In recent years, nanocarbon materials have attracted the interest of researchers due to their excellent properties. Nanocarbon-based flame retardant polymer composites have enhanced thermal stability and mechanical properties compared with traditional flame retardant composites. In this article, the unique structural features of nanocarbon-based materials and their use in flame retardant polymeric materials are initially introduced. Afterwards, the flame retardant mechanism of nanocarbon materials is described. The main discussions include material components such as graphene, carbon nanotubes, fullerene (in preparing resins), elastomers, plastics, foams, fabrics, and film–matrix materials. Furthermore, the flame retardant properties of carbon nanomaterials and their modified products are summarized. Carbon nanomaterials not only play the role of a flame retardant in composites, but also play an important role in many aspects such as mechanical reinforcement. Finally, the opportunities and challenges for future development of carbon nanomaterials in flame-retardant polymeric materials are briefly discussed.

In this paper, waterborne epoxy (EP) coatings were modified by the incorporation of synthetic structure (DA/meso-TiO₂) to improve the anticorrosion ability of waterborne epoxy coatings for steel structures. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), nitrogen adsorption–desorption, X-ray diffraction (XRD) and thermo-gravimetric analyses (TGA) were used to characterize textural properties of DA/meso-TiO₂. Corrosion performances of mild carbon steel coated samples were tested by salt spray tests and employing electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS). FTIR, XRD, TGA and nitrogen adsorption–desorption attested to dopamine polymerization within the mesopores and on the surface of meso-TiO₂. The results of EIS and salt spray test showed that the specimen coated with 1.0 wt % DA/meso-TiO₂ exhibited optimum corrosion performance among other coating specimens.

We aimed to study the impact of surface modification of basalt fiber (BF) on the mechanical properties of basalt fiber-based epoxy composites. Four different types of pretreatment approaches to BF were used; then a silane coupling agent (KH550) was applied to further modify the pretreated BF, prior to the preparation of epoxy resin (EP)/BF composites. The combination of acetone (pre-treatment) and KH550 (formal surface treatment) for basalt fiber (BT-AT) imparted the EP/BF composite with the best performance in both tensile and impact strengths. Subsequently, such modified BF was introduced into the flame-retardant epoxy composites (EP/AP750) to prepare basalt fiber reinforced flame-retardant epoxy composite (EP/AP750/BF-AT). The fire behaviors of the composites were evaluated by vertical burning test (UL-94), limiting oxygen index (LOI) test and cone calorimetry. In comparison to the flame-retardant properties of EP/AP750, the incorporation of BF-AT slightly reduced LOI value from 26.3% to 25.1%, maintained the good performance in vertical burning test, but increased the peak of the heat release rate. Besides, the thermal properties and mechanical properties of the composites were investigated by thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), universal tensile test, impact test and dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA).

In this study, we selected basalt fiber (BF) as a functional filler to improve the mechanical properties of ethylene vinyl acetate (EVA)-based flame retardant materials. Firstly, BF was modified by grafting γ-aminopropyl triethoxysilane (KH550). Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), scanning electron microscope (SEM), and energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) were used to comprehensively prove the successful modification of the BF surface. Subsequently, the modified BF was introduced into the EVA/magnesium hydroxide (MH) composites by melt blending. The limiting oxygen index (LOI), UL-94, cone calorimeter test, tensile test, and non-notched impact test were utilized to characterize both the flame retardant properties and mechanical properties of the EVA/MH composites. It was found that the mechanical properties were significantly enhanced without reducing the flame retardant properties of the EVA/MH composites. Notably, the surface treatment with silane is a simple and low-cost method for BF surface modification and the pathway designed in this study can be both practical and effective for polymer performance enhancement.

Mesoporous Y zeolites were prepared by the sequential chemical dealumination (using chelating agents such as ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid, H₄EDTA, and citric acid aqueous solutions) and alkaline desilication (using sodium hydroxide, NaOH, aqueous solutions) treatments. Specifically, the ultrasound-assisted alkaline treatment (i.e., ultrasonic treatment) was proposed as the alternative to conventional alkaline treatments which are performed under hydrothermal conditions. In comparison with the hydrothermal alkaline treatment, the ultrasonic treatment showed the comparatively enhanced efficiency (with the reduced treatment time, i.e., 5 min vs. 30 min, all with 0.2 mol·L⁻¹ NaOH at 65°C) in treating the deal-uminated Y zeolites for creating mesoporosity. For example, after the treatment of a dealuminated zeolite Y (using 0.1 mol·L⁻¹ H4EDTA at 100°C for 6 h), the ultrasonic treatment produced the mesoporous zeolite Y with the specific external surface area (S_external) of 160 m²·g·⁻¹and mesopore volume (V_meso) of 0.22 cm³·g⁻¹, being slightly higher than that by the conventional method (i.e., S_extemal= 128 m²·g⁻¹ and V_meso = 0.19 cm³·g⁻¹). The acidic property and catalytic activity (in catalytic cracking of n-octane) of mesoporous Y zeolites obtained by the two methods were comparable. The ultrasonic desilication treatment was found to be generic, also being effective to treat the dealuminated Y zeolites by citric acid. Additionally, the first step of chemical dealumination treatment was crucial to enable the effective creation of mesopores in the parent Y zeolite (with a silicon-to-aluminium ratio, Si/Al = 2.6) regardless of the subsequent alkaline desilication treatment (i.e., ultrasonic or hydrothermal). Therefore, appropriate selection of the condition of the chemical dealumination treatment based on the property of parent zeolites, such as Si/Al ratio and crystallinity, is important for making mesoporous zeolites effectively.