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Title: Fire‐Resistant Structural Material Enabled by an Anisotropic Thermally Conductive Hexagonal Boron Nitride Coating

Journal Article · · Advanced Functional Materials
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  1. Department of Materials Science and Engineering University of Maryland College Park MD 20742 USA
  2. Department of Fire Protection Engineering University of Maryland College Park MD 20742 USA
  3. Department of Mechanical Engineering University of Maryland College Park MD 20742 USA

Abstract Fire retardant coatings have been proven effective at reducing the heat release rate (HRR) of structural materials during burning; yet effective methods for increasing the ignition temperature and delay time prior to burning are rarely reported. Herein, a strong, fire‐resistant wood structural material is developed by combining a densification treatment with an anisotropic thermally conductive flame‐retardant coating of hexagonal boron nitride (h‐BN) nanosheets to produce BN‐densified wood. The thermal management properties created by the BN coating provide fast, in‐plane thermal diffusion, slowing the conduction of heat through the densified wood, which improves the material's ignition properties. Compared with densified wood without the BN coating, a 41 °C enhancement in ignition temperature ( T ig ), a twofold increase in ignition delay time ( t ig ), and a 25% decrease in the maximum HRR of BN‐densified wood can be achieved. As a proof of concept for scalability, the pieces of the BN‐densified wood are fabricated with a length larger than 25 cm, width greater than 15 cm, and thickness more than 7 mm. The improved thermal management, fire resistance, mechanical strength, and scalable production of BN‐densified wood position it as a promising structural material for safe and energy‐efficient buildings.

Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE
Grant/Contract Number:
DE‐AR0001025
OSTI ID:
1592815
Journal Information:
Advanced Functional Materials, Journal Name: Advanced Functional Materials Vol. 30 Journal Issue: 10; ISSN 1616-301X
Publisher:
Wiley Blackwell (John Wiley & Sons)Copyright Statement
Country of Publication:
Germany
Language:
English
Citation Metrics:
Cited by: 86 works
Citation information provided by
Web of Science

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