Graphene fire retardant could save lives

First Graphite, an Australian based advanced materials company claims it is on track to delivering a toxic-free and low cost fire retardant that it says could revolutionise the building industry.

The FireStop – a graphene based product, is a joint effort between First Graphite and the University of Adelaide. According to First Graphite, FireStop’s simplicity and effectiveness mean it could hit the market as early as 2018.

Graphene’s versatility as a material has only been discovered fairly recently, with scientists claiming it to be the key to the future of almost all materials. It is extremely thin, measuring only about 0.345nm in thickness, but it is stronger than steel and completely impermeable.

Tests conducted have found that graphene works as an effective barrier to oxygen, which is one of three key elements needed for a fire to burn.  Restricting fire’s access to oxygen will reduce its intensity and limit the generation of heat, hence stopping the expansion of the material and subsequently its destruction.

According to First Graphite, its FireStop product can be brushed or sprayed on material such as wood to enhance its structural integrity and resistance to fire.

As part of the research, the University of Adelaide has prepared FireStop solutions at different graphene concentration levels and found that FireStop coatings are effective at only 33 per cent of the thickness of competitor products.  That means one coating of FireStop is enough to make a piece of material fire resistant, hence saving cost and labour.

A second round of testing is now in progress on a modified version of the graphene to see if the results can be further improved. First Graphite and the University of Adelaide will now look into developing the optimal mixture and application methods to achieve a product that will be sent to an independent organisation such as the CSIRO for third party testing.

Field tests will be arranged on wooden structures coated with FireStop and compared with non-treated structures and on those treated with existing fire retardant products.

First Graphite says the use of FireStop will also prove beneficial to the environment as it could replace existing fire retardants which are mostly made from halogenated material, therefore making them carcinogenic.

With a recent report by Global Market Insights Inc. suggesting the non-halogenated flame retardants market will surpass US$3.4billion by 2024, the future for a product such as FireStop is certainly burning high and bright.

Watch the video below demonstrating the effectiveness of FireStop as a fire retardant.