scope of this work, flame retardant polybutylene terephthalate (PBT) was produced using boron compounds, namely, anhydrous borax (BX), colemanite (C), and zinc borate (ZnB) in three different concentrations of 40, 50, and 60 wt%. The thermal, flame retardant, and tensile properties of PBT composites were systematically investigated using thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), limiting oxygen index (LOI), vertical UL 94 test (UL-94V), mass loss calorimeter (MLC), and tensile tests. The thermal stability of PBT slightly enhanced with the use of BX, whereas the use of C and ZnB reduced the thermal stability. Improvement in LOI value, a reduction in peak heat release rate (pHRR), and total heat release (THR) values were observed with the use of all boron compounds. The improvement in UL-94V rating was observed only with the use C. The addition of all boron compounds deteriorates the tensile strength of the composites. In brief, the highest flame retardant performance with V0 rating (UL-94 V), 33.5% (LOI), and 48 Kw·m−2 (pHRR) was achieved with the use of C.
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Notes on contributors
Orkun Elcin
Orkun Elçin received his B.Sc. and M.Sc. degrees from the Middle East Technical University in the Department of Metallurgical and Materials Engineering. He is currently pursuing his Ph.D. at the same institution. Mr. Elçin has authored two research papers and presented his findings at various conferences and seminars. His research interests include the design of novel alloys, ceramics, and polymers. He gained valuable experience during his 3-year tenure at the TENMAK-BOREN Institute, where he focused on flame retardants, boron compound synthesis, and structural materials. For the past 2.5 years, he has been working as a senior engineer in the structural manufacturing R&D department at Baykar Technology.
Suleyman Guney
Suleyman Guney graduated with a B.Sc. (Hons.) in Materials Science and Engineering from the University of Ondokuz Mayıs, Turkiye. He is presently pursuing an M.Sc. in Metallurgical and Materials Engineering from Gazi University, Turkiye. He is currently working as a researcher at TENMAK-BOREN (Turkish Energy, Nuclear, and Mineral Research Agency—Boron Research Institute). He is mainly working on developing and improving boron applications.
Gulsah Turker
Gülşah Türker obtained her B.Sc. degree from Selçuk University and her M.Sc. from Gazi University in chemical engineering. She gained valuable experience during her 6-year tenure at the TENMAK - BOREN, focusing on flame retardants, boron compound synthesis, boron removal from wastewater, and boron isotope enrichment. For the past 2.5 years, she has been involved in research on the extraction of rare earth elements and critical metals from primary and secondary sources at the TENMAK - NATEN. With one national and four international publications on flame retardants, isotope enrichment, and rare earth element recovery, she has actively participated in various conferences and seminars.
Aysegul Erdem
Dr. Ayşegül Erdem is presently working as an expert in the cable unit of Turkish Standards Institute Directives Department. She received her Ph.D. in 2022 on the Production of flame retardant-based poly (lactic acid) composite material using hidromagnesite-huntite (HH) and synergistic effect studies from Erciyes University. She has published eleven research papers on flame retardancy in polymeric materials.
Firat Hacioglu
Firat Hacioglu has a B.Sc. in Chemistry and Industrial Engineering from Middle East Technical University (METU). He received Ph.D. degree on the topic of “Degradation behavior of polycarbonates and their composites under gamma irradiation” in 2017 from METU. He has published nine research papers. His main research interests consist of degradation behavior of polymers, flame retardants and chemical characterization of polymer-based medical devices.
Ozkan Ozmen
Dr. Özkan Özmen is an assistant professor at Erciyes University’s Department of Industrial Design Engineering. He graduated from the Mechanical Engineering Department at the top of his class. He also pursued a minor in Electrical and Electronics Engineering alongside his main studies. He earned his master’s degree from the Mechanical Engineering Department of Erciyes University and completed his doctorate in 2019 at the Industrial Design Engineering Department. His doctoral thesis was titled “Investigation of the Effects of Surface Texture Geometry on the Performance of Slippers.” He has published seven articles in internationally indexed journals. He is focused on enhancing the properties of filaments used in additive manufacturing and the polymers used in them, including flame retardancy, radiopacity, and mechanical properties.
Mehmet Dogan
Mehmet Dogan has a B.Sc. in Textile Engineering from Ege University. He received Ph.D. degree on the topic of “Production and characterization of boron-containing flame-retardant polyamide-6 and polypropylene composites and fibers” in 2011 from METU. He has published seventy-five research papers. His main research interests consist of flame-retardant polymer composites, functional textiles, and 3D printing of polymer-based materials