Databook of Flame Retardants, 2nd Edition

The National Fire Protection Association reported 32,788,713 fires (2023) (almost every second a fire department in the United States responds to a fire), around 5,000 fire deaths (2024) (74% of all fire deaths occurred at home), and 25,500 people were injured in 2024. The total annual economic burden of fires in the United States was between $394 and $893 billion in 2022. These statistics are alarming, and they show why and where the primary emphasis on protection exists.

In view of these statistics, it is not surprising that the development of flame retardants is one of the major targets of the chemical industry. The main categories of flame retardants include halogenated, inorganic, phosphorus, intumescent, and nitrogen types. At the same time, about 30 chemical groups are used in currently active flame retardants, which shows extensive research activity in the field.

The major applications of flame retardants are in products used at home (furnishings, appliances, upholstery, carpets, curtains, fabrics, etc.), electronic and electrical devices (computers, TV sets, phones, wiring, etc.), building construction materials, and transportation products (cars, airplanes, railroad equipment, etc.).

The above applications suggest close contact of humans with materials containing these additives, which emphasizes the effects of their toxicity and the effect on the environment. The most adverse health effects are associated with endocrine and thyroid disruption, impacts on the immune system, reproductive toxicity, cancer, and adverse effects on fetal and child development and neurologic functions. For these reasons, the selection of flame retardants of lower toxicity and the elimination of toxic products are high on the agendas of manufacturers and regulating entities. This results in continuous changes in the availability of additives, making many previously published literature misleading since obsolete products are included in these publications.

The Databook of Flame Retardants contains information on presently used additives in the form of tables containing five sections: General, Physical, Health & Safety, Ecological, and Use. Each section contains available data, as listed below.

General section contains the following fields: product name, CAS #, EC number, acronym, bromine content, calcium contents, chemical class, chemical name, chemical synonym, chemical formula, chlorine contents, iron oxide contents, IUPAC name, magnesium hydroxide contents, magnesium contents, molecular mass, moisture contents, mixture, nitrogen contents, oxygen contents, phenol contents, phosphorus contents, product contents, RTECS #, sodium oxide contents, and silicon dioxide contents.

Physical section contains the following fields: boiling point, brightness, bulk density, color (description, Hazen scale), decomposition temperature, density, dielectric constant, DOP absorption, electrical conductivity, freezing/melting point, flame spread index, glossiness, glass transition temperature, hardness, hydroxyl number, Hegman grind, loss on ignition, loss of weight (TGA), odor, oil absorption, particle morphology, particle size, pH, refractive index, screen analysis, solubility in water, solubility in solvents, specific gravity, state, specific surface area, tinting strength, thermal conductivity, vapor density, vapor pressure, viscosity, and volatility.

Health & Safety section contains the following fields: autoignition temperature, carcinogenicity, eye irritation, flash point and method, hazardous decomposition products, HMIS (fire, health, reactivity),  ICAO/IATA class, IMDG class, inhalation (rat LC50), NFPA (flammability, health, reactivity), rabbit dermal LD50, rat oral LD50, respiratory irritation, shipping name, skin irritation, ACGIH TLV, OSHA PEL, UN risk and safety phrases, and UN/NA class.

Ecological section contains the following fields: aquatic toxicity LC50  for algae, Daphnia magna, Fathead minnow, and Rainbow trout, bioconcentration factor, biodegradation probability, and partition coefficient.

Use section contains the following fields: manufacturer, outstanding properties, alternative product, recommended for products, recommended for resins, processing methods, concentrations used, guidelines for use, limiting oxygen index, and fire/smoke classification.

The above sections include over 100 types of data in total. We use the same set of units to ensure data compatibility. However, data can only be made available if the manufacturing companies provide them.

The second chapter gives the definitions of all fields listed above and includes a description of additives.

The Databook of Flame Retardants is best utilized with the Handbook of Flame Retardants. Each book complements the other without repeating information, with the Databook containing data on over 350 commercial and literature-based products and the Handbook explaining the role of these products, their selection, mechanism of action, use in different polymers and products, and health and environmental issues related to flame retardants.