Thermal Degradation and Fire Behavior of Posidonia oceanica Epoxy Composites

Abstract

The thermal stability and flammability behavior of an epoxy resin, modified by the addition of Posidonia oceanica (PO) at three concentration levels (8%, 10%, 12% wt.), were investigated by performing thermogravimetric and cone calorimetry tests. The plant was preliminarily dried and milled to obtain a powder with an average size of 80 μm, then dispersed within the resin prior to curing. Scanning electron microscopy and spectroscopic FT-IR analysis on both PO and hybrid composites were carried out to verify the dispersion and the mechanisms of action of the plant within the resin. Results from TGA and cone calorimetry tests showed that the incorporation of PO reduced the thermal degradation rate by simultaneously increasing the residual weight and significantly affected the flammability of the epoxy resin, with a strong reduction in PHHR of up to 52%. Thus, the PO-modified resin at 12% wt was used to realize basalt laminate composites that demonstrated an improvement in fire performance with respect to the neat resin composites.