Rick Cazenave, Chemtura Corporation (now part of the LANXESS group), presented opportunities and challenges in flame retarding polyamides for automobile applications. A considerable development in FR polymers, in particular polyamides, can be expected in automobiles, driven by the increase in onboard electronics.
At the same time, connectors are increasingly miniaturised, leading to demanding performance requirements including heat resistance, processing challenges (injection molding) to produce thin and complex parts including flow and FR dispersion, and avoidance of blistering. Polyamides tend to take up moisture, posing issues for electrical properties, and flame retardants must not accentuate this. At the same time, environment and health concerns are pushing to develop FRs which are large molecules or polymeric.