Fire Retardance Treatment of Fabrics for the 80s: Smolder Resistant Cotton Treated with Boric Acid

Abstract

Laboratory scale demonstrations have shown that cotton fabrics and battings that were treated with boric acid had excellent smolder resistance in upholstery composites when exposed to cigarette ignition. The results presented in this paper illustrate a reduction to practice using trimethylborate vapor as a chemical precursor to boric acid by Cotton Incorporated and a cooperator mill of a developmental, pilot operation of this technology. Details examined in the paper include requirements for a means of delivering methylborate to fabric in a dynamic system, chemistry and kinetics of the formation of boric acid, and equilibrated moisturization of fabric to ensure proper and complete reaction.