Yarn passes flame test

Until now, no commercially available, zero-halogen, flame-retardant polyethylene terephthalate has been able to meet this requirement, which is known as the UL 1441 VW-1 flame test.

Fire in an enclosed space, such as an aircraft, is extremely dangerous as occupants can die from smoke inhalation before there is any danger from the flames.

Flame-retardant materials delay the spread of fire, but these typically contain halogenated substances that emit thick black smoke and toxic gases.

Polyethylene-terephthalate yarn meets many of the processing and functional requirements for textiles used in interior vehicle trim and wiring harness insulation, which have applications in vehicles for land, water and air.

International regulations pertaining to flame-retardant properties, however, include a requirement that ’no flaming drips’ are released when the material burns.

Federal-Mogul claims that the innovation behind this breakthrough is the combination of two melamine-based flame-retardant materials. As the materials decompose, they absorb heat, cooling the adjacent burning material and forming a char that prevents the formation of burning drips.