Improving flame retardant and mechanical properties of ethylene–vinyl acetate by cured compound silicone decorated magnesium hydroxide

Generally, the combustion of ethylene–vinyl acetate (EVA) can be effectively suppressed by the incorporation of 50 wt% magnesium hydroxide (MH), but with limited control on matrix dripping and serious deterioration on its mechanical property. In this work, a surface decorated MH by compound silicone resin (CCSi@MH) was prepared and integrated with red phosphorus (RP) introducing into EVA. The EVA/(5%RP + 45%CCSi@MH) composite achieved V-0 rating in the UL 94 test with a limit oxygen index (LOI) of 31%. The dripping behavior was eliminated. Meanwhile, the mechanical properties were ameliorated by CCSi@MH, which was reflected in both static and dynamic mechanical test. The tensile strength and the elongation at break of EVA/(5%RP + 45%CCSi@MH) composite were improved to 3.7 MPa and 52.3%, which were increased by 48% and 41%, respectively, compared with those of EVA/(5%RP + 45%MH) composite. The prepared CCSi@MH provided an accessible method solving the dilemma brought by MH as flame retardant additives in EVA.