Studying smoldering to flaming transition in polyurethane furniture subassemblies: Effects of fabrics,flame retardants,and material type

The transition from smoldering to flaming was studied on fabric, batting, and foam assemblies via an electric spot ignition source of similar intensity to a cigarette. The materials studied included four different fabrics (cotton, polyester, cotton/polyester blend, flame retardant cotton/polyester blend), two types of batting (cotton, polyester), and three types of polyurethane foam (nonflame retardant, flame retardant by FMVSS 302 testing, flame retardant by BS5852 testing). The results from testing found that materials highly prone to smoldering could propagate smoldering into foams and lead to ignition, whereas materials that tended to melt back from the ignition source did not. Flame retardant fabrics or foam can and do prevent the transition from smoldering to flaming provided sufficient levels of flame retardants are incorporated in the upholstery fabric or foam. The transition from smoldering to flaming of cotton fabric/nonflame retardant foam assembly was also studied using temperature measurements and evolved gas analysis. It was determined that the transition takes place when the oxygen consumption by accelerating smoldering front exceeds the oxygen supply. At this point, the solid fuel gasification becomes driven by thermal decomposition rather than by surface oxidation which leads to high enough concentrations of fuel for flaming combustion to occur.