Applied Chemistry for Engineering (공업화학)

The Korean Society of Industrial and Engineering Chemistry (한국공업화학회)
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Thickness-Dependent Fire Retardant Performance and Chemical Properties of Phenolic Foam

  • Jisun You (Korea Institute of Civil Engineering and Building Technology) ;
  • Kyeongsin Kang (Korea Institute of Civil Engineering and Building Technology) ;
  • Minseo Lee (Department of Chemistry Education, Kongju National University) ;
  • Minsoo Han (Insulation Biz., LX Hausys) ;
  • Sungyool Bong (Department of Chemistry Education, Kongju National University)
  • Received : 2024.11.01
  • Accepted : 2025.01.10
  • Published : 2025.02.10
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Abstract

In this study, we investigated phenolic foam (PF) materials with different thicknesses: 10T (PF-10), 30T (PF-30), and 50T (PF-50) based on phenolic foam with phosphorous, melamine cyanurate, trialkyl phosphate, and mono pentaerythritol. The PF materials undergo chemical conversion into carbonized materials during fire exposure. Our heat release rate (HRR) and smoke production rate (SPR) tests revealed that both PF-30 and PF-50 thickness-based PF materials effectively retard flame spreading due to the carbonization layer formed by combining phenol foam polymer and carbon nanotubes. From an economic standpoint, a phenolic foam board with a thickness of PF-30 is recommended. Although PF-50 exhibited slightly superior fire retardation properties, its greater thickness poses practical limitations in construction. Specifically, the material usage for PF-50 was approximately 1.7 times that of PF-30. Therefore, considering fire safety and cost-effectiveness, PF-30 emerges as the optimal choice for fire-retardant applications.

본 연구에서는 인산염, 멜라민 시안우레이트, 트라이알킬 인산염, 모노 페타에리트리톨을 포함한 난연성 페놀폼을 기반으로 한 다양한 두께의 페놀폼(PF)인 10T (PF-10), 30T (PF-30), 50T (PF-50)을 평가하였다. PF는 화재 노출 시 화학적 변화를 통해 탄화되며, 열방출률(HRR)과 연기 발생률(SPR)을 시험한 결과, 30T와 50T 두께의 PF 소재가 페놀 폼 폴리머와 탄소 나노 튜브의 결합으로 형성된 탄화층 덕분에 화염 확산을 효과적으로 차단하는 것으로 나타났다. 비록 PF-50이 약간 더 우수한 난연성을 보이지만, 건축과정에서 가격 및 시공두께에 따른 공간 등 실질적인 제한사항이 존재한다. 특히, 두께 영향 요소에서 PF-50의 사용량은 PF-30보다 약 1.7 배 높으므로, 화재 안전성과 비용 효율성을 모두 고려할 때, PF-30이 난연성에 최적의 두께로 판단된다.

Keywords

Acknowledgement

The study was conducted with the support of research funding for the project "Development of Ultra-Fast Fire Prediction, Control, and Response Technology in Industrial Complex," which is a key research initiative of the Korea Institute of Civil Engineering and Building Technology (KICT). This work was supported by the research grant of Kongju National University in 2025.

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