Different types of flame retardants should be balanced and coordinated development, play their respective importance

Whether the flame retardant is environmentally friendly is not determined by any organization and environmental label, but by the structure and performance of the flame retardant itself. Environmentally friendly Flame Retardants must meet the following three conditions:
First of all, green flame retardants must be non-PBT substances (PBT: Persistent, bio-accumulative and toxic), that is, the release of chemicals to the environment is not persistent, bioaccumulative and toxic, and should be non-CMR substances (CMR: Carcinogenic, mutagenic or toxic for reproduction), that is, no carcinogenic, mutagenic or toxic for reproduction;

Secondly, green flame retardants have minimal impact on the environment throughout the product life cycle, whether in the upstream raw material extraction, production and transportation, or downstream use and recycling. Environmentally friendly flame retardants should have small environmental release, less energy consumption and emission during the life cycle, and are easy to recycle.

Finally, green flame retardants must meet the regulatory and performance requirements of relevant regulations. Based on the above three standards, most of the current halogen-based flame retardants are green.
In addition, based on the fact that any chemical, including flame retardants, may have undetected risks, large flame retardant manufacturers have actively organized the "Release Control Voluntary Action Plan (VECAP)", actively calling on manufacturers and downstream users to continuously improve the process, recycle packaging bags, reduce the release of flame retardants to the environment, and minimize potential harm.
Halogen-free flame retardants and halogen-based flame retardants have different properties, advantages and disadvantages and application fields, and should not be biased. Different flame retardants should be balanced and coordinated development, and play their important roles in fire safety.

According to whether it contains halogen elements (mainly bromine and chlorine elements), flame retardants can be divided into halogen-based flame retardants and halogen-free flame retardants. Among them, halogenated flame retardants (mainly brominated flame retardants) started early, mature technology, the number has nearly 100 kinds, the common products are decabromodiphenyl ether, decabromodiphenyl ethane, tetrabromodiphenol A, hexabromocyclododecane, etc. The halogen-free flame retardants started late, and the common products include phosphorous flame retardants such as phosphate ester and red phosphorus, nitrogenous flame retardants such as melamine that are familiar to the public, and inorganic mineral flame retardants such as aluminum hydroxide and magnesium hydroxide.

At present, the flame retardants used in China's modified plastics are mainly halogen-based flame retardants, and most electronic and electrical products contain halogen-based flame retardants. Therefore, in the Chinese market, halogenated flame retardants play a pivotal role and show a continuous and stable growth trend.