Flame-retardant materials for all circumstances
The choice of materials makes a big difference when it comes to fire safety. Walki is expanding its portfolio of flame-retardant materials to help customers comply with stricter regulation, ultimately saving lives.
The materials used in buildings play a key role when it comes to fire safety. Walki has supplied the construction industry with flame-retardant facings and membranes for several years.
“As customers have needed higher fire classes for their products, we have developed our offering in close collaboration with suppliers of flame-retardant additives and of course our customers”, says Juuso Rinkinen, part of Walki’s Technical Service & Development team for construction facings and of the pioneers of fire safety materials at Walki together with Heikki Viitanen.
Fire safety is not only important in buildings. Every situation where a material can come into contact with oxygen and a source of ignition poses a fire risk. That is why Walki has expanded its offering to include materials in skins for the automotive industry and advertising displays. Walki has also launched a tape with which you combine construction membranes for large surfaces.
Different flame-retardant substances
There are several ways to make materials flame-retardant.
“You can use flame-retardant substances to suppress the chemical reactions in the flame by disrupting the production of free radicals and shutting down the combustion process. Other flame-retardant substances release water molecules that cool the polymer and dilute the combustion process. A third type of flame retardant forms a protective barrier – or char – on the material to hinder the release of additional gases to fuel combustion”, explains Viitanen.
When using flame-retardant substances, you need to consider the features of a wide variety of different materials such as paper, non-woven, aluminium or plastic film. There are also different norms to be considered for different materials. It’s a complex equation, which is why Walki has formed a special team to expand the portfolio of flame-retardant materials.
“Our processes set very high demands on performance, so finding flame-retardant substances off the shelf is a bit of a challenge”, says Rinkinen, who is chairing this “fire brigade”, compiled with representatives from Walki and external parties such as academia, start-ups, producers of flame retardant additives and independent consultants.
“We have built the foundation on optimising the fire performance for specific applications. Now we want to use this foundation to expand our knowledge and establish a systematic and deep understanding on how different materials behave with different substances”, Rinkinen explains.
Rigorous testing for fire safety
It’s important that the portfolio of solutions is compatible with the fire mechanism for different materials and that fit into different norms for flame retardance.
“Each industry has their own norms for fire safety and flame retardance so what you really need is a matrix of different options for different solutions. This is the goal of our expert group”, explains Rinkinen.
The fact that Walki has the possibility to do pilot testing makes the innovation process smoother.
“There are really no ready-made raw materials, you have to innovate and test everything. It’s quite complex as flame-retardancy is just one requirement. You also have to consider product’s functionality and production process “, says Viitanen.
No stone is left unturned with it comes to fire safety.