The AMI conference on Fire Retardants in Plastics took place in Denver, Colorado, May 12-13, 2015 with around 160 participants. Eighteen papers were presented by scientists, industry and stakeholders. The U.S. EPA presented an update of flame retardant evaluations, stating that it just had launched a new tool during January 2015 called “OECD Substitution and Alternatives Assessment Toolbox” (www.oecdsaatoolbox.org) pinfa member companies FRX Polymers and Clariant respectively presented “Flame retardant thermoplastic elastomers based on synergistic combinations of phosphonates and other flame retardants” and “Halogen-free flame retardants for aliphatic and semi-aromatic polyamide formulations”.
Underwriter Laboratories (UL LLC) presented the latest information concerning advances in microscale combustion calorimetry, originally developed by Richard Lyon of U.S. FAA to investigate polymeric materials for use in aviation, which is beginning to see commercial application. Milliken Co. presented a new technology incorporating Nylon and polyester into FR textiles and garments, combining flame retardant performance with apparel comfort.
AMI Fire Retardants in Plastics http://www.amiplastics-na.com/events/Next year’s conference: Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, May 3-4, 2016.